Opoponax: Sweet Myrrh Incense, Uses and How to Burn It

What opoponax is

Opoponax is a gum resin from the genus Commiphora, the same genus that gives us myrrh, in the plant family Burseraceae, which also includes frankincense. The trees and shrubs grow in the dry lowlands of the Horn of Africa, in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya. When the bark is cut or cracked, a sap seeps out and hardens in the air into irregular tears, honey-brown to deep reddish brown. The opoponax in today's trade comes mostly from Commiphora holtziana; because of the close relationship and the milder scent it is widely called sweet myrrh.

Hold the two resins side by side and you can barely tell them apart by eye. You can tell by nose. Myrrh is bitter, dry and earthy; opoponax is soft, sweet and balsamic. That warmth is what made opoponax a classic material in perfumery, where its extract adds depth and a golden, almost animalic sweetness to amber and oriental compositions. Some of the most famous warm perfumes of the twentieth century are described by perfumers as built on an opoponax note.

Opoponax at a glance

Property	Detail
Botanical source	Commiphora holtziana and related species
Plant family	Burseraceae, the frankincense and myrrh family
Region	Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya
Appearance	Irregular tears, honey-brown to reddish brown, dusty surface
Scent	Sweet, balsamic, soft
Main uses	Incense, perfumery

A name that invites confusion

The name has a history of its own. Opopanax, the ancient spelling, meant something different in Greek and Roman medical books. Writers such as Dioscorides and Pliny used it mostly for the gum of a Mediterranean plant in the carrot family, Opopanax chironium, a tall yellow-flowered umbellifer. The word itself is Greek: opos, plant juice, and panax, all-healing, the same root as the word panacea. That plant gum had nothing to do with the African Commiphora resin we burn today. Only later did the handsome name drift over to sweet myrrh in the trade.

What this means for you: when you read about opopanax in an old text, it is not automatically the resin in your jar. And when a seller promotes opoponax with quotes from antiquity, some skepticism is fair. The ancient remedy and the modern incense share a name, not a plant.

Opoponax and myrrh compared

Two resins, one genus

Feature	Opoponax	Myrrh
Botany	Commiphora holtziana and others	Commiphora myrrha
Scent	Sweet, balsamic, soft	Bitter, resinous, earthy
Traditional themes	Protection, perception, intuition, inspiration	Grounding, reflection, mourning, calm
Mood	Warm, inviting, creative	Serious, gathering, deep
Pairs well with	Frankincense, benzoin, sandalwood	Frankincense, cedar, rose

For more on the bitter sister, see our guide to burning myrrh resin, and for the third member of the family, burning frankincense.

What opoponax is burned for

In today's incense practice opoponax stands for two things that do not seem to belong together at first: protection and openness. The resin is said to ground people who have lost their footing, and it is described as having been used in various cultures to ward off harmful influences. At the same time it is linked with sharpened perception, intuition and inspiration, which is why many people burn it before creative work.

Maybe that is less of a contradiction than it sounds. Creative work takes feeling safe enough to risk something. A scent that feels both sheltering and awake is a good companion for that. Whether that comes from the opoponax itself or from the quiet moment you take by lighting incense cannot be separated, and it does not need to be.

How to burn opoponax

Opoponax is economical and its scent lingers. On a mesh screen over a tea light, sold in the U.S. as an incense warmer or resin burner, it melts slowly and shows mostly its sweet, balsamic side. That is the nicest way to get to know it. On charcoal in a heat-safe bowl filled with sand the scent becomes stronger and smokier. Let the charcoal disc glow through completely, which takes a few minutes and leaves it covered in gray ash, before you place a pea-sized piece on top. Our step-by-step guide on how to burn resin incense on charcoal covers the details, and how to choose an incense burner helps with the hardware.

In blends, opoponax pairs well with frankincense, which brightens it, and with benzoin, which deepens its sweetness. If you want a serious, deep protective blend, add a single grain of myrrh. A simple starting ratio: three parts frankincense, two parts opoponax, one part benzoin, ground coarsely and used a pinch at a time.

Which resin fits today?

A quick way to choose between the two sisters, based on how you feel right now:

• You want to make something and cannot get started: opoponax on a screen, pure, for its warm and open sweetness.
• You need calm and depth because something is ending: myrrh, pure and slow on charcoal.
• You feel unprotected and scattered: opoponax with a grain of myrrh, the sweetness for comfort and the bitterness for weight.

What people notice when they try it

People who smell opoponax on a screen for the first time are often surprised by how little it smells like church. Most resins call up frankincense and Sunday services; opoponax reminds people more of a warm perfume or of honey. Especially those who find classic frankincense too austere often find their way into burning resin through this one.

