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Mistletoe
Viscum
album - Europe, Phoradendron flavescens or serotinum - N. America
 
Mistletoe
is believed by pagans to give protection, and be useful in love, to be a
bestower of life and fertility, a protector against poison,
and an aphrodisiac.
It can be worn
as a protective amulet (well as an amulet anyhow). It was thought to be a good anti-lightning
charm. To divert lightning a branch should be placed above the doorway to your house
to protect it during thunderstorms. Supposedly extinguishes fires (can't find any
details how though). The branch also prevents the entrance of witches if hung above
a doorway - but what if you meet one in the doorway? Is a kiss in order?
For the most effective magic
(get this) it's supposed to be harvested using a golden sickle during a full moon -
seems like a good excuse to me - "It would have worked but I only had my ordinary
sickle on me....."
Botanically mistletoe is a partial parasite (a semiparasite).
Seeds spread by birds (often in their droppings - which act as glue and fertiliser)
germinate and grow on the branches or trunk of a tree. The plant sends out roots
that penetrate into the tree. It certainly takes up water and mineral nutrients
from the tree as it has no other source, but it makes its own food by photosynthesis
as do other green plants, rather than feeding entirely from its host.
 The
name mistletoe was derived from the belief that the plant spontaneously grew from
bird droppings (although I'm sure that even in pre-history people realised that
birds could spread seeds by eating berries and flying off and pooping it out sometime
later).
"Mistel" is an old Anglo-Saxon word for "dung," and "tan" is the
word for "twig". Mistletoe therefore means "dung-on-a-twig". I feel sorry
for the poor old "Mistle-thrush" what a name.
The seeds are very sticky and when birds that been feeding on
mistletoe berries clean their beaks, they often do so by wiping them on the bark
of trees, so further placing the seeds in the right place.
Viscum album,
the commonest European form is sometimes
seen on oak trees, but far more commonly on apples. There are other related
species that grow on pine trees. It is when growing on oak that mistletoe was supposed
to have its most magical powers.
English and Welsh farmers would give the Christmas bunch of mistletoe
to the first cow that calved in the New Year. This gave good luck to the entire
herd.
The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe is first seen in
the Roman festival of Saturnalia ( though some ascribe it to the Scandinavians from the
belief it is a plant of peace and harmony, see below) and later in marriage rites.
There is a legend both Roman and also Norse that is
essentially the same though with different characters:
Both stories involve a goddess and her son, for the Romans
they are Venus, the goddess of love and Apollo, the god of music, poetry,
prophecy and medicine. For the Norse, there is Frigga, also the goddess of
love and Balda the god of light. The mother goddesses had protected their
sons from all harm in the world except for mistletoe and whaddya know? They
both had their hearts pierced with sharpened sprigs of mistletoe, by evil
spirits or other gods.
When the mothers found out about the death their tears
became the white berries of the mistletoe. The story has a happy ending
however, as luck would have it the respective sons were brought back to life
again (an advantage of being the godly son of a goddess I guess) and the
mothers Venus and Frigga were so happy that they kissed anyone who walked
under the mistletoe.
Mistletoe kissing etiquette dictates that a man should pluck
a berry when he kisses a woman under a branch of the plant, when the last berry
is gone, there should be no more kissing! Girls who refuse to be kissed
under the mistletoe will remain spinsters and become "old maids".
Mistletoe was believed to have the power of fertility. In some parts of England
the Christmas mistletoe was burned on twelfth night. If it wasn't then the boys
and girls who kissed under it may never marry.
In Scandinavia, mistletoe was considered a plant of peace and
harmony. Enemies could declare a truce or warring spouses kiss and make-up under
a branch of mistletoe.
The early Christian church banned the use of mistletoe in Christmas
celebrations because of its pagan origins. Church fathers suggested the use
of holly as an appropriate substitute for Christmas greenery. As was the case
with holly, simply having the taint of paganism wasn't going to let people
ignore such an excellent winter decoration as mistletoe. This must have been
especially true given that it provided excuses to kiss members of the opposite
sex at parties, so the Christianization of mistletoe began and convenient
legends were made up - err sorry - rediscovered. One legend was that mistletoe
used to be a tree, the wood of which was used to make Christ's crucifixion
cross. As punishment for its role in the death of Christ, mistletoe was cursed
and not welcome on the earth having to return as a parasite dependent on other
trees for its life.
Mistletoe
(Phoradendron flavescens or serotinum) is the state flower of Oklahoma. Mistletoe grows
on trees throughout the state and is particularly abundant in the southern regions
of the state. The dark green leaves and white berries show up brightly during the
autumn and winter in trees that have shed their own leaves.
To the early pioneers who saw the mistletoe growing thick and
luxuriantly in the trees in the bleak winter months, it became an inspiration
signifying survival, hardiness and endurance. During the winter, as in Northern
Europe, it was often the only greenery available to put on graves or to use at
weddings. As pioneers, they ignored the pagan history and associations of
mistletoe.
It became the official flower of Oklahoma Territory (and later
the State of Oklahoma) in 1893, initially against the wishes of some churches
due to the pagan associations. In the language of flowers, mistletoe means "I
surmount all difficulties", very appropriate for the pioneers.
Evergreen
plants have been considered to be potent symbols of growth and re-birth particularly
in Europe and Western Asia for thousands of years. They were used in winter
festivities as a means of ensuring that life and growth would return again in the
spring.
The plants that we now bring into our homes at Christmas
time are almost without exception, taken from pagan midwinter feasts of Northern
Europe rather than from Christian origins and pre-date modern religious significance
which has been overlaid onto the older traditions.
One of the main differences is that we now bring
such greenery into our homes much sooner than used to be done. Theoretically it
shouldn't be brought into the house until Christmas Eve as this was considered bad
luck. Although Christmas is just far too exciting an event for most people who celebrate
it to wait - particularly if you have children!
More Christmas lore:
Holly | Ivy |
Christmas trees
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