Plant Medicine, Poison, Spirit, and Operating From Love.
“The skin is not the end of yourself.”
I learned a few things about mystery and spirit in the last couple of weeks.
I took note of them, and now that I am writing I am having a much easier time integrating and absorbing all the information that has been coming into my brain.
I can tell that many of you are having the same experiences.
Maybe we had a little too much Ring-Of-Fire to drink a while back?
I was learning about the Tocobaga Indians.
It was not my plan.
Somehow, I stumbled upon the first video accidentally, and then I found the second video in my search for more information. I was going to post the first video, but I cannot find it now. It is what spurred my interest in the Tocobaga Indians.
The first video I saw was about a guy who had property in Miami Florida, supposedly the highest point of elevation in the area, or one of them; wherein there was a Tocobaga Indian burial ground.
There were stories of spirits there that were corroborated by people who had visited over several years; notably, a psychic who shared a message with the property owner from the “chief of the Tocobaga” who had spoken with her in spirit form while she was there visiting a cave on the property. (Yes, there was high enough elevation in a place in Miami for a step down into a small cave.)
The Psychic told the property owner the Chief’s question.
“Why did you remove the plants by the water?”
The Chief had explained to the psychic that the red berry plant the property owner had removed was one they used to communicate with their ancestors during ceremonies and rituals.
He was referring to the Yaupon Holly, and Yaupon Holly Tea or the “black drink.”
It’s made with the leaves of the plant.
Among other mystical or mysterious things claimed to have happened on the property, was the time a portal was opened in the front yard.
Supposedly, the property owner and his friends were sitting in a circle and holding hands while meditating there one day, and a soft wall of white began to swirl around them to the point that they could no longer see the street beyond it.
Here is an image of a Yaupon Holly cultivar (Ilex vomitoria 'Roundleaf')
“The leaves of the yaupon contain caffeine. The yaupon boasts the highest caffeine content of any plant native to North America. For centuries peoples indigenous to the Americas enjoyed yaupon holly tea daily, but it was also used ceremonially. One particular ritual involved consuming excessive amounts of tea to induce vomiting and diarrhea. The tea was brewed strongly and may have contained other plant material. Unfortunately for this delicious plant, the ritual was reported to interested botanists, and their first impression of the drink stuck. Thus, the alarming scientific name: Ilex vomitoria.
We hope this misnomer will not deter interested gardeners from making their own tea. According to a 2009 study by researchers from the University of Florida and Texan A&M, "yaupon is a viable caffeine alternative for North Americans living within its range on the southeastern coastal plain." (Palumbo, 2009). Yaupon holly tea is delicious, caffeinated, and anti-oxidant rich. Like tea and coffee, it is perfectly safe when brewed appropriately and consumed in moderation.” (1)
It’s growing in a lot across from my front door.
Maybe I should take a cutting.
1) Only native caffinated plant in the US
2) Not much tannin at all
3) Important to the name Osceola, which used to be Os-ce-o-lá, which means
“black drink singer”, (a reference to the youpan and the Tocobaga.)4) Roast the leaves / Unique flavor / More mild than Yerba Mate/ Relative of yerbe mate
5) Benefits:antioxidants polyphenols / theobromine, same chemical in chocolate
6) Not the jittery caffine effect that you can get from coffee / More mild caffine
7) No oxilates
8) No spraying needed, easy to grow; hard to kill.
So, accidentally finding some random video about Indians,
leads me to the plant across from my front door.
Interesting……
This is not like any Tocobaga Indian depiction I have seen, but it’s beautiful.
This is a more realistic depiction. This is called “A Morning Hunt”, and it’s by
Theodore Morris
Another thing that keeps coming up in my life these days is castor oil.
There was another lot of land leveled near me.
It always hurts me to watch it.
I am grateful for that now.
That connection to what is happening to trees hurts, but it is worth it.
I’d rather know the true value of a tree than take it for granted.
So, the lot that was cleared was heavily populated with quick-growing castor plants.
I ran and got 6 of them and planted them before I found out they were poisonous.
I was wondering if I had done it right and if they would survive, so after the fact I watched a video
On African Farming Narratives with Magmak. That’s her channel name on YouTube.
From there, I moved on to another video where she discussed the spiritual properties of the plant:
Then I watched a video about her reflections on deciding to be a farmer where she talked about her journey.
She said you have to actualize ideas by taking action.
You need to work with others to get it done.
Educate yourself on new topics.
Look at other people’s projects to see what kinds of things they are doing right and wrong.
However, too much looking and talking can only go on for so long.
You must work on your core endeavors.
You cannot keep deliberating HOW you will do it. You must throw yourself into it and DO it.
