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

The Herbs of Neptune—Creative Inspiration, Mysticism, and Imagination
The Herbs and Their Planetary Signatures

Energies: illusion and imagination; useful in hypnosis, trance, dreamwork

Color: green-blue

Number: 11.

Stone/material: seashell, amber, labradorite, cat's-eye, lemurian crystal

Deities: Poseidon, Apa, Dylan, Tiamat, Ceridwen, Nimue

Herbs: cannabis, datura, lobelia, lotus, orange blossom (also known as neroli), peach, poppy, skullcap, wild lettuce, willow, wisteria

Up to this point, we have been working with the original seven “ancient” Planets—the orbs of energy that the ancients could identify by eye. These seven Planets form the basis of the Doctrine of Signatures developed by Paracelsus. The next three Planets we will explore—Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto—are often known as the “Outer Planets.” They must be viewed through a telescope, and their discovery coincided with the explosion in technology and science over the last 250 years. Astrologers and people who work with Magickal energies have identified the Outer Planets' energies as reflecting in a more subtle yet intense fashion the energies of some of the traditional seven “ancients.” Neptune is paired with Venus, Uranus is paired with Mercury, and Pluto is paired with both Mars and Saturn.

The energies of Neptune are those of the mystic and the artist, the same ecstatic energy represented by Venus, transmuted to a higher level of psychic and imaginative power that nurtures the sources of creativity, perception, and inspiration through the experience of illusion, fantasy, imagination, and occult intuition. Neptune is the dreamer—an aspect perhaps represented by the image of the sleeping Vishnu dreaming the dream of infinite creation.

The herbs attributed to Neptune are the mind-altering plants of dream weavers. Their principal effects are psychotropic, opening up recesses of higher and lower levels of consciousness not normally accessible to the waking mind, revealing or at least indicating that most occult of all entities: the Hidden Self. A study of Neptunian herbs sheds light on their hidden aspects, revealing their connection. For example, an Infusion of dried orange blossoms produces a stimulating effect on the nervous system. The oil distilled from the blossoms, however, upon inhalation of its alluring scent, enables the inhaler to achieve a state described in the texts as hypnotic, thus rendering orange blossom oil an excellent medium for trancework, which falls under the dominion of Neptune.

Neptune is considered to be the higher octave of Venus, thus those properties of Venus—the arts, music, beauty, and love—are brought to an even higher, more intense and pure level. As such, all the Venusian herbs apply to Neptune as well. The Neptune energies inspire the artist in finding his Muse and enable one to connect with the collective unconscious to explore the depths of art, music, beauty, and dance in a deeply emotional way, which in turn ignites the subconscious, ideally leading to a clearer and more intense expression of creative talent.

Opium is distilled from poppy, a Neptunian herb, and while its use is not recommended to achieve trance states or astral travel due to problems with addiction and overdose, poppy seeds used in a tea or burnt in an Incense will result in a less intense opiate state while still aiding the user in obtaining the desired effects. If you use poppy seeds this way, be aware that your use of it will show up in drug tests. Cannabis is another Neptune herb and is still illegal in the United States, but those flower children of the ’60s could attest to its hypnotic effects and the heightened sense of creativity it provokes (although I'm not sure how much creativity was actually expressed!). Passionflower is used medicinally as a calmative, sedative, and soother. If you have ever viewed the live plant, you have seen its amazing otherworldly appearance. Wisteria, like orange blossom, has an intoxicating scent that leads to a calm, inward contemplation ideal for meditation and calming the mind prior to creative activity.

The use of Neptune herbs to enhance the creative process is the perfect way to experience the intoxicating energies of this Planet of the Mystic. A Bath Salt using Neptune herbs and essential oils is a lovely Neptunian experience before applying yourself to self-expression, whether painting, music, dance, poetry—your imagination is the only limiting factor. With the activation of your Muse through the mystical opening that Neptune provides, your imagination will delight in the unfolding of talents of which you may not have even been aware. The use of the herbs and oils in a Neptune bath will allow you to relax into an altered state of consciousness and open your creative mind while you soak in a warm, mini-sea of intoxicatingly scented water.

