Eight weeks ago I set out on a self imposed challenge to write 8 weekly newsletters and here we are. It has been so nice to stick to something and to have an outlet for creativity. I don’t know what the future of the Healing Arts Press looks like, but for now I am going to keep it up while the momentum is high. Thank you for being along for the ride! I never really know what herb I am going to write about each week until inspiration hits. Last week’s letter included a song from a 1970s movie set in India, and I guess that stirred something up in me and in my heart I found this week’s herb, Tulsi. A couple of months ago Louis and I went over to Pender island to visit our friends (who are, in fact, living the dream) and we both left with a gift of a sweet little tulsi plant. And what do you know, when I checked in on my small herb garden at my parent’s house on the weekend I saw that my tulsi plant was flowering, despite being nearly overtaken by the catnip.
What’s in a name? I don’t know, but tulsi has a lot of them. Even I oscillate between the names tulsi and holy basil. The latin name is Ocimum tenuiflorum or sometimes Ocimum sanctum. She is referred to as the Queen of Herbs, and is one of the most sacred plants in India, where it originates. Lately I have been so into plants and lore from my own heritage (i.e. Celtic, Germanic, Norse) as a way to connect to my roots, but there is so much to learn from the vast herbal knowledge of all cultures, far and wide, and India is no exception.
I think I’ve always been drawn to India to some degree. As a pre-teen I got into yoga, which at the time was certainly not the norm (at least not in my hometown of Vernon lol), and loved learning the Sanskrit names for the poses and chanting “Sat Nam”. From there I went on to have a pretty big Ravi Shankar phase, and to round out my Indian interests, started getting into Ayurveda. As fate would have it, I found myself celebrating my 19th birthday in India, on the beaches of Goa no less. I had been backpacking by myself for a few months from Europe to Asia and decided to head into India with some new found friends I met in Nepal. It was all sort of a happy accident. Completely unplanned, but completely wonderful. India is a work of art for the senses. I only spent a month there but have always intended to go back to immerse myself deeper in the culture, study herbalism through the lens of Ayurveda and to enrich my yoga practice. A number of years ago I did a yoga teacher training in Guatemala, and even though the culture was vastly different from that of India, the course itself was rooted in the traditions of yoga and I felt close to India once again (I was also reading Autobiography of a Yogi at the time, which helped transport me). During my training, we had dedicated evenings for bhakti yoga, or kirtan, which I felt a bit weird about in the beginning. Who am I to sing and chant to these Hindu deities I know nothing about? But that feeling quickly faded as I began to realize and to feel the power of a devotional practice. The collective energy and pure universal love that radiates from a group of people in joyful song and mantra is maybe the truest form of magic I have ever felt. Om Namah Shivaya, baby.
Okay, back to our sweet friend tulsi. The usage of this plant dates back thousands of years, where ancient texts called the plant “incomparable one”. In Hindu mythology tulsi is believed to be the incarnation of Lakshmi, the goddess of good fortune and prosperity and wife of Vishnu. It is common to find tulsi planted in homes throughout India as a way to bring a blessing into the space. It is also an essential offering for those worshipping Lord Vishnu. Tulsi has been regarded as a portal between heaven and earth, so it brings with it a feeling of divinity.
On the physical level, tulsi works as an adaptogen. This is a real buzz word that I have mixed feelings about. Herbs that are adaptogenic help our body to adapt to stress, which is great for when you’re weak, run down, and need support. What’s not great is when we use these herbs like Redbull to push ourselves beyond our limits. I’ll leave that rant for another time but, yes, tulsi acts on the nervous system by calming and nourishing the mind (and body). It is believed to be an “elixir of life” and it’s incredibly tasty, too. It’s herbaceous, spicy and sweet. I remember first getting into tulsi with the Organic India tea bags that you can find at any health food store. The tulsi rose was my flavour of choice. Still to this day whenever I am feeling lazy and just want to stick to a single herb tea I will almost always grab a handful of tulsi and throw it in the bodem for an easy and delicious sipper. It also makes for a yummy tincture, which isn’t always an easy feat!
Tulsi, a member of the lamiaceae or mint family, is a carminative. This means it aids in digestion and eases issues like gas and bloating and is warming to the body. It is also a vital stimulant, which essentially means it increases one’s life force, or zest for life. It does this by acting on the whole mind, body, and spirit to open us up and allow our true heart-centered selves to shine. In India, tulsi is used as a common household remedy for things like colds, fevers, and headaches. Tulsi is a mover of energy, so this could mean stuck emotions, or just general circulation. It pushes heat in our body out to the surface, so this is why it works well for fevers (it is a diaphoretic). The list for what tulsi can do is a long one, but one more thing I’d like to mention is its endocrine abilities. That’s right, it can help our hormones. Beloved anxiety melting tulsi can balance our cortisol levels as well as stabilize blood sugar levels for those with insulin resistance. This is an area of my health that I am currently dealing with so I’m going to be my own herbalist and get on a tulsi regime to help my blood sugar. I’ll report back with my findings!
I’ll leave you with this banger of a song. I think when I was a teenager I had it in my head that I’d end up dating a sitar player. I guess that message got a little lost in the manifestation translation, as I wound up with a guitar player, but you know, I’ll take what I can get ; )
If you made it all the way to the end of this I invite you to take one extra deep inhale, followed by one long exhale. Wishing you all a peaceful day.
In gratitude,
Anika
8 sweet and holy weeks!! <3