We continue to explore and expand our working with medicinal herbs and plantas in direct relationship with our Indigenous and African spiritual traditions. Much of our spiritual traditions have been gutted from what is termed the "health care system" more accurately known as the "sick care system" as it does, in the vast majority of chronic sickness, ensure a life time of drug and surgery dependence. There are basically two types of dis-ease situations which arise, the chronic (or systemic) and the acute. Chronic dis-ease generally accumulates over many years and is very much related to diet, genetic pre-dispositions, ongoing traumas, emotional and mental stagnations or imbalances, or brujerias. Herbal remedies, along with the myriad other holistic remedies available are very effective in addressing many chronic dis-eases, especially if we simultaneously address the spiritual ailments that are interwoven with these chronic conditions.
In terms of chronic dis-ease we cannot fail to take into account the years of oppression and collective trauma that we have endured as Indigenous and African Peoples through the process of slavery, colonization and being forced into an economic system that is built upon exploitation of Mother Earth and the vast majority of her peoples. We have to understand that this system is not natural to our Ancestral Traditions, as our Ancestors had a relationship to Mother Earth beyond what many of us can conceive with our brutalized, traumatized modern minds. This has lasting impact on our bodies ability to thrive in this system, and the diet that comes from this system is in utter opposition to our Ancestral diets, which in the case of the Caribbean consisted of high quality seafood, and many fruits and vegetables, and most importantly No Sugar, No GMOs, No wheat, No dairy, no high fructose corn syrup, no chemical preservatives, no artificial flavors, no chemical dyes, no BPA coming from plastic containers, cans and other packaging. Our direct Ancestors were able to survive genocide and slavery in order for us to experience life, however the brutal assault continues on our bodies and the bodies of our children with ever increasing numbers of us suffering chronic conditions (mental and physical). These chronic conditions must be worked with over long periods of time, as they developed over long periods of time, and healing them requires bringing health and balance back to the whole system.
Acute dis-ease can be a cold or flu, or can be an injury (sprain, cut, bruise, rash), it can be an allergic reaction to poison ivy, to a bug bite, or a case of salmonella or the like. It is a situation that arises due to a sudden onset of dis-ease. This can equally be treated with herbs, generally it is resolved much more quickly, however we must resolve it thoroughly so that it does not lead to a chronic condition.
For those of us who are Paleros, or perhaps practitioners of other Afro-Caribbean traditions, we utilize many of these same plants for spiritual purposes. Many of us are very skillful at using these plants for "brujeria" or other trabajos, however many are entirely lacking the understanding of how these plants are utilized for our health and thriving. From this perspective (and many others) many Paleros have become very limited in their practices and understandings.
Throat Spray:
This throat spray is used for a sore throat. It soothes as well as addresses infection of the throat. Its components are sage and echinacea tea, licorice tincture, eucalyptus and spearmint essential oils. Many times a scratchy throat is the first indication that a cold is moving in on the body and many times, by immediately responding with herbal remedies, we can prevent a cold from occurring. It is also a great spray for singers and those who use their voices a lot and suffer from sore dry throat for these reasons.
Liniment for Wounds and Sprains
This liniment is an old remedy for cuts, scrapes, bruises, sprains, burns and sunburns. It uses one particular ingredient that is very important in Caribbean Medicine (cayenne pepper) which is a powerful yet soothing medicine. It is very stimulating but safe to use for wounds, as well as stomach ulcers, and for fevers. This liniment is for external use only as it uses as its solvent rubbing alcohol which should not be consumed. It can also be made using grain alcohol or even vinegar as a solvent, however these solvents will not be quite so effective in pulling the active ingredients out of the raw ingredients.
We begin with echinacea root, which we grind into a powder and place in a large jar. (Note: we do not recommend using plastic containers for making any herbal medicines).
We add goldenseal powder. Goldenseal should always be obtained from reliable sources or cultivated in ones own garden rather than wildcrafted (picked from the wild) as it is an endangered native species. The root is used and is a powerful Indigenous remedy. True to its name, it is a beautiful golden powder.
