Stop what you’re doing. Slow down. Grab a cup of tea, tune into your body— your senses and join us as we talk about tuning into the planets, chakras, our sensuality and more. In Episode 6 of What’s the Tea? Jesse Rose dives deep into different ways we can recognize the characteristics of the planets reflected in different plants. She also guides us through the planetary correspondences for each day of the week, along with different practices you can put into place to connect with the energy of the planets in your daily life. I touch on the importance of working with our sensuality through the senses and share some practices to work with our center of sensuality— the Sacral Chakra. The conversation flows into ideas for working with all of the chakras and how beneficial this can be individually but also collectively, for the Whole of our Earth.
As we open the episode I share a bit about a subtle yet powerful way of working with the senses. Before starting recording I had just finished setting up my tea nook. Having a space set aside specifically for my tea making helps remind me to slow down, be present and intentional with my cup of tea and really tune into my senses. I have my herbs set out, usually in glass jars, so I begin with the sense of sight to choose which herbs are calling to me. As I open the jars my sense of smell takes over as the aromatics of herbs fill the air. I put whatever herbs I have chosen into my mortar and pestle and grind them up, this is using touch and also hearing the grinding of the herbs. Lastly, I infuse my herbs into hot water and take a sip and taste the delicious medicine I intentionally prepared for myself.
Setting up and intentional space like this also works with the energies of the Sacral Chakra– decorating sparks our creativity and what we see and how we feel in this space invokes out sensuality, the Root chakra– creating sacred or intentional space helps us to ground, and the Heart Chakra– creating a sacred or intentional space is leads to living a heart-centered, ritualistic life.
Conscious Drinking
Another way to connect with the senses is through the simple practice of conscious drinking. It allows you to connect with what it is your are drinking (nourishing your body with), be present with it and fully accept what it has to offer you, rather than passively going through the motion. This is a great practice to do with tea but can also be done with water, juices, smoothies, elixirs, etc.
To do this practice begin by holding your drink in between both hands, wrapping your fingers around it. Tune into your senses. How does it feel in your hands? Take a deep breath. How does it smell? How does this make you feel? What memories/feelings/emotions/etc. arise? Now, take three deep breaths. After your last inhale, hold your breath, take a sip and swallow… exhale. How did the drink feel as it enter into your body? Where did you feel it within your body? Slowly continue to drink practices this with each sip. Conscious drinking allows you to enter into parasympathetic mode and allow for the nutrients and energy of your drink to nourish you on a deeper level.
“…slow, ritualistic, heart-centered living… really getting into those feelings, being in that moment, being present with what is there, and really accepting and receiving it instead of moving passively through it unconsciously.” – MK
MK’s Tea Blend:
This week I intuitively chose the following herbs for my tea:
- burdock – liver support (cleansing), oil hydration (Matthew Wood)
- Dandelion – liver support (cleansing), lymphatic movement, digestive support
- Ginger- digestive support
- Motherwort- digestive support, liver support
- Calendula- lymphatic support
- Nettles – nourishing
- Shatavari- moistening, affinity for the reproductive system, aphrodisiac, sensuality & sexuality (Sacral Chakra)
Jesse Rose’s Tea Blend:
Jesse Rose created the Cosmic Connection Herbal Tea Blend with 8 herbs representing the 7 inner planets of our solar system (with two for the sun). The intention behind this tea blend is to bring everyone to closer connection with cosmic energies. You can get the Cosmic Connection Tea Blend here.
- Chamomile- anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, calming, Sun
- Rosehips- Vit C, Venus, heart-opening
- SJW- Mercury, uplifting, support for depression
- Hawthorne- heart medicine, Mars
- Mullein- Saturn
- Mugwort- Moon, lucid dreaming
- Dandelion root- Jupiter
- Ginger- Sun
- Nettles
- Horsetail
Making Planetary Connections
Jesse Rose briefly touches in the corresponds of planets to different plants, such as St. John’s Wort supporting the mind through easing symptoms of depression and its correspondence with Mercury, which rules the mind. Herbs can have a connection to more than one planet. As a matter of fact, we can see patterns of all the planets in in a plant if we look closely enough, however some are more prevalent than others. Just like with the Doctrine of Signatures (Ep 5), this patterns and connections can be open to your individual interpretation. How do these patterns show up for you? How does it feel for you?
