Always Coming Home: An Introduction to Lunar Returns

There's an aspect of astrology that I've found to be super useful and magickally inspiring but don't find it talked about much. Of course, it should come at no surprise that it is a Moon-centered astrological practice as you are reading the blog of someone who likes the Moon very much. For me, I have learned more about myself, my needs, my boundaries, my magick, and my ability to show up to my calling through my work with the Moon more than any other aspect of astrology. As we are currently going through a global shift in culture, not only do I think that there are lunar lessons that can aid us in our journey towards a more just and more kind world, but I'm invested in making sure that we all have the tools and networks to continue to do the work and play and visioning that needs be done for generations to come. Observing and working with your Lunar Return is one way of tending to the needs of your inner world in a way that supports you and the resilience and wisdom you can hold sustainably in your outer work and relationships. So here is my offering to you - a look at what a Lunar Return is, why you might want to find yours and how to chart it, as well as inner world tools to help you nurture your emotional nature. 

While for many, exposure to astrology is through weekly horoscopes, much of astrology is often concerned with much longer expanses of time. When I began to study (mostly medical) astrology in earnest, I was intimidated by these long forecasts, especially when I came across remnants of the more fatalistic foundations of astrological practice that emphasized fatedness over the promises of growth, change, and freedom of movement. When I was working on The Lunar Apothecary, my online course which engages lunar-focused astrology and herbalism as a tool of self-discovery, I came across the practice of casting charts for Lunar Returns. I was deeply intrigued by the short span of time that a Lunar Return chart was reading for and how it aligned with my current devotional observation of the nearly month-long Moon cycle. But as I've come to practice more and more with Lunar Return charts I realized that it's actually a great practice to learn about the healing magick of transits (i.e. charting the path of the planets through your birth chart) for those a little beyond beginner astrology students.

So what is a Lunar Return? Every month the Moon returns to the location it was at when you were born and in astrology this is known as a Lunar Return. The chart of a Lunar Return can be read as a forecast of the month ahead (i.e. the time between the current Lunar Return and the next one). While reading or having your Lunar Return chart read can be a beautifully meditative practice, you don't need any special astrological skills to find and benefit from your monthly Lunar Return.

If you're brand new to the ideas of astroherbology and medical astrology, you might want to start over here first. If you want to figure out how to spot the Moon in your birth chart, I talk about that over here. I have written this post for someone who has basic understanding of western astrology, knows how to create a birth chart, and has some familiarity with what all the symbols and lines on that birth chart means. It's meant to be an introduction to Lunar Returns and not a complete study in the practice, but something to get you started. Be sure to check out my recommended resources at the end of this post for further information.

Below I'll tell you how to get your own free lunar return chart as well as basic interpretation focused on the House that your Lunar Return takes place in. I've written about the Moon and the Houses before in my simple guide to rest for each of the Moon signs, but I wanted to expand on that original post as well as make some general suggestions for how you might create magick and space in your life with your Lunar Return. Lunar-centered herbalism and astrology is one of my favorite forms of self-discovery and the cultivation of insight for our work as healers and our healing relationships in general, which is why I wrote a whole course about it. This is one of my longer posts, so if you'd like a printable version you can get it for free by signing up for my newsletter where you'll gain access to my member's only page full of all sorts of free resources.

image by @korpa

Return to Our Feelings

Paying attention to what my body is feeling-experiencing is a foundational practice in my magickal and spiritual work. Feeling-experiencing is an attempt to describe not only what I'm am conscious that I am feeling on an emotional and physical level, but what I am also experiencing around and within myself from the rushing of my blood, the functioning of my organs or to the other unconscious experiences happening in and around me. Within many forms of modern Paganism, these experiences are codified through the elements, sometimes planetary forces (especially the Moon and Sun), as well as personal relationships between a person and their Holy Ones to help us make sense of the world and find ourselves in it. The body is honored as inherently sacred, as an oracle, and a filter of perception that for often brief but brilliant moments, is able to experience the great expanse of the universe. As I was exposed to more and more esoteric and healing arts as a young Witch I began to understand that many of these practices served a similar purpose: to expand a person's awareness and to change consciousness through acting upon that growing awareness. 

When I began studying astrology I didn't recognize the mindfulness that it had to offer right away. Knowing my sun sign and timing my magick to the phases of the Moon was about as close as I got to the art for many years. Truthfully, I was intimidated by looking at an ephemeris (the charts that show the calculated positions of different celestial bodies like the planets) or a birth chart which looked like a lot of numbers and unfamiliar symbols. Also, astrology seemed to involve a lot of math of which I was never very confident in. 

Then, something magickal happened when I chose to have my chart read for the first time. I was very fortunate to get my chart read by a deep-hearted oracle and suddenly astrology seemed less like an indecipherable game of math and more of a celestial love language meant to grow our inner and outer perceptions. I felt profoundly seen during that reading and through my birth chart - the map of the sky at the very moment of my birth that my curiosity - I overcame my fear just enough that I was able to begin to study medical astrology with an herbal focus. 

One of the unexpected gifts of studying medical astrology and lunar-centered astrology in general was being given a language to talk about the body that respected its wholeness and bridged the experience of our very intimate physical self with the broader celestial turnings of the vastness of consciousness. I wasn't expecting to build a new and kinder way of relating to my body through studying the stars, but it has been a perpetually renewing and unfolding gift. The stories of the stars and planets, the attention to a holistic approach to addressing distress and diseases, along with the very felt sense that there was deep ancestral knowledge being accessed through the birth chart, brought me to a place of feeling of and in my body and being able to express those feelings. It has been endlessly illuminating for which I am endlessly grateful. 

The return to the center of the labyrinth for me was coming to appreciate the sanctuary of self I found when studying the Moon in the birth chart, adding a new layer and depth to my Moon-centered work as a Witch and affirming the holy mystery of the Moon to my Pagan soul. Now, the study of Lunar Returns has added a new, easy to reach for tool in my practice.

image via @korpa

The Moon Illumined Path

The Lunar Return chart, a snapshot of the sky each month when the Moon returns to exact location of your birth, can be seen in some ways as an astrological equivalent of casting a monthly Celtic Cross tarot reading - it highlights obstacles and opportunities, but also does a very good job of making recommendations on how to take care of your emotional, mental, and experiential health. One of the gifts of the Lunar Return chart is that it's only meant to measure the time from one Lunar Return to the next - roughly one month - so it's less about making big calculations and year or multi-year long planning and more about day-to-day, night-to-night life for a short cycle. In his book Lunar Returns, John Townley offers further insight about the wisdom gleaned from the Lunar Return chart:

The challenge in interpreting the Lunar Return is not to plumb its depths for a vast network of details-its life is too short to get bogged down in that-but rather to extract the relevant events and eliminate the blinding chaff, to see through the smoke and dust to the immediate terrain and its possibilities. It's kind of a monthly birthday, and the arrangement of planets it displays reflects the patterns of your coming month. Each month, this "re-birth-day" works out its potential for you and then is renewed once again 27 1/2 days later with a new set of surprises and opportunities. (1)

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the actual day and days surrounding your Lunar Return are celestially attuned for your renewal and restoration, which is what we'll be focusing on in this post.

In our birth charts, the Moon represents the richness of our inner life, our (often invisible) emotional experience of the world, and the truest parts of our story. There is a reason that outward focused, bold, and often performative for better or worse Sun signs have been so focused on in western astrology in the more recent manifestations of the art. The Sun sign, along with the Ascendent or Rising sign, represents the public and productive self which has long been prized in patriarchal and capitalist society especially as compared to the private, often mysterious, definitely untameable, and eternally ebbing and flowing personal self of the Moon. The Sun, when reduced within the confines of such societies, produces eternally at the beck and call of rulers and markets. But the Moon?

