”The responsibility of knowledge is to share it’ Hollis Littlecreek, Ojibwe elder.

I am writing this as an opportunity to support the dynamic and diverse energies in each of the women in our lives. As women we encompass many different aspects of the goddess. Initially we are daughters and (perhaps) sisters as well. We are apprentice priestesses and maidens as young ladies and we carry these aspects with us even as we grow and learn and age. We may choose to marry and birth children becoming wives and mothers all the while the daughter aspect, the priestess, and the maiden still inform and present themselves in our lives. All women eventually realize that they are sisters to all other beings and a part of the beautiful matrix of life. In the indigenous Cherokee tradition, it is said that we become an adult at 52 years of age. It is a wholistic approach that it provides ways and means for an individual to live their whole life as a dynamic process of spirituality in action.

Some questions to ask of your heart: Where are the places you have lost or given away your power? What beliefs do you hold that deny your power? What helps you to re-connect to your divine self?

Like each woman, each flower holds a powerful, dynamic, and unique potential. The following flower essences may prove helpful in nourishing, healing, deepening, and expanding your connection to your essence:

Alpine Lily: Alpine Lily flower essence stimulates the integration of the feminine and female selves, promoting circulation between the higher and lower energy centers. The soul learns that its full energy and potential depends of the utilization of the bodily female as well as the spiritual feminine from this flower essence.

Positive qualities: For women, acceptance of one’s femininity grounded in a deepened experience of the female body.

Patterns of imbalance: Overly abstract sense of femininity; disembodied, alienation from or rejection of female organs as “lower”.

Doctrine of Signatures: Elegant, strong, and well defined. Throughout history, the Lily has often been connected with the sacred mother energy.

Chakra: corresponds with the second (water element; sensuality and emotions) and seventh chakra (connection to spirit, divine purpose, ancestors).

Alpine Lily flower essence helps the feminine soul experience a more vibrant relationship to the female body. While this remedy can sometimes be indicated for men who are addressing inner feminine aspects of themselves, it is primarily beneficial for women who harbor a psychological split in their relationship to the feminine principle. These women tend to favor that which is more cosmic and virginal, and find it difficult to identify with the earthly aspect of the feminine. They have many spiritual attributes and actively use higher feminine forces, but do not integrate this consciousness with the physical body. Negative impressions of the female body are often unconsciously absorbed from the mother or from the larger culture. Because the soul does not fully identify with or inhabit the female body, physical stress and disharmony can result in the reproductive organs, in the sexual function, or in the biological experience of pregnancy and nursing.

Pomegranate (the fruit of life)This fruit tree is native to Western Asia. The flowers are red, leathery and bisexual. Parts of the plant have been used to treat fevers, lymph challenges, leucorrhea, and throat problems.

Pomegranate has been a symbol of womanhood since earliest times in human history. In ancient Egypt its fruit was regarded as so precious, that they would not have buried a pharaoh without putting this fruit into his grave. Pomegranate was also the fruit that made the discovery of sexuality in the Garden of Eden possible. Reliable evidence can be found in mystic Christian as well as in ancient Muslim sources.

Positive qualities: Warm-hearted feminine creativity, actively productive and nurturing at home or in the world. This remedy is primarily for women. It can be used universally applied for nearly all emotional problems. Pomegranate is considered a ‘love potion’ for women, and if they are having challenges in accepting their femininity, Pomegranate helps them to overcome such insecurities. This essence creates a sense of nurturing or at the very least a recognition of a need for nurturing within the individuals.

Patterns of imbalance: Ambivalent or confused about the focus of feminine creativity, especially between values of career and home, creative and procreative, personal and global.

Doctrine of Signatures: The Pomegranate resembles the womb of a woman. The bright red is the color of the first chakra, the root chakra. The developing plant evolves from a flower and is birthed at the end of a long cycle. Within the fruit are many seeds of possibility.

Chakra: corresponds with the second chakra (water element; womb, creativity, birth, sensuality, sexuality, flow).

Pomegranate is a teacher of your inner wisdom, beauty, and power in even the darkest moments. Pomegranate stirs passion, creative awareness, and expression of feminine energy, nurturing and connecting with Nature. Pomegranate attracts positive, fruitful abundance in all aspects if one’s life. The individual who seeks to evolve through her feminine incarnation is given great possibility and choice in the modern era. Within the feminine soul are great are strong creative forces which may be used for biological mothering and family nurturing. But these same womb forces can also be used in the larger sphere of the “world mother.” Many women feel torn in their allegiance to traditional value of family and home, or service in the larger world. The source of many emotional challenges, insecurities, and attempts at over-compensation or false ‘bravado’ in the personality lies in the ‘lack of love’ experienced as a child.

Those who attempt to balance both possibilities may feel that their energies are drained and compromised, so that neither role provides full, creative satisfaction. This crisis in the feminine soul may come at a particular stage in the life cycle, such as mid-life or menopause. The psychological tension may be so profound that physical illness is created, especially in the sexual organs. Without conscious awareness of this struggle, the soul does not have the power to choose and act freely. In the end many women short-change their ability to fully realize their feminine creative forces because of the inner confusion and turmoil which they feel. Pomegranate promotes conscious alignment with the feminine creative Self, so that a woman can see more clearly her right destiny and choices. Pomegranate flower essence helps the soul to stay connected to the Mother-Spirit-of-Love in all that it gives to the world.

This remedy assists in assimilating vitamin E, iron, and zinc. Iron assimilation is particularly strengthened during menstruation, which gives a woman and more stamina. It opens and stimulates the sexual chakra, the nadis are invigorated. This flower essence naturally accentuates all aspects of a woman’s femininity. Meditation and creative visualization can (and should) be readily be used with this essence.

