Water is a conduit for healing. And water has memory. The waters of our body hold deeply stored emotions, and when we let them flow, we can have a healthy relationship to these emotions.
One way to get in tune with this flow is to spend time with water. Study a waterfall. Listen to the dripping of a melting icicle. Imagine being a piece of driftwood or a fallen leaf floating down a river. Get in the water!
Baths are one of my favorite restorative rituals. I start with an herbal infusion. Rosemary is a favorite! This herb is fantastic for the skin and hair, but what’s more – Rosemary is restorative. Rosemary stimulates circulation, bringing mental clarity and awakening our hearts. Like water, Rosemary helps us remember.
After I make an infusion (steep the herbs for about 20 minutes or more), I like to draw a bath as hot as I can stand. Strain said infusion into the water. Turn off all the lights. Get in the tub. Completely submerge myself in the water. And then I tone - loudly - allowing the vibration of my voice to course through the water and penetrate my cells. It is an herbal-water-sound bath. It is one of the most powerful practices I know.
Out of the darkness I allow images, messages, and sensations to arise. It’s another way of dreaming. And btw, Rosemary is also a great dream herb.
I haven’t been practicing this bath ritual much since the pandemic has kept everyone at home and I’ve had little privacy.
So instead I’ve been spending time with the ocean, swimming in the icy cold salt water. And even though Rosemary isn’t in the sea, her name means “dew of the sea.” Rosemary originally hails from the Mediterranean and is linked to Aphrodite, love goddess born from the sea. And I would say Rosemary would be connected to other ocean goddesses, too, as all oceans are one.
Mama Ocean, Goddesses of the sea, and Rosemary - they all stimulate feelings of love and of clarity - reminding us that We Are Love.
In the following short video, I share how to make a Rosemary infusion for the bath. I highly recommend it!
If you liked this video and would like to experience a deeper connection to the plant realm, you’ll love INFUSE. Doors are open for the spring season. We begin March 3 with Cleavers (Galium aparine)! Learn more and register.