You can purify a room by releasing the special essences contained within the dried leaves and twigs of high mountain herbs. When these dried mountain herbs are used as incense, fire energy releases the purity of the mountain air into your living space. When the herbs come from holy mountains the essence is far subtler, and thus operates not so much at the level of waking consciousness but affects the mind at a subliminal level.
The most famous holy mountain is probably Mount Kailash. Believed by the Hindus to be the abode of their Gods and by the Buddhists to be the pure land of their Buddha deities, Mount Kailash stands, magnificent and forbidding, on the Chinese side of the Himalayan mountains. It is said that if you can pick just a single strand of the special herbs that grow near the base of this mountain and then mix them with your pot pourri or other incense powder, it will have the power to purify a thousand lifetimes of negative karma.
The Buddhists believe that even when you reach the base of the mountain, no matter how fit you are if you do not yet have the karma to scale the heights of this holy mountain you will not be able to take even a single step forward. Yet many holy pilgrims make it to the paths of this holy mountain. Many who come by foot from Tibet make prostrations all round the mountain, as this is believed to be one of the most powerful practices for purifying eons of negative karma. For those of us who might never make it to such holy places, the next best thing is to be “bathed” in the aroma of high mountain herbs.
Another holy part of the Himalayas at approximately 13,000 ft (4,000 mts) above sea level there are numerous holy caves where mountain hermit lamas spent their lives mediating. Here too it is believed are hidden the precious texts buried by the highly revered Lotus Buddha, also known as Padmasambhave or Guru Rinpoche — the precious teacher.
Guru Rinpoche is credited with bringing Buddhism to Tibet, and the Tibetan holy texts speak of many scriptures hidden in this part of the Himalayas. From there comes the famous Lawado incense made from mountain herbs near the Lawado cave, home of the lawado lama who has taken rebirth in this life as Lama Zopa Rinpoche. I have the great good fortune of being a student of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and it is through knowing Rinpoche that my eyes have been opened to the wonderful purity of incense from these high mountains.
If you can, get some of this lawado incense and burn it at least once a month to purify your space. If not, search for incense that comes from other holy mountains on other continents. The purity of the air in which they grow makes them wonderful purifying agents and burning such incense not only cleanses the space, but also creates harmony between yin and yang and amongst the different realms of consciousness.
