Patchouli: A Potent Magickal Botanical

Patchouli (Pogosteon patchouli, Pogostemon cablin)

Patchouli is, at least in my opinion, one of the most valuable and versatile herbs to have in your magickal cabinet; both in herb and oil form. It’s peculiar in that most people have a very definite feeling about the herb; one way or the other. Many people have very strong feelings about the scent of patchouli and to be sure it does have a very strong and particular scent. Few are ambivalent about it; most either love it or hate it. The bad thing is that those who love it generally assume that everyone loves it as much as they do. I’m sure many of you know exactly what I mean; that guy who douses himself with an incredible amount of the strongest patchouli oil he can find knowing to his core that it drives women crazy. Funny thing is they don’t seem to get that it’s not the kind of crazy they’re looking for. Don’t get me wrong, I love patchouli for a variety of reasons and a variety of uses but I am the first to say that more often than not people who wear it as a personal scent tend to wear WAY to much of it.

In the 1960’s and 70’s patchouli was a favorite scent among the “generation of love” earning it a deserved reputation as a hippie scent. Used to cover the aroma of unwashed bodies and marijuana it is perhaps through this overuse in these times that some people became so passionate about their love or hate for the scent. Even today it still has the reputation as being an effective disguiser of the scent of marijuana. Just a few years ago I was driving through Utah on my way to a trade show in Colorado when we got pulled over by the highway patrol. Our van was full of product samples for the show and you could smell the patchouli. That smell had the direct result of having the whole car searched as the barely pubescent officer explained to me that patchouli was used to cover up the smell of marijuana so he suspected that we were transporting the illegal herb.

                                                          

Unless you live in a tropical rainforest or jungle you won’t really be able to cultivate the plant. Of course a good quality greenhouse would do the job but due to the ease of acquiring both the herb and the oil growing it to use as an ingredient isn’t really practical although if you live in South Florida you might be able to give it a go. About ten years ago I actually acquired a seeding of my own. I still lived in Los Angeles and I was hoping to be able to grow it just for my own personal satisfaction. I nursed it and loved it and it did very well until one night the whole of the plant was ravaged by horde of un-merciless slugs. All that was left after their onslaught was but the twig of the main stem covered in unmistakable slug slime.

Traditional lore as well as my own personal experience has it that patchouli is good for love, lust and prosperity. It’s an herb of attraction to be sure and one that is often used in conjunction with other herbs or oils. Both the herb and the oil have a wonderfully rich and earthy scent that blends well with many other botanicals. It’s also effective in fertility workings and can be used as a substitute when a spell calls for graveyard dirt. Another use is in jinx or spell breaking formulas. The Elemental association is Earth but there do seem to be those who associate it with Fire. From my own extensive personal experience I will tell you that it is definitely an Earth herb; I don’t understand how anyone can smell its aroma or hold the herb in your hand and say that it’s not an Earth herb. It’s feminine and associated with the planet Saturn.

If you like to mix your own oils don’t be afraid to try some patchouli oil in your blends even if you think you hate it. When the earthy and sometimes even sharp scent blends with other oils it adds a wonderfully deep and almost musky quality to the blend not to mention it’s very potent energetically. Patchouli is one of those wonderful oils that work not only energetically but also emotionally making it all the more valuable. It’s also used in holistic aromatherapy for skin care, nerve stimulation and endocrine issues among other things. It’s also an effective insect repellant and has been used for centuries for that purpose.

Once upon a time the oil was quite inexpensive but the last ten years or so the price has fluctuated quite a bit. The essential oil price can vary depending on the country of origin as well as the age. Patchouli is one of those oils that actually improve with age. That being said, even expensive patchouli isn’t that expensive when you compare it to the price of some other essential oils. Sadly it’s also often mislabeled in that it’s sometimes labeled as natural when in fact it’s not or it’s highly diluted. Many companies mix patchouli oil with either other natural oils or even synthetic ones to lower the price and soften the sharpness of a young oil. There are also lots of synthetic patchouli oils out there too and to the unfamiliar nose it may be hard to tell. Your best shot at getting true, undiluted essential oil is to buy it from someone you trust.

