jamisonstarr

[jamisonstarr]

You need me to need you…

A parched tongue lapping at wet wounds, you wanted the salve of my codependence to coat your lonely pursuits for personal purpose…

Do you remember the first time she broke your confidence?

I see the pestilential rage vibrating whenever you think I’ve gotten to high for my britches.

You wanted to hurt me the way she hurt you. Break my will and strength and pride and defiance and courage and indignation and voice like she broke yours. Push me down, drag me out to the back of my dreams, and hose my independence until I was afraid to deviate on my own. Because I thought I needed someone to tell me “good job”, “you’re doing the right thing”, good girl”.

You have a kink fetish because you never learned how to take criticism.

Convincing someone to need you, but only the things you want to be applauded for is manipulation. To hold their voice down when they scream for their actual needs, and suffocate it with a primed “tell me what you like about me?” Is the ego gorging on the festering of broken intimacy. You don’t want me to see you. You wanted me to see what you want me to see.

And in some ways, I’m no better. Afraid that I’m unlovable, so I cling to the one instance that someone might love me. Taking scared rabbis kittens and loving them back to health, in hopes they’ll be so grateful for my resume that they’ll never leave. Because I’m terrified of abandonment. Violently unnerved about what it says about my value, my goodness, my purpose in a world where no one wants me.

I stay because if I can prove that live is as easy as just sticking around for the “rough” parts, I can convince someone to stick by myself forever. Because I’m afraid to do it on my own. I’m afraid I’ll go crazy, or go to jail, or become a drug addict, or a generally terrible person, and that worst than not loving me, people will never have known or cared that I existed.

[jamisonstarr]

I miss you… but I also miss myself more. Some days I wish I could turn back the hands of time and start over. I’m having a really hard I’m adjusting this is life that I very much created. It’s suffocating me, and I need a moment to breathe and remember my own mission.

[jamisonstarr]

Today me and Kendra broke up…

Part of me is relieved. The other parts are confused, grieving, bargaining, angry, insecure, triggered, grasping, lonely, and tired.

She told me “if I could afford to, I would leave you”. I haven’t hurt anything so jarringly painful since Cydney told me that without sex, our relationship would have been over long before. It triggers a feeling of worthlessness in me around the “things” I provide that keep people around, instead of them truly being in love with me. Instead of people really being my friend. Instead of people being around for the right reasons. But I know she knows that, which is why she said it.

To be honest, she’s right. I knew that us living together would be the end of us, but it turns out, it became the only thing keeping us together. After a while, it does begin to feel suspicious to spend 6 weeks away from home at a time. The comfort of being alone begins to feel imposed upon but the others arrive. Times of peace become few and far in between. Sex is fleeing and romance is the last ditched effort at summing enough nostalgia to remember why we’re even here. We’d seemed to have been doomed but we’re, much to my chagrin at this phrase, slow dancing in a burning room. I’ve going used to recognizing the signs, but I’d hoped I could delay or change the outcome this time.

Breakups are hard….. this shit is really for the birds…

[jamisonstarr]

Truth is…. I still very much love you and that makes me sad. Maybe I have just been in grieving for 7 years and not known it. That breaks my heart more than I’m able to explain. You are alive and well and moving on to do wonderful things in your life, and so am I, but the version of ourselves that were once together is long gone.

I grieve our relationship, but in so many ways, I am still left with the insecure girl who feels abandoned. I am left with my inner child who wonders about people leaving and if she is good enough. I am left contemplating my journey, and if I would be somewhere different in my life if I hadn’t been left behind. discarded. broken.

I grieve even more for the little girl that felt this way long before you came and went. She wonders if people return from where they all seem to go. Away. Maybe if you came back, it wouldn’t feel so dark to be alone.

In my mind, I know these things not to be true, so today I try to hold the little girl and tell her it is okay to love, even when the loss feels like a thousand darknesses descending.

She is going to be okay. And love itself is the light.

[jamisonstarr]

27 is a weird, funky ass age. For whatever reason, I am discovering an emptiness that resides at the core of myself that maybe has always been there. If my guess is right, it might explain the deep feelings of dissatisfaction I’ve always felt in relationship, the long periods of disconnection I’ve experienced with friends, and the painful sense of dissociation I’ve had from myself. The cause? I’m not sure, but I’m becoming annoyingly aware that seemingly, the only true answer is getting to know me.

I went on their page today, and to my utter heartbreak, it was private. I knew this day was coming, and whether it was because they sensed my energy and felt the need to protect themselves, or just had a lot going on because of these retrogrades, it still felt like a stab in the heart. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten over how our last few encounters have went and how they always leave me with the emotional baggage of hoping.

When I felt the deep sense of rejection from their privacy, my knee jerk reaction was to feel shame. Why do I feel so dejected? What entitlement did I have to accessing them? Have I gotten over them and will I even if I still feel this way after this long? What is wrong with me? Why does everyone, especially them, seem to be healing so much faster than me? Why can’t I get over this? Where am I going with my life?

I felt myself spiraling down a tunnel of self pity and woe, forgetting the work I HAVE done over these last 10 years. Has it been painstaking and even grueling at times? Yes. Have I cried a thousand rivers worth of tears and bleed my way through the Serengeti? Absolutely. But have I spent enough time with myself to know exactly HOW strong and fortitudinous I have and will become? No. And have I even TRIED to do the REAL work or journaling, dreaming, divining, bathing, weeping, cooking, isolating, dancing, praying, growing, working, and minding MY own business to see how MY garden grows? Not in a loooooong long time.

I pray the ancestors grant me strength and steadfastness to be persistent and intentional about my healing. I pray for insight and wisdom as I uncover what is and CLEARLY isn’t for me. I pray for clarity of mind and soundness of discernment as I move from the darkness of uncertainty to the enlightenment of truth. I ask for time and patience from those in my life; family, friends, employers, teachers, partners, and parents, as I navigate this space in integrity with MY needs. I ask for simple ways to integrate this learned wisdom and joyful ways to enjoy it. And I ask for the courage to do it even when I’m afraid, even when I don’t know what’s on the other side, even if things turn out different than I’ve ever imagined.

I love myself. I see myself. I am committed to myself.

[jamisonstarr]

So I’m revisiting this place…

I find myself unsure of why, or how, or who this place exists as a consequence of. I haven’t found it useful to journal in a physical space (probably looong past trauma about privacy - ironically as I place it on the internet). But I was most honest, most vulnerable, most healed here. So obviously something was working.

Today I have everything I’ve asked for throughout the multitude of years of lamenting and weeping. Meaningful work, potential to grow, a loving relationship, and stability… but I’m still missing something. Many things if I’m being quite honest. And most of it has to do with my own connection to me…

Working through it… hopefully soon I’ll have more words…

[jamisonstarr]

i love.... calm men. like some men just have this really soothing, gentle, calm aura. as a girl who is highly strung and often suffers from anxiety and paranoia, I love a man who’s good at comforting you, who’s relaxed vibe rubs off on you, talking to him eases your anxiety and you just feel calm and safe

[jamisonstarr]

Today I made a friend....and I want to keep it that way. I've been in a real funk these last few weeks since coming home from South Africa, but this weekend was one of the hardest in a long time. I cried until I couldn't breathe, until I feared my chest would collapse inward, begging them to let me come home. Pleading for them to release me from this Earth realm into their care without penalty. I asked my pendulum if they'd allow it. No reply. So instead I called my mother and asked her to sit with me and and just be present; being honest I've been here so many times, I know how to talk myself off the ledge, through my own shit, I just need someone there to witness me through this process when I'm that close. She's been calling me every day since then (even though it's only been two days). But I've been feeling better. Cleaned my room moderately, put in my storage cabinet, and have abstained from alcohol.

Today I went to a village event for brujxs, body workers, and healers as a safe space for trans, queer, and gender-queer folks of color. Vendors, Queer Advocacy, and Classes for managing mental health. I got some much needed bodywork done (thank the GOOOOODDDSS) and visited 2 different tarot readers. The first one was awesome! She definitely had a drier energy, but gave a very funny and candid reading of my life (she probably got virgo somewhere in her chart 😂). She explained that as a very intuitive and introvertedly introspective person, there is a deep part of me that wants to find balance, not only through delving into the deep parts of me that need healing, but also through avoiding some others. Double edged sword of a good and bad thing. INTUITION 🤦🏾‍♀️. And there's been something I've been stagnant, unmoving, and unyeilding about where I'm waiting for the situation to unfold for itself (Cyd) which is exasterbated by my trust issues. Her advice was to 1.) SET AND RESPECT my own BOUNDARIES, while still not being a shut-in who won't allow love and 2.) To learn from my patterns, especially with people who I'm associating with so that I'm not digging myself in a deeper hole. I needed these things, and they came at the right time for me, but this was only the slight read.

My second reading came from a person named Tsai. We had been connecting sight throughout the night (as did me and the body worker) but I kept averting my gaze to do other things. By the end of the night, I had gathered the courage to ask for a reading. Turns out I had already signed up for their table anyway. Before they get into the reading, they meditate over the deck and I can feel myself tuning into the energy of the table. They begin by asking me how my day was, and considering how my weekend was, shit today was marvelous! We chuckled because apparently both our weekends had been a wreck, overhauling all the bs in our lives. Astrologically, they explain that thisis recent season is pulling for a purging and rebirth, almost violently. Greaaaaaaaaattt!

They pull cards and say that this is the moment I'm beginning to gather the building blocks of my foundation, that this is a very integral moment for my growth. They can see I've been dealing with a particular challange, a back and forth with someone where we're going head to head (Javon), but in the end, I have the strength and internal support to be triumphant if I so chose, but there is soon to be resolution so smile. They see that the worst of my situation is over (thank the GOOOOODDDSS, because idk if I'd be here if it got much worst) but that in order for me to elevate, I have to enlist my INTUITION 🙄😂 which is actually very strong but that I haven't learned to trust. Part of what will help me through my journey though is a connection to my childlike joy. They see that I've recently been very depleted but my relationships (esp. Angel) through giving too much of myself and not settling BOUNDARIES for myself and gaining solitude. The word discipline pops up over and over again for them. By this time I can feel the ground vibrating through my feet and my heart heating up in my chest, which is a little startling... But I just tell myself to connect deeper to the moment and energy to make the reading as accurate as possible. They begin to ask my about the specifics of my life to have a better understanding and context for what the cards are saying (which at this point is about 22+ of them on the table already) and I just blerb it out in the most concise way I can. In this moment, I literally felt a fire ignite in my belly and the energy surge through my upper body down through my feet, into them. Like it was the most strange, connected, intense sensation I've ever had at a reading because I could literally feel them receiving my energy and information. As they're taking it in, I can tell it's like pouring onto them, almost to the point of overstimulation, and they just laugh this strange laugh of "same". At this point I'm beginning to recognize we have much more in common than I (or they) had initially expected. The rest of the reading pretty much closed in us having these spookily ironic connections that were almost unreal. All the way from the reading her dropped/my lost rose quartz as me needing more greenery, and less focus on my heart chakra (odd notion, I'm aware) to the depressions/elations we both had this weekends... both surrounding our names. My name is Swahili/Arabic means "Life" or "she who is life" (which I was painstakingly reminded of for 15 whole minutes the morning I though to OD). Tsai had just had a reality shaking reading of their name which showed that theirs means "She who brings the water".....I'm spooked at this point because in South Africa, my professor gave me a Zulu name Nomvula which means "She who comes after the rain"... We just sat there for a moment, in complete awe, confused, elated, shocked...

They gave me their business card and their personal number because there was just no way we couldn't connect after a reading like that... But just like, wheeettt?!? I sometimes forget it's possible for me to connect to other people on these deep, unexplainable, spiritual levels that bring power and intuitive connections out. But for this relationship, I want to be friends and nothing even remotely more. I'm working on building friendship with intimacy and connection that don't have to include any of the other fluff unless that's specifically what the relationship is calling for, not just some compulsory inclination.

#journaling #healing #love #spiritual journey #energy work #energy #friends

[jamisonstarr]

You can always start again. Clean out your social media. Create a new account for your new taste in music. Study or work in a new city. Start socialising with new people. Choose a new signature scent and style and purge the outdated parts of yourself. If you don’t like where you’re at, but you don’t know what to do about it - try starting again.

[jamisonstarr]

Depression, you old friend...

Watching myself cycle back to being in a depression is a hard pill to swallow. I was talking to a friend the other day and the only way I could describe it was the sensation of a crash. Falling into something, feeling no ground to catch me, and then the impact of collision. Back into this place of wanted to lay here until time speeds up and ends this joke before I do. Of making plans and goals and list of shit to do that my mind immediately dismisses as pointless. If already feeling myself fall behind on things that I know should matter and feeling no real desire or incentive to do better. I know that part of it is my space. Anyone who knows me forreal knows that my home is my sanctuary and it is a deep reflection of who and how I am. If it's unwell and cluttered and disfunctional and ungrounded, as am I. But I also understand that that may be a scapegoat for me actually addressing what's coming up for me. I think I get tired of myself and my problems. I think so much about what is going on, analyzing my issues and mentally dissecting things that by the time I'm supposed to feel them, not only have I already feel them to some degree, I've also exhausted my brain with them. I'm just tired of feeling hopeless and useless and anxious and confused and belittled. Especially in my field. I was so happy when I was in South Africa. Even though summers are usually very difficult and we definitely were on a wild ride, I was so abundantly happy and motivated...I just hate this situation and I'm working hard to finish getting out. But I'm tired...smh so very tired.

#journaling #venting #depression #anxiety

[jamisonstarr]

zero light plants

[jamisonstarr]

Lakeith Stanfield || Vogue

[jamisonstarr]

Get ya spice game up. I go to a local farmers market and get all my spices. They have a whole spice wall that I love.

#food hacks

[jamisonstarr]

Hoodoo Correspondences: Workin Roots with Nature Spirits

Thanks to @afro-gay for inspiring this post! There are a lot of correspondence posts out there for witchcraft that explain what herbs, plants, flowers, etc. can be used for what purposes. There definitely are traditional hoodoo correspondences that could be listed in the same way, but it would actually be very inconsistent and paradoxical to the way that hoodoo works to take a list of those correspondences off the internet and use them for the sake of using them. Working the roots and using herbs and plants in hoodoo has its own process, which is at the very core of the tradition itself.

In this hoodoo guide to correspondences, I discuss how the process of working with organic materials and determining correspondences yourself by communicating with their spirits and energy is integral to practicing and learning hoodoo. I’m going to mostly draw on a mixture of my own experiences and the various works of black hoodoo author Stephanie Bird.

The Roots of Rootwork

It’s commonly known that rootwork is another way of referring to hoodoo, and this particular name for the African American folk tradition is extremely important because it expresses the foundational core of the practice. When talking about doing rootwork, sometimes people say “workin the roots,” which is basically what “rootwork” literally means. So what are the “roots” of rootwork? It might seem obvious that this is literal - roots are a common and important ingredient in hoodoo recipes. However, it is even more profound than this. The roots are two different sources of magic, power, and wisdom in Africana tradition that are two sides of the same coin or two aspects of the same spiritual circle.

The roots of rootwork are ANCESTORS + NATURE.

What does this mean? Even most beginner rootworkers pick up quickly that ancestor work is essential and so are the use of herbs and roots. However, I don’t see many talking about the fact that from an Afrocentric perspective, our ancestors and the forces of nature are actually deeply interconnected to almost being one and the same. Bird says, “Rootwork consists of understanding herbalism and then incorporating indigenous wisdom regarding nature” (10). That indigenous wisdom regarding nature isn’t just accessed through ancestor work or herbalism as separate practices, but rather simultaneously through an Afrocentric understanding of their interconnections. 

Going back all the way to rootwork’s historical origins in traditional African religions, most African cultures regard the earth as being the home and the embodiment of the ancestors. People lived and died, then they were buried in the earth. African peoples were aware of this and understood how bodies naturally became food for the plants and trees, just as those plants and trees had nourished people all their lives. There’s a reason why “the Circle of Life” is in Lion King, that concept and deep awareness of humanity’s interconnection with nature really truly is a part of the traditional African worldview. The earth nourishes us, and when we become ancestors, we nourish the earth.

“… since in the African’s mind the fertility of the earth and human beings was connected with the ancestors’ spirits, he maintained contact with these spirits at burials and rituals of ancestor worship” (Segy 27).

In the Africana studies class I took last semester on Africana diasporic religions, I learned that the Yoruba culture are an example of people believe that the ancestors (egungun) live on with a deep connection to the earth (aye) and the land (ile). I’m sure there are countless other examples, and in fact, the connection between ancestors and nature is a common theme among many indigenous cultures - so not just on the African continent but around the world.

The Magic of Rootwork

Some people refer to it as magic. Chaotes and other prefer the word magick to distinguish from stage magic. In Kemet, it was called heka. In Yoruba language, spiritual energy that can be used as magic is called ashe. Bird describes it:

“Ashe is the invisible power of nature. Ashe is present inside herbal products and natural objects. Herbal teas, incense powders, spiritual washes, healing balms, healing soaps, healing charms, medicine bundles, and even the purposefully spoken work all contain ashe” (27).

From all these different examples she gives, we see how the magical forces of the Yoruba and many other African cultures were the powers of nature itself. It is finding ways to harmonize with and tap into the power of one’s ancestors and all the earth’s elements, the ashe of the world within and around us.

“Organic objects are replete with potentiality and healing ashe, It is important to address each element or aspect of nature with the assertion that it is alive and our partner. This approach puts us in touch at once with the past, present, ancestors, and nature spirits” (Bird).

The hoodoo looks at nature and its seemingly infinite array of manifestations - trees, grass, moss, roots, plants, flowers, rivers, oceans, rain, clouds, wind, fire, soil, mud, clay, dirt, rocks - from the Afrocentric perspective where they are all teeming with life, spirit, and ashe. As Bird explains, within this living world of nature, the ancestors and nature spirits are side-by-side. They are two overlapping groups of partners and guides who given respect, kindness, and gratitude may be willing to put all that ashe together for a collective purpose.

The heart of rootwork is doing what our ancestors before us have always done by forming intimate relationships with ancestors, local spirit communities, powerful nature spirits (like the orishas or loa), and the spirits of every material we work with. Hoodoo magic is nature magic, it is spirit magic, it is ancestral magic, it is in the roots. These are all interconnected as one and many: the roots that are nature, spirits, ancestors.

Tree Whisperers

Bird discusses Jiridon, a traditional knowledge system of the Mande people in Mali within West Africa. Referred to as “the science of the trees,” Jiridon is an indigenous Mande system of studying and understanding the forces of nature.

“To learn Jiridon, the seeker, whether hunter, warrior, or shaman, must spend ample time alone in the wilderness, observing the workings of nature, including the expressions of animals and the whispered wisdom of the sacred wood. Jiridon studies are not carried out through an apprenticeship with a human; they are learned directly from trees and plants themselves.” (Bird 11).

Although learning directly or indirectly from one’s ancestors about working with herbs, plants, roots, etc. is extremely important where possible, learning from the nature spirits themselves is essential too. This is absolutely a form of spirit work that encompasses working with nature spirits and one’s ancestral spirits at the same time. Though it is possible to learn from any plant or aspect of nature, trees have been significant mentors to our ancestors both in Africa and the Americas:

“Trees are tremendously important to Africans, thus they play an important role in Hoodoo. Trees are the primary teachers of the hoodoo and the hunters, herbalists, and warriors of Africa… Similar to a West African hunter or warrior, a good hoodoo must spend a great deal of time alone with trees in order to learn the secrets and wisdom they wish to share with us” (Bird 8).

“In early African American historical accounts, there are written testaments of people who spoke the language of the trees. They were called tree whisperers. Tree whisperers in the United States spend time living with and studying a single tree” (Bird).

Now with an understanding of rootwork’s African history and magical basis in nature, it should be abundantly clear why rootworkers wouldn’t benefit from relying solely on a correspondence list. When working the roots, one speaks to the roots. Listens to the roots. The ancestors and nature spirits themselves are the living guides for the rootworker, not a static list of properties. If the correspondence list is truly traditional hoodoo, then it’s also genuinely a form of ancestral wisdom that may be a useful reference. My point is not that rootworkers shouldn’t ever consult correspondence lists, but that these lists do not replace the crucial roles of ancestral and nature spirits.

Basic Tree Communication Tutorial

So, now that we’ve established why it’s critical for rootworkers to be communicating with the organic materials they work with, the question is how? Basic spirit work communication skills! This tutorial is focused on communicating specifically with trees, but can be adapted to working with any type of plant or nature spirit in general. The most important things to keep in mind while you’re interacting with them is a sense of deep respect and awareness of how you’re treating them. If you engage with a nature spirit in a very polite and thoughtful way, you’ll usually get a much more positive response and openness to share and communicate.

The following is a suggested approach for those new to spirit work:

When approaching a tree, try to look at it and tune into its energy. Does it have a nurturing vibe? Angry? Quiet? Welcoming? Interested? Tired? Timid? Young and youthful? Old and wise? Try to see if you can feel out a little bit of this tree and whether it wants to speak with you.

If you get okay vibes, then ask mentally or aloud, “May I speak with you?” You should get an intuitive sense of yes/no usually clearly right away. If it’s anything less than a clear yes, then don’t approach any further and respectfully try another tree.

If you get a “yes,” you may put your hand on the trunk, then continue the conversation. Sometimes there are pauses filled with silence. Sometimes the spirit’s answers are feelings, not words. I usually get a sense of the tree’s personality the more I talk to them, and the more I talk to surrounding trees - other conversations with other trees will come up sometimes. The trees nearer each other are very aware of each other.