The Moon, in their sacred changing, disappearing and re-emergering, reflects to us the wisdom that we are never meant to be always on, always serving, always moving, always doing. With the wisdom of our inner Moon we birth words solely for our own stories, that can never be captured, stolen or translated against us. The Moon sings and speaks that we are meant to rest, to retreat, and find refuge in the sacred dark of possibility. And every month she returns to the spot in the sky where they first gazed down at us at the very moment of our birth, illuminating the next few steps we might take along our path.

Are you feeling this? I hope so. Let's learn how to find your monthly Lunar Return.

image via @korpa

Calculating Your Lunar Return

While you can use an ephemeris and a bit of math to calculate your Lunar Return, the easiest way is to use an online resource like Astrodienst to create a chart for your lunar return or a calculator like the one AstroSeek provides. I like Astrodienst as a resource in general for information on astrology and great free birth and astrological chart services while AstroSeek has a lot of cool calendar options (i.e. you can calculate all of your lunar returns for a year with one click). If you do end up using Astrodienst I highly recommend signing up for a free account because you'll be able to save and store your birth chart (and many more) on the site, which makes calculating your monthly Lunar Return chart much easier. 

Here are the steps for calculating a Lunar Return Chart on Astrodienst.

1. On the homepage click "Free Horoscopes."

2. Under the "Horoscope Drawing Section" click on Extended Chart Selection. At this point you'll be given an option to proceed as a guest user or to register an account. Accounts are free and you can store up to 100 birth charts on their site which comes in handy for keeping the birth charts of your friends and family readily available.

3. Once you're on the "Birth Data Entry" page, enter all of your birth data, and hit continue. Side note: there is a gender selection - you can select the gender you're comfortable with or select "event/other" (which I think limits everything you can do for a chart). For my chart collection, I select the "female" option for everyone so I can access all the chart settings easily. 

4. Now you'll be on the "Extended Chart Selection" page. If you live in a place different than the place of your birth you need to change the location that the chart will be calculated for. In the "Default Settings" section you'll want to click the "modify data" button to change the reference location of your chart to the place that you are currently living.

5. Next, still on the "Extended Chart Selection" page, in "Sections" you can select "Chart Type" and you want to choose "Lunar Return Chart." In the section below "Options for zodiac and houses" you have the option of choosing a house system - if you have a system you prefer choose that - but if you don't have a preference then I recommend "whole signs." The whole signs system is one of the oldest used in western astrology and not only to I find it to be accurate but it's much easier to read than a lot of other styles.

6. Finally, if you have used a site like  AstroSeek to find all of your Lunar Return dates for the year, you can enter the exact date of your Lunar Return that you want to calculate for under "Sections." This is useful if you're looking ahead in time and want to calculate your Lunar Return in future months, otherwise the chart you'll be shown is for the Lunar Return period you are currently in. You'll see an exact date for Lunar Return the chart is calculating for in red on the top left hand side of the generated chart.

7. Once you've made all of your selections on the "Extended Chart Selection" page, you can click the button to show your chart. 

8. Congrats! Your Lunar Return chart is cast!

View fullsize

I've gone ahead and shared with you the sample chart that I use for The Lunar Apothecary to help you see what a Lunar Return Chart looks like. I'll use the Lunar Return Chart sample to highlight the practices I recommend for engaging with your Lunar Return.

image via @korpa

Finding Meaning

Once you have your Lunar Return chart in hand, it is time to read the story of your chart. You can interpret as much or as little in your Lunar Return chart as your heart desires - just remember that it is meant to be a snapshot of time that only lasts a month. For the needs of this tutorial, I'll be focusing on Lunar Return and the Houses and Elements as invitations and monthly recommendations for rest and renewal.

First we want to find the House that the Moon is in as well as the House of Cancer. Looking at your Lunar Return chart, find the Moon and the House that it dwells in. In the Lunar Return chart above, the Moon is in the Fifth House. Where the Moon resides in a Lunar Return chart is where the energies of the Moon will be focused until your next Lunar Return in roughly a month's time. Here, you can reference your favorite astrology book about each house, but I've also given a brief lunar-oriented synopsis below.

A Brief Guide to the Moon in the Houses

The First House: You, individual identity, self-expression, inherent vitality, health constitution, and physical form. The Moon focuses on or reveals how we intuit information as well as how we express what we feel (or want to feel) through our physical appearance. 

The Second House: Material security, money, earnings, and possessions. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we think we need to feel secure and safe in the world. In other words, what it is we need to feel that we have an abundance of or control over to feel like we have worth or value.

The Third House: Learning, education, exchange of information, and social networks. The Moon focuses on or reveals the ways we learn best in order to express ourselves emotionally. Additionally, the Moon focuses on or reveals how we want to be cared for by our social networks or community.

The Fourth House: The home, family, nurturing (or lack thereof) environments. The Moon focuses on or reveals who we are when we feel safe enough to be completely ourselves. Additionally, the Moon highlights emotional patterns and stories from childhood and youth. 

The Fifth House: Creative self-expression, love affairs, children, taking a chance, gambling, and the unexpected nature of living. The Moon focuses on or reveals your inner child, source of spontaneity, joy, and pleasure. In other words, the Fifth House Moon highlights what it is that makes you lose yourself completely to the moment (including canceling plans and overcommitments). 

The Sixth House: Health, day-to-day work, service, responsibilities and duties. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we are called to be of service in the world beyond day-to-day survival. In other words, the Moon illuminates our day-to-day desire to be an agent of change (whether it be change on a personal or global level) and how we act on that desire. 

The Seventh House: One-on-one relationships, primary relationships that influence all areas of life. The Moon focuses on or reveals how you show up to relationships emotionally and how we get our needs met within the complex give-and-take of relating to another. We are shown how we let (or don’t let) ourselves be cared for.

The Eighth House: Desire for emotional security, sex, secret and psychic knowledge, power. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we desire in order to feel emotionally secure and includes our desires for intimacy, including sex, power, secret knowledge, and material wealth. On a deeper level the Moon shows us the impact of our woundedness in our life (how we may learn to heal and be a healer from it). Additionally, the Moon highlights our desire for social and community power. 

The Ninth House: Philosophy, spiritual practice, travel and exploration (both inner and outer), life experience, the unknown. The Moon focuses on or reveals how we engage with the unknown and how we develop our life’s philosophy. In other words, the Moon highlights how we understand and tell the stories of our truth.

The Tenth House: Life calling, career, reputation, ambition, what we feel called to contribute to the world. The Moon focuses on or reveals what we hope to achieve in the world by connecting us to our bliss. In other words, the Moon shows you your unique path to happiness. 

The Eleventh House: Social groups, community, where we feel at home outside of our home, chosen family. The Moon focuses on or reveals how our individual emotional reality is connected to the shared emotional experience of the community at large. The Moon highlights what type of community we need to feel emotionally fulfilled, seen, and held.

The Twelfth House: Unconscious, esoteric studies, dreams and visions, transcendence, spiritual unity, that which happens deep below the surface. The Moon focuses on or reveals our deepest emotional and spiritual yearnings, which are often hidden from us until they are suddenly not. In other words, the Moon in the Twelfth House helps us to discover how to live our own myth.

Looking at our sample chart, the Fifth House represents the pleasures of our life, creating and taking risks that bring us closer to our sense of self, love in its myriad of forms, as well as children and/or your own own inner child. When the Moon returns to your Fifth House, it is a time to center pleasure and joy in your life with a healthy dose of playfulness as tools of self-recognition and emotional expression. You might consider getting in touch or making space for your inner child when making plans (whether social, personal or professional) and taking on projects during this Lunar Return or simply do something that gave you a lot of joy when you were little. 

