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The Seed of Dreams
With iconic crimson petals and seeds from which a potent sedative drug, opium, can be derived, poppies are often closely linked with slumber, dreams, and death. When Persephone was kidnapped to the underworld, her mother, Demeter, became depressed, consuming poppy seeds in an attempt to sleep forever. One cultivar, the common poppy, is used as a symbol of wartime remembrance.
The poppy is also a staple of Memento Mori paintings, reminding the viewer that death is looming and inevitable. Somniferum, part of its botanical name, translates to “sleep bearing.” While poppy seeds are common in many cuisines, some countries have also banned them because of their connection to opium, which is made from the extracted sap of the underripe seed pods of certain cultivars. Most worldwide have strictly regulated the cultivation of opium-producing variants.
BOTANICAL BREAKDOWN
BOTANICAL NAME - Papaver somniferum
AKA - Blindeyes, maw seed, opium poppy
PARTS USED - Seeds, flowers
BOTANICAL PROPERTIES OF POPPY
Poppies have been cultivated for thousands of years, beginning with the Sumerians, and is native to parts of the Mediterranean and Southwest Asia. It is now cultivated globally and harvested for use in medicine and cuisine, as well as to create poppy oil which has many functional uses, including in soap and paint. Poppy is an annual herbaceous flowering plant that provides edible leaves and seeds.
MEDICINAL PROPERTIES OF POPPY
| This article is not medical advice, it is just a description of how this herb has been used and is for informational purposes only. Many herbs may have adverse or even dangerous effects when misused. |
From their early extraction and consumption as opium to their continued presence in modern medicine as an ingredient in opiates, poppy seeds continue to be used for their pain management properties. Acquisition and consumption of unwashed poppy seeds has been shown to have adverse effects due to the residue of morphine and codeine on the exterior of the seeds.
Properly processed, this residue is removed and is not of concern to the average consumer, however there continues to be an illicit market for unwashed poppy seeds for pain management or recreation. Due to natural variance in quantity of the chemical residue and lack of regulation, consumption of unwashed poppies is difficult to dose and may lead to overdose and death.
MAGICK & MYTHOS
ELEMENT - Water
PLANET - Moon
MOON PHASE - New
TAROT - IX of Swords
CHAKRA - Root
DEITIES & ENTITIES - Anubis, Baku, Caer Ibormeith, Demeter, Eopsin, Ereshkigal, Hades, Hel, Hypnos, Izanami, Mamu,Mictlantecuhtli, Morpheus, Nightmares, Nyx, Sisig, Somnus, Oneiroi, Thanatos, Vishnu, Yama, Zaqīqu
MAGICKAL USES OF POPPY
Poppy seeds are perfect for any spellwork, rituals, or ceremonies involving sleep, dreams, death, or scrying. They are also excellent additions to any spells around fertility, love, or healing.
A few ways to use poppy in spellwork:
- Include the seeds in spell jars or sachets to attract love and fortune
- Write a question you wish to know the answer to on a scrap of paper, roll it up small, and place it in a bag or container with poppy seeds. Place it beneath your pillow so the answer may come to you in a dream
- Put a pinch of poppy seeds inside a poppet if you wish to daze and confuse
- Bake or cook using poppy seeds and gift the food to someone to encourage their spiritual and emotional healing
Organic, sustainably harvested poppy is available in our store right here. Pre-mixed spell ingredients that include poppy are available in our store:
GROUND - to connect to the earth's energy and realign your own energies