Reishi: The Mushroom of Immortality

Introduction to the plant

Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum), known as the “Mushroom of Immortality,” has been cherished in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and other herbal traditions for thousands of years. With its woody fruiting body and slow, patient growth, reishi embodies winter’s themes of resilience, reflection, and spiritual depth. It is revered for its ability to nourish the body and mind while supporting longevity and inner balance.

Energetics & Properties

Energetic Profile:

• Taste: bitter, slightly sweet, earthy

• Temperature: neutral to slightly warm

• Tension Spectrum: Relaxing; soothes tension in the nervous system while promoting clarity and focus.

• Tissue Tone: Tonifying, gently strengthening and supporting the immune, cardiovascular, and nervous systems over time.

• Herbal actions: adaptogen, anti-viral, antioxidant, inflammation modulating, bitter tonic, cardiac tonic, hepatoprotective, immuno-modulator, nervine trophorestorative, respiratory tonic.

Benefits:

• Adaptogenic: Supports the body’s stress response, promoting resilience and emotional balance.

• Nervine trophorestorative: Nourishes, strengthens, and tonifies the nervous system and encourages restful sleep while enhancing mental clarity and calm as a mild CNS relaxant.

• Immune-Modulating: Reishi is best understood as an immune tonic acting deeper on the immune system, used to strengthen the vital reserve and build up core immunity rather than superficially stimulating the peripheral immune system. Reishi has been shown to increase immune activity in those that are immunodeficient, and yet decreasing excessive inflammation and immunity in those which are hyper-reactive or autoimmune.

• Heart Tonic: Traditionally considered to nourish and protect the heart, fostering emotional stability and vitality.

• Shen Tonic: In TCM, reishi is revered for its ability to cultivate Shen, or the spirit. It supports emotional equilibrium and fosters a sense of calm, connectedness, and spiritual clarity.

Winter Relevance

Reishi aligns beautifully with winter’s introspective and restorative energy. Its steady, grounding presence invites us to slow down, cultivate resilience, and explore our inner worlds. Key winter benefits include:

• Supporting the immune system during colder months.

• Calming the mind and body, promoting deep rest and rejuvenation.

• Offering spiritual nourishment and connection, inviting us to align with winter’s inward focus and stillness as well as to deepen our connection to our own true nature within the vast web of Nature.

Practical Applications

Herbal Preparations

• Tea or Decoction: Simmer dried reishi slices in water for 15 minutes to several hours to extract its nourishing compounds. Combine with warming herbs like ginger or cinnamon for added depth.

• Tincture: Use reishi tincture for daily immune and nervous system support. Make sure to use a “double extraction” tincture that combines an alcohol extract with a hot water extract.

• Powder: Add reishi extract powder to coffee, cacao, soups, broths, or stews for an easy, nutrient-rich boost.

Skincare Preparations

• Add reishi extract powder to facial masks for its soothing and protective benefits.

• Brew reishi tea and use it as a facial toner to calm and hydrate your skin.

Plant Meditation

Brew a strong cup of reishi decoction or tincture in warm water. Have your journal with you and find a comfortable seat. Light a candle and take a few deep breaths. Notice first reishi’s scent. Does it remind you of anything? Does it awaken any thoughts or emotions? Then take a sip and notice the taste. Where does the taste land on your tongue?

After a few moments, notice the way it feels in your body. What is your immediate response to this plant? Are there any specific areas in which you notice sensations? How does your breath change? Does your body relax or feel tense? Note what comes up in your physical as well as your energetic body.

Begin to notice the way the plant’s energetics unfurl in your body. Does it feel different after a few minutes than it did initially? Is there anything that surprises you about this plant or its energetics?

Tune into Reishi’s voice. Does it have any wisdom to share? Any message? Sometimes this can come in the form of images, a single word, or simply a feeling or sensation. Notice whatever subtle shifts occur, even if it doesn’t make rational sense. Note it in your journal so you can come back to it later. Sometimes it isn’t until days or even weeks later that these plant messages make sense or reflect something that’s alive for us at any given time.

Ritual Uses:

• Use reishi tea in a meditation practice to deepen calm and focus.

• Place reishi on your altar to symbolize longevity, resilience, and spiritual connection.

• Burn a small piece of reishi (or its powder) in a cleansing ritual to invite clarity and grounding.

Reflective & Spiritual Practices

Journaling Prompt

• How can I root into my own spirit during this season? What does spiritual nourishment mean to me right now?

Glimpse Practice

• Imagine reishi growing slowly and steadily on a tree in a quiet forest. Threads of mycelium spreading out like a web throughout the tree’s trunk and down into the damp soil. As you breathe deeply, connect with its grounded, wise, ancient energy, inviting a sense of calm and timeless resilience into your body and spirit.

Precautions & Sustainable Use

Safety Notes:

• Reishi is generally safe but may cause digestive upset in large doses or for sensitive individuals.

• If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or taking medications, consult a healthcare provider before use. However, keep in mind that in Asian cultures, mothers have been consuming reishi for centuries while pregnant and nursing. In fact, the term “reishi baby” refers to the calm demeanor of babies whose mothers consumed reishi while pregnant and nursing.

Sourcing Tips:

• Choose organically cultivated or sustainably harvested reishi to protect wild populations.

• Look for high-quality sources that respect ethical growing and harvesting practices.

Closing Reflection

Reishi offers the gift of deep wisdom and intuition, calm, and spiritual nourishment, encouraging us to embrace winter’s stillness and align with its restorative energy. This revered mushroom reminds us to cultivate strength and serenity from within, tapping into our true nature to foster balance for the seasons ahead.