Plant & Crystal Magic 4: Cinnamon & Amber

Cinnamon

Cinnamon is a beloved and important spice for the Winter months.  It’s general warming effects, the memories of special holiday deserts and sweet drinks, and it’s deliciously uplifting aroma make it nourishing on many levels, even if one is unaware of its medicinal and magical properties.  The botanical name for Cinnamon is  Cinnamomum Seylanicum, and it generally comes from the forests of Indonesia and Asia.  Usually it is available in either tan Ceylon or reddish Cassia forms, though in general Ceylon is said to be the more medicinal and Cassia the sweeter of the two, often used for baking.  Either form is good for magical uses.  Despite its exotic origin (and dark history of plantations, slavery, and spice wars), in our day it is very common and easily found at any grocery.  However it’s important to consider that the better the quality, and the more fresh, the more potent.  Cinnamon is an inner bark and can be found and used as sticks, nibs, and powder, as well as in essential oil or extract form.  The general rule is the stronger it’s scent, the more likely it is to be fresh and powerful in effect.

I would be remiss in not listing the many health benefits of cinnamon.  It is highly medicinal and has the ability to help lower blood sugar, and the harmful LDL cholesterol, acting as an agent in managing or reversing the onset of Diabetes, and lowering the risk of heart disease.  It is anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral, carminative, and expectorant, just to name some of its major properties.  It can be used to support the immune system at the start of a cold or to clear congestion, coughs, and sore throat, especially when partnered with ginger, as a sweet and spicy tea.  I have heard it said that cinnamon is to the lungs what ginger is to the digestive system, information that might be very useful this cold and flu season.  Cinnamon, in tea form, also can be very helpful to women who suffer from menstrual cramps, as it calms uterine spasms.  It increases circulation, warming the body, and helps with digestion, especially of fatty or colder foods.  This is one reason why it is such a common cooking spice, and part of a long tradition of folkloric medicine.  Cinnamon is energizing as well, and has long been used as a sexual stimulant.  It is full of antioxidants, making it a general tonic.  It can even be used as a mouthwash or natural treatment for gum disease, though the dark color can also be staining for the teeth.

If the medicinal properties of cinnamon, and its naturally sweet flavor weren’t enough to make it a favorite kitchen staple, this potent herb also has a rich history of magical lore and ritual uses.  It has long been an ingredient in an ancient Hebrew anointing oil, and in various natural versions of Agua Florida for energetic clearing.  Wreaths of the cinnamon tree leaves adorned ancient Roman temples, and ancient Egyptians used the oil in the process of mummification and the spice as offerings to deities.  In ancient Greece, cinnamon was used processions to Dionysus.  Cinnamon is considered a love spice, largely because of its warming properties, though it is also an enhancer of psychic awareness and abundance magic as well.  It raises the spiritual vibration of the home when used as an incense, and supports healing and protective energies.  In addition to all of its own properties, cinnamon acts as a magical amplifier, potentiating the effect of other herbs, and the charged magical intent.

Ways of working with Cinnamon:

•   Make a decoction of cinnamon bark or nibs, boiling them for about 40 minutes, in order to release the medicine from the thick bark.  This makes a lovely tea by itself.  Cinnamon can be boiled in the same manner with ginger and/or reishi, for a strong and tasty tonic.

•   Cinnamon is a key ingredient in chai tea, which can also include other warming spices such as cardamon, clove, ginger, star anise, pepper, fennel, nutmeg, coriander, and black tea. 

•   Burn the powder as an incense or use cinnamon oil in a diffuser to fill your home with the aroma and strong protective and spiritual vibration.

•   Use cinnamon in magical sachets, herbal charms, and magical candle anointing,

•   Use cinnamon as a key ingredient in your magical baking and cooking.

•   Keep cinnamon on the table at mealtime, as a sprinkle to aid in digestion.

•   Make a cinnamon herbal honey as a sweet remedy for coughs and congestion.  Buckwheat is best for this.

•   Boil cinnamon tea to use as a rejuvenating foot bath.  (It can be used as an herbal bath in tea form, but be careful of the essential oil for this, as it is hot to the touch in sensitive areas.)

