The Starry Web We Weave: Finding Clarity with the Constellation Tarot Spread

My world is a web of constellations - it’s how my brain organizes information, how I absorb new input, and the type of patterning I am most drawn to. When I read tarot cards in a spread, I’m looking for the constellations and connections. All of it forms a story that resembles a 3D web full of glittering points of light and noise and intuition. Tarot helps me to highlight the parts of my world that need illumination and focus so that I can understand myself through past and present experiences in order to shape and prepare for what may come. 

The following spread is my attempt to capture the feeling of a constellational web that is ever present in my practice. Hopefully it’ll serve as a good tool to practice seeing patterns everywhere - something that both herbalists and magickal folk need to practice to be of service on their paths. For some, the following spread might feel like a complicated process, especially when compared to the more straightforward “every position is static and each card is separate and unto its own” style of reading. But what I’m proposing is really not complicated and just takes a few tries until it feels intuitive. Even better, if you find it useful, I hope that you’ll bring this style of reading (where the cards are in relationship with each other, with the querent and reader, and with the many worlds of perception) to any spread you cast.

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The Constellation Spread

The Constellation Tarot spread was devised for those seeking clarity and insight on a particular issue especially if it is a new endeavor, new relationship, a business idea or change in direction, and other such big transitions and initiations we experience in our lives. While it can be used as a general spread for a reader who’s had a bit of practice, it is better suited for when you’re seeking clarity on a particular subject or area of your life.

The Self

The first three cards representing The Self are relatively standard in the world of tarot and help us to get a better idea of the inner workings of the querent. Having a card each for mind, body, and spirit is not to suggest that these parts of ourselves are separate, but rather illustrate that these are different ways we have of experiencing and perceiving information. Look for indications of excess or overstimulated versus lacking or under-stimulated input or activity in one or more of these perception areas.

1. Mind: This card speaks to the mental state of the querent including but not limited to mental health, the ways that they might experience input through their mental perceptions, and/or what they’ve been thinking a lot about lately.

2. Body: This card speaks to the physical state of the querent including but not limited to physical health, the ways that they currently experience input through their physical perceptions, and/or what they’ve been physically feeling lately.

3. Spirit: This card speaks to the spiritual and emotional state of the querent including but not limited to spiritual/emotional health, the ways that they currently experience input through the spiritual/emotional perceptions, and/or what they’ve been physically feeling lately.

The Constellations

The next six cards are called The Constellations and represent the energies, exchanges, and insights in this area of your life - whether that’s a new endeavor, new relationship or an important transition.  Imagine that these cards are not fixed points but floating orbs that weave in and out of who we are and what we are becoming. For some, this is fate and destiny and others this is revelation and the unfolding of life and memory.

4. The Recent Past: This card represents events that have occurred typically within the past three months and usually no more than a year before. Past events highlighted will relate to what you are currently going through. If you want to stretch the divinatory reach of the Past card, add another card or more for an extended timeline.

5. Near Future: This card represents events that may occur within the next three months to one year ahead. Future events highlighted are possibilities of what may come to be. If you want to stretch the divinatory reach of the Future card, add another card or more for an extended timeline. However, I caution trying to detect events that may happen too far in the future as our timelines are malleable changing things - there are better ways to get in touch with your far future self.

6. What You Hope to Achieve / What Are Afraid to Fail At: This card highlights what you hope to achieve and what you are afraid that you might stumble and fall in this pursuit of hope. A really beneficial card in this position can show a few things including that you have a strong vision of what you hope to accomplish and/or that your energy is well aligned for the goal. A challenging card in this position can show that your vision is still unclear (including that you’re not dreaming big enough) or that your energy is too tangled up to proceed - clarity is needed first. You should still read this card, whether obviously beneficial or challenging, as teaching you something about your hopes and fears. 

7. The Skill Which Steadies: This card highlights a particular skill, mindset, self-belief and/or gift that you have that will steady you on your path. Sometimes inverted beneficial cards in this position can highlight a skill you’re not even aware you possess. Challenging cards can teach us how we are denying or misusing a gift (we often misuse gifts not because we’re bad people but we have been forced to use it to survive by any means necessary).

