Herbal Plant Medicines and the Shamans of the Amazon Rainforest Part 2
Howard G Charing, and Peter Cloudsley join Amazonian Shamans, Javier Arevalo and Artidoro in discussions about the medicinal & spirit healing plants and their use.
Rosa Sisa
These are a kind of Marigold, and they are used in baths particularly for children with ‘mal aire’. This malady occurs when a family member dies and leaves the child unhappy and sleepless. The spirit of the dead grandfather – or whoever it was – lingers and makes the child sick. The spirit is sad to go and stays in the house after the person is buried and it tries to caress and comfort people in the family. This makes them ill.
Rosa Sisa also controls vomiting in general, as well as being used in floral baths for good luck.
Typically an envious neighbour will grab a handful of earth from the cemetery and throw it into your house to spread boredom and heavy feelings.
Again, when something is wrong in the house – people are bored or agitated – you get a bucket of water and add crushed Rosa Sisa flowers and Camalonga and wash the floors of the house with a brush to cleanse it.
Alternatively you could have the flowers in a vase in the house for the same purpose. Many people grow them either side of the front door of their house to absorb the negativity of people who look in enviously to see what possessions they have. The flowers go black but later they recuperate themselves.
Marigolds can also be used for making wishes, blowing with the wish in mind – like we do with a dandelion – because it is yellow, the colour of the sun.
Manchare or susto (fright) are maladies commonly suffered by children, and treated with Camalonga – a