Amber

 Wear Amber for warmth in Winter.

Oh Amber, unique in the realm of crystals, it’s actually not a mineral at all, but rather the fossilized botanic resins, or sap, of a tree, most often Pine.  (Baltic amber, considered the finest form, is said to be formed from coniferous trees that lived up to 60 million years ago!)  Let’s break that down.  Trees are magical to begin with, reaching up to the stars, while rooted deeply in the earth.  They take in our waste energy of carbon dioxide and transform it into oxygen.  They consume the light of the sun and the energy of the rain and store it internally through the stark Winter, and continue this cycle of transmutation and renewal through all the seasons of their long lives.  The sap of a tree is the cumulation of this stored energy, the life blood of these sacred beings.  When an Amber stone is rubbed, it develops an electric charge, and creates actual warmth. Wearing it on the body is like bringing the light and warmth of the sun and the nurturing soul of the earth into your inner being, where they can nourish you.

 Wearing Amber has long been recommended for the treatment of physical and emotional issues.  It is said to support anyone who is suffering from seasonal affective disorder, those who sink into sadness and stagnation in the Winter months, when the light retreats.  It is a grounding and nurturing stone for times of physical illness and recovery, and even has a reputation for alleviating pain.  There is research into the properties of Baltic Amber, in particular the succinic acid it contains, that suggests that it stimulates the thyroid to regulate its function and thereby can help in soothing inflammation, pain, and in boosting the immune system.  However, the amount of this substance released onto the skin may be small, and the sensitivity of the individual would certainly be a factor in feeling these physical effects.   Amber is also reputed to calm anxiety, cultivating relaxation and balance.

 Because of its relationship to trees and their transmutation of carbon dioxide into oxygen, Amber has the ability to support in energetic purification.  It helps us to clear the aura of negative intrusions and toxic emotional energies, transforming them into more positive energies.  In this way it is both grounding and protective.  The sun relates to the pathway towards our greatest destiny, and wearing a piece of that essence in the form of Amber jewelry can help to keep us aligned with our highest self, our true purpose, and with the sacred light.  This makes us less permeable to negative influence from both within and without.  There is a regality to amber as well, and its golden beauty, in all of its color variations, can remind us to hold our bodies and souls in a sacred light, even in very hard times.

 Because Amber is a fossil, and can be quiet ancient, it also has a strong relationship with the past.  It may even include fossilized insects, captured forever in its depths.  Working with Amber can help one to connect with soul memories, lineage medicine, ancient knowledge, and the legacies of ancestral trauma that need our attention and healing, so that we can free our ancestors and ourselves from the destructive patterns and events that we have lived and are compelled to repeat.  In addition, because much of the amber jewelry available is vintage, and beloved through different eras, be sure to cleanse it before wearing, especially if it is set in metal.  Placing it in the earth overnight, and then in the sun to charge, is a good method.  Wear or hold Amber to increase your vitality and lift your mood through the Winter season, and to promote well being on all levels.

Suggestion for working with Amber and Cinnamon together:

When and if the holidays and Winter months feel stressful, lonely, or cold, remember to celebrate what is sacred in small and nurturing ways.

1.     Wear Amber on your body through the Winter, when creating/recreating your personal and family rituals, and when engaging with magical cooking, to call the benevolent energies of earth and sun into your creations.

2.     Diffuse cinnamon essential oil in your home to create a warm, energizing, and protective environment.

3.     Serve cinnamon tea, or a blend of cinnamon, ginger and even reishi, to promote health.

4.     Engage in magical cooking featuring cinnamon.  Perhaps make a pumpkin pie with fresh cinnamon, an apple pie with a protective lattice crust, or even simple cinnamon toast.

5.     Create a cinnamon, cardamom, and damiana cordial to serve in later Winter months when you might need a boost of sensual warmth.

6.     Rub your Amber and gaze into it the way you would gaze into a flame.  See the variations glow and ask your ancestors or soul lineage for guidance, healing, clearing, and support.

May your Winter be warm. 

-This blog was written by Melusina Gomez, and was originally published with the eleventh house.