MAKING MOTHER TINCTURES
The elaboration of the Mother Tinctures
To elaborate flower remedies, two methods can be used. 1) By using the sun method (especially used for the more delicate flowers) that involves placing the flower heads in pure water in direct sunlight for approximately three hours. And 2) The plants that bloom, when the sun is weaker, it is prepared by the boiling method where the flowering part of the plant is boiled for half an hour. In both methods, the heat transfers the energy from the flowers to the water. The water then becomes energized by the energy of the flower that becomes diluted in the water, and this energized water is mixed with the same quantity of brandy to preserve the essence. This combination is what is called: mother tincture. This mixture is also further diluted with brandy at an average of two drops of mother tincture to 30ml of brandy. Those bottles are the "stock bottles" that we can buy at the shops where the mother essences are sold.
The Bach Centre
It is a veritable heritage left by the Bach Centre in England on how to select the plants, pick the flowers, and make the remedies. Nora and Victor were the persons who Dr. Bach entrusted his protocols and methods of preparation. Later, Nora and Victor trained John Ramsell and Nickie Murray, who when they retired, they taught the procedures of how to prepare the mother essences to Judy Ramsell Howard and Stefan Ball, who are today the Managing Directors of the Centre. The Bach Centre, still today continues the elaboration of mother tinctures but they no longer are involved in the commercialization of remedies since 1991 that they decided to sell the business to Nelsons, an independent family-owned company.
Today, there are many different companies that make the 38 remedies all over the world. A well-made remedy can be prepared for anyone picking the right flowers and doing the proper elaborations but the original remedies come from the local plants that grow in the local area where Dr. Edward Bach used to live and he discovered each plant curative properties. In case that you want to buy the remedies, the Bach Centre advices us to pick a brand that we trust.
In this regard, at Bach Flower Therapy we use the mother essences from Creature Comforters ® from England. This is very well-known local family owned company that makes one of the best hand made quality remedies with small quantities as Dr. Bach taught to make. Creature Comforters are very widely known all over the world and we feel very proud to use and sell their products.
For more information about the Bach Centre, please visit: http://www.bachcentre.com/centre/tincture.htm
Making a Flower Essence (Sun Method)
Anyone can make a Flower Essence. This is a very simple procedure to follow but like all simple things in life, requires to have the right mind set to do it and capture the energy that will provide the healing of the plant when the remedy is taken. Therefore, the way that this procedure is done, we could call it a work of craftsmanship. We can approach the making as seeing it as a sacred alchemical procedure by holding the intention to truly connect with the spirit of the plant and its curative power or healing energy.
As the Native Americans used to prepare themselves before picking their remedies or plants or even before hunting, they use to pray to the animal or to the plant, or they invoked an image in their minds that they believed in. With reverence and respect, they first proceed to ask permission to spirit or a higher force to consume the plant or the animal, or to use it for what was going to be their daily food and become their source of energy.
Once they asked in prayer and shared their intention with their families or their tribe, they proceeded to hunt and recollect the fruits. Considering that the animal or the plant was also surrendering their life to them, giving their souls to nourish their bodies, minds, and souls (their whole being) for this purpose.They were in resonance with accomplishing this task in a particular way, the best that would lead to the best outcome aligned with the values of their lives.
The ideal goal for doing that is to consciously spend the time that it takes to prepare, collect the flowers and make the remedy: Searching for a sunny day, use the most pure water, pick up flowers at the most organic gardens that have been cared and grown with love, or to best choose places where there is no pollution and it is kept as a wild area (where mother nature did its course the best way).
It will also be ideal that you pick a day that you are in tune with the purpose of making your own remedy, giving thanks to the plant, the earth that nourished the plant, the water that nourished the plant and the energy that it contains - which will be in service to align yourself with nature and its sacred powers.
Similar like going to a flower store to buy a bouquet, the most highly sensitive remedy makers that make essences feel that it is the plant that chooses them. The best plant to be picked, usually is the plant that is at the peak of its flowering season. When is the time for the essence to be made, the flower is in full bloom.
Spending time getting to know the flowers and the plants, and studying its properties, will also fill you up with their energy. It is good to be aware of how do you feel in the presence of a particular flower or what you notice about the plant that resonates with a quality in yourself? Taking notes of everything you observe, sense, and feel, will give you vital information about the qualities of that particular and unique essence.
Remedy-making procedures
1- Early in the morning when the sun comes up, go to sit quietly with the plant. You will sense the right moment to begin making your essence.The more centered and focused you are, the clearer and more potent your essence will be.
2- Depending on the size of the bowl you choose and the size of the flowers being used or the amount of the flowers you collected, pour a good amount of purified water into your crystal bowl (like half of its size). The amount of water does not need not be a very large amount, as we are about to make a Mother tincture which is later further diluted to make a stock bottle, and diluted again to make up a dosage bottle.
3- Carefully pick the most vibrant leaves from the plant of the same species and pick the healthy blooms, placing them in the water until the surface is covered with flowers.
4- Place the bowl in the sun, on the earth beside the plant for 2-4 hours or until the flowers start to droop. The time will vary depending on the texture and vibrancy of the plant or flower, and the amount of sunshine and the intensity of the sun.
5- Gently, place the flowers out of the bowl with the leaf or twig, returning them to the earth at the base of the plant, giving thanks to each flower for its contribution to your essence. The water left in the bowl is then poured into the amber bottle and an equal amount of brandy needs to be added, as a preservative. This will be your mother tincture.
6- Activate the bottle awakening the essence. I often tell my clients to not shake it in the usual way you would shake a juice. Instead, it is best to move the remedy bottle in a figure eight movement in order to blend well the liquid in a gentle manner. Clearly, label the bottle with the name of the plant and the date the essence was made.
7- To make your "stock bottle" fill a 30ml (1oz) amber bottle with equal amounts of purified water and brandy. Add 4 drops of the Mother tincture to this base and repeat the figure eight movement several times again. To make a "dosage bottle" fill a 30ml amber bottle with 75% purified water and 25% brandy, and add 4 drops from your "stock bottle." Move it again with a figure eight movement, and then it will be ready to use!
8- The standard dosage is 4 drops under the tongue, 4 times a day. If more is needed, take the remedy more often rather than taking a larger dose. As this is a vibrational remedy. The frequency is the most important, not the quantity that it is taken.
What is needed
- purified water
- a crystal bowl
- funnel
- amber glass bottle
- brandy, glycerin or apple cider vinegar
NOTE: If you are allergic to brandy, you can substitute it by using Apple Cider Vinegar as a preservative.
We use and buy the Bach Flower Essences from Creature Comforters ® 100% Genuine Bach Flower Essences from England. We ship worldwide our formulas, mother essences and other products from them. Check our store here.
"...the thirty-eight herbs heal gently and surely, and as there are no poisonous plants amongst them there is no fear of ill effects from overdoses or incorrect prescriptions." - Nora Weeks, The Medical Discoveries of Edward Bach.