A Short History of Salt
Salt has a long and influential role in world history. From the dawn of civilization, salt has been a key part of economic, religious, social and political development. The Peng-Tzao-Kan-Mu of China is the earliest known treatise on pharmacology (2,700-4,700 BCE), much of which was devoted to a discussion of more than 40 kinds of salt. It included descriptions of two methods of extracting and processing salt that are startlingly similar to methods used today. Although a crucial element in modern industry, the methods of producing salt really haven't changed for centuries.
The human body contains about four ounces of salt. Salt is essential to all living creatures and even many plants. Since the body cannot manufacture it, salt is an "essential" nutrients, and as an electrolyte, we lose it every time we sweat. Without enough salt, muscles won't contract, blood doesn’t circulate, food goes undigested, and the heart ceases beat. For years researchers claimed that salt contributed to high blood pressure, but recent studies have shown that there is little reason to reduce sodium intake in people with normal blood pressure. In fact, one study has indicated it as a possible treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome.
Salt was an important trading commodity carried by explorers and nomads. It was used as an exchange for slaves in ancient Greece, giving rise to the expression "not worth his salt." King Ancus Martius (640 - 616 B.C.) founded the first Roman colony at Ostia because of the salt marshes there, and the Via Salaria (Salt Road) was built to carry salt to the city. Its inclusion in the rations of Roman soldiers, referred to as "salarium argentum," has given rise to the myth that Roman soldiers were paid in salt, and “salarium” is in fact the forerunner of the English word "salary." From the Latin "sal," other words such as "sauce" and "sausage" were also derived.
Chinese folklore credits the Phoenix with the discovery of salt, and salt production has been important in China for two millennia or more. The Chinese emperor Hsia Yu made salt taxes a major source of revenue in 2200 B.C.E. British monarchs imposed salt taxes, and French kings developed a salt monopoly, giving exclusive rights to produce it to a favored few. In the late 1700's, when hogs and cattle began dying in Britain for lack of salt due to the high taxes, angry mobs rioted until Parliament finally abolished the tax. Many feel the monopoly practiced by the French royalty directly contributed to the French Revolution. The new Assembly ended the salt tax in France 1790, making salt affordable. In 1930, Mahatma Gandhi undertook his 200-mile march to the sea in protest of Britain's salt tax and the prohibition against gathering sea salt.
Salt has not only been the focus of commerce, it has been used as the currency itself. In Tibet, Marco Polo saw tiny cakes of salt, pressed with images of the Grand Khan, used as coins. Up until the twentieth century, Ethiopia used salt disks as money, stacks of them kept in the treasury. Salt is still used as money among the nomads of Ethiopia's Danakil Plains. A bride price of salt is customary in Ethiopia, and in Central Africa, salt could be used to buy a bride until the early 1900's. Merchants of 12th-Century Timbuktu valued salt as highly as books and gold, and in the Sudan, where salt is scarce, it was traded for gold.
Salt and Its Uses
Halite, sodium chloride, or salt, crystallizes in a variety of forms: in masses, columns, and cubic crystals, sometimes with concave faces. Its scientific name comes from hals, the Greek word for salt. The melting point of salt is 1,473.4° F, and the boiling point is 2,575° F. On the Moh's Scale, salt has a hardness of 2.5. Its color ranges from colorless to shades of yellow, red, and blue. In California, it occurs in hues of pink and cranberry due to the presence of an algae growing within the mineral. An indigo version can be found in Germany. Halite is typically a delicate mineral, not suitable for wearing. It will dissolve completely in water and degrade in damp weather because it is, after all, common table salt. Seawater contains an average of 2.6% sodium chloride.
Industrial and commercial uses are almost without number. Salt is used to fix and standardize dye batches in the textile industry. It is used as a filler and grinding agent in pigment and dry-detergent processes. Ceramics manufacturers use salt to vitrify the surface of heated clays, and in metal processing and secondary aluminum making, it is used to remove impurities. Rubber manufacturers utilize salt to separate rubber from latex, while soap makers use it to separate soap from water and glycerol. Leather workers use salt to cure, preserve and tan hides. Oil and gas drillers use salt to inhibit fermentation, increase density, and to stabilize the drill. The greatest single use for salt, outside of nutrition, is in the production of chlorine and caustic soda used in papermaking. The caustic soda is used to break down wood fibers, and the chlorine bleaches the pulp.
