Sagittarius's Mushroom: Enokitake
Welcome to Sagittarius season.
As we journey with each mushroom, think about the qualities and healing effects they have and how we can integrate them more into our lives. Whether that be through ritual, ingestion or just learning and building more awareness about their incredible capabilities and role they play in our world.
When we time the embodiment of each mushroom with the energies of the sky, this alchemizes a deeper connection and understanding of both the earth and our physical vessels.
Mushrooms are nature's alchemists and we get to dive deep into our next fungi below. Also, refer to the Astrological Planner as your navigational tool where you will find an intro to each and fungi archetype for each zodiac season.
Enokitake (Flamulina filiformis)
Enoki is the delicious noodle-like mushroom that we know today, but has actually been cultivated from its original form illustrated above. Often overlooked as medicinal, it has many benefits for our body and mind.
It is immunomodulatory, anti-tumoral, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, liver protecting, cholesterol reducing, and mood boosting.
It has shown potential in treating neuro-degenerative diseases, lowering cholesterol, inflammation, aging, melanin related issues, improving skin, and reducing photo damage. It helps remove free radicals, has been used for cancer support, dementia, gastric ulcers, hypertension, thrombosis, thyroid, and as a liver support.
It has compounds with cancer fighting potential which proved successful on liver cancer in mice, inhibits proliferation of certain leukemia cells. It has also been found to be effective against multiple types of breast cancer, including estrogen-independent breast cancer in cultured cells in-vitro.
Enoki went on a great adventure in 1993 when it was sent to space to determine the viability of mushrooms in low gravity. It grew well, but expanded in all directions unsure of which way was up.
Main modern use:
Optimizes immune function, liver support, helps joint pains, improves skin quality.
PLANET:
JUPITER - Governs expansion, growth, joy, liver function, arterial circulation, pituitary gland, left brain.
SIGN:
SAGITTARIUS - Adventure, exploration, higher education, expansion, and optimism are some the Sagittarius gifts. It rules the hips, thighs, glutes, sciatic nerve, arterial circulation, and liver (with Jupiter and Virgo).
Pairing notes:
Lively liver food. Jupiter governs liver function, arterial circulation, joy, and growth. Sagittarius as a mutable fire sign rules learning, exploration, enjoyment, enthusiasm and liver action. This shroom can also be paired with Virgo (rules liver, gut), Capricorn (governs skin, joints), Aquarius (governs circulation), Pisces (governs immune system).
If you are interested in medicinal mushrooms to deepen your relationship with Sagittarius this season check out Enokitake, Shiitake, Maitake , and Artist Conk from Feral Fungi. Use code MAGICOFI for 20% off at check-out!
Alchemist, Ethnobotanist, Mycologist & Spagyricist, Jason Scott, shares his wisdom of Enokitake and Sagittarius.
Enokitake in Sagittarius
The Gift of Expansion
Common Name: Enoki, Enokitake
Latin Name: Flamulina filiformis
Family: Physalacriaceae
Tastes: Salty
Affinities: Immune Health, Oxidative Stress, Cancer
Energetics: Warm & Moist
Planetary Rulership: Jupiter
Expanding from the Wild
Enoki has a deeply rooted traditional use in the east, with cultivation in China dating back to 800AD. It is also a beacon of abundance, with an estimated 1.71 million tonnes per year coming out of China and Japan.Enokitake is originally derived from the Japanese language, referring specifically to this thin, long-stemmed mushroom; in Chinese it is referred to as the “golden needle” mushroom. Enoki grows naturally in Japan, Korea, and China, growing on broad-leaf trees including Betula platyphulla, Dipentodon sinicus, Neolitsea spp, and Salix Spp. among others.
F. filiformis can be cultivated on various lignocellulosic substrates, including sawdust and wheat straw. It is often grown in the dark, yielding stretching pale fruitbodies with long, narrow stipes and undeveloped caps. Light causes shorter stiped and colored fruits. The cultivation environment causes farmed Enoki to appear wildly different than wild specimens.
Often revered for its culinary applications, Enoki offers promising potential for its medicinal as well. Enoki is highly nutritional, containing many necessary vitamins and minerals. Enoki is rich in antioxidants, helps to support immunity, supports healthy metabolic function, fights abnormal cell growth such as tumors, prevents the risk of diabetes, and supports mental development. The rich complex of compounds in Enoki contributes to a respectable list of potential benefits.
Doctrine of Signatures in Enokitake
Enoki grows in long, leggy fruits while cultivated in the dark. In the wild, they are thick and dense. Whatever the case, they are beacons of abundance. Mushrooms that are easily cultivated for food and have been cultivated for a long time have strong ties to Jupiter.
In the wild, they produce a rich orange-brown coloration, which is often associated with Jupiter.
Enoki have been the subject of multiple research projects testing food viability in space. In 1993, F. filiformis was sent onboard the Space Shuttle Columbia and left to grow; they produced fruits that grew in every direction and angle, indicating that the gravitational difference affected the fungi’s sense of direction.
In 2019, Enoki mushrooms were sent to the ISS to undergo further space cultivation. This project was proposed by a group of high school students who hypothesized that the fungus needed little light in cultivation and would be able to fruit in more challenging environmental conditions.
Expansion and adventure belong to Jupiter and Sagittarius. The security of food to sustain space exploration is truly a gift and represents abundance, which also belongs to Jupiter. Being rich in vitamins and nutrients also displays the abundance inherent to Enoki.
The health benefits stretch into multiple systems and actions in the body, speaking more to broad support than any specific affinities. This broad and more general connotation to its actions makes Enoki foundational to health. This foundational health can be associated with Jupiter in it’s positive aspects.
Guiding Sagittarius
Sagittarius is the archetype of expansion, adventure, inspiration, exploration, and the pursuit of truth in law, principle, and philosophy. Symbolized by The Archer, Sagittarius is an explorer. Mutable fire adds a sense of chaos that can lead to visionary realizations when harnessed properly.
Sagittarius in deficiency is the pitfalls of Jupiter, over-abundance, over-indulgence, disease of excess, self-aggrandizement, and addictive delusions. Enoki in the way that it grows through the dark can teach Sagittarius how to navigate dark philosophical, mental, and emotional plains.
Enoki pushes the boundaries, and by pushing boundaries reveals gifts, gifts to those who learned to cooperate and cultivate, and gifts to those who can look, listen, and learn from their philosophical potential.
Just the way that Enoki has traveled to space to provide food, they can illuminate a path forward for the adventurous Sagittarius who needs to ground their exploration into something real and meaningful.
Enoki in its expansive potential can be a guiding light to support Sagittarius in its beneficial aspects. Growing through the darkness in order to reach new heights and make new, meaningful discoveries.
Other Sagittarius-Supporting Fungi
Shiitake, Maitake, Artist Conk
If you are interested in medicinal mushrooms to deepen your relationship with Sagittarius this season check out Enokitake, Shiitake, Maitake , and Artist Conk from Feral Fungi. Use code MAGICOFI for 20% off at check-out!
