Welcome to the Order of the Sacred Star! This Pagan/Wiccan group, based in Winnipeg, Canada, is committed to teaching the Craft to all those who wish to learn. Our goal is to provide a complete and fulfulling learning experience. Our public classes are offered through the Winnipeg Pagan Teaching Circle.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

The Modern Use of Flower Essences

Flower essences work on basically the same principle as Bach Flower Remedies. This means that they are designed to combat emotional or spiritual difficulties, such as stress, depression, fear, anxiety, anger or confusion. The idea behind the flower essences is simple: emotions change thoughts, thoughts change behavior, and behavior changes lives. The flower essences target emotional difficulties, the first step in this change.

How Are Flower Essences Made?

Like many other forms of natural medicine, including Bach Flower Remedies, flower essences are preferably prepared using the sun-infusion method. This involves allowing the plant to soak the flowers in spring water, making sure that the water and plant are in direct sunlight, allowing the sun to pass through them. This is typically done over the course of at least an entire day.

If there is insufficient natural sunlight, it is permissible to boil the flowers for several minutes. Do not heat the flowers dry (without water) on the stove, as this could cause a fire.

Even better than both methods would be to collect the morning dew off the particular flower, but this is impractical. Instead of attempting this, both the sun-infusion and boiling methods are perfectly acceptable. These essences are then consumed in small quantities, usually two to three drops, up to four times per day.

How Flower Essences Can Be Beneficial

Anyone and everyone can benefit from the use of flower essences. Male or female, young or old, flower essences can help to reduce stress and ease emotional loads. Flower essences can provide many of the following benefits and more:
  • relief from emotional stress
  • feelings of clarity and peace
  • insight
  • inspiring confidence
  • dealing with change
  • enhance self-image
  • relieve fear or anxiety
  • increase motivation
Effects of Individual Flower Essences

The following list is far from comprehensive. It does, however, give a brief overview of the most common of the flower essences in use today, and their general effects.
  • bilberry — calms and brings peace and clarity
  • camphor — removes toxicities, allowing other remedies to work more effectively; activates meridians
  • chamomile — emotional balance and easing emotional tension; mental clarity
  • columbine — inspiration; enhances healing and integration; activates higher chakras
  • daffodil — align to Higher Self; useful during deep meditation; helps in the passing of information to the conscious mind
  • daisy — clear focus and intuitive understanding, especially spiritual understanding
  • dandelion — increased energy; relieves tension; good for high-strung individuals
  • forget-me-not — awareness of spiritual connections; increases reaction time
  • gooseberry — sense of ease and relaxation; improves attitude; increases the desire to be a part of the world
  • honesty — personal clarity; acceptance of changes and increased flexibility; clears negative emotions
  • lavender — spiritual sensitivity and awareness; eases nervousness; spiritual cleanses
  • nettle — eases stress associated with a broken home; helps with sibling relationships; very calming
  • oriental hellebore — reduces tension and over-excitability; increases self-assuredness, while decreasing shyness; helps in establishing goals; motivation, poise, clarity, balance
  • passionflower — increases spiritual focus; easier access to higher states of consciousness
  • rue — energizes and stabilizes emotions; acceptance of oneself; self-expression
  • sage — wisdom, perspective; aligns mental and spiritual bodies; psychic abilities
  • snapdragon — dynamic energy and a healthy libido; improves verbal communication
  • snowdrop — confidence, especially spiritual confidence; clear direction in life; energizes the thought process; brings insight
  • snowflake — clarity of purpose; calming energy; protect from unwanted thoughts
  • St. John’s Wort — eases psychic and physical vulnerability; eases fear, helps with disturbed dreaming; increases the ability to separate thought from emotion
  • wild violet — acceptance and understanding; courage and personal fulfillment; self-expression and clarity; encouragement of true potential
The flower essences described here are not to be used to treat physical ailments. That is more the realm of herbology, and not within the scope of this article. Rather, flower essences are to assist in dealing with emotional and spiritual difficulties, from stress to fear, and many emotions in between.

The Historical Use of Flowers and Their Essences

Throughout history, flowers have been used as an expression for those concepts which escape verbal communication. Later, in the days of the Inquisition and similar persecutions, flowers and their emblems were used in many mediums, from art to architecture, as a secret form of communication.

