AN EXERCISE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND ESSENTIAL OILS
Plants and the oils they produce are magical, as is the universe we evolved with.
Direct Experience is better than a suppliers words.
Less is more until it isn't and balance in everything.
Respecting all life is paramount and a given, as we are all connected.
Essential oils are a personal experience. Aroma is subjective. The science behind them is not simplistic.
"Therapeutic grade" is only marketing hyperbole? Well, one must understand content and context.
The problem is when a company proclaims and markets theirs as being better on this basis.
An essential oil, hydrolat or vegetable / nut oil is real or it is not. Meaning if it was steam, hydro-distilled or cold pressed from a plant or not. If an essential oil, hydrolat or vegetable / nut oil is from real plants and processed as Kobashi products are then they are the best that they can be. There is no such thing as 'therapeutic grade'. A product could have therapeutic action. Yes the correct plant and it's chemical composition matters.
Even though our oils are pure and natural and the best we believe they can be: we don't sell for internal use due to many factors:
1. There is a lot of misinformation on the web.
2. We have many oils and some must never be taken internally, no matter what anyone says. Oils with large amounts of Camphor like light Yarrow or Cineole like Eucalyptus, and there are many others.
3. The dilution ratios vary and most likely should not be more than 0.01%, < > + oil dependent.
4. We will not be responsible for any misuse of our oils.
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We buy the Aloe Juice as food grade and I drink it, but we do not sell as so, as it will be more difficult to ship to many countries. Although the floral water is distilled and could be used in cooking, we do not sell it as such. I have drunk some of the Neroli, Peppermint and Rose Hydrolats, but it is at your own risk if you drink it.
The Rose Otto and Neroli essentialoils are the best on the market and I have used a drop in cakes, but we do not sell as such. Rose Otto has a long history of use in Turkish delight (only the very expense product.)
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I occasionally eat many of our vegetable and fruit nut oils. Any vegetable eaten as an oil, not as the origin plant in a whole food form, is not best for you long term. Oil should only be consumed in the smallest possible quantities.
I personally wouldn't have a problem with using Sea-buckthorne oil on my gums if it did what I wanted it to do. I use our hemp, flax, sunflower, grape-seed and similar. Our Coconut MCT is bought as food grade, as are many other carrier oils and essential oils we purchase.
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I have eaten essential oils very occasionally of lemon, peppermint, all the herb oil, citrus oils and others. Essential oils do not mix in water. I personally put a drop in a carrier oil or Vegan yogurt. Understanding too much may not be beneficial to my natural intestinal bacterial flora. I put 1 drop of lemon, black pepper, thyme and/ or oregano in 100mls carrier oil and vinegar for my salad dressing. I shake well just before applying to salads. That's one drop essential oil in 100mls carrier. I must emphasize that this is what I personally do, but Kobashi Ltd.'s stance is they are not for internal use.
Don't assume anything. I recommend research on this complex subject. Think about the plants humans consume and the amount in one meal, then it could be assumed a similar ratio of the same plants essential oil should be fine. You also have to factor the other elements of the plant will have a more holistic effect when eating. First you would have to know the amount of oil in say Orange or Lemon peels. So you want to make a cake? You may grate the peels and use how much? Let's say there is ~6.5ul (0.0065) of a ml of essential oil in one large lemon. At an average Density:0.854@20°C it will be 0.005551g. The average large Lemon weighs 84grams ~0.005551g of oil. This all depends on the exact size of the Lemon and the exact amount of yield of oil. Yield of oil is different for the same size of lemon harvested at from different conditions.
Yield of oil for each plant species will be different. The chemical composition of each oil is different, and although citrus is similar they will be different.
Understanding essential oils in relation to the mind body and spirit is a lifelong discovery. It can also lead to an endless rabbit hole which with passion is a vocation.
None of the information on Kobashi's sites is meant to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease and is for intellectual purposes only.
As you may or may not know essential oils have been used by humans for 1000's of years. Scientifically their use and understanding of them has accelerated in the last 100 years, as with most things. Most of the drugs of today have been developed from the study of nature and it's multitude of chemicals. As humans want to profit and find balance in the body, mind and spirit, invention snowballs into big business. £100,000's are needed to get into the medical licensing structure. Since natural products are available to anyone who has a garden, isolating, patenting, licensing and marketing are needed to take advantage. Isolation of individual chemicals from a whole plant source doesn't mean they are much better than placebo. This doesn't mean they are better than nature. It could be for an outcome. An action may take place, but contradiction may result for further actions needed. Often these patented, licenced medicines create side effects which then need to be 'treated' with more licenced medicines and around it goes. Who profits? Not saying there are not benefits, but why all the controlling of natural products that have a known historical usage?
Human experience over the thousands of years has brought us to our present state of being. Natural products have many elements which work in concert.
There are a multitude of peer reviewed articles on essential oils/natural products. Search: "scholarly peer reviewed articles essential oils"
Balance and harmony are our ultimate goals. Process is a real time unfolding of who we are in the truth of what works.
