This week’s meditation is a scentual one. Every year during the December holiday season I make an aromatherapy blend that I created years ago when I was a freshly certified aromatherapist. I use it in a diffuser, room spray, bath and aromatherapy necklace until it is gone. It’s inspired by the scents associated with Christmas and Yuletide. My holiday blend is a combination of the following essential oils:

• biblical oils: frankincense, myrrh, spikenard
• tree oils: balsam fir, black spruce (pine)
• spices: cinnamon and clove
• fruit: orange

If you can get your hands on any or all of these scents (perhaps order from me…?) perform the meditation while inhaling them. Alternatively you can use clove, cinnamon and orange from your kitchen and/or take a walk where there are fir, spruce or pine trees.

The meditation:

Prepare scents and sit in a comfortable chair in a quiet place. Close your eyes and start slow steady inhalations and exhalations.

As you inhale the aromas, notice how you feel. Do you feel joy? melancholy? other? Do the scents bring back any memories? decorating Christmas trees? drinking mulled cidre? being with relatives/friends? If inhaling a blend of the above oils, which scent dominates? Does it change the longer you inhale the aromas? Do your feelings change as you continue to inhale your holiday blend? Are there any physical sensations that come up as well? Are they associated with any of the feelings or memories that has come up?

Perform this aromatherapy meditation for 3-5 minutes. Take note of how you feel before you start and after you finish. Scents have an effect on emotions and tend to trigger memories. Focus on these rather than thoughts as you do your aromatherapy meditation.