Young artisans revive curative benefits of Chinese incense

A growing number of Chinese youth are being drawn to the meditative, spiritual and healing aspects of Chinese incense, which they see as an antidote to the fast pace of modern life.

Incense stick sales on e-commerce platform Tmall have surged 40-fold over the past year, with year-on-year growth exceeding 500 percent in April and May, according to a report released in July by Moojing Market Intelligence.

Yuan Dian, 29, has worked in a high-pressure job as a project manager for an internet company in Beijing for five years. During this year's Spring Festival she returned home to Wuhan, Hubei province, where she had a reunion with her childhood friends.

One of her friends, who has a busy life in Shanghai, advised her to burn Chinese incense with medicinal properties to improve blood circulation, calm the mind, and improve sleep. After trying it a few times, Yuan quickly fell in love with the ritual.

"Watching the thin spirals of smoke rise, and the ash delicately fall around the incense burner, I find a profound beauty," she said, adding that burning Chinese incense gives her a unique sense of tranquillity with a "certain healing quality".