Proving is working with a plant in my own body to learn the way of it. Usually it is taken in the form that I intend to work with it.
Actually I’ve never questioned the need for provings. I just accepted Stephen’s rationale to start. But, as I gain so much information, companionship, knowledge and relationship from doing them.
How I like to do a proving starts by sitting with the plant and deciding how to make medicine to do the provings. Then, for example, if I’m doing a tincture, I ask how much alcohol and water (I don’t like glycerin or vinegar tinctures as a rule). Fresh tinctures are easy as usually there is just straight alcohol unless you’re garlic or lion’s mane. I guess there’s no rule, just general guidelines.
During the time the plant and I are working with the medicine, I like to check in with it daily. Sometimes I’ll work with a plant for a month sometimes shorter it just depends. I like to talk with it about expectations and needs from both our perspectives.
When the medicine is ready, I usually like to take it three times per day and to sit with it while I take it in fully exploring where it goes in my body and how that feels. Usually I work with only one plant at a time. But, not always, especially if they are related species and I want to compare their action in my body. For example, white sage, garden sage and black sage are all salvias (not artemisias). And each in my provings work with different parts of the body and in different ways. I haven’t done this with the artemisias, yet, but it would be interesting.
Which brings me to point out my ideas for doing provings far exceed the time I can spend. So I have a bunch of herbs to do provings on in my cupboard to get to one day…
An important aspect of doing provings it can carry over to herbs that I haven’t worked with and informs that work as well. So an herb that I haven’t done provings with yet will sometimes volunteer to work with me on a particular situation. My belief is that I’ve shown my values and the herb is willing to risk working with me, really quite magical.