Kyphi Class

The Kyphi class on Saturday was successful, and we made some super fabulous Kyphi. It was based on a traditional Egyptian-style Kyphi (with some substitutions), and then 'sealed' with rose petals at the end. Since the raw materials didn't get the traditional day-long grinding treatment, this Kyphi is chunky. Someone told me it looks like farm animal something-or-other, which, in all honesty, it does. Cow plop comes to mind. But rest assured, it smells nothing like farm animal something-or-other. It's very intensely and beautifully sweet and resinous and reminiscent of the last batch of class made Kyphi. It still has to be massaged to fully incorporate the ingredients since it was a one-day event and not a month-long, as it usually takes to make a batch, but the energy from the multitude of hands that went into the batch really shines. This Kyphi hums.

We are considering doing a Kyphi gathering once a month, or once every other month, to pull as much energy into the final product as possible, because I swear, that's what makes Kyphi fabulously fabulous. Also, making Kyphi with no power tools (aka coffee grinders) always makes for a better end product. Kyphi deserves this by-hand treatment beginning to end. I believe we've tentatively set the date for the next Kyphi event for the 20th of September, wherein we will wild-harvest as many of the ingredients that we can that we will be using for the new Kyphi (a Native American themed Kyphi), drying them, then beginning the process of grinding, mixing, praying, singing, and more grinding. We won't be using frankincense and myrrh in this blend, but will be using lots of pine, fir, and pinon resins, plus cedar wood and leaf, white sage, sweet grass, juniper berries, maybe a bit of manzanita, and the fruit portion will be played by wild-harvested elderberries. I am also seriously considering making some of my own wine for these Kyphi projects (and I have used homemade spirits in a previous Kyphi project). I've made wine before and they've run the gamut from okay to meh in the drinking department, but I think they would work nicely in Kyphi. Perhaps some day I'll make a mead-based Kyphi. The possibilities -- I'm telling you -- are as limitless as the natural raw materials one can gather. The more I learn about Kyphi and it's possibilities, the more I see how many people have walked this path and found a calling with Kyphi.

The administrator at The Natural Perfume Academy and I are considering opening a Kyphi course soon. If anyone is interested, please let me know. The course will be done entirely online and can be self-paced if you need the extra time. I think we may set it up as a two-month course. Our courses are constantly being updated, and once you're a student, as long as you remain engaged, you are welcome to check in on future courses without having to pay all over again. The Kyphi course will include additional information that isn't in the booklet. The Kyphi booklet was written to be included in a class, workshop, or course setting, however, it can be used as the first stepping stone toward creating awesome Kyphi incense on its own.