As the cold season approaches, Hildegard would recommend that we prepare our immune system for the icy months ahead, by using her duckweed drink. Her idea of appropriate preparation for winter meant cleansing the body and ensuring the proper balance and function of our juices.
Duckweed Drink to Balance Bodily Juices
The balance of our four bodily humors is particularly important, because according to Hildegard, our bodily juices preserve well-being and prevent illness from disrupting the composition and balance of spirit, mind, body.
The winds that bring new seasons also effect the balance of our bodily juices. Hildegard’s beliefs are preceded by the teachings of the Greek physician Hippocrates, who wrote in 400 BC. Like Hildegard, Hippocrates highlighted how the balance of bodily juices change with new seasons. Imbalance brought-on by these seasonal fluctuations can have serious consequences for health.
Hildegard referred to this imbalance as “vicht”. As a remedy for those experiencing this sort of imbalance, she prescribed her duckweed elixir. Vicht translates to the condition that precedes more serious diseases. Or, as we would say today, pre-cancerous.
Cleansing the body
Hildegard’s approach to healing was preventative. She believed in cleansing the body before illness has a chance to take hold. This sort of regular, seasonal cleansing is made all the more important by the many environmental pollutants we face in our everyday lives. Through regular detoxing, we flush our metabolic waste to help achieve the harmony and inner balance of our humors. From this place of balance, we further strengthen our bodies and achieve greater vitality.
Of the duckweed elixir, Hildegard says, “drink the duckweed drink often, dry, as much as you can drink with one breath, and again when you go to bed at night. This prevents the bad juices that arise in dry conditions or form after meals.”
-Hildegard von Bingen
Duckweed Drink Regimen
Common wisdom suggests a one-month (4 week) regimen using duckweed elixer, annually. This course is particularly useful at the change of seasons. Ideally, during autumn when dry winds arise. After a 4-week course using duckweed juice, there should be a noticeable sense of well-being, relief of fatigue, and reduction of inflammatory and rheumatic symptoms.
The overall purpose of a duckweed drink regimen is to increase vitality and strengthen harmony of bodily fluids. As we embark on the cold season, drink a liqueur glass of Hildegard’s duckweed elixir every morning and every evening to strengthen your body against those common ailments that arrive with the winter winds.