“i am scraping vanilla and thinking of him”

~ Moonhold by Lubomira Kourteva

If you’ve read any of my books you know how much I love scents and to use images of words to invoke the senses. And if you know me in real life you know how much I love to experience myself through the senses. I love touching fabrics and textures – silk and cashmere, the surfaces of wooden tables, rugged rocks and smooth pebbles outside in nature, and touching the petals and leaves of beautiful flowers. I love the taste of chocolate on my tongue, I love long baths in oils, and I love vanilla candles scenting the entire house.

While many people are often motivated to develop their intuitive and psychic abilities, what I often tell my clients is that the path of intuitive development first begins with the five senses. Once we sharpen those, it is natural for other senses to open up for us – and they do, inevitably.

Our five senses are also an amazing and creative way to deepen intimacy with our partner, or with ourselves. I’ve written on this in The Art of Nurturing Intimacy, Sensory Awakening Ritual for Couples, How to Awaken The Sensual Self, The Body Love Ritual, and How to Nurture Connection using our Sense of Touch.

We can also use oils and scents to invoke certain feelings and emotions, or to cleanse our aura, as discussed in The Art of Spiritual Baths. This is because our sense of smell, as discussed below, is very powerfully connected to our emotional body. Many natural healers and doulas, also recommend fertility bath rituals for women wanting to conceive, when a blend of love, passion and fertility oils stimulate the senses and invite the powers of expansive energy, opens the heart fully to attract and draw in – while also soothe and relax the nerves and worries that women may feel. I discuss some of this in Spirit Babies and Conscious Conception.

Our senses are also what grounding techniques are based on. If you think about it, grounding essentially means to come back to the present moment – which means embodiment. And there is no quicker way to ground ourselves than through our senses. Working with the senses is also one of the key components of Feminine Embodiment – and invoking feminine energy. As women, we connect and align to our natural rhythm through our senses and learning how to work with them. The list of benefits for our well-being goes on and on and on.

A responsibility goes with all in life, in that we need to understand how energy works, and the purpose of the tools we have. Senses can be our greatest allies, but they can also be used against us, to trap us in our lower chakras, if we don’t understand our true inner power. So what we have to remember is that through mastering and understanding how we can work with our senses – that they are precious and powerful tools for tuning the body and energy into more alignment, to set our spirit free and access our inner self more deeply, we can then use them for a more fulfilling experience and real empowerment. Otherwise, we become trapped and vulnerable to manipulation and control from the external environment.

Let’s begin. 

Perfume oils, body oils, candles, flowers … I love it all. And even now as I write this my candle burns and scents the entirety of this room. Vanilla is my favourite. Always, always, always. Most people know me as this sweet scent, because this scent surrounds me as I meet them. The question always is: What is this perfume you are wearing? It’s just vanilla oil. Well, and a few other magical ingredients blended into it. And as I am getting (super super super) excited to launch my own magical perfume oils, all handmade and very special, let’s talk scent today.

It is said that the birth of perfume dates back to the Stone Age, when aromatic wood and resins were burned to honor deities and Goddesses. Surviving Sumerian texts from around 3500 BC write on the many mystical and medicinal uses of aromatic ointments, oils and perfumes. 

Photographed above is my time spent in one of the most precious perfumeries Havana 1791 in Havana, Cuba. Perfumes arrived in the port of Havana in the 17th century, though even long before then, women would adorn themselves in scents. They would usually use sachets of mint leaves and petals of roses, violets, and any other aromatic plants they could find, to wear on their garments.   

I remembered as I approached the perfumerie’s 18th century building, I was immediately enchanted by the rich aromas of jasmine, rose, violets, orange blossoms, patchouli, lilac, lavender and sandalwood … Walking in was like heaven – with flower petals across some of the back rooms, where oils were made and blended in many delightful and delicious ways. There I dreamt I’d have my own perfumerie someday. 

Our Sense of Smell

Our olfactory sense, or sense of smell, is perhaps one of our most powerful. The oldest and strongest form of memory actually occurs in the olfactory bulb – it is this that gives so much power of connecting us to the liminal, to spirit, to soul memory, and to lineage. To past lives too, if that’s something you believe in. You know this: Each time you smell something familiar, you go right there, all the way back to the moment when that thing happened. Scents open doors. And we enter these doors, and time doesn’t exist. There are no clocks. All is unclockable in these emotional and spiritual wild lands.

