Thank you, as always, for your support. This is Masahiko Kikuya, owner of Kohgen.
Once again this year, the famous incense viewing (meiko kanshokai) will be held at the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya. At a viewing like this, usually one kind of fragrant wood is burned per session, but the Tokugawa Art Museum burns three kinds every year. Three is truly remarkable.
2009
In 2009, the following three were burned. It was my first experience of hearing two of the Sixty-One Famous Incenses at one sitting.
- Todaiji — Kyara, one of the Sixty-One Famous Incenses
- Sode no Ka — Manaka, named by Emperor Higashiyama
- Yokihi — Kyara, one of the Sixty-One Famous Incenses
2010
- Yatsuhashi — Rakoku, one of the Ten Famous Incenses (Shino school’s eleven)
- Genso — Kyara, one of the Sixty-One Famous Incenses
- Fujinami — Kyara, named by Nakanoin Michimura
After the viewing, we could see the burned wood itself up close. Along with the three famous incenses, a piece of Manaka was also on display.
2012
In 2011 the viewing overlapped with a business trip abroad, so sadly I could not attend. To make up for it, in 2012 I attended on both days. Perhaps because it rained on the second day, the fragrance was even more wonderful. Again, three were burned:
- Miyoshino — Kyara, one of the Sixty-One Famous Incenses
- Mine no Matsu — Shin-Kyara
- Tsuki no Shitakaze — Rakoku
I am already looking forward to seeing which fragrant woods will be shown this year. Incense lovers come from all over Japan, and talking with them before and after the incense session is another of the pleasures of the day.
Read more: The 2014 Famous Incense Viewing
Masahiko Kikuya, Owner of Kohgen
