The Protection of the Goddess: Evaluation of Past Life Vows

(image: Diana Hunting, Guillaume Seignac)

Have you ever felt inexplicably drawn to a particular deity?

Many women today have past life connections with goddesses that greatly influence our current lives.

If, in a past life, you were part of the cult of a goddess, worshipped in her temple, or prayed and made offerings to her frequently, it's likely that your bond extends beyond one lifetime. She is most likely still here, with you, supporting and loving you in this lifetime.

There are a few goddesses that I've had lifelong connections with, and over time, it's been fascinating to uncover more dimensions of our history together.  Freya and Isis are two of my most steadfast allies, as is Diana....

Artemis to the Greeks and Diana to the Romans, this goddess reigns supreme over the hunt, wild animals, the wilderness, fertility, and the moon. An eternal virgin (which really means complete and sovereign in this context), Artemis-Diana has remained a powerful ally for many modern women today, acting as one of the primary goddess of witches and Wicca practitioners.

While I've felt connected with many goddesses over the years, I came to explore the fullness of my relationship with Diana relatively recently. (Interestingly, though I'm usually drawn to the Greek pantheon, it was always clear that my vows had been made to Diana rather than Artemis - perhaps a clue to when and where our lives together took place.)

Through a series of profound spiritual experiences, I discovered that I had been a priestess of Diana in many lives. Realizing my deep relationship with this goddess has been incredible empowering - and it has explained a lot. My natural ability to communicate with wild animals, comfort spending days alone in the wilderness, fierce protective instinct for women's sovereignty...

Under the Protection of Goddess Diana

Diana came to me full force during a shamanic initiation with a teacher who unfortunately was under the influence of her own shadow. (I didn't realize it immediately, but she was targeting me psychically and caused me real damage for many years.)

During one of our sessions together, she told me that it was time to break my past life vows with Diana. That whatever vows I made in the past were holding me back from my path in this lifetimes.

At the time, I really trusted this teacher. But my whole body screamed NO to the idea. I checked in with Diana and my other guides for perspective. They showed me that my vows to this goddesses were of love and freedom, they provided me with her protection and power but in no way held me back from anything my soul was called to do.

If I had allowed this teacher to break my vows, I would have been released from the protection of Diana. And it turned out, I really needed her protection around this teacher.

The Need to Reevaluate Past Life Vows

I do believe it's important to examine the vows we make in past lives, as not all of them are supportive. For example, had my vow included certain caveats, like remaining a virgin or rejecting wealth, I would likely suffer the consequences in this life - perhaps through relationship or financial challenges. It's always good to examine the agreements and vows we've made.

But whether to break your vows is always your decision — never let a teacher tell you what's best for you. By developing your own relationships with spirit guides in your life, and by learning to activate and trust your intuition, you will know what's best for you. This is one important element of cultivating your personal sovereignty.

Activate Your Own Connections with the Goddesses

Which goddesses do you feel a pull to? What clues to past life connections can you see? Do you sense any vows that it is now time to break? To rekindkle?

Leave a comment if so. I'd love to hear from you.

Want to deepen your connection with Diana? The Diana-Artemis Goddess Activation workshop is filled with practices and rituals and recipes and meditations and more.

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Which Should I Choose? Sprays, Oils, and Solid Perfumes

In natural perfumery, you'll find three main types of perfumes: sprays, oils, and solids. All are wonderful, but each will give you a slightly different experience.

Perfume Sprays

Unless otherwise mentioned, most perfume sprays come in EDP (eau de parfum) strength, which is about 15-20% aromatics. This is true of Alchemessence perfumes, which contain a base of 100% pure organic alcohol.

Perfume sprays allow you to enjoy an all-over aroma--you can spray your hair, your clothes, a scarf, an undergarment...sprays are incredibly versatile.

Sprays also tend to be a bit lighter and slightly more fleeting in scent than oil and solid perfumes.

Perhaps the main advantage of perfume sprays is that they have a long-lasting shelf life. The pure alcohol preserves these perfumes almost indefinitely.

Perfume Oils

Perfume oils are typically made at a slightly higher concentration that sprays, and their cost usually reflects this. It's not uncommon for an oil to be a pure perfume extrait, which can contain from 25% aromatics all the way up to 40%!

These sensual, strong oils meld deeply into your own body chemistry, creating a fragrance that truly is a bit different on everyone.

The only real drawback to oils is that they'll have a shorter shelf life than sprays. Oils naturally degrade overtime, so these are best used within a year or two of purchase.

Perfume Solids

Perfume solids typically contain oils and waxes. Beeswax is traditional, though there are vegan alternatives available.

These perfumes are quite similar to perfume oils: they're usually perfume extraits, they seep into your skin and alchemize with your body chemistry, and they're best used within a two to four years of purchase, depending on how you store them.

As solids, these perfumes are portable and easy to use on the go.

Which kind of perfumes are your favorites? Let me know in the comments!

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How I Make Natural Perfumes: Art, Aroma, and Alchemy in a Bottle

Each Alchemessence™ perfume is art, aroma, and alchemy in a bottle. They contain magical essences, transmission of spirit, and masterfully composed symphonies of fragrance. 

My formal training (and lifelong practice) in perfumery, aromatherapy, energy medicine, and shamanism provides a foundation for perfumes that not only delight the senses but act as catalysts for healing and awakening. 

These perfumes are primarily dedicated to deities, animals, and plant spirits. Before I begin, I journey to the spirit of the being I’m working with for guidance—sometimes this will come in the form of specific ingredients, and other times it will be more general aroma notes. I’m highly clairolfactory (psychic through smell), so I will also smell the perfume in my journey before it exists in ordinary reality. 

My collection of over 400 different botanical essences includes essential oils, absolutes, CO2s, floral waxes, resins, and handcrafted tinctures and infused oils. Unlike many natural perfumers, I do not use any isolates or animal ingredients (with the few exceptions of burnt seashell essence, honey absolute, and beeswax) in my perfumes. 

I select ingredients for each perfume based on several factors, including… 

The Journey—what the deity specifically requested:

• Aphrodite wanted her perfume’s ingredients to come only from the place of her birth—and the birth of perfume—Cyprus

• Magpie insisted on juniper berry and jasmine (which I have since learned is a powerful and common combo in Toaist aromatherapy)

• Horse requested fresh hay or course, which I complemented with fields of lavender

Geography—essences to honor the primary location of a deity:

• Kuan Yin has notes of green tea and ginger

• Pele is honored with rare frangipani absolute

• White Buffalo Calf Woman contains true white sagebrush

Symbolism—symbolic plants and essences associated with each deity:

• Diana, also known as Artemis, contains the artemisia that is her namesake

• Freya contains true fossilized amber, her favorite stone

• Oshun is blessed with honey absolute for the honeypot she wears 

Energetic Qualities—the way an essence’s energetic properties support the gifts of the deity:

• Persephone contains cypress, which helps with transitioning between life and death, just as she so gracefully moves between Hades and Earth

• Many moon goddesses contain a touch of clary sage, which enhances women’s natural cycles

Aroma—what truly makes each blend a perfume in the purest sense:

• I carefully balance base, middle, and top notes, adding accents and fixatives so each perfume reveals surprises as it unfolds and lasts 

• I match the perfume family requested by each deity as well, be it floral, spicy, chypre, or woody, among others

All of these factors come together to create rare, alchemical botanical perfumes.

Explore the Perfumes

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Mythoanimism: An Emerging Spirituality

Every day, more people are awakening to our interconnectedness, the symbolic language of the universe and the divine, the spiritual gifts within each of us, and the importance of cultivating a strong relationship with the natural world. 

Modern mystics no longer enjoy the trappings of organized religion. And they no longer can separate their spiritual practices from the earth that sustains us.

Spiritual Movements of the 20th Century

While there have always been spiritual explorers, the twentieth century catalyzed widespread radical leaps in consciousness. Largely thanks to the consciousness work of Jung and discovery of psychedelics in the first half of the century, the decades that followed saw a mass exodus from the organized religions of the West toward Eastern spiritual practices. Teachings from the worlds of yoga and meditation expanded the spiritual awareness of countless seekers.

Parallel to the influx of Eastern wisdom in the West was the rising of earth-based practices. Pagan rites and celebrations, women’s circles with witchy leanings, the Gaia hypothesis, and ecofeminist understandings of our interconnectedness, prolifically written about by Starhawk, greatly impacted mass consciousness. 

It’s no wonder that Western shamanism also arose during the seventies and eighties, as shamanism involves trance states (such as those attained with psychedelics or meditation practices) and deep relationship with the earth (as was also cultivated by other earth-based spiritualities).

Looking back at spirituality in the West, it’s safe to say that between the 1940s and 2010s, massive shifts in spiritual awareness impacted our collective consciousness in profoundly beneficial ways.

2000-2022: A Time of Reckoning

Unfortunately, humanity had not yet transcended the need for intermediaries with the divine. While hippies may have turned their backs on priests, many still welcomed gurus with open arms. 

In the past decades, gurus have fallen. And they’ve fallen across the board—yogis, meditation teachers, spiritual guides and healers of various sorts have all had their shadows exposed. I think of the sexual assult charges of John of God and K. Pattabhi Jois. The rise and fall of Doreen Virtue. Bizarre cults like NXIVM. 

Even more recently, a growing reckoning of power dynamics and cultural appropriation has bubbled to the surface of our collective conversations, leaving many modern mystics faced with difficult questions around what elements of their spiritual practices are still welcome, and which might be inadvertently causing harm. 

Current Trends in Spirituality

Today, with both religions and alternative spiritual communities dissolving, as we live in times of collective reckoning around power dynamics and the crises facing our mother earth, a few important spiritual trends are emerging:

1. People are seeking spiritual equality and sovereignty. They want to experience spirit directly for themselves and to know that they can trust their own intuition. 

