Happy 2020! New year, new blog as many around the globe have said. It’s the beginning of the year, it’s Capricorn going on Aquarius season and I’m full of motivation. We’re ready to hit the year running and that all starts with a good ole book list. But not just any book list. This is the medicine woman / goddess / plant medicine book list!

Since starting my medicine journey, I’ve had dozens of recommendations on books to help propel me on my goddess / medicine woman path. And I really want to devote 2020 to broadening my knowledge, not just of plant medicine, but goddess work as well. Throughout my medicine woman journey, one message remains the same, and it’s that as women, we’ve seemed to have forgotten our innate goddess power. In ancient times, our male counterparts wouldn’t dare approach a female in his village or community without the utmost respect. They were filled with honor for just being in a woman’s presence. Ceremonies would take place every day, week, month and season, centered around celebrating and honoring women, mothers and elders.

Being dedicated to this journey (yes, we’re going to use that word a lot!), one knows there’s never a shortage of information and there’s always room to expand (come thru ruling planet Jupiter with that expansion!). If you happen to be looking for more information on plant medicine, goddess energy and ancestral wisdom, then I hope this list does you justice! If you’re feeling inspired, maybe you’ll join me or share this post as I tackle each book! You ready?

Shakti Woman: Feeling Our Fire, Healing Our World

by Vicki Noble

Vicki Noble was presented with this problematic view of the “anima” or Carl Jung’s term for the feminine part of a man’s personality (their divine feminine), weak, insubstantial and not at all present. Noble works to dispell that common myth that women “have been deeply conditioned to relate in a primary way to men and to make a primary alliance with one man who will father our chidlren and provide for our physical needs.” Before the development of patriarchal culture and male dominance, woman had the instinctive knowing that belonged to us by birthright.

Shakti Woman is a book about female authority and the healing of the planet. It is a user’s guide to shamanic healing and empowerment through the process of getting in touch with the deep Feminine and the Dark Goddess.

Going into topics such as shamanic art, female-centered sexuality and astrology, one taboo topic that needs the due diligence it deserves. Every month, women in ancient times, would gather under the new or full moon to bleed together, in ceremony. As Noble highlights, “the monthly menstrual period is the quintessential ritual experience” with the Hindu Sanskrit word ritu meaning “menses”. Think about the magical wonder that is menstrual synchronization, when all the women in the home would cycle at the same time, together!

Once a woman has done the work of remembering herself, she is much more able to change the world effectively.

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

BY ROBIN WALL KIMMERER

One of the most important Native American ceremonial plants, Sweetgrass was used by many tribes as an incense and purifying herb. Sweetgrass symbolizes healing, peace, and spirituality in many Native cultures, and braids of sweetgrass are sometimes left as offerings at graves and sacred sites. 

In Braiding Sweetgrass, we’re made to question our cultural bias in distancing ourselves from the natural world and the book suggests that we move with reciprocity, to not just take what we need but to offer up our gifts in exchange for the divine gifts that plants and herbs give us. Kimmerer, a Native American restoration ecologist, fills her book with beatufiul stories from indigenous wisdom to scientfic knowledge of botony. And while sharing some Native American practices, she remindsd us to ind our own ceremonies that align with our history and situation.

Rise Sister Rise: A Guide to Unleashing the Wise, Wild Woman Within

by REBECCA campbell

As a huge fan of the Work Your Light Oracle Deck, when I found out that creator, Rebecca Campbell, also had books published, I made sure to save a spot for one of her books.

At a soul level, women around the world agreed that there would come a time they would have to “lead this global shift of the return of the mother and the rise of the feminine.” We see this shift happening before our eyes. Many patriarchal systems are starting to crumble and we see the rights of women coming under fire more than ever. Like I mentioned before, women “have ignored the cycles of the feminine in order to survive in a patriarchal linear system - but now the world has changed.”

Rise Sister Rise calls us to rise above the insecurities and fears and blockages that hold use back from being the Shakti Women we’re meant to be. This book aims to wake us up to the ways we’ve been “contained and restrained in effort to fit into a certain archetype of woman.”

The Well Life: How to Use Structure, Sweetness, and Space to Create Balance, Happiness, and Peace

by briana and dr. peter borten

What’s the key to living a happy life? According to the Bortens, that key is balance. As a person who had a very hard time balancing life in 2019, this book might hold a lot of gems to having a successful 2020.