Next Cayenne pepper is added (in moderation). Note that the cayenne pepper will cause this liniment to sting a little on open wounds, so when applying it to children it can be blended with oil to reduce its sting.
We then add myrrh gum powder. Myrrh is more commonly known as a resin for use as incense, however myrrh has a long history of use as a medicinal compound, as a powerful antiseptic. We also burn some of the powder while working with it as we are approaching this process from a spiritual perspective.
The rich earthy colors of these powders are beautiful and wonderful to work with. Also when making this formula with children, it is a good educational moment for them to see the variety of colors, tastes and smells that Mother Earth gives us to use for our healing! For those of us suffering from a long and traumatic history, and for those of us suffering from the dislocation and de-spiritualization of the society we live in, working with these plants is healing in and of itself.
Rubbing alcohol is added until the herbs are covered by a few inches of alcohol.
The liniment is mixed well...
This liniment is shaken vigorously once or twice a day (or more) since it quickly separates and we want the alcohol to continually be exposed to the powders. After 2 weeks it is strained through cheesecloth and a strainer and can be used. Immediately you can see the active components from the herbs entering into the alcohol. There is nothing wrong with using it without straining it, but it will be a little gritty from the powders and that could be slightly messy to use. While it is processing, we leave it on the kitchen table so we do not forget to shake it. We also make sure we label it clearly and also label that it is for external use only.
Toothpaste
Natural toothpaste is easy to find at your local health food store, however some of these so called natural toothpastes are not truly natural, and some contain floride. We avoid floride like a plague for many well documented reasons as we are concerned about its toxicity and tranquilizing effects. These natural toothpastes are very expensive compared to the chemical alternatives. However toothpaste is very simple to make:
Take Kaolin clay (1/4 cup).
Add very finally ground real sea salt (1 teaspoon) (we grind up celtic sea salt in a coffee grinder (our herb grinder, used only for herbs, not coffee)). It is very important not to use regular table salt (which really should not be used in cooking either as it upsets the mineral balance in our body), we recommend either himalayan salt or celtic sea salt.
Add baking soda (1 teaspoon). Use a good quality baking soda that does not contain aluminum. We use "Bob's Red Mill" brand that uses natural ingredients in the extraction process.
Mix all ingredients well with a couple drops of whatever essential oil you want to use to flavor the toothpaste and give it further medicinal qualities. In this recipe we used spearmint oil and clove bud oil. Oils such as tea tree, eucalyptus, fennel or cinnamon can also be used. Remember to use only 100% pure essential oil.
Add vegetable glycerin (which is a vegetable derived glycerin with a sweet flavor (but it does not contain sugar)) and stir to form a paste.
Water can also be used to form the paste if the sweet flavor is not desired, however the toothpaste will not preserve as long.
The resulting toothpaste will last several months. Note it is a brown color, this may be difficult for those attached to lily white toothpaste to deal with. However we should give some thought to what chemical processes may be required in the desperate search for so many things to be white (toilet paper, paper towels, toothpaste, paper plates, paper products etc.) We may find that in the desperate search for all things white, we are poisoning our bodies.
Grain Skin Scrub
Oats, almonds, lavender flowers, rose petals, and kaolin clay are ground and mixed with cedarwood essential oil to give us a totally natural skin scrub. Our faces take in a large amount of pollution and bombardment as we go through the world. This scrub helps to exfoliate the dead skin and clean the pores.
Take Kaolin Clay
Add rolled oats and almonds (grind them up in a coffee grinder until they are a consistency that is desired (smoother or coarser depending on your preference).
Add lavender flowers (ground up)
Rose petals (ground up)
Mix all this together in the bowl along with a few drops of whatever essential oil you want to use to give it additional fragrance. It does have a natural fragrance due to the rose petals and lavender, but we also added cedar wood oil.
Place in a jar with a spoon and use it to remove dead skin and toxicity from your face (make a paste in your palm with water, rub vigorously on face, rinse). Remember the skin is our biggest organ, never put anything on your skin that you would not put in your mouth as it will take in everything that it comes in contact with. Our skin has millions of pores that are constantly taking in the world around us.
No comments:
Post a Comment