The Wonderful Benefits of Palo Santo ( Holy Wood)

Metaphysical properties of Palo Santo.

It’s been said that Palo Santo has multiple metaphysical properties that could help the body, emotions, mind and spirit. The “Holy Wood” is becoming more known in the Western World because of said properties, because of its sweet and pleasant smell, and also because of its “cleansing” properties.

How do you use Palo Santo Wood?

Palo santo wood has been used for hundreds of years as a physical and spiritual purification tool. Priests and homeopaths from ancient tribes that lived in Los Andes and the Amazons used palo santo in each of their rituals. It is a rooted tradition that has prevailed and is still alive today. This sacred wood is used in aromatherapy, alternative medicine and in everyday life, inside normal homes, achieving multiple benefits.

It may be that the reason why palo santo wood is so generous with mankind is because to obtain its properties it is necessary to respect its nature. “The plant” is not ready to give its best until it has been dead for some time. Once the tree finishes its vital cycle, the wood starts to compress and “sweeten” its essence. The oil of palo santo impregnates the wood and then acquires all of the beneficial chemical components that previously remained hidden and latent in the tree. This is when palo santo really becomes the ‘sacred’ wood. This sweet aromatic wood is believed to bring many spiritual and material benefits to people.

What is Palo Santo essential oil used for?

Among others the most used applications are:

• One of its most used applications is as a calming and anti-depressant agent.
• Applied on your skin, it helps to restore damaged skin and it helps to recuperate soft tendons injuries.
• Is also helpful for some the most common respiratory infections such as asthma, cold, and flu.
• It may even be used for strong migraines and headaches. 

Mystically speaking, shamans or people intuitively know that there are beneficial spirits living in the tree, which move into the essential oils of the heartwood after the tree dies. To the shaman, palo santo is one of the most powerful and sacred substances that exists.

At the time of South America’s discovery, the conquerors were fascinated with this unknown tree element. Observing how the natives used this wood, they discovered its virtues and started calling it “palo santo”. Without a doubt it is a sacred plant that opened the doors to great spirituality. When it is burned, the small sticks generate a clear color fire that will drive away bad energies far from the home. Hundreds of years after shamans burned the wood in their rituals and ceremonies, people have continued using it for space clearing in the home and to promote the flow of positive energy. Its pleasant aroma produces a relaxation and calmness that it is not very easy to obtain by other means.

Palo Santo’s fragrance is sweet and citric. Its notes stimulate the person using it to be in touch with their own inner self, generating special states of concentration, balance, calm and peace. The area where the subtle smoke has been placed, appears impregnated with a spiritual aura. In fact, the vapor that the aromatic smoke generates has been considered since ancient times to be a direct path in contact with positive energy and Divinity.

What is Palo Santo incense used for?

Thanks to its ability to open the path within and communication with “the other world”, it is an excellent purifier, anti-depressive and relaxant. Stress, panic attacks, “bad mojo”, negative energy, suffering, sadness, etc., are elements that we can have in our inner self that affect our quality of life. Using palo santo can allow us to achieve a more balanced state with ourselves, allowing us to become more fully aligned in our mind-body experience.

Whether you believe in metaphysics or not, smudging your home with the subtle smoke of palo santo can provide a state of calmness and relaxation that will help you to keep negative thoughts at bay.

Can you use Palo Santo to cleanse crystals?

The answer is yes! You can prepare a space in your space, burn Palo Santo and place it safely in a large bowl (you can add sand or stones at the bottom of the bowl, so it doesn’t break or heat too much), and when it’s smoky pass the crystal through the smoke previously setting your intention. Check out our shop for a holder that is ideal!

Another option is to use a small bowl where you burn the Palo Santo, then set the crystals close and outside the bowl, and cover both with a big bowl to create a smoke bubble where your crystal can be immersed in the smoke for an amount of time you consider appropriate.