A holistic view of oil

Olive oil is not only a fatty compound consumed with other types of food. Neither is it just merely an ingredient of a dressing. There are alternative uses for it, other ways it can be viewed: its nourishing properties are doubtlessly important, but we should have a more holistic approach towards it, considering olive oil as an element nurturing our wellness.

The moisturising and binding properties of oil, together with the energy of colours, are at the base of “colour meditation massage” techniques that can release the great energetic, emotional, spiritual, mental and physical energy inside us. Specific cosmetics that are both coloured and scented with precious essential oils are employed in these sessions of so-called “soul therapy”.

This rather unusual use of olive oil was presented for the first time in Italy by reiki master Ivana Sagramoni during the Olio Officina Food Festival. We soon discover that oil is also capable of creating beauty and spreading peace of mind.

“Nature – explains Ms. Sagramoni – gives us all the resources we need to take care of our body and soul. Oil and the palette of colours visible to our eye, but also scents and aromas, help us communicate with ourselves, our feelings and our inner world; they guide us along the path to wellness, healing our body, mind and soul”. Oil can therefore be considered as the essence, the hidden soul of the plant kingdom.

A whiff may be sufficient. “Perfumes have a language of their own, and because they convey their message in a subtle way, they also teach us to become more sensitive and careful towards our surroundings”. Hence aromatherapy, by stimulating our sense of smell, helps us return to our holistic wholeness.

“Our aesthetic needs – she concludes – originate from a conscious instinct: we seek harmony of both shape and rhythm, almost as if we were seeking a lost, inner world that reveals itself through Nature, and its most profound identity”.

Maria Carla Squeo