The Metaphysics, Spirit, and Energetics of Essential Oils

One of the key elements in the Holistic Essential Oil Triad is metaphysics. And honestly, I don’t always know what that means. That’s the point. Metaphysics in this context gets the nickname “the I don’t know” category. It refers to the therapeutic effects of essential oils that aren’t fully understood. There are times when something just works—physically, emotionally, energetically—and no one can explain why. That “I don’t know, but it works” space is often where the metaphysical lives.

So what is spirit? I don’t know. But I do know it’s something.

What Is Spirit, Really?

When we talk about holistic health, the phrase “mind, body, spirit” is almost always included. I challenge that. The whole phrase. That’s a holistic challenge. But let’s focus for a moment on “spirit.” What exactly is it? Ask a religious person, and you may get a response based in doctrine. A “spiritual not religious” answer would be similar without the organized religious overtones. A quantum physicist may laugh, or use a philosophy sometimes shared among the modern pseudoscientific quantum interpretations. So what is spirit? I don’t know. But I do know it’s something. And it’s useful when we’re talking about health and wellness.

Metaphysics and Essential Oils

Metaphysics has a few definitions. Merriam-Webster describes it as “abstract philosophical studies: a study of what is outside objective experience.” That sounds a lot like spirit, doesn’t it? Metaphysics is the philosophical exploration of being, consciousness, existence, time and space, cause and effect, and the relationship between mind and matter. I like that. It leaves room for ambiguity. It acknowledges there’s more going on in the world, within us and around us, than what we can detect with our senses. It doesn’t rely on dogma or belief systems. It’s a way of accepting the unknown as part of the whole.

George Harrison (No Relation) and Psychedelics

My own relationship with metaphysics and spirit started early, before my teen years. I was introduced through Beatle George Harrison. I resonated with his journey into Transcendental Meditation and Indian philosophy. As a kid, I didn’t understand the depth of what he was doing. It was just rock and roll to me. But something in it connected. That connection deepened through my personal experiences with psychedelics. Not the curated or ceremonial kind people are exploring today. Mine were self-guided. Psychedelics, much like Indian philosophy, became part of how I saw the world. Both shaped my rock musician identity. These also gave me a very metaphysical perspective on life. It developed into a strong influence on my intellectual and philosophical framework.

I say I don’t believe anything. It’s either true or real or it’s not. Better, I think, if thought of as trust in your truth.

Rational Spiritualist?

I became a rational spiritualist. If that makes any sense. I find lots of flaws in many of the spiritual practices. Mostly when bathed in marketing dogma. I tend to practice and use many of the techniques, language, and philosophies of the spiritual. I say I don’t believe anything. It’s either true or real or it’s not. Belief can create conflict. Even though I say this, belief as a definition does have benefits. Better, I think, if thought of as trust in your truth.

The Tao of Hair, Metaphysics and Essential Oils

I owned a hair salon/spa. It was built around natural, holistic products and had a distinct New Age, rock-and-roll atmosphere. Maybe you had to be there. This evolved from me going from touring musician to hairdresser. The concept was based on my study of herbs, nutrition, essential oils, and absorbing Eastern philosophies. I began defining myself as a Taoist. Mostly because in Taoism, if you define yourself as one, you aren’t one anymore. That’s cool. What it means, is when we define things, we create them. That’s Buddhism as well. My extensive exploration into quantum mechanics gave me a scientific basis of understanding all of this.

Open the Door, Follow the Path

My interest in quantum mechanics gave me a framework. As a pseudoscientific philosophy, it provided me with a process for spirituality, metaphysics, and essential oils. Psychedelics opened the door. Quantum theory gave it a hallway. This journey allowed me to be open to all the possibilities within metaphysical activity and philosophies.

Tarot and Maybe it Was Shakira

The salon brought in all kinds of people—spiritualists, energy workers, and psychics. One very intuitive woman told me I had strong psychic abilities and should try Tarot. I thought I’d give it a curious try. Then soon after, she signed me up to be a reader at the Halloween Salem Witches’ Psychic Fair. I told her there was no way I could do that. “If I did,” I said, “I’d just be bullshitting people.” And then . . . I did it. And somehow, I wasn’t just making things up. I was reading people, intuitively and accurately.

There’s a story involving a woman I’m pretty sure was Shakira dressed as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. I saw she was a musician looking to get signed with a US company. Her look of surprise had me wondering how I could know that. What’s the connection? I still don’t “believe” in Tarot or psychic phenomena in the traditional sense. But I can’t deny the experience. I don’t need to believe in something for it to be real. I accept it as true until it proves otherwise. That’s my metaphysical stance.

Using What We Can't Fully Understand

Aromatherapists often lean into the spiritual side of essential oils—chakra balancing, energetic clearing, and so on. There’s a lot of “I don’t know” in that world. But instead of rejecting it, I lean in. My background as musician, salon owner, psychonaut, philosopher, has taught me to work with what I don’t know, rather than trying to explain it away or throw it out. Frequencies, subtle energies and auras may eventually be explained. They may not. But they’re part of the experience. They influence how I understand and use essential oils.

I don’t pretend to have the answers. But I’ve learned how to use what’s there, even when I don’t fully understand it. That’s metaphysics. That’s spirit. That’s the basis of the Metaphysical category on the triad.