8. The Allyship Card: This card shows you who your allies are and what you should be asking of them. Our dreams may exist at first only in our personal cosmos, but they are manifest in a galactic community. Learn how to ask for help, for insight and for feedback from those who love and support you.

9. Next Steps: This card suggests next steps to take. If you’re working specifically around an issue relating to a current or new business, consider bringing this card with you to seed a new spread like my Affirm + Manifest tarot spread for business.

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The Numinous Tarot by Noel Arthur Heimpel

Putting It All Together

Create sacred space and cast your cards in the way that you normally do. Read the Self cards first. Spend time connecting with the messages received about yourself or for the querent to have time to understand their meanings. Then read the Constellation cards. Usually, if this was a typical spread, you would be done reading the cards. But we’re not done yet.

For example, let’s take card number 4 - The Recent Past - and read it paired with the Mind card. Then read it paired with the Body card. Finally, read it paired with the Spirit card. So let’s say that you pulled the Eight of Wands for the Recent Past, the Four of Swords for the Mind, the Page of Cups for the Body, and the Queen of Wands for the Spirit card. 

On its own the Eight of Wands represents a sudden surprise, energetic shift or similar out-of-nowhere style incident that has happened in the last few months. When read paired with the Four of Swords, it can tell us that this surprise event was mentally draining which is why the querent requires rest. The querent may or may not have realized that the event represented by the Eight of Wands had had such an effect on them. When paired with the Page of Cups there is an indication that the querent is in a learning phase of their life - they’ve become a student to the emotional responses in their body as related to the Eight of Wands. For the Spirit card, two Wands are meeting, representing fiery exchange between the past and the current spiritual and emotional state the querent finds themself in. The Queen of Wands is a powerfully creative spirit and makes me think that the event represented by the Eight of Wands holds potential for future creative endeavors. I get the feeling of a soul being forged by the fire of surprise and suddenness. 

As you pair the Constellation cards with the Self cards, it is similar to zooming in and focusing on the energetic landscape of each particular point in your life. Here is how the past still holds us or how our future beckons us. Here is where we are afraid to shine and desperate to be seen. Here is where we trust what we know and where we doubt what we’re doing. All of the stories of the cards are found within us - I hope this process of constellating and shifting shapes helps each of us to realize this and to begin to speak our own stories with greater surety. 

What are some of the ways that you read the cards that are different than those techniques you commonly see? Do you only read with jump cards? Or only read cards that you have purposefully chosen as opposed to randomly cast? Let me know in the comments.

Ready for more tarot? Check out all tarot spreads I’ve created.

However you read your cards I hope that your constellations shine brightly; that you befriend your very own north star; and that when you look up into your night sky it is filled with a million friendly lights of the world around you.

A Might-do List for Imbolc

Imbolc, known also as Imbolg, Candlemas, Oimelc, Lá Fhéile Bríde and Là Fhèill Brìghde, marks the beginning of spring in some parts of the world and the slow retreat of deepest winter in other areas. The holiday has ancient origins in the Gaelic world and for many modern Pagans it’s seen as one of four cross-quarter or fire festivals where the ancient custom of gathering around a source of warmth and light - be it a bonfire or candle - are central in celebrations. Imbolc is a time of lighting candles, making vows in the seedbed of dark and quickening light, and a time to gather back together after the busy-ness of the winter holiday season. Continuing a project started last Lughnasadh, here’s a list of nine things that you might-do (or not) for the candle festival of Imbolc.

Light and bless candles. As I’ve mentioned before, I spend the time between Yule and Imbolc making candles. I collect leftover wax from the candles I’ve burned all winter and combine that with soy wax to fill candles containers both large and small. While Imbolc is celebrated in a variety of ways, it is for me inseparable from the Goddess Brigid. As a Goddess of Fire I bless candles at this time of the year when She is walking the land with Her red-eared white cow. The story of Brigid’s flame is a powerful one and miraculously, witchedly, blessedly it is still burning today. At one point in our family’s Imbolc celebrations we turn off all the lights in the house and blow out all the candles except for one - Brigid’s flame lit from the flame of Brigid in Kildare - which we use to light up all of the candles in the house again. We then bless unburned candles that we’ll be using for the rest of the year by Her candlelight. 