2. People care about our earth. The climate crisis is forefront in their minds, and forming meaningful connections with nature has taken on a sort of spiritual urgency. 

3. People are rebelling against old power dynamics—especially patriarchal and colonial ones. Calls to end oppression and center previously marginalized voices have become intertwined with spiritual practice.

4. People are called to connect with their ancestry and ancestors. We’re here because of the ancestors that have survived challenging times before, and there’s a growing recognition of the wisdom we might find through ancestral work. 

5. People are creating a psychedelic revival. The shutdown of psychedelic research in the seventies was clearly meant to cut us off from cultivating their own direct spiritual connections—and therefore our ability to think for ourselves. Now, we’re reclaiming our right to research and use psychedelics for healing and connection.

6. People are re-engaging with Jungian thought. More and more people are finding meaning in the transpersonal realms of archetypes, omens, symbols, mythologies, and dreams—acknowledging that the universe is always communicating with us if we’ll listen.

7. People are embracing animism. With the climate crisis more pronounced than ever, more and more people are recognizing the need to shift out of human-centric worldviews and into an appreciation of the inspirited nature of all things.

These trends are universal and important, yet until now, we have not had language that clearly encompasses all of these components.

Witch, priestess, animist, earth-medicine practitioner, akashic record reader, starseed, energy healer, and lightworker are bandied about—and all are lovely words. Still others, feeling the limitations inherent in any of this language use the term “spiritual”—which is still too broad to convey much meaning. 

In truth, there is a deep layer of vast yet cohesive spiritual wisdom and truth that connects all the spiritual qualities listed above…

This is where mythoanimism comes in. 

Mythoanimism—A Spiritual Path for These Times

Animism nods to the inspirited nature of the universe—and not only to the spirits of nature we know and love. True animist practice acknowledges that even concepts and objects can have their own vital energy.

Mythos reminds us of the poetic, non-linear, symbolic, and archetypal reality of the universe. This invites trance states, direct revelation, and ancestral wisdom into our spiritual paths. Mythos also allows space for the non-embodied dimension of spirit—deities and beings of other realms are acknowledged and brought into relationship in this non-human-centric practice.

Together, these words give us mythoanimism. Mythoanimism is contained enough to have identifying characteristics, yet broad enough that each person can walk the mythoanimist path in their own unique way. 

As a universal and emerging spirituality, mythoanimism is welcoming to people of all backgrounds, and when practiced with care and intention, frees us from the trappings of outdated power dynamics, fears around cultural appropriation, and the often overly individualist qualities of the spiritualities that have come before. 

As we embark on this new—yet in truth ancient—path before us, let’s look more closely at the qualities held within mythoanimism. 

1. Spiritual sovereignty is our birthright.

Those on the mythoanimist path are waking up to an important truth: spirit is within. And while teachers on the path are valuable guides, we must never give over our own power and knowing. 

With so many realizing their own divinity, we are experiencing a zeitgeist moment in the realm of spiritual sovereignty—the idea that we can have our own direct connection to spirit, uninhibited and uninfluenced by outside forces.

This concept has rippling effects on our lived experience: When we understand that we are divine and that we have the power of spirit within us, we realize that we must take on a new level of responsibility for our lives. We must care for our health, our communities, each other, and our great earth. 

We must love life itself as much as the great spirit that created us does. 

Spiritual sovereignty, which sounds quite individualistic, actually brings us into greater relationship with all that is. 

2. Animism is the truth of our natural world.

We must view the earth as alive. And we must understand that all beings—from birds to trees to mountains and stones—have consciousness and are inspirited. 

Our ecological crisis requires a cosmological solution.

This is a vast departure from the human-centric worldviews of the past. And, while many people are waking up to the spirits inhabiting our natural world—those found in animals and plants—mythoanimism takes this even further: All is inspirited. 

We recognize the spirit of concepts—such as hope or money—as well as the spirit of objects. If you’ve ever talked to your car in a moment of desperation, you’ve tasted the relationships that are possible here. This may prove to be an essential shift for a world in which AI plays an active role.

When we truly integrate an animistic worldview into our consciousness, everything changes. We form new relationships with the land we live on, the food we eat, and the things we consume. We also become empowered to work with the energies in our lives—around wealth, habits, dreams—in new transformative ways. 

3. We are a web of equality and oneness. And we are individuals, here and now.

Spiritual sovereignty tells us that spirit is within us, and animism tells us that spirit enlivens all things. This framework gives way to the universal understanding that we are all one at the most fundamental spiritual level. 

Where there is oneness, there is no dualism and no hierarchy. With this understanding, no longer can we unconsciously treat that which is outside ourselves as lesser than or disposable. No longer can tribalism, us vs. them, and outdated power dynamics guide our consciousness. 

Returning to regenerative living and creating circular economies become spiritual imperatives. 

And at the same time we acknowledge our oneness, we also recognize that we are having individual incarnations. We are souls, with our own energy, karma, and life experiences. Holding multiple levels of seemingly conflicting awareness is a key part of the mythoanimist path.

4. The universe communicates with symbolic language and archetypes.

As mentioned earlier, Jungian psychology is undergoing something of a revival right now. Jung understood that we are all connected on subconscious levels. Interestingly, when Stanislov Groff did his LSD studies, he also found that not only did various layers of consciousness exist, but another layer not previously understood (in the West at least) revealed itself: the transpersonal.

Groff found that while in a trance state, people could experience universal symbols and archetypes—even connecting with beings and deities from cultures with which they had no previous connection or knowledge. There truly is a universal, symbolic language that we can tap into.

The universe is far more vast and interconnected than we could ever imagine—yet we’re not left in the dark. Our dreams contain important insights and revelations beyond our personal processing. Omens, often in the form of nature’s messengers, are waiting for our attention. Mythology from cultures around the world contains universal archetypes and clues for understanding our human experiences, here and now. 

5. The true nature of reality is far more layered than our consensus reality. 

Mythoanism pulls us out of our limited understanding of consensus 3D reality into an undefined and more expansive understanding of the true nature of reality. While you’ll find some new age teachers referring to this as “5D”, I personally find even that term too limiting. 

Many layers of reality exist beyond what we can validate with our five senses. Energetic blueprints and systems underlie our physical bodies. Various disembodied beings—from deities and angels to the recently deceased and fae—exist alongside us, just on the other side of our veils of perception.

This understanding opens us to possibilities that might otherwise seem like magical thinking or miracles. We know that healing happens on energetic and spiritual levels in addition to physical, emotional, and mental ones—and we can engage in a wide variety of practices and techniques to work in partnership with the other realms and their inhabitants. 

As we recognize that the “rules” we’ve been taught might not be set in stone, we can welcome energy, healing, and creation into our lives through radical new pathways. 

We can also learn to communicate with the various beings who reside in slightly different dimensions from us, opening us to new empowering relationships with real impacts on our 3D existence. 

This is also where altering our consciousness, or entering trans states, becomes important, as doing so can help us navigate the other dimensions of reality. While this can happen with psychedelics, there are many pathways available—breathwork, meditation, yoga nidra, music, and more.

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6. Our ancestors are allies—and so are our descendents. (And our ancestry is more complicated than many people realize.) 

Throughout the world and throughout history, ancestors—the well and good ones, at least—have been our primary allies. This is because of the deep care and trust built into these relationships. 

As we navigate the many dimensions of reality, not all beings we encounter are trustworthy or benevolent. Our ancestors, however, always have our backs, and we can check in with them when meeting someone—or something—new. 

Our ancestors have unique abilities to help us in challenging times. They knew how to survive, and they can help us do the same. Remembering ancestral skills, rituals, and ways to care for our bodies, homes, and families nourishes us on many levels.

As we engage with ancestral practices, it’s important to remember that our ancestry is much more vast than our current known DNA lines. Yes, our blood lineage is often a primary influence on our current life—but it’s not the whole story. Spirit is far too expansive to play by any set of rules we humans might like to make up… 

Which also brings us to our descendants. In kairos time, we are not tied to what we view as the past—it’s likely all our lives are happening simultaneously, and we can connect with our descendents just as we connect with our ancestors. 

When you think of a descendant a powerful exercise is to see if you can imagine how many different bloodlines from throughout an ever more connected world converge into that one magical being. 

As a note—you do not need to know your bloodline or have your own offspring to work with ancestral and descendent energies. There’s no way for our human minds to trace all the blood connections we form throughout time, and there are universal ancestors and descendents who are also here to offer us guidance and support. 

7. We are children of the earth and the cosmos. 

At the heart of mythoanimist practice lies a foundational relationship of reciprocity with the Earth. We have an unshakable knowing that we are born of the earth (and the stars) and we are also caretakers of the Earth and all her inhabitants. 

A deep love and reverence of the earth is perhaps the most central quality for all mythoanimist practice. This love might manifest indifferent ways for different folks—some may engage directly with the earth through with rewilding practices, herbal medicine, permaculture, and other such practices. Others may simply feel the presence of earth wherever they are, honoring her through ceremony and ritual, the arts, or advocacy. 

Regardless of the particular way one engages with the earth, cultivating an ever-deepening relationship with her is of primary importance for all who walk this path—this is one of the key factors that sets mythoanimism apart from other spiritual paths. 

While our deep relationship with the earth keeps us grounded, mythoanimism also invites us to expand our awareness into the cosmos. The stars, starbeings, and great mysteries of the skies are just as much a part of our consciousness as our lives here on earth. Just as we cross beyond the boundaries of human-centered cosmology, we invite ourselves to step into unknown territory beyond the world we know.

Being of Service in the Aquarian Age

By now you probably realize that mythoanimism offers us a beautiful individual path to connect with the earth, the cosmos, and spirit. Yet what’s also important to remember is that this path brings us into service, in whatever way aligns with our souls.

