Empath and the Soul

Plant Spirit Communication Part IV: Medicine for the Body and the Soul

Dana's avatarThe Druid's Garden

In the last few weeks, we’ve considered various ways in which we might communicate with plant spirits, work with them, and engage in spirit journeys with them. In this post, I am beginning to make the transition to talk about plant medicine and herbalism for a few weeks–both medicine of the body and medicine of the soul. I think that herbal medicine is something incredibly powerful to add to any earth-based spiritual based practice, both to keep you in good health and to create inter-dependency between you and the living earth. In order to do that, I wanted to talk today about plant spirits and the connection between medicine for the body and medicine for the soul. To do this, we’ll delve into animism and an animistic worldview as well as consider deepening plant relationships.

Amazing reishi! Amazing reishi!

Medicine of the Body

Plants have physical bodies and various…

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First New Moon of Autumn 2018

New Moon in Virgo ~ Opportunities for Advancement

Dear all,
I have some really great news for you — After a challenging summer, we are finally reaching calm astrological waters!
In addition to an excellent positioning of the New Moon in Virgo, we will also have the support and stability provided by Mercury and Saturn — two big players when it comes to movement, studying, learning, teaching, organization, long-term planning and communication. You may notice this as being able to do anything related to these areas with greater ease and precision.
The New Moon in Virgo on the 9th has only one challenging aspect with a planet that often brings confusion, deception, fears, and disillusionment.
However, this New Moon has many more positive aspects with several other planets whose influence can help us overcome this quite easily.
Just remember that based on your personal chart you may experience this in a variety of ways.
Generally, the atmosphere that all these planetary interactions create will be one of generosity, focus, self-confidence, optimism, increased spiritual growth, and many opportunities for positive changes . . .
The key change that you may want to focus on this month is your health, specifically how to arrange your schedule to include more wellness/energy/spiritual activities that support your well-being.
To maximize this astro-spiritual opening for change, actively focus on making new connections, expanding your circle, learning new things and growing spiritually.
Crystals to assist you with this are Labradorite, Amazonite, Turquoise, and Imperial Topaz.
For those of you who are local (Hampton Roads, VA), here are some news — send me an email back if you are interested:
1) Early Morning Beach Meditation, Saturday, September 15, $10
2) Early Morning Equinox Meditation, Saturday, September 22, $10
3) There are just a couple of spots left for my Crystals for Women Workshop, on Saturday, September 22, 4pm to 6pm, Williamsburg, VA, so if you are interested, please go here and register right away!
4) Brand new workshop — Crystals for Vitality, Energy Protection, and Boundaries, on Saturday, September 29, 4pm to 6pm , Williamsburg, VA. Registration and more details here
Till next time,
Stay happy and healthy!
Brana Mijatovic, Ph.D.

Say NO to Witch School

There were many times in my youth I thought about ‘witch school’ with people who were supposedly reputable, but something always stopped me. Sometime later it would come out that they weren’t so reputable after all. Maferefun to my ancestors for their protection.

Crystals for Autumn Equinox

by Hibiscus Moon

I REALLY LOVE this time of year! But I think I say that every time the seasons change. I get such a charge from the seasonal cycles.

The Autumn Equinox (or Spring Equinox for those in the Southern Hemi) is now upon us and for the purposes of this blog post I’m going to stick to the Autumn aspects, but if you’re from Down Under or just plain interested, you can read my classic blog post on Spring Equinox here.

Some Science, Of Course!

So, before I get to the crystals, a bit o’ science on the Equinox stuffs for a sec. I can’t help myself! This year’s Autumn (or Fall) Equinox lands on Friday, September 22.

There are 2 equinoxes each year; in September and March. Because of the tilt of our planet on our axis, we’re usually getting more sun on one hemisphere than on the other, but there are 2 times/year (Spring and Autumn Equinox) when we get pretty much equal amounts of sunlight on both hemi’s, so our night and day are of equal length everywhere on Mama Earth. So cool!

IMAGE BY PRZEMYSLAW “BLUESHADE” IDZKIEWICZ.

