http://native-pride.net/2015/12/22/356/
All Western use of burning herbs and plants for spiritual purposes
aside, the activity rests firmly in the sensibilities of ancient
cultures in that, historically, smudging was believed to put forth the
spirits of various ‘allies’ to provide ease and balance to an individual
or group.
The research included information from 50 countries over 5 continents
and found that, predominantly, smoke administered medicinally is mostly
used to aid lung, brain and skin function. In addition, it was revealed
that passive fumes doubled as a sort of air purifier.
In short, burning medicinal herbs cleared airborne bacterial
populations by 94%, and the space was still found to be disinfected a
day later. What’s more, a month after smudging, much of the pathogens
originally found were still undetectable.
This has profound implications, as modern air quality in the developed and undeveloped world is atrocious, containing up to 1800 bacterial types, many of them pathogenic. With an increasing deadly array of antibacterial-resistant strains, we’ll need all the help we can get.