Perhaps this is why mythoanimism and all the trends that lead up to this path are emerging now, more strongly than ever. We are just entering the Age of Aquarius—a time of radical shifts in consciousness, more humanitarian and collectively focused service, and innovation that supports healing and equality. 

“Mythoanimism offers us a beautiful individual path to connect with the earth, the cosmos, and spirit.”

— Juniper Stokes

Cultivating an internal spirituality rooted in mythoanimist principles gives us a profound foundation for showing up in the world. We heal ourselves, illuminate our unique gifts, and find clarity in our personal soul-led paths. 

Does this resonate? Are you part of the growing number of mythoanimists who will change our world? Drop me a comment and let me know. 

(And consider joining Rewilding the Spirit—a transformative course rooted in mythoanimist principles.) 

An important request: Would you like to use the term mythoanimism in your own work or practice? I would love to see this term become widely used.

Since is this the first published work (other than my website content) to use and introduce this term to our collective, I would be deeply grateful if you would please reference me as originating this term.

I asked, prayed, meditated, brainstormed, journeyed, and opened myself to spirit again and again before this word arose in my consciousness. Thank you!!!

Mythoanimism—A Spiritual Path for These Times

Animism nods to the inspirited nature of the universe—and not only to the spirits of nature we know and love. True animist practice acknowledges that even concepts and objects can have their own vital energy.

Mythos reminds us of the poetic, non-linear, symbolic, and archetypal reality of the universe. This invites trance states, direct revelation, and ancestral wisdom into our spiritual paths. Mythos also allows space for the non-embodied dimension of spirit—deities and beings of other realms are acknowledged and brought into relationship in this non-human-centric practice.

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A Guide to Natural Perfume Fragrance Families

Chypre…Fougère…Aromatic…the olfactory families of fragrance may sound somewhat exotic at first, but dive in and they become welcome allies on the path to perfume creation and selection.

Fragrance families are scent classifications used in perfumery, and each family has its signature ingredients and overall aroma. In this article, we’ll cover the main classifications of fragrances—though to be fair, there are several different versions of fragrance categories out there and no one seems to agree on a definitive version.

A Brief History of Fragrance Families

At the turn of the 20th century, when most perfumes were still made with pure botanical ingredients (though synthetics had been introduced with Guerlain’s Jicky), there were seven main families: single floral, floral bouquet, oriental, woody, chypre, fougère, and leather. 

In general, these pure botanical perfumes contained resins, woods, flowers, spice, and citrus notes—we’ll go into more detail below.

Modern chemistry and access to new aromatics led to what we might think of as more green, fresh and aquatic notes in perfumes, primarily created through synthetic aldehydes. In the mid 1900s, new fragrance families emerged on the scene as a result:

• Bright floral—combined the single and bouquet floral families

• Citrus—citrus doesn’t last long on its own, so synthetics made this family have staying power

• Green—like a bright, fresh chypre

• Gourmand—edible notes of vanilla, cinnamon, and fruits

• Ozone/Aquatic—this actually didn’t come around until the 90s…think clean and unisex

In 1983, popular perfume consultant Micheal Edwards decided to simplify the traditional and growing perfume families into a perfume wheel. The wheel has four main families and their sub-families around its circumference—woody, floral, oriental, and fresh. 

In recent years, there’s been a movement to rename the traditional “oriental” family to “amber” or “ambrée”—as it’s become clear the former term is outdated and can be offensive. The updated Micheal Edwards perfume wheel reflects this:

Given the varied and changing history of fragrance families, it comes as no surprise that modern perfumery resources all use slightly different terms and organizations.

In general, several families appear regularly: fresh, floral, floriental, ambrée, fougère, woody, chypre, fruity, aromatic, citrus, green, aquatic, leather, and gourmand. 

The Perfume Society has a fun interactive site that features eight of these families, each clickable to continue exploring subfamilies.

An important note on synthetic vs. natural fragrances:

Unless specified otherwise, most modern perfumes contain synthetic ingredients. Even “natural” perfumes commonly contain isolates, which are somewhat controversial in the world of natural perfumery.

For those switching to pure botanical perfumes, a few popular families will be off the table—perfumes considered aquatic/ozone, fresh, or green are almost always dominated by synthetic aldehydes, so these family classifications just aren’t useful in natural perfumery.

Botanical/Natural Perfume Classifications

Given the history of fragrance and the ingredients available, I use nine main families in my own perfume classifications. No guarantees these won’t continue to evolve, but for now, they wonderfully describe the main classifications of natural perfumes available:

Chypre Perfumes

One of my personal favorites, chypre (pronounced shee-pra) is named for Cyprus, the island of Aphrodite’s birth and home to the world’s oldest large-scale perfumery. The name in perfumery comes from François Coty’s 1917 perfume Chypre, which had notes of bergamot and citrus on top, a full floral middle with jasmine and rose, and an earthy base of oakmoss, patchouli, incense, musk, and styrax. 

Chypre perfumes are characterized by a mossy accord of bergamot, oakmoss, patchouli, and labdanum. Some may be more floral, with strong notes of jasmine or ylang ylang, while others might be more citrusy, woody, or herbaceous. Both traditionally masculine and feminine fragrances have fallen in the chypre category.

Fougère Perfumes

A fougère is what is known as a fantasy scent, originating with Fougère Royale from Houbigant in 1882. Named for the French word for fern, these perfumes tend to have green and aromatic notes. 

Lavender, geranium, vetiver, bergamot, oakmoss, and coumarin are commonly found in these perfumes, and while they were created for women, today masculine perfumes are dominated by the fougère family.

Floral Perfumes

The name speaks for itself with these perfumes—fragrant jasmine, carnation, rose, orange blossom, ylang ylang, magnolia, and more take the center in a floral perfume. While many beloved flowers simply aren’t available as naturals except through the laborious process of enfleurage (lily of the valley, helitrop, and lilac for example), many precious flowers are found naturally—they just cost a pretty penny ($1000 USD per ounce is not uncommon!). Lotus, narcissus, boronia, osmanthus, jonquille, cassie, broom, kewda, frangipani, champaca, and tuberose fall into this realm.

Within the many floral sub-families, two are worth mentioning here: soliflore, or single note perfumes that focus on celebrating and enhancing a single flower, and floral bouquets, which present well-balanced floral arrangements that make it difficult to single out any one flower among the many, 

Today, floral fragrances are most popular among women, though in cultures throughout the world this isn’t necessarily the case—you’ll find kewda and rose among other florals throughout men’s fragrances in India and the Middle East!

Ambrée Perfumes

Also called amber—the post-oriental name is still settling in—these fragrances are characterized by rich, resins, vanilla, musk, and occasional spice. In perfumery, “amber” doesn’t refer to the stone but to ambergris, the precious and strangely fragrant bile of whales. 

Today, ambrée perfumes tend to be rich, long-lasting, and have an exotic flavor about them. At least half of the botanical perfumes I’ve designed have been ambrée, as they smell divine and last forever, even as all-natural creations. 

Sandalwood, coumarin, orris, vanilla, labdanum, and resins give ambrée perfume its signature notes, and the floral amber sub-family is one of the most rapidly growing fragrance families today. I’m not surprised, as the synergy of exotic florals, precious woods, and rich ambery notes truly nourishes the soul.

Aromatic Perfumes

The aromatic family is characterized by herbaceous notes—rosemary, basil, and tarragon are popular here. Though mainly found in men’s fragrances, I find aromatics work beautifully to create green and fresh notes in natural perfumes. Fresh florals like lavender and geranium, along with citruses, often overlay aromatic perfumes. Traditional colognes would found in this family.

Citrus Perfumes

While citrus notes are found in nearly all perfumes, pure citrus fragrances are light and bright. In mainstream citrus perfumes the tenacity will come from synthetics, but citrus scents in botanical and natural perfumes are perfectly possible. Some citrus perfumes will be lighter and a bit more fleeting, while sub-families like floral citrus, spicy citrus, and woody citrus will delight the wearer as citrus top notes give way to various lasting undertones.

A wide variety of citruses can be found in the citrus family. Bergamot and bitter orange are probably the most common, but yuzu, lime, mandarine, sweet orange, lemon, grapefruit, citron, and cedrat can all be found. I have blood orange, tangerine, mandarine, and kumquat in my collection, and use other lemony plants for citrus notes, such as lemongrass, lemon myrtle, and lemon verbena.

As a note, you may find the citrus family also referred to as the “hesperides” family. Legend has it that the Hesperis were three Greek nymphs who watched over “golden apples”—citrus fruits–giving immortality to any who tasted them.

Woody Perfumes

As with florals, the woody family name speaks for itself. Precious woods such as oud and sandalwood, dry notes like cedar and juniper, and woody herbs like patchouli and vetiver can be found in just about all woody perfumes. Some are warm and spicy with sweet resins, while others can be more aromatic, citrusy, and crisp. 

My personal favorite woody perfume is Daikoku—with notes of buddhawood, sandalwood, and Japanese cedar and cypress, it smells like Japanese mountain temples laced with fragrant incense.

Leather Perfumes

Leather became a fragrance family thanks to the many aromas tanners would use to disguise the off-putting scents created during their processes (think ammonia, yuck). The smoke, resins, and woods used to mask the leather tanning process ended up mixing with the leather itself, creating a much-desired fragrance that spread to the world of perfumery. 

Over time, this family has evolved to include many traditionally masculine notes—tobacco, cognac, smoke, woods, tar, and resins are common, with the leather notes being either forefront or nearly undetectable. In natural perfumery, which uses animal products, the leather notes might not be cruelty free. In botanical perfumery, however, there are many great alternatives—styrax, birch tar, and choya nakh are a few options.

Gourmand Perfumes

Relatively new on the perfume scene are the gourmands—those perfumes with a somewhat edible flavor profile, typically warm and spicy. The vast majority of gourmand perfumes contain synthetic ingredients and dessert-like scents—caramel, cotton candy, toffee, and bubblegum to name a few. 