Make sure you don’t start asking anything from these spirits until you’ve established a good relationship first - or unless you are able to provide something equally valuable to the spirit in return. I once asked a tree spirit to help me with a spell, and she agreed but asked that I provide her some positive energy later. You can still give offerings from afar - it all really depends on what the spirit would like. Typically, I’ll bring some fresh water with me in case a tree asks for an offering of water after chatting. Don’t ever assume what they do or don’t want with regards to anything. Just ask and you’ll find out!

Learning the Correspondences

Once you’ve initiated contact and communication with a nature spirit - whether a tree, plant, flower, herb, some roots, bark, moss, etc. - you can then figure out what that specific part of nature and its ashe may help you. Some various ways to ascertain this information…

Politely ask the spirit what sort of ashe/energy they have

Notice the spirit’s personality

Sense the spirit’s ashe and its qualities

Observe the shape and colors of the physical object

Ask one of your ancestors

Remember that working with all the organic materials involves working with their ashe and their spirits as partners in your magical pursuits. Rather than forcing the spirit to tell you what you want to know, be creative in using different means to find out and work with the spirits not against them.

I hope yall found this post helpful! Others may have a different style of practicing hoodoo so it’s meant to be informative but not at all dismissive of other types of hoodoo. This post is intended for black and Afro-Latinx rootworkers to use, and for anyone else to read if curious or reblog for visibility/ally support <3

[jamisonstarr]

Basic Herbalism Correspondence

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), herbalism is the use of crude plant material such as leaves, flowers, fruit, seed, stems, wood, bark, roots, rhizomes or other plant parts, which may be entire, fragmented or powdered. The term herbalism refers to the long historical use of these medicines to support the healing function of the body. Because of the long tradition of using botanicals to promote health, the use of herbs is well established and widely acknowledged to be safe and effective. Ultimately everything has energy, and that energy has its own properties. Many plants, herbs and trees have inherent magical abilities and powers to heal.  They offer their powers and benefits to the knowledgeable Witch. The world of Herbalism is vast to say the least, and mastering this skill takes a lot of time and research. Below is a master post of some of the more common plants and herbs along with their corresponding properties.

NOTE: I do not encourage anyone to replace modern medicine with herbalism. If you are truly sick, and need to go to the doctor, GO TO THE DOCTOR. Also, be sure to do your research and educate yourself on the possible dangers of some plants. Some are very toxic, some may cause allergic reactions (I learned that the hard way with eucalyptus).  I highly recommend investing in some reading material to have as a reference. My personal choice being “Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs” by Scott Cunningham.

