Mistletoe also represents peace. Ancient fables tell of enemies who encounter each other underneath trees bearing mistletoe. The enemies lay down their arms, embrace, and agree to a truce until the next day. Abstaining from violence and exchanging greetings under the plant may have prompted the custom of kissing.
The Druids would cut mistletoe off oak trees in a special ceremony five days after the new moon following the winter solstice. The Druids believed that the mistletoe would become contaminated if it touched the ground, so they used a special white cloth to catch it. They then sacrificed two white bulls while prayers were said, and priests gave out the mistletoe sprigs to the people, who believed they would then be kept safe from evil spirits and storms.
So how did this plant become associated with the Christmas holiday? A French tradition claims that mistletoe is poisonous is because it was growing on a tree that was used to make the cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified. Because of this, it was cursed and denied a place to live and grow on Earth, forever to be a parasite. It may have Norse origins. A sword by the same name appears in various other Norse legends. Vikings dating back to the eighth century believed that mistletoe had the power to raise humans from the dead.
Mistletoe refers to partially parasitic plants that grow attached to and grow within the branches of a tree or shrub. Some versions claim he came back to life, and his mother, Frigg, cried tears that turned into mistletoe berries and then declared the plant to be symbolic of love.
Birdlime , or a juice made from mistletoe berries, is used as an adhesive to trap small birds. Coils of the sticky substance are placed on tree branches. When birds land on them, they get stuck. The birds can then be caught by hand. Though illegal in many parts of the world, some countries still use this method to capture wild birds for eating.
Historically, mistletoe represents romance, fertility, and vitality. Because nothing says love like bird feces and poison. Read more ». Note mistletoe berries are toxic and come from a parasitic plant. Battened down for the East Coast blizzard! Tina, actually they are parasites and attach themselves to the trees… :. The leafless tree that Tina saw was the mistletoe host after it had been preyed upon.
Thanks for the trivia MM! Merry Christmas to you and your family! Prev Previous Post. Next Post Next. Few things are as flattering, elegant and festive.
Palayok pinakbet served with tomato and onion stuf. Stunning small butternut squashes half a squash i. The banetton or bread proofing basket on top was p. Pako salad x a month. Because I only ever find. So happy I went a bit overboard with these pumpkin. The casual dinner at home with friends menu. Subscribe To Updates. As for a more direct root of our kissing tradition, Norseman had many traditions and legends concerning the mistletoe.
One tradition was that mistletoe was a plant of peace and so that when enemies met under the mistletoe they were obliged to stop fighting for at least a day. The new plant would then provide this luck throughout the year. By the 18th century in Britain, this evolved into the kissing tradition we have today.
At this time, it became popular to create a ball of mistletoe that would be hung as a Christmas decoration. If a couple was found standing under the mistletoe, they were then obliged to kiss if the mistletoe ball still had berries.
For each kiss, one berry would be taken from the ball. While doing some research on Stonehenge and the Druids, I learned that there are many common misconceptions about the Druids and much was written about them after the time they lived.
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