Luminous Reishi

Whispers from the forest

"The mushroom is the elf of plants, at once magical and mysterious"
- George Carlin

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If that is true generally of mushrooms, then Reishi would be an elder Elf. The 10,000-year-old wise one.

Reishi is luminous and shining. A heart-awakening mushroom to calm the mind and open doorways. A protector of the physical and energetic body. Once so rare and precious, all the Reishi in Imperial China was secured for the royal court.

Read about Reishi and you’ll find an abundance of references to happiness, good luck, health and longevity. You might also find yourself smiling, more assured that life’s challenges are not insurmountable. Perhaps you’ll be touched by Reishi’s playfulness. Its peacock tail shape, bright halo and beautifully rich, shiny colours look as though a child drew and painted it with the precious colours of Autumn. In the woods, it’s possible to imagine a little forest being dozing peacefully on the cloud-like body of Reishi, before sliding right down its stem through a portal in the tree and into another world!

Let your mind wander… It's in the gentle drifting that we may begin to sense the personalities and potentials of remedies. Science may dissect and confirm what sages and herbalists once intimately understood through observation and connected awareness, but the essence of nature cannot be studied in a lab, it reveals itself when we're ready to learn.

The spirit of play

Reishi is a well-known neuroprotective mushroom and taken to ensure a long and happy life. Consider it for Alzheimer's, dementia and mental burnout. If play keeps us young and present, the essence and vital compounds in Reishi support memory, clarity, and resilience as we navigate the twists and turns of life.

Animals and humans all love to play. Play is possible when our mind is calm, free from the burdens of obligations and absurd governance. When we allow ourselves the time and space to play, the demands of work and the world are more easily balanced. Stresses may arise, but never to the point of consuming or depleting us.

Elders who appear young at heart have a twinkle and inner calm that beguiles their age. They've seen enough to know that nothing is really as serious as it first seems, and no problems were ever solved by rooting oneself in a fixed position of either denial, victimhood or aggression. As a wise elder, Reishi opens the doorway to shifting more freely and fluidly between states.

The magic of Reishi

Reishi is classified as a ‘shen tonic’ – which translates loosely to mean a herb which nourishes the spirit. When we’re stressed, our nervous system becomes chaotic and tangled. Nothing flows. Reishi can induce a state of relaxed focus. Work and play. Productive and calm. Peaceful and alert. The perfect balance. Zen.

There are scores of books, science papers and articles on Reishi’s powerfully positive effect on the body. Life’s demands are so much these days that sheer willpower isn’t enough – we need allies we can rely upon. Traditionally, Reishi has been called upon to calm a restless mind, strengthen the heart, replenish vitality, soothe lungs, and shield the body from the wearing effects of stress. Reishi’s anti-inflammatory nature eases tension and irritation throughout the body.

Reishi often shines for those living with chronic stress, where the nervous and immune systems are frayed, reactive, or out of sync. Stress may come from an internal or external source. Reishi helps regulate, rather than override the activity of the immune system. If you have an autoimmune condition, are sleep deprived, anxious or under constant pressure, you may benefit enormously from Reishi.

Cancer and Reishi

Reishi has a long history of use in the treatement of Cancer. It influences the immune function in a way that is both profound and intelligent. It is a deeply supportive ally that works alongside the body's own wisdom. Being given a cancer diagnosis can feel frightening. The remedies and protocols you choose to take alongside conventional treatments can give you back a degree of ownership as your journey progresses. Nothing good is achieved when depression or despair takes hold and steals your life force. Let the essence of play and spirit back into your life. Beyond the mere physical, it may also protect your emotional resilience as radiotherapy and chemotherapy take their inevitable toll on the body.

The medicine of Reishi

Unlike other mushrooms that can be eaten, Reishi is tough, almost woody. Raw, powdered Reishi isn't very helpful for the body. Its medicine is locked away, needing to be carefully extracted. The flavour is distinctly bitter and the more bitter it is, the more potent. The gods must be playful, making what's good for us is not always sweet and easy - sometimes we have to want to get better! Don't look for capsules, you'll never know the quality of the Reishi inside them because you cannot taste it. As unappealing as it may be, we need to taste our remedies. Keeping them in the mouth and letting the body process the delicate compounds before they enter the digestive tract is vital.

We regularly give our dog our Reishi extract - she had a horrible tick infection that saw her having multiple grand-mal seizures through the night several years ago, and in the morning, she was completely unable to stand or walk. After several weeks in intensive care at the animal hospital in Edinburgh, we had her home and began a long rehabilitation process. She's doing great, on no pharmaceutical medication, and despite being uncoordinated from the brain damage she suffered, she is bright, alert and very active!

Ways to enjoy Reishi? My favourite is a pinch in homemade chocolate. Its bitterness dances with pure cacao. For coffee lovers, it’s just as simple — a little Reishi in your cup brings a subtle, earthy depth. We’ve also included Reishi in our Tonic Gold M blend — carefully crafted to revitalise the body while offering enough richness and complexity to delight even the most devoted coffee drinkers with a nourishing alternative.

Reishi invites us to step into a space of presence, play, and quiet strength. Welcome to this magical mushroom 🍄

Written by Jemma Claire, co-founder Na'vi Organics