Marigold & Lotus: the ritual

Marigold & Lotus is for a warm, slow evening, especially in the dark months around Diwali. You fill a white oil burner with water, add a few drops of marigold, the orange flower of Indian garlands, and light a tealight beneath. Next time you try lotus, softer and cooler. What you take away is a room that smells of flowers in the middle of winter, and a small flame that belongs to the festival of lights.

Where the custom comes from

Walk into a Hindu temple in India, or past a doorway at Diwali, and you will see marigolds: thick strings of orange and yellow flowers hung over doors and gods, piled on trays as offerings, scattered on the floor. Diwali, the festival of lights, falls in October or November. Families clean their homes, light rows of small clay oil lamps called diyas on doorsteps and windowsills, and welcome Lakshmi, the goddess of good fortune, who is shown seated on a lotus.

The garland marigold has a well-travelled story. It is a Tagetes, native not to India but to Mexico and Central America, where it is called cempasúchil and still lines the ofrendas of the Day of the Dead. It is generally thought to have reached India by sea in the sixteenth century. One flower, two festivals of light and memory, on opposite sides of the world.

The lotus is older in both places. In India the sacred lotus rises from the mud of a pond and opens clean above the water, and in Hindu and Buddhist art gods and teachers sit or stand on it. In ancient Egypt the blue lotus of the Nile, which opens in the morning and closes at dusk, was painted on the walls of tombs and temples. Banjara's lotus oil is named for that Nile lotus.

Why a tealight under the bowl

A Diwali diya is a small flame in a clay bowl. An oil burner is a close cousin: a tealight sits in the base, a bowl of water sits above, and a few drops of oil float on the water. The flame warms the water slowly and the scent rises with it. Only the tealight burns, so there is no smoke and no ash.

We chose the Moon & Star Oil Burner from Ancient Wisdom, a large classic white ceramic burner with a moon and a star cut into it. The light shines through the shapes, so the burner glows like a little night sky.

The Scented Tealights · Lavender are six tealights of 10 g each, burning about four hours. Lavender adds a clean, soft note underneath the flowers, like linen beside a vase.

The scent

Banjara describes the marigold oil as warm, floral and a little spicy. If you have ever held a fresh marigold garland, you know the smell: not sweet like a rose but green and slightly peppery, with something warm underneath. Many people find it bright and cheerful, a scent with colour in it.

The lotus oil, Lotus of the Nile, is soft and floral. It is quieter, rounder and cooler than the marigold, like water lilies on a still pond in the evening.

Why these two? Marigold is the warm one, orange, lively, a festival scent. Lotus is the cool one, still, an evening scent. We chose them for the dark half of the year, when flowers are rare.

Why these pieces

The two Banjara fragrance oils. Two bottles of 10 ml, marigold and lotus of the Nile, made by Banjara in India as fragrance oils for oil burners and diffusers. They are for scenting a room only: a few drops in water, never on the skin, never to swallow. A small note on names: in German this oil is sold as Ringelblume, which is a different plant, the calendula. The flower of the Indian garlands is botanically a Tagetes. Both are called marigold in English.

The oil burner and the tealights carry the warmth, as above.

Together they tell one story: a little clay lamp grown into a white burner with a moon and a star, warm water, and two temple flowers taking turns.

Moon & Star Oil Burner

Scented Tealights · Lavender

How to do the ritual

1. Choose your evening. A Diwali evening, the first dark evening of autumn, or any evening that needs some colour.
2. Set the burner on a fireproof surface. A stone windowsill, a ceramic tile, a metal tray. Away from curtains and shelves, out of a draught.
3. Fill the bowl with water. Well up, but not to the brim.
4. Add a few drops of marigold. Three to five drops into the water. The oil goes into the water only, never on your skin.
5. Light a tealight and set it beneath. Turn down the lamps and watch the moon and star appear.
6. Set your intention. One line is enough, said or thought: Let there be light in this house tonight.
7. Sit with it. Let the scent spread slowly. Stay nearby while the tealight burns.
8. Put the tealight out before the bowl runs dry. Top up with a little water if you want to keep going. Never leave the flame alone.
9. Next time, try lotus. Softer and cooler, for a quieter evening.

What the ritual gives you

It gives you an evening with flowers in it when there are none outside, and a small flame that connects your windowsill to one of the great festivals of light. It is not a temple rite; it simply borrows two flowers for your home.

Repeat it whenever you want colour. The burner stays, and 10 ml of oil lasts a long time at a few drops each evening. It is a lovely gift for someone who celebrates Diwali, or who simply loves flowers in winter.

Why we put it together

We wanted a winter ritual that smells of flowers, not of smoke and spice. We chose two flowers with real stories behind them: one that crossed an ocean and became Indian, and one that was sacred on the Nile and the Ganges alike. An oil burner keeps it gentle and smokeless, and the moon and star make it a night thing.

The oils are from Banjara, the oil burner and tealights from Ancient Wisdom.

Safety

• Never leave the burning tealight alone, and put it out before the bowl runs dry.
• Set the burner on a fireproof surface, away from curtains, garlands and paper. The ceramic gets hot: let it cool before you touch or empty it.
• Fragrance oils are for the burner only. Never on the skin, never to swallow; keep the bottles closed and upright.
• Keep the burner and oils out of reach of children and pets.

Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions