
A Witch’s Guide to Spring Cleaning Your Home
Spring is a time of cleaning, clearing, cleansing and making way for the new. It is a time of nourishing new life and delighting in the renewal and rebirth of our ...
June 5, 2015Herbalism has been a primary form of medicine throughout much of human history. Also known as herbal medicine, the use of plants for medicinal purposes is still widely practiced worldwide. Although Western medicine classifies herbalism as “alternative medicine,” plant-derived compounds form the basis of many modern pharmaceutical drugs.
Here at The Sacred Science, we’re dedicated to sharing the ancient wisdom of plant-based medicine—whether it hails from deep within a remote jungle or is something you already have in your kitchen without realizing it.
Archeologists have found evidence of plants being used for medicine dating as far back as the Paleolithic era—more than 60,000 years ago! The oldest known written records of herbal remedies, hailing from ancient Sumeria, are over 5,000 years old. Plant medicines were depicted in ancient Egyptian tomb illustrations, where jars containing traces of herbal remedies have also been found.
It seems that humans throughout history have identified, and eventually cultivated, plants for the purpose of harnessing their healing medicinal qualities. Medical texts from ancient Greece, China, and India provide extensive detail for hundreds of herbal preparations. In fact, herbalism was highly influential in the formation of modern botany—one of the earliest branches of science.
Today, much of the world’s population utilizes herbalism for their health and well-being. In fact, the World Health Organization estimates that in Asia and Africa, up to 80 percent of the population in some countries rely on herbal medicine to provide at least one form of their primary health care.
Although pharmaceutical medications are perceived by many in the Western world to be of higher quality or greater efficacy than herbal medicines, numerous common pharmaceuticals have their origin in traditional plant formulas. While pharmaceutical drugs are prohibitively expensive for much of the world’s population, plants can be grown or gathered from nature at a fraction of the cost.
Approximately 25% of modern drugs prescribed in the United States were originally derived from plants, according to the World Health Organization, including such common drugs as morphine, aspirin, and quinine. This figure equates to more than 7,000 modern medical compounds in use today that have their roots in herbalism.
Throughout the process of creating The Sacred Science film and also researching and providing the information in this blog, we’ve seen the healing power of plants proven time and time again. Sadly, many modern medical systems are designed to treat and suppress symptoms rather than truly heal patients. These systems have often portrayed herbalism as alternative, ineffective, or even dangerous. We believe, however, that knowledge of plants and their healing properties is our human birthright, and as always, nature provides the best means for our healing.
Spring is a time of cleaning, clearing, cleansing and making way for the new. It is a time of nourishing new life and delighting in the renewal and rebirth of our ...
June 5, 2015Spring is upon us and many of our medicinal weeds, herbs and edible wild foods are beginning to grow. Harvesting from the wild is truly a magical experience, and when done ...
May 12, 2015When I open the medicine cabinet in our bathroom, what I see is mesmerizing. About 7.5 of the 8 shelves in there are jam packed with mysterious creams, tonics, and scrubs ...
March 18, 2015I recently was reminded of the fear many people have of eating the wildness of the world. I had harvested some flowering rosemary for my students to offer folks at an ...
March 6, 2015In the cold stillness of winter, stagnation may occur. We may feel the dampness in our bones, the cold in our hands and feet, the sluggishness in our digestion. Our inner ...
February 15, 2015Tomorrow, many of us will be celebrating one of the premier Hallmark holidays of the western world – Valentines Day. Aside from roses, the most popular gift that is ...
February 12, 2015Our modern lifestyle expects us to emanate the energy of a perpetual summer – showing up brightly, quickly and actively to fulfill all our roles and responsibilities ...
January 26, 2015What do Jesus, Muhammad, and the Buddha all have in common? They each turned to a particular ancient wellness practice during the most transformative and trying periods of ...
November 12, 2014When I hear the word “herbalism”, images of candlelit apothecaries, exquisite antique bottles of tincture, and the age old mortar and pestle come to mind. Even ...
June 16, 2014When I open the medicine cabinet in our bathroom, what I see is mesmerizing. About 7.5 of the 8 shelves in there are jam packed with mysterious creams, tonics, and scrubs ...
May 19, 2014We are back in the States after a long and fruitful medicine expedition across Central America and I’m excited to share some of the footage we’ve brought home ...
April 17, 2014I’m writing you from the remote village of San Marcos La Laguna, Guatemala. “Why?”, you ask? As you know, we spend a lot of time exploring the traditional...
March 28, 2014