A ROAD OF SELF DISCOVERY IN RELATIONSHIP TO ESSENTIAL OILS
It has taken life billions of years to evolve from the simple gases of hydrogen and helium to the complex structures they are today. Today an essential oil can have hundreds of chemical components. We and essential oils have evolved together over the billions of years. We have a certain affinity with each other. Adaptation over time is association in evolution.
We must see the mind, body and spirit for what it is. We then can experience the true nature of all things. Of course this is a process. It doesn't reveal itself from a magic pill. In fact the reliance on the outside reduces our ability to perceive and control our true nature.
Knowing how we really feel before coming in contact with an essential oil gives us a more objective knowledge of an oil. When reading and practicing this technique be aware that your individual moment to moment reality is different to mine. What I am saying in this article is my truthful, moment to moment, stream of consciousness. I could be more general from a depersonalised point of view, you may not be able to relate to what I am saying, but this is not so important.
What is important is knowing how you feel moment to moment. The final outcome of this exercise is the growing ability to recognise and remember the tonal-aroma depth and your psychophysical response to an oil.
Step one: do a personal inventory. Ask yourself how you feel. Verbally say through a stream of consciousness anything you are feeling. Verbalising helps stop the exercise from becoming cerebral. To get to ones instincts one must not just intellectualize; one must incorporate ones feelings, no matter what they are, even if it means to stop reading this because your bored. Example: (My stream of consciousness): "I want you to understand how to do this exercise, my neck and shoulders are a little stiff, I'm thinking of the next thing to type (say), I winked my right eye, I'm wondering if I'm communicating this clearly, my hands are warm, my back is a little stiff."
- Step two: get relaxed. Relaxation helps us to become more sensitive (vulnerable). Exercises to help relax are:
- a.) deep breathing
- b.) letting your body hang and drop with gravity
- c.) do self-massage
- d.) tense your body and relax it.
- e.) do whatever you do to relax.
Ask yourself how you feel. Verbally say through a stream of consciousness anything you feel; such as, (My stream of consciousness): "I feel a little more relaxed, I hear the computer fan, I feel warm, my sense of hearing has become more sensitive, the touch of the keyboard feels like silky plastic with a sense of life from all the days spent communicating through it. I feel calm, I'm not angry, I remember being angry yesterday, I'm a little tired, I feel positive about my future.
Ask many questions. Once you know exactly how you feel you then pick up a bottle of Kobashi Essential Oil. I say Kobashi because I can guarantee what's in Kobashi's oils, but I cannot guarantee what's in other brands.
You are now ready to explore an essential oil. Pick up the bottle and feel its weight, grasp it and hold it tight, roll it gently in your hand. The more specific you are the more your instincts will communicate with the oil. Keep the stream of consciousness going, (My stream of consciousness) "I have a itch in my nose, I remember it starting when I was sitting in the back of the theatre. I'm back from the memory, trying to get back to you, hold on, I really feel this is important and I believe you will understand." Before opening the bottle are there any odours in the room, explore those odours for a moment and isolate what they are.
Move to a room where there are minimal odours and which has an ambient temperature and humidity. Unscrew the lid, feel its texture between your fingers. Did you smell the oil before the oil was open? At first don't try to name the particular aroma, just use your nose as when looking at colours, don't name the colours, and just see them with your eyes. Keep your personal inventory going:(My stream of consciousness) "the vapours went up my right nostril more than my left, I've noticed my left nostril is congested, the oil has a cooling effect, I like the aroma, it's a aroma I want to go back to and smell again. There is no decrease in the left nostrils congestion. I feel a little more alert. I'm picking the bottle up, it felt cool against my warm hands. I've noticed my eyes feel lighter. I'm beginning to feel happier. I'm questioning whether the happiness is from the oil-stimulus or my ego being stimulated by this teaching. I took two more deep breaths of the oil. I feel like sitting back and watching this event unfold, I'm back to typing, the oil smells herbaceous, camphorous, sweet with a prominent eucalyptol note, it feels clean, refreshing and grounding."
This oil did have a stimulating and refreshing effect on me; the journey goes on. As you see, the exploration can lead you in many directions. It is seeing with all your senses and being truthful about your moment to moment responses which brings you to the truth. If you don't start off with knowing your here and now (being state) you will have a hard time discerning the objective - subjective stimulus response in relationship to the oil. Next steps involve testing strips and then vaporisation of the oil.
Best kind regards, Scott BallardRoads to:
Technologies for Wellbeing Sadhguru is a great mystic grounded in what's necessary.
Wim Hof Method Wim has climbed Mount everest in his shorts and has may endurance records.
Awareness and Being...Awaken to a Life of Purpose and Presence
Awareness of what is...Jiddu Krishnamurti Man of what is.
Awareness Being (space) and Doing (form) A SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE. One of the best acting teachers.
The Works of Alan Watts A philosophical zen genius.