This is one the most powerful ways to work with our sense of smell – because it is so deeply connected to our emotional body and memories. Memories are like batteries. We enter doorways through senses – and in these rooms, we conjure feelings, experiences, thoughts and emotions. When we know which door to open, we can invoke specific moods into our life. So if I have a great memory with the scent of apples, every time I smell apples, I’ll feel that thing I did way back when. This is great for self-care and mood enhancers, because knowing ourselves and our minds and our memories, we can use specific senses, whether music, scents, images, to put ourselves in a good mood when we are feeling down. 

In many Indigenous cultures, Eastern beliefs and magical practices, people build relationships to the otherworld by olfactive offerings. Depending on the intention, is how you pick the herbs and oils and fruits that are associated with these vibrations and resonances. This gift helps to form and build a bridge of connection and reciprocity. It is considered a ritual to offer something when entering a temple, in exchange for the gift of peace and harmony that you will receive in that space. This exchange of energy, of giving and receiving, is what essentially builds the bridge of connection and begins the language with that which cannot speak.

Scent is very important in aligning to our natural rhythm. With so many harmful contents and toxins in cosmetics, food, house cleaning supplies, and don’t even get me started on the toxins in contraceptives, our hormonal health is constantly disrupted, and our bodies can become too numbed in our senses. It is a well known fact that we choose potential partners based on their body scent – and if our senses are off, well … yeah. But that’s another topic.

When it comes to scent, and anything else in life, one thing to remember is to follow what feels good for you. You don’t have to surround yourself with all the fragrances mentioned below – find the ones that you truly love. Remember: Align to your own natural rhythm which is unique to you

Each scent is traditionally associated with particular emotions and body organs – which is why scents also have many medicinal and wellness benefits – but it is also why they provoke very powerful memories within us, from our deep subconscious. So while for someone jasmine oil might be seductive, for another, it may provoke some uncomfortable feelings with intimacy. For them, perhaps something else will be more arousing. Patchouli may be a powerful aphrodisiac, but perhaps for you, it invokes not so great emotions. So follow your own inner guidance, always. 

In general, it is believed that we are attracted to those scents that we are currently aligned to, or are pulling into our aura, or are already in our energy field, or we want to embrace more; while those scents that we feel an aversion to are usually those we have current resistances to, or just those we are not focused on. And this changes through the years and months.

For example, maybe sometimes you love patchouli, but then one day you wake up and you suddenly dislike it. Don’t force yourself to like it. Use scent as guidance to your natural rhythm, and as a deepening of understanding of your body’s language – and current state of being. The body is intuitive and knows, always, what it needs.

Trust your flow, follow the scent. 

Invoke love, passion and intimacy with these scents

I love working with love scents because they are just absolutely pleasant. Not only are they used to invoke and nurture sweetness of pleasure between couples, but for own selves, it arouses creativity, femininity, and a lot of love and beauty. Like I shared in Spirit Babies and Conscious Conception, oils are great to use for couples to deepen their intimacy. Fertility oils are very much like the love, attraction, passion and sex oils – because the scent is meant to awaken and increase our sexual energy, which is also our life force and creative energy. They stimulate our senses and sacral chakra, and inspire more heart-openness, sensuality and love making. It is important for us as women to feel sexy in our own skins, as well as to feel adored, loved, inspired and desired.

There are many scents that enhance our love life, and they can be either used as oils – perfume oils, bath oils, body oils – or as essences, candles, in herbal teas, or just as flowers around the house. In general, love, passion and fertility scents are: vanilla, cacao (chocolate), jasmine, rose, ylang ylang, lavender, apples, raspberry, citrus (lemon, orange, grapefruit), damiana, sandalwood, pine and eucalyptus, geranium, cinnamon, and strawberry.

