My recent talk at the Salem Witch Fest, Power to the (Plant) People: Herbs to Support Activism & Social Change, really took me back to our days at Bioneers and Green Festival, talking with activists and community organizers about their work and what Spagyrics would support it. And as they say, history does not repeat itself, but it rhymes, and so we find ourselves at another moment needing strength, unity, action, and resistance. Fortunately, like with so many other aspects of life, herbs can support us in this moment, too.
To start, I like to invoke some positivity and optimism with cheering Spagyrics. To me, the most cheering herb of all is Melissa, also known as Lemon Balm. This citrus-scented mint relative is generous in its growth, forming large clumps of aromatic leaves and flowers beloved by bees, which is where it gets its botanical name. Melissa was the favourite herb of Paracelsus, who said it had the most Ens, or life force, of any plant. In our Spagyric Essence of Melissa, that life force is expressed as a joyful, uplifting quality that also calms tension in the mind and body. We think of its energy as a fat, happy baby, laughing and jolly and making everyone around giggle, too.
Perhaps just in time for all the difficulty our society is facing, our new vintage of Albizia Spiritualized Essence is ready to lift the weight of worry that dampens the Shen in the heart, bringing the spirits up and out of despair and into a more hopeful state. It’s one of my favourite tonics when life just gets to be so overwhelming that I feel like giving up and shutting down. It’s a state that I’m sure many of us feel, but none of us deserve, and this sweet feathery flower really helps lift us out of it.
If what’s getting you down is external negativity, whether from specific people or the world in general, you may need some clearing along with the cheering. Tulsi, or Holy Basil, is the perfect ally for creating a clear, safe zone of protected positivity around and within you. This plant is grown around temples in India, and around our home and garden, because it is said that no negative energy or entity can pass it. Tulsi’s bright, sweet aromatics float up with the slightest breeze or touch- I am enjoying it right now as I work on our breezy patio!
That same cheering aroma and taste is in our Tulsi Spiritualized Essence, which many customers describe as feeling like a room that has been smudged and aired out. Tulsi is also a great adaptogen and tonic to the digestive, respiratory, and endocrine systems, helping you be strong and healthy on all levels of being.
Speaking of adaptogens, I find the archetypal example of this important herbal category to be Ashwagandha. This tonic root builds energy and stamina over time, while also reducing adrenaline response and all the imbalances that stress can create in an over-reactive system. Our Ashwagandha Spiritualized Essence is energizing in a healthy way which does not create depletion later, while also centering the mind and calming racing thoughts and anxiety. We love it for when we are “tired and wired”- exhausted but also over-stimulated.
If your energy is not depleted or in that tired and wired state, but you would still like a boost of vitality to help you get things done, Siberian Ginseng is a balanced adaptogen and energizing root that works on the physical and emotional levels. In the body, our Siberian Ginseng Essence increases stamina and endurance, especially in difficult conditions or stressful environments. On a mental level, it increases many important neurotransmitters and brings a sense of calm well-being, balancing nervous system action over time.
Sometimes, though, building energy with tonics isn’t enough when you are so depleted that tonics don’t help. When that happens, a good solution is Astragalus Seed. This is the seed of the immune tonic, Astragalus Root, and its uses mirror the better-known root medicine. Both protect the Wei Qi, the defensive shield of energy that surround the body and guards it from invaders such as allergens, pathogens, and toxins. Astragalus Seed holds that energy in the core so that it can’t be drawn off or depleted, making it useful to for people who “leak energy”, as Taoists alchemists explain it.
Our Astragalus Seed Initiatic is helpful to shore up inner containment of vital energy so that any boost added by other tonics benefits the body instead of draining out. It’s also a good adjunct to any practice where personal energy is used for action- think of Tai Qi or Qi Gong, charging a talisman, or protest and political actions where you’re at risk of burnout or attack from those opposing you.
For those of you who are going out into the world in action for change, besides needing to protect your vital force, it’s also important to hold fast to your principles and goals, even in the midst of chaos and opposition. To support this, we say “hold your own with Dragon Bone!”. This silly slogan we came up with years ago perfectly expresses the gifts of this mineral Spagyric made from fossilized dinosaur bone, an important substance in Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Dragon Bone is a Shen fixative, taking that energy of peace and calm and holding it in the Heart space where it belongs. If you find that others’ emotional states affect yours, or if you’re having trouble standing up for what you believe in and not “going along to get along”, our Dragon Bone Initiatic is a steadying, fortifying ally to consider.
Another Shen tonic that so many of you have loved over the years is our Sacred Lotus Initiatic. This Initiatic has a gentle but strong intelligence of calm reserve and wisdom, reflecting the collected, composed energy of Quan Yin, the goddess of compassion to whom this plant is sacred. Our Lotus offers discernment and en elevated perspective on problems and difficulties, letting you be in the world, with all its messy complications, while also holding yourself to a higher state of purity and grace.
Two other waterflowers, the Mayan and Egyptian Blue Waterlilies, bring their flowing energies to our Tesseract Somalixir. This formula was created to help shift consciousness to different times or places, allowing the user to scry into wider currents of energy and wisdom. It’s a great support for gathering wisdom from other moments, whether that is your own past (or future!) self, ancestors or historical figures, or the intelligence of Nature herself. It’s also useful for casting your awareness into the future to see connections between actions now and results later, whether this is for magical or political action.
European Waterlily, the most calming of the three we work with, is an important energy in our Listen Somalixir. Combined with Heimia and Voacanga Seed, this Somalixir brings a sacred dimension to any work with sound. We originally created it for a friend who does gong sound baths, and we love it when Paul plays his gongs or I work with my crystal bowls, or when we’re just listening to music of all kinds.
I’ve also worked with the Listen during my yearly augury, and at other times, to listen for voices in the sounds of Nature, or to contact spirit beings through sound. I find it opens me up to guidance and ideas from other ways of being and thinking, and I find that using it helps me keep my actions aligned with both the human and non-human world.
Listen also draws on the plant wisdom of Vervain, an herb with an ancient history of use for divination, augury, and spiritual practice. Sacred to the Druids, Vervain is a versatile plant, allowing the user to cross into the world of spirits and commune with the Beloved Dead, the ancestors and guides that were humans at one time. Vervain also protects from unwanted “crossings” by spirits who might intrude, and from attacks by malefic forces and people.
I especially like to use our Vervain Initiatic in the fall, at Samhain tide, to do dreamwork and scrying to connect with advice and wisdom from my own Beloved Dead. I find it supportive and comforting to learn how those of the past dealt with the difficulties of their lives, and to bring back wisdom for my own work to better the world.
Finally, for the highest level of guidance any of us could ask for, whether for our personal journey or work we do for humankind at large, connection with one’s Holy Guardian Angel is an important resource to work with. In the Hermetic tradition that we follow, this conversation is achieved through a long ritual with its own stringent practices and rules, and is something to be pursued with dedication and seriousness. This 12-18 month working culminates in a ritual using a special incense made to allow the Angel to appear.
This incense formula, made from aromatics like Saffron and Galangal and resins like Myrrh, is safe for internal use as well, and so we created our Abra-Melin Somalixir as an expression of this practice. When used in a ritual context, it amplifies the sense of connection with the Angel or the Higher Self, creating a feeling of strength and confidence in the self. It can also be used as a daily morning tonic to align everyday actions with the higher good and to bring a flow of wisdom to all decisions you make as you live your life.
