Palo Santo (Holy Wood) - Is It Endangered?

Palo Santo is an excellent tool for cleansing, meditation, and ceremonial use. Practitioners often compare its powers to being superior to that of white sage smoke. Whenever our crystals feel like they are " out of batteries," we usually cleanse them in a plume of palo santo smoke.

What is Palo Santo?

Palo Santo (Bursera Graveolens) is a tree that is native to Central and South America. Its name translates to "Holy Wood" and has been believed to offer up therapeutic aromas & powers for countless centuries and civilizations.

Common Misbeliefs with Palo Santo

There is a misconception that the Palo Santo that is used by energy practitioners is an endangered tree species. The reality is that the Bursera Graveolens tree is NOT endangered. Both this tree species and the Bulnesia Sarmiento share the same name of "Palo Santo", but they cannot be more different. The Bulnesia Sarmiento species is on the endangered list of tree species and is affected by illegal loggers from the Gran Chako region. It is often darker with a reddish tint and closely resembles Mahogany wood.

The Palo Santo that we offer is from the Bursera Graveolens tree closely resembles a tan/yellow color with hints of grey throughout. The cultivation of the Bursera Graveolens contributes to the livelihood of thousands of people from the coastal region of Ecuador. These villages depend on the legal Palo Santo trade, and they contribute back to the environment through reforestation.

When this opportunity of selling Bursera Graveolens Palo Santo is taken away from these villagers, they are often forced into the illegal trade of Palo Santo. By purchasing this legal Palo Santo, you are contributing to combatting the illegal Palo Santo trade.

How to light Palo Santo

Palo Santo has many uses that can help your stones, environment, and aura. We recommend lighting one end of the stick with a hemp wick to ignite its pure essence. Once it is lit, let the wood burn for a moment or so before blowing it out. You will notice that because the wood is so dry and has been naturally aged for so long, that the burnt end will smolder. Once the smoke begins to rise, you can start your cleansing.

Cleanse Your:

• Aura by wafting the smoke in a circular motion around your physical body.

• Crystals by enveloping them in the Palo Santo smoke.

• Environment by walking around the area with the smoking Palo Santo. Imagine purifying all the negativity in that space away.

• Soul by soothing it with the beautiful scent of the Palo Santo smoke. Let this tree assist you in your connection to your inner being.

Palo Santo is one of our favorite meditation tools, and it helps calm our mind before we begin to enter a meditative state. We want to rid the negative image Palo Santo often being promoted online, and share the amazing powers that this holy wood has to offer!

We wanted to give credit to Ecuadorian Hands and The Palo Santo Project, for providing us with a ton of helpful information on this subject.