Keen and holler. If you went to the same college as me at the same time that I was there you may have heard a cacophony of hollering and keening accompanied by the banging of pots and pans. That was me and my witchen kin helping to wake up the earth for the coming of spring. Friends, this is an abundantly fun thing to do and I highly recommend it. First, making noise and stomping on the earth is tradition. Second, the winter can be a time of stuckness and stagnation, including of our emotions. Keening is a very effective way to loosen up the feelings and let them fly out instead of burrowing deeper in. It’s good practice for protest season, too, as the weather continues to warm.

Make offerings to earth, sky, and sea. Every Sabbat is a renewal of vows in our relationship to the holy world around and within us, but Imbolc feels especially renewal-ly to me (I hope you’re impressed by that linguistic triumph). I make some of my more purposeful and larger offerings at this time of year. In keeping with the traditions of some of my Celtic and British ancestors, I make offerings to earth, sky, and sea (though nowadays, my local rivers carry my offerings to sea). What you offer is up to you, but making offerings can be a beautiful way to open up the path ahead for whatever you hope to bring into your life. Auspicious timing for making the offering would be at sunset on the eve of Imbolc or right before you perform any act of divination (there are a number of ancient divination practices around Imbolc that survive, including divining for the weather).

Recite and write poetry and speak your vows. Brigid is the Goddess of poetry and smithcract so the recitation and writing of poetry is potent ritual work for the season of Imbolc. It is also a modern tradition amongst some witchfolk to consecrate magickal tools, perform initiations, and make vows at this time of year for what we hope to do in the next year (be that calendar year or until Samhain or next Imbolc). These can be vows ranging from following through on spiritual practice, earth-centering practices such as attending Fridays for Future or implementing plant-supporting change in your life or finishing a project. Call upon your Gods, Guides and/or Ancestors of inspiration to witness and support you. Plant your vows like seeds in the rich soil of the season of Imbolc.

Take a milk bath. Among mammals, milk is a source of life and as a species we’ve written more than one myth involving milk as a symbol of renewal and rebirth. After a long winter - and especially one that finds us indoors more than out - it can be a powerful ritual to immerse yourself in a bath of healing milk. I use plant-based milks in my life and practice and my favorite milk bath is one made with Oats. Oats are soothing and nourishing to the skin and Milky Oat (Avena sativa) is one of the most beloved of nervines (i.e. herbs that support and tend to the needs of the nervous system) within traditional western herbalism. Your bath could be as simple as adding Oat milk to your bath (also, it’s super cheap and easy to make if that’s your sort of thing) or you could combine it with other sacred Imbolc herbs. Dedicate your bath to something you wish to renew in your life and at the end, when the waters are draining away (or you’re collecting them to add to your garden), allow obstacles in your life to be washed away. There are so many milk bath recipes out there, so if you need some inspiration just do a quick search.

Create a Brigid’s Cross (or similar holy symbol). Traditional Brigid’s Crosses are made out of local varieties of rushes - I like to make mine out of whatever sturdy grasses are growing in my yard. The Cross is a symbol of protection and blessing from the Goddess Herself as she returns from the cold mountains back to the valleys below. If you don’t work with Brigid specifically, find other culturally and spiritually relevant symbols to craft at this time of year.

Invite the Goddess in. The wikipedia page for Imbolc is rather robust - there are a lot of songs and traditions that were recorded and survived into modern times making it a Sabbat rich with traditional lore. Included are the varied ways that the Goddess Brigid was inviting into the home. The season of Imbolc is a time of migration, so take time to invite home your beloved Gods, Guides, and Ancestors. Speak prayers to those in patterns of forced and chosen migration that they may be protected and find welcoming doors open for them (and follow it up with hope and action). If you love a bit of research, I’ve collected some of my favorite resources for British and Celtic herbalism and spirituality that can be accessed for free for all of my Magick Mail subscribers.

