The Essential Component of Ester

Essential oils are made up of different chemical compositions.

This brief article will touch on one of them~ Esters.

Essential oils such as Lavender, Geranium, Bergamot, Clary Sage and Petitgrain have higher ester contents in their chemical composition.

 In chemistry, an ester is a chemical compound derived from an acid in which at least one –OH group is replaced by an –O–alkyl group. Usually, esters are derived from a carboxylic acid and an alcohol.

The German chemist Leopold Gmelin was the first to give the name Ester to molecules with the –COO functional group.

Glycerides, which are fatty acid esters of glycerol, are important esters in biology, being one of the main classes of lipids, and making up the bulk of animal fats and vegetable oils. Esters with low molecular weight are commonly used as fragrances and found in essential oils and pheromones. Phosphoesters form the backbone of DNA molecules. Nitrate esters, such as nitroglycerin, are known for their explosive properties, while polyesters are important plastics, with monomers linked by ester moieties.

Esters are formed from alcohols and acids, and are named after both their original molecules with the alcohols dropping the "ol" and gaining an "yl" and the acids dropping the "ic" and gaining an "ate".

The esters found in essential oils are normally very fragrant and tend to be fruity and their therapeutic effects include being sedative and antispasmodic. Some esters also have anti-fungal and anti-microbial properties - like the anti-fungal properties in geranium oil.

The most well-known ester must be linalyl acetate, which is found in lavender and clary sage.

Even though, a chemist may identify (most) of the chemical components that nature combines to make up the oils, using gas chromatography for instance, the best chemist CANNOT reproduce an identical oil, using the exact same chemical proportions. This replicated oil will not have the same therapeutic effect as the natural and pure essential oil. Science cannot replicate the brilliant mystery of Mother Nature, using the best minds and advanced technology available.

Lavender essential oil, for instance, can be used to successfully treat burns, as was first re-discovered by René-Maurice Gattefossé, a French chemist who used lavender essential oil when he suffered severe burns in his lab in 1910.

Of this he wrote, “In my personal experience, after a laboratory explosion covered me with burning substances which I extinguished by rolling on a grassy lawn, both my hands were covered with a rapidly developing gas gangrene. Just one rinse with lavender essence stopped the ‘gasification of the tissue’. This treatment was followed by profuse sweating and healing began the next day.” Gattefossé’s Aromatherapy, 1937.

But even if the best chemist using all the correct chemical components, such as borneol, terpineol, lavandulol geraniol and linolol, they would NOT have the secret formula that could successfully treat burns.

In fact, you cannot make up lavender essential oil in a laboratory, you will not have an oil that can successfully treat burns, reduce inflammation or calm you down, the way that true lavender oil can. You could even cause harm.

According to Jeannie Rose, it is the Lavendula Angustifolia that is grown in higher altitudes that has the best medicine that is distilled into the lovely and fragrant essential oil that most Aromatherapist suggest for use.

Essential oils are Organic compounds and are all hydrocarbon molecules.

These are further classified as terpenes, alcohols, esters, aldehydes, ketones and phenols, oxides, etc.

Here we can take a closer look at esters, for instance:

http://chemguide.co.uk/organicprops/esters/background.html

Water, Water Everywhere, But Don't Drink It In The June 8 New Moon!

June 8, 2 New Moon at 17* Gemini, 10:57AM EDT
Having a grand old trine!

That is right; we have some very powerful astrological aspects to tap into with this new moon.

Water, water everywhere, but is it safe to drink?

Venus, Saturn and Neptune are in a tight Grand Trine in the water elements.  PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR DREAMS!  With Venus (both what we love as well as what we value, partnerships; conjunct Mercury (communications, travel) and also ruler of Gemini, we have a major doorway into the world that Poseidon/Neptune/Aphrodite rules and we may get a clear view of what we truly value in life, and subsequently, what we love.

This bridge can cross the divide from our subconscious that may paint pictures and dramatize our deeper needs on the canvass of our dreams; making the leap into our analogue mind, ready for us to create a plan and act on that plan with the new moon.

Now, we have the moon a watery vessel herself and ruler of Cancer, which Mercury and Venus are swimming in during this new moon so we can expect a lot of emotions to come to the surface bringing up thoughts from the past especially as Mercury enters his shadow at 13* Cancer on Monday the 10^th, since he is going retrograde at 23* on the 26^th.

