CHAPTER X
RELIGION IN THE PLANT WORLD
“Denied in heaven the soul he held on earth.”
—Byron
In a sense, the entire plant world is a beautiful and expressive worship of a bountiful and beneficent Creator. No creed which does not deny God will fail to see the silent but reverent adoration exhibited by His handiwork. Every tree which raises its brave crest toward the heavens, every flower which greets the warming sunlight with a smile, is a testimony to the omnipotence of divine law. Fully explain the wonders of a single blade of Grass, and you have solved the mysteries which underlie the universe.
Primitive peoples, who are always closely attuned to natural influences, early discerned the divine thread which runs through all plantdom. In their incessant search for God, they did not overlook His manifestations in the plants and flowers. Along with fire, water, stars, sun, moon, animals, birds and graven images, our wood-roving ancestors ascribed supernatural attributes to many trees and flowers. In various places and at various times, many different plants have been idolized as the material substance of an ethereal or spiritual being. Certain plant growths have been repeatedly designated as sacred, and even in the present day, untutored races have many plant superstitions. Tree worship was common among the Celts and Teutons. The present day Christmas tree is a relic of primitive tree veneration. Even the American Indians worshiped trees at times. Man has been groping for God all through the ages. His tendency has been to deify those elements and things which he did not understand or which contained mystery. As soon as he became acquainted with the causes of these mysteries, the supernatural collapsed into the natural and he went searching after new wonders to call God.
From the beginning of literature, the bards of every land have sung to and of the flowers; the prophets have used them as instruments for their sooth-saying; the believer in resurrection has cited them to prove a final resurrection for the souls of men; the reincarnationists have claimed in them a great evidence of the reincarnation of the soul; the atheist has tried to show through them the validity of his belief; hero and conqueror have found in them their crowns of glory and the poet has made them the theme of his pen. Yet the flowers bloom today much as they did on the hillsides of Greece and Babylon, and man, with all his century-accumulated wisdom, seems but to have seen the outer edge of their real lives.
The superstitious veneration of various flowers is an ancient and peculiarly charming expression of man’s innate appreciation of the beautiful. He who condemns as idolaters the flower-worshippers of ancient ages may well look upon himself with critical eyes. Which is the better: to pay tribute to the Creator through the adoration of his beautiful floral children or make cold, glittering gold the ultimate though unacknowledged goal of this earthly life?
It is interesting to notice, in reviewing the annals of flower-worship, that the most fervent and frequent examples are found in tropical countries. This is due, no doubt, to the luxuriance of vegetation in the hot countries, and the fact that, in most cases, flowers are in bloom there all the year around. Even one trained in a more rigid faith is tempted to strange reverence when he suddenly comes upon a great, glowing Orchid, squatting like some beautiful animal on the shaggy trunk of an aged tree. A Hindu is quite excusable when he becomes raptly worshipful while paddling through a floating sea of Lotus-Flowers.
In heathen mythology, “every flower was the emblem of a god; every tree the abode of a nymph.” Paradise, itself, was a kind of “nemorous temple or sacred grove” planted by God himself. The patriarchal groves which are prominent throughout Biblical history were probably planted as living memorials of the Garden of Eden, the first grove and man’s first abode.
Sacred flowers were common among the Greeks. The Anemone, Poppy and Violet were dedicated to Venus. To Diana belonged “all flowers growing in untrodden dells and shady nooks, uncontaminated by the tread of man.” The Narcissus and Maiden-Hair Fern were under the special protection of Proserpina and to Ceres belonged the Willow. The Pink was Jove’s flower, while Juno claimed the Lily, Crocus and Asphodel.
The life of Christ flings a bright and illuminating ray of light over the whole vegetable world. Trees and flowers which have heretofore been associated with various heathen rites now become connected with holier names and are frequently made a part of the crucifixion itself. Hosts of flowers are dedicated to the Virgin Mary, particularly white ones, which are taken to be emblematic of her purity. Christian worshippers even went to the classic Juno and Diana, to the Scandinavian Freyja and Bertha, to obtain flowers to dedicate to her. The Passion Flower was often taken to represent various incidents connected with the crucifixion.
Though the Rose and the Lily are the blossoms which are most frequently associated with the Virgin, particularly in paintings, there is an endless list of other flowers of low and high degree which are either named after her or thought to be under her influence.
Orchids are called “Our Lady’s Slipper.” Maiden-Hair is “Virgin’s Hair.” The Thyme, Woodroof and Groundsel plants are reputed to have formed the Virgin’s bed. Among fruits the Strawberry and the Molluka Bean have been set aside for her worship.
The “Rose of Jericho” is made famous by the Bible. Popular tradition states that it first blossomed at Christ’s birth, closed at His crucifixion and reopened at His resurrection. The legend of the rose-coloured Sainfoin is especially interesting. One of the flowers happened to be among the grasses and herbs lodged in the manger of the Christ child. At the presence of that holy form, it suddenly opened its blossoms to form a wreath for His head.
A more gruesome tale relates that the Wood-Sorrel, Spotted Persicaria, Arum, Purple Orchid and Red Anemone owe their dark-stained blossoms to the blood which trickled from the Cross.
Among the many theories regarding the identity of the wood of the Cross, the one about the Mistletoe is especially fanciful. The Mistletoe is alleged to have been originally a full-sized tree but because of its ignoble part in the great Christian tragedy, it was reduced to its present parasitical form.
Every saint in the Catholic calendar has his own particular flower, either because of some incident in his life with which it was connected or because of arbitrary dedication. Care has been taken to pick flowers which are in bloom at the time of the festival of the saint which they represent. In this way, the flowers of the field make a living, religious time-piece.
