So loved sharing the Persephone myth and the spirit of datura last night at @animamundiherbals. I am constantly delighted by how kind, good-natured, and wise the people that attend my classes are. I feel so lucky to consistently have such brilliant students that are ready to show up and do this “Underworld” work! It gives me faith in humanity.

Last night one of my students was my mom. It was the first time she’s come to a class of mine and she took this photo of me. It was sweet to get to share this weeks material that is so close to my heart with my mom.

🍄Poisonous Plant Medicine🍄
Week 3 | Datura & The Persephone Myth: Healing Trauma Through Psycho-spiritual Death & Rebirth

“God’s presence is there in front of me, a fire on the left,
a lovely stream on the right.
One group walks toward the fire, into the fire, another
toward the sweet flowing water.
No one knows which are blessed and which not.
Whoever walks into the fire appears suddenly in the stream.
A head goes under on the water surface, that head
pokes out of the fire.
Most people guard against going into the fire,
and so end up in it.” – Rumi

Persephone is both the Greek goddess of flowers and Queen of the Underworld - what a beautiful dichotomy! After she was kidnapped by Hades, he created a shade garden of plants able to grow in the darkness of the Underworld, filled with the plants included in this course. The Persephone myth is a powerful analogy for what happens when we walk through the fire of our pain and emerge on the other side, newly reborn. In today’s class I will share the Persephone myth and explain how we can apply its lessons to our own lives.

Datura has historical uses that span the globe, from being holy to Shiva worshippers in India, to being included in some of the brews of ayahuasca shamans, to being worshipped as a God by tribes of Western North America and the Huichol of Mexico.

I may be most excited about Week 3 of the Poisonous Plant Medicine series. The Persephone myth is deeply important to me (duh) and Datura has been an incredibly ally and mentor to me over these last few years.

If you are local to Brooklyn you can drop into this class this Thursday at @animamundiherbals, otherwise there is 1 spot left for the February 17th online class, and a few more for the March 10th online class.
If you'd like to take this course in its entirety there are still a few spots left for the second group whose first class is *this Sunday*!

This is your last chance to take the course at this price point. When I offer this class again next I will be raising the prices. Don't worry, I will still be offering sliding scale pricing for those who need it!