About Ojas Naturals

Ojas Naturals grew out of my love of plants, herbal medicine, and the simple act of making remedies by hand.

I have been working with herbs since 1999, studying Western herbalism, Ayurveda, and our native plants here in the Pacific Northwest. Over the years that work has taken many forms, from growing and wildcrafting herbs to teaching classes, making medicine, working with people one on one, and simply spending a lot of time getting to know the plants themselves.

Ojas Naturals is where much of that work comes together.

Everything is made in small batches using herbs sourced from local growers whenever possible, ethically wildcrafted, or purchased from trusted organic sources. My goal has always been pretty simple: make good herbal products from good plants and keep them as close to their natural form as possible.

Herbal Honey Tinctures

Herbal Honey Tinctures have been at the heart of Ojas Naturals since the beginning.

Rather than making a traditional alcohol tincture, I use a combination of raw wildflower honey, organic sugar cane alcohol, and water. I love the way honey works as part of an herbal extract, creating a remedy that is both practical and enjoyable to take.

Whenever possible I work with fresh plants, especially those that I can grow locally or harvest myself. Other herbs are carefully sourced based on quality, freshness, and where and how they were grown.

Alongside the tinctures, I make a small collection of herbal teas, topical products, oils, and other seasonal herbal offerings.

Bahji Tea

Tea has gradually become another branch of this work.

Bahji Tea grew out of my own love of drinking tea and, more recently, spending time in Taiwan visiting tea shops, meeting growers and producers, drinking a tremendous amount of tea, and learning more about the people and places behind it.

Rather than carrying a huge catalog, I keep the selection small and choose teas that I genuinely enjoy drinking myself.

Much of the focus is on Taiwanese oolong, including Dong Ding, high mountain oolongs, Tie Guan Yin, and other unique teas that cross my path along the way. I also have a deep appreciation for well aged puerh, both Sheng "raw" and Shou "ripe." I look forward to bringing more of these aged and fermented teas into the catalog this winter, along with the occasional special tea that crosses my path and feels worth sharing.

Some of these teas come directly from growers and roasting families I have met in Taiwan. Others come through tea people and shops I trust and have built relationships with.

For me, Bahji Tea is less about having every tea and more about sharing good tea with a story, a place, and the people behind it.

How I Source

Sourcing has always been an important part of Ojas Naturals.

With herbs, I prioritize plants that are locally grown using organic practices, ethically wildcrafted, or sourced organically from growers and suppliers I trust. Whenever possible, I want to know where the plants came from and work with herbs that still have their vitality, aroma, color, and character.

The same philosophy carries over into tea.

I travel to Taiwan to meet growers, visit tea regions, explore traditional tea shops, and taste teas at their source. These relationships give me the opportunity to bring back teas that I feel good about drinking and sharing with my own tea community.

Ayurveda & Herbalism

Ayurveda has been part of my herbal practice for more than twenty years and continues to influence the way I think about plants, food, daily rhythms, and wellness.

At the same time, Ojas Naturals isn't strictly an Ayurvedic herbal company. My work is rooted in both Western herbalism and Ayurveda, along with many years of working directly with plants here in the Pacific Northwest.

I'm interested in how traditional knowledge, direct experience, and good medicine making can come together in a practical way.

Sometimes that means an Ayurvedic herb that has been used for generations. Sometimes it means a fresh plant growing high in the Cascadian mountains.

Small Batch by Nature

Ojas Naturals has always been small, and I like it that way.

I make my herbal products in small batches so I can stay closely involved with the entire process, from sourcing and harvesting plants to preparing extracts and filling bottles.

It also means some things are seasonal. A tincture may only be made once a year when the plant is ready to harvest. Some batches are small. Occasionally something disappears until I can make it again.

I'm okay with that.

I'd rather keep doing this on a human scale and make products I genuinely believe in than try to turn Ojas Naturals into something it isn't.

The same goes for Bahji Tea. I bring in relatively small amounts of tea, often from individual farms, producers, or tea shops. When a particular tea is gone, I may find it again on another trip, or I may come home with something entirely different.

That's part of what keeps it interesting.

Thanks for Being Here

Whether you came here looking for herbs, stumbled across one of my classes, sat down for tea with me, or simply found Ojas Naturals while wandering around the internet, thanks for stopping by.

I hope what you find here encourages you to spend a little more time with plants, drink some really good tea, and perhaps become a little more curious about where the things we consume actually come from.

James

Ojas Naturals & Bahji Tea