WORMWOOD
Wormwood (Artemisia Absinthium) is well known as an anti-parasitic herb, but it is also an ancient magical herb. According to some Herbalists, it is the Patron Herb of Herbalists. Medieval herbals praised wormwood as “the mother of herbs,” a tonic and a guard.
Wormwood is associated with the goddess Artemis. In some myths, the goddess Artemis bestows the herb upon the centaur, Chiron, healer of the gods, who uses it as one of his most important healing herbs.
In the late eighteenth century, Wormwood was first used to brew Absinthe, the legendary green liqueur. Distilled with anise, fennel, hyssop, and other herbs, Absinthe concentrated wormwood’s volatile thujone-rich oil, which creates mild disinhibition and heightened perception.
Wormwood is a strong bitter herb, respected for its power. It is said, the more bitter the herb, the more potent its spirit-cleansing power. Rituals involving wormwood were often guarded and were not meant for common use. Wormwood is considered a powerful herb for protection and banishing negative energies.
From Egypt to Greece to the Celtic north, wormwood was considered a boundary plant. Across multiple European traditions it was used in burial customs, threshold charms, and land-clearing rites. It was used to guard burial sites and cleanse the land to prevent spiritual contamination following war or plague.
When used as incense or hydrosol, Wormwood clears dense atmospheres, dissolving psychic residue much as it purges physical infestation. In Egypt it was used in ritual fumigations to drive out unseen forces of disease.
Wormwood is used to enhance prophecy, psychic abilities, divination and visions. When combined with Mugwort, Wormwood becomes especially potent in rituals related to clairvoyance.
It is associated with the Lovers card in the Tarot and was sometimes used in love infusions or was placed under the bed to draw a loved one. In the Balkans it was used in love-breaking rituals to sever toxic bonds.
As highly protective herb, Wormwood was traditionally carried to guard against bewitchment, accidents and harmful spirits. According to ancient traditions it is the antidote for hemlock and toadstool poisoning and the bite of sea serpents.
Wormwood is considered a purifier, and a herb that confronts corruption of the body and the soul. It can be used to remove anger, according to ‘The Master Book of Herbalism’ this herb is ‘for those who seek to vent their anger by peaceful, creative means.’
In Alchemy Wormwood was associated with the planet Saturn, the planet of endings, truth, and purification. Saturn herbs strip away illusion and excess and Wormwood was said to temper indulgence and bring clarity through confrontation with the unpleasant and the unacknowledged.
Wormwood is a potent enhancer of magical rituals amplifying the power of your intentions.
New Zealand grown and spray-free. Smudge sticks handcrafted by Teresa.
5" SMUDGE STICK $1510g LOOSE LEAF $5
20g LOOSE LEAF $10
30g LOOSE LEAF $15
