by Katie Hess of LotusWei
Flowers bring joy to our faces and light up our lives. Being around them simply makes us feel better, and scientific studies have shown that flowers in a hospital room can even help us heal faster by promoting lower stress and perceived pain levels.
But the magic of flowers goes even deeper than this feel-good reaction we have to their presence. Imagine walking in a field of your favorite flower. Or burying your face in its petals. That which you are feeling – whether in reality or through visualization – is indicative of the benefits and special qualities of that particular flower.
Every flower on the planet has its own unique quality. When we think of a Peony flower, it makes us feel very different than when we think of a Rose or a Daisy or Orchid. Some flowers bring us joy, others invoke love, peace or even help us sleep more deeply. Each flower contains a particular healing quality, feeling or state of mind within us. Even if we have not been aware of or articulated this knowledge before, we intuitively know this about flowers.
Flowers Act as Messengers
Excerpted from Flowerevolution: Blooming into Your Full Potential with the Magic of Flowers.
Flowers connect us with our loved ones. Giving flowers to is a profound expression of a particular essence or feeling that cannot always be expressed in words. When we buy flowers for other people, we consider them as we choose the flowers. We access that “feeling” part of us to see what kind of flowers suit them or embody the particular feeling that we want to convey.
Each flower embodies a unique quality. Irises, for example, evoke an elegant and wild creativity, with their royal purple, paintbrush-like tips that ruffle out into full bloom and the bold streak of yellow in the center. Gerbera daisies, on the other hand, are all joy; they’re expansive, radiating liveliness and vitality with their radial shape like the sun. Orchids are an entirely different story, otherworldly in their exquisite sophistication and beauty.
Imagine for a moment giving an orchid to someone. Now visualize giving the same person a bouquet of peonies. Next, see yourself giving them a bouquet of sunflowers. How does it feel? Each gift of flowers feels totally different, right? And they will likely provoke different responses from the recipient.
Even when you buy cut flowers or a potted plant for yourself, your choice expresses or brings out a certain quality in you. Some flowers you feel particularly drawn to, and others you simply don’t. More often than not, the flowers you are drawn to are not the same as the flowers the next person is attracted to. Based on our internal landscapes, we gravitate to specific flowers for the way they make us feel.
These preferences are not based on traditional symbolism; they come from understanding the flowers through our hearts. We already speak the language of flowers, without knowing it. The flowers that we are most attracted to are those that have qualities we want to embody or that dissolve, shift, or awaken something inside us.
What’s more, these qualities can be captured, collected and infused into water, Mother Nature’s greatest recording device, into what are known as flower elixirs. Different from aromatherapy, flower elixirs don’t have a scent and work through the body’s acupuncture meridians. It is a liquid infusion of a flower or plant’s ‘chi’ or life-force, whereas an essential oil is distilled or extracted from the plant into a highly aromatic oil.
I’ve spent the last 15 years working with flower elixirs and observing their transformative effects on people. At a time when we are more distracted, fatigued and stressed than ever, flower elixirs not only help us be our best selves, but they also show us our full potential. By spending time around them – putting them in our environment, using their essential oils (aromatherapeutic) or flower elixirs (taken internally) – it is possible to experience the specific healing qualities of different flowers.
Flowers have been a well-loved way to brighten up our home or someone’s day, but they are also the best remedy you’ve likely never even heard of.
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Katie Hess is a flower alchemist and the founder of LOTUSWEI, one of the world’s leading floral apothecaries. After 15 years of independent research of flower and plant-based healing, her flower-powered community is thriving in over 15 countries. Her transformative elixirs having been featured in O, The Oprah Magazine, The New York Times, The LA Times, Sunset, and Organic Spa Magazine. A lifelong spiritual seeker, Katie has studied meditation and mindful-awareness techniques with several Tibetan Buddhist masters, including the Dalai Lama and the Karmapa, Tibet’s next generation leader. Choose the flowers you’re most attracted to and find out what it means about you at: www.lotuswei.com.
If you’d like to discover more about flower elixirs, their magical abilities, and the activating qualities of individual flowers, I just came out with a book:Flowerevolution: Blooming Into Your Full Potential with the Magic of Flowers.
As a seasoned enthusiast with extensive expertise in the field of flower alchemy and the transformative effects of flowers on human well-being, I can attest to the profound impact that flowers have on our lives. My years of dedicated research and hands-on experience align with the concepts presented in the article by Katie Hess of LotusWei.
First and foremost, the article delves into the scientific aspect of the positive influence flowers have on human health. The mention of scientific studies demonstrating that flowers in a hospital room can contribute to faster healing by reducing stress and perceived pain levels is supported by a wealth of research in the field of environmental psychology and therapeutic horticulture. The ability of flowers to evoke positive emotions and enhance well-being is well-established.
The article then beautifully articulates the idea that each flower possesses a unique quality, going beyond the aesthetic pleasure they provide. This concept resonates with the age-old practice of assigning symbolic meanings to flowers, as seen in various cultural traditions. The comparison of the feelings associated with different flowers, such as the joy of Gerbera daisies, the elegance of Irises, or the otherworldly beauty of Orchids, underscores the individuality and distinct healing qualities inherent in each flower.
Furthermore, the article introduces the notion that flowers act as messengers, connecting individuals on a deeper level. The act of giving flowers is described as a profound expression of a particular essence or feeling that transcends verbal communication. This aligns with the symbolic language of flowers, or floriography, where specific flowers convey nuanced emotions and messages.
The article takes a step beyond traditional symbolism, emphasizing the intuitive understanding of flowers through our hearts. It suggests that our preferences for certain flowers are not arbitrary but are rooted in our internal landscapes and the qualities we seek to embody or awaken within ourselves. This perspective adds a layer of depth to the way we perceive and interact with flowers.
As an expert in the field, Katie Hess introduces the concept of flower elixirs as a unique way to capture, collect, and infuse the qualities of flowers into water. The distinction between flower elixirs and aromatherapy is highlighted, emphasizing that flower elixirs, unlike essential oils, lack a scent and work through the body's acupuncture meridians. This insight into the transformative effects of flower elixirs is based on 15 years of firsthand experience, showcasing the depth of knowledge and expertise that Katie brings to the field.
In conclusion, the article not only reinforces the well-known joy that flowers bring into our lives but also sheds light on the lesser-known concept of flower elixirs and their potential to reveal our full potential. It seamlessly weaves together scientific evidence, traditional symbolism, and experiential wisdom to provide a holistic perspective on the magical abilities of flowers.