Bless your holy cloths. Since the Goddess is walking the land this time of year, waking up the earth, She is inclined to bless those things left out to catch Her attention. One tradition of Imbolc is to leave a strip of cloth out so that as the Goddess passes by She’ll bless it with Her healing gifts. This cloth can then be used throughout the year as a healing talisman. I leave out a silk cloth that I use to wrap my very first and most beloved tarot deck in because my tarot deck is a tool of healing for me and it means that I am handling this healing cloth regularly throughout the year. Blessed cloths can be used to make healing bundles, to wrap up parts of the body, and to keep on your altar or person.

Donate time, money, and resources to animal welfare organizations. One of the energies of Imbolc that can be forgotten through all the joyful noise of waking up the sleeping earth and inviting the Goddess in, is the incredible vulnerability present in so much of the traditional symbolism of season. Those who require nursing milk to survive are young and dependent upon the older ones in their lives. Brigid’s flame is tended for nineteen days by Her priestesses (and now Her nuns) and on the twentieth day the flame is tended by the Goddess alone. Or think about the little lambs, a common symbol of the holiday for many modern Pagans, being born this time of year. Life is small and tender and precious at Imbolc - that’s why it can be such a great time to donate your time, money, and resources to animal welfare organizations in thanks for the ways that animals have supported our species since the times of our most ancient ancestors. It’s another way to help remind ouselves that our Sabbat celebrations are not oriented solely around the affairs of humxns but all of our creature kin.

Check out all of my might-do lists for the wheel of the year. You can find further Imbolc magick with a tarot spread for the season and learn about herbs for the sabbat.

You can also check out the rest of my might-do lists for the sabbats and beyond.

• Samhain

• Winter Solstice (Yule)

• Imbolc

• Spring Equinox (Ostara)

• Beltane

• Summer Solstice (Midsummer)

• Lughnasadh

• Autumn Equinox (Mabon)

I wish you and yours a season of growing hope, sturdy seeds, and plenty of promise-filled magick.

Beyond Scarcity: Marketing Access Not Fear

I’m doing some scary things this calendar year.

You see, last year was a shadow work year for me. While working with one’s personal shadow and the larger cultural shadows we all fall under is an ongoing requirement for showing up to magickal work that I gladly accept, last year was a doozy. A shadow fest. A messy tumble into fear-land. A lot of trembling and wrestling and negotiating and realizing. You know, just typical millennial hag anthropocene witch life stuff.

I’ve climbed enough out of the squishy fear pit of terror worms (the first scary movie I ever watched was Tremors - thanks, Dad - and so I remain haunted) to start imagining what my world might be like if my insecurities and general life challenges loomed small in a life of large, persistent hope. What I’m trying to say is that I’m finally tackling (becoming friends with? frenemies with? be gay do crime comrades together?) some big projects that I have been both desiring but avoiding. Better yet, I’ve gotten clearer on what it is I need to be able to accomplish these goals (fyi, I’ve already started writing about these goals and upcoming projects in my newsletter if you’re someone who likes to be in the know). To bring these new projects to life I’ve been thinking about accessibility and different tools beyond the sliding scale to create financial support for community projects and seed-bombing the internet with free quality resources. Don’t worry, I’ll be writing about all of this in future posts.

One of the persistent fears in my life is scarcity in its various manifestations. It’s a tenacious fear that has blossomed in the age of the internet and in my own journey as a small business owner. I also know that this is a fear that is experienced by many of you reading this post and those who take my classes. So, as this is the year of big experimentations in my life and work, I’m trying something new to hopefully create more freedom and less scarcity for those of you interested in participating in any of my courses or services.

image via @mikejersken

One of the big tools of marketing and advertising is to create a sense of scarcity. In years past I even played the scarcity marketing game in my business. It was usually because I was feeling a deep scarcity and thought that a spur of the moment flash sale would get the money that I needed in the door quick. This way of doing business never sat right with me personally and I wasn't often successful. While I do think that having limited sales make sense business-wise (I can't sustainably offer discount prices on my services in perpetuity) I'm interested in creating a feeling of access rather than scarcity in my promotion of any sales.

This calendar year I'm casting some big spells against scarcity.

I'm just going to tell you right now, and post this information on my course pages as well as my FAQ/Contact page, when I'll be having sales and when I'll be offering extended payment plans every year from now on.