Salt is the most effective, readily available, economical highway deicer in use today. The lowest temperature at which sodium chloride will melt ice is -6.02° F, but salt works best at temperatures near 32° F. As the temperature falls, it takes more salt and more time to melt ice because a higher concentration of salt is required. More than 40% of the dry salt produced in the United States is used for highway deicing.
Livestock animals do not always receive adequate amounts of sodium and chloride from foraging and feed. They require salt supplements as part of a nutritionally balanced diet to remain healthy and to reach optimal growth and reproduction rates. We usually get enough salt in our own diets from the highly processed foods which are our staple.
Salt in Religion
Salt has long held an important place in religion and culture. It is one of the oldest meat preservatives still in use, something the Egyptians knew well. Priests in charge of the embalming process used a naturally occurring salt compound in the preservation of their dead.
From its use as a preservative, salt has become a religious symbol, representing immutability and incorruptible purity. In many religions, salt is included on the altar to represent purity, and it was mixed into holy water for the same reason. Greek worshippers consecrated salt in their rituals, and the Vestal virgins sprinkled all sacrificial animals with salt and flour. In Hawaii, it was customary to mix salt with iron-rich red clay as an imitation for sacred blood used in purifying rituals.
There are more than 30 references to salt in the Bible. Until Pope Vatican II, a small taste of salt was placed on a baby's lip by a Roman Catholic priest at his or her baptism, while saying, "Receive the salt of wisdom." The Israelites included salt with all offerings, and ancient Jewish temples included a salt chamber. On the Sabbath, Jews still dip their bread in salt as a remembrance of those offerings. Covenants in both the Old and New Testaments were often sealed with salt- the origin of the word "salvation."
Salt was put into a child's mouth at birth and on the breast at death. Sometimes earth as well as salt was laid on a corpse before burial, the earth being an emblem of the corruptibility of the body, and the salt of the incorruptibility of the soul. Not only did the salt prevent the body from swelling but, like fire and earth, the mourners may have seen salt as a protection from evil for the soul of the departed. In Leeds it is still common in many households to place a plate of salt on the stomach of a corpse immediately after death.
Offering bread and salt to visitors is traditional etiquette in many cultures. In Buddhist tradition, salt repels evil spirits. It’s customary to throw salt over your shoulder before entering your house after a funeral to scare off any evil spirits that may be clinging to your back. In 1933, the Dalai Lama was buried sitting up in a bed of salt. Shinto religion also uses salt to purify. Before sumo wrestlers enter the ring for a match, a handful of salt is thrown into the center to drive off malevolent spirits. Today, a gift of salt endures in India as a potent symbol of good luck and a reference to Mahatma Gandhi’s liberation of India.
In southwest America, the Pueblo worship the Salt Mother. Other native tribes had certain restrictions on who was permitted to eat salt. Hopi legend states that the Warrior Twins punished mankind, placing salt deposits far from civilization, so that hard work and bravery was required to harvest it.
Magic, Superstition, and Folklore
Salt has been long considered protective against evil and demons. In folklore, it has provided defense against witches, witchcraft, demons and sprites, and the evil eye. During the Middle Ages, it was a common belief that witches, and the animals they bewitched, could not eat anything salted. Inquisitors were advised by demonologists to protect themselves by wearing an amulet of salt, consecrated on Palm Sunday, and other blessed herbs, pressed into a disk of blessed wax. Carrying a concealed packet of salt is said to ward off the evil eye as well.
A known talisman to ward off evil spirits is a jar of salt and a knife. Native Hawaiian lore had a similar charm using rock salt and a Ti leaf (Dracaena terminalis). Some people put salt and pepper in their left boot for good fortune. To ward off an evil witch, a peasant might throw salt outside the front door or to lean a broom next to it. A passing witch would have to count the grains of salt and the blades of straw on the broom before she could do any harm.
Eighteenth-century Scots believed that brownies lived in the kitchen and came out at night to make mischief. If salt was spilled, it was important to throw it over the left should to bribe the brownies and keep them from causing trouble. It was the left should because the Latin root “sinist,” which became the word sinister, means 'left'. Therefore, the left side was thought to be evil or sinister, and where evil spirits and mischievous sprites would linger.