You'll notice in our sample chart that there are three planets plus the Moon in the Fifth House. When there are three or more planets or lights (i.e. the Moon, Sun, and Ascendent) in a House this is known as a stellium and indicates an area of your life that has a lot of energy focused on it. When a stellium of planets occur in a Lunar Return chart, even if it is not in the House that the Moon is in, pay attention to the area of your life that it is highlighting. For my more experienced astrology practitioners, you can look up what each of these planets bring to the Fifth House, placing more emphasis on the inner planets (remember, we're measuring a short time span here) than the outer planets. 

The other House to pay attention to in a Lunar Return Chart is the House where Cancer sits. This recommendation comes from April Elliot Kent in Astrological Transits and she points out that this is "where in your life you are able to work out some of your emotional challenges this month." (2) Every sign of the zodiac has a Ruling or Domicile - or as I like to call it, a Guardian - Planet which is where a planet is most comfortable and empowered in a chart. It is also the sign which expresses that planet's energy most easily. The Moon is the Guardian Planet of Cancer which is why it can be useful to check out the House where Cancer sits. 

In our sample chart, Cancer sits in the Eleventh House of socializing and social groups. It is the House opposite to the Fifth and in many ways it is in the Eleventh House where the creative and personal work of the Fifth Mansion is translated into public performance, social connections, and sharing. I like to think the while the light of the Lunar Return Moon might be shining in the House that it is transiting in (the Fifth House in the case of our sample chart), that the Moon's light reflects to the House that Cancer sits in, casting some shadows and revealing previous emotional patterns, conflicts, and wisdoms. For our sample chart, I would say that there is an opportunity for healing social wounds - whether that is a time of retreat and emphasis on the self instead the group - and a general reassessment, guided by the Fifth House's emphasis on pleasure and play, with how one shows up in their life. Again, for my more practiced astrologer readers, you can investigate the stories of the other planets and celestial players that show up in the House of Cancer for further insights. 

What if your Moon Sign is in Cancer? In this case, the House that Cancer is in and the Lunar Return Moon House will always be the same. It just means that in some ways your emotional story is fixed on one chapter rather than flipping wildly throughout the book. In many ways, this is pretty Cancerian since this sign is known for its ability to dwell within a particular stretch of memory or emotional experience far more than most other Moon signs. 

Finally, consider the Elemental tone of the Lunar Return Chart. On our sample chart you'll see a small box near the right hand corner with three columns (for Cardinal, Fixed, and Mutable which are descriptions of astrological qualities) and four rows (for Fire, Air, Earth, and Water). Look at the row which has the most symbols or astrological glyphs. In the case of our sample chart that is the row of Earth which has four planets, the Moon, and the Ascendant (represented by AC) in signs of Earth. What this tells me is that there is a strong Earth energy happening this Lunar Return which can guide the ways that we choose to take care of ourselves, set boundaries, open up relationships, manifest decisions, and generally go about our lives. Sometimes a chart won't have a strongly manifest elemental tone or two or more elements will be in balance - that is valuable information, too, helping you to pay attention to the elemental energy you might invite into or balance in your life. 

The Elements of the Lunar Return

Earth: An earthy Lunar Return can emphasize the needs of the body and the how your emotions manifest in your life. You might choose to make space for your feelings in a special way on or around the day of your Lunar Return by practicing that which feels comforting and nurturing to your physical self. An earthy Lunar Return can both highlight our physical needs as well as illuminate physical challenges or the manifestation of feelings in our body that need more attention. Asking yourself questions like "Where am I feeling this in my body?" throughout your Lunar Return can be a helpful bit of earthy magick.

Air: A Lunar Return with a lot of air can emphasize the needs of mind, our social needs, and a focus on how we communicate (verbally, textually, visually, emotionally, etc.) ourselves to the world. You might choose to take a much needed break from the busy communication patterns of your life, such as performing a social media pause during or around the day of your Lunar Return. Airy Lunar Returns can highlight our needs for speaking, processing information, and being heard as well as illuminate the challenges of speaking truthfully, kindly, bravely, boldly. Asking yourself questions like "What needs to be said and how do I want to say it?" throughout your Lunar Return can help clarify what you're trying to communicate during this time. 

Fire: Fiery Lunar Returns can emphasize our creative, action-oriented needs, and the way that we make space for or dismiss our creative impulses and needs. During a fiery Lunar Return you may choose to make space to create - whether returning to a beloved medium of making or trying something completely new. Lunar Returns of Fire can highlight our needs for trusting our pleasures and passions as well as illuminate the ways we deny our creativity whether through comparing ourselves to others or denying our inherently sacred impulse for pleasure. Asking yourself questions like "What do I want to create more of in my life? Less of?" throughout your Lunar Return can help clarify what you're trying to create over the next month.

Water: Lunar Returns with a lot of Water can emphasize our emotional, deep feeling (or denying of our deep feelings), intuitive, and the difficult to communicate types of felt experiences. During a watery Lunar Return you might choose to make space for more intuitive and esoteric arts from divination to ritual to dreamwork. Lunar Returns of Water can highlight our needs to drift and feel while not being beholden to explain our experiences as well as illuminate our fear of going too far from shore when exploring the complexity of our inner worlds. Asking yourself questions like "How do I feel about this?" and "What do I want to feel more of? Less of?" throughout your Lunar Return can help clarify the month ahead.

image via @korpa

Putting it All Together

Ok, so you've pulled up your Lunar Return chart (and maybe the Lunar Return charts for the rest of the year if you're really feeling it), found out what House the Moon will be showing up in, found the House of Cancer, and discovered the elemental tone. So, with all that information, how do we synthesize it so that we can transmute knowledge learned into lived wisdom? Here are a few recommendations:

• Mark the day of your Lunar Return in your calendar and try to take some time for yourself - however that feels best to you - on or around that day. I can personally attest to the magick of giving oneself space to be in your Moon and hope you get the opportunity to experience it yourself.

• Write down one or two simple lines about the House that your Lunar Return Moon is showing up in as well as the House of Cancer. It can be something like "The Moon is shining a light on {energies of the House} in my life" for the first and "The shadow of {energies of the House of Cancer} is being illuminated" for the latter. Do the same for your elemental balance.

• If you journal, spend time writing on one or more of the questions offered in the descriptions of elemental tone above. If you cast cards or practice divination, pull a card for the Lunar Return and/or Cancer House as well as one for the Elemental tone.

• If you like, build a Lunar Return altar full of lunar-centered symbols and images, items representing the significant Houses of your Lunar Return chart, along with candles, plants, incense or whatever feels sacred to you. You can even incorporate items to represent any significant Moon phases that'll be happening during your Lunar Return such as a Full or New Moon.

• At the end of one Lunar Return and the start of another, take a moment to reflect on how deeply the energies of the Return was felt (re-read those sentences I suggest you write in the last tip) and spend some time at your altar if you built one. This is a time to check in on yourself and your inner world. It's also an important part of practicing astrology - we need to look back to see how true our observations of our chart rang for us, what maybe didn't make sense when we first looked at our chart that does now, as well as recognizing what we may have overemphasized or missed.

Finally, how might we bring this beautiful inner work into our communities? It can be very sweet to share the dates of Lunar Return amongst your close friends, coven or circle, and maybe even sending each other a supportive message on their Lunar Return day (Or hilarious meme! Or both!). Share with other folks how they can calculate their Lunar Return chart or tell them planetary myths and stories to help them re-member their connection to the vivid vastness of life. Consider the ways you can make more lunar spaces for quiet connection (i.e. community spaces that are geared more towards our introverted selves than our extroverted ones) and why we need more of them. Build and host contemplative lunar altars in public spaces (respecting the land you're on and the people around you). I'm sure many of you are already thinking of ways to bring some Moon magick into your community work - share in the comments below what you're doing.

