The Herbal Alchemist’s Handbook: A Complete Guide to Magickal Herbs and How to Use Them - Karen Harrison 2020

The Herbs of Jupiter—Prosperity and Honor
The Herbs and Their Planetary Signatures

Energies: expansion, career, ambition, luck, material success, spiritual growth, humor

Color: royal blue

Number: 6

Metal: tin

Stones/materials: sapphire, turquoise, blue topaz, lapis lazuli

Deities: Zeus, Llyr, Thor, Hera, Gaea, Rhiannon

Herbs: agrimony, borage, carnation, cedar, cinquefoil, dandelion, figs, fir, hyssop, linden, magnolia, maple, meadowsweet, oak, oak moss, pine, poplar, saffron, sage, sassafras, sumac, rosin, wood beton

The energies of our largest Planet, Jupiter, are represented and expressed in the vocations of ruler, magistrate, philosopher, village elder, or priest and priestess. Jupiter is the Planet of the All-father in many pantheons, and the corresponding properties of generation, mercy, expansion, and beneficence are consistently fulfilled by the herbs attributed to Jupiter. While sage and wood betony wave the Jovian banner of royal purple in their crowns of leaves and flowers, it is in the healing, soothing, and vitalizing functions that the Jupiter herbs as a whole medicinally typify the beneficial influence of their patron Planet. Many of the herbs act to soothe and gently heal several conditions that are well-known for causing extreme discomfort.

Wood betony is particularly useful for digestive difficulties that are commonly attributed to overly enthusiastic and unrestrained gastronomical expressions of appetite—overindulgence, overeating, a regular diet of very rich and fatty food—that are represented by the energies of Jupiter.

As a stomachic, wood betony is effective in relieving cramps, vomiting, constipation, diarrhea, and dysentery. While it acts to relieve the effects of Jovian excess, many of the other attributed herbs reflect the expansive, philanthropical aspects of Jupiter by acting as soothing salves, balms, tonics, and emollients. Used internally, aloeswood is generally a purgative, but when used in an external wash it is one of the most effective of known emollients. It draws out infections and is useful as a wound wash, soothing and healing minor burns, cuts, insect bites, and wrinkles. Dandelion (expansive and prolific, as a proper Jupiter plant should be—just check out your lawn!) and linden, when used as teas, act as external astringents for skin irritations and mouth and throat sores.

Oak bark is another Jovian astringent effective on skin irritations and sores when used as a wash. As an internal astringent and digestive, it helps control rectal problems, hemorrhoids, bloody urine, varicose veins, and internal hemorrhage. Just as the oak tree represented the All-father, the king of trees as it were, to the Druids, the strength of the oak radiates its majesty, and its dramatic presence and the towering, beneficent shelter it provides to the forest have earned it its attribution to Jupiter. Pine and poplar are plants of Jupiter that also produce healing balms. Poplar in particular produces a soothing salve for internal use and an exterior application for skin rashes, burns, and scrapes that is without comparison. The ascorbic acid content of pine makes it effective as a balm and liniment where a revitalization of systemic activity is needed. Pineresin vapors, when inhaled, are excellent in soothing respiratory ailments. Burdock root serves as an incredible tonic for the liver (the organ attributed to Jupiter) and clears the blood of hepatitis.

On the Magickal front, Jovian herbs are expansive herbs. They bring growth, both spiritual and material. On the spiritual level they allow us to expand our consciousness and highlight spiritual/religious values; on the mental level they bring insight, clear judgment, and a delight in philosophical thought; on the emotional level they encourage mercy and beneficence toward others; and on the physical plane they draw abundance, prosperity, and recognition. Herbs of Jupiter expand the mind and the heart, allowing for an intellectual understanding of the workings of the Universe and the laws of nature and of humankind while lending a sense of the connection we all share.

Utilizing the expansive effects of some of the herbs of Jupiter, we'll create and use an oil blend for attracting prosperity and abundance to our lives.

Prosperity Oil

Gather together your supplies:

one-ounce bottle of alcohol with dropper cap

glass dram-size vial with cap (cork or screw-top cap work equally well)

carnation essential oil

cedar essential oil

oak moss essential oil

pine essential oil

small bottle of carrier oil such as sweet almond oil

Jupiter stone such as lapis lazuli, amethyst, or turquoise (optional)

Focusing your intention of expanding and attracting prosperity into your life, breathe slowly and deeply. Imagine glittering green and gold confetti softly raining down upon you, and being absorbed into the auric energy field surrounding your body. Taking up the dropper bottle of alcohol, draw the alcohol up into the dropper, then squeeze it back into the bottle to cleanse the dropper. Taking the dropper from the bottle, shake the dropper vigorously to release any droplets of alcohol that might remain in it. The dropper provides the convenience of being able to count the number of drops of essential oil you will be dispersing, and the alcohol ensures the dropper is clean and will not cross-contaminate any of your essential oils. You want to be sure to get all the alcohol out of the dropper between applications so that you don't accidentally mix alcohol into your essential oils, which would make them cloudy.

Now, carefully draw carnation oil a quarter of the way into the dropper and drop three drops of the essential oil into your empty glass vial. Squeeze out any excess carnation oil back into its bottle. Fill the dropper again with alcohol, squeeze it out, shake out any excess alcohol from the dropper, and draw your cedar oil a quarter of the way into the dropper. Drop three drops of the cedar oil into your vial. Squeeze any excess cedar oil back into its bottle and repeat the process again with your oak moss and pine oils, cleaning out the dropper with alcohol between each oil. Remember to keep your focus and intention and add it energetically as you add each oil.

If you wish to add more energy to your prosperity oil, you may include a small Jupiter stone of abundance to your oil. If you are adding a stone, place it in the bottle with intention before you fill the bottle up the rest of the way with carrier oil.

Now fill the vial of blended oils the rest of the way with your carrier oil. Essential oils are very concentrated so there is no need to have an undiluted solution. Shake the oil blend well and let the oils mix and react with each other overnight. If you smell the oil blend right after you mix it and then again the next day, you will see how the oils create their own synergistic aroma after being given some time to link their properties of both odor and energy.

You have blended your oils using numerical alchemical values. The number attributed to Jupiter is 6. You have used twelve total drops of essential oils in your blend. By using twelve drops, you have doubled the number 6 of Jupiter's expansion and created the number 3 (12 = 1 + 2 = 3), the number of harmony. Let's look at it another way and add the number differently: by using the number 12, you have also utilized the numbers 3 and 4 in your formula—three drops of four different essential oils, or 3 (drops) x 4 (herbs) = 12. The number 4 is the number of manifestation and form, and 3 the number of harmony and balance, which is the way in which you want your prosperity to manifest—on the material plane.

Now that you have your blend, note how very versatile Magickal oils are in their use. You can use them to anoint candles to burn during a Prosperity Ritual or meditation, or anoint a silver dollar that you keep in your wallet or purse to draw money to it. You can pour a few drops in your bath as you prepare for an Abundance Ritual. A little oil can be placed on a lottery ticket before the drawing or you can rub some of the oil into your hands before you purchase a ticket or go play at a casino. You may also decide to wear the oil as a Magickal perfume to attract opportunities to yourself throughout the day. Just remember to focus on your attention as you apply the oil in any of these ways to set and charge the energies for your specific purpose.