Shedding toxic spiritual beliefs (from snake to horse)

Spirituality

Feb 12

Here we go around the sun again. A new year…and another wild one by the looks of it so far.

In my cosmic convos, I keep hearing people talking about the year of the Fire Horse, all the movement and action to come.

Hold yer horses, folks (pun totally intended) — we aren’t done with the year of the Wood Snake yet!

We still have a few more weeks to finish up our snake era assignment: to shed the skins that have gotten too tight. 🐍

When you look back at 2025, what were you invited — and more likely forced — to let go of?

I’ve been tracking the collective vibes around this closely, and there’s one prominent theme I see emerging: Everyone has had to let go of old beliefs — especially toxic or outdated spiritual ones.

⭐Did you experience any shifts around this last year? I’d love to hear your experiences — please leave a comment if so!⭐

I can tell you that I 100% went through a whirlwind shedding of all the old spiritual boxes I thought I had to stay in for safety, for work, for loyalty…

This wasn’t out of the blue by any means. My soul had known for a long time that I was called toward a new, emerging, more authentic path. But this year I realized there was no going back.

Side note: I held a fire ceremony at the end of 2024 to cut ties with any lineages or spiritual traditions that were in the way of my full sovereignty.
Shit hit the fan two weeks later.
One year later and I felt true inner freedom in a way I hadn’t since I was a child. Our rituals are legit magic-making y’all.
Here’s a ritual guide I made if you want some inspo in this area.

On a related note…

A Story for the End of Our Snake Year

How many of you know the story of the split between Freud and Jung?

Once one of Freud’s prize students, Carl Jung had been questioning elements of his mentor’s philosophy for a long time.

His private journals and conversations with his wife reveal years of turmoil: If he spoke his truth, would he lose this relationship? His standing in the psychology community at the time? Would it be worth it?

History tells us the answer to all of these questions: Yes.

The falling out between Jung and Freud was public and dramatic. Many in the emerging psychology community of the time attempted to eviscerate Jung and and theories.

But none of this mattered in the long term. Because Jung had come into soul coherence.

He’d quit lying to himself. He was willing to let go of beliefs he once held sacred. He stopped trying to control his circumstances and started acting from his inner truth. He entered the liminal realms of the unknown.

And then he became one of the most influential thinkers of the modern era.

Where have you been lying to yourself in order to stay safe, control fate, or stay loyal? Where have you been avoiding a deeper truth and alignment because you’re afraid of hurting others or losing community?

Taking the leap into greater truth is terrifying. The challenges are real.

But this is the only way to truly experience the fullness of your soul.

It’s likely that our Snake Year catalyzed this process for you already. The Year of the Horse invites to let all that false self burn as you charge toward new more soul-aligned experiences.

An Invitation

If you’re ready to really, truly come into alignment with your soul — to come into greater coherence, creative capacity, and meaningful joy — then I invite you to join me for a year of intentional practice around just this.

You will experience a rich and intimate container for restoring your knowledge of who you really are — and you will learn how to facilitate this process for others.

This program opens for registration in April (post Mercury Rx, you’re welcome). Learn more and get on the waitlist for updates.

A few quick updates:

Limited Edition: Valentine’s Day Perfume Discovery Set

This is my FAVORITE. Seriously. And I only bring it out once a year. You get 3 mini (1ml) perfumes:

Aphrodite — goddess of love, floral chypre
Jaguar — sensual pleasures, exotic florals and botanical musk
Rós — for the flower at the heart of it all, a lovely soliflore perfume

I highly recommend this discovery set as a Valentines gift for your lover or yourself. Ethical plant magic is much better than the commercial options out there ;) Order by Feb 5 for V-day delivery!

Course Updates

Some of you have been patiently waiting for the Sacred Aromatics class — this was supposed to start this month but two things happened: 1, I got sick. And 2, I was hired to create an apothecary course for a bigger company! This course is coming together nicely and I think you will love it! It’s not on anointing, but it is on medicinal herbal magic and it will be suuuper affordable :)

Stay tuned – I’ll let you know when the apothecary course is ready :)

Click here to get on the waitlist and be notified first when the anointing training is open!

Juniper Stokes is a botanical perfumer, soul alchemist, intuitive astrologer, and rewilding guide through mythic landscapes of the nature, spirit, and the cosmos. For over 25 years, she has been guiding soulful humans back to the heart of who they are and why they’re here.

🌿 Explore workshops & trainings.
💠 Find alchemical aromatics in The Botanica.