Ritual Evocation of the Plant Lover for spiritual and sexual congress is not a set formula. Any written ritual should only be an invitation, an enticement, or seduction. Anything else would be akin to a summoning and trapping, which is more appropriate to a ritual of the Goetia than to the wooing of a loving familiar ally.
If you are seeking the companionship of a specific plant, use oils, incense and sacraments appropriate to that plant. While generally I find the plant realm generous about the use of their body in preparations, you might find burning your potential lover as incense the most appropriate method to unite with the plant self. The idea of breathing in the very body of the plant’s love is quite seductive and erotic. Scent is one of the major triggers of consciousness.
I’ve found this ritual is best performed as an oneiric rite, meaning an evocation prior to dreaming. Sleep invites the opportunity for the spirit to visit you while you dream, but does not force a manifestation in the ritual circle. If possible, perform the ritual in the bedroom and arrange to sleep alone that evening if you have a spouse or partner. Establish an altar as a shrine for the plant lover. Light candles that will either be doused before bed, or kept in a safe, fire-proof container. Burn incense and anoint yourself with appropriate oils during the ritual. If a potted plant is available, bring it into the bedroom. If not, perhaps the ritual could be done outdoors, slumbering beneath the plant ally. A talisman placed under your pillow, such as a root charm or herbal bag as mentioned in the previous chapter, would be quite appropriate.
When you are prepared, create the Green Circle. Invite the spirit of the plant into your space and life as a lover and teacher. Each plant must be wooed differently. I’ve found poetry and song to be quite effective. Write your own poetry. This poetic evocation is an example of something I’ve used for the Datura plant.
Lady Datura of the White Trumpets,
Whose flowers glow like the Moon,
Grant us the Voice of the Spirits,
Lead me to the heavens not the tomb.
I seek the Lady who knows the light from the dark.
I seek the Lady who calls out to me clear.
I seek the Lady who brings pleasure and madness.
I seek your companionship with love and respect, yet not fear.
You have flowers so lovely and fragile,
You have the apples of danger and pain,
You have the seeds of the mysteries,
They fall from you like the rain.
They call you the Devil’s Weed,
But they don’t know.
They call you Thorn Apple and Witch’s Thimble,
For that is how you grow.
They pull you up and cast you out,
Yet your beauty charms and beguiles
Without any doubt.
For the mysteries of the spirit lay within your flesh.
Lady Datura of the White Trumpets,
Whose flowers glow in the night,
Allow me the pleasure of your company,
Open me up to your light.
Some feel the stimulation of sexual energies as an appropriate way to attract the plant and forge a link with your energy, yet the stimulation should not result in climax, but rather remain in a ritualized state of “betweenness” that will aid your dreaming vision. When you feel you have charmed the plant spirit with your invitation, slumber near the living plant or with its token near you. Keep a notebook by your side, and when you awaken, record your experience and insights about the plant lover. Some will use sexual fluids, either from the nocturnal state, or generated upon waking, to anoint the plant, ground or charm, in order to forge a deeper link.
When done, say your farewells for now and release the circle in the normal manner.
The He rba Alba
The Herba Alba, the “White Herb,” is both a mythic and real plant used in alchemy and magick. In alchemy, it is the mythic white herb, the five-petaled flower pointing upward, as the top point indicates spirit ruling the four terrestrial elements. In the mythic paradise where Nature Herself is the greatest alchemist, the black fertile soil is transformed into the white blossom, indicative of the black phase of alchemy transforming to a purified white. Though seen by some as an aspect of the Philosopher’s Stone or Elixir of Immortality, an alchemical Holy Grail, the Herba Alba is not the final phase. One must be transformed ultimately into the power of the red phase, but it is quite a momentous step to reach. Perhaps there is an Herba Ruber, or perhaps the true red stage is found through an action or rite that the initiate performs with the white herb.
In more traditional herbalism and botany, Herba Alba usually refers to Artemisia herba alba, or White Wormwood. It is also known as the Rose of Jericho. Like most plants in the Artemisia genus, including Common Mugwort, Sagebrush and Tarragon, White Wormwood possesses a long history of magickal and medicinal lore. Its smoke can be used to prevent the influence of harmful spirits and malevolent magickal practitioners, much like sage.
