Common name: Elder
Latin name: Sambucus nigra
Family: Honeysuckle Family
Element: Water
There are many species of elder. The most commonly used medicinally today is Sambucus nigra, formally called Sambucus canadensis
Common to North America, Europe, Western Asia, New Zealand, Australia and many Pacific Islands. It is now considered an invasive.
Gender: Feminine
Process: Involution (Bringing Spirit into matter)
Energy: Cooling, drying
Planet Association: Venus, Saturn
Chakra: Root (1st chakra) Muladhara: Mula=root dhara=base, Heart (4th Chakra) Anahata=unbroken
Part of Plant Used: Berries, flowers (Bark has been used as a purgative and is not recommended)
Day of the Week: Friday (Viernes), Saturday (Saturn day)
Body: Expectorant (relieves congestion in respiratory system by bringing up mucous and opening a pathway to be expelled), relaxing diaphoretic (reduces fever by skin), diuretic (cleanses urinary and kidney), alterative (cleanses blood), soothing nervine (relaxes body), mild laxative (can relieve bowels, to reduce fever), lymphagogue (cleanses lymph)
Elder is bio-flavonoid rich, antiviral for colds and flus. What is a bio-flavonoid?
Bio-flavonoid: enhanced action of Vit C, to support blood circulation, treats allergies, viruses and inflammation in the body.
Flowers are used for fevers, ear pain, sinus congestion, wounds, skin, kidney support, blood and lymph congestion, and berries are very rich in iron, vitamin C, ease chest congestion and cough. Expectorant, relaxing diaphoretic (if your body needs the fever for fighting, Elder won’t bring it down, it will allow your body to fight infection), diuretic, alterative, soothing nervine, mild laxative. Elder has a traditional use in early stages of coughs, colds and flus. It can also be used for nausea when dealing with post-nasal drip. It is used in chronic conditions of sinusitis, spasmodic cough, night sweats, skin eruptions from metabolic issues. The berries are not only used for bioflavonoids, vit C and their anti-viral qualities but also for rheumatism. Elder flowers are great in Salves for rheumatism, burns and skin eruptions that needs calming such as rashes, and is used for wrinkles.
Elder flower for upper respiratory system and Elder Berry for lower respiratory system.
Ways to use: Tea (Hot for fevers), Tincture, salve, liniment (bruises), Elder flowers are also a natural insecticide, make a strong tea and apply to body when cool. Can also be spread around to deter mice and moles.
Mind: Increases awareness of the “big picture” enhances knowledge of interconnection of the unity in all life (we all constantly go through many death a rebirth processes, she allows us to have faith and trust)
Heart: Opens heart to receive ancestral guidance. Opens us to compassion within, bringing trust back into ourselves to open and receive.
Soul: Stimulating, evolutionary plant that offers guidance through the chaos of transformation. Mother Elder is a guide, we can call on Mother Elder to help us see what to shed and allow to see things clearing with trust and love.
Elder helps to ground us back into body, root chakra, giving us a sense of self. Being unique allowing for change, allowing for growth out of our parts that no longer serves us. She shows us this by growing out of her dead parts. She provides guidance and strength. Her blossoms show us we too can bloom over and over again and provide nourishment for ourselves and others through our fruits of life as she shows us with her berries. Mother elder is a tree, but she is a flexible like all trees, not giving up but always changing to fit their environment and staying tall, staying in their essence, forever changing shape and growing, she appears more and more wise and beautiful with age as she exposes to us how many times when she has experiencd a death and rebirth and proud to show them. These are rights of passages in our lives. She brings in all 4 elements to us with an emphasis on water. She helps us move through our cores essence and uses the element of fire for movement and inspiration (heat, fever) to cleanse and revitalize our waters and release what no longer serves us (lymph, blood, urinary system), detoxifying this energy and coming back to our core, our sense of self, our Earth energy and provided us guidance through the air element, helping us restore our breath.