The herb on the other hand is relatively inexpensive and is a wonderful addition to incense and charm bag herb blends. I’ve even used it in magickal potpourri. Using the herb in a bath infusion is a great rejuvenator and can help clear confusion while easing a troubled mind. The Chinese use patchouli herb in a number of their over the counter patent remedies including one that I am never without that is wonderful for all sorts of digestive system issues.

At Raven’s Flight we sell the cut & dried herb in both ½ oz and 4 oz sizes. We sell the pure, undiluted and unadulterated essential oil in 1 dram and 2 dram bottles. I also make a house blend of patchouli and honey amber that is very popular called Royal Patchouli that is available as an oil, stick and cone incense, soap, lotion, body wash, room & body spray and candles. All patchouli products are 20% off from Sunday, March 31, 2013 through Saturday, April 6^th, 2013. No promo or coupon code needed. So if you've never used it now's a good time to try some and if like me you use it a lot now's a good time to stock up!

Happy Crafting!

Raven Womack

Raven’s Flight

The Magickal Apothecary

www.ravensflight.net

Book Review-Essential Herbal Wisdom by Nancy Arrowsmith

Essential Herbal Wisdom: A Complete Exploration of 50 Remarkable Herbs.© 2009 by Nancy Arrowsmith. Llwellyn Publications. Woodbury, MN ISBN 978-0-7387-1488-2

Originally published as Herbarium Magicum by Allgeria, an imprint of Ullstein Buchverlage GmbH, Berlin, 2007.

Disclaimer:

No disclaimers here; I’ve never met the author and I have nothing what-so-ever to do with the publisher.

Personal Expertise:

I am considered by myself and a few others perhaps to be a wort cunner; an herb worker. My business and all of my free time are taken up with my deep rooted love of all things herbal.

Review:

If you love all things herbal like I do, you may have come to the conclusion that many herbals are quite repetitive; almost like there’s a basic herbal somewhere from which most modern herbals are born and usually by the cut and paste method. Well actually for the most part they seem to be rehashes from A Modern Herbal by Grieve[1] with hopefully some added info as well. That’s not to say that there aren’t some notable exceptions. Until I happened upon Essential Herb Wisdom I hadn’t bought an herbal in many years. In fact I had pretty much quit looking since so many of the books I picked up seemed to simply be reworded copies of the books I already had.

Quite by accident, in that I was not looking to buy a new book on herbs, I happened upon this book at the Enchanted Crystal in Running Springs, California. I am in the habit of perusing books whether or not I’m in the market for a new one. After all the best spouses seem to be found when you think you’re not looking so why not books as well?I think it was the subtitle that got my attention; “A Complete Exploration of 50 Remarkable Herbs”. Most herbals outside of Mrs Grieve’s classic do in fact contain within them a little information about a whole bunch of herbs but they don’t completely explore them and for some people that’s just fine. A large percentage of magickal “herbalist” know a little bit about a whole bunch of herbs but have never really and completely explored many of the herbs they work with.

 As a Pagan, I am of course not only interested in the medicinal properties of herbs but also the magickal properties, folklore and history of the herb. If you’re like me in that respect then you’ll like this book.

For instance, while it would be very hard for any one book to cover all of the folk names of a particular herb the author Nancy Arrowsmith does as good a job as can be done in my opinion. She even covers many of the names used by non-English speaking cultures which is understandable since the book was originally written in German. She explores everything from the history of the name to cultivation techniques, appearance to magickal merits, culinary virtues to modern medicine; there are so many sub-headings denoting the various information on each herb that I dare not list them all here for sake of brevity. Let it suffice to say that each chapter devoted to each herb has pretty much everything you ever wanted to know about that herb that can be learned outside of actual hands-on experience. How many herbals do you have that include entries entitled, “Uses in Husbandry”?

