Painting by Deborah Lynn Thomsen
St. Teresa of Avila (1515 - 1582) was a remarkable woman and after a near death experience, a spiritual awakening began, in which she cultivated a system of meditation, that sought quieting the mind to such an extent that God could be heard speaking. She had a great desire for learning and when the Inquisition, in 1559, forbade women to read, Teresa turned to God and asked Him to teach her soul about divine love. She then began to write from her own experience verses dogma. Most of what we see from her writing today is probably reigned way back, as her writing fell into the hands of those who opposed her work through out her life.
She uses nature in all of it's complexity, often to help us understand the human experience. Deepak Chopra has a quote that expands on this. "The force fields of Nature are the force fields of Consciousness. They are force fields of Knowledge".
The following poem is by St. Teresa of Avila
In A Way The Grain Can Feel
Remember, God, that we are the plants in your fields
so connected to the
earth
that you know what would happen
if you did not rain
upon us.
And if your light ceased to lift us from the ground
and craft our bodies,
how might we near you like the
suns?
Remember, God to love us in a way
our souls can taste
and rejoice
in.
Yes, "Remember, God to love us in a way our souls can taste". I think there is an important distinction between soul and spirit. A quick definition: Soul is concerned with the human condition and desires to dive-in deeply and experience all of it. Spirit desires to transcend the human condition and leave behind everything that makes it messy.
One of the most powerful tools in exploring and making the soul whole, is nature in the form of food. We will explore the gifts of a few grains today
Farro
Promotes loving inclusion of others and positive expectation of goodwill combined with the ability to trust. Helps erase unfair projection and the expectation of antagonism from others.
Millet
Promotes a well-developed sense of individuality balanced with how to interact within group dynamics.
There is a food that resonates to every aspect of the human condition. One of the joys of human incarnation is learning the language of Nature and using her gifts consciously!
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If this topic interests you, you can read more in my book Vibrational Nutrition: Understanding the Energetic Signature of Foods
Or to explore Nature through the lens of essential oils and vibrational essences you can visit us here
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Candice Covington is a certified aromatherapist, massage therapist, healing arts master, and energy worker. A former instructor at Ashmead College and former aromatherapist for the Chopra Center, she is the founder of Divine Archetypes, an essential oil and flower essence company, and the author of Essential Oils in Spiritual Practice. She lives on a farmette in Oregon City, Oregon.