Time As A Story

Again and again in healing work, whether looking at the stars or sitting with plants, I am reminded that we are engaging with time and space in a new way in order to create change. There are seasonal changes of time that are measured by the movement of the planet, the Sun and Moon and the way that the Earth shifts and changes all around us. But then there is the time that is arbitrary and socially defined - the workday or how long it is appropriate to sleep each night or when we should be "feeling better" - and that is where a lot of healing takes place. We all carry stories of timing in our lives - when we should be successful or have figured out a problem or gotten over our grief. Many of us also carry around shame and feelings of inadequacy with a lot of these time stories.

Through healing work we begin to unpick these stories, listen to the memory of the body which is unconcerned with how we measure time and more concerned with what it is experiencing in the here and now (even when, to our conscious mind, our body still might be reacting to something that already happened-  in cases such as PTSD - or something that has not or may never come to pass as often shows up with different forms of chronic anxiety). 

When we choose to work with the Moon and stars and begin to measure time through the lens of the Birth or Lunar Return chart, we begin to move away from the construct of never-ending linear time that is always moving forward, and find our ways back to a spiralling time that allows us to break free of expectation both personal and cultural. Because the Moon is a cyclical creature, She reminds us that we, too, are cyclical and ever-changing, able to return again and again to wherever we need to be to find healing and wholeness. Time then becomes an ally instead of a relentless taskmaster of "progress" and endless growth. Time becomes more cyclical, seasonal, full of new starts, seeds, and decay, allowing for periods of exuberant output and deep withdrawal and profound transformation. If we are to make this world more just and more kind, we must examine our relationship to time, reshaping it so that time becomes breath easily shared that supports life, instead of a commodity that only a privileged few get to determine the worth of how it should be spent.

I hope that you'll integrate the practice of Lunar Returns into your life, even if it's just to mark on your calendar the day that your Lunar Return is happening and observe it in some sort of way, no preparatory analysis needed. I think it's a rather useful tool of collaborative exploration to be used with clients, covenmates, friends, and family if you're called to share these skills with others. Ultimately, I hope that a gate opens for you, a passage way from one way of being into another that feels more freeing and expansive, that helps you to find yourself more readily, and call yourself home.

Additional Resources

• Lunar Returns by John Townley is one of the only books on the subject. In general, I like Townley’s interpretations and I mostly follow his guidelines for interpreting a Lunar Return chart.

• Astrowiki offers additional information on what to look for in a Lunar Return chart.

• Lunar Return House Positions by Lynn Koiner is a concise and useful introduction to possible manifestations of the energy of whatever House the Lunar Return Moon is transiting to.

• The Astrology Center of America offers a brief but interesting guide to interpreting Lunar Returns.

• Astrological Transits by April Elliott Kent is a great book and while it doesn’t cover Lunar Returns in depth (beyond what I shared on this post), Kent has such an approachable and understandable style of teaching astrology.

If you got through all that and shrugged but still want more lunar magick in your life, I’ve got some resources for you. Naming the Moon to Empower Your Year is one of my favorite practices and here is a full year of New Moon herbal allies, healing rituals, and oracle questions to keep you engaged. Here’s a guide to making herbal medicine by the Moon. But what about witchcraft, you ask. Here, my witch friend, here. And tarot? Here’s a spread for your lunar readings.

Looking for more depth about Lunar Returns? I’ll be creating a longer tutorial for my starry-hearted students over in The Lunar Apothecary.

May the practice of charting your Lunar Returns brings you many an hour of contemplation, new ways to connect with your inner world, and lots of hope.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

(1) Townley, John. Lunar Returns. Llewellyn Publications, 2003. Page 15.

Hag's Medicine: Mullein Plant Profile

I realized that it’s been a few months since I wrote my last plant profile for all of you and continuing the last few posts on breathwork and herbs for respiratory wellness, Mullein (Verbascum thapsus) felt like the wonderful ally to celebrate and learn from this month. So let’s do just that!

image via wikimedia commons

Mullein
(Verbascum thapsus)

Common + Folk Names : Hag’s tapers, beggar’s blanket, graveyard dust, candlewick, Jupiter’s staff, torches, velvet dock, witch’s candle, lungwort, shepherd’s staff, duffle, fluffweed, fleawort, tinder plant, Cuddy's lungs, hare’s beard, Our Lady’s flannel, Quaker rouge, Aaron's rod, Jacob's staff, verbasco, Nookaadiziiganzh.
Tarot Cards : The Devil, The World, Two of Pentacles - learn more about tarot + herbs
Element : Earth, Water
Zodiac Signs : Capricorn
Planets : Saturn
Moon Phase : Waning Quarter Moon
Parts used : Leaf, flower, root
Habitat : Native to Eurasia and North Africa but naturalized throughout North America.
Growing conditions : Grows in waste areas and roadsides. Likes full sun and well-drained soil. 
Collection : Collect the flowers and leaves from second year and older plants. Roots in the fall. 
Flavor : Pungent, slightly bitter
Temperature : Cool
Moisture : Moist
Tissue State : Damp/Stagnation, Dry/Atrophy
Constituents : Carotene, choline, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, resin, saponins, glycoside, flavonoids, mucilage, tannins, triterpenes, volatile oil.

Actions : alterative, anodyne, antibacterial, antihistamine, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent, decongestant, demulcent, diuretic, emollient, expectorant, pectoral, vulnerary. Flower: analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, demulcent, emollient, mucilaginous, nervine, sedative. Root: anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, anodyne, diuretic, nervine.

Main Uses : Mullein is described by Nicholas Culpeper as being under the guardianship of Saturn, which is in part why the herb is considered a plant of Capricorn. The herb is a great ally during the winter months, helping to clear phlegm from the system, reduce inflammation, and protect against infection. It is excellent for clearing out chronic, long-standing coughs, especially dry and spasmodic coughs, and can help with a number of respiratory complaints including bronchitis, asthma, and general lung weakness. Mullein has traditionally been used for tuberculosis, whooping cough, and pleurisy. Bartram's Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine describes a traditional Irish preparation of Mullein for the treatment of tuberculosis prepared by adding a handful of the green leaves to two pints of fresh milk, strained, and then sweetened with honey which was then drunk once or twice daily. Think deep, thick, and chesty coughs. Look for signs of adrenal stress, especially after long bouts of illness and conditions worsening when lying down.

Add the herb to your cold and flu blends with Elder (Sambucus nigra) and Peppermint (Mentha piperita) for a lung-opening, immunomodulating blend. Mullein is useful, too, for Capricorn folk who tend towards stagnant cold states which lead to swellings and cysts as the herb helps to dissolve such manifestations of buildup. As a decongestant, Mullein is good for allergies such as hay fever, helping to clear phlegm and relieve pain. In her Physica, Hildegard von Bingen recommended Mullein for “one who is hoarse or has a pain in his chest” recommending that they combine the herb with Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) in a medicinal wine. Use also for asthma (especially if there is heat and aggravation) and general chest infections. Mullein has immunostimulating properties which is another reason that it is excellent for cold and flu season and especially for someone succumbing to chronic viral infections. The herb is effective against viruses such as herpes, too. 

image via wikimedia

As a moistening diuretic, Mullein helps to soothe an inflamed urinary system and help with the release of urine. Mullein is also well-suited for many cases of edema and water retention. The herb also helps to remove toxins from the body because of its ability to move water out of the body. Use in cases of arthritis, rheumatism, gout, UTIs, and cystitis. As a digestive, Mullein is a mild bitter that relieves indigestion, especially in cases of a damp and stagnant digestion, and can help alleviate the pain of peptic ulcers. 

Mullein can be used for nerve pain and combines well with other nervines such as Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora) and St. Joan’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum). Use internally as well as an oil for neuralgia and especially nerve pain the hands and feet. In particular, the root can be used in cases of Bell’s palsy and facial nerve pain. The herb helps to loosen up stiff joints and connective tissue.