Acacia: Protection, Psychic Powers, Money and Love Spells

Adam & Eve Roots : Love, Happiness

Adders Tongue : Healing

African Violet : Spirituality, Protection

Agaric : Fertility

Agrimony : Protection, Sleep

Ague Root : Protection

Alfalfa : Prosperity, Anti-Hunger, Money

Alkanet : Purification, Prosperity

Allspice : Money, Luck, Healing

Almond : Money, Prosperity, Wisdom

Aloe : Protection, Luck

Aloes, Wood : Love, Spirituality

Althea : Protection, Psychic Powers

Alyssum : Protection, Moderating Anger

Amaranth : Healing Heartbreak, Protection, Invisibility,

Anemone : Health, Protection, Healing

Angelica : Exorcism, Protection, Healing, Visions

Anise : Protection, Purification, Youth

Apple : Love, Healing, Garden Magic, Immortality

Apricot : Love

Arabic Gum : Spirituality, Purify Negativity and Evil

Arbutus : Exorcism, Protection

Asafoetida : Exorcism, Purification, Protection

Ash : Protection, Prosperity, Sea Rituals, Health

Aspen : Eloquence, Anti-Theft

Aster : Love

Avens : Exorcism, Purification, Love

Avocado : Love, Lust, Beauty

Bachelor’s Buttons : Love

Balm, Lemon : Love, Success, Healing

Balm of Gilead : Love, Manifestations, Protection, Healing

Bamboo : Protection, Luck, Hex-Breaking, Wishes

Banana : Fertility, Potency, Prosperity

Banyan : Luck. Happiness

Barley : Love, Healing, Protection

Basil : Love, Exorcism, Wealth, Flying, Protection

Bay : Protection, Psychic Powers, Healing, Purification, Strength

Bean : Protection, Exorcism, Wart Charming,

Reconciliation, Potency, Love

Bedstraw, Fragrant : Love

Beech : Wishes

Beet : love

Belladonna : Astral Projection, Visions **TOXIC**

Benzoin : Purification, Prosperity

Bergamot, Orange : Money, Success

Be-Still : Luck

Betony, Wood : Protection, Purification, Love

Birch : Protection, Exorcism, Purification and Cleansing

Bistort : Psychic Powers, Fertility

Bittersweet : Protection, Healing

Blackberry : Healing, Money, Protection

Bladderwrack : Protection, Sea Spells, Wind Spells,

Money, Psychic Powers

Bleeding Heart : Love

Bloodroot : Love, Protection, Purification

Bluebell : Luck, Truth

Blueberry : Protection

Blue Flag : Money

Bodhi : Fertility, Protection, Wisdom, Meditation

Boneset : Protection, Exorcism

Borage : Courage, Psychic Powers

BrackenBrazil NutBriony : Image Magic, Money, Protection

Bromeliad : Protection, Money

Broom : Purification, Protection, Wind Spells, Divination

Buchu : Psychic Powers, Prophetic Dreams

Buckthorn : Protection, Exorcism, Wishes, Legal Matters

Cabbage : Luck

Cactus : Protection, Chastity

Calamus : Luck, Healing, Money, Protection

Camellia -Riches

Camphor : Chastity, Health, Divination

Caper : Potency, Lust, Luck

Carawy : Protection, Lust, Health, Anti-Theft, Mental Powers

Cardamon : Lust, Love

Carnation : Protection, Strength, Healing

Carob : Protection, Health

Carrot : Fertility, Lust

Cascara Sagrada : Legal Matters, Money, Protection,

Cashew : Money

Castor : Protection

Catnip : Cat Magic, Love, Beauty, Happiness

Cat Tail : Lust

Cedar : Healing, Purification, Money, Protection

Celandine : Protection, Escape, Happiness, Legal Matters

Celery : Mental Powers, Lust, Psychic Powers

Centaury : Snake Removing

Chamomile : Money, Sleep, Love, Purification

Cherry : Love, Divination

Chestnut : Love

Chickweed : Fertility, Love

Chicory : Removing Obstacles, Invisibility, favors, Frigidity

Chili pepper : Fidelity, Hex Breaking, Love

China Berry : Luck, Change

Chrysanthemum : Protection

Cinchona : Luck, Protection

Cinnamon : Spirituality, Success, Healing, Power,

Psychic Powers, Lust, Protection, Love

Cinquefoil : Money, Protection, Prophetic Dreams, Sleep

Cloth of Gold : Understand Animal Languages

Clove : Protection, Exorcism, Love, Money

Daffodil : Love, Fertility, Luck

Daisy : Lust, Luck

Damiana : Lust, Love, Visions

Dandelion : Divination, Wishes, Calling Spirits

Datura : Hex Breaking, Sleep, Protection

Deerstongue : Lust, Psychic Powers

Devils Bit : Exorcism, Love, Protection, Lust

Devils Shoestring : Protection, Gambling, Luck, Power, Employment

Dill : Protection, Money, Lust, Luck

Dittany of Crete : Manifestations, Astral Projection

Dock : Healing, Fertility, Money

Dodder : Love, Divination, Knot Magic

Dogbane : Love

Dogwood : Wishes, Protection

Dragons Blood : Love, Protection, Exorcism, Potency

Dulse : Lust, Harmony

Dutchmans Breeches : Love

Ebony : Protection, Power

Echinacea : Strengthening Spells

Edelweiss : Invisibility, Bullet-Proofing

Elder : Exorcism, Protection, Healing, Prosperity, Sleep

Elecampane : Love, Protection, Psychic Powers

Elm : Love

Endive : Lust, Love

Eryngo : Travelers Luck, Peace, Lust, Love

Eucalyptus : Healing, Protection

Euphorbia : Purification, Protection

Eyebright : Mental Powers, Psychic Power

Fennel : Protection, Healing, Purification

Fenugreek : Money

Fern : Rain Making, Protection, Luck, Riches,

Eternal Youth, Health, Exorcism

Feverfew : Protection

Fig : Divination, Fertility, Love

Figwort : Health, Protection

Flax : Money, Protection, Beauty, Psychic Powers, Healing

Fleabane : Exorcism, Protection, Chastity

Foxglove : Protection

Frankincense : Protection, Exorcism, Spirituality

Fumitory : Money, Exorcism

Fuzzy Weed : Love, Hunting

Galangal : Protection, Lust, Health, Money,

Psychic Powers, Hex-Breaking

Gardenia : Love, Peace, Healing, Spirituality

Garlic : Protection, Healing, Exorcism, Lust, Anti-Theft

Gentian : Love, Power

Geranium : Fertility, Health, Love, Protection

Ginger : Love, Money, Success, Power

Ginseng : Love, Wishes, Healing, Beauty, Protection, Lust

Goats Rue : Healing, Health

Goldenrod : Money, Divination

Golden Seal : Healing, Money

Gorse : Protection, Money

Gotu Kola : Meditation

Gourd : Protection

Grain : Protection

Grains of Paradise : Lust, Luck, Love, Money, Wishes