She was working with her husband in a country where she did not speak the language and she was having to depend on him for everything. He was trying to discourage her so she decided to move to a country where she speaks the language, Zimbabwe, and take the lead.
“An idea whose time has come cannot be stopped.”
“Until you put your ideas into motion you will not be able to see your goals come to life. So, I put my ideas into motion and here I am. Here I am.”
“Do something, start something, and see it grow.”
She also has a video that explains that the castor oil plant is one of the most poisonous plants in the world, and I just lined my front yard with it.
Sometimes that is what happens when you just TAKE YOUR IDEA AND GO! Haha.
The beans hold ricin which is a highly toxic poison.
Luckily, it is hard to get to them and then try to eat them. Also, the plant tends to be between 3 and 5 feet high before it starts making them, so that keeps them off the ground. I panicked at first, but after some more reading, I decided to keep them. If they are allowed to bloom and pop their seeds out, they will take over and there will be seeds everywhere, I imagine. If we move in the future, I will just ask the next homeowner if they want me to cut them down and remove them. I am not sure, but while they are in my care, I will look after them. It seems that animals know not to eat them, from what I have read.
It has been a week of learning about poisonous plant friends. Castor plants are all over the place out here where I live. Now that I am looking for them, I see them everywhere.
Magmak goes on to explain in one of her videos that there is a mythology with the plant that it holds power that protects the owner and the owner’s property from the neighbor’s negative energy, the village’s negative energy, and the negative energy associated with other entities.
Well, now I am not so sure it is a bad thing that I lined my front yard with them!
I only wanted them initially for their medicinal properties. The oil, from the beans, has many health benefits, and the leaves of the plant help with inflammation, “flu” and pain relief.
Now, I have guardians in my yard.
Another good thing is that even though they are in the front of my yard, no one can get them unless they walk through a ditch and up a hill well into my yard.
This morning I listened to wind chimes while I watered my trees and veggies.
I sent them love and talked to each one and told them what I would do for them. This one needs a little snack, that one needs some weeds pulled, and they all need some dried grass at their feet for winter. The coffee beans need to be picked. The tomatoes were sitting on the ground, so I lifted them and placed a rock under them atop which I placed a nest of purslane.
When the sun came up this morning, it was so beautiful. I was not expecting it, I was fully immersed in the half-light, watering all my friends.
I was deep in thought, having my conversation with them and listening to the chimes; watching the water, hearing it splash. Sending love through the water with my finger, creating a wide and gentle spray.
Then the sun came up and suddenly it hit me.
I am meditating.
I meditate all the time. I was not aware of it as a meditation, but now I see that it is. I have heard people say that you can live in a state of meditation.
To water the garden is an honor.
To stand among the plants is to hang around with the most peaceful and meditative friends you will ever have.
To feel the warm sky come alive; It is as though it were for you and you alone.
You feel the trees respond; the bird sounds change.
The flowers open.
It FEEEeeeeeeels good.
I had heard a guy on a podcast named Burch Driver, so I looked up his YouTube channel to hear more. Across some of his videos, I ran into these gems:
“There is no system that can help you to become aware. You have to just do it.”
“Every moment is a brand-new moment and every moment you die and then you are reborn again”
“When you can live and die in every moment, you know what it feels like to let go of everything and there is no becoming”
“The skin is not the end of yourself.”
“Your energetic body extends outward to infinity because waves just go out.”
“Once you declare you are on a side, you instantly create the opposite side. Then you create a rhythm”
He spoke along the lines of: we are walking temples/labs/art workshops…
“Willpower is a limitation. Relinquish your will. Stop being attached to some outcome. Reject the false polarity. Stop defending identity and sense of self or thinking there is anything to defend yourself from.”
“We require each other to live. Competition saps our power. Don’t take a polar position. Operate from a nonpolar position. Relinquish sense of self.”
“Operate from the fulcrum position of love because love is not polar. It is an artificial construct that a polarity has to exist between love and hate. It’s not true. Experience of the world is required to define hate. A baby does not hate. Love is nonpolar.”
“No need to defend the fulcrum position.”
PEACE
CITATIONS
What a fun post to read! I learned so much. I'm remembering that I found you through Ratio and was attracted to your noncommittal Sub/ Don't sub. So it's possible that you don't know Gavin Mounsey. But you need to! You are very like-minded. Here's his stack: https://gavinmounsey.substack.com/.
You likely already know Nefahotep but he and I were talking about Native American tribes this morning and particularly the Iroquois Confederacy. I was moving my bookshelves and found a bunch of books on them I'd wanted to dig into. He was hoping some posts might materialize from that. I'll alert him to yours if he's not already subbed. Thanks for this!
This is really cool and certainly no coincidence. Btw hi I’m also in Florida! Gulf coast 🫡🌴