Planetary Characteristics & Days of the Week
Jesse Rose also talks about recognizing how the patterns of the planets unfold within each day and shares the following correspondences for the days of the week and different ways to work with the planetary energies:
- Moon- Mo(o)nday (Lunes in Spanish (lunar)), Yin yoga, going inward, Sacral Chakra, connecting with energy of the feminine, Yin energy
- Should we work on Monday’s?— It has been said that Monday’s should not be a work day. This makes sense to me with Monday being connected to the moon. This should be a day to move slow and not hop back into the hustle and bustle of the 9-5 work week… If you do work Monday’s, Jesse Rose recommends easing into your week slowly.
- Tuesday- Mars (Martes in Spanish), fire-y, a lot of movement, prepare for this day ahead of time, move your body (run, get your heart rate up, move stagnant energy and emotions), OR move toward stillness (if you are someone who is usually more fire-y i.e. Aries sun signs), Yang energy
- Wednesday- Mercury (Miercoles in Spanish), communication, Yin, rules the mind, learn something new, study
- Thursday- Jupiter, expansion, Yang
- Friday- Venus, beauty, love, connection, heart chakra, Yin
- Saturday- Saturn, Yang
- Sunday- Sun, Yang
Yin versus Yang
Yin energy has manifested as the feminine. Yin is slow moving, fluid, downward and inward, darkness, the Moon. Yang energy is manifested as the masculine. Yang is fast moving, upward and outward, the Sun.
“On Wednesdays I will find myself wanting to communicate more— connecting to the planet Mercury… I feel like I want to speak and my Mercury is in Sag… So on Wednesdays I am working with that Sag optimistic, fire-y, moving energy with the communication from Mercury… On Thursdays I teach yoga… it’s ruled by the planet Jupiter… I can really take about expansion. Its the theme of my classes that night… Really working with the planet through movement.” – Jesse Rose
“With the head energy… this is where my passion for my work came from… my Aries moon… with that comes overthinking, anxiety and that is what I based my business off of. Bringing that energy back down and grounding through the uses of herbs and more.” – MK
Sensuality & the Sacral Chakra
The Sacral Chakra is the second chakra located in the lower abdomen beneath the belly button, covering the reproductive system. It is associated with creativity, pleasure, sexuality, sensuality, our inner child, the Divine Feminine, the way we look at ourselves and more. Orange is the color linked to this chakra and the corresponding element is water. When it is overactive we may experience the feeling of drowning in our emotions, a roller coaster of feelings, escapism and avoidance. A blocked Sacral Chakra can lead to anxiety, low sex drive, detachment, lack of creativity and motivation and more. The Sacral Chakra is the center of creation. All of humanity is birthed from the Sacral Chakra.
It is also important to note that ee store energy in our womb space from past sexual partners in this energy center. Rose, teasel, yarrow are great herbs to work with for setting boundaries (in a loving way) and for protection from energy coming into and being stored in this energy center.
Sensuality and sexuality have become something that is looked down upon throughout history and in modern cultures today— what we need is the opposite of this… to really step into our sensual self in order to really know who we are, to gain a solid sense of self and express ourselves freely.
The following are ways to work with the Sacral Chakra:
Herbs–
Shatavari, Damiana, Rose, Calendula
Practices–
Being around water, working with the color orange, cooking for yourself (putting in the work to give yourself a nourishing meal means you are putting the energy into the universe that “I deserve to have this nourishing meal. I deserve for my body to be nourished.”
Cooking with orange foods–
Butternut squash, carrots, sweet potato, oranges, orange bell peppers
The Art of Seducing Yourself—
Treat yourself how you might treat a romantic partner intimately, setting up candles, shutting the lights off, take a bath, shadow dancing (turn off the lights, light some candles and watch your shadow on the wall as you dance)
Do something creative–
Just do it! Watercolor paint, draw, arts & crafts