However the world of botanical perfumery has plenty to offer here if you’re willing to splurge on the pure, natural versions—chocolate, coffee, cognac, almond, vanilla, and even spices and amber notes can create lovely gourmand perfumes. 

Within all the perfume families above, subfamilies are used to further delineate each perfume’s aroma. Here are a few of the terms you’ll see attached to each family:    

• Spicy—coriander, cinnamon, clove, pepper and more 

• Fruity—may contain citrus, berry, or other sweet notes

• Soft—typically contains a powdery, musky element

• Musky—similar to soft but heavier on the musk

• Green—fresh herbs, bright florals

• Fresh—similar to green, may also have more citrus

• Aquatic—typically synthetic aldehydes, in natural perfumery can signify more animalic, seaweed-based notes

What do you think? Which aromas are your favorites? Let me know in the comments!

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• How I Make Natural Perfumes: Art, Aroma, and Alchemy in a Bottle

What Happens When You Watch A Sunrise?

I recently taught A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health. I absolutely loved meeting everyone who came! What a treat it is to gather in community with others who are also open to the more than human world, even if via Zoom :)

During the class, I shared my personal breakdown of the five main causes of spiritual illness, and in my view, one of these causes is disconnection from the natural world. We can restore this connection in part by more consciously syncing our lifestyles with the rhythms of nature. 

One of my favorite ways to tune into nature’s rhythms is to watch the sunrise or sunset each day—or ideally both! The benefits of this practice are many…

• Researchers have found that the wavelengths at sunrise and sunset have the biggest impact on the brain centers that regulate our circadian rhythms, as well as our mood and alertness.

• The colors of sunlight at rise and set are especially helpful for activating the pineal gland—a portal to divine wisdom.

• Being intentional about watching the rise and set of the sun brings about mindful awareness, helping you find peace and presence as you begin and end your days

• On deep, subconscious levels, witnessing the sun’s cycles restores faith that all will be okay. Though we enter darkness, light comes again. Though the light feeds us in many ways, we crave the rest of dark. And so it continues.

• Pausing in our busy lives to enjoy nature’s natural beauty is the ultimate form of sacred self care, a rebellion against the hustle culture that binds us, and a celebration of the feminine energy seeking restoration in our cosmic consciousness. 

This time of year, when days are shorter, it’s a bit easier to witness both the rise and set of the sun. Though I prefer this as a daily practice, even if you can only squeeze in a couple times a week you’ll receive benefits. 

What can you do to create your own ritual around the great solar blessings of our sun?

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You might also like:

• 6 Ways to Celebrate the Autumn Equinox

• The Heliacal Rise of Sirius, the Five Sacred Epagomenal Days, and the Egyptian New Year

• 8 Benefits of Partnering with the Spirits of Nature

• 5 Steps for Communicating with The Spirits of Nature

• 3 Creative Ways to Celebrate Summer Solstice

A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health

Explore the five main causes of illness from a shamanic perspective―and how to heal them.

In this free workshop, you'll discover:
​

• The 5 types of spiritual illness we all encounter
• How to know if you're experiencing spiritual illness
• The surprising ways addressing spiritual illness can impact your life
• A practice to strengthen your energy field right now

TAKE A POWERFUL STEP TOWARD THE LIFE YOU'RE HERE TO LIVE.

Enter your email to access this 65-minute workshop today!

Send me the workshop!

The Venusian Mysteries: Awakening the Sacred Feminine

I awoke before dawn, set the kettle for tea, and gazed out my windows into the still dark sky, just a soft glow on the horizon suggested the light was returning. 

As I peered between the giant evergreen bows that reach across my yard, I was greeted by the most beautiful sight—Venus. Rising in her morning star phase, Venus lit up like a beacon in the lapiz sky, calling my soul to recognize her presence.

my morning view of Venus

Venus is a planet but also a celestial deity, and her gifts for humanity lie in helping us come into cosmic balance with the sacred feminine qualities of beauty, love, relationships, sensuality, and pleasure. 

Venus is a planet of beauty—symbolically and literally. Her presence shines brightest from our vantage upon the earth, and her trajectory creates a magnificent, symmetrical pattern.

The only planet named for a female deity, Venus is a loving and bright ally in restoring the sacred feminine to cosmic balance.

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Ready to claim your mantel a scent priestess & myrrhophore?

Join the Nectar & Alchemy mystery school devoted to the feminine, aromatic arts.

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Restoring the Feminine to Cosmic Balance with Beauty and Astrology

Anyone who’s gazed at Venus in her bright morning star phase can understand why the ancients associated this planet with beauty. I wonder if they also knew her trajectory through our skies is the most symmetrical of all the planets: Over an 8-year period, Venus makes 13 orbits around the sun and has 5 conjunctions with the earth. Visually, this creates a beautiful mandala based on the golden ratio—a pentagram of petals—which you can see in the image below. 

The 13 orbits that bring Venus back to her place of origin in our skies tie this planet to the feminine—13 has long been associated with women because of how we cycle and bleed with the 13 moons of the year. 

Even the symbol for the planet Venus is the same as that which commonly represents the feminine—a circle sitting upon a cross: ♀ If we see the circle as the infinite cycle and wholeness, and the cross as representing the four elements and four directions—that which makes our material reality—we can see this symbol as also calling forth the intersection of spirit and earth. 

In this symbol, we can see how Venus helps us bring spirit into manifest form—just as women bring spirit into form through the birthing process.

In astrology, Venus rules both Taurus and its home, the 2nd house, along with Libra and its home, the 7th house. Together, these elements celebrate the many qualities of Venus — the earthy, sensuality of Taurus, the values and emotions and sexiness of the 2nd house, the high culture and beauty of Libra, and the love and partnership of the 7th house.

Here, not only are the sacred qualities of the feminine celebrated, but they once again symbolize the harmonization of earth and spirit. Anytime we’re able to ground into the beauty of nature and the present moment, we experience Venusian blessings.

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The Venusian Deities

Though Venus is represented through a few male deities in different cultures (see below!), the vast majority of Venusian deities are female, especially within the cultures that have most influenced my own Western heritage.  

The Greek goddess Aphrodite is perhaps the most well-known Venusian deity for many of us, as she even carried the name Venus to the Romans. Yet if we trace the evolution of Aphrodite through time, we find that she may well have been born from earlier goddesses—Isis, or Auset, in Egypt, and Inanna, also known as Ishtar and Astarte, in Sumeria. All three goddesses carry the mantle of being Venusian goddesses of the ancient world.

Psst: You can get a free booklet filled with rituals to connect with Isis and other Egyptian deities here.

Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, unknown artist, Burney Relief

“Freyja and the Necklace” by James Doyle Penrose (1890)

In the Norse worlds, we see both Freya and Frigg associated with Venus. Both goddesses embody qualities of love, romance, fertility, and sacred sexuality, though Freya is more independent in her expression and Frigg, as the wife of Odin, is more matrimonial (many sources also conflate the goddesses into one). Interestingly, Friday is named for Frigg, and guess which planet rules Friday? Venus. 

art by José-Patricio Aguirre

Now, let’s get a bit heretical…Do you know what the Roman word for Venus was? Lucifera. Yup. The very same word co-opted by Christans to describe the devil. Lucifera was used almost as suffix to many goddesses and sacred women’s names—Diana Lucifera most famously, but also Mary Magdalene, who was sometimes referred to as Mary Lucifera. 

Sex & Resurrection

Saint Mary Magdalene by Bernardino Luini

From what we know of Mary Magdalene, it’s likely she was not only a consort of Jesus but also a priestess in her own right. At the time, the art of sacred sexuality was practiced in the temples for communion and healing. And sex, in this sacred sense, is as Venusian as it gets—the sensuality, the romance, and harmony between masculine and feminine, and the fertile outcomes once again bringing spirit into material form. 

And while we’re looking at sacred sexuality in this Venusian context, it’s interesting to note the parallels between Isis bringing Osiris back to life and immediately consummating with him (which led to not only the birth of Horus but brought fertility to the land), and Mary Magdalene being the first to witness the resurrection of Jesus. I wonder if the way in which she anointed him before death, loved him beyond life, and cried tears of power into the earth, contributed to the magic that brought him back to life like Osiris. 

As a note on the theme of resurrection, we also see another Venusian goddess Aphrodite bring Adonis back to life through her pleas after he was killed by a wild boar.

It seems the Venusian power so naturally held by women—the power to commune with spirit, enjoy sensual pursuits, and bring life into being through the force of love—was a bit too threatening for the Church…

These tales of resurrection are also reflected in Venus’s orbit, as the planet cycles towards and away from the sun, symbolizing a natural cycle of birth and death.

The tale of the Venusian goddesses Inanna offers us a good reflection of how women can embody this cycle within themselves. Unlike the goddesses who resurrect their lovers to bring fertility to themselves and the land, Inanna is the one resurrected in her tale, modeling the feminine drive to face our shadows and integrate into wholeness. (Interestingly, she is hung on a cross before becomming resurrected…sound familiar?)

modern interpretation of Quetzalcoatl by BenArtsStudio on DeviantArt

The Venusian Masculine

Back to the male Venusian dieties…by far the most well-known masculine Venusian deity in modern days is Quetzalcoatl, a meso-American god. Quetzalcoatl was known as a feathered-serpent deity who brought fertile growth to the land. Again, we see the liminal meeting of spirit and earth in bird and snake, as well as sacred sexuality and fertility. In many ways, Quetzalcoatl offers us a model for how those in men’s bodies can embody the much-needed gifts of Venusian blessings, reminding us that we all have sacred masculine and feminine qualities within.

It’s time to allow Venus to upgrade our hearts.

