VETIVER

July 17th, 2025

I stopped praying when I was around 11 years old.

Back then, I was taught to pray the Mormon way, which starts with:

Dear Heavenly Father,

and ends with:

And I say all of this, in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, 

    Amen.

These days, I am praying again, to perhaps a totally different entity, but I can't help but follow the same sequence.

Every morning, after I’ve dressed myself for work, packed my breakfast and work lunch, grabbed my keys, and put on shoes and earrings, I find myself reaching for the little vial of Vetiver oil on my bedside table. I’ll roll it around in my hands, and then one drop on each wrist and start my prayer. 

Vetiver originates from the Indian subcontinent. 

Most of the Vetiver used commercially - I've read is produced in Haiti. From an agricultural and practical standpoint, it's a stable crop to grow and harvest, and is said to aid in protecting land from soil erosion.

From a metaphysical perspective, Vetiver is said to be among the most potent for grounding an individual as they descend:

“..Vetiver oil assists in becoming more rooted in life. Life can scatter one's energy and make individuals feel split between different priorities, people, and activities. Vetiver brings the individual back down to earth.

It assists them in grounding to the physical world. Vetiver also assists individuals in deeply connecting with what they think and feel. In this way, Vetiver is incredibly supportive in all kinds of self-awareness work.

It helps uncover the root of an emotional issue.

Vetiver challenges the need to escape pain. It centers individuals in their True Self and guides them downward to the root of their emotional issues. It helps them find relief but not through avoidance.

Relief comes after they have traveled within and met the core of their emotional issue. Vetiver will not let them quit. It grounds them in the present moment and carries them through an emotional catharsis.

The descent into the True Self assists individuals in discovering deeper facets of their being. Vetiver opens the doors to light and recovery through this downward journey.."

I suppose I began praying again to help 'root' me to something. The vetiver, whether I knew it before or not, is an anchor that keeps me home, entangled with my roots (LOL). Most of my prayers these days are requests for peace, for the quelling of my anxieties about a world I don’t quite understand and for the strength to overcome my corrosive habits as I pursue my ambitions, as well as the wisdom to operate objectively through challenging and sometimes unjust situations (I've been dealing with a lot of those for the past few months). 

I'm learning in the hardest of hard ways that there has to be a balance between rationality and spontaneity and historically, I haven't understood the difference. 

The vetiver is so sacred to me, as is the prayer ritual. 

I never thought I’d be the kind of person who prays. I never thought they really worked.

In a way, this is both an ode to the precious oil - and my justification of why I even write here. 

- vetiveroil