A smudge stick is a bundle of dried herbs, most commonly white sage (Salvia apiana). Often other herbs or plants are added, and the leaves are usually bound with string in a small bundle and dried. Additional herbs and spices that are often used in contemporary practices include cilantro, cedar, lavender, and mugwort. All have a strong, pleasant aroma when burnt.
The English word smudge stick was first applied to describe a specific tool used in North American Native traditions, particularly those that include shamanism. The binding of smudge sticks for many traditions was a sacred intentional process in and of itself. Using scent and scented smoke in rites of purification, whether through smudging (the process of using a smudge stick) or burning incense, is common in many traditional cultures around the world, as noted in ethnographic literature.
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Smudge sticks can be made of a single herb or combination of several different herbs. Traditionally, white sage (Salvia apiana) is used, but common sage (S. officinalis) is frequently used outside of the traditional native American context. Other popular plants include cedar (Cedrus spp.), lavender (Lavandula officinalis), pearly everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea), yarrow (Achillea millefolium), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), balsam fir (Abies balsamea), Silver King Artemesia, juniper (Juniperus communis), or mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris). Smudge sticks can be made from many different herbal materials and the practice of burning herbs for sacred or medical purposes persists in many cultures around the world, for example the common use of incense in Asiatic religions and the use of mugwort for moxibustion in Chinese medicine. In a neo-pagan context smudge sticks are used for clearing away perceived negative energies and may be a component in the working of a ritual and/or the crafting of a magical spell. The herbs are bound together, typically with such materials as cotton, linen, or hemp. Smudge sticks are often handmade by spiritual practitioners prior to use, but they can also be bought from outlets specialising in religious/spiritual supplies, with a wide variation in price.
Smudging in the modern era has been incorporated into many belief systems, including new age spirituality, where it is analogous to censing with a thurible or aspersion. It may also be used in rituals or meditation. Smudging rituals are regarded by their practitioners as psychologically and spiritually cleansing, and as a means to "clear negative energy." Participants can smudge themselves or others by fanning smoke in the appropriate direction, often with other ritual tools such as a bundle of feathers.
For practitioners, the intent behind the ritual is usually considered as important as the actual constituents of the smudge stick. Care is taken to determine the time of day, month, or year when the herbs should be collected; for example, at dawn or evening, at certain phases of the moon, or according to yearly cycles. It is considered respectful to ask permission from the plant before collecting it. Gertrude Allen, a Lumbee, reported that her father, an expert in healing with plants, stated that sage varied in potency at different times of the year. For full potency, he would only gather sage in months that contained the letter ‘r’ and only on the full moon, and was careful to select only crinkled leaves.[1] Smudge stick ceremonies are quite significant at aphelion (when the earth is farthest from the sun), perihelion (when the earth is closest to the sun), equinoxes, and solstices.
The Thames Valley District School Board voted in 2010 to hold an annual smudging ceremony to build relationships with its 1,400 First Nations and Métis students.[2]
Ojibway and Cree ceremonies often use smudges of sage, sweet grass, balsam fir, or juniper for cleansing and to give prayers to the Creator, or Gitche Manitou. Smudges with hot coals underneath can provide a lot of smoke for many hours or days to repel mosquitos and other insects.
In Native American ceremonies smudge sticks were traditionally used to purify people and places. Boughman tells of smudging done in hospitals to "cleanse and repel evil influence." [3]
Smudging is known to have medicinal and religious correlations to spiritual beings. It is a type of ritual that can be done before, during, and after prayer.