Today, I’ll share the magical properties of the most famous six sensual ones – those loved and used for centuries, as well as their stories of myth and lore, and the many ways of uses: vanilla, jasmine, ylang ylang, patchouli, raspberry and wild roses

Vanilla

Ah, vanilla. My eternal beloved. Unmistakable. Undeniable. Undoutedly and inevitably, it seduces us in a way not much else can. Candles, deserts, perfume oils, bath oils, body oils, body butters, massage oils – this sweet aroma is enchanting and used in anything and everything since perhaps the beginning of its time. Believe it or not, vanilla and cinnamon are the two most common scents used in magical practices, spiritual work, religious ceremonies and sacraments.   

I am all about vanilla. It is in my candles, in my deserts, ice cream and hot drinks, and it is my perfume oil – it is my scent

The botanical name for this delicious beauty is Vanilla planifolia.  This tasty bean comes to us from a species of Orchid, and can be used in your kitchen magick and elsewhere. The original Vanilla orchids were cultivated by Ancient Mexicans and were not used for eating at all but instead an aphrodisiac and a beauty aid. The pods were woven into the hair of young women to attract lovers. 

Today, vanilla is grown in many regions around the world. The most common varieties of Vanilla are Bourbon vanilla, cultivated mainly in Madagascar, Mexican vanilla and Tahitian vanilla. Vanilla is the second most expensive spice in the world, with saffron being the most expensive. This is because the process of producing vanilla fruit is very labor-intensive – from seed to harvest and beyond.

Vanilla is associated with the water element and the planet of Venus, and as such, it is usually found in rituals connected to love, attraction, fertility, desire, and anything to improve the powers of the mind, create clarity and clear vision, as well as for money working, and to create a soothing, calming and self empowering atmosphere.

Vanilla’s rich and deeply sensual and seductive scent makes it a well known and very powerful aphrodisiac. It invokes sensuality, sexuality, love, intimacy and romance – as well as feelings of peace, relaxation and serenity. Vanilla also enhances emotional growth and is a heart-opener.

In the old days, and today still, natural healers recommend it for love and fertility, as its aphrodisiac properties stimulate the senses and relax any tensions.  It was also a well known practice for people to smudge their bedrooms with vanilla and a few other special ingredients to invite and enchant their lover into devotion. Especially if blended with rose or rose petals, it also keeps negative energies away, while the fires of love continue to burn passionately – and the union is inspired by mutual joy and happiness. Adding cinnamon will usually clear any energetic blocks and raise the vibration further.

Around 95% of vanilla products on the market contain zero actual vanilla. They use only a flavouring derived from lignins instead. Vanilla remains a really hard oil to obtain – which contributes to its precious qualities. And it still needs to be harvested by hand – if the vanilla beans are harvested too early, they lack flavour, and if harvested too late, they split open and are considered lower quality. Furthermore, it takes 9 months for a vanilla bean to ripen when it’s ready to be picked.

An interesting fact is that vanilla flowers must be pollinated within 12 hours of opening, or they won’t produce vanilla beans. This reminds us of the rarity of love, and that once we find it as must treasure it. Contrary to popular belief and the overuse of the word, soulmates are rare. Their love goes beyond anything we might imagine, and they immediately surrender in the powerful intoxicating sweetness of their love, desire, complete devotion and fidelity. In the ancient mystical texts it is said that once they meet it’d be hard for them to focus on anything else, so this is why it is rare to meet.

The white blossoms of the vanilla also remind us of the purity needed even along the most sensual of walks. Love itself is like the Eternal Virgin. The Eternal Virgin is the energy of that which does not transform because of the external world – she may be swayed, yes, but she stays true to herself, to her essence, and will shift only if she herself decides to – only if she is stirred by the wildish soul of her true lover – comparable to her in energy, scent of essence, and heart’s purity.

This is vanilla. Eternal. Unmistakable. It is love.

Jasmine

The word jasmine comes from the word “Yasmin” which translates to “gift from God” and it was named because of it’s amazing scent. It’s also sometimes called Queen of the Night.

As a perfume, jasmine is prized quite expensive because it takes around 7.6 million flowers to produce 1kg of jasmine essential oil. If the flowers are bruised or even slightly damaged, this may lessen the oil yield and the scent, so extreme care must be taken when harvesting.

