Goji berries are in a category of foods known as tonic herbs. These powerful plants have the potential to penetrate deep into the body, affecting our physical, mental and even spiritual development. Yes, there is much more to this berry than just its recognized superfood power due to its antioxidant contents.
The chemistry of Goji is known in Asian Taoist cultures to affect us on a much deeper level than purely the physical. Goji is used to open our heart chakra and connect us with our spiritual path in life + combat depression by reconnecting with our passion.
That's a powerful little berry - especially in these times where many find a hunger for nourishing their soul and embarking on the path towards change from toxic destructive habits developed as a temporary coping mechanism in a materialistic world.
Thriving, opening our creative force... after all, isn't that what health is supposed to be? The fundament on which we can build new adventures, discover new places and reach our highest self... and give back. Yes, this may all sound a bit New-Age, but really - health is not a measure in itself; it is merely a tool to allow us to expand our human potential, and create something for the greater conscience in this life.
And this is where Goji enters as a powerful nourishing remedy to help us on the path to unfold our destiny. Goji is the quintessential tonic herb. By their very nature, tonics reach into all cells of our body. Tonic herbs are human potential potentiators, meaning they can expand us, fine-tune us, and optimize us.
There is no spiritual development without the foundation of physical health. Our body is our temple. Physical health must be the beginning point of spiritual growth.
Tonic herbs are not just for specific disease management, though. These herbs have anti-aging, longevity + body-balancing effects, that help protect us from the toxins, that we are chronically exposed to through cell phones, TV, microwaves, chemicals present in our laundry detergent, furnitures, clothing, perfumes, non-organic foods, chemical containing cooking-ware, make-up, aftershave, deodorant etc.
I always recommend making some lifestyle changes to avoid the major culprits of disease. However, that said, we want to be able to focus on other things than getting all fanatic healthnuts, who cannot interact or go about their daily life, without being a pain to socialize with. So what to do? Well, protection from the toxins in the world we live in, is more sustainable than over-obsessing about every toxin exposure that we cannot avoid in this lifetime, anyway.
Tonic herbs do exactly this: they activate the body's self-healing ability and provide broad-spectrum protection. All Taoist masters, most yogis and wise people worldwide have used tonic herbs. These are plants that aren't taken for their immediate health benefits (although some are, depending on what you need), but many are plants that people take for next week, next month, next year. They support and nourish you throughout life.
Reference: Nutr Res. 2009 Jan;29(1):19-25. Lycium barbarum (goji) improves in vivo antioxidant biomarkers in serum of healthy adult.Amagase H1 et al.