Experienced incense makers like to use opoponax as a binding element in their own blends: it rounds off sharp herbs and makes bitter resins more approachable. A common piece of advice is to get to know it pure before mixing it, because otherwise you never know which note actually comes from it.

Buying opoponax: what to look for

In American shops opoponax turns up under several names: opoponax, opopanax, sweet myrrh and sometimes bisabol myrrh. Those names are not always used for exactly the same species. Bisabol myrrh, for example, is often traced to Commiphora guidottii or Commiphora erythraea, and some sellers use the labels interchangeably. That is not fraud so much as a trade habit, but it means two jars called sweet myrrh can smell noticeably different. If a seller names the species, that is a good sign.

A few simple checks help. Good opoponax comes as irregular tears or chunks, honey-brown to dark reddish brown, often with a dusty, slightly matte surface that turns glossy where it breaks. Crush a small piece between your fingers: it should feel waxy and slightly sticky and release a sweet, warm smell even unheated. Very uniform powder is easier to stretch with cheaper material, so whole pieces are the safer buy. Store the resin in a closed glass jar, away from heat and sunlight; kept that way it stays fragrant for years.

Price is a rough guide as well. Opoponax usually costs more than common frankincense and a little less than good myrrh. A jar that is far cheaper than both deserves a second look, and a sniff.

Finally, a note on sourcing. The Horn of Africa is a region of drought and political instability, and resin harvesting there is often the work of pastoralist families who depend on it for cash income. Sellers who can say where their resin comes from, and who buy through established cooperatives or exporters, are more likely to pay fairly and to support tapping that leaves the trees healthy.

Smoke, apartments and pets

Like every incense, opoponax produces smoke, and smoke strains the airways. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency counts burning incense among the indoor sources of fine particles. If you have asthma, are pregnant, or share your home with birds, cats or small animals, burn sparingly or not at all, keep animals out of the room and air it out afterward. Birds in particular react strongly to smoke; our guide on whether incense is safe for cats, dogs and birds explains why. In an apartment, a screen over a tea light produces far less smoke than charcoal and is less likely to set off a detector; incense in an apartment has more practical tips.

What we do not promise

We do not claim that opoponax protects you, strengthens intuition or dissolves creative blocks. These meanings come from incense practice and seller descriptions, not from testable studies. What a scent does for you depends on you, not on the resin alone. Do not put raw resin or undiluted resin oil on your skin, and keep resin away from children and pets, who may chew it.

Practically: how to work with it

• Get to know it pure first. One small piece on a screen, ten minutes of just smelling.
• Choose your method. Screen for the soft, sweet side; charcoal for a stronger room-clearing smoke.
• Dose sparingly. A pea-sized piece is enough for a room.
• Combine. Frankincense for brightness, benzoin for more sweetness, myrrh for depth.
• Buy tears, not powder. Whole tears are harder to adulterate; ask the seller which species they sell.
• Air out. Open a window when you are done.

Frequently asked questions

What is opoponax?

A gum resin from Commiphora trees and shrubs of East Africa, in trade mostly Commiphora holtziana. It is a close relative of myrrh and is therefore also sold as sweet myrrh.

What does opoponax smell like?

Sweet, balsamic and soft, with a honeyed warmth. It is much milder than the bitter, earthy smell of myrrh, which is why perfumers use it in warm amber and oriental blends.

What is the difference between opoponax and myrrh?

Both come from the genus Commiphora. Opoponax smells sweeter and softer and is linked in incense practice with protection and intuition; myrrh smells bitter and resinous and is linked with grounding, reflection and mourning.

How do I burn opoponax?

Place a pea-sized piece on a mesh screen over a tea light for the gentlest, sweetest scent, or on a fully glowing charcoal disc in a bowl of sand for a stronger smoke. Air the room afterward.

Is opoponax the same as the opopanax of ancient texts?

Usually not. In Greek and Roman medical books opopanax mostly meant the gum of a Mediterranean plant in the carrot family, Opopanax chironium. The opoponax burned today comes from African Commiphora species.

Is opoponax smoke safe around pets?

Like any incense it produces smoke that strains the airways. Keep pets, and birds in particular, out of the room, use very little and ventilate well. People with asthma or who are pregnant should burn sparingly or not at all.

Sources and further reading

• Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: Commiphora holtziana and Opopanax chironium.
• Dioscorides, De materia medica, and Pliny the Elder, Natural History, on opopanax.
• Arctander, Steffen: Perfume and Flavor Materials of Natural Origin (1960), entries on opoponax and myrrh.
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Introduction to Indoor Air Quality, combustion sources and particulate matter.
• More in the magazine: Myrrh · Frankincense · Copal · Dragon's blood

Incense traditions are described here as traditions. Nothing in this article is medical advice. Questions about an order: 28@templeofdesire.com.