When it comes to oils, there are two main kinds of jasmine: jasmine sambac and jasmine grandiflorum. Sambac blooms late in the evenings and its scent is deep, exotic, a little musky and very sensual. It is mainly found in the Philippines, throughout Indonesia and India. Because of its nightly bloom, jasmine sambac is also called Queen of the Night. Grandiflorum is a gentler and softer scent, and more floral in comparison to sambac; it blooms at dawn, and is often called Arabian jasmine. A famous region for making jasmine absolute from jasmine grandiflorum is Egypt.

Sometimes when people say night jasmine,  they refer to night-blooming jessamine, or lady-of-the-night (Cestrum nocturnum), which is technically not true jasmine – but it is often what is used in perfume oils and fragrances. Night jasmine is very strong, sweet and dreamy – like a mixture of jasmine, apple and musk – and it is a tropical plant native to the Caribbean and the West Indies that was discovered not so long ago. Its blooms open at night and the scent is incredibly strong, deep and rich. For this reason, it is usually used as a complement to other oil blends and perfumes, rather than as a top note.

The night opening jasmine sambac, or even night blooming jasmine, are incredible additions to any moon garden. It scents the gardens so sweetly, that poets have long been enchanted by it. I think of night jasmine as the Scheherazade of flowers – it awakens its body under the starlit skies, to enchant us with tales of love and romance.

The medicinal benefits of jasmine, when used as tea or aromatherapy, include: stress relieve, increased sexual desire, menstrual cramps alleviation, antioxidant benefits, anti-bacterial benefits, may help with skin inflamation, and helps strengthen the immune system.

For tea particularly, consider Butterfly Jasmine – which is a jasmine green tea with a sweet seductive aroma. Handpicked from the Fujian region in China, the tea leaves are layered with fresh jasmine petals for a sweet floral scent, and then shaped into little butterflies that unfold while they steep. It’s considered one of the finest jasmine teas. Another one of my favourite jasmine teas is blending white tea, green tea and jasmine pearls with peach and white hibiscus blossoms.

Jasmine is a powerful magical plant – and it’s been used in love rituals for many centuries. Because of its association with purity, gentleness and spirituality, it is often used for soulmate love or spiritual love. It also promotes sensuality, fertility, beauty, prosperity, happiness, healing, and magical dreams – due to its association to the Moon.

Jasmine and ylang ylang blend beautifully well to create bath oils – and it is one of my favourite bath oils that I use constantly. The gentless of the jasmine marries the depth of lusty scent from the ylang ylang, and this stimulates all love and desire senses.

As perfume oil, I would suggest adding rose to the mix of night jasmine and ylang ylang for a sweet seduction.

Many love potions, oils and fertility baths use jasmine, particularly Egyptian jasmine, in their blends along with passion flowers, damiana (a very strong aphrodisiac), patchouli, French neroli, and various roses such as the Bulgarian rose (known for its seductive sweet scent).

In Astrology, Jasmine corresponds to the sign of Cancer, the Moon, and Venus and Aphrodite. It is, as such, of the water feminine element, and its crystals are rose quartz and moonstone.

Ylang Ylang

The first time I knowingly came across ylang ylang was when I bought my jasmine & ylang ylang bath oil, and wow did I fall in love with it! It is exotic, deep, sensual and floral, perhaps a little similar to notes of night jasmine, French neroli and banana. It’s described as fiery, seductive, heavy, sweet, passionate, feminine and seductive.

It is known as one of the most powerful aphrodisiacs, and similar to vanilla and patchouli, it stimulates the erotic senses of both men and women, which makes it quite special for any love invocation and making.

Ylang ylang is a tropical tree indigenous to Asia, especially Indonesia. Its name “ylang-ylang” means “the flowers of flowers” in Malay. For centuries, its sweet delicious aphrodisiac properties were used in fertility and love rituals, potions and lotions, as it is known stimulate sexual desire. 

The oil has many therapeutic benefits as well. It is known to relieve stress and inspire feelings of deep relaxation. It is very soothing and calmness, contributing to general well-being.

Ylang ylang is a feminine yin oil, so you can use it to inspire your own yin energy.