The Bortens, Briana and Dr. Peter, focus on 3 principles for a happy, satisfying life: sweetness, structure (what’s that?) and space (love that!!). We all know the role stress can play in our lives - it can be debilating. During some of the most stressful parts of my year, my body reacted by not wanting nourishment and having no energy or willpower for much of anything. With 2020 bringing new opportunities, challenges and blessings, I want to make sure I’m prepared for whatever this season has for me. 

By maintaining these 3 principles - sweetness, structure and space - the reader can use methods to release stress and tension and push forward to a happy, fulfilling life. 

Woman as Healer: A Panoramic Survey of the Healing Activities of Women from Prehistoric times to the Present

By jeanne achterberg

Continuing with the theme of how bad ass women are, we dive into Woman As Healer by Jeanne Achterberg. Drawing on history, anthropology, archeology and more, Achterberg, discusses how womxn were revered as honorable healers in their villages and communities and goes into the persecution of said honorable healers during the Middle Ages. I for one am excited to learn about the reemergence of midwifery and womxn healers at a critical time where our healthcare system is under fire.

Seven Herbs: Plants as Teachers

By MAtthew Wood

When doing my search for books to read, every herbalist seemed to echo the name Matthew Wood. Recognized world-wide as one of the most reknowned herbalists in the United States, Matthew Wood writes Seven Herbs as our introduction to the Easter Lily, Yerba Santa, Iris, Sagebush, Cat’s Ear, Black Cohosh and Lady Slipper.

According to a reviewer, Seven Herbs “open us to a deeper meaning of the seven stories from the Book of Genesis.” This isn’t just a clinical book, displaying all that each herb has to offer, but moreso a book to help understand the complexity of human nature and the subtle moments of mystery where plant and human converge.

The Book of Herbal Wisdom: Using Plants as Medicines

by matthew wood

For August, I’m diving into The Book of Herbal Wisdom, a Matthew Wood contunation to July’s read, Seven Herbs. For any herbalist who not only revere plants for their medicinal uses, but also their metaphsyical, this is the book for you. Wood integrates information on the indigenous, shamanic and folklore connections that certain herbs and plants hold.

From the reviews that I’ve taken a look at, this book lacks in the how tos of using the herbs and plants. There are no recipes on how to make tinctures, teas and other herbal preparations with the herbs he discusses, so if you’re following along like I am, and want that extra bit of information, take a look at any and all things Rosemary Gladdstar, the “Godmother of Herbalism”.

Dancing with the Wheel

by sun bear, wabun wind and chrysalis mulligan

The beauty in indigenous philosophy is that they believe all living things on Earth are interconnected through Sprit, and therefore must be in perfect harmony with each other in order for the Earth to be in balance. Although this book was written in 1991, I find this to be so relevant today, as we face climate change and ever-frustrating battles to save our planet.

Through practical exercises and rituals, author Sun Bear helps you to integrate this indigenous philosophy in your every day life, teaching techniques of how to center yourself and create peace with the Earth.

Evolution of Goddess: A Modern Girl’s Guide to Activating Your Feminine Superpowers

by emma mildon

I can’t wait to get my hands on Emma Mildon’s Evolution of Goddess. This 4.5/5 star book “provides a fascinating, fun, and inspiring exploration of female divinity throughout history, myth, and religion” helping women fully embody and honor their inner goddess.

The reader will get the chance to uncover their own goddess archetype and are given rituals, meditations and more to tap and tune into their own power. 

Anatomy of the Spirit: The Seven Stages of Power and Healing

By caroline myss

An accalaimed medical intuitive, Caroline Myss combines Hindu, Kaballah and Christian traiditions to create this comprehensive text of the “hidden stresses, beleifs and attitudes that cause illness.”

Based on 15 years of research, Anatomy of the Spirit discusses how emotional and psychological stresses, beliefs and attitudes can manifest into physical ailments and diseases in the human body if not attended to.

Myss also goes into a new energy model based off of the Hindu chakras, the Christian sacraments and Kabbalah’s Tree of Life. These three spiritual traditions symbolize the seven levels of the human energy system, the seven stages of human development, and the seven essential lessons of the universal spiritual path, or the hero's journey.