How to Burn Cylinder Incense

Put three fingers into the ceramic bowl you have chosen and check it is big enough for you to do this without touching the sides. The walls of the bowl will become hot as the incense burns. If you have to reach inside either to relight the cylinder or put it out, you need enough space so you do not burn your fingers.

Put a small ceramic saucer underneath the bowl. Cylinder incense produces intense heat as it burns. The bowl will become hot and the saucer prevents that heat from damaging the surface beneath the incense burner.

Place pebbles into the bowl, so they form a compact layer in the bottom. The pebbles give an attractive appearance to your incense burner, protect the bowl from any scorch marks caused by hot ash, and stop the base of the bowl from heating up. The pebbles also allow air to circulate beneath the incense, which helps it smolder.

Press an incense cylinder into the pebbles in the center of the bowl. Keep the cylinder's coated end uppermost. Jog the bowl to check the cylinder is well set among the pebbles and will not topple over. Your bowl should be large enough to contain the whole cylinder if it does fall over. The walls of the bowl should be at least 1 inch tall to prevent the cylinder falling out.

Place the bowl and saucer in a position where children or pets cannot reach it. Check there are no flammable materials, such as wood or alcohol, nearby. Avoid placing the burner directly below shelves or curtains that could get discolored by the smoke or present a possible fire risk.

Strike a match and hold the flame to the coated end of the incense cylinder for around 10 seconds. When you take the flame away, the cylinder may briefly flare, but it should settle down to the required gentle smolder almost immediately.

Puff out any flames you see coming from the cylinder if it does not settle into a smolder after 20 seconds. A sharp breath is normally all you need to extinguish the flame. The cylinder should then quietly smolder and produce its fragrance. If not, relight the cylinder and quickly puff out any flames once again.

Extinguish a smoldering cylinder when you no longer require the fragrance by upending it and pressing the hot end down into a metal can filled with sand.