This week, we meditated with tulsi, aka holy basil. 

Initial Experience

While steeping, some oils were visible in the water. The smell is pleasantly spicy. The tea felt very mildly warming.
The flavor is a little more floral after sitting longer (second meditation).

From Meditation 

-Spinning chakra at my nose (one side only because of cold-related congestion). 
-Awareness of breasts—pathways going down through them.
-This as a remedy for stress about sexuality and anxiety in general. 
-Clear awareness of this herb to elevate energy—sattvic, high vibration.
-Mild coolness in my throat (I have an inflammatory condition in my throat)
-I feel fullness in my frontal brain (positive, easeful, and needed feeling).
-Increasing ease in my breathing. My breathing feels calming.

-Awareness of my head, focused on my ears and forehead. Aware of blood rushing in my ears and pleasant pulsation in my forehead. 
-This tea feels restorative and revitalizing for my mind.
-A release of pressure. I wasn’t stuffy before, but I feel clearer.
-My head is in the clouds (peaceful and light feeling).
-Flash of warmth. 
-The meditation was peaceful, relaxing.

-My forehead felt giant, spiky, scattered in the early part of the meditation.
-The experiences were gentle.
-I felt deep, nurturing, earthy warmth. Heaviness across my hips and thighs. I felt drawn down into the earth.
-Brown and dark green colors.
-Slightly warmer than neutral.
-I let out an enormous burp.
-Feeling a little sweaty.

Songs
-Cat’s in the Cradle song by Harry Chapin

-“How Soon is Now” by the Smiths (lyrics) 

Visions
-A beautiful image of a warm, soft body covered with decaying flowers.

-I was looking at the world like it was below me. I was in the clouds, and could see most of the planet’s surface—where it curved over. A bunch of hot air ballons were ascending at the same time. They would float too high and the balloons would pop and the baskets go down to Earth. When they hit the earth it would be like a bomb or asteroid. This is being presented to me, but this is not what actually happened.  The baskets stayed suspended in the air. A voice said, “Pipe dreams never make it to the future, be warned’. Covering the whole scene was a semi-transparent image of a cat’s eye blinking. 
-Baskets started plummeting to the earth like comets. There is a giant cat twice the size of Earth. The cat swats and one paw lands on our planet, making it shake. From this distance, everyone is speck-sized. They are screaming. The people are turning into mice. The cat is running on the Earth, and it is spinning like it is a hamster wheel. Bored with Earth, it launches itself into space, floating for a second. Then it is swatting at Earth again and Earth is unwinding like a ball of yarn. The yarn is interlinked mice. The cat drops low to the ground and all the mice run into its mouth. It has an evil grin. Having eaten all the mice, it goes to the sun for its next victim. It tried to swat the sun—but was burned. This is a moment of weakness for the cat. The cat found the moon, which was the size of a golf ball compared to the cat. The cat smirked, swatting hard and it plummeted through space, falling into an ocean (on an alternate Earth). All the people started screaming. It was sort of a repeat of the last terror but with more focus on the suffering of the people and the cat cackling and smiling. 

Summary and Traditional Use

Tulsi is considered a very sacred plant in India, perhaps second only to the lotus. It helps elevate the vibe (forehead/6th chakra focus) and has a well-earned reputation for being helpful for anxiety and stress. It is considered excellent for almost everyone. The exception would be people with excess heat, because (as a couple in our group observed) it is slightly warmer than neutral. It is supportive for brain fog from various causes (there were many areas where ). Some experienced a focus on the nose and ears. In Chinese medicine, these correlate with the lungs and kidneys. In Ayurvedic medicine, tulsi is used for respiratory conditions, including clearing mucus (expectorant), generally reducing inflammation, and through its antibacterial properties. The herb is also used to support the kidneys by improving blood pressure, reducing uric acid in the bloodstream (this herb generally tidies up the blood), detoxifying, and is kidney-protective. 

Like other basils the leaves tend to go black in spots--this signature of decay (also on plants like bananas) is an indicator of being supportive for cancer or having anti-tumor properties (do careful research for specific needs). 

Tulsi also helps expel gas, improving digestion. :)

Okay, now we have a lot of imagery about cats and sons (both songs were about being a son). In Cat's in the Cradle was written by Sandy Chapin (the performer's wife) about the relationship between a politician and his son (her father was a politician). Cat's in the cradle is an idiom referring to someone who writes a million rainchecks. The song also refers to silver spoons (born into wealth). It illustrates the impacts of familial disconnection due to the pull of one's career, and a son who seeks to become just like his father, even though he barely knows him. In How Soon is Now, the story is of 'the son and heir of nothing in particular' who seems to feel lonely, isolated, unfairly judged, is shy, and wants love. In this context, I associate cats with killing for sport, bullying, and 'fat cats' (bosses with the ability to reward themselves with more money--like our CEOs and especially, oligarchs). 

First off, I want to say that holy basil is helpful for stress and anxiety, whether chronic or acute, including mass hysteria. By raising the vibration and calming the person or group of people using it, it can help deal with fat cats dominating the world. We have to have our wits about us to avoid marching straight into the cat's mouth.

Secondly, the songs and cat metaphor point to some seriously destructive psychological challenges involving the male psyche. Tones of incel discontent (Smith's), privileged men from absent fathers, world domination for no good reason (Cat's Cradle in the Kurt Vonnegut sense is a misguided search for meaning in a world of falsehoods).

I use this herb in Guerrilla Puffs herbal smokes to support managing mass hysteria and media-perpetuated fear campaigns. I created the blend during the chaos and fear at the beginning of Trump's first term. 

I liked this information coming through because I have been hoping for more herbs and remedies that support healing problematic male emotional patterns or promote excellent male behavior (like fox! Read about fox here, buy Fox Energy here). So thank you to the group and Tulsi!

Invitation

Please share your experiences in the comments below.

Try Holy Basil in Tulsi and Rose tea 

If you would like to learn more, watch the Holy Basil video (Freedom Quilt Teachings)