The language of flowers.
Author's note: Scroll down to find a list of flowers and their meanings
We often choose flowers based on their physical qualities (shape, color, smell) or the traditions we know about them (red roses for lovers; white carnations for funerals).
This language involves how we wish to speak to another person through the gifting of flowers. However, there is another aspect of the language of flowers that is less talked about, which involves the spiritual, vibrational, or energetic aspect of interacting with flowers (without needing to pick them).
The Spiritual and Vibrational Aspects of Flowers
The spiritual aspect of interacting with flowers is an ancient tradition, although many of those indigenous traditions were lost with colonization and the inquisitions. Modern-day shamans, however, have sought to revive those traditions for various reasons. These reasons often include a desire to practice healing more holistically and within the trinity of body, mind, and spirit.
Seeking to connect to the spiritual aspect of plants has become more popularized with the increasing acceptance of shamanism, as well as witchcraft, spiritism, animism, Bach Flower Remedies and other forms of spiritual practice. One prime example is the trending of ayahuasca. However, mushrooms, marijuana, peyote, opium (from the poppy flower) and datura have also had their place since ancient times of opening portals and gateways to other dimensions of human awareness.
Hallucinogenic plants are somewhat extreme examples. However, their popularization (despite their illegal status) demonstrates a call back to our roots, of being of the earth, and our awareness that we are interconnected with all beings on this planet. With the case of hallucinogens, plants are the vehicle through which we seek to discover some sort of interconnectedness, or a world beyond the material one we interact with every day. However, in our mundane world, taking care of plants in the form of houseplants and victory gardens. It also comes in the form of eating more plants in the form of herbal medicine and plant-based diets. As such, plants are serving as one aspect through which we can experience ubuntu.
Plant Spirit Medicine
In my own practice, I find taking shamanic journeys to flowers to be quite helpful in choosing which ones to use in my formulations for Bloom & Skye. The journey method was inspired by the teachings of Eliot Cowan, who authored “Plant Spirit Medicine” and founded the Blue Deer Center in New York.
However, if journeying is not in your practice, practitioners of flower essence medicine have suggested that meditation next to a flowering plant can help connect you to the vibrational aspects of the plant, which can provide further insight on its healing qualities. Eliot Cowan also found flower essences to be an effective method for healing by capturing the spiritual healing qualities of a flower, despite its bypassing shamanic journeying and dreamwork.
While the list below is what I found to be true for me and not necessarily universal to everyone, these are the messages from flowers that I have received from shamanic journeys in the past few years. These came from personal journeys, ones from Bloom & Skye formulations, and those from my shamanic healing sessions. The intention in providing this list is to inspire you to connect to the flowers around you, whether you journey, meditate, or use other ways of intuiting the messages of flowers. I also find it nice to compare my notes with another practitioner, and so feel free to compare your notes with my own.
The Love Language of Flowers for Gift Giving
Carnation: familial love
Daffodils: heartwarming greetings
Dahlias: passion
Hydrangea: mature love
Lavender: gratitude
Passionflower: sacred geometry = love knows no bounds
Pink roses: young/new love
Red roses: deep love
Sunflowers: radiant love
Tulips: declaration of love (or one sided love)
Yellow roses: let’s be friends
Lily of the valley: Gift it to yourself to learn self love
Spiritual Healing Qualities of Flowers
Bachelor button: Creating balance within oneself
Bearded iris: For liberation; deliverance
Bellflower: To inspire dance and shaking off of negative energy
Black sage/mugwort: Dispels illness
Calendula: Provides a soothing mother’s touch; peacefulness
Catnip: balance harmony with nature and universal energies
Coriander: To get grounded.
Datura: To unlock ancient knowledge
Hawthorne: To awaken the heart to the divine within you
Lemonbalm: Emotional support
Lotus: Fruitfulness after tremendous effort.
Mandarin: Instills a joyful heart
Motherwort: Lionhearted
Mugwort: Physical healing, dreams and protection
Nettle: Nourishment for the human spirit
Poppy: friendliness, laughter, fun
Protea: Giver of life force energy
Roses: Come as you are; order out of chaos
Sage: Purification of the body and soul to create an empty vessel for divine messages
Teasel: To mend what is broken. Bridges connection to the divine. To recognize what’s most painful can also be the most healing for us.
Thistle: Gratitude, appreciation
Wintermint: Breaks curses
Rhodiola: Vehicle of life; new beginnings
Spearmint: Releasing stiffness and pain
Yarrow: Connecting love with wisdom. Building connection to angelic realms.
Many blessings,
Nelly
Founder and Formulator of Bloom & Skye
