Getting to know Juliette de Bairacli Levy (1912 - 2009) through the film `Juliette of the Herbs´ and the book `Wanderers in the New Forest´ has been fascinating. She was a nomad and dedicated her life to herbs. She was also an author who wrote herbal books and poetry.
Juliette was a pioneer in holistic animal medicine. She is often described as one of the foremothers of modern herbalism. For Rosemary Gladstar, another iconic herbalist, Juliette is one of the great role models. de Baraicli Levy lived close to the Roma and took part in their herbal knowledge, herbal knowledge that she passed on through her books, among other things. It is an important observation that parts of what is often called “modern Western herbal medicine” in other words have as one of their (several) origins Roma herbal knowledge.
Juliette was a lifelong traveler, living in England, France, Spain, Turkey, North Africa, Israel, and the United States, where she lived among nomads, Roma, and farmers. de Bairacli Levy trained in natural health by living among these people, convinced that they could teach her how to treat animal and human illnesses with herbs and natural remedies. She admired the Roma's endurance and the robust health and elegant coats of their animals. She attributed this to their varied diet and natural lifestyle.
In London in the 1930s and 40s, she ran an herbal clinic where she successfully treated animals that were also suffering from serious illnesses. This was during a time when a very serious disease epidemic was raging among dogs. With the help of herbs and through dietary changes, many of these dogs were able to recover at Juliette's clinic.
de Bairacli Levy's unorthodox lifestyle saw her spend long periods of time in caves, caravans, and tents. She ate wild vegetables and herbs from the fields, slept under the stars, and cared for people and animals with seemingly unlimited power. She studied the Earth and all its mysterious
geographical regions and habitats. Nature was her classroom and the Roma were her great mentors.
In the fantastic book `Wanderers in the New Forest´ we get to see her life as a free spirit, living an unconventional life in the countryside of England, close to nature. For those of you who want to get to know Juliette better, we also recommend the film `Juliette of the Herbs´ which can be watched for free here .
And anyone who wants to delve deeper into her herbalist work has a real treasure trove to dig into in the form of her books. Here is a selection:
- The Wanderer in the New Forest (1958)
- Common Herbs for Natural Health (1997)
- The Complete herbal book for the Dog (1971)
We hope you have the same unique experience of this formidable herbalist that we had! We also invite you to listen to Örtfabriken's conversation with the fantastic Holistic Dog . Melinda, who runs Holistic Dog, works based on the same principles as Juliette de Bairacli Levy with animals and specifically with dogs. And in that approach, the dog's diet is the most important foundation for good health. Our podcast is available on Youtube or wherever podcasts are available.
Text: Sara Bonadea George
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