The crocus is one of the first spring garden plants to poke through the Minnesota snow. My mate felt the flower had something to do with the throat and "speaking your truth" and suggested we make it into an essence. This remedy is a powerful relaxant of the muscles in the throat and head, especially the muscles that control the vocal apparatus. It seems to check in first in the tongue and voice box area, spreading to the entire neck and head. This releases all the unexpressed emotions held in this part of the body, notably sadness and regret. These fearful emotions are replaced by a sense of openness and clarity. A very strong opener of the 5th chakra.
I recommend this remedy to every healer or people of great emotional sensitivity. It's usually described as a means of removing the negative impressions in the aura that come from being around disagreeable people. It strengthens the boundaries in the aura, thereby making the energetic distinction between self and other easier to maintain. Whenever I take this one, I feel a boundary layer in my aura about 2 feet from the body (the emotions?) grow stronger and move outward about 6 to 8 inches -- the essence is literally pushing stuff out of my energy field! The boundary feels firmer, without any "holes" or weak areas that allow outside energies to penetrate. The aura of this flower when I made the essence seems to confirm this picture: the aura looked considerably larger than average. Great for when people are getting you down or if you tend to be a "psychic sponge" around others.
Pulsatillas (commonly called Pasque Flower or Wind Flower) are one of the earliest spring bloomers in the midwest. In fact, during last winter's (98-99) unusual warm spell, they got confused and started blooming in December! They have a long history of use in herbalism and homeopathy, so I was looking forward to seeing what kind of essence they would make. The flowers of Pulsatilla are purple (a signature that they affect the upper, mental centers of the aura) with a yellow center and are quite fuzzy. My first impression of the energy of this plant is that it helps one break through deep, entrenched issues of long-standing. It's non-specific in this regard, seeming to go wherever the person needs help the most, unlike many flowers that concentrate their force on a specific chakra point or auric pattern. However, they have a particular ability to focus and clarify the mind -- it's a cure for "fuzzy thinking", just like the fuzzy flowers. The plants also seem to be some kind of garden magician, quietly doing their subtle work in the yard, such as playing with the energy ley lines. This is a complex plant and I'm eager to find out more.
This remedy has a reputation for enhancing psychic abilities of various kinds. My impression of its energy is that Queen Anne's Lace opens the crown chakra, making one more sensitive to subtle influences that surround us. The flower presents a curious signature. When it first opens, it resembles a little radar dish for receiving incoming signals. Later, it turns into a white dome with a single scarlet floret in the middle. This dome resembles the top of the cranium (the site of the crown chakra), with the scarlet floret representing the fontanelle of the infant, a sign that the crown is still open. I use this essence in a combination when teaching my students to tune into auric sensations, since it makes such perception much easier.
Yes, ragweed! I've suffered severe allergies from this little flower since my early 20's that left me incapacitated for 6 weeks each fall. No amount of decongestants even touched my symptoms. I finally got relief when I used homeopathic ragweed (Ambrosia Artemesia), but now I get through the fall by mainly relying on my homemade Ragweed essence. Matt Wood describes the mental profile of this plant as a gifted person who feels their gifts are not appreciated by others. I've recently noticed it relaxes certain facial muscles that run from the nose to the corners of the mouth. These muscles often tighten when the sinuses or nasal passages are plugged, and seem to be a contributing factor to snoring. Also available in the Giant Ragweed species, which seems to relax tension in the face due to sinus congestion and even in the trachea region, producing a sense of lightness.
Saint John's Wort is one of my favorite 6th chakra (the "third eye") essences. This is the seat of intuition and insight, so the remedy helps when a person is subject to restrictive beliefs or thought processes. In herbalism and homeopathy, this plant has a marked affinity for the nerves and the spine, being used frequently when there is pain due to nerve injury, and is often used to treat depression. If I suspect that the nervous system is involved with a person's problems (such as depression due to a chemical imbalance or strange body sensations from nerve over-stimulation), I generally try out this remedy. There seems to be a connection with the lower chakras as well (especially the third and first), as the yellow flowers are a source of a bright red oil. This stimulates one's courage and will power, giving a person the strength of their convictions.
This flower, which resembles the jaws of a dragon, is very good for releasing tension in the throat and mouth area, reaching up even to the bones of the cranium. I use it frequently for TMJ problems and most throat-related issues. It opens up the 5th chakra (communications) very strongly, especially when one is "holding back" from speaking one's peace (producing tension in the throat and jaw), or when the heart (4th chakra) and the head (6th) seem disconnected. One of my favorite remedies -- I recommend it often.
This lovely white flower is one of the first blossoms of spring. When we first tuned into its vibration, we noted a strong affinity for the eyes (notably the tear ducts) and throat, all the "crying areas" of the body. It also triggered many old emotions, especially feelings of shame or self-loathing. Curiously, the day I made this essence, I flipped over an angel card to see what this flower's main theme might be -- it came up "forgiveness". More precisely, Snowdrops is about self-forgiveness, letting go of all the old regrets and shames that keep us feeling like "bad" people. It helps you come to terms with being a fallible human being and accepting your shortcomings. Life is much sweeter without all these negative messages getting in the way.