It blends beautifully with jasmine, patchouli, sandalwood, rose and bergamot – to create bath oils, perfumes, and love charms.

Due to its soothing properties, it increases self-confidence and opens the heart in order to attract the love one wishes and wants. Its sensual and erotic scent makes it perfect for massages and tantric rituals with your partner. And it is also very effective for dispelling negative emotions such as jealousy, frustration, anger and insecurity which prevents one to move on, or from love to move forward.       

Patchouli

Another well known and powerful aphrodisiac is patchouli. While the scent is rather musky, woody and earthy, and not for everyone’s likes on its own, it blends really sweetly and sensually with rose, jasmine, sandalwood and neroli. 

Patchouli’s strong scent often evokes feelings of nostalgia, passion and relaxation all at once. Whether you like it or not, and most people either love it or hate it, one thing is for certain: You will notice it when it enters your doorway. Few scents provoke such extreme reactions.

It’s long been used in magic and ceremonies for love, lust and fertility across Asia and the world – though it is also a powerful money attractor. People would often place patchouli dried leaves in their wallets to attract money, prosperity and abundance.

Patchouli is an ancient Indian healing herb that has long been used for spiritual and medicinal purposes. Patchouli comes from the Hindustan word “pacholi” meaning “to scent”, and Indian shawls and fabrics were scented with patchouli oil.

Medicinally, patchouli has been used to treat stomach and skin ailments for centuries. It can be used to treat inflammation, provide antibacterial properties and help to protect the skin from sun damage as well as being a powerful insect repellant.

More than anything, it is known for its magical uses to love, lust, fertility and prosperity invocation rituals. When it comes to love and attraction magical uses, it is always preferable to combine it with some other oils such as rose, or in a bath with rose petals, to ensure a more true and lasting love union. In itself, patchouli is more of a lusty scent, that induces and attracts deep sensuality but not really true long-lasting love.

Patchouli has been used in fertility ceremonies for centuries, where it is often times coupled with sandalwood. As fertility is also connected to creativity, since we not only birth children but also creative ideas and projects, it is also a powerful creative aphrodisiac.

Contrary to most other oils, patchouli smells better with age.

Spiritually, patchouli brings a sense of the sacredness of life.  It is also a fragrance of action, knowing that no ideal will occur unless we take the first steps to make it happen. Patchouli reminds us that sitting quietly under a tree is good because it too has a purpose – the purpose of appreciating and connecting to our inner wisdom.

Sitting under a tree allows for the contemplation of what we can to care more for ourselves and others. As these thoughts of more caring enter our spirit, so too the caring for the tree that shelters us and for all else. Interconnection occurs, and we realize it is all one, not bound to any human boundaries. As such, patchouli is often said to be of the Angelic fragrances.

It is associated with the earthy feminine element, and the deities Aphrodite and Hades, and some people associate it with the sign of Scorpio and the planets Saturn and Venus.

I personally find that it blends beautifully, and very powerfully, with rose, particularly Bulgarian rose, Turkish rose, Rose de Mai and Moroccan rose.

Raspberry

Raspberry is not only one of my favourite fruits, and one that I grew up with because we were surrounded by raspberry bushes at my great-grandparents’ house, but it truly is such a precious oil. The leaves of it can be used as tea – which has many benefits, and is particularly recommended by doulas for pregnant women, but also for all women for their overall well-being. Then, there’s raspberry oils for the body which are packed with vitamins – Andean raspberry oil is amazing for the skin.

And then, there’s the magic.

For centuries the scent of raspberries has been known to stimulate our “love senses” and used in magic practices to attract love and passion, increase fertility, abundance, and to bind fidelity.

In the old days, newly weds would actually sew raspberry leaves into their mattress so that they would bind their marriage with long-term passion, love and fidelity.

In Germany, raspberry was used to tame bewitched horses by tying a bit of the cane to the horse’s body.

Raspberry magic is the magic of patience in love, intimacy and fertility. First year canes do not produce fruit but are essential to the fertility of the plant, establishing her root system and filling her canes with the strength and energy she’ll need. After the cane has weathered a year, she’s ready to bloom and fruit.