First, I've decided to offer two extended payment plan opportunities this year because the feedback I received from folks was that they would like to be able to sign-up for more than one of my courses with an extended plan at different times of the year so they can allow for budgeting. And that makes a lot of sense. I cannot afford to offer extended payment plans all the time (it is the type payment plan that folks most often do not complete and the one that takes up most of my time administratively to manage even with automation), but I really enjoy being able to make them an option.

Second, I'll be having my annual sale in June which is the only time of year that I offer any discounts on my offerings. I'll send out reminders for each sale, but hopefully it'll feel less, "Gotcha! Here's a sale!" and more "Hey, remember that thing I already told you about? It's happening if you're interested, my dude."

image via @cadop

 2020 Sales + Special Offers 

You can find the sales schedule for the current year on my FAQ - including details on my new J-term offering.

February 20 - 25:  Extended Payment Plan Sale
You'll be able to sign-up for The Lunar Apothecary at $40 a month for eight months and The Tarot Apothecary for $21 a month for four months.

June 22 - July 6: Annual Sale
My once-a-year sale on all of my content from ebooks to ecourses. I'll have more details on the discounts and available course bundles soon.

Sometime between Mabon and Samhain: Fundraiser!
I need to come up with a fun name for our annual fundraiser (Ideas? Let me know!). Last year we raised $800 for RAICES and this is a tradition that I want to grow and expand - more than the year we raised together the year before. In the months ahead I look forward to asking you what type of content you would love to see offered (I want to do something else in addition to the Samhain Oracle). 

August 27 - September 3: Extended Payment Plan Sale
Same as February's offer. 

image via @mikejerskine

If you’re interested in implementing similar ways of doing business in your own work, please do (and if you feel up for it, let me know in the comments or directly how it goes). It took me a long time to figure out how to do sales and offer extended payment plans in a way that made sense for me. What you see above might appear simple, but holy heck, it’s a result of a lot of trial and error. Make sure to give yourself space to make mistakes and, more importantly, change direction as needed without giving yourself too hard of a time.

Some of the things I consider when offering extended payment plans, for example, is what time of the month to do them. When I create an opportunity of access for those in my community who need the greatest financial support, I typically do it near the end of the month or straddling end of one month and the beginning of the next. I do this because I received consistent feedback from folks that this was the most common time that the received pay checks and were also able to know they could manage all their other monthly costs before paying for one of my courses. Paying attention to scheduling opportunities not only makes it more accessible to my community but it also makes the process easier for me - I received far less emails asking me to extend or change the time of a sale from folks waiting for their paychecks and me trying to make that happen for each individual. Ultimately, most of the ways that you create access in your practice should make everything easier for all involved.

Am I worried that folks will only sign-up for my courses during a sale or extended payment plan period? No, and this is because I’ve spent a few years inviting my readers to the table of understanding and celebrating financial access. I get lovely feedback that folks feel empowered when it comes to making choices on how they’re going to sign-up for my courses and that warms my heart (seriously, thanks for the feedback, friends, it’s been super helpful). I still have folks signing up for my courses at full cost, even after I posted this announcement via my newsletter. Of course there are folks who are going to wait for the sales - but I’m really happy about that, too. I know that I’ve informed my audience to make a choice on how they might want to engage me and my work in the way that works the best for all of us.

I would love to hear about how you create transparency in your marketing (and business in general). Please comment below or feel free to get in touch. These conversations around money, access, and how we invite eachother in are necessary, inspiring, and liberating - I’m so grateful that I get to have them with all of you.

So this is my contribution to the ongoing work that I know many folks are doing to create a more compassionate paradigm for both business owners and clients on what it means to run a business. We’re all just practicing for the future we’re calling home to us.

Also, because we’re magickal folk, throughout this year I’ll be posting spells and rituals to against scarcity, along with spells to strengthen, spells to soothe, and charms to bring us together. In the meantime, remind yourself that we might be creating meaning in our work but our work is not our worth, call in those early spring dreams, and remember to rest.