This lovely member of the lily family has a simple message. Sometimes a person's energy becomes too contracted, especially when they are going through a period of material or emotional privation and need to get by on less. If this pattern becomes too habitual, the person becomes rigid and dried up at many levels. Star Gazer is about expansion (like the planet Jupiter in astrology), breaking out of this rigid mold. It assists you to break free of the ruts you've fallen into so life can be full and flowing once more. You can often experience a lifting of heavy emotions that have been weighing you down, a feeling that burdens are being let go. This is a good remedy for when life seems like a grind instead of being a joyful path.
This essence was a delight to make. The auric impression of this blossom was like sitting inside a giant, 5 foot strawberry, right down to the huge seeds on the outside! The feeling that accompanied this was one of richness and bountiful pleasure. Strawberry is for when the richness and juiciness of life is missing, when everything seems drab and unfulfilling. It reminds the soul of the natural sweetness of living, that existence should be pleasurable instead of a grind. This richness is the natural state of the soul-centered life, even though we lose track of such abundance in our day to day affairs. It reminds us that life is truly a bowl of strawberries.
This beautiful, three-fold plant is one of the early spring flowers of the north woods. I had a great "conversation" with the Trilliums as I was making this essence concerning how they wished me to use this remedy. I'd long ago figured out they had an energetic affinity for the 1st chakra (although much of the description in the FES Repertory seems superficial to me). However, sitting with these flowers as they "cooked" in the sun taught me many lessons. First of all, there's a strong feeling of purity and innocence about this energy. I could also feel the Trillium energy entering through the top of my head, passing down through all the chakras, and finally settling very powerfully in the tailbone, the site of the 1st chakra. I intuited that this process was one of bringing the soul's energies fully into the physical body, of becoming completely embodied. The three-fold structure of the plant reflects the need to balance body, psyche and spirit in order to be most effective in this world. The herbal usage of Trillium as an aid during labor (it's also called "Birthroot" or "Bethroot") further points to this role of bringing a new soul into a human body. Imbalances in this process are of two main types. An overidentification with the upper spiritual centers leads to a lack of connection with the body and the world, as though one is not fully "at home" on the physical plane. Too much emphasis on the lower chakras, on the other hand, leads to a loss of contact with the spiritual world. Common emotions felt with these imbalances include fear, insecurity, or a kind of spaciness. The materialism noted in the Repertory is only a reflection of this insecurity. In these demanding times of spiritual growth, we could all use this powerful grounding essence!
I first ran into this amazing flower in the Peace Garden by Lake Harriet, in Minneapolis. As I cupped my hands around the bloom, I felt a powerful tingling along my entire spine. This remedy is an important "tonic" for the entire chakra system and the energy channels that connect them. It usually turns on the heart chakra first, followed quickly by the third eye. Within seconds, all the chakras join in and the connecting channels are humming, producing a delicate, but marked, shift in consciousness. This is literally a meditation in a bottle. Used over a period of time, the shift is permanent and you can access this altered state at will. I rank this as one of the most "spiritual" flowers I have studied so far. I am extremely pleased to introduce this remedy to the world.
This fluffy purple flower is one of the major herbal remedies of the Native American traditions, with many important uses. We made this remedy on a friend's farm in Wisconsin after a sweat lodge. Curiously, this was also the time of the collision between Jupiter and the comet (July 94), which may have affected the energy of the essence. The effects of Wild Bergamot are subtle and hard to pin down. It seems to first of all influence the heart center with a calming and soothing energy, releasing old emotional wounds (often with a loud, spontaneous sigh). It feels like being bathed in a healing, greenish glow. The effect then moves upward into the higher mental centers, providing a gentle expansion of awareness to more subtle spiritual planes. The overall impression is of being lifted from the problems of the everyday world into the clarity of a greater perspective. This is a very healing, spiritual flower! Curiously, this remedy is not for everyone, but seems to work best for people with a strong spiritual or artistic bent. It's surprising how few people are ready for Wild Bergamot.
I've been wanting to make this essence for many years now, as herbalists consider Betony to be synonymous with the solar plexis and the third chakra. It's known to affect the digestion and calm the nervous system. It has a very grounding effect on a person when their gut level instincts and judgments seem to be "off" or unfocused. So I was prepared for the warm flow of energy in my belly when I first tried my new essence. I've been looking for a new solar plexus remedy for quite some time. However, I was taken by surprise at the strong sense of mental clarity, focus and equinimity this remedy produces, as it seems to quiet the emotional storms and allow you to rise peacefully above your problems. It may take some time to understand all the nuances of this plant!
Yarrow seems to act at a more physical level than most essences. I feel its influence at a level of the aura that is most in contact with (and controlling) the physical body. The energetic sensation is like a crystalline gridwork or scaffolding in the aura that supports the structure and integrity of the body. Curiously, the plant is unusually high in silica, the same mineral as quartz, so this "crystalline" metaphor may not be that farfetched. One way Yarrow helps bodily integrity is by stimulating the immune system, making it useful with allergies and environmental toxicity. It is also recommended for protection from background radiation. The remedy strengthens the life force throughout the entire body, producing a marked stimulating effect. It would be useful in any therapeutic bodywork that operates at the body/aura interface, such as acupuncture. In contrast, Pink Yarrow works more at the emotional level than the White Yarrow.