Topically, the mucilaginous Mullein is excellent for dry skin conditions but also as a healing compress or salve for boils, bruises, inflammation, hemorrhoids, eczema, sciatica, and joint pain. Use in a steam for lung conditions like asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory imbalances already described. In Plants Have So Much to Give Us, All We Have To Do Is Ask: Anishinaabe Botanical Teachings, Mary Siisip Geniusz recommends following a steam with Mullein a cup of Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) and then to bed to clear the head and chest. Mullein is used similarly as a smoking herb as well as an aid to help wean off tobacco. Mullein is useful in cases of bulging discs and bone setting. The herb helps the skin repair after a wound, burn, sore, and ulcer and can be used for skin infections, too. A compress of the leaves is excellent for alleviating the pain of swollen joints, sore muscles, swollen glands, eczema and for headaches. Use also for lymphadenitis and mumps. Create a gargle of the tea or extract for laryngitis, swollen gums, and tonsillitis. Mullein and garlic ear oil is a trusted remedy for ear infections helping to relieve pain and infection. I always keep a small bottle of Mullein and Garlic oil in my home care kit just for this reason. Mullein is also a common herb in smoking blends.

Magickal Uses : The long thick stems are sometimes referred to as Hag’s Tapers (the dried stalks dipped in wax will burn as a somewhat messy candle) as they are associated with the magickal workings of Witchfolk. Mullein is a plant long associated with the working of Hags - the womxn overculture has always feared who teach us to embrace what has been deemed unpalatable to value systems that our not our own into essential tools of our self-understanding. Burn at the initiation rites of transwomxn stepping into their power. The tapers can be burned at rituals of all kinds as well as funerals to protect against unwanted and malevolent spirits. You can also tuck the leaves into your shoe for added comfort and protection on your journeys. Use for general protection against sorcery, the evil eye, and malevolent spirits. Specifically protective against wild animal attacks and guards against the Night Mare. Use as a substitute for graveyard dust in spells and charms. Burn Mullein in your Midsummer bonfire for protection and gather the ashes to use in protection charms.

The Mullein Personality : The Mullein person has something to get off their chest which can sometimes manifest as chronic respiratory infections and a barking cough that doesn’t allow them to get a clear word out. Their adrenals are often run down and mornings - just as they are getting out of bed - can be some of the most difficult times for them physically and emotionally. Often, Mullein folk come off as dried out (which can manifest in their physical symptoms), but they may appear dry because all of their waters have pooled deep in the body. With their unexpressed truth settling in the body they are stewing, sometimes even bubbling over. They need to learn how to light their torch, even if the words that come out aren’t “perfectly” illuminating or fit in with the standards that they or others hold them to. Mullein folk can be confused about what they stand for because they have been so focused on “correct” social customs and traditions. Mullein will help them to become honest with themselves and release these stagnant patterns of seeking authority outside of themselves and help them to speak their words. Ultimately, they learn that morals, values, and laws aren’t of any use unless they align with their morals, values, and inner sense of lawful justice.

Contraindications : Considered generally safe.

Drug interactions : None known.

Dosage : Standard dosage.

Recipe: The following tea is useful for alleviating the pain and tension of backache and neuralgia. It can also be made into an herbal oil or liniment and used topically.

Stand Tall Tea

• 1 part Nettles (Urtica dioica)

• 1/2 part Mullein Leaf + Flower (Verbascum thapsus)

• 1/2 part St. Joan’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

• Optional: 1/2 part Ginger (Zingiber officinalis)

Add the Ginger if the condition is worse with cold and better with heat. Sweeten with honey or coconut sugar and milk of choice.

I write more about Mullein and it’s uses as an herbal ally for fire season and it is featured in my list of herbs for breathwork and respiratory wellness. Mullein is one of my favorite herbs to use for Capricorn energy and learning more about the sign helps to understand the energy and magick that Mullein offers. Of course, you can always follow the tag for Mullein to see where it might guide you.

If you like plant profiles, be sure to check out the ones I’ve written. I also create plant profiles just for my Patreon community like my one on bright and bold Calendula (Calendula officinalis). Enjoy!

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

A Might-do List for Midsummer

Midsummer, also known as the Summer Solstice, Litha, and Alban Hefin, marks the longest days of the year. Many ancient megaliths were built to align with the movement of the sun on Midsummer, the longest day of the year. Midsummer celebrates the height of the sun's power as well as the still distant but ever growing turn towards the cooler months. The Summer Solstice is also a day long associated with the magick of the Good Folk who are said to be more present than ever across the land. At Midsummer we celebrate the brightness of living and so much abundance that we have plenty to give and receive in turn. Now is a time to celebrate the expansiveness of life and the unique ways we express ourselves as necessary and loved members of our wider community. Continuing a project started last Lughnasadh, here’s a list of nine things that you might-do (or not) for the long day festival and hot season of the Summer Solstice.

Rise with the Sun. A simple and very sweet ritual is to rise with the sun on Midsummer. Meditate in silence or celebrate in song as the Sun rises up into the day, shedding light across the land. Planning to have special foods ready for breakfast can be an extra bonus.

Build simple stone cairns with friends and family. Glennie Kindred has a lovely suggestion for creating a participatory and engaging ritual space in her book Earth Wisdom. As folks are gathering together in the ritual space have them look for or bring five stones - one for each of the five elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Spirit. As part of the ritual, each of the elements are called in and one-by-one folks bring their stone for each element into the center while offering personal thanks and blessings at each turn. Slowly a cairn or mound of stones will be formed by all of the stones placed by those gathered. Cairns can be left up (if environmentally appropriate) and used as places to make offerings to the Good Folk, but at least for the rest of the ritual the community-created cairn serves as a focal point for chanting, dancing, and general merriment.

Self-Heal (Prunella vulgaris)

Harvest herbs. The Summer Solstice is a traditional time to harvest herbs and especially those herbs associated with the Good Folk, the energies of love, and the powers of protection. St. Joan's or John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) is traditionally harvested at Midsummer and turns into a beautiful red oil symbolizing the regenerative lifeblood of the land. Be sure to harvest herbs in a way that respects the land and its inhabitants tending to the places where they grow with as much care as plants tend to our healing needs.

Create some beautiful solar themed decorations. Decorations that catch the light and are bright in color are all wonderful options for Midsummer. Make faux stained glass with crayons and wax paper or your own sun wheels out of thread and twigs. Sun-shaped salt dough ornaments, wreaths made of dried herbs, and wild grass crowns are all seasonally appropriate and easy to make. Sun catchers and crystals hung in windows can bring rainbow light into our homes as well as outdoor ritual spaces. Whenever making or purchasing items, consider their long term environmental impact and try to align your choices with your earth-centered and celebrating festivities.

Energize culture-changing movements. Midsummer is an excellent time to call in and store up energy for the coming months and into winter. You can be intentional with your energizing magick and help to direct it towards and store it up for culture-changing movements and protests. I like to turn protest signs into magickal objects, bless my street medic bag and supplies, as well as raise energy and store it into other charms and amulets that I use in my work for a more just and kind world. 

Practice the magick of generosity. At the longest day of the year, marking a season of abundance and the peak of growth before the First Harvest in a few weeks time, Midsummer is an opportunity to practice the magick of generosity. I love the sentiment expressed in Circle Round: Raising Children in Goddess Traditions: "The Goddess at Summer Solstice gives us not just what we need, but extra. We can feel close to her by being generous, giving more than we're asked to give, doing more than our fair share. That way we make abundance for all." Generosity comes in many forms, but consider the ways that it is built into your magickal and spiritual practice at Midsummer, vowing to continue to act in abundance in your life and the lives of others.

