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 t is said that our kind used to live in trees, that over the course of thousands of years we left our leafy dwellings and become the earth walking people we are today. Be that as it may, trees have played a significant role in our physical, cultural and spiritual development. Our bark clothed cousins gave us food, shelter, tools, medicine and fueled our spirituality as well as the communal fires around which we warmed ourselves as we told and retold the histories and stories which would become our mythologies.
In some cultures specific trees and types of trees were associated with personal and social events, festival and the turning of the Wheel of the Year. So it was with the Irish. During the next years' cycle we'll explore the trees of the Irish calendar. Their day to day uses, the folklore that developed over the centuries and any medicinal uses they might have. One thing that won't be found in this series is any reference to "magical herbalism." Not because the ancients did not use plants in their rituals and ceremonies, but because modern sources for this type of information draw almost exclusively from common era literature which itself was built-up from multi-cultural and Christian influenced material. Will we ever really know which plants were used by the Irish and how? A good question to which I have no answer. In any event we live here, now. If you want to get to know a plant, sit with it if it grows in your region. If not, find a good image and learn to visualize it. Talk with it, respectfully ask questions, open your heart and mind and listen to the answers as you would if they came from a wise human Elder. Though individual plants may have short life spans by human reckoning, the plant nations have lived on this earth longer than we have and have knowledge and wisdom of experience very different from our own. Be humble. Respectfully ask the plant if and how it wants to work with you. Be willing to accept that your request may be denied -- it's not a personal rejection. This specific plant's energy may not be what you need or may not be appropriate to the situation to which you want to apply it. Do the research into modern medicinal as well as traditional uses appropriate to your area; if you want to find out about willow for instance, find a local species and learn what it role it had in the lives of the native people of that region. With the exception of medicinal uses, learn to trust your intuition and the knowledge gained by direct experience. This is how the ancients developed their knowledge - it is more work than opening a few books, but the knowledge thus gained is richer, deeper and contains many more lessons and mysteries than you ever imagined. It is a journey that will change your life. |
