The magick of teas
Disclaimer: I only slept about three hours when writing this so if you can make sense of my typos or random use of the wrong word, I appreciate it.
Every so often I see joke posts about making soup or tea as a magical potion but... that is a potion. Chicken Soup is one of the oldest, most culturally accepted, mild healing potions.
It's a rebellion against traditionally feminine roles that has lead to a decline in "Kitchen witchcraft" but soups and teas, in particular, have been potions for centuries. And a lot of it has been accepted as medicinal science. Herbal remedies are how we discovered aspirin from willow bark, for example.
So with some folk superstition / magick mingled with herbalism and actual medical knowledge I present to you a short list of teas and their magical purposes.
First a bit of folk magick for all teas. Stir clockwise AKA Sunwise (Deosil) to induce a spell and to infuse and intention into your tea. Stir counter-clockwise to end or undo something, such as a perceived hex. Put your intention or desire into the stirring.
Adding honey to the tea helps with mild coughs and sore throats. And yes, you can add sugar and / or cream or milk to any tea. It won't compromise the magick. Raw honey is especially good in medicinal teas because raw honey is a natural, mild antibiotic.
All teas help with hydration so that won't be mentioned here in the list of medicinal and magical properties.
Disclaimer: This is NOT a substitution for medications. Always consult your own physician whenever possible for medical concerns.
Home remedy and magical uses for tea:
Hibiscus tea = Good for helping to regulate blood pressure.
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White tea - Relieves upper raspatory infections / head colds and may help to prevent colds. High in antioxidants.
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Green tea - Also helps with head colds. Ginseng has many medicinal properties so yes, even Arizona's iced green tea with honey and ginseng is a remedy. I tend to crave it when I'm feeling under-the-weather. Green tea is high in antioxidants though white tea might have more antioxidants, which is why I listed that one first.
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Peppermint - Aids with indigestion or upset stomach. Also freshens breath. Can aid with heartburn. When mixed with sugar and light cream or half-and-half (half-cream / half-milk) or with just milk, it becomes a desert beverage that might help induce a seasonal Yule-like sensation. If treating a stomach ailment, it might be best to leave out any cream or milk. Sugar is perfectly fine and will not interfere with its medicinal properties.
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Spearmint - Calms some mild stomach ailments. Freshens breath.
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Catnip in tea - Relieves stomach pain in humans (Part of the mint family).
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Valarian root - Natural sedative. Valarian root will aid in sleep. (This works so long as you are not ADHD. Usually works for neurotypical people, sometimes works if you're not. You may want to test it on yourself first. Some neurodivergent people have had adverse reactions).
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Vervain AKA Verbena in tea or as its own tea - When consumed this tea induces a temporary protection against vampiric powers such as hypnosis. (No, this is not just in vampire diaries. I used to think it was just a vampire diaries thing too.)
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Hibiscus, rosehips, and cinnamon - Nostalgia tea. This tea can help calm you and invoke fond memories of the winter season, particularly of Yule / Christmas. It can induce a comforting, warm feeling.
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Herbal tea mixture: Chamomile, tilia flowers, valerian root. spearmint, lemongrass, and hawthorn. = Sleep aid tea. Relaxes and helps bring on sleep. (This works so long as you are not ADHD. Usually works for neurotypical people, sometimes works if you're not. You may want to test it for yourself first. Some neurodivergent people have had adverse reactions). A name brand version is, of course, Celestial Seasonings' Sleepy Time Tea and Sleepy Time Extra Tea. (stronger variation.)
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English breakfast tea, Irish Breakfast tea, and Scottish breakfast tea. = Stimulant. This will wake you up more quickly and more potently than ordinary black tea. They are listed here in order of weakest to strongest. Scottish breakfast tea, when brewed just right, is stronger than coffee.
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Lemon tea = Aids in sore throat and helps with singing / vocal range. Also usually contains vitamin C so it can help with sinus infections, upper raspatory infections / head colds and preventing them. This works best without cream or milk.
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Ginger tea = Helps with upset stomach. Similar to how ginger ale (with real ginger) helps. When sweetened this will usually taste like flat ginger ale. This works best without cream or milk. Honey or sugar are optional. With the right amount of sugar it will have a similar taste to flat ginger ale.
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Chamomile tea = This one will aid with mild fever, inflammation, and menstrual cramps. It also can help to relax and calm you.
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Rose tea (Particularly wild rose) = Will ward off demons and vampires.
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Herbal blend: Rose (Particularly wild rose), Hawthorne, and verbena (AKA Vervain) (garlic optional though I don't recommend it as it ruins the flavor) = vampire warding tea. Will also work on some demons.
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Chai = Dispels negativity and can invoke luck with its cinnamon content.
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Black tea = Has mild medicinal properties. Many find it comforting and familiar. It can invoke a sensation of the autumn and when consumed near the end of summer it may help seem to speed along the arrival of autumn and cooler weather.
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Pumpkin spice tea - This is black tea mixed with the traditional "Pumpkin spice" spice mixture and usually also with dried pumpkin added. This tea works as a protection against evil, wandering ghosts, bad luck, demons, and some black magick.
The spices in the Pumpkin Spice mixture such s cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, etc are all spices used in protection and luck charms. Even the the dried pumpkin is a protection ward against evil since Irish immigrants to North America started using pumpkin in the carving of Jack-o-lantern protection wards (as opposed to the more traditional turnip Jack-o-lanterns used in Ireland). It was believed that the pumpkin versions worked just as well if not better than the traditional turnip versions.
Name brand variations of Pumpkin Spice tea include Celestial Seasonings' Sweet Harvest Pumpkin and Bigelow's Pumpkin Spice tea. (Personally I prefer the Bigelow version because the Celestial Seasonings version has Roasted Chicory and I'm not a fan of the taste of that. But the Bigelow version also contains licorice root, which is often considered a tea filler / sweetener, and I know some people don't like that one. So check the ingredients or mix and match to make your own.)
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Warm sweet apple cider (Cloudy apple juice, also available as Motts' "Natural" version of their apple juice. NOT hard cider. This is the alcohol-free kind) can help to invoke a sensation of the autumn and invoke autumn weather. And when mixed with a little cinnamon or cinnamon and nutmeg or pumpkin spice-like seasoning configurations, can ward against evil and bad luck. This can also be served chilled but warmed brings out the fragrance and helps with any attempt at autumn weather spells.
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Another natural sleep aid beverage is milk served slightly warm (Body temperature) or even at room temperature, mixed with a drop of vanilla extract (or to your liking), and raw honey. (If you don't have raw honey, regular is fine.) This sweet mixture will taste like melted vanilla ice cream when blended correctly and can aid against insomnia.
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A warning, J. K. Rowling discusses a wolfsbane tea in Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban. Do not attempt to make ANY tea containing wolfsbane, in case this wasn't common sense. Wolfsbane, AKA aconite, AKA Monkshood, is a highly deadly neurotoxin with no antidote. It will kill anything!
