沉香是香王嗎？Is agilawood the best kind of incense component?

     沉香被尊稱為「香中的鑽石」、「香中之王」，因沉香得來不易，沉香樹結香的形成原因很多，但都來自於外界的傷害，沉香樹為了自我防護，會分泌樹脂使傷口癒合，再經過真菌感染後，慢慢结成膏脂狀的結塊物，其中混合了樹脂、揮發油、木材等多種成分。

        Agilawood is considered to be the diamond or king of all the incense components, since it is not always available. As agilawood gets damaged, it creates resin to cover its wounds and protect itself. Meanwhile, the wounds can get infected by the fungi and then turn into paste-like lumps that contain resin, aetherolea, wood, and other ingredients.

 

         

 例如沉香樹仍活著時，受到人為蓄意的斧劈刀砍、或自然的風雨雷劈，稱為「生結」；受到樹上的蟲蟻蛀咬，稱為「蟲漏」；樹木枝幹經過非人為的自然折損，稱為「脫落」。另一種結香方式稱為「熟結」，是沉香樹死後，樹的根部與支幹倒下，伏於地面，或沉入泥土，經年累月受到風、雨露、陽光的洗禮，慢慢分解為油脂成份的凝結狀。有的香樹壽命達數百年之久，其結香就更具天地靈氣了！

    However, if a living agilawood tree gets chopped, damaged in a storm, bitten by insects, or its branches get broken and fall off, there can be some fragrant lumps or holes. On the other hand, after an agilawood tree dies, its root and trunk may fall down on the soil or be buried in the soil. Throughout the years, the wind, rain, and sunshine altogether can decompose the tree and turn it into oily lumps. Some fragrant trees can live up to hundreds of years and their lumps can be even more energetic!

      沉香有很高的藥用價值，根據《日華子本草》記載：「調中，補五臟，益精壯陽，暖腰膝，去邪氣……。」《本草綱目》說:「咀嚼香甜者性平，辛辣者性熱。」《醫林纂要》記載沉香藥效：「堅腎，補命門，溫中、燥脾濕，瀉心、降逆氣，凡一切不調之氣皆能調之。」沉香是中醫常用的珍貴藥材。

    Agilawood has very high medicinal values. According to Compendium of Materia Medica and other related documents, agilawood has been found to be beneficial to males’ reproductive system, kidneys, spleen as well as heart, and furthermore, agilawood can help regulate the functions of our body parts and subsequently make our Chi or energy smooth. If the agilawood you chew tastes sweet and smells good, then it has a neutral property. If the agilawood tastes spicy, then it has a hot property. Agilawood is regarded as a very precious and commonly-used medicinal material.

     沉香含有兩百多種芳香因子，香氣非常獨特，其前、中、後段的香氣各具逸趣，深獲許多人青睞與珍藏。沉香的韻味純淨、穩定、雅正、悠長、柔美，有人形容沉香帶有靈氣，聞過之後，身心都會感覺安定、寧靜，很多人靜坐禪修時，都會以沉香來攝定心神。

    Agilawood has more than two hundreds kinds of fragrant components, so it smells very unique. It can smell quite different in the beginning, middle, and end of the burning process. Many people enjoy and collect agilawood, for the scent of agilawood is pure, stabilizing, elegant, tender, and pleasant. Lots of people feel composed and peaceful when smelling it, and thus they calm down themselves with agilawood during meditation.

    沉香由於希貴，因此會被做成藝術品、佛像雕刻、或手珠、佩件等，已成為時下儒雅或富人的象徵。好的沉香具有收藏價值，價格昂貴，宋朝進士蔡絛寫的《鐵圍山叢談》曾云：「沉香一片值萬錢」，可見沉香在宋朝就已經是非常珍貴的香品了。

   Agilawood is truly rare, so the artifacts or accessories made of it are seen as a token of literacy and wealth. Good-quality agilawood is worth collecting. A learned literate in the Song Dynasty once mentioned in his writing that a piece of great agilawood cost an arm and a leg. That is to say, agilawood has been an exceedingly valuable incense material since the Song Dynasty.

      目前品質高級的沉香每克動輒數萬元，已非一般人所能負擔了。《莊子‧秋水篇》 談到：「以道觀之，物無貴賤；以物觀之，自貴而相賤；以俗觀之，貴賤不在己。」萬物本是平等的，但人的二元意識將外在做了分別，若以沉香做為炫富手段，以價格論定價值，這樣的心態已失去品香的意義了！   

    Currently, high-quality agilawood costs tens of thousands of dollars each gram, which is not affordable to most people. A great thinker, Zhuangzi, remarked that the value of something depends on the angle at which you judge the specific object. As a matter of fact, all the creations are equal; it’s just that humans tend to discriminate the creations based on their binary concepts. If someone shows off himself with the agilawood he owns or simply judges the value of agilawood by its price tag, the mentality is really wrong.