12 WEEK SERIES Tuesdays | Jan 12 -March 30 | 6-8pm
This fun and interactive 12 week series introduces the subtle energetics, and elemental qualities of plant medicine for internal uses, non-appropriative energetic hygiene practices, crafts, and rituals.
This virtual class offers a chance to connect with like minded folks safely over the winter to establish or stay engaged with your spiritual practice, make some really fun and practical herbal crafts in a structured setting, and deepen your relationship to self, spirit, and land with a focus on unsettling settler colonialism.
You will learn:
How to build and work with a hearth altar
Work with foods and herbs as ancestral reconnection practices
An introduction to principles of Unani medicine
How to work with plants for non-appropriative ritual
Herbal allies, practices, and recipes for energetic hygiene
Recipes and hands on practice in making a variety of herbal preparations and crafts
Each class includes:
Live class invitation (zoom)
Accompanying images, class notes, and resources
Post-class recording
List of source material and further reading
Prompts for self-guided exercises
Many classes have an interactive make-along component
Each class begins with a grounding exercise to set the container and includes lecture, Q+A, and an interactive practice that will range from guided journeys, guided instruction for projects outside of class, to hands-on activities to follow along with. For make-along classes, you will be provided well in advance with a list of easily attainable supplies and tools needed.
As there are no truly safe spaces, the space Vanessa holds for this class is one of compassion, resilience, and sovereignty. Her teaching style is structured and comprehensive with flexibility to integrate the material intellectually, viscerally, and practically. She teaches all concepts and practices through a critical lens and focuses on unsettling settler colonialism while holding space for the breadth and complexity of all lived experiences and lineages by creating and enforcing an environment where undo labor is not placed on marginalized groups. All are welcome to join us in this supportive work.
LOGISTICS Classes meet over Zoom. Recordings and class materials are organized and hosted on a 3rd party online learning platform called Podia. An optional Facebook group is also available for social connection. All class announcements are sent via email. You do not need to be present for each class as the recorded classes and all class materials are available on learning platform.
SYLLABUS + CLASS DATES Classes meet at 6pm on consecutive Tuesdays from Jan 12th 2021 through March 30th 2021 for roughly 2 hours each class.
Jan 12 | Hearth Altar + Offerings + Prayers This segment explores the creation and tending of a hearth altar; prayers and offerings for intentional relationships to land and spirit; working with foods and herbs as ancestral reconnection practices. Includes instruction for home practices.
Jan 19 | Intro to Unani medicine principles This segment explores body/mind constitutions; seasons and cycles; and elemental (earth, air, fire, water) actions and qualities. Includes instruction for home practices.
Jan 26 | Energetics of Foods, Herbs, and Spices This segment explores energetics (hot/cold, wet/dry); elemental correspondences; the function and action of each of the 5 tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent, astringent) of foods, herbs, and spices. Includes instruction for home project.
Feb 2 | Ritual + Relationship This segment explores plant spirit relationships; several non-appropriative cleansing and purification methods and rituals; recipes; in-class make-along; and home projects.
Feb 9 | Allies + Practices for Energetic Hygiene This segment explores directional forces of intentional practices; attributes, functions, and actions of several specific herbs often used for energetic hygiene practices. Includes in-class plant ally guided journey, and home practices.
Feb 16 | Salts + Sugars This segment explores the energetic qualities and uses of salts and sugars for intentional craft and ritual; some recipes; and home projects.
Feb 23 | Candle Making + Blessing This segment explores how to make your own beeswax candle from beeswax sheets; and candle blessing for ritual and craft work. Includes in-class make-along and instructions for home practices.
March 2 | Spice Blends + Teas + Infusions + Decoctions This segment explores the uses and purposes of herbal remedies as spice blends, teas, infusions, and decoctions. Includes in-class make-along and instructions for home practices, and some recipes.
March 9 | Herbal Extracts: tinctures + vinegars + glycerites + elixirs This segment explores the indications and functions of various herbal extracts using different menstruums. Includes in-class make-along, and some recipes.
March 16 | Witch Bottles + Protective Amulets This segment explores the creation and uses of various protective amulets with an in-class make-along, and instructions for home practices.
March 23 | Infused Herbal Oils: Purification + Blessing + Protection This segment explores the methods and uses of herbal oil infusions. Includes in-class make-along, instruction for home practices, and some recipes.
March 30 | Medicinal Honey This segment explores the methods and several uses of infused honey. Includes in-class make-along, some recipes, and instructions for home practices.
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND Vanessa is a healing arts practitioner of 15 years as a licensed massage therapist, craniosacral therapist, sound healer, certified coach, certified ayurvedic wellness counselor, energetic + spiritual healer, and amateur herbalist. She offers trauma informed somatic shadow work and energetic healing to uncover current patterns, limiting beliefs, and internalized kyriarchy that keep you from living in alignment with your true nature, establishing personal sovereignty, healthy boundaries, and gaining a rooted sense of self.
TRAINING + FRAMEWORK + APPROACH Vanessa studied under Dr. Jayarajan Kodikaneth, an Indian doctor from Kerala India and also Nickole Thornton Gonzales, a Seattle local studying under Dr. Vasant Lad, an Indian doctor, teacher, and founder of the Ayurvedic Institute in New Mexico. As a 4th generation immigrant from Greece, Vanessa is now studying how humorism and Unani medicine, from Mediteranean, Middle Eastern, and Indian origins, compares with the tridoshic theories of Ayurveda. If you’d like to learn more her process and comparative practices, please visithttp://www.vanessaainslie.com/apothecary.html
While her formal training comes from Ayurveda, Vanessa approaches this work from the perspective of her own lineages, folklore, histories, and practices within the context of reclaiming her Middle Eastern and Mediterranean heritages. She offers these frameworks as a starting point to inspire and assist you in reconnecting and reclaiming your own connection to land, spirits, and ancestors through ethics, right relationships, and reciprocity.