October 30, 2024 This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlightedthe following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: fact-checked trusted source proofread by Utrecht University A commercialized New Age ritual is causing not only "unwanted energies" to go up in smoke, but also foreign wild plants. A study by Utrecht University researchers Isabela Pombo Geertsma and Anastasia Stefanaki, alongside colleagues from Wageningen UR and Naturalis Biodiversity Center, reveals that dried plant bundles sold in the Netherlands for ritual burning often include plants from distant regions.
In a paper in the journal Plants , the researchers show that many of these bundles contain white sage (Salvia apiana), a North American plant that may be harvested unsustainably to meet the rising demand. For thousands of years, religious ceremonies around the world have involved burning or smoldering dried plant material, releasing smoke. The smoke is often used to create a 'sacred' atmosphere or for the purpose of connecting with ancestors and spirits.
In North America, various Indigenous groups use tightly bound bundles of dried plants in their traditional ceremonies. These bundles, known as smudge sticks, are lit at one end. The released smoke is used, for instance, to "purify" a home after illness or with the intention to promote success in hunting.
Different Indigenous groups utilize various types of wild plants for thes.
