COSMOLOGICAL MEDICINE
"Vitalist Herbalism means using the whole plant: its chemistry, energetics, and spirit.
It means healing the whole person: physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
It means our approach to herbalism encompasses the wholeness of
nature, the earth, and cosmos."
- Sajah Popham
The Vitalistic philosophy of Western Alchemical Herbalism perceives the body in correspondence with Nature and all cosmic Life. This is the foundational approach to the most complete and effective healing systems of the world, including the Celestial Medicine of ancient Egypt and Greek Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, Unani Tibb, Physiomedicalism, Homeopathy and many indigenous healing traditions.The Vitalist practitioner acknowledges that everything in Life is interconnected and that the body mirrors Nature. We each inhabit a magnificent ecosystem of flesh, blood and bone - a microcosm that reflects the earthly elements as well as our celestial landscape.The art of Alchemy is expressed through the reflection and mimicry of the macrocosm within the microcosm, demonstrating the energetic architecture of Nature via The Seven Planets, the Five Elements, and the Three Philosophical Principles.
Our organs can speak, our cells hold memory, we are mostly made of water, and water is Life. The body is a sophisticated symphony. Symptoms of dis-ease are not an error of Nature, but a physical expression in attempt to restore balance. Simply an instrument out of tune.It is through the eyes of Nature that we comprehend the language of plants via their unique patterning, energetic signatures and archetypal expressions. And it is through the recognition of these patterns that we then understand how to strategically align plants with people for their attunement and well being. I truly believe that for every ailment, there is a plant who holds the cure. Your inhale is literally the exhale of the flora and visa-versa. We are symbiotically connected in deep intimacy.Vitalist Herbalism encompasses a truly holistic approach in order to understand the patterns in a person. This means taking into account everything from one's celestial and elemental blueprint of the 5 bodies (astro-herbalism), to knowing their life experiences, major events, trauma, illnesses, phobias, dietary habits, allergies, addictions, social dynamics, family relations, and more. We see the body as an ecosystem, a network of interconnected parts that are not only in delicate relationship with one another, but with the external environment of Nature and the cosmos. As within, so without.The ancient technology of Alchemical herbalism reunites spirit with science, embodying the elements of the earth and celestial relationships between plants and planets to make potent, transformational medicine.
