Pioneered by Dr. Edward Bach in 1930’s, a flower essence is a liquid preparation imprinted with etheric pattern of a particular flower. Like a homeopathic remedy, liquid – usually spring water with a little brandy added for preservation – contains little or no detectable chemical substance of flower from which it was made. Instead, liquid maintains vibrational pattern of flower. Well, what does this mean, exactly?

To understand flower essences (also called ‘flower remedies’), you can imagine that all things are made up of vibrating energies – modern physics and eastern mystics both confirm this – that there are no finite particles, but instead repeating, dynamic energy patterns. Material objects are made up of huge amounts of energy really, as Einstein had shown with E=mc2, where amount of energy (E) is equal to mass (m) of an object times speed of light (c – a very big number) squared. Now picture a beautiful red rose – bright, colorful, vibrant – Rose has a particular energetic pattern, one that is repeated in every other red Rose (though not exactly, but very close). There are energy frequencies that are particular to red Rose that are different from all other flowers. The vibrations that make up a Rose are faster than many other flowers (Rose is considered a very high-vibration flower), and these vibrations are woven together in a particular way. Now imagine any other flower – a Geranium for example – it’s vibrational patterns are different from red Rose – slightly slower perhaps, and woven together in a different way. It is these vibrational patterns of each flower that give them their particular characteristics – color, shape, smell, texture, and like.

Now, somewhat like a sound from one source can make a material across room vibrate with sound energy (as your eardrum may vibrate from plucking of a guitar), flowers can cause water to vibrate with a different sort of energy. It’s not so much a sound, or even light (though this is closer), but ‘etheric’ energy – very essence of flower has a vibration that is imprinted upon water in which it is placed. The water, being made up of vibrational energy itself, retains some of vibration of flower that was soaked in it. This etheric imprint is stored in water, and can actually be transferred from water at a later time to other objects (or beings) also made of vibrational energy.

So, what does all this mean to us?! Well, Dr. Edward Bach held notion that source illness or disease was emotional in nature. And when one ponders what emotions really are, one can conclude that each emotion is a particular energetic state of being. All emotions seem to have a particular energy – love, despair, anger, fear, appreciation – one can consider each of these a different energetic pattern. Dr. Bach considered negative energetic states, negative emotions, to be source of disease in body, a theory supported by much of world’s healers. Dr. Bach also thought that these energetic states can be transformed, and that one of transformational methods he discovered was use of vibrational patters of flowers – it was then that Flower Essence Therapy was born.

Through years of research and study, Dr. Bach developed a system of therapy using vibrational patterns of flowers, imprinted into spring water, to transform emotional vibrational patters of human beings. He showed through numerous case studies that flower essences, properly selected and applied, can be effective in treating negative energies which underlie most disease states. Further, one need not have an illness or disease to realize benefits of flower essences – flowers can be used to assist in transformation of any negative emotional state, be it temporary and transitive, or a more ingrained long-term pattern. (Flower essences do not transform positive states into negative ones, as flowers are not thought to contain negative energies themselves).

Dr. Bach’s 12-7-19 Categorization Method

Dr. Bach categorized original 38 flower essences he discovered into 3 categories to assist in their application. The categories are ’12 Healers’ which reflect and transform our essential nature, ‘7 Helpers’ to assist with chronic conditions, and ‘Second 19’ that relate to more immediate traumas or difficulties. Here we will consider Twelve Healers and describe properties of each essence. The Seven Helpers and Second Nineteen will be considered in Parts II and III of this article.

The Twelve Healers were designated by Dr. Bach as flower essences that help individual transform source of discord at very core of their being. These twelve essences are meant to address twelve archetypal groups of humanity; twelve primary personalities as Dr. Bach saw them. Some have gone so far as to relate these to twelve signs of Zodiac (a reasonable relationship it seems), though it is unclear as to whether this relationship was drawn by Dr. Bach himself.

These twelve essences are an excellent starting point for any journey into flower essence healing, as it is often times our root ‘disharmony’ or karmic imbalance that is source of much or perhaps all ‘dis-ease’ in our lives.

The Twelve Healers:

Impatiens – As name of flower implies, this essence addresses a tendency toward impatience; these individuals have difficulty with flow of time. Their minds are often far ahead of present moment, and with this they will deny themselves full immersion in beauty around them. The individual needing Impatiens may be truly lonely, always being ahead of those subtle human exchanges which bring richness to our collective human experience. Many find Impatiens to be a relatively ‘fast acting’ flower essence, feeling more at ease within minutes of essence use.

Gentian – Those in need of Gentian flower essence are too easily discouraged when setbacks occur. They may live with an omnipresent feeling that things are not going well, and may doubt possibility of their own healing. Gentian can bring about a more positive outlook – perhaps with feeling that one is ‘good enough’. When things do not go exactly as planned, instead of being overwhelmed and disheartened, one can see lessons in circumstance, perhaps rebounding with more wisdom and strength than before.