What is magic? What is science? What is aromatherapy?

First blog post. Look at me go.

All this candle-making has me questioning what's real and-- more importantly-- what works. 

When I was organizing a witch spell night (stick with me here) at the end of 2023, I learned how herbs, minerals, and colors correspond to certain spells, intentions, and magical properties. Some of these are directly related to said-herb's health benefits for the body; others are more abstract. For instance, why do we associate roses with love? Is it due to our association between pink/red and love/lust? Is this specific to Western culture? Who decided? (I'm sure there are readers who are more familiar with the history on this than I am-- please, grace us with your wisdom in the comments!) 

I'm so ADHD that I actually just took a break to look this up. In short, Red = Love due to: Ancient Greeks. Passion. Blood. And then Victorians and commercialism. Basically: stories, archetypes, and symbols.

Roses, and the colors red and pink, symbolize love because that's what so much stuff-- so much art, culture, and yes, advertising-- has led us to collectively imbue them with. A "symbol"-- for instance, a flower (or its scent or its color)-- is a shortcut to signify deep and loaded meaning: all its history and myth (mythic truths!); all of the spiritual, physical, and emotional properties and associations that we impart on it. We imbue symbols with facets of our own essence: love; desire, passion. Symbols work quickly and holistically to embody facets of the rich, juicy messiness of our lived experience, all of which would be complicated and overwhelming to explain or understand each time, anew, without these shorthands. When we see a symbol, we know and recognize the parts of ourselves that it embodies. The symbols function as truth. A story doesn't have to be "true" in the "non-fiction" sense for us to know in our hearts that it's true. Truisms and universal human truths lay within a good story's narrative. 

So back to the second question-- does it work? As aromatherapy, as witchcraft, as a scent... will it attract?

Unbelievably, I think it might!

Disclaimer: I'm still unclear on whether or not rose-scented oil is a direct memo to God (or the Gods, etc) to bring you love. However, I believe it will get you into the "flow" of love, and tap into love-essence, thus opening doors to attract love into your life. For several legit reasons:

1.) If most Westerners have been conditioned to understand that roses = love, then it logically follows that we understand the association of roses= love when we smell it. It puts everyone in the zone.

2.) I'm learning a lot about fragrance. Rose, as a scent, is a "middle note", which means that we smell it gradually and gently, for some time. It neither smacks you hard in the face upfront (that would be our "lust" and "desire" top notes, ladies and gents), and, while, as a scent, rose is long-lasting, it fades a lot as "bottom" notes emerge (deep-seated resentment-ouds and fear-based patchoulis, no doubt...). I joke, but these metaphors aren't too far off from the experiential properties of love and courtship, no? Additionally, rose, as a scent, blends well with others (see: cooperation, compromise and/or co-dependency). It's also pleasant and comforting: it's not harsh, pungent, or tangy. It doesn't strike us in any strange, bold way, nor does it feel too sedating. We don't feel hungry, or irritated, or ill. It's nice.

The one negative about rose, as a scent, is that we sometimes associate it with our grandmothers, or as something overly prim and polite. But if you're looking for more than a fling? That could be a bonus. Whoever is attracted to your scent probably wants some longevity. 

So is it science? Sure. Social science, at the very least. Is it magic? Um. Well. Aren't all stories and symbols?

 What do you think? Personally, I'm going with it.

xoxMelissa