The herbs covered are not obscure or hard to get and only a few of them have any real toxicity issues and even then they are slight for the most part and the author gives great care in explaining them. I dare say that unless you are the newest of newbies to the herbal arts you are at least slightly familiar with all the 50 remarkable herbs. The book is well written, easy to read and an incredible wealth of information.

To sum it all up I highly recommend this book to anyone from beginner to expert. In my opinion it’s a great place for a budding herbalist to start and I believe that even the most learned expert will find useful information. I usually have at least one or two criticisms about any book I read but for the life of me I can’t think of any in regards to this wonderful herbal.

Happy Herbing!

Raven Womack

Raven's Flight

The Magickal Apothecary

www.ravensflight.net

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[1] A Modern Herbal (In Two Volumes) by Mrs. M. Grieve. ©1971. Dover Publications. New York, NY. ISBN 0-486-22798-7. Considered by many including myself to be a must have reference for anyone studying herbs and botanicals.

Mugwort My Favorite Magickal Herb

Mugwort My Favorite Magickal Herb

Every witch, wort cunner or herbalist of any kind for that matter has their own particular favorite herbs; the reasons why they become our favorites are as varied as the practitioners who favor them. I have already posted about some of my other favorites but what will become very clear is that my particular favorite among favorites is mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris). Truthfully I can’t even remember when I first became aware of the herb but there is something about its energy that draws me to it in a way that few other herbs do. In actuality I am rather queer for the whole artemesia[1] family; tarragon, wormwood and desert sage[2] are up there on my favored herbs list but it’s mugwort that is nearest and dearest to my heart and I am not alone.

Many herbal enthusiasts have nothing but praise for mugwort whether they are magickally inclined or not. I have often read or heard others extolling the virtues of this plant and it’s often referred to as one of the most magickal herbs of all. I am sure that for some that are reading this I will be preaching to the choir so to speak.

Magickal gardens often have a patch or a stand of mugwort along with its close cousin wormwood (Artemisia absenthium). Both of these plants, like all artemisias, are sacred to Artemis and since these two have a special lunar connection to Her and to other Moon Goddesses they are often included in moon gardens.

Generally speaking mugwort has two main magickal correspondences which are protection and psychic pursuits or what I like to call loosening the bonds. In other words it can help to free the user from the bonds of mundane life so that slightly altered states of consciousness and heightened sight can be achieved but not in the same way as substances like marijuana, magic mushrooms or other more potent or psychotropic substances.

As a protective herb it has long been used to ward against evil spirits, poisonous beasts and all manner of ickies. It can be worn as a wreath, added to a protective mojo bag, hung in the house or what have you. In some Native American cultures mugwort is a traditional smudging herb[3] for clearing away and protecting against bad energy. There is also lore that says that if you place a sprig of the plant in your shoe it will protect you against weariness but there is a caveat; if you put the sprig in your shoe on Midsummer’s Eve you might be carried away by a white horse that will disappear at daybreak leaving you abandoned and far from home.

As for its reputation as an herb that can aid in psychic pursuits it is used in many different ways. Many Wiccans, Witches and other magickal folk will drink a cup of mugwort tea before ritual to aid the participants in being in the moment so to speak. It is the most favored herb for psychic dream pillows and I can tell you from personal experience its reputation is well deserved. I also find it an excellent addition to any sort of incense intended for divination, meditation or journey work.

Due to its lunar association it is also appropriate for any type of lunar workings, incenses or oils and a mugwort infusion is also excellent for cleansing and clearing gems and crystals.

The virtues of mugwort are not just magickal though. The dried leaves were once commonly used to brew beer. The fresh leaves are edible and in times past it was enjoyed quite commonly in salads and soups as well as steamed or boiled. In fact it was a considered a spring tonic herb in some parts as can be seen by the traditional saying,

If they would eat Leeks in March and Mugworts in May so many young maidens would not go to the clay-[4]

There are many, many medicinal uses for mugwort as well and it’s been used by many cultures for many centuries to treat all sorts of maladies from digestive issues to nervous disorders and women’s complaints.[5]

Traditional Chinese medicine uses mugwort for a treatment known as moxibustion which has centuries of positive results in treating all sorts of issues. 