Built an altar to the Sacred Dreamer. There are different myths from around the world about the shift of power from the light to the dark. At Midsummer the light of the Sun is at its peak - but from here on out the dark and lunar energies begin to rise. Some folks work with the myth of the Oak and Holly Kings and their never ending battles (and if you have an opportunity to see a ritual battle it can be a lot of fun). My own traditions align with stories of holy isles and descents into the underworld, where we draw closer to the world of dreams. Again, quoting Circle Round, they speak of the transformation of the God, noting that "[e]verything and everyone who fulfills their purpose must change… Now he becomes the Dreamer, asleep in this world but awake in the world of dreams and visions, the seeds of what will come to be in this world. He becomes the Messenger, carrying our hopes and prayers to the spirit realms." The Sabbats are a time to remember that change is a holy and necessary thing, that we aren't always meant to be doing the same thing throughout the year, but growing and retreating, shifting and changing with the seasons. 

Cast spells with candles. An alternative - and much shorter - version of the might-do lists for the Sabbats would simply be "Every six weeks(ish), burn stuff." The tracking of light and dark along with the necessity of fire for warmth and in the preparation of food stuff shows up powerfully in different ways at each Sabbat. The two times of year that candles are especially essential to my magickal practice are at Imbolc and then again at Midsummer. Whether building a dream altar to light the way for the Sun to descend into the underworld, to more traditional pin and candle spells, using fire in our magick at Midsummer can be a powerful act of energetic alignment.

Create a beacon of light. Lighting bonfires on hilltops is an ancient tradition of Midsummer that is still carried on in some Celtic cultures. You can create your own beacon of light whether an actual candle burning in your window or a piece of art displayed in a way for others to see. Fires on the hill were/are a form of spiritual devotion but also connection and community-building. What sacred symbols do you want to see more of in the world around you? How do you move through the world as a person of sacredness? What are the beacons that you're wanting to see to help you know that you're not alone in the work of repairing the world? If you're looking for social justice and mutual aid oriented images, Just Seeds is always a great place to check out. You can charge up your beacon from sunrise to sunset on Midsummer day, infusing it with the holy constant of solar light.

Learn more about magickal practices for the season of summer or cast some cards for the Summer Solstice. Here’s a midsummer brew to try and you also might like the refreshing taste of swamp tea. Finally, here’s some more herbal lore on the magick of the Summer Solstice.

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)

May your day be bright and abundant of blessings. May your heart shine like a bonfire guiding you from longest day to slow-growing night. May we all come together in the spirit of generosity, knowing that there is enough, committed to the change needed to create equitable and holy access, and dancing all the way home.

❤︎ This post was made possible through patron support. Thanks, friends. ❤︎

Herbs for Breathwork + Respiratory Health

Last month I wrote about how breathwork is a community tool and works in online spaces (thank the Holy Ones for transcendent digital magick). I wanted to follow-up that post with suggested herbs that can assist us in our breathwork but are also useful for respiratory health in general. We're in the midst of protest season which is looking like it's going to be an appropriately long one also while living through a pandemic. Respiratory health, whether we're being exposed to viruses or chemicals like pepper spray and tear gas, is really important right now. Breathwork combined with attention to the bodily systems which help us breath helps us to return home to our bodies and nourish our nervous system after prolonged periods of stress. You can combine these herbs not only with your breathwork but with other centering and body-grounding practices like healing movement modalities, therapy and mental health practices, walking, sex and sensual touch, ritual and spellcraft, and more.

I've listed four categories of herbs that I think are particularly useful for breathwork: Nervines, Adaptogens, Respiratory Tonics, and Heart Tonics. There are so many herbs present in each of these categories that I could recommend but hopefully by describing the types and qualities of herbs I recommend you'll be able to find ones that you are already familiar with, that are stocked in your cabinet, and/or more regionally relevant.

I'll follow these categorical descriptions with short profiles on eight herbal allies that I've been turning to frequently these days. Since these are just short descriptions of each herb, it is important for you to do your research with reliable materia medicas and consult with herbalists for further information, contraindications, and stories that will deepen your relationship with our plant friends. Of course, when you are able to, meet these plant allies in spaces where they grow and ask to sit with them to learn directly from their wisdom.

image by Isaac Quesada

The Four Categories of Breathwork Herbs

Nervines are plants that calm the nerves and often nourish the nervous system. Since so much of breathwork is about interacting with our nervous system in healing and beneficial ways, helping us to return to a state of rest and digest, nervines are beautiful companion herbs and guides in our practice. They help us to relax and open up to breathing deep and purposefully. So many of our diseases and ailments either have roots in or are exacerbated by stress which is why knowing and working with nervines not only in breathwork but in daily life can be of such great benefit to us. Nervines include Milky Oat (Avena sativa), Lavender (Lavandula spp.), Holy Basil (Ocimum spp.), Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora), Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis), and Catnip (Nepeta cataria).

Adaptogens are herbs that do a multitude of healing actions, but are probably known most popularly as helping us to adapt to stress. Adaptogens and nervines work well together and when it comes to breathwork, adaptogens can help us stretch back into ourselves after a period of prolonged stress. It's important to remember that adaptogens don't "cure" stress and are not meant to replace stress-reducing actions and choices in our lives from healthy movement to mindful consumption. And also, the reality is that many of us are dealing with tremendous social and political stress in our lives further impacted by global environmental changes. Adaptogens can help us develop a sense of resiliency and purpose so we are less distracted by stress and more invested in the tools which help us (such as breathwork) continue on in life with a feeling of wholeness and purpose. Some adaptogens are Eleuthero (Eleutherococcus senticosus), Holy Basil (Ocimum spp.), Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum), Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), Gotu Kola (Centella asiatica) and Rhodiola (Rhodiola rosea). The following wisdom from Toni Morrison from a talk at Portland Statue University in 1975 feels like an adaptogenic one to me, helping to tell the story of these plants:

“The function, the very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being. Somebody says you have no language and you spend twenty years proving that you do. Somebody says your head isn’t shaped properly so you have scientists working on the fact that it is. Somebody says you have no art, so you dredge that up. Somebody says you have no kingdoms, so you dredge that up. None of this is necessary. There will always be one more thing.”

Of course, if we're talking about herbs to support respiratory health, I'm going to feature Respiratory Tonics. These include herbs which can be immunostimulating (since the respiratory system is an primary entry way for viruses and bacterias) as well as decongestants, demulcents (herbs that moisten mucous membranes), and expectorants (herbs that relax lungs while promoting elimination of mucus from airways). Many respiratory tonics are also considered aromatics - herbs that are rich in volatile oils and deeply scented. Aromatics often do all the actions I just described for respiratory tonic herbs and have a wonderfully harmonizing or synergizing energy which helps to bring a blend together as well as helping a tea taste better. Respiratory tonics herbs include Mullein (Verbascum thapsus), Elecampane (Inula helenium), Licorice, Nettles (Urtica dioica), Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), Goldenrod (Solidago spp.), Wild Cherry Bark (Prunus serotina), and Pleurisy Root (Asclepius tuberose).

I also include Heart Tonics in my recommendations. In my experience, so much of breathwork is heart work. Yes, the benefits of mindful and meditative breathing are many - it is calming to our nervous systems, lower blood pressure, stimulate our immune systems, shift emotional and mental perspectives, disrupt anxiety and panic attacks, and so on. It is not unusual during breathwork and working with our respiratory system in general for there to be a feeling of opening, expanding, and along with that, grieving for un-grieved for experiences. Heart tonics help us to open our hearts with support (many heart tonics are protective along with being opening) and make space for grief to move through and out of our bodies instead of stagnating. Herbs include Hibiscus (Hibiscus sabdariffa), Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), Rose (Rosa spp.), and Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca).

