The last pigment in this series is the ash of burnt sandalwood incense, which, applied in different numbers of layers form the various shades of grey.
Sandalwood is considered a sacred tree, incense made from same is used in religious rituals and worships. It is believed to transform one's desires and bring one closer to the divine. In Catholicism, it typifies prayers "enkindled in the heart by the fire of God's love."
Everyday, in the morning and in the evening, before breakfast and dinner, for as long as I could remember, my grandmother burnt incense for the bodhisattvas and the ancestors, and prayed to the Goddess of Mercy. After my grandmother's death, my mother and I took over the practice of honoring the gods and ancestors with incense. I've been saving the ash of the incense I burnt ever since.
That's a lot of ash! I can feel the peace and reverence. In all of them actually. Kind of like in the other ones.
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