A Tea Charming: A Yuletide Musing on Tea + Magick

A repost from a guest blog + giveaway I took part in last Yule.  Enjoy!

I have spent much of my life in coastal cities where the rhythm of the day is broken up between fading light on the water, ships sliding between waves and the shifting landscape of fog over the idle cliff sides and curving slopes. For me, the Yule season is an incredibly rich time of year when Moist Mother Earth slumbers and the Bone Crone gnashes Her teeth, rattling the edges of our winter shelters. I recognize the fog that steadily creeps and retreats to and from the shore as the thick veils of the Bone Crone and Her sister the Sea Hag who are meeting at the edge, exchanging bones of earth for bones of saltwater. I see the fog as the same mist that hides the sacred Isle of Apples, confusing the unwary, pulling the careless down below. I know the fog as a softening of boundaries pulling our visions towards the darkness where we can better learn of our own depths, uncertainty and expansive joy.

It is in the fog-laden retreat of Yule that I pay attention to reflecting the quieting world around me within my own body. I move slower, I stretch more and do activities that are slow in nature, such as reading, knitting and making tea. My dear, tea-drinkers and magick-makers, I make a lot of tea this time of year for myself and my loved ones. As an herbologist and Witch I am keen to mystery and the articulation of ritual gestures for everyday doings. Rituals of daily doing, such as brewing a cup of tea, is good practice for the grander acts of transformative change we pass through each season.

Tea is a wonderful ally in daily ritual practice and hot tea is especially welcome during the cold months. The act of brewing a cup of tea involves five elements of many modern Pagan traditions: Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Spirit. For Earth we have the tea leaves themselves. Grumbling roots, tumbling berries, sturdy bark, glowing leaves and delicate flowers are the gifts of Moist Mother Earth – let us honor them as we put them in our teapot. It is through the vessel of Water, the life-blood of our home planet and a sustaining fluid of our home bodies, that we extract the medicinal and magickal qualities of the tea. Blessed Water helps us to recognize our teapots for what they really are – charmed cauldrons, holy chalices and the womb-like receptacles of wisdom. The Water is heated by the element of Fire and during the darkening season of Yule our respect for Fire and the light and heat it brings comes from knowing that the fire from our hearths reflects the deeper Fire of the Earth’s core which keeps warm the seeds of promising spring during winter’s slumber. Air is found in the fragrant steam drifting up from our brewing tea and scent is a sure way to ignite the curiosity of our Spirit who then draws closer and pushes out from the depths of our being.

I approach making tea with magickal mindfulness as I am ever seeking to strengthen my skills in magick which I feel is, as Dion Fortune says, “…the art of changing consciousness at will.” So, I offer to you, my Witchen Kin, a small Tea Charming that I sometimes sing when making a pot of tea. Say it if you like with loved ones, little ones, at your altar, in the kitchen or in a very comfy chair, but mostly I hope that your tea-making during the Yule season brings you respite and contentment.

Flower + Gem Essences for the Journey: Labor

Flower + Gem Essences that are particularly useful during pregnancy, labor and postpartum (to learn more about what Flower + Gem Essences are visit our previous blog post).  The great thing about Flower + Gem Essences is that they are good remedies that, by their very nature, can do no harm which makes them wonderfully safe to take during pregnancy.  Continuing our journey through pregnancy and postpartum, we've now arrived at labor!

Here we go (!) (?) (.) (!?)

CHERRY PLUM "I trust the journey"

Ah, sweet Cherry Plum!  Here is an ally for laborer and baby - it guides us to trust the experiences of our journey and to find balance during times of stress and uncertainty.  Sounds like it was made for labor, right?  Such clever flowers!  I find that Cherry Plum is especially good for those who seek to have lots of control in their life.  Cherry Plum is a kind massage of a Flower Essence, helping us to gently loosen our grip on our (generally futile) attempts to control all possible variables of labor (and life).  Trusting in the greater cycle of life, the lineage of births before us, and the knowledge that we don't know everything is another gift of Cherry Plum.

