What Is A Master Plant? M1-U4
Are we able to learn a lesson to empower ourselves so that we can give more to all life on Earth?
As we discussed recently, plant medicines are relational and medicinal herbs that have been our allies throughout human existence. These natural remedies, embodied by plants, assist our bodies, minds, and souls in various ways, from cures to therapy, visions to embodiment, nerve-calming beauty to simple enjoyment. In my perspective, all plants are considered medicine because health encompasses everything you consume, not only through ingestion but also through your environmental experiences.
Master Plants
Master Plants are considered plant medicines that impart lessons. These plants offer wisdom and insights, teaching you through the experiences they provide. When we say "lesson," we refer to the knowledge you gain from how the plant makes you feel. This can be spiritual or practical knowledge, but it is a lesson you learn due to the influence of a Master Plant. For example, cannabis is considered a Master Plant Medicine because it can teach you things while high.
Through Master Plants, you have the opportunity to dive into yourself, confronting emotions or thoughts that have been stored away. Facing these can provide wisdom, with the plant acting as a teacher. Lessons can also come in the form of visions, providing clarity on direction or spawning new ideas. These experiences can occur in hallucinogenic, psychoactive, or altered states of consciousness, such as being high and dreaming.
Ceremony
Many people enter these states in a sacred ceremony setting, often led by a guide but it is not required (but all plants can be used ceremonially to show reverence and connect deeper with the plant) nor needed outside of a few very strong plants… ie.. Ayahuasca. Plant medicines, should be communed with respectfully, intentionally, and reciprocally. Making plant medicine ceremonies sacred helps ensure wisdom comes to you in its purest form, honors the plant spirits in this world, and can revere practices that have honored these medicines for generations. Many traditions view altered states as a means of receiving divine insights not always honed towards one's self but the ecology around them.
I encourage you to invest time learning about the people who hold medicine lineages, supporting their way of life, and learning how they connect with the land. Often, we should connect with indigenous people who understand the spirit of these plants and hold sacred these lineages. Connect with First Narion People in a very humble way and spend the time to listen and create relationships. I come from a colonized mind and to recondition myself means I should listen, put in the effort, and understand the way I was raised was in a society that’s very disconnected from the Earth, so I have to understand I don’t know how indigenous people see the world which is a lens I believe to be in more harmony with all life on Earth.
We owe gratitude to these plants, and as humans with the ability to speak, saying thank you, giving something back, and treating Master Plants with sacredness is crucial. This shows respect for the wisdom of the plants and helps us stay in tune with nature as modernization increasingly disconnects us from it. Establishing a reciprocal relationship with the plants, and giving back to the land, is essential for maintaining the natural balance.
Cannabis as a Master Plant
Cannabis is considered a Master Plant Medicine because it can teach you a lesson like the others. This is not a lesson taught by a person but one you learn yourself through the feelings the plant imparts, the wisdom of the plant, or for some, the embodiment of the spirit of the Master Plant. These lessons are developed from within as your high and treated as wisdom, which can manifest in various forms, from harshness to serenity. The lessons are endless and personally unique to everyone.
Understanding that cannabis is a Master Plant helps you appreciate its significance among plants and recognize the opportunities it provides us from personal development to our relationship with the ecosystems around us when communing with it. Hopefully, this encourages you to honor the gifts of cannabis and engage with it reciprocally, as we discussed in the last post.
Other Master Plants
Alongside cannabis, other Master Plant Medicines include ayahuasca, cacao, mugwort, chiric sanango, and tobacco, to name a few. Some people categorize psilocybin mushrooms as a Master Plant, though technically they are not plants but mycelium from the fungi kingdom, which holds deep importance in the world.