Healing Plants
Insights through Spiritual Science
Volumes 1, 2, and 3
By Wilhelm Pelikan
Mercury Press has recently published Wilhelm Pelikan's third and final volume of Healing Plants, a continuation of his previous work. An experiencing of Elemental Beings is introduced, as are a variety of medicinal plants including: Mistletoe, Orchids, Valerian, Pineapple, Ginger, Nettles, Hemp and more. Illustrations by Walther Roggenkamp show aspects of the plant's essence that words cannot express.
ISBN 0-929979-64-8
Mercury Press, 1997, 2012
Vol. I: 396 pages; paperback; $30
Vol. II: 269 pages; paperback; $32
Description
This books strives to make us aware again of the relation between human beings and medicinal plants. Not a book that tells us how to prepare and use different plants for therapy, but instead one that develops paths for insights into the healing powers of plants. Insights not based only on ancient traditions or ethnobotanical discoveries, but on enhanced capacities of perception. These perceptions focus not merely on the morphology of plants in the Goethean sense, but in addition take full cognizance of phytochemistry. Through the many illustrations and woodcuts by the late Walther Roggenkamp, one can gain an image of what nature has withheld and words do not express; aspects of the plant’s essence emerge, made visible through the artist’s creations.
Contents - Vol. I
Preface to the Fourth Edition
Concerning the Illustrations in this Volume
Publisher’s Preface
Translator’s Preface
- Essential Relationships between Plant and Human Being
Goethe’s pioneering work
Threefold plant and threefold human being
- The “Idea” of the Disease Process and the “Idea” of the Medicinal Plant
Polarity of inflammation and tumor
Dissolution and hardening in the plant process
- Aspects and Spheres of Being
The four kingdoms of nature – man and plant
The four aspects of being and the four states of matter in which they are embodied
“Intermediate forms” in the plant world
- The Mint Family (Labiatae)
Plants of warmth
Medicinal actions of labiate plants
The most important medicinal plants in the family
Aspects of seed production
- The Carrot Family (Umbelliferae)
Plants of the airy element
Medicinal potential of the type
The physical forms taken by the type
Umbellifers growing in and by water
Woodland umbellifers
Umbellifers growing in meadows
Umbellifers of the mountains
Umbellifers of deserts and steppes
Plant scents and what they bring to expression
- The Poppy Family (Papaveraceae)
The plant type
The medicinal plants
Latex production in the plant world
- “Carnivorous” and Medicinal Plants
- The Cress Family (Cruciferae)
The plant type
Sufur and salt processes as healing factors in nature
Medicinal plants of the cress family
- The Nightshade Family (Solanaceae)
Poisonous and healing plants
The nature of plant poisons
Important medicinal plants of the nightshade family
- The Cactus Family (Cactaceae)
Plants of watery stasis
- The Fat Hen Family (Chenopodiaceae)
Plants with inordinate salt processes
- The Buttercup Family (Ranunculaceae)
The plant type
Medicinal plants of the buttercup family
- The Rose Family (Rosaceae)
Perfect moderation in the midst of plenty
Sugar, tannin and cyanide processes
Medicinal plants of the rose family
- The Daisy Family (Compositae)
Theme and medicinal actions
Medicinal plant of the daisy family
Vulneraries
Moisture-loving members of the daisy family
Compositae indigenous to mountains, hills and woodlands
Medicinal bitters – the wormwoods
Thistles as medicinal plants
Highly aromatic members of the family
Medicinal actions in the subgroup of latex-bearing liguliflorae
- The Gentian Family (Gentianaceae)
Bitter herbs that heal
- The Borage Family (Boraginaceae)
A silica process maintained in plastic fluidity
Principal protein constituents as elements serving the incarnation of the higher aspects of being
The functions of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen and sulfur
- The Pea Family (Leguminosae)
Nitrogen and the astral principle in plants
Medicinal plants of the pea family
Casealpiniaceae
Papilionaceae
- The Bedstraw Family (Rubiaceae)
The family type
Formic acid and uric acid processes
Medicinal plants of the bedstraw family
- The Spurge Family (Euphorbiaceae)
- The Lily Family (Liliaceae)
Sulfurous succulence, congestion and shooting growth
Medicinal plants of the lily family
Index
Bibliography
Contents - Vol. II
Preface ........... .............................................................................. i
Author's Preface to Volume II of Healing Plants .... ......................... ii
Preface to the First 1957 Edition ............................................................. iii
Concerningthe Illustrations in this Book .................................................. v
MedicinalHerbs from the Lower Plant Kingdom ..................................... 7
Algae -- Phycophyta ................................................................................. 8
Fungi -- Mycetophyta ............................................................................ 11
Lichens .......... .................................. ........................................................ 14
Ferns- Filicinae ...................................................................................... l6
Horsetails - Equisetinae .......................................................................... 24
MedicinalPlants from the Upper Plant Kingdom ................................... .25
Evergreen Trees and Shrubs- Coniferae ................................................ 25
The Pine Family - Pinaceae ..... ............................................................... 30
Cypress-like Shrubs and Trees- Cypressaceae ...................................... 33
St. John's Worts- Guttiferae .......................... ........................................ 37
Rock foil plants- Saxifragaceae: Silica Process, Limestone and Light Processes ....................................... 43
Thick leafed plants- Crassulaceae ........................................................ .47
The Gourds- Cucurbitaceae ........................... , ....................................... 52
Irises- Iridaceae ..................................................................................... 60
Grasses- Gramineae ............... ................................................................ 66
Arums- Araceae: Flowering Processes in the Root Region .................. 82
Catkin Bearers- Amentiflorae ................................................................ 89
Willows- Salicaceae: Salicin and Tannin Process ............................... 1 00
Rues- Rutaceae: The Masters of Tropical Warmth Processes ............. 107
Pinks- Caryophyllaceae- Chickweeds, Stitchworts, Campions ......... 116
Grape Family - Vitaceae ....................................................................... 119
Honeysuckles- Caprifoliaceae ............................................................. 126
Sea Buckthorn- Hippophae rhamnoides: Images of a Plant's Essential Nature and Therapeutic Imaginations ............................. 130
Vitamins ................................................................................................ l37
The Totality of Food Plants ................................................................... l43
The Extra Corporeal "Organs" of Plants ............................................... 145
The Nitrogen, Oxygen, Carbon and Hydrogen Organs in the Atmosphere .................................. 155
Myrtles - Myrtaceae: Fruit and Spice Plants ....................................... 163
Crane bills - Geraniaceae ...................................................................... 168
Wood Sorrels - Oxalidaceae: The Oxalic Acid Process in Plant and Man .............................. 170
Mallows- Malvaceae: The Formation of Mucilage and Fibers ........... 178
Snapdragons - Scrophulariaceae ........................................................... 182
Bindweeds- Convolvulaceae ............................................................... 198
The Olive Family- Oleaceae: The Process that Forms Oils in the Plant Kingdom .............................. 200
The Dogbane Family - Apocynaceae .................................................... 209
The Heather Family- Ericaceae: Northern Fruits .......................... ...... 216
Primroses- Primulaceae: Plants with Etheric Vernal Rhythms ........ .... 224
Medicinal Plants for the Liver.. ............................................................. 23 7
Medicinal Plants for the Kidneys .......................................................... 244
Medicinal Plants for the Lungs ............................................................ .252
Medicinal Plants for the Heart .............................................................. 257
Index of Illustrations ............................................................................. 261
Subject index ......................................................................................... 263
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