“Plant spirit medicine is the shaman’s way with plants. It recognizes that plants have spirit and that spirit is the strongest medicine. Spirit can heal the deepest reaches of the heart and soul.”

― Eliot Cowan

Herbalism and Vitalism

Herbal medicine is one of the oldest methods of healing on the planet with a history of over 100,000 years of continuous use. Every country has developed its own unique style of healing according to their particular indigenous plants, and several of these systems have developed into widely regarded medical philosophies. Traditional Chinese medicine has a recorded history of almost 5000 years and the Ayurvedic medicine of India is even older. 

The word "medicine" comes from the Sanskrit root word mā, meaning "measure" or "balance." Herbal medicine restore balance. They have specific, powerful compounds that function on many levels, causing physical or emotional responses in our body, mind, and spirit.  

The Vitalist philosophy considers that the body has an inherent intelligence. It focuses not only on physical and chemistry effects to the body but also emotional. It is the role of the herbalists to aid the body in back into equilibrium, to bring it into alignment and balance with its natural state. This is done through the application of four basic categories of assessment and treatment – hot, cold, wet and dry according to how far the body has veered from the center point of balance and fallen into one of these opposing extremes. Without the balance of these elements, one cannot be in equilibrium. 

Discover Your Wholeness

Nature is your cure, not because it fixes,  but because it teaches. Everything you need to heal can be found in the  wisdom of nature.