Three Moon Spells for Your Magickal Practice

When I first wrote The Lunar Apothecary I didn’t quite know where to put these Moon-centered enchantments that were sort of like spells, sometimes more complex rituals, and sometimes too lunar to properly name. I ended up tucking them into the study guides that I send out each month to my students as magickal mementos that dwelled happily in the spaces between lessons. Updating the study guides recently I wanted to share three of them with you to inspire your own practice of Moon magick.

If you’re called to go deeper with your lunar practice, be sure to check out my course - The Lunar Apothecary. There we learn about what it is that calls us to healing work and the unique gifts we have to offer through meeting plant allies and exploring techniques of Moon-centered magick.

Onwards, onwards, the Moon is calling…

image via @aronvisuals

Moon Spell #1

If you wish to gaze as the Moon gazes and know the secrets hidden in the night, take a saltwater bath and then present yourself to Her beneath the light of Her fullness. Hold up your dominant hand skyward so that it covers the Moon and say:

What we forget to see is not forgotten

Bring your hand down and raise your receptive hand, curling the fingers into a circle, holding one side of the Moon within the boundary of your hand’s circle. Say:

What is re-member is revealed 

Hold up both hands, forming a crescent bowl and cradling the moon between them. Gather up lunar energy and then bring your hands to your face, covering your eyes. Speak that which you wish to know and when your desire is held firmly in your heart and mind, open your eyes, paying attention to what is around you for an omen shall emerge from your surroundings in response to your query.

When done, hold your hands together again as a crescent bowl and place them softly against your third eye. Say:  

What is dreamed guides us onwards

image via @andersonrian_

Moon Spell #2

When you have a question that need answering, find three stones bathing in the moonlight.

Name the first stone Plenty.

Name the next stone Release.

Name the third stone Patience.

Ask your question to the Moon, holding the stones up to see Her face. Hold them to your heart and then toss them before you.

The stone that is closest gives the answer.

image via @tlrichmond

Moon Spell #3

Howl.

Go on.

Howl.

Curious to learn more about the Moon? Well, I may have a post or two for you to read. Find my ritual for summoning a moonwomxn and a lunar manifestation spell. Discover the magick of naming the Moon and learn how to time your herbal medicine-making by the Moon. Or dive deep into a year of New Moon healing and magick. And don’t forget - every full Moon you have a coven.

Mercurial Wisdom: Peppermint Plant Profile

It’s been a minute since I shared a plant profile with all of you. I found I needed a bit of a break from writing plant profiles and just some more time out in the garden and making a mess in my kitchen trying out new recipes. However, I woke up this morning with an itch to talk plant nerd with you before I head off on my winter break (which is all very impulsively mercurial and therefore the herb I’ve chosen to talk about is quite appropriate).

I wanted to share with you more stories about one of my favorite herbs that I reach for in the depth of winter and the height of summer almost equally. Peppermint is just magickal like that when it comes to working its way into both my warming and cooling recipes. But we’ll get to that in a minute…

I’ve written about Peppermint a number of times already, but always in the context of a larger post, and it felt like the write time to get deep about our green companion. The following profile is from my course exploring the intersections of herbal wisdom and the tarot - The Tarot Apothecary. So you’ll see my correspondences for individual tarot cards listed below - why different cards are allied with different plants is something that I explore more in the course (as well as helping you find your own personal correspondences).

Do you use Peppermint (or any of the myriad varieties of Mint) in your practice? What’s you favorite way to work with the plant? Let me know in the comments.

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Peppermint
(Mentha piperita)

Common + Folk Names : Brandy mint, lament
Tarot Cards : The Fool, the Hermit, Justice, the Star, the World, the Messenger (Knight) of Swords, Four of Cups, Six of Wands.
Element : Fire + Water
Zodiac Signs : Gemini, Virgo, Libra
Planets : Mercury, Venus, Jupiter
Moon Phase : Full Moon
Parts used : Ariel parts
Habitat : Naturalized throughout the world
Growing conditions : Full to partial sun with moderate to high amounts of water. 
Collection : Collect in the spring before flowering, but it can be gathered throughout the summer.
Flavor : Pungent + sweet
Temperature : Cool + warm
Moisture : Dry
Tissue State : Heat/Excitation, Cold/Depression
Constituents : Beta-carotene, B-complex vitamins, vitamin C, potassium, flavonoids, essential oils, ketone, tannins, resin, rosmarinic acid, menthol.