With all of the obvious qualities and virtues that I have already listed you might think that my case is already made but wait…. there’s more! There is an energetic quality to the plant that can only be described as awesome. It’s pleasant, joyful and almost euphoric. It's sometimes subtle in dried form until you start working with it. Once you get it in your hand you can feel it. It has this funny habit of wanting to stick together in little fluffy clumps which makes me think that its energy is so good that it even wants to be with itself.

As great as the energy of the dried leaves is the energy of the live plant is almost intoxicating. I have something like 14 mugwort plants growing close by my favorite oak tree in the backyard and I have no doubt that I will someday have at least twice as many. If you have the chance I highly recommend growing some. It germinates easily and is equally easy to grow. It will thrive under a variety of growing conditions even in a pot but I warn you the stalks can get quite tall; I have some that are easily 4’.

If this article has piqued your interest or even if you too are a longtime mugwort lover I would now like to tempt you with some awesome freshly dried mugwort. You see I have just recently finished drying and preparing a rather healthy harvest of this wonderful herb from my own magickal herb garden.

Below is a picture comparing commercially grown mugwort with the mugwort grown in my garden. The first obvious difference is visible even in the picture. You will notice that the commercially grown mugwort is a drab olive green color and my mugwort, which is on the right, is a vibrant green. Of course the commercially grown one is still a fine and potent herb but my mugwort is exceptional due to it being grown with love and magick and processed with honor in small batches; something that it is impossible under commercial farming conditions. So, if you’re interested in adding some really exceptional mugwort to your magickal cabinet I am releasing part of the harvest to the public. 

 If you're interested...here's the link:

 Raven's Mugwort

Now for the legal stuff:

The information in this article is provided solely for educational purposes. No part of this article is intended to take the place of qualified diagnosis or prescription for any illness or disease. Always consult a qualified health professional for proper diagnosis and treatment.  

I would also like to credit the fabulous book of herb lore, Mugworts in May written by Linda Ours Rago and published by Quarrier Press. ISBN#0964619709 for some of the info in this article.

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[1] According to mythology and lore the genus of plants known as Artemisia were given by the Goddess Artemis to the centaur Chiron a great healer and teacher.

[2] There are of course many more herbs in the artemesia genus; these are but a few of my other favorites.

[3] The mugwort that is favored by Native Americans in the Pacific West is actually a related species Artemisia douglasiana but both plants seem to share common uses both magickally and medicinally.

[4] Going to the clay refers to the practice of eating clay or dirt. It is thought that this was caused by mineral deficiencies in certain diets especially over the winter when vegetables were scarce or non-existent. Interestingly enough this is still a problem especially in areas where poverty is rampant or there is some other reason for a lack of green vegetables in the local diet.

[5] Pregnant women are advised not to ingest mugwort.

HOREHOUND AND THE HARD CANDY QUEST

Horehound is a wonderful herb, an unappreciated herb and one of my favorite herbs. It has numerous uses both medicinally and magickally. It is easy to grow being tolerant of many climate zones, moisture and light conditions and soil types. It is an excellent choice for a drought tolerant garden too. Although it is not native to this continent it can be found growing in the wild all over the place. You see, it was such an important herb to European settlers that they brought it with them to the New World and its inherent hardiness and adaptability allowed it to naturalize here. It is relatively inexpensive to buy and not as difficult to find as many of the herbs that witches trend towards, although in most cases you will not find it a corner grocery store; of course that will depend on your corner grocery store.

Horehound is thought to be sacred to Horus, Isis and Osiris although personally I find it most appropriate to Horus but that’s just me. Magickally it is useful for warding off negative and malicious energy, breaking spells, clearing away obstacles to inspiration, preventing theft, keeping secrets, honesty, fidelity, retention of knowledge and working with animals. With all of this going for it you’d think it would be more popular than it is.

