Incense, candle, candid, and candidate all glow from the same PIE root — the Latin verb for shining produced both sacred smoke and political ambition.
A substance that produces a fragrant smoke when burned, used in religious ceremonies and for aromatic purposes.
From Old French encens, from Late Latin incensum (something burned, incense), neuter past participle of incendere (to set on fire, to kindle), from in- (in, upon) + candēre (to glow, to shine), from Proto-Indo-European *kand- (to shine, to glow). Key roots: *kand- (Proto-Indo-European: "to shine, to glow, to be white").
Incense shares its root with candle, candid, candidate, and incendiary — all from Latin candēre (to glow). Roman candidates wore white togas (candida vestis) to appear radiant; a candid person was "glowing" with honesty. The incense trade was one of antiquity's most lucrative commerce routes — frankincense from Arabia was literally worth its weight in gold. The same root that gives