Actions : Analgesic, anesthetic, anodyne, antibacterial, antiemetic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-parasitic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, aromatic, carminative, cholagogue, choleretic, diaphoretic, digestive, diuretic, emmenagogue, expectorant, immunomodulating, nervine, stimulant, stomachic, tonic, vasodilator.

Main Uses : Peppermint is a useful herb embodying the mercurial qualities of its Guardian Planet. It is able to relax when needed one day and to awaken and stimulate the next. To understand how a plant can be both relaxing and stimulating, try the following. Rub the top of your head with your fingers for a quick moment. Feel how that is both relaxing and stimulating? Such is the powers of Peppermint. So, it is a popular herb in the summer for its cooling qualities and it is found again during the winter as part of warming teas and cold-care remedies. 

Peppermint is a tasty and popular digestive remedy. It relaxes cramping of the intestinal muscles and alleviates a number of digestive complaints including gas, indigestion, colic, IBS, hiccups, and heartburn. Peppermint also has tannins which help repair leaky guts by strengthening the lining of the intestines, promoting better digestion and proper assimilation of nutrients. The herb is used for a number of intestinal diseases including Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis. Peppermint is especially effective for digestive issues arising from stress and nervous conditions that lead to cramping. Look for signs of poor digestion, headaches from digestive tension, lack of appetite, and distention. Peppermint is excellent for when there is lack of pleasure around the process of eating food. Enjoy the tea a half hour before meals, but be mindful of over-relaxing the intestines with long term use (so no more than a few weeks daily and then take a break from use before restarting again). Peppermint is useful for car sickness and nausea as well as in pregnancy for morning sickness after the first trimester.

image source

As a circulatory tonic, Peppermint regulates energy throughout our bodies. The herb relaxes peripheral blood vessels helping to release excess heat and damp due in part to its menthol content. It helps blood move effectively through the body which is one reason that it helps to relieve brain fog and clear the head. Peppermint also has an effect on the lymph system helping to stimulate lymphatic action and therefore improve circulation. 

The herb dries excess damp as well as expels mucus in cases of colds, ‘flu, and sinus congestion. In general, Peppermint is good for heart palpitations (especially when associated with indigestion), inflammation and infection of the lungs, sinusitis and sinus headaches, asthma, bronchitis, laryngitis, and general sinus congestion. The herb is clearing and helps us to take a deep breath. For bronchitis and asthma is it especially effective as a steam, but can also be used as a hot tea to reduce spasms of the airways and clear excess mucus. Coughs and sore throats are also aided by Peppermint. 

As a nervine, Peppermint is refreshing. It awakens the senses while reducing excess. If there is too much heat, Peppermint cools. If stagnation is a problem, Peppermint tones and stimulates. If overstimulation is present, Peppermint calms. I find the herb to be useful when mental dullness is present as Peppermint entices and excites the senses to movement. Along with drinking the tea, the essential oil burned or sprayed in a room can help shift the energy from dullness to inspired. Peppermint also assists with relieving anxiousness, nervous tension, and general anxiety. Again, Peppermint can help to stimulate where there is stagnation (which can lead to anxiety and depression because of lack of movement and tone) as well as help to relax tension (which can lead to a different sort of anxiousness and restless energy).

Peppermint is a classic cold care herb along with other herbs such as Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) and Elder (Sambucus nigra). Since it is a warming and cooling herb, it is effective for colds and ‘flu with symptoms of fevers and chills. In addition to  strengthening the lymphatic system in regards to circulation, Peppermint also strengthens the lymphatic cleansing process, clearing the blood of old cells and promoting the production of white blood cells, thereby enhancing immunity. Peppermint has been shown to be effective against streptococcus, staphylococcus, e. coli, helicobacter pylori, candida, and other pathogens. Since Peppermint is moistening to connective tissues, look for signs of skin atrophy, aching and dried joints, and general dryness, when choosing it for compromised immunity.

image via @jonathanpielmayer

Peppermint’s immunomodulating qualities are also tied to its improvement of the body’s ability to digest and absorb nutrients. A robust digestive system leads to a healthy immune system since the body is properly receiving all the building-blocks it needs from the food it is consuming. Additionally, early studies have shown that Peppermint may have chemoprotective qualities.