Raspberry reminds us that patience, maturity and a kindness of rhythm are essential for any making of love, and any creative project. 

Raspberry, like her cousin Rose, remind us of the gentleness needed in our steps, in our lips and tongues and hands, when we weave magic and love in our every day life. It offers us an opportunity for a deepening of understanding – when we approach all and everything with patient, loving care – because all has its own timing, and if we eat it before it’s ripe, our tummies will hurt. 

In Astrology, raspberry is considered a feminine plant, and is connected to Venus and to the water element. 

Wild Roses

Ah, roses. The sacred love flowers that have a history and myth as old and ancient as humanity itself.

Upon the first moment man laid eyes on the wild rose – love fulfilled its destiny … to experienced itself in the heart of human beings. Heavens kissed the earth. The spiritual and the sacred married the earthly and the physical. 

If vanilla is my favourite scent, wild roses are my favourite flowers. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve been completely in love with them. I dreamt of having my own rose garden one day, just like Kai and Gerda did in the story of The Snow Queen.

As we’ll now delve into the stories of love and magic they hold, featured are my wild roses.  

Rose oils are certainly quite strong and to be honest I don’t really like many of them. Somehow they rarely if ever can capture the scent of the wild roses, though of course, there are many, many kinds of roses. Some are sweeter, others not so much.

In perfumes and oils, we usually find Bulgarian rose, Turkish rose, Rose de Mai and Moroccan rose. As I am Bulgarian, I can share from experience that the rose valley in Bulgaria is not only world-renowned but it is truly beautiful.

The Bulgarian rose, or Rosa Damascena, has been cultivated in the Bulgarian Rose Valley for over 300 years, and is considered the best oil-bearing rose worldwide. It is velvety and darker than the Turkish and May rose, invoking deep ecstatic sensuality due to its seductive sweet scent.  

If you don’t like the scent of rose oils, consider using rose petals in your magical makings of love. You can make your own bath salts – mixing rose petals, preferably organic from your garden, in your sea salts. Or you can buy a bouquet of roses, let it beautify your home, and they begin to shed their petals in offerings to you – receive them, gather them, and then use them to sprinkle in your bath tub the next time you have a bath.

Another way to use ross is in tea. Black tea particularly goes really nicely with rose buds, and you can also try them with white or jasmine tea also.

Since roses have a very powerful energy, you can even have photos or paintings of them, to invoke their beauty and love into your home.

Medicinally, roses are known for their anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. They have been used for centuries to help treat and prevent infections because of their antiseptic properties, and were even used to treat sore throats. Rose hips are also high in Vitamin C.

Magically, they have been used for love rituals, raising sexual energy and in fertility baths, strengthening of protection, and enhancing female intuition.

These flowers have been considered sacred, going all the way back to Ancient Egypt, when royalty would be adorned with them as protection.

They were the sacred flower of Aphrodite, the soul breathing life into the desires of the heart between Eros and Psyche, the way of love for Kai and Gerga, the sacredness of heart’s tears to bring in new life for the nightingale, the true love of the Little Prince, and the Christ blood and sacredness for the Virgin Mary.

Roses open hearts to welcome in more love, more truth, more beauty. They hold powerful energy and are always used in love oils and fertility baths, as well as religious rituals and ceremonies from around the world.

For fertility baths, or spiritual love baths, you can blend roses with sea salts, and oils of damiana, passion flowers and jasmine.

For love, eros, and heart opening oils, you can blend roses from Bulgaria, Turkey and Morocco with violets, jasmine, patchouli, sandalwood and other florals.

The Symbolism of the Rose 

The symbol of the rose is very powerful, yet it almost goes unnoticed sometimes, perhaps because roses were commonly used in literature. In esotericism, the rose’s petals actually form the womb of Self and are connected to divinity, fertility, birth, devotion, divine love and Christ’s passion for humanity.

Roses are the birth flowers of June and are connected to the elements of water and the planet of Venus.

Roses have always represented the deepest and truest love of all.

Roses also feature in many tales and myths, and my favourite is connected to the love story of Eros (Cupid) and Psyche. Following the romantic wedding of the two lovers, the Graces (Zeus’ daughters), being so happy and all, made the entire earth glow with roses.