Among the individual sacred flowers, Orchids and Lotus-Blossoms have probably been known and reverenced as much as any. There is small wonder that sentiment approaching veneration should exist toward the Orchids. Their singular beauty and fragrance have compelled the admiration of all historic peoples. The primitive Mexicans hold them in very great esteem. The Lotus-Flower, portrayed through all the ages, on papyrus, paper, silk, stone, and wood, has a world-wide sanctity. The ancient Egyptians worshipped the Lotus in connection with the mysteries of Isis and Osiris. The sculptural remains of the Nile abound with the sacred plant in every stage of its development, the flowers and fruit being represented with utmost accuracy. The Brahmans regarded it as divine and the Hindus used it to decorate their temples and lay on their religious altars. The Chinese also called it sacred. Brahma, at his birth, is said to have come forth from the Lotus. Buddha and other eastern deities, including the Chinese god Pazza, are reported to have first appeared floating on its leaves.
Sir William Jones was one time dining on the banks of the Ganges. Desiring to examine the sacred Lotus-Flower, he despatched some of his people to procure a specimen. When it was brought, his Indian attendants immediately fell on their faces in adoration.
The Yellow Narcissus is a famous fabled flower which originally came from Palestine. Mahomet once said: “Whoever possesses two loaves of bread, let him trade one for a blossom of Narcissus, for bread is nourishment for the body, but the Narcissus for the soul.” The birth of the Narcissus is narrated thus: In Sussexshire, England, the good St. Leonhard once battled with a dragon for three whole days. Before he was able to slay the monster, the doughty warrior was wounded with consequent loss of blood. God could not bear to see the life fluid of this holy man spilled heedlessly, so transformed each drop, as it fell, into a Narcissus.
“Consider the Lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” This is a great tribute to the Lily and it has been similarly praised throughout all literature. About this lovely flower hang myriads of sacred legends and such titles as the “symbol of purity,” the “soul of beauty” and “the symbol of peace.” In the lore of the Greeks and the Orientals, this matchless flower was hailed with the Rose as the “Queen of Heaven.” The Venerable Bede called it the most worthy symbol of the Virgin. He said that its pure white petals represent her undefiled body and the golden stamens her radiant soul shining with god-like light. Many old paintings of the Virgin show her with a vase of Lilies by her side.
The Rose is the universal symbol of royalty. In Greek mythology, it was the favourite flower of Aphrodite and was represented as springing from the blood of Adonis. Through all Norse and German mythology is repeated reference to the “regal beauty” and “queenly mien” of the Rose. In northern lands, the Rose was under the special protection of the fairies, dwarves, and elves.
The “Balm of Gilead” is a well-known sacred plant (Balsamum Judaicum) written of by Pliny, Strabo and Justin and grown in many parts of the East. It is said to have been first brought from Arabia by the Queen of Sheba as a gift to Solomon.
St. John’s Wort (Hypericum Perforatum) was dedicated to St. John because its phosphorescent glow was remindful of the Biblical reference to him as a “bright and shining light.” Some European peasants still believe that, if gathered and worn on St. John’s Eve, it has the power of bringing good luck and success.
The Greeks and Romans used Verbena extensively in their religious ceremonies, principally because of its wonderful perfume. The Romans called it “the sacred herb” and regarded it as an aid in divinations and omens. On New Year’s Day, it was sent to friends as a token of greeting. The Roman generals wore a sprig in their pockets as a protection against bodily injury.
The Soma or Moon-Plant of India (Asclepias Acida) is a climbing vine with milky juice which is said to confer immortality upon its admirers.
Pomegranate was long reverenced by the Persians and Jews as the forbidden fruit of the Garden of Eden.
The Indian plant Basil for many centuries has been held in good repute by the Hindus, having been made sacred to Vishnu.
Mahomet pronounced Henna, the Egyptian Privet, “chief of the flowers of this world and the next.” Wormwood was dedicated to the goddess Iris.
If there are many plants which man’s adoration has made religious, there are almost an equal number which his suspicion and perversity have branded irreligious. A famous plant of this kind is the Enchanter’s Nightshade which has long been celebrated in the mysteries of witchcraft. Perhaps its usual place of growth in old graveyards among decaying bones and mouldering coffins has much to do with the sinister superstitions and legends connected with it.
The Belladonna is another plant whose name is often associated with black magic.
To this day many Danes believe that the Elder is eternally cursed. Children who sleep in beds containing Elder wood continually complain of having their feet tickled and their legs pulled. To carry a cane of Elder is to invite attacks of slander. Women who have Elder wood in their houses will never be married. It is the elves who dwell in the Elder who are supposed to work all this mischief.
Plants often rise superior to the curse which men place upon them. Probably every well-known plant, sometime in its history, has had attributed to it both good and evil. The deity of one nation may become the demon of another.
Plant worship holds a more prominent place in the world today than one would at first thought imagine, and it is not altogether confined to uncultured peoples. Dr. George Birdwood tells of remarkable instances of modern flower worship he saw in Bombay. In describing the Victoria Gardens, he says: “Presently, a true Persian, in flowing robes of blue, and on his head his sheep-skin hat, ‘black, glossy, curl’d, the fleece of Kar-kal’, would saunter in, and stand and meditate over every flower he saw, and always, as if half in vision. And when the vision was fulfilled, and the flower he was seeking found, he would spread his mat and sit before it until the setting of the sun, then fold up his mat again and night after night, until that particular flower faded away, he would return to it, and bring his friends in ever-increasing troupes to it, and sit and play the guitar or lute before it, and they would altogether pray there, and after praying still sit before it, sipping sherbet, and talking the most hilarious and shocking scandal late into the moonlight; and so again and again every evening until the flower died. Sometimes, by way of grand finalé the whole company would suddenly rise before the flower and serenade it together, with an ode from Hafiz, and then depart.”