BORAGE "I am courageous"

For some folks it is really scary to contemplate labor.  For first-time laborers it may be the uncertainty of the unknown or their mental / physical / emotional capacity to go through labor.  Other fears arise from previous birth traumas or worry about complications throughout pregnancy leading to complications during labor.  Sometimes it is just scary.  Borage teaches us that we get scared to know where the fear lies and knowing that fear is often a process of finding our own power.  The star-shaped blue flowers of Borage hang from their stems, gazing down at the earth, not fearing the fall, but meeting the journey with an open heart.  Take Borage for an infusion of courage during uncertain moments and the most challenging parts of labor to remember that you are, in fact, complete, whole, and full of strength.

MUGWORT "I move between"

Mugwort is an excellent ally to move between one stage to the next - a wonderful remedy during transition in labor.  The herb is also a guardian of childbirth and easy labors.  Mugwort seems to help communicate between parent and baby during labor, helping to psychically guide the child through the birth canal when both parent and baby are ready.  As a herb of dreaming, Mugwort also connects us to our most important visions dreams and vision just before and during labor.

BLACK COHOSH "I transform disturbances"

For those who have suffered from trauma in the past, especially of a sexual nature, Black Cohosh is an essential ally during the labor process.  Labor can be a birthing of many things: a new child, a family, and a (re)birthing of the laborer.  Through labor our previous traumas, our hardest challenges, and our most disturbing experiences can sometimes arise, challenging us during some of our most powerful and vulnerable moments.  Black Cohosh strengthens our back-bone and resolve to transform cycles of abuse into a wheel of wellbeing.  Releasing the built-up congestion of imbalance, Black Cohosh helps us not only confront previous trauma, but to be present to the challenge and joy of labor.

WALNUT "I am free from limitations."

Ever feel like everyone is so eager to offer their opinions of your pregnancy that it is hard to know what you really want in your labor?  Maybe an overbearing Mother-in-Law or a pushy, know-it-all sibling?  Labor is a good as time as any to be firm in your resolve and desire for your birth experience.  Walnut is your ally to untangle from the limitations of everyone else's opinions, beliefs, and social conventions.  Walnut is a guiding star for your labor journey - it helps to attune you to your own internal compass.  Like Mugwort, Walnut helps us with the transitions of life, and, in particular, the transition from being swayed by the opinions of all around us to being steadied by the truth of our own experiences and desires.

Read our recommendations for the First Trimester, Second Trimester, and Third Trimester.

We carry Borage in our Etsy Shop and Poppy Swap Shop.  Other Essences can be found from a variety of resources such as the Flower Essence Society and Bach Flower as well as local health food and natural healing stores.

Explore our full series of Flower + Gem Essences for the Pregnancy Journey:

• The First Trimester
• The Second Trimester
• The Third Trimester
• Labor + Birth
• Postpartum - coming soon!

Let's Begin At the Beginning: 10 Seeds to Start Your Herbal Studies

1. Sit with trees.

Just be still and listen to them - what can be learned in those moments of tree conversing is limitless.

As a child I could often be found up in a tree or a fort at tree level.  That is how I came to know the Pepper Tree Schinus molle that grew over the fence of our yard from our neighbor's backyard.  I would sit in my fort with my plastic play buckets full of water and carefully remove the outer pink skin of the Pepper Tree's berries, crushing the papery skin between my fingers and mixing it into my water buckets, discarding the hard inside berry back over the fence.  I would let it brew overnight, sometimes days, and convince the other kids in the neighborhood that they were magickal brews.  I loved how the water would change colors with the berry-skin infusion and I truly believed that magick was at work.  I still know that magick was at work then and years later I learned that I was unknowingly mimicking the medicinal preparation of the Pepper Tree by earlier peoples, such as the Incas.