As a planet that reminds us of the power of love, Venus could not be more important for us to connect with right now. 

I am, like I’m sure many of you are, an empath. 

Being an empath is not only a gift but is also the natural state of all humans, the state we are born into before culture and trauma cuts our hearts away from our innate ways of knowing. 

But being a really strong empath during times of mass hysteria, conflict, and trauma can be rough, even with the knowledge and skills to navigate these times. 

I find the vitriol, judgment, and especially righteousness I see online and in social media pressure cookers to be acutely painful. Just about all news—from left to right and mainstream to alt—has become a web of incendiary propaganda. When I turn into certain locations, I can energetically sense oppressive webs of fear hijacking people’s sovereignty. 

In all of these examples, I think what I find most heartbreaking is that people are being pulled off their path of spiritual evolution and heart-centered living. They are losing touch with what will actually help humanity survive the changes upon us: love and connection, with each other and the earth. 

Venus is a powerful ally in coming back into our hearts and allowing the wisdom of love to lead the way. 

Right now, Venus is in her heliacal rise toward the sun, allowing her divine beauty to be strengthened with solar blessings. Now it’s time to let the light of Venus and the Sun illuminate and strengthen the love within all of us. 

A PRACTICE

If possible, locate Venus in the sky — depending on her movements, dawn or dusk will be the best time.

Anoint your heart center with a sacred oil, preferably one containing rose — one of Venus’s favorite flowers. (The perfumes below are perfect for this practice.)

See the fragrant oil or perfume open a portal into your heart, a protected one that can only be entered by Venus herself.

Inhale, and feel Venusian blessings flow into your heart center.

When this practice feels complete, see the portal in your heart seal safely and give thanks to Venus.

As you go about your day, notice feelings of love and being loved fill your being. Practice seeing the world through a gaze of appreciation and gratitude for the beauty of life. Delight in the sensual experience of being embodied. Remember your true value and worth.

The Sensual Delight of Venusian Perfume

What could be more Venusian than a perfume dedicated to the goddess?

As a triple Libra, Venus is my ruling planet — meaning she’s especially influential in my life. It’s no wonder beauty is my core life code (you can read my artist statement here, just scroll down a bit). While I’ve always been an artist and experiment with many mediums, when I create perfumes I know they come straight from my soul. 

Many of the perfumes I’ve designed are dedicated to Venusian goddesses — so many, in fact, that I’ve decided to offer them all in a single discovery set. 

The Venusians Discovery Set includes six 1ml samples in glass vials, each perfume is all-natural (I’ve studied with the preeminent natural perfumers of today) and infused with the Venusian energy of goddesses from around the world

If you’re inspired to try these alchemical perfumes, please enjoy 10% off as my thanks for reading here :) Good now through the end of Venus’s retrograde on September 3rd, 2023. Use VENUSRX at checkout.

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• The Magic and Medicine of the Rose

• Ritual Beauty: A Sacred Skincare Routine

• Aphrodisiacs - essential oils, flower essences, and crystals

• How to Be Spiritually Sovereign: Making Magic with the Virgin Goddesses

• Love & Libido—Rituals and Recipes for Valentine’s Day

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An Imbolc Ritual

Welcome to February—what an auspicious start to the month! 

We have our Aquarian new moon, Imbolc, and the Lunar New Year all coalescing at the beginning of a new month. 

While Aquarius expands our vision of what’s possible, the new moon and the beginning of a new year invite us to set intentions for bringing these visions to life. 

At Imbolc, a cross-quarter celebration on the Celtic Wheel of the Year, we say our goodbyes to winter and welcome the spring. Traditionally, this is a time for planting seeds, trusting that they will spring to life when they’re ready. 

Now, as we envision and set our intentions this day, we plant the seeds for the year to come. 

Can you keep faith that your seeds will germinate even though there are not yet signs of life?

The wheel of the year will bring births and celebrations, gifts and harvests, endings and completions. At this turning, we’re asked to hold faith that all will come if we plant our seeds, taking the first step and trusting the cycle to carry us to the next. 

And yet, there are no guarantees, as we well know by now. Which asks us to find even more faith and resilience—can we effort enough to plant our seeds knowing full well they might not bloom? Can the simple act of planting and letting go be enough to fill our spirits, in this moment, at this time?

Setting intentions, letting go of attachments, and staying in the present moment—this is your invitation today.

An Imbolc Ritual

Begin by lighting a candle in honor of the Goddess Brigid, who presides over Imbolc.

Gaze into the flame, giving thanks for the presence of fire—its life-giving heat and light and its destructive and cleansing powers as well.

Allow the flame to clear your eyes and mind of preconceived notions. In tantric yoga, we practice trataka—the act of gazing into a flame, unblinking as much as possible, until your eyes water and cleansing occurs. You might like to experiment with this as you cleanse.

When you feel the cleansing is complete, close your eyes and come into your heart. Ask your truest self and heart what seeds wish to be planted at this especially potent new moon. 

Allow whatever arises to pour into the flame, where the spirit of fire carries it to spirit. Feel your desires with all of your heart, and then let them go.

When you feel complete, thank the fire, Brigid, and blow out the flame with gratitude. 

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You might also like:

• 6 Ways to Celebrate the Autumn Equinox

• How to Be Spiritually Sovereign: Making Magic with the Virgin Goddesses

• Mythoanimism: An Emerging Spirituality

• Celebrating Samhain: Modern Rituals and Festivities for Connection and Protection

The Color Bubble Practice for Energetic Protection

Here's a super quick practice for energetic protection.

This is a great one for times when you need a little extra "cushioning"—maybe you're about to go to a crowded place, for example—and a great daily practice. Try this each morning for a week and see what happens!

Quickie Practice for Energetic Protection

First, breath into your heart and notice the light there. See this light grow and fill up your entire body, and then go beyond your body, creating a bubble of white light around you.

Most of you have probably done something similar to this before—and it works! Your energy, intention, focus, and partnership with spirit will create an effective orb of protection around you.

But if you want to go further, experiment with filling your bubble with different colors! Every color has a different vibration, and therefore different protective and healing qualities.

Visualize the bubble filling with green, blue, violet, red...

How does each color feel? Over time, you'll learn your own  unique color language and know exactly what color to use when 🙂

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You might also like:

• Rooted: A Seasonal Grounding Practice

• All About Flower Essences: How to Partner with Plants for Whole-Self Healing

• Healing with the Goddess Ma'at

• 7 Signs You're a Modern-Day Mystic

• Lessons from Squirrels

Discernment on the Spiritual Path: How to Protect Yourself in Unknown Territory

There's an interesting phenomenon at play these days...

In much of our lives, we've learned to discern truths from untruths, to question new information and check it against our trusted guideposts -- be those scientific findings, published books, educational institutions, non-profit research groups, church leaders and religious texts, or other authorities.

Everyone will have different guideposts, which can clearly lead to conflicting information and cultural clashes. But still, people do tend to have their own ways of knowing what to believe.

But in one area, I've seen perfectly thoughtful and sane, people become completely bamboozled.

Spirituality. Especially any spirituality that might have a "woo-ish" leaning.

It's only been in the last 50 years or less that we've seen a mass exodus from organized religious institutions, in the West at least. And people simply haven't figured out their guideposts.

It's almost as if, when someone says they have a direct channel to spiritual wisdom, people simply believe it. They have no existing guideposts to check this new information against.

What's especially fascinating to witness is how people will struggle to integrate every new spiritual teaching into their personal cosmologies. If it got published, it must be valid. And if it's channeled information from spiritual beings, then surely it's true!

Oh the existential crises this approach to spirituality leads to! It breaks my heart.

But it's not all that difficult to shift our relationship with incoming spiritual teachings, new teachers, different approaches...

Let's begin by remembering that everyone is working with their own set of human filters, and whatever teachings they offer have arrived through those filters. (And of course, some people are just liars.)

You have filters too. The more conscious you become of your own filters, the better able you’ll be to identify the filters in others. Question yourself. Look at your shadow. Celebrate your wisdom. Then extend the same grace to other teachers you feel drawn to. (And disentangle from those you’re not drawn to—you don’t need to listen to everyone.)

You can also learn to identify and trust our own inner guideposts with greater clarity. For me, this is often a somatic experience—while the brain can argue for the validity or falsity of just about anything, the body will tell you what actually resonates with truth.

As we travel deeper into spiritual territory, this phenomenon—the task of filtering spiritual truths from the messy soup of information out there—takes on an even more challenging dimension: direct experience with "spiritual" beings.

When we open our intuition and are able to communicate with the spirit world more clearly, we still need to remember that not everything we encounter is pure love and light.

Many people have the tendency to assume that because an entity or being is not embodied, because it resides in the spirit worlds, it knows more than they do.

And even more bizarrely, there's a tendency to assume that these beings always tell the truth.

I remember a woman telling me once that her friend talked with Jesus. Of course, I know this is possible. Jesus is a powerful and loving energy that appears to many people.

But in this case, "Jesus" was telling her friend to hurt himself. To make decisions that he never would have chosen for himself.

I was shocked to hear that they were confused about this--they were actually questioning how to follow Jesus's guidance even though it didn't feel right.

Hopefully you're tracking here and realize that this entity was not Jesus.

Yes, disembodied beings might seem super spiritual at first simply because their existence is so different from ours. But there are all types of beings out there, and they're perfectly capable of lying in order to fulfill their own agendas.

So how do you know if a being is a loving guide or just someone pretending ?

There are a few tips I offer my students:

1. Let your body be your guide. Cultivate an unshakable faith in your own body's ability to tell you what is right for you. (Yes, this takes practice, but everyone can learn to do it.)

2. Start with a trusted ally. This is a spirit helper that you trust beyond any doubt. It may be a power animal, well ancestor, or other deity. To help alleviate any confusion, I recommend meeting this ally in the presence of skilled teacher or healer. This might be during a healing session, a personal mentorship session, or a group class. Once you have your ally, you ask them to check out anyone new you might want to communicate with.

