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The ritual of oak and mistletoe is a Celtic religious ceremony, in which white-clad druids climbed a sacred oak, cut down the mistletoe growing on it, sacrificed two white bulls and used the mistletoe to make an elixir to cure infertility and the effects of poison. [1]
Mistletoe has some unique characteristics and history that go way beyond smooching under the sprigs during the holidays. 8 Surprising Facts About Mistletoe You Probably Didn't Know Skip to main ...
European mistletoe (Viscum album) attached to a dormant common aspen (Populus tremula) Mistletoe in an apple tree. Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemiparasitic plants in the order Santalales. They are attached to their host tree or shrub by a structure called the haustorium, through which they extract water and nutrients from the ...
Mistletoe postcard, circa 1900. Herbs were also considered sacred in European pagan beliefs. The best known example is the mistletoe. The European mistletoe, Viscum album, figured prominently in Greek mythology, and is believed to be The Golden Bough of Aeneas, ancestor of the Romans. The Norse god Baldr was killed with mistletoe.
Reverence for mistletoe made waves across many cultures, starting with the Greeks and Romans as early as 30 BC, when Virgil’s reference to a “golden bough” was made in part of his epic Aeneid.
There is an ingenious trick that the mistletoe plant pulls upon unsuspecting feathered dinner guests. And it helps it to spread among yonder branches. Mistletoe is a Christmas tradition.
With his golden sickle, and in one chop, the Chief Druid would remove the mistletoe to be caught below. [ 1 ] This ritual was recorded by Pliny (24-79 CE) in his Natural History (16.24), not as a part of a seasonal festival, but in the context of a sacrifice of two white bulls to invoke prosperity from the gods.
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