So sitting in the center of our circle, we sit with our backs against the tree of life, calling to us respiratory tonics from the east, nervines from the west, adaptogens from the south, and heart tonics from the north. Let's meet our plant allies gathered here... 

image by Wolfgang Hasselmann

Herbs for Breathwork + Respiratory Health

Mullein (Verbascum thapsus) | Respiratory Tonic, Nervine
Mullein is great for all sorts of lung-related complaints from asthma to bronchitis, the herb opens the respiratory passageways helping us to breathe deeper and more effectively. It's a demulcent which also reduces inflammation and helps to protect against infection. Mullein is one of my favorite herbs for fire season here in California. Overall, it helps us to release tension from our bodies. Within breathwork, Mullein is good for those type of folks who overwork and stretch themselves thin - the herb helps them to soften and open up to relaxing as an act of justice and repair.

Elecampane (Inula helenium) | Respiratory Tonic, Heart Tonic
I've written a full plant profile on Elecampane and it is a well-regarded lung tonic in traditional western herbalism. The herb is an astringent decongestant as well as being antiseptic and antibacterial. It is really useful for treating chronic coughs and long-term lung complaints. Elecampane, also known as Elf Wort, has a traditional use for "elf shot" in Celtic culture which can be interpreted as a number of ways one of which is as a sudden energetic and emotional pain brought on by a traumatic event. Drop dosages of the herb or flower essence can be really helpful in cases like this. For breathwork, Elecampane is a helpful ally for those who are coming to the practice after a shock-inducing experience.

Yerba Santa (Eriodictyon californicum) | Respiratory Tonic, Nervine
Yerba Santa is an astringent decongestant that dries up excess mucous by normalizing excess mucous secretion. Normalizing mucous secretion means that you won't have to go back and forth between too much and too little secretion leading to being too dried out and equally uncomfortable. Along with Mullein it is also one of my favorite herbs for fire season here in California. In addition to its powers of mucous normalization, Yerba Santa is antimicrobial and antiseptic. On an energetic level, Yerba Santa sticky resinous quality helps to pull up and out old grief and trauma so that you no longer have to carry it around. For breathwork, it can be helpful if you struggle with breathing out deeply.

image by Maude Frédérique Lavoie

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) | Respiratory Tonic
Thyme is one of my favorite kitchen garden remedies - I always have the fresh herb growing in my garden or at least dried leaves in my spice cupboard. I add it to most of my respiratory tonics because it is pleasing in taste and effective in its actions as a decongestant expectorant. Thyme strengthens the immune system without being over-stimulating and protects against bacterias and microbes. It is one of my favorite allies in removing respiratory infections from the body and one I turn to often in the winter months. Thyme is not classically categorized as a nervine, but it certainly acts like one, helping to relieve tension and mental exhaustion. For breathwork, beyond being wonderfully aromatic and enhancing the physical breathwork experience, Thyme helps us to settle into our practice while gathering our inner resources and loosening our belief that there is not enough time for all the work that needs to be done.

Plantain (Plantago spp.) | Respiratory Tonic
Ubiquitous Plantain is commonly used in traditional western herbalism for topical treatments but in recent herbs I've come to know the plant for its respiratory tonic qualities. I live in fire country and have started working with Plantain as a smoke relief ally. Plantain heals tissue internally as well as it does externally which is especially useful for healing post-exposure to environmental pollutants and chemical weapons such as pepper spray and tear gas. For breathwork (and any sort of mindful practice or magick), Plantain helps us remind us of the abundant truth that simple practices cultivate profound peace.

Holy Basil (Ocimum spp.) | Respiratory Tonic, Adaptogen, Nervine
Holy Basil, also known as Sacred Basil and Tulsi, is an antispasmodic demulcent and expectorant. The herb is immunostimulating and protective against microorganisms like Staph infection. It's a lovely warming plant and one of my favorite adaptogens helping to reduce anxiety while uplifting the spirit and sparking hope within us. Of course, I have a personal love for Holy Basil that is tied to the lessons I have learned sitting with this plant and its ancestral stories, but I can't help but feel that the recognition of Holy Basil as an earthly embodiment of the Goddess Lakshmi speaks to the sacredness that Holy Basil helps us to recognize in people and places. Within breathwork, Holy Basil helps us to connect to our holiness and the holiness of the moment while releasing those things which no longer serve us. Here is one of my favorite tea blends featuring Holy Basil.

image by Belinda Fewings

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) | Respiratory Tonic, Heart Tonic
Holy heart opener and guardian of the gates, Hawthorn is one of the most treasured heart tonics within traditional western herbalism. I've written about its power of thorn, how it helps us to thrive in eclipse season, and why it is one of my favorite autumn season herbs. Hawthorn is known as a cardiac tophorestorative which means that it acts as a restorative for our heart bringing our physical and energetic heart back into balance. The herb helps with the brave journey of opening up again after heartbreak - no easy task and yet one essential to healing. In breathwork, Hawthorn is the ally of the broken-hearted and those who avoid quiet contemplative practices because of their broken-heartedness. It is an herb that works best when taken over an extended period of time.

Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) | Nervine, Heart Tonic
Rooibos is a relaxing nervine with anti-spasmodic qualities and cardioprotective qualities. It's one of my favorite herbs to use in daily morning teas - it's a gentle adaptogen, rich in antioxidants, incredibly calming to the nerves without being sedating, and it's just a really delicious tasting. Rooibos finds its way into many of my tea blends include this one for the First Harvest. Plants are storytellers and in this current wave of culture-changing Black Lives Matter protests, South African native Rooibos can act as an ancestral teacher and gifter of wisdom. For those of you of African descent wanting to work with ancestral herbs, Rooibos is one place to start since it is often easy to find and gentle enough for most folks to work with.  For folks of non-African descent we can learn from plants like Rooibos, too, practicing our listening skills and turning to quiet reflection with our plant teachers alongside the many other humxn teachers helping us to dream up a more just and kind future. Within breathwork, Rooibos helps us bring sweetness to our practice especially for those folks who have a hard time recognizing pleasure as an essential part of healing and justice work.

image by Kings Lee

Recommended Preparations

Many of the herbs above can be prepared in a variety of ways. I feel that the following three ways are particularly conducive to using these herbs in breathwork practices, but please use what you have available and what is appropriate for your individual needs. All of these preparations are water based and require very simple tools to make. 

Teas: One of our oldest forms of herbal medicine, teas or herbal tisanes - if we want to get fancy - are the infusion of plant material with water. Sitting with a cup of tea before, during, and after breathwork only enhances the experience in my opinion. Making tea can be a ritual, helping to set the space for your breathwork and, if drinking hot tea, the steamy aroma of the brew can further help to open airways and deliver the medicine through our breath. Typically, for herbal teas you’ll add 1 heaping teaspoon of herbs per 8 ounces of water and steep for 10 - 20 minutes.

Herbal Steams: Opening up the airways and delivery herbal medicine directly to our airways can be a lovely way to connect with plants before and during breathwork. Typically an herbal steam consists of pouring hot water over a bowl full of herbs and positioning your head above it so that you are breathing in the vapors. Some folks like to cover their head and the bowl with a towel, but this can be a bit too intense for others. It is important to be careful and not burn yourself with the steam which can be quite hot initially. I like to pour hot water over a bowl of herbs, cover with a towel and let sit for 5 minutes before breathing it. You can perform an herbal steam before breathwork or have a bowl of herbs and hot water positioned before you so that you are inhaling their fragrance while partaking in your breathwork practice.

Herbal Baths + Showers: Another option is to take an herbal bath or shower. Herbal baths consist of infusing your bathwater with herbs much like bathing in a large cup of tea. You can learn more about herbal baths and showers here. I like combining herbal baths and showers with breathwork because I find them inherently relaxing and opening - both energetic shifts useful for breathwork. While you can take an herbal bath or shower and then perform your breathwork, you can also perform simple and short breathwork while bathing. As a Witch, bathing is an opportunity for spiritual cleansing and releasing unwanted energetic entanglements - combined with herbs and breathwork bathing and showering can become a powerful ritual.