Historical Interpretation of Flowers

There are many different interpretations of individual flower essences, mostly dependent upon physical location and historical time period. The lotus is a prime example of this. In Ancient Egypt, the lotus was a symbol of new life. However, later, in medieval Europe, it was said to represent the mystical center of things. In the Far East, the lotus represented the universe evolving from a central sun as it sprung from the navel of Vishnu.

As Christianity began its rise, many of the flowers originally dedicated to Greek and Roman gods were reassigned to various saints. Many flowers originally said to be ruled by Aphrodite, for example, became associated with the Virgin Mary, who was the Christian symbol of the feminine divine.

Specific Flower Essence Correspondences

Through history there were many interpretations of various flowers, as discussed above, and therefore their essences. Some of these are listed below. For the most part, these associations are taken from medieval Europe, since it is these interpretations that tend to have been carried forth into modern times.
  • broom – significant with love
  • calendula – success
  • camelia – perfect loveliness
  • candytuft – indifference
  • carnation – pure love
  • clover – happiness and good fortune
  • cowslip – unexpected love
  • daffodil – having high regard
  • daisy – symbolized a birth
  • gentain – injustice
  • geranium – comfort
  • hawthorn – hope
  • hollyhock – ambition
  • iris – purity and majesty
  • jasmine – was the emblem of the Virgin, also known as the star of divine hope
  • lavender – indicated that a reunion was to take place
  • Madonna lily – illustrated the marvels of paradise, signified purity and chastity
  • olive – represented peace, and still does in most book religions
  • passionflower – faith
  • rose – symbol of earthly love, symbol of heavenly delight and the mystic center of being
  • trefoil – the Holy Trinity
  • wallflower – fidelity in adversity
The Mystical and Esoteric Use of Flower Essences

Flowers and their essences were used by witches and magicians in their spells. Modern practitioners continue to use these essences for similar purposes today. In more ancient times, the growth of a flower, the how and why of it, was considered a mystery. This mystery lead many to conclude that flowers have many magical and supernatural qualities.

Many flowers, most commonly clover, lavender, and heather, were believed to bring luck, just as is believed today. Others, such as St. John’s Wort, peony, and lily are said to protect against evil. Daisies and dandelions, in addition to serving as clocks (since they open and close at certain times each day), were also used as oracles of love. This is still common practice today, in the tradition of pulling off the petals while reciting, “She loves me, she loves me not.”

The use of flower essences, both in mundane and mystical practice, is still common today. The meanings of these flowers have often been passed down through the ages, and so have a powerful history. Whether for healing, the casting of a spell, or as a means of communicating in secret, the use of flowers stretches back to ancient times.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Exploring the Source and Significance of Dreams

Most people in modern society take little notice of a random bit of half-remembered dream, whether it be a good dream, full of hope and happiness, or a nightmare, full of terror. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, the scientific world continues to explore dreams in depth. There are numerous laboratories conducting a multitude of tests focusing on dreams and dreaming, all around the world.

On a more metaphysical level, dreams and their symbols have been important to most cultures around the world for many centuries. Thought to convey messages or even predict events, historically, dreams were rarely dismissed.

The Source of Dreams

Before, an ability to approach dreams from a spiritual point of view, it is important to understand where they come from, and why they come at all. Determining where they come from is a simple process of elimination.

The mind can be roughly divided into three parts: the conscious mind, the subconscious mind, and the superconscious mind. The conscious mind, the part of the mind that is responsible for everyday activities, is at rest while dreaming, and so not likely the source of dreams. The subconscious mind, the instinctual part, is generally passive, and not really capable of logic or reason. It seems unlikely that the subconscious mind could possibly be responsible for the complexity of a dream, giving that its responsibility is contrary to the nature of dreams.

That leaves the superconscious mind, also called the higher or spiritual self. Since neither the conscious or subconscious mind can logically be thought to be the source of dreams, it must be the superconscious mind that is responsible. The higher self does nothing randomly. This means that dreams must carry some importance to the higher self, and so warrants some attention.

