Reposted from @sovereigntyherbs Curious about the origins of aromatic distillation? Our two-day Souls in the Water Intensive with @ritual_botanica is coming up at the end of this month! Aromatic distillation is a traditional method of extracting and capturing the aromas from plants. It is alchemical in nature - a process that relies on the four elements of earth, air, fire, & water in the transmutation of one form into another. The Alchemists of old believed their work to be a spiritual discipline. Modern alchemical scholars have interpreted this spiritual work metaphorically; Alchemy could be considered a collection of psychic processes shared within the totality of human experiences, or what Carl Jung termed the 'collective unconscious'. In this interpretation, the 'lead into gold' of the Alchemists becomes an inspirational allegory of the work required for the refinement of Self and emanation of the Soul. The process and tradition of Aromatic Distillation that Erika and Ash teach is most certainly a spiritual one, involving both ceremony and celebration; the aroma of a plant is likened to the ‘Soul’ of the plant and aromatic distillation a ritual that beckons the soul of the plant to reveal itself. In this workshop you will learn the Aromatic Distillation process as both an attempt to foster a deeper relationship with the plant kingdom, a relationship full of metaphor, story, and personal myth, but also deeper relationships with ourselves and our unconscious. In this regard, you will experience aromatic distillation as a platform for self-discovery and exploration of the natural world. #herbaldistillation #aromaticmedicine #hydrosols #psyche #alchemy (at Cedar Grove, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ciu-HVYLz0k/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=