Nippon Kodo
Encyclopedia
Japanese incense
Japanese incense has a long history. It came to Japan from China, along with Buddhism, in the year 538 CE. From that point on, incense would become an important facet of Japanese culture. Initially, it was only imported from China, until eventually Japan began to make its own...
company established August 1965. Since it was established this company has acquired several other incense companies worldwide and have offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Paris, Chicago, Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Tokyo.
Company Name
The name "Nippon Kōdō" is derived from the three words: Nippon, Kō, and Dō.
- Nippon means "Japan"
- Kō means "Incense"
- Dō means "Store"
Morning Star Series
Nippon Kōdō has many series of incenseIncense
Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...
. The most popular series in and outside Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
is the "Morning Star" series.
- AloeswoodAgarwoodAgarwood or oodh is a dark resinous heartwood that forms in Aquilaria and Gyrinops trees when they become infected with a type of mold...
- AmberAmberAmber is fossilized tree resin , which has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Amber is used as an ingredient in perfumes, as a healing agent in folk medicine, and as jewelry. There are five classes of amber, defined on the basis of their chemical constituents...
- CedarwoodCedar woodCedar wood comes from several different trees that grow in different parts of the world, and may have different uses.* California incense-cedar, from Calocedrus decurrens, is the primary type of wood used for making pencils...
- CinnamonCinnamonCinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods...
- Green teaGreen teaGreen tea is made solely from the leaves of Camellia sinensis that have undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures throughout Asia. It has recently become more widespread in the West, where black tea is traditionally...
- JasmineJasmineJasminum , commonly known as jasmines, is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family . It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of the Old World...
- LavenderLavenderThe lavenders are a genus of 39 species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. An Old World genus, distributed from Macaronesia across Africa, the Mediterranean, South-West Asia, Arabia, Western Iran and South-East India...
- MuskMuskMusk is a class of aromatic substances commonly used as base notes in perfumery. They include glandular secretions from animals such as the musk deer, numerous plants emitting similar fragrances, and artificial substances with similar odors. Musk was a name originally given to a substance with a...
- PatchouliPatchouliPatchouli is a species from the genus Pogostemon and a bushy herb of the mint family, with erect stems, reaching two or three feet in height and bearing small, pale pink-white flowers...
- PinePinePines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
- RoseRoseA rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
- SandalwoodSandalwoodSandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant woods from trees in the genus Santalum. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oils are also extracted...
- VanillaVanillaVanilla is a flavoring derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily from the Mexican species, Flat-leaved Vanilla . The word vanilla derives from the Spanish word "", little pod...
Japanese Series
Nippon Kōdō has many other series as well - each consisting of several different incense fragrancesPerfume
Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and/or aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, animals, objects, and living spaces "a pleasant scent"...
, usually named on a common theme. The following series constitute the established product lines in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, but not all fragrances are necessarily available elsewhere.
- Mainichi Kō （毎日香）, Nippon Kōdō's most popular product
- Tokusen Mainichi Kō (特選毎日香), Nippon Kōdō's deluxe version of Mainichi Kō
- Seiun （青雲）, Nippon Kōdō's most popular smokeless product
- Jinkō Seiun （沉香青雲), Nippon Kōdō's most popular aloeswood incense
- Gozan-kōh (五山香）, granulated incense used by many temples, often shipped in bulk
- Kataribe （かたりべ）
- Hanaizumi （花いずみ）
- Tendan （天壇）
- Kafū （花風）
- Eiju （永寿）
- Taiyō （太陽）
- Seiten （清天）
- Kazedayori （風だより）
- Shibayama （芝山）
- Setsugekka/Hanamidō （雪月花・花御堂）
- Dentōdō （伝統香）
Traditional Series
There are 4 incenses in Nippon Kōdō's Traditional Series (伝統香 Dentōdō). These incenses contain the highest quality ingredients of the Nippon Kōdō collection.- Everyday Sandalwood （毎日白檀香 Mainichi Byakudan）
- Fortune Mountain Agarwood （沈香寿山 Jinkō Juzan）
- Diamond Kyara （伽羅金剛 Kyara Kongō）
- Great Prospects Kyara （伽羅大観 Kyara Taikan）