3. Learn more about the types of beings you might be encountering. We co-exist with land spirits, nature beings, spirit guides, ancestors, ghosts, angels, demons, and more. The more you learn about the non-ordinary realities around us, the more potential you have to see the truth when encountering new entities.

4. Develop highly attuned psychic protection skills. You can prevent and eliminate so many unwanted encounters simply by maintaining a good energy hygiene, spiritual sovereignty, and a vibrational state that does not invite them to communicate with you. Again, we can all learn how to do this work.

Though the spirit worlds are as full of diverse energies and intentions as our ordinary reality is, we can all learn to navigate them with greater skill and ease.

Stepping outside of mainstream or established religious belief systems isn't easy. Most of us will encounter confusion, dark nights, and more on our paths. But being able to cultivate a personal cosmology and inner guideposts to support your journey is such a gift. May you be blessed upon your path.

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You might also like:

• How to Be Spiritually Sovereign: Making Magic with the Virgin Goddesses

• On angels, psychic saviors, fallen gurus, and sovereignty (And the magic of being human)

• Humans are losing their ****, and how body and Earth can help

• 7 Signs You're a Modern-Day Mystic

A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health

Explore the five main causes of illness from a shamanic perspective―and how to heal them.

In this free workshop, you'll discover:
​

• The 5 types of spiritual illness we all encounter
• How to know if you're experiencing spiritual illness
• The surprising ways addressing spiritual illness can impact your life
• A practice to strengthen your energy field right now

TAKE A POWERFUL STEP TOWARD THE LIFE YOU'RE HERE TO LIVE.

Enter your email to access this 65-minute workshop today!

Send me the workshop!

Are Your Thoughts Your Own? Claiming Mental Sovereignty

How many of your thoughts are your own?

If you've ever really looked under the surface of your thinking mind, you've probably already realized that so much of what we think, believe, and even feel is heavily influenced by outside sources.

Our family patterning. Our education systems. Our work environments. Our social groups. Religious organizations. The news or entertainment we give our attention to. And now more than ever, our social media feeds.

Yet beyond these clear pulls on our consciousness, there are even more subtle and potentially dangerous threads involved...

These are energetic threads created from magnetic thought forms, mass hysteria and hypnosis, collective trauma, and more.

Most of these threads are natural occurrences with no hidden agendas behind them. They simply arise, and we can learn skills to disentangle from them so we can return to sovereign wellness.

But some of these threads are absolutely intentionally created. As creepy as that might sound, we can 100% learn to unhook from them as well.

Curious as to what all this means? What kinds of "threads" I might be referring to? And most importantly, how you can protect yourself?

Good! Our world needs us to unhook from the chaos out there and come back into our hearts, our truth, and our power.

This is why I'm teaching a six-week course all about psychic protection. We begin February 1, and classes will be recorded in case you need to miss one.

There are a few spots left. If you feel even the slightest pull, it means you're ready to claim new levels of spiritual sovereignty. Join us.

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Is Possession Real? (Spoiler...yes)

Sometime around winter solstice, I got a possession.

A what? Like in The Poltergeist? Yeah...kind of. There really are disembodied spirits that can influence us to varying degrees. But I promise, I've never seen this actually look like The Poltergeist.

What typically happens is that someone starts feeling low energy or mildly depressed/anxious, but there's not really a reason why.

Over time, if the possession isn't taken care of, it can lead to a host of harmful effects—anger issues, addictions, chronic illness.

The problem is, these are all normal human things, so we don't realize that there's a foreign energy involved. Even people who live and breathe this work, like myself, can be influenced without realizing it.

I'm extremely grateful that years of training have taught me to recognize the subtle signs that a foreign entity is attaching to me early on.

For me, it's a very physical sensation. I know that when my back has a certain type of tingle, someone is with me who shouldn't be.

I've actually had bouts with this tingling for years, but I'd always chalked it up to my own anxiety. Thankfully, I have a better understanding of the layers involved now, and I know to take action right away.

With this possession, I tried to clear it myself. Well, I actually reached out to three friends who are gifted in this area first, but with the holidays and everyone traveling, no one had time.

So I tried and tried to clear this being. I went to nature to partner with the strength of the earth. I smudged all over the place. I tried to compassionately help the being move into the light.

While I felt a little better with the earth and smudging, nothing worked.

Sometimes, when a really big entity attaches to us, we become so depleted so fast that we simply aren't able to heal ourselves. This is why we need each other so much when it comes to healing!

Fortunately, one of my favorite magical energy healing women got back to me after the holidays and we were able to have a session. She confirmed what I felt and was able to do the work to clear the being (though it sounded like a heavy lift this time even for her!).

My heart's deepest wish is to illuminate this phenomenon to others. So many are suffering and don't need to be!

The first step is awareness. If this is new or interesting to you at all, please come to my free class on January 12th. I'll be talking about a lot of surprising influences on our wellbeing, including this one.

The next step is protection. Obviously, if my experience tells us anything, it's that sometimes shit just happens. Actually, if the past few years have taught all of us anything, it's that shit happens that we can't control, and there's no good reason for it.

That said, there are plenty of things we can do to lessen our chances of picking up foreign energy. Just like eating well and exercising can support our physical immune system, good energy hygiene can support our spiritual immunity.

If this sounds interesting, definitely sign up for Energy Hygiene and Psychic Protection! This is a live, virtual six-week class where I'll be teaching you how to identify foreign energy, protect yourself, and cleanse yourself from the basic subtle energies we all pick up on. This way, you'll be able to both keep yourself as healthy as possible and recognize the signs for when you need more support.

Then, for those who really feel called to this work, learning how to do extractions and psychopomp suffering beings would be a good next step. I only share these teachings within advanced trainings. If there's enough interest, I'll set some up this year—let me know!

May you navigate the wild worlds of spiritual beings with safety and ease.

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A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health

Explore the five main causes of illness from a shamanic perspective―and how to heal them.

In this free workshop, you'll discover:
​

• The 5 types of spiritual illness we all encounter
• How to know if you're experiencing spiritual illness
• The surprising ways addressing spiritual illness can impact your life
• A practice to strengthen your energy field right now

TAKE A POWERFUL STEP TOWARD THE LIFE YOU'RE HERE TO LIVE.

Enter your email to access this 65-minute workshop today!

Send me the workshop!

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Spiritual Sovereignty: Can You Heal Yourself?

One of the first things many people are taught when they step onto a spiritual path is this:

“Nothing can harm you without your permission.”

Followed by this:

“You have access to all the divine guidance you need within. You just need to learn to listen.”

And now, with sovereignty becoming such a buzzword, this line of thinking comes next:

“Your sovereignty is your birthright. No one can attach to you energetically without your permission. You can declare old contracts be broken.”

In my experience, all of these beliefs are both true and more complicated than they seem at first glance, and the implications of believing the most simplistic interpretations of these ideas are not without consequence…

Let's start with the idea that nothing can harm us―spiritually and energetically at least―without our permission. Take a moment to think about the implications of this teaching...

First, this can be a comforting thought. As you begin to realize how many hidden influences are at play in your life―including what we might call negative energies―you might start to feel overwhelmingly vulnerable. Returning to the belief that no "invisible monsters" can hurt you without your permission is incredibly reassuring.

Unfortunately, if we take this belief to its natural conclusion, what does it say about those who struggle with the spiritual and energetic dimensions of health? The implication is that if someone has a spiritual/energetic ailment―such as cording with another person, an energetic attachment, or even possession by a foreign entity―then they must have, on some level or in some lifetime, agreed to it.

This agreement isn't conscious of course, but subconscious. Nevertheless, you agreed. So it's up to you to "break your contracts" and "claim your sovereignty".

Oh, did you try and things were still difficult or stuck? Well then, this line of thinking goes, on some level you must feel as if you're benefiting and not really want to get better.

This way of thinking about sovereignty is what happens when a spiritual truth gets hijacked by a capitalist narrative.

Sound familiar? This was certainly the party line in my three-year shamanic practitioner training, and I've heard versions of this repeated in yoga, reiki, and energy classes often...

Personally, I absolutely DO NOT believe things are this simple, and I do not endorse victim blaming in this way.

This way of thinking about sovereignty is what happens when a spiritual truth gets hijacked by a capitalist narrative.

When I come across thought patterns that take individual empowerment and personal responsibility to the extreme, I feel grateful for having spent so much of my life overseas. Not all cultures are as individualistic as the American one is. There are other ways of being in the world and relating to spirit.

Yes we are powerful. Yes we can heal ourselves. And yes, there are times when we resist healing because of some perceived benefit, usually unconscious. But true spiritual healing is a much more complicated soup of karma, randomness, soul growth, and mystery than a simple declaration of sovereignty.

True spiritual healing is a complicated soup of karma, randomness, soul growth, and mystery.

When we remember that we are all connected, and that we were born into an ecosystem with layers of interconnection that reach far beyond our physical dimension, we also begin to recognize that healing happens in community.

Most of us need support at some point in our lives. Even with decades of training and practice under my belt, I still turn to beloved friends, teachers, and healers for help when I can’t see the whole picture or need a healing boost.

Healing also happens over time. Spiritual healing isn’t like taking a pill—more often it involves navigating layers of connections and contracts, lifetimes of karma and energetic patterning, and deep psychological integration and initiations. When we embark on this kind of healing journey, being held in community and supported by a healer are essential foundations for the path before us.

And let's be real here—when you're suffering, connecting with your true inner power is hard! How are you supposed to clear and recharge your energy field when you've been knocked flat?

This brings me back to the other common belief that is both true and more complicated than it first appears…the idea that we should be able to access our own intuition and not rely on others for guidance.

