The Importance of Nervine Materia Medica
The Plant Path: Herbalism, Medical Astrology & Spagyric Alchemy
Sajah Popham
4.8 • 570 Ratings
🗓️ 17 August 2017
⏱️ 92 minutes
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Summary
I always tell my students that for the client that is stressed and exhausted to give them herbs for the nervous system before even thinking about touching the adaptogens which are typically administered for these common complaints. Too many herbalists use adaptogens out of their clinical indications and traditional context of usage and overlook the potency and healing quality of the nervine materia medica.
In this lecture I gave at the 2016 Breitenbush Herb Conference, I offer some specific delineations of our materia medica for the nervous system so you can know how to administer them holistically.
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ABOUT SAJAH
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Sajah Popham, founder of Organic Unity and The School of Evolutionary Herbalism, is committed to creating a new paradigm of plant medicine anchored in herbal, medical, and spiritual traditions from around the world. His work integrates the science and spirit of herbal medicine, creating a system that is equally holistic, healing and transformational. His unique synthesis bridges herbalism not only east and west, but north & south, above & below, into a universal philosophy that encompasses indigenous wisdom, Ayurveda, western Alchemy and Spagyrics, Astrology, clinical herbalism, and modern pharmacology.
Sajah's vitalist approach utilizes plants not only for physical healing and rejuvenation, but for the evolution of consciousness. He never allopathicallyl focuses on just what a plant is "good for" but rather who the plants are as sentient beings. Sajah's teachings embody a heartfelt respect, honor and reverence for the vast intelligence of plants in a way that empowers us to look deeper into the nature of our medicines and ourselves. He lives in southern Oregon with his wife where he teaches at his school, makes spagyric medicines, and practices his healing art. For more information about his products and programs, visit www.organic-unity.com & www.evolutionaryherbalism.com
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ABOUT THE PLANT PATH
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The Plant Path provides unique perspectives for the modern practitioner of herbalism that doesn't just want to "fix what's broken" in the body, but seeks to serve others with deeper levels of healing and transformation with herbal medicines.
A unique synergy of clinical herbalism, alchemy, medical astrology, and herbal traditions from around the world, The Plant Path focuses on giving you a truly "wholistic" perspective on herbal medicine so you never fall into the trap of allopathic herbalism.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Plant Path, Your Window into the World of Urban Medicine, with Saja Popham, founder of the School of Evolutionary Herbalism and Organic Keenade. |
| 0:25.6 | So thank you very much for coming out to the Brighton Bush Conference and choosing my class. |
| 0:30.6 | I know it's always hard when there's so many happening all at once to make a choice. |
| 0:34.6 | So thank you very much for coming over here. And just introduce myself very briefly. |
| 0:39.3 | My name is Seja Popham. And as I said, I live outside Ashland, Oregon with my wife Whitney. |
| 0:44.3 | And I run an herb school out there called the School of Evolutionary Herbalism. |
| 0:48.3 | And a lot of the focus of my work is the reintegration of kind of our Western metaphysical traditions into our clinical |
| 0:59.0 | model of Western herbalism, specifically Western alchemy and medical astrology, which I'll be |
| 1:06.2 | doing a discussion on tomorrow, and really looking for what is true holistic herbalism |
| 1:12.6 | right what is it what does it mean to be holistic and from some of those |
| 1:17.6 | traditional perspectives they say a true holistic model of plant medicine takes the |
| 1:21.6 | wholeness of life into consideration not just the what what the sicknesses or |
| 1:26.6 | the symptom is or the just the constituents of plants, |
| 1:29.3 | but how all of life, right, all the elements and the plants and the stars and the planets and the seasons |
| 1:35.3 | and the elements, how all those things influence our health and influence the virtue of botanical medicines. |
| 1:42.3 | So, and also spend a lot of my time preparing |
| 1:48.4 | Spajiric medicines, which is a branch of the Western alchemical tradition, which I brought |
| 1:53.7 | some, some Spigerics today, we can pass around. Luckily, this is an evening time class. I told |
| 1:59.0 | them, I was like, don't put the Nervine class in the morning. |
| 2:01.8 | We're all going to be sleepy. |
| 2:04.2 | But so I'll pass around some sphjerkirics of some of the plants I'll be sharing about today. |
| 2:09.2 | And we can get all loose and relaxed before you go soak in the springs this evening. |
... |
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