PART I
It has long been experienced that love is a potent drug.
And we as humans deeply desire to be loved, to love, to fall in love, to make love. We have deep-seated curiosities about orgasms, pleasure and relationships and we have been studying sex and the art of love making as a spiritual practice for centuries.
Naturally, the idea of aphrodisiacs invokes passion and intrigue.
An aphrodisiac is defined as any food or drug that arouses the sexual instinct, induces venereal desire and increases pleasure and performance. The word aphrodisiac is derived from ëAphroditaeí – the Greek Goddess of love.
Aphrodisiacs have been around in all sort of fascinating forms through out the ages-
- Ancient Egyptians smeared a crocodile heart mixture on the penis
- Greek philosopher, Pliny, claimed that mandrake root increased potency because it looks like female genitals
- The ancient Chinese ate the sexual organs of animals
To name a few.
In more recent times, Aphrodisiacs are most commonly sourced from plants but can also be derived from animals and minerals. Some of the most well known herbal aphrodisiacs include Lepidium meyenii (Peruvian ginseng or Maca); Crocus sativus L., commonly known as saffron; Phoenix dactylifera (date palm) and Panax ginseng.
How is it that these plants can assist us so fruitfully in creating sexual desire?
Sexual arousal can be excited both mentally and physically.
(mentally by thoughts, fantasies, erotic books or movies or by the senses – smelling an evocative fragrance, being touched, listening to music)
physically, the bodies biochemistry plays a huge role in the functioning of the body and the brain – the ultimate controller of your sex drive. Our biochemistry is greatly influenced by food, hormones, herbs, drugs and our overall lifestyle (exercise, stress, meditation etc)
Certain plants and their alkaloids affect the bodies biochemistry by increasing blood flow (especially to the genitals) strengthening the reproductive and sexual organs, balancing hormones, calming anxiety and restoring vitality and stamina by supporting the endocrine system.
One very potent, medicinal plant I’d like to dive a little deeper into is Sceletium Tortusuom.
By binding to and inactivating your serotonin transporters, the alkaloids in sceletium allow the serotonin you’re producing in your brain to stay available longer, resulting in feelings of intense euphoria and love.
By mitigating feelings of stress and anxiety, sceletium helps to calm both the mind and nervous system. This calmness and quieting of the mind creates space for you to drop deeper into yourself allowing for a heartfelt and true connection to both yourself and your partner.
Sceletium provides the brain and nervous system with focus and increased mental stamina allowing for more presence and awareness of your body and bodily sensations, heightening feelings of pleasure.
In higher doses sceletium is also a stimulant, increasing activity of the central nervous system and providing physical energy and stamina. (Great for prolonged love making 😉
There are so many beautiful ways to explore love and connection. From mindful practices such as eye gazing and breathing techniques to all sorts of potent plants. The journey is yours.
References:
https://www.birthsongbotanicals.com/blogs/birth-song-blog/aphrodisiac-herbs
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3731873/
https://ro.co/health-guide/the-strange-science-behind-why-some-aphrodisiacs-work/