 All herb workers have herbs that they just naturally have an affinity for and horehound is one of mine both magickally and medicinally. I love the scent and feel of the fresh leaves and I find its energy very easy to tap into and work with. I use it dried, fresh, infused and tinctured.

Medicinally it has a long history of use, back to the Romans at least, as a remedy for all sorts of coughs, sore throats and chest congestion and digestive complaints.  Sugar and honey syrups were and are at least as popular as infusions when it came to the methods of administering this soothing and healing herb which makes sense due to the fact that horehound is such a bitter herb. The syrups evolved into a hard candy or lozenge which overtime became the one of the most popular ways to partake of the medicinal properties of the herb.

Horehound candy is as much an old-fashioned treat as it is an old-fashioned remedy; one that could be found not only in drug stores but also general stores and candy shops. My father is rather fond of the dark brown sweet yet bitter confection that was definitely something that was very common in his youth. Those of you who are of my generation may have some few faint memories of the candy but few successive generations have ever tasted the candy or even seen it; especially those who grew up in large urban areas. Its taste is not one that everyone will find appealing but it is certainly a taste of times gone by. You can still find horehound candy in boutique stores seeking to capture the appeal of old-fashioned shops but in general it is not widely available. 

Seeing as I had a rather abundant harvest of horehound last autumn I decided that I would try my hand at making horehound candy. I thought it would make an excellent Yule gift for my dad and others and it would also be handy to keep about for cold and flu season. Even though I am rather proficient in the kitchen I had no experience in making hard candy. Truthfully the fact that I had never made it actually made it an even more appealing quest; something of an adventure if you will.

I started by doing some research and what I learned fairly quickly is that there are very few hard and fast rules. I searched the internet and my own collection of cookbooks and I did indeed find many, many recipes for horehound candy as well as all sorts of other hard candies. While I seldom follow any recipe exactly it is often very helpful to have a reference point to start from. I thought that there would be some basic recipe, some general guideline as to proportions either in reference to the amount of herbs to use in the infusion or to the ratio of infusion to sugar. What I found was that there was little similarity in the recipes; every recipe whether it was attributed to someone’s granny or Aunt Bessie was completely different. What I did learn from all of my research was that basically all you need is a bunch of sugar of some sort, an herbal infusion, a thermometer and some time and patience to make old-fashioned horehound candy.

All types of sugar can apparently be used either alone or in various combinations. When I say all types I do mean all types: white or brown granulated, corn syrup, molasses, honey, etc, etc. The proportions of water to fresh or dried herbs used to make the infusion were as varied as the amount and variations of the sugars in the many recipes. My first infusion attempt was way too strong and had to be diluted by half.

I include a thermometer as being necessary for this task but in truth hard candy was being made long before candy thermometers were readily available. You see the candy must be cooked to a certain temperature which is referred to as the hard crack stage to achieve the hard aspect of the finished candy and while the correct stage can be determined by dropping small amounts into a container of cold water and observing the result, but it is a lot easier to just use a thermometer; at least until a certain level of experience is obtained. You see it takes quite a bit of time to get the candy syrup to the correct stage and if I’m going to spend that much time on a project I want to have the best possible outcome. Once the correct stage is reached your next challenge will be forming the syrup into candy. Again there are various ways to achieve this; pulling and forming, molding, pouring on a slab and scoring before it gets too hard.

As it turned out, much of the process depended on my own cunning and happily it was such a great success. In fact it was such a great success that I have now created all sorts of other hard candies; candies of a more magickal nature. The thought occurred to me that if one could make hard candies for medicinal and/or confectionery purposes why not for magickal or spiritual purposes. Why not a prosperity, love or a protection candy? Why not an Isis or a Morrigan candy? Okay, maybe not a Morrigan candy, that would probably not taste to good but you get the idea. I now have recipes for magickal candy, God and Goddess candy and recipes for Sabbat candies. So many possibilities, so little time!