I hope that these suggestions are useful and that you are inspired to meet with any one of these plant teachers yourself. Be sure to check out my companion post on breathwork for more resources. If you're looking for more resources on herbs that help remind us of our wholeness check out my post on work and worth and those plant allies that are especially useful for the more sensitive among us. Since breathwork is often connected to (re)learning how to rest, here's my guide on how to find insights on ways to rest particular to your personal starmap.

If you’re looking for a deeper dive into breathwork, check out my course on the subject.

Finally, I just received a book in the mail today that I think many of you would find useful when it comes to the overall practice of arriving back into our bodies. Nourishing the Nervous System by tayla shanaye is a beautifully designed pocket-sized book (can I tell you of my deep love for pocket books?) with simple somatic exercises you can do daily for nervous system wellness. The book is produced by Loam which I was only recently introduced to (thanks, Yarrow!) and I’m sure many of you will be as happy to find them as I was.

❤︎ This post was made possible through patron support. Thanks, friends. ❤︎

Breathing With Friends

I've had a number of conversations with folks about the gratefulness of technologies like video chat to enable essential services (like mental health and medical appointments) to continue and the complete soul-suck that many experience with the same medium. As one friend put it "I am tired of trying to create meaningful connections through video chat but I also know that I need video to be able to connect at all with folks right now." 

Video chat as an essential form of connection isn't going away any time soon, so let's come up with an alternative approach for connectivity with less suckage and more nourishment. At the best of times, for me video chat has been an uncomfortable medium and this has been true long before living in quarantine. It has always had a valley of the uncanny feeling to it and only amplifies the feeling of being observed as opposed to being listened to. As I've been navigating this new world of only video chat based meetings, I noticed that I would get off some calls feeling exhausted and other times I felt a sense of connection and wellness.

What was the difference? Breathwork. 

But more on that in just a minute.

(If you’re looking for herbs to support your breathwork practice, come this way.)

There are a few reasons so many of us are feeling burned out about video chat. Even if we're connecting with folks we love, video chat is often a reminder that things are not normal right now. That's stressful in and of itself, but then there is the empathy wall that occurs through video chat. In-person conversations and connections are full of all sorts of shared experiences, including the experience of being in the same environment at the same time as well as energetic markers that don't translate well through video (now there is an upside for folks who tend to get emphatically overloaded in conversations - the empathy wall can actually provide a bit of reprieve). Then there's all the specific to video chat frustrations like technological blips (disconnects, laggy wifi), crappy lighting, interruptions that happen more frequently if we live with others, and having to stare at a screen as opposed to sitting with a person you want to connect with.

Yet, through all these frustrations, I've had consistent moments of connection with folks over video chat and it was because we were using a tool that translates really well to this format: breathwork. Breathwork can take many forms but it's essentially the practice of paying attention to your breath with intention. Breathwork is present in a number of modalities from sitting meditation, trancework and pathworking, spellwork, martial arts, yoga, and more. If you're wanting to connect with folks through video chat but finding it draining or difficult why not try breathwork with your friends and family instead?

Breathwork gets us back into our bodies and even when we're practicing mindful breathing at in-person events it is still an inherently private and deeply personal experience. In this way, breathwork is something that can easily be shared together online but still feel like you're having a meaningful individual experience in the presence of community. What's also nice about breathwork within a video chat conference during times like these is that we can experience a reprieve from talking about the crisis while still connecting to our own feelings and holding space for others to do the same all while together. I know that some folks, especially those with an established meditation or breathwork practice, may be full of disbelief at the suggestion that you can have a nurturing, community-based breathwork practice via video chat, but believe me it truly translates well. 

There are a lot of beautiful resources out there for breathwork whether by yourself or with friends. Two accessible books are The Power of Breathwork by Jennifer Patterson and How To Breathe by Ashley Neese. Both of these books teach a variety of simple breathwork exercises for everything from helping to go to sleep, finding inspiration, exploring grief, nourishing the body, and more. There are also a number of tutorials on youtube including one on square breathing (a technique that I teach and recommend to a lot of folks) and this video covers a variety of stress-relieving breathwork techniques. Breathwork can also be combined with visualization such as a grounding and centering tree of life meditation. You can access my version of the tree of life meditation for free on my Begin With the Breath course description page - just scroll down to the course curriculum section and click on "Tree of Life" for both a recording and transcript. There are also a number of wonderful folks hosting breathwork based online gatherings like Yarrow Magdalena and her Unravel course on tending to grief through breathwork, writing, and ritual (I was just on her podcast and she's a gem).

To help you try out breathwork with friends I've created a simple breathwork gathering format for your video chats. For both of them, it helps to have someone in charge of facilitation and time management (one of the ways to make video chats less stressful is knowing that they have an planned ending) and this is a role that can be rotated each time you gather if you like. There is nothing revolutionary about the following outline - it's a format that many of you will probably have come across before. I'm writing it out both for those of you who haven't facilitated a space like this before - either in-person or online - it can really help to have it all laid out and for folks who have facilitation experience but haven't done this work through video chat yet.

A Simple 30 Minute Breathwork Outline

Gathering and settling in - 5 minutes
Time for everyone to arrive and get comfortable. Depending on how many folks are gathered you can choose to leave everyone muted or unmuted for this part. Before you move on to the next part, invite folks to take a moment to pull up gallery view for a moment so that they are able to see everyone that they'll be sharing space together at once before returning to their preferred screen setup. I learned this at a recent class with Yarrow Magdalena and it was a magickal moment similar to what I experience at the start of a community ritual where we all take a moment to gaze upon everyone we've gathered together with at that moment.

Three word check-in - 5 minutes
Invite everyone to speak or write in chat (especially recommended for groups) three words describing how they are feeling at this moment. Check-ins are a good way for folks to begin to connect with their inner world while beginning to hold space and witness the inner worlds of others. If posted in chat, the facilitator can choose to read through all or some of these words depending on group size.

Breathing with friends - 10 minutes
Introduce the breathwork practice with simple instructions (reading them from a book is just fine!) and then settle into breathwork together. You have a few options when it comes to sound at this point. At in-person gatherings you're going to be hearing other people breathing and while you can unmute everyone on the call, that can sometimes prove more distracting than helpful. One solution is to breathe together while muted - the downside is that disconnects happen and that can be stressful for folks who are trying to close their eyes while breathing but also don't want to find that they're no longer in the call. You can choose to have just the facilitator unmuted for reassuring "I'm still on the call" sound cues. Another option is for the facilitator to play a song or two through their computer or play a simple drumbeat if they have a drum.

Reconnect and reflect - 5 minutes
The facilitator gently invites folks out of the focused breathwork and into a space of reflection. This can be a time for folks to journal briefly or they can speak or write three words on what they are currently feeling. Especially for smaller groups there is always an opportunity to expand this part - just make that decision ahead of time to create an easeful time container for everyone.

Closing and departing - 5 minutes
End by reading an inspiring quote, pulling an oracle card, or some such similar departing blessing. Remind folks to allow space for the experience of breathwork to continue to unfold throughout the day and night. Invite folks to jump into gallery view again to be able to see everyone that has gathered and held space together at once. And then you're done!

I would love to hear how you've made video chat easier to manage and connect with folks on a heart level in the comments below. If you do end up doing breathwork with friends or family, let me know, too! For my fellow herbalists and folks serving as healers in your communities, here are my thoughts on serving as practitioners during times of pandemic.

If you’re looking for herbs to support your breathwork practice, I’ve written about that, too.

Maybe these new skills or connections will becomes we carry with us beyond the time of social distancing, but whether that happens or not, my hope is that you and your loved ones can experience peace and connection with one another no matter what medium it is through.

❤︎ This post was made possible through patron support. Thanks, friends. ❤︎