making moxa?!

[forrestdweller]

last year this time i was in korea when my knee decided to play up. my host decided to treat this with moxibustion, a form of traditional chinese/korean medicine where small amounts of a fluffy substance called ""moxa"" (made from mugwort leaves) are burned on the skin. so while i watched a 3/4" hole being burned into my knee (with my agreement)- i still have a scar...- i had one of my "HHMMM...." moments..... . so afterwards i grabbed a bit of the stuff, placed it onto a piece of rock, struck twice with my "raku raku" striker and : voila! ember afterwards i tried to make some moxa (as it would make a good alternative to charcloth) but all experiments failed as i was not able to get is as fluffy as the original. my research (incl. youtube) was fruitless and as i had other issues to solve afterwards i gave up experimenting. today my afternoon walk took my past a stand of mugwort down at the river which brought back memories of last year so i'm planning to have another go.

has anyone made ""moxa" and if yes how?!

 

[Toddy]

It's easy. It grows as a weed along the roadsides here. Just gather the leaves and dry them, they rub up into a very flammable mix that burns with a beautiful white smoke. Smells good too. It's one of the old hearth herbs, and it's name means that it was used against midgies and the like.
For good moxa you can also gather and dry the just opening flower tops and dry and rub them up.

The young leaves of the atemesia vulargia are the most aromatic, but they all work. The dried Winter stems if gathered and broken up act as fire crackle and the tubular nature helps to draw a small fire or embers into flame.

Good stuff. Used to be used in old smoking mixtures too though I'm sure someone said that it was not recommended nowadays.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[forrestdweller]

It's easy. It grows as a weed along the roadsides here. Just gather the leaves and dry them, they rub up into a very flammable mix that burns with a beautiful white smoke.

that's what i tried last year but the result was less likely to catch a spark then moxa which is more fluffy then what i got.....

 

[Toddy]

No idea. I've just gone out to the garden, rubbed up a bit of the not yet quite dry flowering tops that I have hanging in bunches and it worked fine. Took a spark, and then sat there on the path smoking away and glowing into charcoal with just the light breeze.

I suspect though that the stuff you might have gotten hold of previously has been 'mechanically ground' using a weed grinder or the like.
They cost pennies, but they're very good for making grinding up herbs like sage as well as for making smoking mixtures.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Grinder-H...arts-Tobacco-Weed-Extra-Storage-/151671190556

M

 

[Tommyd345]

What is this weed called so I can google some pics? It sounds like a useful plant

 

[Toddy]

Hah, hah, hah.



Look on it this way, it grinds up any weed….from mugwort to sage, from feverfew to the wild marjoram. It's not just for those who make their own smoking mixtures.

M

 

[forrestdweller]

What is this weed called so I can google some pics? It sounds like a useful plant

i thought i mentioned in post #1 that i was referring to mugwort (artemisia species)..... AND i'm only after firemaking, no something to smoke!

 

[forrestdweller]

No idea. I've just gone out to the garden, rubbed up a bit of the not yet quite dry flowering tops that I have hanging in bunches and it worked fine. Took a spark, and then sat there on the path smoking away and glowing into charcoal with just the light breeze

sounds like you took the flowering tops while i tried the leaves- which might expleain things.... . did you light it with a ferro rod or a traditional flint-and-steel kit (as i did)?!

 

[Toddy]

Are there different mugworts over there though ?
I hadn't really thought to look it up.
I can recommend those little shark teeth grinders, the metal ones are supposedly better, but since I grew up with the whole, "Don't use metal near your herbs" type adage, I just bought the acrylic ones and they've lasted years.
Not expensive either if you just want to give it a try.

What do the Japanese use to make their version of Moxa? because that's used under a tiny little plate of silica to burn incense.

Might be worth a rake through the incense books and seeing if we can't find instructions.

cheers,
M

 

[Toddy]

sounds like you took the flowering tops while i tried the leaves- which might expleain things.... . did you light it with a ferro rod or a traditional flint-and-steel kit (as i did)?!

I just used flint and steel. It's sitting on the shelf at the back door (handy to go and play ) I ruffled up the mugwort, held a wee bundle of it under the flint and struck it with the steel. It caught two sparks at once, and quietly bloomed into red and then loads of white smoke.

M

 

[forrestdweller]

I just used flint and steel. It's sitting on the shelf at the back door (handy to go and play ) I ruffled up the mugwort, held a wee bundle of it under the flint and struck it with the steel. It caught two sparks at once, and quietly bloomed into red and then loads of white smoke.

M

that's what i use too (no ferro rods for me- they're a pet hate of mine...)

i think there lots of different species of mugwort- @ least here they have smaller leaves then the one i tried last year in korea...)- so results may vary.... . yesterday evening i collected some leaves-i'm going to mash them up in a wooden mortar,; see what happens when they're dry...

i'll see if i can find a japanese who speaks enough english and understands what i'm after but that might take long time (and some luck, too) ...

 

[Toddy]

I'm interested to hear what you find out
I have a pet hate of artificial smells and house scents. I know that for many it's a reminder of the natural world, but I'm lucky; that natural world, even if it's only a garden and a strip of woodland, is right on my doorstep. I do like natural incenses though, the ones made from resins and our own leaves, etc.,

M

 

[forrestdweller]

i collected a bunch of leaves(the flowers are not ready yet) a few days ago; some of them i just crushed between my hands, some of them in a wooden bowl with a stone. result so far: both methods take a spark But only after ca. 10""hits"" of the steel 8which might have to do with the high humidity here... 89% right now), the handcrushed sample works strangely a bit better.... . so far i still have not gotten to the consistence of the original moxa....


edit: i just found this link (which seems to be a new one...): http://community.poppyswap.com/8400/how-to-make-moxa/