Planetary Herbalism

Hold a piece of raw lead in your palm. Actually hold it — it’s heavier than you expect, cold, almost greasy against the skin. Now hold a gold coin. The weight is different, the temperature is different, the feeling is different. Ancient physicians and philosophers didn’t just notice this. They built an entire medical system … Read more

Hold a St. John’s Wort flower bud between your thumb and index finger and squeeze. Hard. Watch what happens to your skin. It stains — a deep, bruised red, almost purple, like you’ve bled without breaking. That pigment is hypericin, and it has been sitting inside the glandular dots of Hypericum perforatum, pressurized and waiting, … Read more