Essential Oils
Essential oils that are known to improve meditation, relaxation and visualisation for your greater wellbeing. Here is a list for easy reference to know which oils will improve your meditation and visualisation experiences.
Fragrances have been an important part of rituals and meditation for thousands of years in almost every culture around the world. The many different scents were believed to elevate users to different states of consciousness and relaxation. When choosing essential oils, it’s important to do your research and make sure you’re getting therapeutic-grade oils that are made using the purest ingredients.
There is a strong link between smell and memory, if you continue to use the same oils, over time the memory of the scent will help bring you into the relaxed meditative state that you desire more quickly.
As you will notice a lot of the essential oils have been repeated making some of them very versatile for you in your practices.
Essential Oils for Meditation
Oils which are the most beneficial for your meditation practice include:
1. Frankincense
Frankincense is one of the most sacred essential oils for spirituality. It’s probably because it’s been linked to different spiritual rituals and ceremonies – for healing, cleansing and enlightenment – in many different cultures, for thousands of years. It helps to increase our faith and connection to higher self.
2. Myrrh
Myrrh has one of the highest levels of sesquiterpene in an essential oil. Sesquiterpene’s delete bad information in cellular memory so inhaling this oil can help to eliminate negative thoughts. It can help reduce stress, bring focus and can assist in a deep spiritual “opening” while bringing calm and tranquillity.
3. Sandalwood
Sandalwood is very helpful in healing emotional and spiritual wounds, as it opens the heart and helps to promote trust. It’s also quite grounding.
4. Neroli
Neroli has a pleasant floral fragrance and can help you to be more self-accepting, face your fears and accept the work you need to do for yourself. The fragrance can also inspire creativity and encourage a regular spiritual practice.
5. Rose
Rose is the fragrance of love, both the human and the Divine kind. It opens the heart to receive love, particularly self-love and a deeper connection to the spiritual world.
6. Vetiver
Vetiver is extremely grounding and can be especially beneficial if you tend to wander and lose focus during your meditation practice.
7. Palo Santo
Palo Santo is a cousin to Frankincense and loosely translated means Holy Wood. It has been used for hundreds years by shamans for spiritual applications. It is grounding and calming and can elicit a sense of peacefulness and calm.
8. Cedarwood
Cedarwood encourages us to focus inward. It can also help to illuminate your need for meditation and return you to your spiritual path when obstacles have made it difficult.
9. Lavender
Lavender is one of the most versatile oils. It is readily available and there are many different varieties. Lavender is known for its relaxation properties and helps promote sleep. It blends well with most other oils.
10. Bergamot
Bergamot is slightly reminiscent of orange oil. It has an underlying floral scent which has an emotional uplifting affect and is great for helping alleviate depressive, sad or grief stricken emotional states.
11. Ylang Ylang
Ylang Ylang is an extremely calming and relaxing oil. It can help release feelings of anger and tension and mixes well with patchouli and frankincense.
12. Sage
Sage is cleaning and purifying and can assist in removing negative energies. It is grounding and restores both balance and energy.
Alternatively, here are three different blends of essential oils that you could use, depending on the intention of your meditation.
Essential Oil Blends for Meditation
Grounding Meditation Blend
- 3 drops of Sandalwood or Patchouli
- 4 drops of Frankincense
- 3 drops of Bergamot
Relaxing Meditation Blend
- 5 drops of Lavender
- 3 drops of Cedarwood
- 2 drops of Bergamot
Calming Meditation Blend
- 4 drops of Ylang Ylang
- 3 drops of Frankincense
- 2 drops of Patchouli
Essential Oils for Mental Clarity
1. Lavender
Lavender is known for its calming and relaxing properties. Diffusing lavender oil can help put your nervous system in a parasympathetic rest-and-digest state, versus the fight-or-flight one that many of us often resort to during stressful times. Ingest a few drops after a busy day to calm down and promote a restful sleep.
2. Frankincense
Frankincense is an amazing oil that has been used to support healthy cellular function for thousands of years. During biblical times, Frankincense was said to be even valued more than gold. Used aromatically, frankincense offers wonderful mood support and can help improve focus, minimize distractions, and improve concentration. It also reduces hyperactivity, impatience, irritability, and restlessness.
3. Vetiver
Vetiver, a member of the grass family, is a nice, thicker oil that carries an earthy fragrance. It has powerful calming and grounding effects on emotions, which make it an ideal oil in massage therapy. It can be used to relieve stress, promote restful sleep, and aid in recovery from emotional trauma and shock.
4. Lemon
Citrus oils like lemon are very uplifting to the mind and body. Lemon, when used aromatically, promotes physical energy and purification. Its invigorating fragrance is warming, and there are many clinical studies supporting the use of lemon essential oil for reducing stress and boosting mood.
5. Peppermint
Peppermint is a popular oil that is said to stimulate the mind to help support memory, focus, concentration, and mental performance.
Essential Oils for Emotional Clarity
1. Basil
Basil essential oil is helpful in dealing with feelings of anxiety, panic, or apprehension, and has been said to be the oil of “renewal”, both emotionally and spiritually. It provides strength and tranquillity to the heart and mind, making it perfect for overwhelm, stress, fatigue, and may even assist a person in their efforts to overcome addiction–which makes it a great choice for overcoming ruminating thoughts and self-sabotaging behaviours that often result from toxic relationships.