With Neptune (dreams/visions/art/illusions) in Pisces (rulership of his own house) at 5*, Saturn (El/structure/hierarchy/limits) at 5* of Scorpio and Venus at 6* of Cancer (not going retrograde) while conjunct Mercury at 11* of Cancer all retrograde, we are bound to have an awful lot of reruns, do overs, rethinking the past, people from our past and even old idea’s back up from the watery depths to ask us if we really gave enough thought and consideration and finally effort into the actions we took.

Gemini the twins wants us to think about many things at once, so let the multi-tasking and multiple commitments to the same dates begin.

Let us not forget, water has a way of reflecting and also refracting light, so when we see things, be sure to take several perspectives to get a better view of what it is we think we see. 

Uranus (insights/inventions/community/sudden actions) is also squaring Venus, Mercury and Pluto and he is in Aries, which is adding impulsiveness to the fiery mix so try to remind yourselves that when things start to get overheated and steamy, you don’t want to say or make rash decisions that you will regret.

Pluto/Hades Lord of the Underworld can walk around invisible on the surface when he puts his magic cap on, so any way you ‘try’ to look at him, he is not quite so easy to detect; and he want to transform this change in the worst way, but this is also an extremely potent catalyst for changes that you may need or have been yearning for a long time.

He may just snap any lose ends and break weak tethers with his square to Uranus, but hopefully this water trine will help to smooth the flow if we find the right wind (Gemini) to catch our sails and carry us on the river of our dreams.

We have 4 more exact Pluto/Uranus squares with the next one on Nov 1, 2013, at 9* of Capricorn and Aries respectively.

These are major cycles and major gateways for very real change both on personal and planetary levels.

Some words of CAUTION:

Be wary of those calls that may come with scandalous secrets someone wants to share, you could find yourself in sticky goo and make rash decisions hurting those who really care about you, when you believe the RUMORS.

Gemini can be duplicitous, but he is ever so charming, so he makes it hard not to believe what he forgot were lies himself.  (This does not mean all Gemini’s are liars).

So right when you start to get some clarity and relief, beware the trickster who might just come along to seduce you (Mercury conjunct Venus opposing Pluto) and take you off course from finding your way home.

Be prepared for some deep seated fears to rear their heads (Again, Pluto opposing Venus/Mercury while we are in this water trine) and I mean from the deep, deep and dark subconscious.

Cancer is about the home, mother and what we cleave to.  The crab, who comes out to bask in the moonlight, will find little of it in the new moon, but he will still sidestep to get a better look at his prey.  So too, must we move sideways to help us face what may seem ‘head-on’ power struggles and our fears.  Go back with the energy of the water trine and review how other burdens and fears were met, step by step even though they may have seemed insurmountable at the time and how you gained a new strength and position once the fear was dealt with.

Take a breath, and learn to swim in your passions, your desires and go with the flow of your beating heart, as we call upon the MOTHER, who is holding us in Her loving embrace, forgive what hurts may have a straightjacket on our souls, and melt into the summer of LOVE.

Now, this Cardinal T-Square: Pluto in Capricorn, Mercury and Venus in Cancer, and Uranus in Aries wants: Transformation (Pluto) of our fears, and what we love, including what we think we value along with our possessions, how we communicate our deepest needs and what we need to nurture ourselves, along with incorporating a transcendence using insights and inspiration in these sudden changes, as we implement very new strategies and trajectories on our new paths of passion.

We can expect major new decisions to make their way onto the world stage, and some real shockers.

I expect some earth changes will also manifest, in the form of floods and earthquakes and those summer scorchers.

The Pacific Rim as well as Haiti seems to be of concern.

We are at the starting gate, even if Saturn is still retrograde until next month, when things will go into full swing.

To help you make your way through all of this:

Use ArcAncient’s Sleep Angel © to help you get a good night’s sleep, and calm down those overheated emotions, taking a deep breath and getting grounded deep into the earth with those lovely root oils, that we have lovingly reiki’d and charged with just the right crystals aligning with the perfect astrological timing.

 

Our extra special will be a Free Gift of Organic Lavender 10ML’s, for every purchase over $150 before special runs out.  (A $25.00 Value)

All orders must be paid for by 5:00PM June 14^th, 2013.

Ultimately, this is all a grand design for our own alchemical transformation, we can rise like the phoenix out of the flames and torrents of transformation.  Let's rise, shall we?