Grape : Fertility, Garden Magic, Mental Powers, Money

Grass : Psychic Powers, Protection

Ground Ivy : Divination

Groundsel : Health, Healing

Hawthorn : Fertility, Chastity, Fishing Magic, Happiness

Hazel : Luck, Fertility, Anti-Lightning, Protection, Wishes

Heather : Protection, Rain Making, Luck

Heliotrope : Exorcism, Prophetic Dreams, Healing,

Wealth, Invisibility

Hellebore, Black : Protection ****TOXIC***

Hemlock : Destroy Sexual Drive ***TOXIC***

Hemp : Healing, Love, Vision, Meditation

Henbane : Love Attraction ***TOXIC***

Henna : Healing

Hibiscus : Lust, Love, Divination

Hickory : Legal Matters

High John the Conqueror : Money, Love, Success, Happiness

Holly : Protection, Anti-Lightning, Luck, Dream Magic, Balance

Honesty : Money, Repelling Monsters

Honeysuckle : Money, Psychic Powers, Protection

Hops : Healing, Sleep

Horehound : Protection, Mental Powers, Exorcism,

Horse Chestnut : Money, Healing

Horseradish : Purification, Exorcism

Horsetail : Snake Charming, Fertility

Houndstongue : Tying Dog’s Tongues

Houseleek : Luck, Protection, Love

Huckleberry : Luck, Protection, Dream Magic, Hex Breaking

Hyacinth : Love, Protection, Happiness

Hydrangea : Hex Breaking

Hyssop : Purification, Protection

Indian Paint Brush : Love

Iris : Purification, Wisdom

Irish Moss : Money, Luck, Protection

Ivy : Protection, Healing

Jasmine : Love, Money, Prophetic Dreams

Jobs Tears : Healing, Wishes, Luck

Joe-Pye Weed : Love, Respect

Juniper : Protection, Anti-Theft, Love, Exorcism, Health

Kava-Kave : Visions, Protection, Luck

Knotweed : Binding, Health

Lady’s mantle : Love

Lady’s slipper : Protection

Larch : Protection, Anti-Theft

Larkspur : Health, Protection

Lavender : Love, Protection, Sleep, Chastity,

Longevity, Purification, Happiness, Peace

Leek : Love, Protection, Exorcism

Lemon : Longevity, Purification, Love, Friendship

Lemongrass : Repel snakes, Lust, Psychic Powers

Lemon Verbena : Purification, Love

Lettuce : Chastity, Protection, Love, Divination, Sleep

Licorice : Love, Lust, Fidelity

Life Everlasting : Longevity, Health, Healing

Lilac : Exorcism, Protection, Beauty

Lily : Protection, Breaking Love spells

Lily of the Valley : Mental Powers, Happiness

Lime : Healing, Love, Protection

Linden : Protection, Immortality, Luck, Love, Sleep

Liquidamber : Protection

Liverwort : Protection

Liverwort : Love

Looestrife : Peace, Protection

Lotus : Protection, Lock-Opening

Lovage : Love

Love Seed : Love, Friendship

Lucky Hand : Employment, Luck, Protection, Money, Travel

Mace : Psychic Powers, Mental Powers

Maguey : Lust

Magnolia : Fidelity

Mahogany, Mountain : Anti-Lightning

Maidenhair : Beauty, Love

Male Fern : Luck, Love

Mallow : Love, Protection, Exorcism

Mandrake : Protection, Love, Money, Fertility, Health

Maple : Love, Longevity, Money

Marigold : Protection, Prophetic Dreams,

Business and Legal Matters, Psychic Powers

Marjoram : Protection, Love, Happiness, Health, Money, Healing

Master Wort : Strength, Courage, Protection

Mastic : Psychic Powers, Manifestations, Lust

May Apple : Money

Meadow Rue : Divination

Meadowsweet : Love, Divination, Peace, Happiness

Mesquite : Healing

Mimosa : Protection, Love, Prophetic Dreams, Purification

Mint : Money, Love, Luck, Healing, Exorcism, Travel, Protection

Mistletoe : Protection, Love, Hunting, Fertility, Health, Exorcism

Molukka : Protection

Moonwort : Money, Love

Moss : Luck, Money

Mugwort : Strength, Psychic Powers, Protection,

Prophetic Dreams, Healing, Astral Projection

Mulberry : Protection, Strength

Mullein : Courage, Protection, Health, Love, Divination, Exorcism

Mustard : Fertility, Protection, Mental Powers

Myrrh : Protection, Exorcism, Healing, Spirituality

Myrtle : Love, Fertility, Youth, Peace, Money

Nettle : Exorcism, Protection, Healing, Lust

Norfolk Island Pine : Protection, anti hunger

Nuts : Fertility, Prosperity, Love, Luck

Oak : Protection, Health, Money, Healing, Potency, Fertility, Luck

Oats : Money

Olive : Healing, Peace, Fertility, Potency, Protection, Lust

Onion : Protection, Exorcism, Healing, Money,

Prophetic Dreams, Lust

Orange : Love, Divination, Luck, Money

Orchid : Love

Oregon Grape : Money, Prosperity

Orris Root : Love, Protection, Divination

Palm, Date : Fertility, Potency

Pansy : Love, Rain Magic, Love, Divination

Papaya : Love, Protection

Papyrus : Protection

Parosela : Hunting

Parsley : Love, Protection, Purification

Passion Flower : Peace, Sleep, Friendship

Patchouly : Money, Fertility, Lust

Pea : Money, Love

Peach : Love, Exorcism, Longevity, Fertility, Wishes

Pear : Lust, Love

Pecan : Money, Employment

Pennyroyal : Strength, Protection, Peace

Peony : Protection, Exorcism

Pepper : Protection, Exorcism

Peppermint : Purification, Sleep, Love, Healing, Psychic Powers

Pepper Tree : Purification, Healing, Protection

Periwinkle : Love, Lust, Mental Powers, Money, Protection

Persimmon : Changing Sex, Healing, Luck

Plot Weed : Protection

Pimento : Love

Pimpernel : Protection, Health

Pine : Healing, Fertility, Protection, Exorcism, Money

Pineapple : Luck, Money, Chastity

Pipsissewa : Money, Spirit Calling

Quassia : Love

Quince : Protection, Love, Happiness

Radish : Protection, Lust

Ragweed : Courage

Ragwort : Protection

Raspberry : Protection, Love

Rattlesnake Root : Protection, Money

Rhubarb : Protection, Fidelity

Rice : Protection, Rain, Fertility, Money

Roots : Protection, Power, Divination

Rose : Love, Psychic Powers, Healing, Love, Divination, Luck, Protection

Rosemary : Protection, Love, Lust, Mental Powers,

Exorcism, Purification, Healing, Sleep, Youth

Rowan : Psychic Powers, Healing, Protection, Power, Success

Rue : Healing, Health, Mental Powers, Exorcism, Love

Rye : Love, Fidelity

Saffron : Love, Healing, Happiness, Wind Raising,

Lust, Strength, Psychic Powers.