So the point of all this is that hopefully it illustrates that you can bring the magickal into the mundane in many, many ways. On the other hand, I hope that some of you will give horehound a try in your magickal and medicinal work; if you do I think you will be pleased.

Blessings

Raven

Raven’s Flight the Magickal Apothecary

Birch and The Season of New Beginnings

No matter how well versed they are in their art, every wort-cunner and herbalist will over time develop a few favorite botanicals. Whether these favorites are for healing, magickal or spiritual work there is something that “speaks” to the practitioner in some significant way. One of my favorite botanicals for magickal work is birch.

Birch trees (Betula alba. Betula benta) have long been harvested by mankind for a myriad of purposes; food, medicine, shelter, paper and clothing are among the many gifts that this beautiful and graceful tree has given humanity over the ages. There is also a vast amount of magickal and mythical folklore associated with the tree. From a seasonal prospective probably the best known associations are those of Imbolg and the festivals of the goddess Brigit. The birch is a feminine tree often associated with the Earth Goddess or Earth Mother and in some cultures is called The Lady of the Woods. Protection, exorcism, purification, love and fertility are among the many magickal associations for birch but the ones that really resonate with me are banishing and new beginnings; which pretty much go hand in hand if you think about it.

Over the years birch bark and leaves have found their way into many of my magickal products but it is the essential oil that I really favor. The fresh and stimulating scent is similar to that of wintergreen; similar but not the same. From a magickal prospective there are many oils that have similar properties and associations but energetically there is no substitute in my opinion. (*It should be noted here that while birch oil is incorporated into many skin healing products with great success it can cause skin irritation, rash or contact dermatitis if the undiluted oil comes into contact with skin. Never apply undiluted to skin and always take precautions when working with the oil.)

The leaves and bark are both ingredients in various charcoal incenses and herbal blends that I make. On the other hand the essential oil is an ingredient in many products; soaps, oil blends, candles, charcoal and stick incenses and more. The biggest disadvantage to using birch in magickal products is its sporadic availability. When the bark is unobtainable I can usually find the leaves and vice-versa so when it comes to charcoal incenses and herbal blends one can usually be substituted for the other. On the other hand when there is no oil to be had there are simply products that won’t get made.

We are currently in one of those periods of birch oil unavailability which many of you have noticed as some of your favorite products have been out of stock for a while.

I usually like to do business with companies that I am familiar with; when it comes to essential oils not all companies are created equally so when I find a supplier whose quality and value I have come to trust I am hesitant to go elsewhere. For a while now, all of my usual sources have been out and when questioned about estimated arrival dates they have no answers for me.  In fact one of my regular suppliers has even removed it from their catalog due to the inconsistent availability so I have reluctantly yet diligently been searching for a new source.

Without any anticipation of success I recently began what I was sure would be yet another futile search for the ever elusive birch essential oil. Of course I first I tried all of my regular essential oil suppliers just in case but as expected with no success. So I began searching about on the internet; mind you I had tried many times over the preceding months with no success. Whenever I was able to find a dealer that advertised the oil, I was always met with those discouraging words, “out of stock”.

So, was it coincidence, serendipity or simply the magick of the season that caused me to be successful on my very first try? After all, my previous searches had been before the Winter Solstice but this search was done in the Imbolg season. Also in keeping with the energy of new beginnings the supplier not only had large quantities of the desired essential oil but they also carried quite a few other products that I have been trying to find for some time now; so in my opinion it was definitely the magick of the season!

Birch essential oil is a major component in my Banishing Products and Brigit Products not mention my Special Birch Soap and the Birch Votive Candles.  All of these products are back in stock now and I have also added a Birch Pillar Candles and Tea Light Candles as well. In the coming months there will be other new products that will have been made possible by the quest for Birch Essential Oil.

So thank you Lady of the Woods for sending me on this journey that has resulted once again in New Beginnings!

A Blessed Imbolg Season to you all!

Raven

Raven’s Flight

The Magickal Apothecary

www.ravensflight.net