2. Grow something.

It can be a herb, a succulant, zuchinnis, flowers, moss, or something else but it is important to grow!  Buy seeds, find seedlings in the farmer's market or maybe take a cutting with permission from a neighbor's yard.  Begin to speak the unique root-clicking, multifloral, seed-spreading  languages of plants.  Find out the best growing conditions for your plant friend, water it when needed, and talk to it all the time.  For those who say they have no green thumb I would say that it is more about having a green heart.  To grow a plant we must grow ourselves and that requires building relationships, all which go through cycles of sprouting, fruitfulness, death, and decomposition.

pepper tree schinus molle

3. Talk to plant folk, herbalists, and the guy down the street who knows how to prepare nopalitos.

You are surrounded by folks who know about plant medicine - really, you are!  Whether your Aunt who uses Tumeric on her skin to maintain her glowing complexion or your high school science teacher who keeps a beautiful potted garden, there are real live humyn creatures who could tell you a thing or two about plant medicine.

4. Read good books.  

There are lots of wonderful herb books to inspire you on your journey.  My growing list of books for beginners can be found over at LibraryThing, but I'll recommend a few here, too. Rosemary Gladstar's Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health is a great place to start - colorful, easy to follow, and diverse in its coverage, Gladstar's book is a valuable assest to any aspiring (and practicing) herbologist.  I am also a fan of James Wong's book Grow Your Own Drugswhich is not only beautiful to look through but full of simple, effective herbal recipes (I also recommend watching Wong's show of the same name).  Check out our LibraryThing "Books for Beginners" list for more inspiration!

5. Start with one herb.

We are surrounded by growing plants on an ocean planet.  Beginning to study plant medicines can seem overwhelming with the quantity of material to learn.  Find one plant and work with that one plant for a year - write about it, taste it, smell it, grow it, make medicines with it.  You can work with other plants, certainly, but commit to working with this one green ally for a full turning of the seasonal wheel.  It is incredible the complexities and nuances of use and potential found in one plant - very much like each of us.  I'll write more about building relationships with a green ally over the course of a year in future posts.

yum, thai basil!

6. Invite your green allies in to your home.

Drink tea, cook with spices, and clean your counters with essential oil concoctions.  Plants are everywhere!  Invite them to participate in your life, be conscious of the ways they are already in your life, and experience the green world pulling back its layers a bit more, inviting you back into their homes.

7. Make your own drugs.

There are so many ways to prepare herbal medicines.  Oils!  Teas!  Syrups!  Salves!  Tinctures!  Powders!  Essences!  And more!  Learn how to make medicines, make mistakes (brews gone wrong, cayenne in the eyes, exploding fermentations), and make even better medicines.  Herbal medicine-making is a nuanced art - we make remedies for individuals, not miracles for the masses (though I'll not pass on a global miraculous healing were it to come our way).  Medicine-making is another way of building relationships with the plant world, one that changes the material of the maker as much as the plant.

8. Laugh a lot.

Need I say more?

9. Trust yourself.

You will not know everything that ever was and was-not.  You will still be able to be a good herbologist, a healer, and green ally.  One day you might even teach others.  Trust yourself to know thyself.  To know that you are capable of learning more every day, of owning up to your shortcomings, and celebrating your powerful gifts.  Trust yourself to receive what is given and give in return.

10. Expect the mysterious and indulge in it.

We live in a enchanted world - one that continues to grow stranger and more unusual by the minute.  And we are truly strange creatures in it bumbling and dancing on our green, ocean rock of celestial matter hurtling swinging round space.  What an adventure!  You have the opportunity to engage in inter-species communication as a herbologists, to recognize plants as clever, funny, and deeply wise.  The green path is full of mystery and every time we reach the edge of what-we-know to find there is much more to learn, take time to indulge in the fragrance of complexity ever-guided by the certainty of our own desires to live enchantedly.

I hope you've enjoyed our little guide to starting your herbal studies. For more herbal wisdom, exclusive coupons to our Apothecary, and plant medicine goodness, subscribe to our infrequent, but inspired newsletter.

Herbs are Magick

I used to always say, "Herbs work on the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels of existence." Later I came to understand that they also work on the magical level.  What this means is that they do not just change our person but that they can transform the environment around us.  They can actually cause events to occur.  Ultimately, what makes an event magical is that it is unexpected.  So, in other words, the herbs seem to get  a step ahead of us and create an event which we did not foresee but which corrects or enriches our lives.