Hibiscus: a flower that grows from a hearty woody stem becoming ever more refined and ever more delicate. A variety of expressions through color and personality. A beautiful flower that thrives in natural settings and grows abundantly throughout the rainforests of South America.

Positive qualities: Warmth and responsiveness in female sexuality; integration of soul warmth and bodily passion. Passion for life, inspiration, and manifestation of love.

Patterns of imbalance: Inability to connect with one’s female sexuality or sensuality; lack of warmth and vitality, often due to prior exploitation or abuse.

Doctrine of Signatures: The Hibiscus grows out of the earth as a bush with strong stalks that become more and more refined as they head skyward. The flowers are lush and beautiful with a wide variety of powerful amazing colors. This flower naturally depicts the vibrant strong and sweet energy of a woman.

Chakra: corresponds with the first (one’s connection to their root; family or origin, feelings of being steady and grounded) and second chakra (sensualtiy, sexualtiy, creativity, emotional body, water element).

One of the most tragic assaults to the soul dignity of women is the exploitation and commercialization of female sexuality. This deeply wounds the souls of many women so that they no longer feel a warm connection to their sexuality. Often the sexuality is divorced from deeper feelings of love and warmth which come from the heart.

In many cases sexual expression becomes cold and unresponsive, because the Soul can no longer contact this part of the Self and infuse it with love and caring. Hibiscus flower essence helps women to reclaim their sexuality, and to restore these soul forces with vitality and authenticity.

It can aid many women who have been traumatized (sexually and otherwise), and it is also generally beneficial for all modern women who have unconsciously absorbed media images and other stereotypes of dehumanized sexuality.

This remedy is sometimes also indicated for men who need to develop a stronger relationship to feminine warmth and positive sexuality. Hibiscus creates flowing warmth throughout the body and soul, especially healing the sexuality.

Beech: One of the original Bach flowers, Beech is a well-loved favorite for moments of intolerance and patterns of impatience and feelings of being ‘overwhelmed’. Feeling stressed, trapped, unable to speak one’s ‘truth’ in a manner that is helpful.

Positive qualities: Beech relates to the soul qualities of tolerance, acceptance of others’ differences and imperfections, seeing the good within each person and situation.

Patterns of imbalance: Overly critical, judgmental attitudes, intolerance; perfectionist expectations of others; oversensitivity to one’s social and physical environment.

Doctrine of Signatures: Deep roots and a strong trunk with branches that stretch far and wide. The Beech tree resembles the energy of a woman with her ability to root and nurture her immediate family as well as open arms to reach out and help the world.

Chakra: corresponds with the fifth chakra (throat - speaking one’s truth; deep listening; integration of health of thyroid; connection to and utilization of etheric energy.)

The Beech flower essence helps transform the tendency to be critical due to an inner sense of inferiority and hypersensitivity which is projected onto others. Very often such persons grew up in an environment of criticism and harsh expectation, and so they inwardly feel very vulnerable and insecure. However, they learn to cope by condemning others instead of healing themselves. Another characteristic of the Beech flower essence type is hypersensitivity to personal environments, both physical and social. Their permeability to the influences around them leads to intolerance of imperfection in others.

Beech flower essence softens the soul pain such persons feel; as they re-establish connection with their Higher Self, they sense the love an unconditional acceptance that radiates from the spiritual world. Through this warmth of soul, they are able to let go of their harsh and blaming ways, to accept others in the same way that they are accepted by the spiritual world.

Sunflower: This annual herb grows to twelve feet. Its large, golden-yellow or red flowers are composed of small tubular flowers arranged compactly on a flat disk. It originated in Mexico and Peru.

Positive qualities: Balanced sense of individuality, spiritualized ego forces, sun-radiant personality. Sunflower balances the Yin and Yang energies and attunes people to higher wisdom. Those who demonstrate anger or ‘hostility’ towards their father or other males in their life will benefit from Sunflower.

Patterns of imbalance: Distorted sense of Self; inflation or self-effacement, low self-esteem or arrogance; poor relation to father or masculine aspect of Self.

Doctrine of Signatures: The signature of the Sunflower is mostly astrological since the Sunflower looks like the sun and astrologically the sun is associated with the father, the male ego, and spiritual knowledge. As the sun rises in the East it represents our ability to awaken to the light of the soul.

Chakra: corresponds with the third chakra (personal will, purpose in life, solar plexus, digestion and integration of mourishment; discernment - knowing what to keep and what to release.)

Sunflower flower essence: The healthy Self shines forth from the soul, not unlike the sun which radiates in the sky. This benign and wondrous soul quality of radiance at once inspires with its light, and heals with its warmth. All human souls have within them this capacity to shine like the sun, but many are afflicted in their ability to emanate this solar power in a balanced way.

Some people mask their true sun-nature with feelings of self-effacement and low self-esteem. This condition darkens the true luster of the Self; in these instances the Sunflower flower essence brings to the soul the quality of light. Others want their brilliance to shine too strongly, glaring others with pompous self-glory and ego-aggrandizement. For these people, Sunflower flower essence brings out the quality of warmth, or loving compassion. Just as the soul absorbs from the mother the moon-like qualities of receptivity and nurturing, so does the soul learn from the father the sun-like qualities of the shining, expressive Self.

Sunflower flower essence heals disturbances or distortions in the soul’s relationship to the masculine, often associated with a conflicted or deficient relationship with the father in childhood. This healing of the masculine Self is equally important for both men and women. The message of the Sunflower is so universal and foundational that it is beneficial at nearly every stage in the human life cycle. When the soul learns how to harness this great sun force within its Self, it is truly able to bless and heal other human beings and the Earth.