Rise Up

Humans and aromatic herbs have a long history together. All throughout the world, babies are born into the world amid the scent of fragrant herbs strewn about the birthing room. Couples come together in holy union within the haze of incense smoke. Elders die and are transported to the next life on a waft of incense and fragrant oils that anoint the body. Some believe that people utilized these fragrant plants and their resins and essential oils only to clean and sterilize the air, the body…But if we realize how closely scent is connected to memory, then we see that humans have been marking major transitions in their lives through the use of aromatics.

Aromatic herbs, specifically the essential oils extracted from those herbs, calm, relax, expand and stimulate our minds, bodies, and our spirits. They connect us to a time and place through a direct connection between our olfactory nerve and our brain. When we smell those scents again, they transport us right back to that same time and place.

The way these aromatics are used varies depending on the culture and the plants that are available. Some cultures burn the resins (copal, myrrh, pinyon), some burn the plant itself (sage leaves, palo santo bark), and some extract the volatile, essential oils from the plants and warm them in a carrier oil to scent the air or apply them to the body.

When selecting an anointing oil, the exact oil or oils used depends on personal preference as well as the quality of the oils selected. By quality, I mean the particular characteristics that make each essential oil unique. For some situations, a grounding oil is needed to relax and soothe a tense or anxious person. At other times, a more uplifting oil is called for to expand and open the mind, assisting our connection to Spirit.

The use of anointing oils (oils applied to the body) goes back millennia. For our modern day purposes, anointing oils can help us relax our minds as we deepen our meditation practice or try to get a good night’s sleep; they are the perfumes we use to create an aura of attraction around ourselves; they hold medicinal qualities we can use today to support our health and vitality. And as the practice of dying at home and holding home funerals expands, the use of anointing oils becomes relevant again as a way to assist the soul to its next home. As we anoint our loved ones during their transition, we are intricately involved in the process of death and dying – an important part of the grieving process that many of us miss these days – and intimately connected with every other human who has gone before us. Death is a part of life. Anointing oils can be an important part of the ritual of dying, and ultimately, of death. As loved ones gather to say their last goodbyes, the fragrant oils scent the air, connecting time and place to a bittersweet memory.

We’ve all experienced being triggered by a scent to recall something that happened so long ago. Historically, humans knew how to use this phenomenon to help the next generation

recall important happenings – events – of significance. Births, marriages, deaths, and everything in-between were celebrated with fragrant herbs, resins, and spices being either burned, applied to the body (anointed), eaten or served as a beverage. This timeless practice continues today in various ways all over the world. Adding an anointing oil to a daily regimen is a beautiful way to bring us right back to where we want to be – in the moment. At the same time, bringing anointing oils into our more sacred practices is a way to honor the past, ourselves, and our place in the web of life.