Sage : Immortality, Longevity, Wisdom, Protection, Wishes

Sagebrush : Purification, Exorcism

St.Johns Wort : Health, Power, Protection, Strength,

Love, Divination, Happiness

Sandalwood : Protection, Healing, Exorcism, Spirituality

Sarsaparilla : Love, Money

Sassafras : Health, Money

Savory, Summer : Mental Powers

Scullcap : Love, Fidelity, Peace

Senna : Love

Sesame : Money. Lust

Shallot : Purification

Skunk Cabbage : Legal Matters

Slippery Elm : Halts Gossip

Sloe : Exorcism, Protection

Snakeroot : Luck Money

Snakeroot/black : Love, Lust, Money

Snapdragon : Protection

Solomons Seal : Protection, Exorcism

Sorrel Wood : Healing, Health

Southern Wood : Love, Lust, Protection

Spanish Moss : Protection

Spearmint : Healing, Love, Mental Powers

SpiderWort : Love

Spikenard : Love

Squill : Money, Protection, Hex Breaking

Star, Anise : Psychic Powers, Luck

Stillengia : Psychic Powers

Straw : Luck, Image Magic

Strawberry : Love, Luck

Sugar Cane : Love, Lust

Sumbul : Love, Luck, Health, Psychic Powers

Sunflower : Fertility, Wishes, Health, Wisdom

Sweetgrass : Calling Spirits

Tamarind : Love

Tamarisk : Exorcism, Protection

Tansy : Health, Longevity

Tea : Riches, Courage, Strength

Thistle : Strength, Protection, Hex Breaking, Healing

Thistle, Holy : Purification, Hex Breaking

Thistle, Milk : Snake Enraging

Thyme : Health, Healing, Sleep, Psychic Powers,

Love, Purification, Courage

Toadflax : Protection, Hex Breaking

Toadstool : Rain Making

Tobacco : Healing, Purification

Turmeric : Purification

Turnip : Protection, Ending Relationships

Urva Ursa : Psychic Workings

Valerian : Love, Sleep, Purification, Protection

Vanilla : Love, Lust, Mental Powers

Venus Flytrap : Protection, Love

Vervain : Love, Protection, Purification, Peace,

Money, Youth, Chastity, Sleep, Healing

Vetch, Giant : Fidelity

Vetivert : Love, Hex Breaking, Luck, Money, Anti-Theft

Violet : Protection, Luck, Love, Lust, Wishes, Peace, Healing

Wahoo : Hex-breaking, Courage, Success

Walnut : Health, Mental Powers, Infertility, Wishes

Wax Plant : Protection

Wheat : Fertility, Money

Willow : Love, Divination, Protection, Healing

Wintergreen : Protection, Healing, Hex Breaking

Winters Bark : Success

Witch Grass : Happiness, Lust, love, Exorcism

Witch Hazel : Protection, Chastity

Wolfs Bane : Protection, Invisibility

Wood Rose : Luck

Woodruff : Victory, Protection, Money

Wormwood : Psychic Powers, Protection, Love, Calling Spirits

Yarrow : Courage, Love, Psychic Powers, Exorcism

Yellow Evening Primrose : Hunting

Yerba Mate : Fidelity, Love, Lust

Yerba Santa : Beauty, Healing, Psychic Powers, Protection

Yew : Raising the Dead

Yohimbe : Love, Lust

Yucca : Transmutation, Protection, Purification

[jamisonstarr]

I’m in a sharing mood. Start fresh….

[jamisonstarr]

Meditation clears the unconscious

Each of us experiences two states of mind in our day to day life - one with thoughts, another without thoughts. For example, we know we have thoughts when we are awake. But in deep sleep, do we have thoughts? No. So there are two states of mind: with thoughts and without thoughts. What we don’t know is, our being also experiences two states. In one state, we have a clear identity of ‘I’. When we are awake, all of us clearly experience ourselves as ‘I’, we carry a clear identity about ourselves. In the waking state we remember our identity - I am this, I am that. When we are awake, our ‘I’ consciousness will be like an undercurrent – alive all the time.   But in deep sleep, we don’t experience the ‘I’ consciousness, am I right? When we are in deep sleep, we don’t have the feeling of ‘I’. In deep sleep, we don’t remember our identity. With meditation, you can create an increasing influence and awareness over both your thinking state and the unconscious state. Instead of the dream state, the blissful state will start penetrating the waking and deep sleep states! The more we meditate, the more we raise our consciousness of the fourth state. Turiya itself only means ‘fourth’, because you cannot give an exact name to this state. You can call it by any of these names: samadhi, enlightenment, nirvana… When this state starts penetrating and overlapping the waking and deep sleep states, we will see good health happening in the body, mind and being. A simple understanding of the four states of consciousness can initiate a psychological revolution in you. It is your master key! By applying this understanding every moment of your life, you will see that in every decision, your thought process flows towards meditation and clarity, and every decision is influenced in the right way! You experience a powerful cognitive shift in the way you receive information, process it and act on it in the best possible way. The whole purpose of meditation is to more and more of the blissful state into our waking state and deep sleep state. Bringing yourself completely out of the waking, dream and deep sleep states for a while, is what I call meditation. If your waking and deep sleep states are constantly illumined by the fourth state, that is jeevan mukti - living enlightenment!

- Swami Nithyananda