| Since the beginning of time, man has been engaging | | | | think of trees processing noxious gasses such as |
| with nature's devices to survive. Herbs, plants, trees | | | | nitrogen and carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen. We |
| and flowers offered food, shelter, medicine, magick | | | | can also think of the bruise on a person's leg which is |
| and also aesthetic appeal. It is, pragmatically speaking, | | | | rapidly healed by applying Arnica. At another level still |
| no different today. Modern medicine emulated | | | | we can think of how lavender clears negativity in a |
| nature's devices to create the synthetic medicines in | | | | room when burnt as incense. |
| use today and modern science harnesses nature to | | | | Such is the power of the herb and for this reason |
| offer the creature comforts modern man demands. | | | | literally hundreds upon thousands of herbs that have |
| Herbalism, in particular, transcended dynasties, | | | | been across the ages and across all continents. The |
| empires, religious institutions, political dogma and | | | | same holds true where magickal practices were |
| entire civilizations. It even survived all those natural | | | | concerned. |
| disasters of cataclysmic proportions over the ages | | | | Today, more than 100 types of herbs are commonly |
| that threatened the continued existence of life on | | | | known and used in Wiccan practices. Each of these |
| this small planet we call earth. | | | | herbs has masculine or feminine characteristics, is |
| That, in itself, is magick. | | | | associated with one of the four elements and may |
| The question on most people's minds is how the | | | | often be a favorite of a particular god or goddess. |
| power of herbs works. The answer is perhaps a little | | | | The herbs can be used in various ways, including in |
| complicated, but here goes anyway: | | | | charms or sachets, incense, bath products, oils, teas, |
| Everything in nature has a life-force, or spirit, or | | | | smoking, or sprinkled to assign a line or area of |
| essence. The essence of each herb is a part of the | | | | protection. |
| cosmos. The role of the essence is to affect a | | | | Wiccans are encouraged to grow as many of the |
| change that will result in maintaining or restoring the | | | | herbs themselves as possible for their own use, as it |
| balance within its own microcosm. By doing this, it | | | | adds the power of the individual to the attributes of |
| helps in maintaining the equilibrium of the cosmos as a | | | | the herb. Each herb has the characteristics of the |
| whole. | | | | ruling planet, the element with which it is associated |
| The essence can also be put to use to restore | | | | and a masculine or feminine bias. |
| imbalances in other living organisms. Here we can | | | | |