Well, yeah. I agree. And I'd say most people tend to overly rely on others to be their conduits to spirit—getting divinations, seeking out gurus, asking for advice, drawing endless oracle cards…many people fearfully avoid the personal responsibility that comes with committing to their own decisions.

But this doesn't mean that we should never turn to others for guidance and support, ask for help interpreting our dreams, or receive divinatory readings. Again, in our layered ecosystem of connection, we often are meant to have insights and wisdom reflected back to us by others.

As we walk the path toward true spiritual health and sovereignty, it’s both important to develop skills to empower yourself and to turn to others when you need support.

Healing is a delicate dance between personal responsibility and partnership with trustworthy healers who can support our journey. We are vulnerable and we are powerful. We are individuals and we are all connected. We are human and we are divine.

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If you’re interested in learning more about the unseen forces that influence your health and well-being—and how you can learn to better work with these energies—be sure to sign up for my upcoming FREE workshop:

A Shamanic Guide to Illness & Health

Explore the five main causes of illness from a shamanic perspective―and how to heal them.

In this free workshop, you'll discover:
​

• The 5 types of spiritual illness we all encounter
• How to know if you're experiencing spiritual illness
• The surprising ways addressing spiritual illness can impact your life
• A practice to strengthen your energy field right now

TAKE A POWERFUL STEP TOWARD THE LIFE YOU'RE HERE TO LIVE.

Enter your email to access this 65-minute workshop today!

Send me the workshop!

Healing Pumpkin Soup with Cozy Autumn Spices

This year, Mike and I had a pretty epic harvest of various winter squashes—lunga di napoli (scroll down to see crazy pics here), red kuri, spaghetti, cinderella, blue hokkaido, pumpkin pie, delicata, and a few mystery hybrids all graced our little backyard in the city.

Now, as temperatures fall and pumpkin spice fills the air, I find myself experimenting with endless plays on basic pumpkin soup. This particular version, which I'll share with you now, has to be one of my favorites so far. It's rich and creamy, full of medicinal herbs and warming spices, and so easy. Plus vegan and paleo so you can serve it to all your friends.

A few notes on the recipe:

I used some of my giant lunga di napoli for this recipe, but any kind of winter squash would work well—I think butternut or Cinderella pumpkin would be especially good.

I'm pretty loose with my spices, dumping whatever I feel like into the pot like a mad scientist. Take the following as suggestions, but keep tasting and adjusting to your liking. Also, this might look like a lot of garlic, and it is! Hehe. I loooove garlic and add a ton to everything. Feel free to start with less.

If you have the time and want even more flavor in this soup, feel free to roast the squash while you prepare the other ingredients. I needed an easy one-pot meal so mine went raw straight into the soup and was still delicious.

I used Elmhurst cashew milk for this recipe. It's my absolute favorite nutmilk—creamy and the only ingredients are cashews and water. Cashew milk was my choice because I really wanted the flavors to stand out without coconut undertones, but I think coconut milk would also work perfectly well.

The lemon juice really brightens this soup up. If you don't have fresh lemon on hand, you can substitute apple cider vinegar (fire cider would be even better!).

Why this soup works:

• The garlic, onion, sage, and astragalus offer healing, anti-viral benefits

• The winter squash and nettle are full of essential nutrients

• The warming spices bring balance to your constitution throughout the fall and winter seasons

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Healing Pumpkin Soup with Cozy Autumn Spices

Serves 6-8 as sides and 4 as mains.

Ingredients:

• 1 small-medium white or yellow onion, chopped

• 1 head garlic, minced and let to rest at least 10 min

• 1 tablespoon oil (avocado, olive, and coconut all work)

• 4 cups peeled and cubed winter squash or pumpkin

• 6-8 sticks astragalus

• 1/2 cup dried nettle

• 6 fresh sage leaves, chopped

• 4 bay leaves

• lemon juice to taste (I used the juice of about 1/2 lemon)

• 4 cups broth or water

• salt and pepper to taste

• Plus...a bunch of spices totaling to about 2 tablespoons:

  • cinnamon

  • turmeric

  • nutmeg

  • mace

  • cardamom

  • powdered ginger

  • star anise

  • allspice

  • cloves

  • red pepper flakes

• I also added a big pinch of finely ground rose petals, lavender, and orris root because I have them and I'm fancy. I'm not sure you could even taste them, but now you know 😛

Directions:

Sauté the onion in oil over medium heat until just turning translucent. Add the squash and garlic and continue to cook for another couple of minutes, stirring regularly.

Next, add all the spices, fresh sage, and salt and pepper. Continue to sauté until the squash/pumpkin begins to soften and most liquid from the vegetables has been absorbed.

Add the broth or water, bay leaves, astragalus, and nettle. Bring to simmer and continue to cook until the squash is completely done (about 20-30m). You can tie the bay and astragalus in twine to make them easier to remove, but I didn’t bother.

Stir in the nutmilk and lemon juice. Continue to cook for about 10m to let the flavors merge. Remove bay leaves and astragalus sticks.

Turn off the heat and puree the soup to your preferred consistency (I like mostly smooth but still a little chunky). You can use a handheld immersion blender, or you can carefully transfer the soup to a blender. If going the blender route, be sure to allow the soup to cool a bit first. You may need to blend in batches.

Serve warm and top with fried sage leaves and a sprinkle of paprika if you're feeling fancy. Tastes even better the next day.

Wild Mushroom Pate

Wild Mushroom Pâté

Fall is for foraging mushrooms. The cool temperatures have laid most of our natural harvest to rest, but the moist earth continues to support the hidden treasures of the fungi kingdom.

Maybe someday I’ll actually gain confidence in mushroom identification, but as of now, I’m sticking to what I know and purchasing from local shops for as long as the season lets me ;)

If fresh wild mushrooms are difficult to come by, look for dried ones. They’re a great way to add that wild mushroom goodness when all you have is a pack of Costco creminis. That said, this recipe works beautifully even without any dried mushrooms at all. Simply omit that ingredient and you’ll be fine.

I’m addicted to mushrooms and always looking for fun ways to incorporate them into our diets. This paté has become one of my go-to recipes in recent years. Filled with the best umami and healthiest ingredients, it comes together quickly in a food processor and is another crowdpleaser.

Rich, vegan, and gluten-free—who can say no? Plus, the earthy flavor here is perfect for autumn and winter feasts. I’ll be serving this one at our Thanksgiving and Christmas tables!

Ingredients

• About 4 tablespoons olive oil

• ½ cup sweet onion, chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 pound mixed fresh mushrooms, chopped (cremini, maitake, oyster, enoki, chanterelle, trumpet, porcini , cinnamon cap…whatever you can find!)

• 1/2 ounce dried mixed wild mushrooms (optional)

• 1 cup water

• 1/2 cup walnuts (or more if you’d like, because really, I measure nothing)

• 2 tablespoons fresh herbs, chopped (sage, rosemary, and thyme) 

• ⅓ cup red wine

• 1-2 T balsamic vinegar

• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

• Truffle oil (optional)

• Fresh parsley (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 and set water to boil.

Soak dried mushrooms in one cup boiling water for 25 minutes. Once rehydrated, strain, roughly chop, and reserve the liquid for later. 

Roast the walnuts on a sheet pan for about 10 minutes. Check often - you’re looking for a nice toasty golden color. (Also, make extras - these warm walnuts fresh from the oven are so satisfying to snack on while you cook!

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for a couple minutes.

Add the fresh mushrooms and a pinch or two of salt and cook over medium low heat for another 10 minutes or so. You’re looking for the onion and mushrooms to become slightly caramelized.

Add the herbs, pepper, salt to taste, and cook for another two to three minutes.

Add about ¼ cup reserved soaking liquid and cook for another five minutes.

Stir the walnuts and two more tablespoons olive oil into the mixture. Transfer to a food processor or Vitamix. Add the optional truffle oil and process until the mixture's texture is to your liking—smooth or chunky :) You can add more olive oil or reserved mushroom water if needed.

Serve at room temperature with crackers, flatbread, veggie sticks, or whatever else you feel like. Top with fresh parsley. 

The Best Wild Rice Salad

Here it is—one of my all-time favorite recipes for the holidays (and anytime, really). This wild rice salad uses seasonal ingredients like winter squash, leeks, and cranberries, but add a surprising twist with fresh basil and rosemary. I found the original recipe for this salad from the talented chef at the HeartBeet Kitchen years ago, and I’ve been making versions of it ever since. Here is my favorite :)

Wild Rice & Winter Squash Salad with Cranberries and Maple Balsamic Vinaigarette  

Serves 4 as a main, more as a side.

Ingredients

Dressing:

• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

• ½ teaspoon sea salt

• ½ teaspoon black pepper

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

Salad:

• 2 ½ cups peeled and finely chopped winter squash (butternut, pumpkin, etc)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• sea salt

• black pepper

• 2 bunches very thinly sliced kale (lightly massaged)

• 1 thinly sliced leek, both white and green parts (or any onion works — add to taste)

• ½ cup dried cranberries

• ¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil

• 3 cups cooked wild rice

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss squash with olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread onto a baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes, stirring once, until fork tender. 

Prepare dressing by pureeing all ingredients with an immersion blender or by vigorously whisking.

In a large bowl, combine kale, leeks, cranberries and basil. Stir in warm rice and squash so that spinach wilts slightly from the heat. Stir dressing into salad; taste and adjust salt level if needed. Serve at room temperature. 

Magical Bread Rolls with Pumpkin & Buckwheat

The bread rolls are magical. Really—they are endlessly customizable, filled with fiber and protein, the perfect way to use up veggies, and absolutely delicious. Plus they’re no-rise, gluten-free, vegan, and still have a wonderful texture.

The secret? Psyllium husk. Yup—this fiber-rich plant provides the perfect binder for the buns. Whip in lots of air bubbles while the psyllium-liquid mix is setting, and you’ll end up with fabulous balls of goodness.

