It's been a very nightshade-heavy day; I have a feeling it's going to be a nightshade-heavy night as well. The rain, the recent full moon... various cavalcades, emotional collisions and a serious overdose of brain-intensity these last few days. But, on rare occasions, you ask something and the universe answers you clearly, unequivocally. That is what happened today, regarding the harvesting procedure for Belladonna. While this is a plant I've been enthusiastically growing since May, it is also one of the most formidable presences in my garden; she has serious attitude, intensity, and VERY sharp teeth. Seeing as this is first time I planned to harvest the leaves and use them, I wanted to go about it properly. So I asked & got a very clear sense of what my own "right way" of approaching her would be--without going into great detail, my ritual/harvesting more or less boiled down to stripping naked in the rain, wooing the plant with homegrown tobacco, other appropriate gifts & some eerie singing. My fingers and toes went numb rather quickly, but it was well worth it.... the whole thing left me feeling very connected to the plant in a way I haven't previously. I took a bath in the leaves afterward to thaw out & spent an hour or so languishing in the hot water, watching the room fill with incense and steam--enjoying the intensely powerful, intoxicating embrace (arm-lock? vice-grip?) of Atropa Belladonna.
I was reminded of a particular section of Dale Pendell's beautiful Pharmako/Poeia titled On the Seduction of Angels. Here's a brief excerpt: "Our Way is the seduction of angels. Trouble is, sometimes after you've seduced the angel, you find that is really the angel that has seduced you. Then you find out that the angel has horns. Wonderful hard nubs of goatlike horn beneath her hair. If you are a shaman of our way you don't care. In fact you are delighted. You love the horns. You kiss and fondle them. You weave intimate designs upon them. And are given woven charms in return."
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