Ear Candling is the process of placing a hollow candle in one's ear and lighting it. The heat from the candle causes a vacuum inside the ear canal that loosens and removes debris (wax buildup). This procedure is becoming quite common among natural healing practicioners, and home ear candle kits can be purchased at many drug stores.
The Hopi Indians practiced ear candling before the coming of the white man. Similar treatments were used in China and Egypt. Indians in South America used a similar procedure with a rolled up piece of paper or bark that was placed in the ear and then set on fire.
Personally, I've never tried ear candling, but I do have several friends who have, and they all reported that the results were impressive. As a matter of fact, all of them were super sensitive to sound for a few hours, having had clogged ear canals for years.