Burning passion

"The way the Bai and Miao ethnic groups plant their ingredients and make incense was an eye-opener to me," Li says.

He also learned from his travels to France, Ukraine, the Middle East and South America.

"I found that we all had a lot in common and have complementary techniques and philosophies to share."

Li has integrated these experiences into his family recipes and created such products as herbal paper and teas. He has also shared his expertise with other incense makers.

In 2008, Li founded a company to produce medicinal incense for sale.

"It didn't get a mass-market response at first because I found many people associated incense with religion," Li says.

Things started to look up, however, when his business was named as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2014.

"We got more publicity in places like museums, and more people have realized that incense is part of traditional Chinese medicinal culture," he says, adding that sales have gone up since 2014.

"History proves the incense business thrives with prosperity, as public demand increases as quality of life improves," he says.

Li strictly follows tradition.

"Everything has to be natural and follow protocols that have been tested and proved," Li says.

Ingredients must be weighed carefully to ensure a balanced product, and procedures must be taken to reduce or remove unwanted properties.

For example, incense made out of red sandalwood and safflower can be used to boost blood circulation, which is good for people living in the north, because they may more likely have cardiovascular problems, especially during the chilly winters. However, red sandalwood is too potent to be used alone and must be balanced out by tea leaves, cassia cinnamon or honey, Li says.

Certain kinds of incense can only be made at particular times of year.

It takes about 24 different steps and a year to make herbal incense the old-fashioned way. The steps include selecting ingredients, screening, grinding, processing, formulating, drying, molding and packaging. Li says that he can only make around 1,000 boxes of incense a year.

He has stuck to a regular but unconventional daily routine over the years. He often wakes up and begins his day after noon because incense making usually has to take place late at night.

"Most incense is in its best condition when made at late hours of the night until the early morning," he says. "Incense made during this time smells the best and is the most potent."

He explains that it has to do with the natural ingredients' circadian rhythms.

Since Li has been living with and breathing herbs his entire life, their fragrance seems to have literally rubbed off on him.

"People say I have a herbal scent, even if I've just taken a bath," Li says.

He recently made an online video with Beijing's municipal culture and tourism bureau to teach the public how to make herbal incense at home.

"It not only helps purify the air at home but also gives residents something to do and, thus, peace of mind during the virus outbreak," Li says. To date, the video has received 400,000 views.

Li is still busy making herbal incense for those in need, especially his friends abroad, as the virus situation is growing increasingly grave around the world.

Speaking about his future plans, Li says he will continue to focus on what he has already been doing: making medicinal incense and allowing people to enjoy its benefits.

Contact the writer at yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn