SSENTIAL OILS are the subtle, volatile liquids distilled from plants, shrubs, flowers, trees, roots, bushes and seeds.

ANCIENT SCIENCE:

The translation of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics and Chinese manuscripts reveal: For thousands of years, priests and physicians were using Essential Oils to heal the sick. There are 188 references to oils in the Bible.

Some precious oils, such as frankincense, myrrh, galbanum, rosemary, hyssop, cassia, cinnamon and spikenard were used for anointing and for protection against the ravages of disease.

Read all about the Biblical Oils.
Review the references to the following periods:

Egyptian

China and India

Greeks

Romans

Arabian empire

The Dark Ages

The Renaissance

Flower therapy

Aromatherapy

The ancient process of distillation is a delicate and precise art which has been almost forgotten. Science is just now rediscovering the healing substances that were used in ancient times and is beginning to acknowledge their value.

Young Living Essential Oils are helping to bring history to life and to restore this ancient knowledge to our modern world.
Historical References

Egypt

In the history of mankind it seems that the Egyptians were the first people to extensively make use of aromatherapy and aromatic herbs and included their use in religion, cosmetics as well as medicinal purposes.dating back about 3,500 BC. The Egyptians used infusion techniques to derive essential oils. They used these derivatives in many ways. Incense was used in religious ceremonies, with different oils being offered to different gods.
Oils were used to combat mental illnesses such as mania and depression. They were also utilized in hygiene and communal baths, as well as massage. Perhaps most notably, oils were a key element in embalming, the preservation of dead bodies. Recent excavations of pharaohs’ tombs unearthed pleasant aromas, centuries after burial.

China

There is a strong possibility that the ancient Chinese civilizations were using some form of aromatics at the same time as the Egyptians. Shen Nung's Herbal book is the oldest surviving medical book in China which is dated about 2700 B.C. and contains information on over 300 plants. The Chinese used aromatic herbs and burned aromatic woods and incense to show respect to God.

India

Greeks

The Greeks continued the use of aromatherapy, with many of their practices based on Egyptian techniques. Hippocrates (c.460 - 377 BC), sometimes known as the father of medicine, was reported to have said, “The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and scented massage every day.” Today, we would consider that a luxury! Megallus, another Greek physician, formulated oil blends for assisting in the healing of wounds.

Romans

The Romans again took over the medicinal wisdom of the Greeks and were great believers in hygiene to promote health and also place great stock in aromatherapy and the power of fragrances.
Aromatics were used in religious worship, but they were also popular with the common people. Thousands of “fragrant watering spots” were scattered around the streets of Rome. Of course, the Roman bath, incorporating massage and oiling, is legendary to this day.

Arabian empire

After the fall of the Roman Empire and the subsequent Dark Ages we saw the emergence of the Arabian empire which was in the position to draw not only from the Greek and Roman teachings, but also those of China and India.

It is the Persian physician Avicenna (980 - 1,037 AD) that is being credited with perfecting the distillation process of essential oils.

The Dark Ages

What happened in Europe during the Dark Ages is unclear, but the widespread prosecution of “witches” for their healing powers shows that there was a very strong folk healing tradition at that time and this most likely included the use of aromatic plants.

The Renaissance

During this time there was a swing back again to the holistic treatment of illness and the most noteworthy of physicians were Paracelsus (Phillipus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim 1493 - 1541).

At the beginning of the Renaissance, and with the expeditions of the great explorers, there was a rise in bringing home new aromas. Oils were once again sought after, and herbs were back in demand. In Europe wigs were scented with oils, and nosegays were carried to help mask the stench of their unsanitary streets and bodies.
In France, hospitals were fumigated with burned lavender and rosemary.

Flower therapy

Dr Edward Bach was a consulting physician and trained as a pathologist and bacteriologist but became disenchanted by orthodox medicine and developed his system of treating disorders - where the disease is not as such looked at, but the personality suffering the problem.
" Disease is solely and purely corrective; it is neither vindictive nor cruel, but it is the means adopted by our own souls to point out to us our faults, to prevent our making greater errors, to hinder us from doing more harm, and to bring us back to the path of truth and light which we should never have strayed." -Dr Edward Bach

Aromatherapy (Modern)

The term aromatherapy as we know it today was first coined in 1937 by the French chemist and perfumer Rene Maurice Gattefosse. He was not a believer of the natural health movement but was interested in the properties that essential oils exhibited.
In 1910 he burnt his hand badly in his laboratory and being the first available compound handy, treated his badly burnt hand with pure undiluted lavender oil, which not only immediately eased the pain, but helped heal the hand without any sign of infection or scar.
He also found that minute amounts of essential oils are absorbed by the body and interact with the body chemistry.

During the second world war, as a result of Gattefosse's experiments, Dr. Jean Valnet used essential oils to treat injured soldiers with great success.
“Essential oils are especially valuable as antiseptics because their aggression towards microbial germ is matched by their total harmlessness to tissue—one of the chief defects of chemical antiseptics is that they are likely to be as harmful to the cells of the organism as to the cause of the disease.” -Dr Jean Valnet

In the 1950's Marguerite Maury started diluting essential oils in a vegetable carrier oil and massaging it onto the skin using a Tibetan technique which is applied along the nerve endings pf the spinal column.

Madame Marguerite Maury is credited with modem use of Aromatherapy and holistic care. She studied the work of Dr. Jean Valnet. She used his experience and methods in applying her beauty work. She tried to blend compounds to fit her client's gender, temperament and health problem. She is likely the first identified as treating in a holistic manner. That credit should go to the men and women who had worked in a holistic manner for centuries before they had scientific proof that their experience was right.

Since the late 1970 and early 80's the use of essential oils and aromatherapy has become a major part of alternative and holistic health systems, and has a huge following across the world.

"Lavendula officinalis requires 175-250 pound to produce one pound of pure lavender oil."

PROCESSING:

High pressure, high temperatures, rapid processing and the use of solvents and chemicals will fracture the oil molecule, destroying the therapeutic value and altering the fragrance. Any chemical combined with an Essential Oil destroys the effectiveness of the oil's purpose and function.

Experience pure, organically grown, essential oils! Young Living Essential Oils

WARNING:
Only Grade A oils carry frequency and have the full health benefits. Most essential oils sold today are cut with carrier oils (can go rancid), alcohol and even chemicals and synthetics.

"Melissa requires three tons of plants to produce one pound of oil, which sells for $9,000 to $15,000."

"Peppermint requires 35-40 pounds of plants to produce one pound of peppermint oil."

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