Some believe the smoke’s effect is similar to that of Cannabis. Medicinally it’s used for colds, coughs, indigestion, and most notably, to kill parasites within the body. White Wormwood is similar to the species of Wormwood used in the drink absinthe.
Wormwood is mentioned several times in the Bible, but none more prominent than in the Book of Revelations, chapter eight, as the name of a star at the end of the world that turns the waters bitter and poisonous.
And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.
And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.
And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!
– Revelations 8: Verses 6 -13 (King James Version)
Some think of Wormwood here as synonymous to the Christian Anti-Christ at the end of the world as depicted in Revelations. Others think of the book of Revelations as a mystic text, an allegory for an initiatory process, and not the end of the physical world. Each of these challenges, including the star Wormwood, is an initiatory experience towards experiencing the Gnostic light of heaven.
A Christian legend tells us that Wormwood sprang up from the depression in the ground left by the Serpent as it exited the Garden of Eden after the Fall. Some use this story to illustrate the malevolent nature of Wormwood as evidenced by its relationship to the Serpent…at least those who see the Serpent as the villain of the story do. For those who see the Serpent as the champion of free choice and the seeking of knowledge, then the herb it leaves in its wake, Wormwood, would also champion the causes of free choice and the quest for knowledge. For many Gnostic Christians, the Serpent is the hero of the story, echoing times when the serpent image was a symbol of creativity, knowledge, wisdom and power in Pagan cultures.
Wormwood, as part of the Artemisia family of plants, is also associated with the Greek huntress and moon goddess Artemis, known to the Romans as Diana. Both forms of this goddess are associated with light, mysteries and Witchcraft. What is Witchcraft but the quest for the mysteries and secret knowledge? Artemis is the goddess of the wild woods, where the secrets of nature are kept. Only those who venture forth will discover their secrets.
Another two plants that share the folk name Rose of Jericho with the Herba Alba, but are in fact totally different species are Anastatica hierochuntica and Selaginella lepidophylla. Both are known as the plant of resurrection, it is unusual for the fact that it can dry up like tumbleweed in a dormant state, but be resurrected with water. This cycle of drying and rebirth can be done many times with one plant. Both plants are associated with the opening and closing of the Virgin Mary’s Womb and the resurrection of Jesus.
The city of Jericho is an interesting name for any of these plants, as it is located in the lowest permanently inhabitable site on Earth, far below sea level. Jericho is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, currently part of the Palestinian territories. It is known for its many springs and is also associated with ancient Moon worship. It is referenced in the Bible as the City of Palm Trees. Thus, in its desert region, Jericho is associated with life and rebirth.
For our purposes, the magickal spirit of Herba Alba is more like the alchemist’s spiritual version, though these other actual plants, through ritual use, can guide us on the quest for mastery over the elements and purity of spirit. But it is the ultimate ideal of the Herba Alba that we are seeking. The Herba Alba is the mysterious spiritual ingredient in all sacred brews. It is the secret ingredient of the greal of Ceridwen’s cauldron of inspiration. It is found in the Soma and Ambrosia of the gods. It’s the porridge of the Dagda, the kykeon of Demeter and the hazelnut of the Celtic bards.
It is the mysterious herb found under the water in the quest of Gilgamesh, the rose-like thorn that blooms beneath the sea, granting health, vitality and immortality to the user. It’s the miraculous secret of the first Noah, of Utnapishtum, who advises Gilgamesh. It restores us to the gods.
According to some Hindu teachings, humans are like “seven leafed plants,” referencing the seven chakras, not just as a system of energy anatomy, but as the process of “growing” consciousness through seven steps. Only then do we bloom with the flower of the crown, the white flower dazzling with the light of a thousand suns. Some would describe this initiation process as “pollination” from higher divine forces, so we can truly bear fruit. We have been touched by a force beyond us, but to be spiritually pollinated, we must first bloom. Our work, our effort, virtue, and magick all leads us to this blooming, but without a connection to a greater source of spiritual awareness, it is only one step. The blooming of the Herba Alba is the preparatory work for this process. It is the mid-point, the white flower.
When we are spiritually pollinated, we can grow the apple fruit of the red phase. In many ways, the apple tree of the Biblical garden is a great allegory for the stages of alchemy – dark soil, white flower and red fruit, with the potential for another tree in its seed.