The Importance of Dreams

The question of whether or not dreams are important at all has long since been answered on a scientific level; dreaming is vital to the sanity of the conscious mind. Scientific research has shown that when subjects have their dreams continually interrupted, they develop great amounts of emotional stress. In addition, science has also revealed that each person dreams, on average, seven times each night, for up to forty-five minutes at a time. Some argue that the sheer amount of time dedicated to dreaming must give dreams some significance.

When the source of dreams, some believe that the higher self, is taken into consideration, the importance of dreams becomes even more evident. For the majority of the population, some theorize that dreams are the only way the higher self has to really communicate with the conscious mind. Therefore, the higher self must spend each and every night attempting to get across any message that it deems necessary.

The higher self expends a great deal of time and effort into creating a dream to transmit a certain message. In addition, science has proven that they conscious mind cannot function without an appropriate amount of dreaming, which occurs every night, and several times each night. Taking all this into consideration, dreams are probably not random, and likely far more important than most people realize, on both a scientific and an esoteric level.

Candle Magick Superstitions

Rumors, superstitions, and omens about candles date back hundreds of years. Some of these have passed into history, while others, such as the blowing out of birthday candles, are still very much a part of modern society. Candles and their behavior have been said to predict everything from luck, to marriage, to death, and everything in between.

Candle Omens of Bad Luck

The prediction of bad luck using candles has survived through the ages, sometimes with a practical purpose in mind. For example, it is considered bad luck to fall asleep with a candle burning. Vague, true, but this warning has a more mundane purpose as well, since an unattended candle could potentially burn a house down.

Other omens are just as vague. The traditional saying, “If a candle falls and breaks in two, double trouble will come to you,” isn’t very specific. It could be anything. And the popular superstition that says that allowing a candle to burn itself out will bring misfortune is certainly subject to interpretation.

Other superstitions regarding bad luck and candles are not so vague. A drip down the side of a candle during a séance (but at no other time) is said to predict bad luck or even death (which would be very bad luck) to the person nearest that side of the candle.

Candle Superstitions of Good Luck

There are certainly as many omens of good luck, blessings, and protection as there are bad, when it comes to candle magick. Lighting a brown candle on Imbolc Eve is a popular practice said to attract good luck while keep evil spirits at bay; killing a moth flying about a candle flame is said to have the same effect.

Many people, regardless of belief, light a pure white candle in a new home in the hope of bringing good luck and happiness. Bayberry-scented candles are frequently burned down to bring good luck and money. This practice of burning down the candle contradicts the previous idea of it bring bad luck to burn down a candle, as often happens when dealing with superstitions.

Omens Regarding Dreams and Candles

Dreams are a powerful source of omens. To dream of a candle usually has a meaning that is dependent upon the color of the candle. For example:
  • Black – death or illness
  • White – true love
  • Red – passion and sexual desire
In addition to this, there are other meanings of candles appearing in dreams. It is said that if a young woman dreams of two white candles, she will soon receive a proposal of marriage. Dreaming of five candles is said to mean love and marriage for anyone, young woman or no.

A candle alone, with no indication of color, is often said to be an indication of intelligence, or of spiritual understanding. A candle in a holder means happiness and prosperity, while a holder with no candle indicates sorrow and great misfortune, maybe even death.

Using Candles to Predict Love

The methods and means by which to use candle magick to either predict or draw love are many and varied. Some are as simple as burning a candle on a specific day, others are a chance happening that predicts the unexpected.

Burning a pink candle on Valentine’s Day is said to bring true love, while a white candle at a wedding is supposed to ensure a long and happy marriage. Bringing a lover is a little more complicated, and involves sticking two pins through the middle of a red candle at midnight (the day is not important here), and when the candle burns down to the pins, the lover is said to arrive.

Some events occur by accident. For example, accidentally knocking a candle out is a lucky sign that there might be a wedding in the near future. A candle that suddenly goes out during a wedding, though, indicates that the marriage will end in sorrow.

These are hardly the only omens and superstitions relating to candles and candle magick. There are thousands more, predicting everything from death and banishing evil to money and the weather. While these superstitions are hardly substantiated, there are many firm believers in the magickal powers of candles.