Continue reading “Crystals for Autumn Equinox”

Plant Spirit Communication, Part II: Communication in Many Forms

Dana's avatarThe Druid's Garden

I remember taking a drive with some friends and friends-of-friends some years ago. As we were driving through a really nice forest preserve with some old trees, one of my friends in the car said, “There’s so much money there in the trees, some of them would be worth more than $1500.” He went on to talk about how his family had recently logged their property and earned over $25,000. Other people in the car jumped in and talked about the forest’s beauty and argued against him; and I just listened. Finally, I responded and said, “Every living being has a spirit. I hope that forest stands forever. They deserve to live as much as you or I.” Before this conversation had started, I was listening to the singing of that forest, so happy, so safe to be preserved. This experience stayed with me, and was a good reminder about…

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Plant Spirit Communication, Part I: Your Native Langauge

Dana's avatarThe Druid's Garden

When I was  new to my first job, a colleague had given two of us both who had been recently hired an elephant ear plant seedling for our offices. Our offices were next to each other, both with the same window. Each plant was planted in an identical pot and in identical soil. My elephant ear plant grew quite large and beautiful, while my colleague’s plant kept sending up small shoots and dying back. Finally, she said to me, “Why is your plant doing so much better than mine?” And I responded as a druid, totally without thinking, “I just talk to the plant and it tells me what it needs.” She rolled her eyes at me, let out an exasperated sigh, and walked away. She was never a very pleasant person, but she was particularly nasty to me for some time after that. Perhaps she thought I was mocking…

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A Druid’s Guide to Connecting with Nature, Part IV: Nature Reciprocity

Dana's avatarThe Druid's Garden

The principle of “seven generations” comes to us from the Iroquois nation, where is considered to be the “Great Law of the Iroquois.”  This principle said that each decision that was made needed to consider not just the immediate future but the 7th generation, those yet unborn. This principle has become closely tied with modern sustainability movements, where there is a growing understanding that for any society and ecosystem to endure, they must be treated in a way that nurtures and sustains, rather than pillages and depletes. This is a fairly radical idea to a Western culture, where concepts like manifest destiny and the relentless pursuit of growth that have driven westerners literally spent centuries pillaging the land, colonizing new places, driving out native peoples, stripping forests bare, and so forth. This idea of recirpocation is essentially foreign to most growing up in the shadows of that exploitative past.

Land and ocean worth protecting! Land…

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SACRED SPACE: WHY YOU NEED IT + HOW TO CREATE ONE IN YOUR HOME

By The Energy Muse

As someone who was once a real-estate agent and Feng Shui consultant, I’m always fascinated when I get to enter a home that I’ve never been in before. Even if you’ve known someone for years, seeing their space for the first time is like getting to see a whole new side to them. I love noticing the art they showcase, the trinkets they’ve brought back from travels and the unique sense of style they’ve tapped into to create this place that their soul can call home. Our homes are a reflection of our spirit. That’s why I’m shocked at how many homes I see where the residents have decorated each room to a tee, but haven’t designated a single spot in the home to only their spirit. A sacred space may not appear on traditional blueprints, but having a place where you can go to connect with yourself and the Earth is as crucial as any other room in your home.

You don’t need a spare room to make some grand sacred space in, either. Creating a sacred space is just about dedicating a specific area to the rejuvenation of your spirit. For some people, that may mean creating a sacred altar, while for others it might just be a meditation pillow in a peaceful area of your home, or a spot outside that feels tranquil to you. Over time, when you go to the same place to do prayers, meditate, or do whatever healing work that speaks to you, there’s an energy that builds up. It triggers your mind to feel soothed the moment you enter that space because it subconsciously recognizes it as a space of relief. Whatever relics, crystals or sacred objects you place in this space will hold that energy for you. It doesn’t have to be ornate.

For me, I always need something physical, so that I can retrain myself. I need the visual, physical element. I used to meditate all over the place in my home. Then, I found one spot that I realized I kept wanting to return to. I noticed that, over time, that energy was building. It was my go-to spot for decompressing the mind, body and soul. Deciding that area would be my sacred space was the turning point in my practice. Every time I went back to that spot, I felt my mind, body and spirit connect. The impact of that spot was the difference between going through the motions, and building that true connection.

So if you’re looking to establish a sacred space of peace and connection within the home, here’s a few things to keep in mind before you start!

Continue reading “SACRED SPACE: WHY YOU NEED IT + HOW TO CREATE ONE IN YOUR HOME”