The fire at the root of our being is the source of our vitality. How can we help that fire blaze stronger and brighter? We will talk about strengthening herbs like Ashwagandha, Shatavari, and Rehmannia; gently stimulating herbs like Eleuthero and American Ginseng; and herbs like Red Sage and Damiana that help the mitochondria, the metabolic engines of our cells, operate more efficiently. Allies like these can help us build and maintain stamina for the work that needs to be done.
The Cailleach is as old as the hills of Ireland. Cold, dark, mysterious, and often terrifying, she is a keeper of memory, bringer of winter, woman of stone, and initiator of kings. Who dares to meet the Cailleach's gaze? Who dares to accept her kiss? Join Seán for a discussion of this ancient woman of power.
Trees root in dark soil, drawing ancient waters up from deep below. Their branches reach into the sky, drawing down rain and lightning, growing toward the stars. In the last class of the Samhain Season, will we explore the role of trees as bridges between worlds. We will also spend time with four trees commonly connected with the Otherworld in Irish tradition: Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Oak, and Yew.
The dark nights of November and December have long been a time for tales told by the fireside – and for speaking of uncanny and Otherworldly things. Join Seán each Thursday night between Samhain and the Winter Solstice as he explores lore best spoken of in the dark time of the year.
The Tuath Dé, the "Tribe of the Gods," the Shining Ones, were a mysterious people who "returned to Ireland on the black north wind." Their magic, their power, their beauty were unrivaled. Then, with the onslaught of civilization, the coming of the Gaels across the waters from Spain, they left this world for the Otherworld – becoming the Daoine Sidhe, the "People of the Mound," the Faerie people. Join Seán for an exploration of the nature of these mysterious ancestors.
As we enter into the dark season of the year, we will explore the medicine and magic of Black Cohosh, Solomon's Seal, Reishi, and other medicines that can help us navigate dark places. We will also look at what myth can teach us about the gifts of darkness, and simple rituals that can help us connect with these gifts.
In ancient Ireland, the year began and ended in darkness, just as all things begin and end in darkness: our own lives, the life of our sun, the life of all the worlds. The festival of Samhain marked the beginning of the dark half of the year. The last fruit was on the Blackthorn, the Hawthorn, and the Rowan. What root crops remained in the ground and what grains remained in the field were a tithe to the Otherworld. So were the bones of Deer and Cattle thrown on the great fires atop the high hills. It was the time of the last harvest, and the time when the ancestors were close at hand. Join Seán for an ancient exploration of this festival and ways of marking it in the contemporary world.
All of us are descended from people who experienced the world as alive. Whether or not we know their names, their stories, or even where they lived, they are available for us to connect with. Seán will share his own experiences of connecting with ancient ancestors in his Irish lineage, and offer simple ways to reach out to your own animist ancestors.
For the ancient Irish, the fire in the head was the fire of vision and inspiration that poured forth as poetry and prophecy. Visionary medicines can help us kindle this fire. We will explore the role medicines like Yarrow, Mugwort, Cannabis, and Amanita muscaria can play in aiding divination. And we will speak of the etiquette, caution, and discernment necessary when dealing with the spirit realm.
Our consciousness did not arise alone. Consciousness is the fruiting body of a vast mycelial organism whose tendrils entwine with the roots of ancient trees and ephemeral wildflowers. Songs and poems are spores on the wind, carrying all we have known and felt and been to new soil where life might begin its wild fractal branching again. Psychedelic compounds that plants and fungi evolved to help grow those networks of consciousness can help us reweave ourselves back into connection with the living world.
The Otherworld -- the realm of the ancestors, the spirits, and the Faerie people, the Daoine Sidhe -- shapes this world and our experiences of it, whether or not we see or believe in its existence. As the ancient Irish festival of Samhain approaches, this world and the Otherworld draw closer to each other. And autumn rains bring forth Psilocybe mushrooms. Join me as I share my own experience of how the medicine of these mushrooms can help us understand and relate to the Faerie realm.
Breath is a thread that connects us with the world. The oxygen we breathe is a gift from our green relations – and many of them can also help us breathe when our lungs are compromised. We will explore herbs that open the airways, herbs that help to soothe and moisten the tissues of the respiratory tract, herbs that cool inflamed airways, herbs that help to clear excess mucus – and when and how to work with each.