Since these are no-rise and the psyllium husk is such a great binder, you have a lot of room to experiment with flours in this recipe. I always use at least some buckwheat flour, as it gives these buns an extra rich flavor, but I go crazy with the full mix—almond, chickpea, rice, coconut, cashew, sorghum, quinoa, cassava, oat, and amaranth have all made the mix at some point.

When selecting flours, I like to go for a good mix of high-fiber (like oat and sorghum) and high-protein (like chickpea and quinoa), with at least one nut (usually almond). But really, you could use a single flour, a gluten-free flour blend, wheat flour if you’re not gluten-free, or a little bit of everything*. These just work! 

*I only make adjustments for coconut flour. It’s so absorptive that an extra fourth cup liquid can help.  

Beyond the flour, the rest of this recipe is pretty flexible as well. Mix in wild greens (I made these with nettle puree in the spring), add spices (they’re amazing with sundried tomatoes, chopped olives, and red onions), stir in a cup of quick oats or nutritional yeast, or even swap out the squash puree with another veggie or fruit -- shredded zucchini, apple puree, mashed bananas...as long as the end texture is similar, you can get wildly creative with the “magical” buns. 

Magical Bread Rolls

Makes about 18 rolls

Ingredients 

• 3 tbsp psyllium seed husks

• 1 cup lukewarm water or plant milk 

• 1.5 cups pumpkin or winter squash puree 

• 4 tbsp olive oil (divided)

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 4 cups mixed flour

Directions

Set the oven to 375°F. 

Add psyllium, water/plant milk, and squash puree in a large bowl. Stir to combine and leave for about 15 minutes to thicken. Then beat the psyllium gel vigorously—your hand and a wooden spoon is fine—to get as much air as possible into the gel. 

Add salt and 2T oil and whisk for another minute or until all is combined. 

Fold in the flour. I find that I need to use my hands and get messy to work the flour into a dough. 

Roll the dough into 18 or more equal pieces (or 12 big ones, 24 little guys…whatever!)  Dip your hands in warm water to avoid the dough sticking to them.

Brush with the remaining olive oil (optional but tasty) and bake for about 45-60 minutes (depending on the size of the buns and your oven). They are ready when the crust is just turning golden and firm and the inside sounds hollow when you knock on the bread. If they have a soft crust, they need more time. 

Important—let these cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing them open—they’ll continue to cook inside, and if you open them too soon they could be a bit mushy. 

Enjoy!

Me with my harvest of the giant lunga di napoli squash toddlers.

Slicing open the smallest of the bunch — still got enough to fill 8 gallon-size freezer bags!

Want to grow your own giant squash? I’ll include a few seeds with any purchase from my shop — just send me a note a checkout! (While supplies last, of course.)

Why Healing Isn't Personal: Diet, Control, and Our Collective

I find it interesting that when any health challenge appears in someone's life, or in our own, the health-conscious, mindbodyspirit crowd has a tendency to immediately blame food. I’ve certainly been guilty of this myself.

Whether we encounter issues with our immune systems, chronic illness, joint paint, skin disease, depression, weight loss, or even cancer, the response is almost uniformly similar: Change your diet.

Go vegan and plant-based. This wouldn't have happened if you weren't eating junk food. Keto/paleo is life-changing. Processed oils, refined sugar, too many carbs, too much dairy,  nightshades, mycotoxins, non-organic produce, meat, unsprouted nuts and grains...the list is endless.

Looking at our diets makes sense. We've been struggling with a conventional medical system that has completely ignored lifestyle and dietary changes while over-medicating us for decades. The food industry has bombarded us with fast foods and artificial ingredients for just as long. Most of us know the FDA is rife with problems and not a reliable source of protection.

But as helpful as dietary changes can be, our collective tendency to look to our diets for the pinacle answer to any health concern is problematic.

Deep down we know this. We know that stress is a massive killer. We know our environment is full of poisons. We know our air quality can be harmful and that we're surrounded with toxins in everything from our mattresses to our office carpets and more. Those of us who haven't been brainwashed by amazingly effective marketing campaigns for five-gee know that it's yet another assault on our health. We know that past trauma can influence our present health and all sorts of preconditioning exists in our DNA. On some level, we even sense the karmic and spiritual components that might be at play with any illness.

Despite all of this, so many people still focus on diet to the exclusion of all other contributing factors to our health. Why?

It comes down to control.

We can control our diets much more easily than any of the other widespread assaults on our health we face. Because every other contributing factor to our chronic illnesses requires change on collective levels.

The collective stress we're under needs collective solutions—our individual lifestyle changes will only go so far. We can try to avoid buying products with known toxins and living too close to cell towers, but this is a drop in the bucket compared to what we're exposed to on large-scale levels.

So we retreat to the comfort of what we can change—our food, feeling superior to those who sadly poison themselves with poor diets.

One danger in this way of thinking is that it can lead us to miss catching serious illnesses sooner. I can't tell you how many people have kept endlessly changing their diets in hopes of easing stomach issues or joint pain, only to realize that they had cancer, parasites, a genetic condition, or something else that required far more intervention than a new diet.

Of course, it should be noted here that dietary changes are actually not easy. Not just because of our emotional attachments to food, but because healthy food is still inaccessible to huge portions of our population.

Thinking that we can stay healthy because we have healthy diets, and healthy lifestyles in general, is a symptom of our individualist, easy-fix American culture.

“We're in charge of our own health. When people suffer, it's their fault.”

This is a myth. Every bit of our health is tied to the health of the collective. We exist in an ecosystem, not a bubble.

So yes. Eat healthy (doing so can actually help the ecosystem, too). Take care of yourself and your loved ones. But also have compassion for others—and yourself—when you're faced with illness, whether a cold or cancer. Even those who "do everything right" are never guaranteed endless health.

And do not ignore our collective struggles. All of us need to keep the conversations around our environmental and shared challenges at the forefront of any discussions on individual health. When enough of us put our shared needs forward often enough, the consciousness of our collective changes. And then the policies and products in our life change. And then we can all enjoy thriving together just a little more. At least that’s the hope.

Pumpkin White Bean Dip

Pumpkin White Bean Dip

Last year, when trips to the store were few in between and shelves were bordering on bare, I got really creative with my cooking—using every little thing in our pantry, paired with wild greens and garden produce to avoid any unnecessary trip to the store.

I’ll admit, I do have a very well-stocked pantry. The kitchen is my happy place and enjoying the flavors of the world is one of my favorite ways to take pleasure in this human body.

So, with pumpkin from our garden, white beans from the pantry, and my plethora of spices, this recipe was born. It’s absolutely delicious—celebratory, seasonal spices meet with sweet pumpkin puree and tender white beans to create an autumn dip more than worthy of your Thanksgiving tables.

Ingredients*

*I’m not much for measuring or following recipes, so please adjust these guestimates to taste!

• About 2 cups cooked white beans (or a can, rinsed) 

• 2/3 cup pureed pumpkin or another winter squash

• 1-2 Tbsp lemon juice to taste

• 2 Tbsp tahini

• 1-2 cloves garlic

• 1/2 tsp sea salt (plus more to taste)

• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika

• 1 big pinch nutmeg

• 1 big pinch cinnamon

• 1 pinch cayenne pepper, to taste

• Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Directions

Rinse and drain white beans. Add everything to a food processor and purée until creamy and smooth, scraping down sides as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.

Serve with veggie sticks and crackers. Top with fresh cilantro for a festive touch.

Adapted from Minimalist Baker’s White Bean Pumpkin Hummus

Rooted: A Seasonal Grounding Practice

Autumn is a season for roots and rooting. 

Those of us who forage and wildcraft know that this is the time to harvest our wild roots—dandelion, chicory, salsify, osha (if you're lucky and it’s sustainable where you are), solomon’s seal, and so many more earthy medicines await. The gardeners among us might celebrate the carrots, daikon, sunchokes, beets, and other root veggies that will continue to nourish us through the winter months. 

This is also a time of year for us to turn to our ancestral roots, as we celebrate Halloween, Samhain, and Dia de los Muertos with the thin veils of the season. For some, this rooting comes in the form of ancestral altars that are alight with photographs, candles, and offerings. For some, it’s as simple as tuning into ancestral rhythms -- preparing seasonal soups and herbal medicines to carry us through the cooling weather. 

I find that this time of year lays the perfect ground for rooting into the Earth, as well—grounding ourselves, energetically as well as physically, to carry us through the holiday festivities to come. We tune into our root chakra and the land we live upon, sending energetic roots into the Earth while the ground is still welcoming and soft, before winter’s freezes come. 

You’re invited to try the following practice any time you’d like to ground and root into the earth. 

Root Chakra Grounding Practice

1. Find a comfortable seat. Take a few deep breaths and make any movements to get just a bit more comfortable.

2. Bring awareness to your root chakra. Feel the energy begin to grow. You might even see the color red become brighter as you energize this chakra with your attention.

3. Feel a cord of light begin to extend down from your root into the earth. You may see this as a glowing cord or the roots of a tree..

4. Feel this energetic cord extend downward until it meets the energetic core of the earth. 

5. Feel your rooting cord sink into the core of the earth and begin to breathe this earth energy back up through the cord into your body.

6. Continue to breathe and feel the beautiful energy from the Earth’s core rise to meet your energy field and root chakra. Notice how this energy feels grounding, nurturing, and abundant. 

7. Enjoy this feeling for several breaths, knowing you can return to this practice anytime you need grounding.

If you’d like more grounding support this season, check out my Rooted Magical Bitters, which are newly available in the apothecary. These bitters taste like a bitter, spicy root beer and contain herbs and flower essences to help you stay grounded throughout the winter. 

Did you enjoy this practice? Please share on your favorite social accounts :)