The herb assists with menstrual cramps and complaints due to uterine congestion. Look for signs of feeling heavy and bloated just before and during menstruation, along with mental fatigue and fog. The herb’s stimulating qualities are noted by Culpeper as he described the herb as stirring “up bodily lust.”

Historically, Peppermint has also been used for kidney and gallstones as well as clearing out a stagnant liver. There are warnings against using Peppermint too often for too long (as in daily for a few months) as it will become overly clearing and lead to weakening the blood, even stopping menstruation. 

Use a poultice on the stomach for pains and on the chest for respiratory colds. A topical poultice is useful for muscle pain, including back pain, and spasm as well as arthritis and sore joints since Peppermint is anesthetic. Cold compresses can be applied to the forehead during fever and headache as well as rashes, bug bites, measles, and chicken box. Also, a topical herbal oil mixed with the essential oil can be used to alleviate headaches when massaged into the brow.

Internally, Peppermint will help to bring measles boils to the surface. Culpeper recommended washing the heads of young children with a Peppermint tea for the treatment of scabs and rashes. Use the tea as a gargle or spray for good breath and to clean the mouth. Chewing the mint will give the same effect.

As an antiseptic, antiviral, and anti-fungal herb, Peppermint is useful for such conditions as the herpes simplex virus, athlete’s foot, and other uncomfortable and infectious conditions. 

Magickal Uses : Peppermint is an herb that can be used in magickal works of prosperity, abundance, and good fortune. Use in rituals of cleansing and consecration as well as in incense blends to clear a space of harmful energy. The sharp scent also ignites the senses, as discussed earlier, but also attributes itself to awakening the psychic senses. Use the herb in spells and charms of clear communication, negotiation, and business deals while invoking the powers of Mercury (invoke Jupiter, too, if business and the need for good fortune is involved). It was said that Peppermint would reduce dreams of a sexual nature by 17th century herbalist John Parkinson, so be mindful if you would rather keep those dreams as part of your nighttime experience and avoid taking the herb at night. The herb is excellent for wind magick as well as matters of justice and judicial process as it has some guardianship by Jupiter. 

image via @sugarcoatit

The Peppermint Personality : There are two types of Peppermint personalities. The first tends towards a restless and nervous energy. Their thoughts spin and sometimes they struggle with silence. They possess the gift of gab, are prone to be on social media for one too many hours, tying their self-worth to the amount of positive attention they receive online. They have trouble settling down and being slow and still. They can exude a great deal of nervous energy and sometimes their anxious thoughts keep them up at night. What they feel like they need to accomplish every minute of every day feels dizzying and impossible. Peppermint will help them calm down and connect with their core strength and stillness. They will be especially served by Peppermint’s relaxing nervine qualities. The other type of Peppermint personality is nearly an opposite of the first. Slow and stagnant, they are uninspired. It is as if a heavy fog bank has rolled into their mind and they are unable to find their way out of the seaside soup. Sorrow for their lack of inspiration may have set in and a confusion around who they really are and what they are supposed to do with themselves. They will be best served by Peppermint’s stimulating nervine qualities. 

Both Peppermint personality types will be served by Peppermint’s ability to provide clarity and help them overcome their shared fear of success (even they go about avoiding that fear in different ways). What is really important to you, the mint asks, what is really necessary? Ultimately, Peppermint helps both personalities figure out who they are in the world and what they are called to do.

Contraindications : Avoid large amounts during breastfeeding as mints may dry up the milk supply. Other sources recommend Peppermint for mastitis. Do not use the essential oil during pregnancy or breastfeeding.

Drug interactions : None known.

Dosage : Standard dosage.

I’m off to brew some Peppermint tea with a bit of leftover Ginger (Zingiber officinalis) from some cake that I made the other day (I am easily won over by a sticky Ginger cake, by the way, if you’re ever trying to lure me to a social gathering). Merry winter, friends, or happy summer depending on wherever you are in the world. Wishing you lots of minty magick!