JOSH WILLIAMS
In my late teens I was called to the world of spirit; both literally and figuratively. Since that time the most important thing in my life has been following the green thread which weaves in and out, warp and weft, through the spiritual underpinnings of nature's tapestry. As a green-blooded person, my practice circumambulates the great cosmic tree and all the plants who grow around its base. My work with the plant spirits is both vocation and passion- and my purpose is in bringing verdant inspiration to anyone who will suffer my endless herbal ramblings.
On the clinical side of things, I attended the world's most respected program in clinical herbalism where I studied plant medicine through the lenses of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, and Western Vitalist traditions. In addition to over 20 years of personal study and borderline obsession, I have also had the honor of studying under the late Paul Beyerl, Kami McBride, Michael Tierra, and Jim McDonald. I am fiercely opposed to the idea of a 'master herbalist' or anything like it, and firmly believe that study and experience in the wild green world is a lifelong endeavor. I am always engaged in further education and exploring plant medicine through new angles.
In 2018, after offering community herbal classes and experiences since 2016, I opened Greenthread Apothecary in the heart of Salt Lake City, Utah, the only full-service herbal apothecary of its kind in our city. Since then we've served our community with custom formulated herbal medicine, education, and a lot of fun! In that same year I started the Greenthread School of Craft Herbalism which offered a year-long immersive education in energetic, constitutional, and spiritual herbalism- the only program of its type in the world. I now only teach in a traditional mentor-apprentice format using initiatory formats. I have been awarded Best Herbalist in the Best Of Utah awards every year since 2018.
In 2023 our brick & mortar herb shop moved away from retail herbal offerings into a community herbalism clinic. We craft all our remedies by hand for each individual client and are able to spend ample time in conversation, exploration, and ritual.
I love teaching, and have been able to do so in many venues I never thought I'd be part of. I currently focus my teaching online and with my current cohort of apprentices. I have also offered courses at the University of Utah and Healing Mountain and have presented at the Botanica Obscura conference.
As both a practitioner and teacher of The Green Arte Tradition and of spiritual herbalism and modern expressions of my ancestors' Wortcunning, my life has many wild twists and turns and is saturated in love and respect for the plant spirits. From food to medicine, shelter to clothing, fuel to companionship - the plant spirits are universal agents of providence who truly transform the lives of all they connect with. Through their empowerment I am able to approach the shrine at the base of the world tree where the old ones are offered devotion. They guide me into ancestral realms and bless the lines before and the lines to come. They remind me of my relations with all beings, and my responsibility to land, sky, and ritual.
On the clinical side of things, I attended the world's most respected program in clinical herbalism where I studied plant medicine through the lenses of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, and Western Vitalist traditions. In addition to over 20 years of personal study and borderline obsession, I have also had the honor of studying under the late Paul Beyerl, Kami McBride, Michael Tierra, and Jim McDonald. I am fiercely opposed to the idea of a 'master herbalist' or anything like it, and firmly believe that study and experience in the wild green world is a lifelong endeavor. I am always engaged in further education and exploring plant medicine through new angles.
In 2018, after offering community herbal classes and experiences since 2016, I opened Greenthread Apothecary in the heart of Salt Lake City, Utah, the only full-service herbal apothecary of its kind in our city. Since then we've served our community with custom formulated herbal medicine, education, and a lot of fun! In that same year I started the Greenthread School of Craft Herbalism which offered a year-long immersive education in energetic, constitutional, and spiritual herbalism- the only program of its type in the world. I now only teach in a traditional mentor-apprentice format using initiatory formats. I have been awarded Best Herbalist in the Best Of Utah awards every year since 2018.
In 2023 our brick & mortar herb shop moved away from retail herbal offerings into a community herbalism clinic. We craft all our remedies by hand for each individual client and are able to spend ample time in conversation, exploration, and ritual.
I love teaching, and have been able to do so in many venues I never thought I'd be part of. I currently focus my teaching online and with my current cohort of apprentices. I have also offered courses at the University of Utah and Healing Mountain and have presented at the Botanica Obscura conference.
As both a practitioner and teacher of The Green Arte Tradition and of spiritual herbalism and modern expressions of my ancestors' Wortcunning, my life has many wild twists and turns and is saturated in love and respect for the plant spirits. From food to medicine, shelter to clothing, fuel to companionship - the plant spirits are universal agents of providence who truly transform the lives of all they connect with. Through their empowerment I am able to approach the shrine at the base of the world tree where the old ones are offered devotion. They guide me into ancestral realms and bless the lines before and the lines to come. They remind me of my relations with all beings, and my responsibility to land, sky, and ritual.
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As a practitioner of what I call green sorcery, my work is informed heavily by the spirits with whom I am in contract. At the center of the many relationships I have with plant spirits is that of my patron, mentor and guide, guardian and muse, The Green Man. Enigmatic and oft misunderstood, he is at his most direct a timeless person who is intimately connected to the cycles of the plants, the ebb and flow of verdant energy from the world below into our world and back again, the wild paths that connect the realms, and the mysteries of herbal medicine and herbal magic.
In most contemporary treatments, The Green Man is seen as anywhere from a work of art to a warning of damnation to those who become too invested in the illusions of nature. His face hidden in the carvings of christian churches across western Europe opens him up to interpretations by those who are not likely aligned to his deeper and wilder ways. For me, The Green Man is a personal and collective guide- one who is rooted in the wildness of the spirit world. He moves between the realms above the ground and those tangled in ancient roots to bring forth wisdom to his people. He imbues the growing plants with vital force, sits with them in their glory as king of the wood, and is felled with them at the harvest... only to rest up and return again with the next cycle of growth. He teaches us about the eternality of spirit, the ways of vital force and virtues both magical and medicines, the secrets hidden between death and birth, and the quiet mysteries of the plant spirits all. I am, through and through, a devotee of this great verdant god- a cultist quite infatuated with the ways in which he is hunted and harvested. Much of my work is influenced, inspired, and directly taught by him. The Land Goddess- the Earth Mother Dhegom Matr as she shows up where I live, also makes up a large part of my hearth cult. With these varied offerings of love, great green gome, may our bond be strengthened and the path between us be open! |
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Voted Best Herbalist in Utah since 2018