A polished glow

gleaming is a meditation on the brightness of light within. A plume of sacred smoke and liquid light is ignited by a sparkle of cassis and warm spices elongating the glow. Then dissolving into a luminous incense and smoky core of guaiacwood, wisping like sunbeams through the smokey air. Sandalwood, myrrh, and labdanum form a warm, resinous scaffold, while a wool musk holds the gleaming light aloft, leaving a trail that is both meditative and salacious— an olfactory sculpture of light, smoke, and gleam.

The concentrated flash of gleaming light is produced when illumination strikes a smooth surface. Unlike reflection, where the wavelengths of light scatter in many directions, gleaming light emerges through specular reflection or highlights— light waves bouncing off smooth or polished surfaces (metal, glass, polished stone, water) in a direct line. It shapes how humans interpret texture, polish, and surface quality.