Matthew Wood, The Book of Herbal Wisdom: Using Plants As Medicine

How To Make Herbal Oils - Warm Infusion Folk Method

The infusion of herbs in an oil-based menstruum is a wonderful way of using herbs medicinally and can be a base for further medicine-making adventures including salves, lotions, and creams.  We'll be using a warm infusion folk method of creating a herbal oil which more or less means that exact measurements are not used and we're not looking for an exact herb-to-oil ratio (it is all very hang-loose in the Apothecary today!).  We'll also be gently warming our oil as part of the infusion process, so it is important to set aside time that you'll be able to be home and checking in on your herbal oil potion throughout the day.

Let's start with the foundation of our Herbal Oil - the Oil Menstruum.

One of the most common oils used the home apothecary is olive oil.  Find a nice cold-pressed, extra virgin olive oil that is lighter on the scent scale and you're off to a very good start.  You can also use oils like Almond, Sesame, Castor, Coconut, and Jojoba (though Jojoba is actually a liquid wax which is why is has such a long shelf life).  I am using Coconut oil for our tutorial because I wanted to use Coconut's sweet scent in my final oil.

Next, choose which herb or herbs you want to infuse.  For our tutorial I infused Coconut oil with fresh Sage (Salvia officinalis) and Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) from our neighborhood greenery.  Check out our Plant Profiles (as well as your gardens and kitchen cupboards) for more inspiration on what herbs to use.  I used fresh herbs which require more vigilance to help prevent rancidity from the water content that is extracted when using herbs fresh, but dried herbs are just as useful and you have less risk of spoilage!

Finely powder dried herbs and let fresh herbs wilt (to reduce moisture content) and then chop them up.  Mix your herbs with your chosen oil, so that there is about 1/4 oil resting above the herb material.  If you are using coconut oil, you'll have to gently warm the oil so that it becomes liquid and then you'll mix in your plant materials.  When using dried herbs you'll have to check an hour or two into the infusion to see if you need to add more oil as dried herbs will expand and absorb the oil.

Next we'll be creating a lovely warm bath for your oils to gently relax in, loosening up their medicinal properties into the oil.  One of the easiest methods is to place your jar into a warm pot of water, cover that with some thick towels or a tea cosy and let it sit.  You'll have to change the water a few times or pop it back on the stove to warm it up, but mostly you want to keep your oil warm, but not hot - you should be able to comfortably touch the oil with your bare fingers.  You can also put your herbal oil mixture into a double boiler and keep it on the stove at a very low heat, checking often to make sure you don't get the mixture too hot.

After a day of brewing (about 8 - 10 hours), you'll be ready to strain your oil for the first time.  Use cheesecloth, a nutmilk bag or a jelly strainer bag to strain your oil, removing most of the plant material.  Let your oil settle for a few days, allowing the sediment to float to the bottom, and then strain it again, being especially careful to filter out all excess particles if you have used fresh plant material.  If you used fresh plant material you may have to repeat this process in a few more days.

Finally, bottle your lovely oil in a preferably dark container, such as an amber bottle, and store in a cool dark place.  Herbal oils are sensitive to light and heat, so to preserve their shelf life store them properly, clever ones.  At this point if I am not using my herbal oil as a base for a salve or cream, I might add in essential oils and a drop or two of Vitamin E oil as a natural preservative.  My Sage and Eucalyptus oil has became a lovely body oil for achey backs and joints (recipe below).

In addition to all of these steps I feel that it is very useful to sing to your oil while it is brewing or perhaps talk about all of the wonderful qualities it has.  Being mindful and properly appreciative of the gifts of our green allies is what brings that extra edge of enchantment to your remedies!

SAGE + EUCALYPTUS HERBAL OIL for Aches + Pains These are rough measurements meant to guide, not constrain, my clever folks!

• 3 parts Sage (Salvia officinalis)
• 1 part Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus)
• Coconut Oil

Per 8 ounces of oil add in the following essential oils:

• 3 drops Sage (Salvia officinalis)
• 1 drop Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus)
• 2 drops of Lavender (Lavandula officinalis)

You can also add in a few drops of Vitamin E oil (or the contents of 1 Vitamin E capsule) to your oil for further preservative powers!