This becomes even more meaningful when we understand that Psyche is the embodiment of the soul, also known as the breath of life, and she marries Eros, or Cupid, who is the God of love and desire.

When we breathe life into the desires of our soul, when we marry our beloved, when soul merges with love, roses grow and adorn the earth. 

The rose is also connected to the Christ Consciousness which is the stream of consciousness resonating at the highest frequency of unconditional love, kindness, compassion, appreciation, gratitude, charity, empathy, surrender, grace, forgiveness, trust, loyalty and faith. It is the stream of consciousness through which masters and higher souls such as Jesus Christ and Buddha incarnated.

In the story The Snow Queen, it is Gerda who is the embodiment of all of these qualities, because she retains her true sense of self despite the challenges she faces – just like a rose is a rose is a rose. When she finally finds Kai, and the love and warmth of her tears melt the ice away from his frozen heart – they reunite, and their love makes their roses bloom on their rooftop garden.

This reminds us that the biggest power and magic of all is in the purity of our heart – it is the power of love. 

And the magic woman said,

“Yes, I can tie all the winds and storms with a single thread. But I cannot give her any greater power that what she has already. Don’t you see how strong that is? How men and flowers and animals serve her, and how well she got through the world, barefoot as she is? She cannot receive any power greater than she now has, which is held in her own purity and innocence of heart. It is only this love that can defeat snow kingdoms and melt the ice from Kay’s heart. And even with all my magic, I bow to such power.”

Just like Gerda, we won’t always know where we are going nor why, but we can consciously choose to put on our bright new red shoes and try to listen to the river. There is too much unknowns in this world, and in life, but we decide to walk anyway and we do our best to follow the truth of our heart. Our feet will get tired and we might feel lost and discouraged along the way. There are too many questions our mind will ask and we will rarely have the answers. But that’s okay. We were never meant to know it all anyway. 

Roses are capricious little creatures, yes. They are hard to grow and hard to bloom, yes, and all we can do is provide the needed environment with our caring and loving hands. From our nurturing, something of a heart opening will come. It’s inevitable. 

The thorns of roses remind us that love is not a thing to be possessed. And that while we need our armours, for they too have a purpose, we also need to know when and for whom to take it off. We need to keep our inside soft – as this is the real strength and real courage, especially in times like today. And remember that the remedy to a heart hardened is water – it is a softening in the way of water, in the way of love and tenderness, with a kindness and compassion of rhythm.

While our vulnerability and tenderness are not meant to be shared with anyone – when you do meet the one for you, your right one, the man of your heart,

                                          say yes to love.   

And when he asks to know you, open to him like a flower and tell him. Tell him your wisdoms, desires and mystical secrets. Tell him not because – but because his soul asked you to.  

It was late last November, when I noticed wild roses blooming again – it was as if they were conviced it was spring. The weather was cold, it had even lightly snowed. And still – the roses bloomed. Their gentle bodies of stem were holding on holding strong, and their petals were wide opened, in love’s certainty and deep knowing.

When it’s time, it’s time.

It doesn’t matter if we think the soil is ready or not, if it makes sense or not, if things look messy or undone, when it’s time, it’s time. Our soul knows. Our heart knows. Our bodies awaken to this inner knowing, more ancient than voice and time.

Along our unique physical, spiritual and emotional wildlands, along the twists and curves of the invisible maps and geographies, something more powerful, more ancient than us, older than time, from a time before time beyond time, calls us to the surface, calls us towards itself, towards our destiny, pulling us by the secret threads. And when it’s time, it’s time. We’ll hear its heartbeat at the door. We’ll see it. Like our little wild rose.

That’s how love happens.

Then. Now. Always. 

If you want some personalized guidance on how to make a love bath or spiritual bath ritual, whether for cleansing or drawing in purposes, made specifically for your unique intention and desires, including mantras and prayers, you’re welcome to reach out to me to book a Sacred Session. 

If you are interested in working with me or collaborating in any way, you may reach out to me also. I look forward to connecting with you. 

For more of my writings, browse through my Art of Love.

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