Here at Sirius Herbal, we are passionate about the power and beauty of herbs and incense. Although most of our products come from South and Latin America, we’re fascinated to see how indigenous cultures around the world used nature’s store cupboard as food, dyes, in ceremonies and as herbal medicine. We will be examining various ancient cultures to find out how they used herbs and plants and also sharing facts about how other cultures used them too.
Today we’re starting with the ancient Aboriginal culture, which stretches back at least 65,000 years. Their connection with the land, knowledge of how to use their native plants, herbs and roots is second to none. They used these natural ingredients as food, medicine and more.
Native Australian herbs and ingredients for cooking
There are so many great herbs growing wild across Australia, which are native to this wonderful land. They were an important source of food and flavour for the Aboriginal people and are having a resurgence with top chefs leading the way and encourage people to use more indigenous ingredients. These herbs include bush mint, lemon myrtle, aniseed myrtle and native ginger. Delicious in flavour, they were also used traditionally for medicinal purposes to treat everything from headaches and colds to stomach aches.
Aborigines had to use the land and were very creative with how they made food from a wide variety of plants. For example, they used the kangaroo grass seeds to grind into flour, which mixed with water became damper bread, which they cooked on an open fire. Cumbungi or Bullrush were used in many different ways. The roots and leaves were eaten and the plant was used to create starch to bake bread as well as using the leaves to weave into baskets which were used in cooking. They ate a healthy diet reliant on what was available at any given time of the year and were very knowledgeable about how to use food for better health.
Using native herbs and plants for healing
According to pharmacist and complementary expert Dr Tiralongo, the Aboriginals knew that it was important to eat correctly to maintain their health throughout their lives. They then turned to plants and herbs to treat illness through infusions, skin application or burning.
They used medicinal plants such as native mint for coughs and colds, various types of wattles to promote sleep and help with rheumatism and indigestion, and old man’s weed to strengthen the immune system and promote mobility. Oil was extracted from tea-tree and Eucalyptus leaves to treat wounds and aches, pains and chills. They also used snake vine to help with headaches and inflammatory conditions. Vines are similarly used by the indigenous people in the Amazon, where the vine Banisteriopsis Muricata is used for healing, as well as for spiritual purposes.
The gum from gum trees was used to treat burns, thanks to its high tannin content. Plants and herbs with high tannin content such as mimosa hostilis were also used by indigenous communities in South America to promote healing and applied to many different conditions.
It is interesting to note that during scientific research into the Aboriginal plants most used in natural medicine do contain anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. For example, the leaves of the Emu bush were used to clean sores and cuts, gargled and also burned in smoking ceremonies and has been found to be as strong as some antibiotics.
Sacred herbs and plants for the aboriginal culture
Burning native plants to produce herbal smoke is a big part of ceremonies for Aboriginal Australians. The smoke is believed to be cleansing and ward off bad spirits. Various plants are used for this purpose, including the Emu Bush.
These smoking ceremonies are very similar to the well-known Smudging ceremony practiced by indigenous people in Canada and North America using the sacred herbs Sweetgrass, Cedar, Tobacco and Sage. White sage is very important in Native American cultures to burn as incense and use in traditional medicines for coughs, colds and as a general tonic, and to purify the air. It is popular with our customers as a purifying incense which improves wellbeing.
You can browse and buy our selection of sacred herbs on our website, which are a vital part of many rituals and ceremonies in indigenous communities. These include mimosa hostilis, Banisteriopsis Muricata Caapi Red and Diplopterys Cabrerana Chaliponga which are all an important part of many shamanistic ceremonies in Latin and South America and make beautiful natural dyes.
