White Chestnut

• For those who are undecided, who have ideas going around in their heads without finding a solution.

Well-acclimated in parks and gardens, the white-flowered horse chestnut is actually native to Central Asia, the Himalayas, or the Caucasus. Bach used it twice, for its buds as well as for its very fragrant flowers when ripe and appreciated by bees. They reveal themselves as white petals speckled with yellow that turn red after pollination. Grouped in pyramidal clusters, they open irregularly, giving an overall confused impression. Despite their profusion, they produce few seeds, only a few of which will manage to form chestnuts.

This floral profusion that bears so little fruit is an evocative illustration of the remedy, intended for the mentally hyperactive, for those whose invasive and obsessive thoughts go around in circles in the head without reaching a conclusion. This exhausting internal dialogue that repeats itself in a loop often fuels insomnia. White horse chestnut is recommended to dissolve this process of stuttering thoughts and to bring calm and clarity of mind.

“For those who cannot stop unwanted ideas, thoughts, and reflections from running through their heads. This usually happens when their interest in the present moment is too weak to occupy their entire mind. The thoughts torment and remain, and if one succeeds in driving them away, they return, go around in circles, and torture the mind. This kind of unpleasant thought drives away rest and prevents one from being present with what one has to do or with the pleasures of life.” Excerpt from the 1936 edition of “The Twelve Healers,” translated into French by C. Lévi and G. Wolf.