In Greek Folklore, salt can be used to get rid of an unwanted human presence. Sprinkle salt behind an unwanted guest in your home, and the salt will chase him out. You can also take a small amount of salt, and saying, "Be gone!" three times, place the salt in their shoes. It is customary to sprinkle salt in a new home before you occupy it; the salt will drive any evil out and away from you and your family; and placing salt on thresholds of doorways is said to keep ghosts from entering those rooms.
If milk were taken from a house, it was necessary for the mistress of the house to put a pinch of salt in it to prevent the luck of the house from going with it. Fishermen would not lend any salt out of their boat, for this was considered extremely unlucky. Salt was also scattered about the threshold if a woman were approaching the birth of her child, in order to drive away the fairies. Three things should not be given out from the house for the six weeks following the birth of a child - fire, salt, and bread.
In modern occult circles, salt is said to enhance good will, elevate moods and diminish negativity. It can assist in dispelling feelings of abandonment and incite initiative and independence. Salt can also help the user deal with unforeseen events and allows one to draw on experiences, sometimes from past lives, to deal with today’s problems.
Salt stimulates the acupressure/acupuncture meridians and can be used to preserve them as well. It can be used to treat disorders of the colon and lower intestinal tract. Halite also augments strength during physical activities. It should not be placed on the abdominal area during pregnancy, but can be used in any other area. When an indigo blue inclusion occurs within a halite crystal, it is especially useful for Pisces. Indigo halite encourages psychic powers, mysticism, and intuition. It is useful in treating disorders of the thalamus, thymus, and thyroid. The pink to cranberry form of halite from California is especially good when working with the heart chakra.
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Salt Crafts: Bath Salts
Easy Recipes
1 c salt
1 c Epsom salt
1 c baking soda
Add a little of the mixture to your tub for a revitalizing bath. For bubbles, just add 1 cup of shampoo. For a nice scent, add oils.
A more complicated recipe…
4 cups Epsom salts
2 cups Sea salt
1 cup non fat powdered milk
1 cup baking soda
2 cups oatmeal ground to a very fine powder in a food processor or coffee grinder-use the old fashioned kind
Mix together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl, sieving as you add them. Add your oils gradually, thoroughly mixing each addition through your dry ingredients. This is to ensure that the oils are distributed as evenly as possible.
Fizzing Bath Crystals
1/3 cup baking soda
1/4 cup citric acid crystals
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
Mix ingredients and place in an airtight container. Keep salts dry, moisture will cause them to react and fizz. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup of the salts into warm tub of water. You will have to add your oils to the water instead of directly to this combination.
Here are some oil combinations to try with your bath salts
| Sacred Rites
(use before spells or ritual work) 10 drops lemon oil 10 drops lavender oil 5 drops cinnamon oil 5 drops jasmine oil 5 drops anise oil |
Personal Power
(increase personal energy levels) 10 drops your favorite scent 10 drops lemon oil 5 drops peppermint oil 5 drops orange oil |
| Aura Cleansing
(clean negativity from personal energy) 15 drops peppermint oil 10 drops lavender oil 10 drops vanilla extract 5 drops almond extract |
Spell Breaker
(break spells cast upon you) 10 drops clove oil 10 drops peppermint oil 10 drops lemon oil 10 drops eucalyptus oil |
| Changes
(coping with major life changes) 10 drops lime oil 10 drops lemon oil 10 drops peppermint oil 10 drops almond extract |
Dream Recall
(enhance dream recall) 10 drops jasmine oil 5 drops lavender oil 5 drops orange oil |
| Psychic Bath Salt
(raise psychic awareness) 3 parts Lemongrass 2 parts Thyme 2 parts Orange Peel 1 part Clove 1 part Cinnamon |
Help
(when you need assistance) 10 drops peppermint oil 10 drops cinnamon oil 10 drops lemon oil 10 drops vanilla extract 10 drops almond extract |
| Blessings
(helps before connecting to the divine) 20 drops almond extract 10 drops rose oil 5 drops lavender oil 5 drops lemon oil 3 drops cinnamon oil |
Protection
(physical, mental, spiritual, psychic and emotional protection) 3 parts Rosemary 2 parts Frankincense 1 part Lavender |
| Healing
(speeds the healing process) 3 parts Rosemary 2 parts Lavender 2 parts Rose 1 part Peppermint 1 part Cinnamon (For a cold, add two parts Eucalyptus) |
Love
(attract love) 1 part Ylang Ylang essential oil 1 part Sweet Orange essential oil 1 part Rose Geranium essential oil |