Herbal Bathing

I’ve never been much of a bath person; I prefer showers as baths generally seem boring. But bathing took on a sweet charm—and an energizing allure—when I met a lovely lady and respected kahuna, healer, in Hawaii. Life on this enchanted isle revolves around the salty waters: bathing in it, swimming and surfing in it, even getting healing therapy in it. Suddenly the idea of immersing in the pleasures of a steaming tub of salty, seaweedy water seemed the most natural thing in the world.

I had the blessed opportunity to spend an afternoon with the wonderful kahuna Auntie Velma Dela Pena, at her house, and to learn from her about her culture and her life as the family matriarch of 156 people. She graciously invited me to her home when I was researching healing women for my documentary book Women Healers of the World: The Traditions, History and Geography of Herbal Medicine.

Hawai'i Sacred Waters

I arrived on a sunny winter day when the air was chilly and a light breeze blew a gentle rain through her house—yes, through her house, because Auntie Velma’s house had no walls: it was a tarp tent, with a gravel floor, a portable kitchen counter, a refrigerator, stove, television and a couple of chairs—and a massage table where she performs the ancient healing rite of lomilomi. From the back of the tent I could gaze up at the towering Koolau volcanic mountain range, and from the front came the breezes off the Waimanalo Coast. Shivering in a sweater, Auntie Velma offered me a mug of hot water (no herbs, no tea, no lemon, just hot water) and I had my first hint that, to this venerable keeper of ancient traditions, water was sacred in and of itself.

We listened to the great waves crashing not-so-distantly, the vast sea of blue that had indeed seemed immense and never-ending to me when I flew over from California.

“I love it,” she told me as we stood beneath a coconut tree outside her house. “I can feel the energies of the ocean and the mountains. It’s awesome when you’re working on someone and feel that energy flowing. Hawaiians believe you must go into the ocean to be healed; after that I’ll work on them. You can feel the difference in their energy.” She says mountains takes away negative energy and the ocean provides new energy, and she won’t do lomilomi until a person has renewed themselves in the healing waters of the sea. In fact, traditional healing rites still include sea bathing, which can be very symbolic—allowing the person’s bad energies or illness to “loosen” from his or her body and spirit and float freely away.

Using Seaweeds

As an herbalist, I tend to think first of the lovely green herbs that flourish in my gardens and that scatter themselves along the dusty roads and farms, waiting to be picked. But to truly experience the radiance of the ocean and Auntie Velma’s cleansing rituals of absolution, I felt I must introduce myself to the seaweeds—limu, in Hawaiian—and yes, take a bath. The dulse, kombu, nori, kelp, laver, and carrageen that call the vast ocean home would be welcome in my tub and on my skin. Medicinally, these lovely mineral-rich fronds are used for a variety of illnesses in the body: iodine deficiency, weight control, as iron supplements and for soothing digestion. I wondered if bathing with these thick, slick sea herbs would be a sensual and cleansing experience, as many people find it relieves achy muscles and joints, softens skin, and improves thyroid function (though people with high blood pressure should check with the health care provider first). It’s a renowned method for removing toxins via the skin.

I choose to create a bath using dried culinary seaweeds and making an infusion with them to pour into the tub, though you can use fresh seaweed fronds harvested from the sea. You can also purchase ready-made sachets of kelp and dulse from seaweed bath vendors online or indulge in a bath experience in a spa setting: in Ireland the seaweed spa has been popular for more than a century, as an estimated 300 seaweed bath houses were open in the early 20^th century. These bath houses esteem the traditional uses of seaweed bathing, including toning and moisturizing the skin, strengthening the lymph system, absorbing trace minerals, and reducing inflammation. 

After I poured the hot infusion into the tub and soaked for a half-hour in the silky green water, I didn’t feel suddenly free of toxins—but of course no herb worth its salt (ahem) yields its magic so quickly. I’ve learned that to truly appreciate the gifts of plants one needs to connect with them consistently, over time. But I did emerge from the bath feeling very, very refreshed and delightfully clear-headed, and for that I send my thanks to the slippery grey-green plants of all the waters of the world.

Seaweed Bath Recipe

Ingredients and Methods:

If using fresh seaweed:

Harvest your own seaweed from the waters (not from the beach). Place fresh fronds right in the tub under very hot water and be sure to remove them before draining the water after the bath. 

If using dried seaweed:

Place dried seaweeds in a tea infuser or cheesecloth bag; fill the infuser ½ to 2/3 full, since the seaweed will expand. In a large pot on the stove, bring plenty of water to a boil, add the seaweed bag and simmer 30 minutes or more. When ready for the bath, pour the slightly gel-like green water and the infuser right into the tub and enjoy it as hot as possible.

Meditate, relax, and envision your body being strong, your skin radiant, your mind clear, your future happy and productive. If you desire a fragrance or extra anti-bacterial action (seaweeds are already antimicrobial), add 5-10 drops of lavender, yarrow or eucalyptus essential oils to the bath water. When the water cools, remove any fresh fronds and emerge from the bath, stretch, and drink plenty of cool water. 

Silky Bath Tea Recipe

Land herbs are wonderful in the bath, too. Some herbs are the original soaps and are perfect for bathing, such as lavender and soapwort. Others are fragrant (rosemary), soothing (chamomile), moisturizing (red clover), antibacterial (eucalyptus), anti-inflammatory (St. John’s wort), or all of the above (marjoram and calendula). 

Ingredients:

10 teaspoons dried herb(s) of choice (see list above)

5 tablespoons dead sea salts or Epsom salts

1 teaspoon vegetable glycerin (optional)

10 drops essential oil (lavender, eucalyptus or lemon)

fresh herbs such as rosemary branches (optional)

Bring a very large pot of water to boil. Place the herbs in a large infuser or cheese-cloth bag and submerge them in the water; simmer 30 minutes. Fill the tub with hot water. While it’s filling, mix the salts with the essential oil in a small bowl. Pour the tea into the tub and scoop in the sea salts and the vegetable glycerin, if using. If you have fresh herbs such as branches of rosemary or long leaves of yarrow, bring these into the tub as well and swish them around while you bathe, inhaling their deep scents. Enjoy!

Excerpted/adapted from Taproot Magazine Issue 6 WATER, “Taking the Sacred Waters” by Holly Bellebuono