Mugwort Wanderings on Forgotten Paths
It is on these cold days, where the dim light grows ever stronger and the woods seem to sigh in the evening's early twilight, that I find myself thinking about the edges of the landscape. That subtle form that is just beyond our reach, just outside of our touch. Those moments we linger at the edge of a glade, or near a fallen tree in the bracken. Hearing the silence that is full of noise, a quiet rush of unexpected sounds hiding under the frequencies of our breath, behind the rustle of the leaves, taunting us from the treetops and river's edge like a youthful lover.
The walks I take are often accompanied by my pipe. Full of some herbs gathered here or there depending on the time of year (and never tobacco). One herb that I find helps me come closer to the landscape's edge is Mugwort (artemisia vulgaris).
A timeless herb used by men as far back as we have stories to tell, mugwort is mentioned by name in the Nine Herbs Charm as a favorite of Odin. Listed in herbals since the dawn of printing, mugwort is a versatile herb whose uses range from beer flavoring to medical treatment. But I find that a pipeful of mugwort is a perfect harmonizer with the natural landscape. It has a mild calming effect that syncs ones thoughts to the rustle of the trees, the conversations of the birds and the yawning decay of the forest floor.
"Remember, Mugwort, what you have revealed,
What you set out in mighty revelation,
'The First' you are called, oldest of herbs,
You have might against three and against thirty,
You have might against venom and elf-shot,
You have might against the darkness that fares over the land."
- 'The Nine Herbs Charm', from the Lacnunga
The entheogenic uses of mugwort are reported as early as Pliny, and throughout Europe its fame as a curative, spirit ward, and tonic are well known. It is in its chemical similarity to its cousin, wormwood (artemisia absinthium), that we find its power. Thujone, an active ingredient that affects the cannibinoid receptors in humans is the culprit responsible for much of the activity reported in absinthe, as well as in mugwort. Little surprise that absinthe was marketed under the title "the Green Fairy".
There is quite a conscious connection between the shifted paradigm of thujone and the folklore of that land of the sidhe. Mugwort is not strong as far as contemporary entheogens go, but its understated effect is belied by its ability to tune one's thoughts directly to that shimmering field of energy we stumble upon in forest and seashore. It is a key, able to open the doors in the landscape, for those who seek to walk on the other side of the mirror, so to speak.
After a pipe of mugwort on a winter's day the landscape opens up, reveals itself like a crack in the world. The birds and trees telling a story, the ferns and fungi preparing a path on which to explore that vast terrain of myth. The sky itself seems to laugh as you glide along, footsteps a drum rhythm beating the skin of the world. A brightness in the air, followed by a listless energy and a desire to explore.
It fades, as all things must, after a short while. We find ourselves once again on this side of the hedge, the sounds of the world familiar again and full of nonsense and pomp. The whispers of the woods having moved on, seeking others who stumble on its forgotten paths.