Creativity Bath

For a bath, you have two choices of how you wish to combine your herbs and oils. One way, Bath Salts, is the literal and simple application of essential oils mixed into sea salt. The second way is to create a Bath Tea, which contains herbs and essential oils, but is applied to the bath in a teabag, tea ball, or cloth pouch to prevent the herbs from floating freely in and on the water. You will want to contain them—otherwise you will have a bathtub of herb debris to clean up later, and when you emerge from your bath, you will look as if you stepped out of a swamp, covered with bits of soggy herbs!

Bath Salt

To create a Bath Salt, the supplies you will need are as follows:

mortar or small bowl

four ounces sea salt

orange blossom essential oil (or other Neptune-associated essential oil)

lotus essential oil (or other Neptune-associated essential oil)

two ounces bicarbonate of soda (baking soda; optional)

blue and green food coloring (optional)

Breathing slowly and deeply, ground yourself and focus on your purpose and intention in creating your Bath Salt. In your mortar or small bowl, pour the sea salt. Add eleven drops of orange blossom oil, and then eleven drops of lotus oil, blending lightly after each addition. If you wish your bath to have a slight bubbly effect, now is the time to stir in the bicarbonate of soda. At this point, if you wish to tint your bath with the color of Neptune, add three drops of blue food coloring and four drops of green food coloring. This will cause your bathwater to be the lovely green-blue of Neptune.

Bath Tea

To create a Bath Tea (also known as a Tussie) you will need the following materials:

mortar and pestle

Neptunian herbs (willow, orange blossom flowers, skullcap, or whatever you like)

one Neptune essential oil

ironable teabag (available at many health food stores), six-inch-square cloth (cheesecloth works very well as it is a loose weave) and string, muslin pouch with a drawstring, or a tea ball

In your mortar, place a healthy pinch of the herbs you have selected and crush them lightly together with your pestle. This will begin to release their oils. When you have combined your herbs to your satisfaction, add eleven drops of your essential oil and then fluff lightly with your fingers—you don't need to crush the oils in with your pestle.

Now stuff your teabag, tea ball, pouch, or cloth with the herb mixture. If you are using a flat piece of cloth, place the herbs in the center of the cloth while it is flat, bring two opposite corners up over the center of the cloth, tie them snugly, and then repeat with the remaining two corners.

Drawing the Bath

Once you've created your Bath Salt or Bath Tea, prepare whatever medium you plan to use in your creative exploration. Get your journal and pen ready, or boot up the computer if that's where you write; clear space in your studio so that you can dance freely; set up your easel and get out your paints, brushes, charcoals, or pastels; lift the keyboard cover from the piano keys; take your guitar from its case—prepare the instrument of your expression for its work with you.

Turn off the phone, lock the doors, contain any rambunctious pets so that you will not have any interruptions.

Now it's time to draw your bath and use your Bath Salt or Bath Tea. Bring a CD player or other music player into the bathroom and put on some music that inspires and relaxes you. Turn on the bathtub water spigot, adjust the water to a temperature you find pleasurable, and let the tub begin to fill. Light a green-blue candle and disrobe. Turn off the electric light in the room and stand at the side of the tub, breathing slowly and deeply, holding your bath creation and drinking in its intoxicating scent. When the tub is full, drop the Bath Salts or Bath Tea into the warm water. Step into the bath and relax your body down into the water. Continue to breathe deeply and slowly, with intention. Stretch out your body in the water and, as you breathe, feel each breath lightening your body and filling your mind with relaxation. With each breath, exhale any extraneous thoughts and stress; with each inhalation, open and relax your mind.

Now breathe deeply of the Neptune aroma and begin to expand your consciousness. Imagine that with each breath your mind is reaching out into space, farther and farther, caressing the stars and skipping around amazing, whirling nebulas. There is a star out there in the black vastness that is waiting to connect with your mind and share with you the mysteries that reside within you, and your connection to the Universe. Let your mind and imagination wander, seeking that star in a relaxed and playful state of mind. You are drawn to it; there is no way that you can miss it. Breathe.

Allow yourself to play in space and completely melt into the experience. You will know when you have reached the center, the star. Absorb the feeling, the nudge, the image that you receive and give thanks. Stand up, get out of the bath, put out the candle, and dry off. Put on whatever attire that you plan to create in, and get to work!