Sacred Sage

This is my 1 sage plant that is huge

I’m going way off the grid on this one, but I have so much sage, I have been giving some thought to it so it will not go to waste.  I have had dried sage hanging in my living room for years and being part Native American do believe it to be sacred.  I believe many things God (The Great Spirit) has created to be sacred, but in looking into believes of Native Americans, I have taken on new believes when it comes to sage.

Last week while channel surfing, I landed on a program called Long Island Medium.  I had never seen the show before.  She acts as a neutral catalyst to connect the spiritual world and she delivers or allows a clear message to come through that she shares with the living. I think it was on TLC which I seldom watch.  It caught my eye because this medium had bad feelings about the room she was in so she burnt some sage to clear the room.  I knew Native Americans burnt sage but found it interesting that this medium was doing it, so I thought I would do some more research because inquiring minds have to know. 

My great grandfather was Cherokee. 

My Grandfather 

My Great Grandfather

I am very proud of that heritage and with my interest in genealogy; I have done research on my proud heritage.  I, like my ancestors believe Mother Earth and living things are sacred.  It would be a better world if everyone believed that.  We can learn much from these teaching.  So today I am sharing information on sacred sage with you. 

Herbs can be powerful medicine. Some herbal remedies hold an incredible and potent medicinal quality. In addition, there are other plants that, when burnt, the smoldering smoke offers various remedies for many physical, emotional, spiritual, or mental imbalances - one such herb is sage.

Sage is held sacred by many Native American Indians, because of its effective purifying energies. It heals by bringing the patient back into balance and cleanses the body and mind of negative spirits and impurities. This is why the medium probably used it.

Sage is a traditional choice for burning and smudging for the Native Americans because of all of the herbs; it is one of the best for cleansing. Medicine People used this herb on people who were ill, to bring them back from the negative place where their body and soul laid. Today, sage is often used in smudging ceremonies for those who are seeking balance and pure thought, spirit and body. An updated smudging ceremony can be performed by nearly anyone who wishes to relieve their worries, open their mind, clear negative thoughts and feelings, harmonize the body and de-stress the spirit. It is often used when a person faces a personal difficulty, when negative luck has seemed to follow, prior to a major transition, within a new house, over a new baby or following a major emotional difficulty. In a sense, whenever a person feels "out of balance" or unlucky.

The following is a smudging technique that you can try. But remember - this is powerful medicine and you should be open and understanding of the entire experience.

Smudging is a ceremony that uses cleansing smoke to clear away negative energy and to attract positive ones.

You will need a "bowl" - examples would be, a shell, a stone that has an indented round surface, a piece of pottery or a stone bowl or mortar.

The dried-leaf herbal mixture. If desired, you can also add in cedar (healing) , sweet grass (brings positive energy) and , juniper (for healing).

You will need a feather, if possible. If not, you can make a feather-like object from paper or material, or simply use your hand.

Drumming or Native music, if desired.

The Ceremony

1. Use your hands to roll the dried herbal leaves, crumbling them into your bowl.  See drying of sage below.

2. Placed the rolled and mixed plants into the bowl.

3. Burn the leaves until they begin to smolder, giving off clouds of smoke.

4. Fan the smoke with a feather or with your hand to circulate it into the air. Starting with your heart and working your way up to the head, you will visualize the smoke entering your body and spirit, pulling out the impurities. Continue this procedure all the way down the body, and back up again.

5. All the while, pray for the Great Spirit to assist you on your life path and ask for good, positive energy and spirits to guide you.

6. Offer the smoke to the 7 directions - North, South, East, West, Father Sky, Mother Earth and the Great Spirit. Request their assistance on your journey and ask they will help to lead the negativity that is attached to your life - out of your life.

7. Continue cleansing anything that you may feel needs the purification. Your home, your family and friends, or even something that is causing you great pain such as a person (smudge their photo or a letter), finances (smudge the bills) or even an illness (smudge the medication).

8. Following the smudging, you should pray to your spiritual advisor and relax your body with soft stretching and then relax your mind with meditation or sleep.

Note: Some people like to incorporate their smudging ceremony into fasting plans, visions quests and mediation.

Other Medicinal Properties of Sage

As mentioned before, Sage is powerful medicine. Not only will its smoke help to purify the mind and body, but the plant has some other equally amazing healing properties. For example, it is an antiseptic, a sore throat tonic and it works well for darkening gray hair. Below is a list of beneficial uses for this wonder herb that you should never be without!

Oil: It is said that sage oil and tonics may be helpful in the fight against alzhelmizers, improves brain functions and memory and aids in the circulation through the coronary arteries.

Leaf Tea: regulates menstrual cycle, reduces breast flow, natural deodorant, sore throat tonic (when gargled). antiseptic and astringent, healing of the scalp and hair, calms the nerves, great for the skin when bathing, aids in healing burns, nausea, flatulence, liver ailments, kidney stones, gallstones, mouth and gum lesions, antidepressant, and tonsillitis. When mixed with rosemary - it can darken graying hair.

Raw Sage Juice: warts, skin cancer, tumors.

From the past to the present, Sage has been a natural way to heal every aspect of man. Whether in the form of oil, teas, smoke or juiced, this medicinal marvel should be part of every herbal garden, sitting on the shelf of every pantry and located in every first aid kit. From flavoring to functional medicine, Sage is the king of all plants!

Drying Sage

The easiest and quickest way to dry sage is to take one branch of sage and microwave it. Wrap it in a piece of dry paper towel and put it in the microwave for one minute.

You can set a flat piece of bake ware on it if you like.  Do not walk away.  Watch it closely to make sure it does not catch on fire.  You will hear it pop at the moisture is dried out. 

When you have a quantity dried, you can bundle them together with cotton string and use as herbs or in a burning ceremony. 

You can purchase dried sage for smudging and burning on the internet. I was surprised at how expensive it is.  I’d rather grow and dry my own. 

I'm ready for when I feel myself in a negative place. I’m going to start burning sage to destress and bring harmony back into my life.

May your world be stress free and in harmony.  Be happy and may God bless you and yours.