2. Cedarwood
Cedarwood oil is a great oil for times of crisis or sudden change, such as when there is an adjustment in households, jobs, and/or relationships. These events often lead to feeling isolated or knocked off balance. Cedarwood provides feelings of stability and grounding when external circumstances threaten your feelings of stability. It also helps lessen fears that deter your ability to realize your potential. On an everyday basis, diffusing Cedarwood can increase your stamina and help you stay more focused, lively and hopeful.
3. Lavender
Lavender essential oil is useful for a variety of emotional conditions. It has been proven beneficial for anxiety, depression, irritability, panic attacks, and stress reduction. Researchers at the University of Miami found that inhalation of lavender oil enhanced beta waves in the brain, suggesting improved relaxation! On a spiritual level, lavender essential oil lifts the weight of depression and sadness, bringing an emotional balance to the soul.
4. Bergamot
Bergamot helps us transfer love back to ourselves. We can be so fixated on wanting other people to make us happy that we forget we can do that for ourselves. Bergamot is uplifting, has natural anti-depressant properties, and helps us to relax and regain self-confidence again.
Bergamot oil helps us in the areas of self-love, self-worth, self-acceptance, self-judgment, and self-loathing. This oil helps do the work necessary to step out of one’s fears of not being good enough, and habits of holding back for fear of rejection. It instils validation within, allowing us to accept our own authenticity, and not spend so much time worrying about the opinions of others.
It also helps us in processing and releasing fear, blame, the need for approval, toxic shame, and emotional anguish. It may also relieve feelings of incompetence, inadequacy, or worthlessness by helping us step into our own confidence and empowerment.
5. Frankincense
In addition to alleviating and eliminating depression, Frankincense is known as the “Oil of Truth”, revealing deceptiveness and false truths. It invites the individual to let go of lower vibrations, insults, and negativity. This oil helps create new perspectives based on integrity and enlightenment.
Frankincense is a powerful cleanser of the spirit. It assists in removing malevolent energies attached to a person, allowing them to open to enlightenment. Addresses emotions of abandonment and spiritual disconnectedness.
6. Hyssop
Hyssop is a holy herb that awakens the heart, bringing acceptance while encouraging unconditional love towards the self. Hyssop enables a clarity of spirit, encouraging emotional connection and well-being.
Hyssop essential oil is used for elimination of emotional uncleanliness, assisting in the removal of the legacy of guilt and fear of a generational nature. It is purifying for those who believe they have sins that need to be forgiven. It releases judgment of self and others, as well as old, limiting beliefs that no longer serve one’s spiritual path.
7. Lemon Balm
Lemon Balm is the ultimate oil for emotional detox and combating stress and overwhelm. On a spiritual and emotional realm, Lemon Balm has been used for centuries to harmonize the mind and body. It will help those who are Highly Sensitive (HSPs) and are prone to emotionally shutting down.
Using Lemon balm will restore clarity and generate support and balance to the spirit so one may have a positive outlook on their life and well-being.
Essential Oils for Visualisation
Certain essential oils have been repeatedly linked with improved dream recall, better sleep and stronger visualization ability.
1. Rose Essential Oil
Perhaps the most widely used essential oil in perfumery, rose oil is prized for its rich floral scent. It has calming properties, helping to soothe emotions and promote relaxation before sleep.
2. Helichrysum Essential Oil
With strong antioxidant properties, helichrysum is good for wound healing, infections and stomach aches. It’s also recognized as a good natural treatment for insomnia.
3. Sandalwood Essential Oil
Revered in India for centuries, Sandalwood is a calming oil which helps reduce nervous tension. It’s considered one of the premier oils for use in meditation by helping to quiet mental chatter.
4. Palo Santo Essential Oil
Less is more with this one. As a soothing essential oil, it’s known for help with stress and anxiety, as well as aiding a good night’s sleep.
5. Patchouli Essential Oil
When diffused, Patchouli can help alleviate nervous tension and worry and is a soothing oil for meditation. Ideal for your pre-bedtime lucid dream incubation routine.
6. Clove Essential Oil
For a restful night’s sleep, use Clove in a diffuser or applied to your pillow for long-term inhalation. Clove is also renowned for its antibacterial and antifungal properties and is used in dentistry.
7. Mugwort Essential Oil
A tonic for the nerves, mugwort serves to both physically relax your body while stimulating your mind to alertness. As a result, it’s one of the better-known lucid dreaming oils.
8. Anise Essential Oil
Anise oil is used as a sedative for anxiety, nervous afflictions, depression, anger and stress. Ideal if you’re feeling agitated before sleeping due to its tranquilizing and relaxing effects.
9. Clary Sage Essential Oil
Clary sage helps to calm the body and provide a restful night’s sleep. It’s also proven as a powerful antidepressant among a comparison of essential oils.
10. Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender essential oil has a calming scent which makes it an excellent tonic for anxiety issues. The aroma removes nervous exhaustion and restlessness while also increasing mental activity in preparation for conscious dreams.
We all have our own experiences with scents and smells and no two people are the same. The above recommendations will give you an understanding of what may suit you so you can get the most out of your meditation or visualisation. Maybe even a better night’s sleep will assist you in your daily activities.
If you want to increase your Intuitive Awareness one easy way is to learn how to do Flower Readings. You connect with your emotions before you intuitively choose your flower, and when you ‘read’ the flower it tells you what your intuition is wanting you to know.
Learn how to do Flower Readings with online courses now available. Anyone can do this and it is fun and interactive. Amaze your friends and family.