Excerpt from

Flowers that Heal—How to Use Flower Essences
By Patricia Kaminski

© Patricia Kaminski 1998. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means, without permission of the publishers.

Working with the MetaFlora Levels

All the MetaFlora levels interface with each other; as one area changes, constriction or imbalance in another area may come to light. As we consider the MetaFlora levels, we will note that there are areas in which we are more deficient or stronger. For instance, we may have relatively good health, but have many traumas and dissatisfactions in our work and career. We may be emotionally volatile and unstable in forming relationships, but we may have deep sensitivity and artistic expressiveness. In working with the MetaFlora levels it is useful to consider oneself in relationship to each of the levels. Take a moment to write down core levels of feeling and awareness which you have for each of these areas. Note which areas seem particularly under-developed or over-compensated. Meditate on the relationships between these areas. Then focus on the MetaFlora level which seems most in need of attention. You will usually note that as you work on one MetaFlora level, the others will also begin to change. Since these changes are more comprehensive, walking the entire Wheel of the Soul may involve several years, or we may return to a MetaFlora level we had previously addressed, with new aspects of activity and emphasis.

MetaFlora Level One is the most fundamental and is often the first step we take when walking the Soul Wheel.  It can be considered both an Omega and an Alpha point we begin the soul journey by recognising our emotions and all of our exploration continues to enrich and extend the emotional repertoire.  MetaFlora Level One is about enhancing emotional resilience and flexibility.  Many of us are stuck in a limited repertoire of emotions based on belief systems and attitudes which we acquired from our family, or from our immediate cultural surroundings.  The key to unlocking and expanding our emotional life usually lies is seeing core pictures and experiences which coloured our perceptions early in life, before we could filter them through an adult individuated consciousness.  By working with feelings from the past, the goal is not to stay attached or feel victimised by these early childhood experiences, but rather to redeem and to heal them so that we can reclaim the full spectrum of emotional experience which our soul deserves.  We may have learned to cope by shutting down our emotions, or by becoming overly emotional.  This first MetaFlora level is so basic that we all need to attend to it in one way or another if we hope to travel well through the rest of the Soul Wheel.  The following are key essences to consider using in MetaFlora Level One.  As with all MetaFlora levels which will be discussed, the essences listed will be those which have the greatest archetypal affinity.  By being aware of these essences you can help to unlock the door to each MetaFlora level.  However, there are certainly other essences which you will want to consider as you tailor your healing program to meet your particular needs.

Mariposa Lily  This is a key essence which heals wounds we carry from childhood by helping us to redeem our relationship to our mothers, or in general, any vulnerability we felt as a child

Baby Blue Eyes  This flower essence is the corollary to Mariposa Lily which addresses early childhood wounding from the father; this wounding from the father often leads to cynicism and mistrust in later life

Evening Primrose  For more intense or extreme cases of childhood trauma, such an abandonment and abuse, particularly if registered while the child was in the womb or in the very early stages of infancy

Calla Lily  For deep seated sexual confusion or anguish, often due to family and cultural expectations, and especially feelings or preferences felt by the mother when the child was in utero

Fawn Lily  Extreme sensitivity which freezes the emotions, resulting in coldness and isolation rather than emotional warmth and social connection

Holly  For core levels of jealousy, envy or resentment which shut down the heart, often traceable to early childhood patterns such as believing that there was not enough love to go around

Oregon Grape  Profound paranoia or hostility, often engendered by harsh circumstances in childhood, so that the soul no longer trusts human love or kindness

Chicory  For emotional congestion and neediness, for child-like dependency and self-centeredness which usually stems from early childhood experiences

Chamomile  For mood swings, and emotional moodiness, for pronounced susceptibility to negative emotions

Centaury  Emotional subservience due to low self esteem and other self-concepts usually inculcated from family and culture

Golden Ear Drops  To help remember childhood experiences which grip the soul subconsciously, but are not recognised or integrated by the consciousness

Fuchsia  For overly emotional states, bordering on hysteria; such emotions are usually a cover for deeper feelings which are repressed

Pink Yarrow  For extreme emotional sensitivity, in which the boundaries between one's own feelings and those of others are confused and often somatized

Buttercup  For feelings of low self-esteem and unworthiness which often stem from early childhood beliefs about the self