| Shadow tendency | Wholeness |
|---|---|
| Kind, gentle souls | Supports development of courage |
| Like to help | Self-determination |
| Slave of another’s wishes | Wise and quiet |
| Over-anxious to serve others | Has boundaries |
| Overtax their strengths in their endeavours | Knows when to give or withhold |
| May neglect their own particular mission in life due to helping other people | Strong individuality |
| Little strength of will | Socialises |
| Timid | Support their own opinions strongly |
| Easily imposed upon | Find balance |
| Doesn’t stand up for themselves | Restores sense of perspective |
| Servile instead of being a willing helper | Inner strength |
| May be bound to family or a parent | Complete favours for peers without losing sight of personality and needs |
| Thoughts and actions are often influenced by others | Give strength to mental and physical aspect |
| Ever-willing | Prioritise own needs |
| Mostly say yes | Gain more self-respect |
| Unable to deny helping | Assertive |
| Generous nature | |
| Easily dominated or manipulated | |
| More powerful personalities may take advantage of their kind-heartedness | |
| despise themselves for being weak | |
| Would rather suffer than cause someone else a moment’s pain | |
| Eager to please | |
| Lacking in individuality | |
| Docile and submissive | |
| May become prey of unscrupulous people | |
| Overworked by others | |
| Easily tired | |
| Seem to be drained of their vitality | |
| May have a pale and languid appearance | |
| Quick to do bidding of others | |
| Doesn’t have the time to fulfil their own needs | |
| Don’t live in the present moment | |
| Miss joy an experience of life | |
| Dependable and reliant | |
| May have commitments that prevents them from fulfilling their desires. E.g. marriage, family, sick relative, family business | |
| Genuine desire to be helpful | |
| Easily-led and exploited | |
| May become “doormats” for peers | |
| Dominated and Subservient | |
| Good-natured and pleasant | |
| Responsive to praise | |
| Often sacrifice their happiness for the needs of someone else | |
| Helpful to parents of a spoiled child | |
| Extremely sensitive | |
| Easily made unsure, upset and hurt | |
| Weak-willed | |
| Tends to give more than one has | |
| Easily persuaded | |
| Become a martyr for the “better” cause | |
| Very gullible |
Illnesses and Causes
overwork – exhaustion
reaction of contact with disharmonious energies – become ill out of the blue
Origin and Specification of the Plant
Binomial Name: Centaurium erythraea (Formerly Centaurium umbellatum)
Kingdom: Plantae
Family: Gentianales
Genus: Centaurium
Species: C.erythraea
Origin: Southern Europe
Shade: pink (only this shade is used to make Bach remedies), purple
Other names: Common centaury, European centaury, Bitter herb, Bloodwort, Christ’s ladder, Earth gall, Feverwort
Elements/Chemicals contained by the plant: Gentiopicrin, Swertiamarin, Centapicrin, Sweroside, Ferulic acid
Foliage: Deciduous
Height: 10cm-50cm
Description: The centaury plant is a hairless biennial that forms rosettes at the base and has oval leaves with veins. It produces pale pink flowers that can be found in clusters at the end of its branches or on side shoots during its flowering season. These tubular flowers have five lobes when they open up.
Flowering season: June to September
Qualities and preferences: Thrives in poor dry soil or well-draining grassy places
Areas of growth: Sandy heathlands, Waste grounds
In herbal medicine, Centaury was used as a bitter tonic which acted as a gentle laxative and to treat heartburn. Centaury contains many bitter principles which contributes to its action on the digestive system. Centapicrin is one of the most abundant compounds within the flower including Swertiamarin, both known for their intense bitter tastes. Some other possible benefits of centaury extracts include antipyretic (fever-reducing), anti-inflammatory and liver protecting properties. It can also act as a powerful antioxidant to the presence of compounds with phenolic groups. Among the potential antioxidant beneficial effects of centaury’s antioxidant properties is the prevention of gastric ulcers.
Specification of remedy
Group: The first 12 essence
Emotional Group: Over sensitive to influences and ideas
Personality: Weak
Virtue: Servant
Failing: Strength
Method of extraction: Sun
Dr Bach first prepared the Centaury remedy at Cromer, Norfolk in 1930. The centaury remedy is for people who find it difficult to deny favours for others. Centaury is also helpful for the weakness following a prolonged illness.
Comparison between other flowers
Clematis:
Unlike Centaury, the clematis personality is easily influenced due their lack of interest in present circumstances and generally anything. On the other hand, Centaury become easily influenced due to their weak sense of individuality and gullibility.
Hornbeam:
Centaury people become easily tired like hornbeam but because their vitality is sapped by the over-doing of favours and responding to requests from other, not because of any disinclination to do thing like the hornbeam personality.
The images above show a closer magnification of the Centaury flower.