Post by bluefedish on Jun 8, 2007 21:16:36 GMT -5
Practical Uses: The people of North America, Russia, Siberia, North Europe & Scandinavia habe used the durable bark to make a lot of things essential to life, including boats & canoes, coverings for wigwams & yurts, roof tiles for houses, all sorts of containers, writing parper & ever shoes.
Natural Healing: In Russian & Scandinavian tradition, birch twigs are used to "beat" the body during a sauna. This is an old method to stimulate circulation & increase the bitality of the skin. Similarly, birch is used in Native North American sweat-lodge cleansing ceremonies, by tribes such as the Ojibwa who also cover their tipi floors iwth birch boughs.
Tea from teh young leaves or leaf buds stimulates the gall baldder, kidneys & livers, & can be drunk over 3 weeks as a spring "detox". The leaves are collected in April or May & the dried. Birch leaves also help to relieve the symptoms of gout & rheumatism. The blood-cleansing sap is a general tonic for the whole metabolism. Externally, birch tar oil has been used to treat eczema & psoriasis, & the sap makes an excellent scalp tonic. The young leaves provide a healthy addition to freash salads.
In classical homeopathy, birch has the same effect that the living tree has in the sombre northern landscape - it brings light to darkness. The tree essence of silver birch enhance the ability to expreience beauty & remain calm.
Culture, Myth, & Symbol: Named after the whiteness of its bark, the birch shares its name with the ancient Irish goddess Brigid, both names deriving from the Indo-European word 'bher(e)g', "shining white" . Brigid was a benevolent deity, a muse to poets & the patron of crafts, particularly spinning & weaving.
In Norse & Germanic tradition the birch is associated with Freya, the Lady of the Forest, and Frigga, the wife of Odin (who was originally a wind god). In Russian folklore, the birch itself is called Lady of the Forest. The nourishing, caring birch is an image of the White Goddess, and the Germanic rune Berkana, "birch", stands for motherhood, bosom & protection. Furhtermore, the actual shape of the rune, which is echoed in our capital letter "B", is derived from the "mother mounds" of the Neolithic. These hills were mostly burial mounds & ceremonial places where the mysteries of death & rebirth were celebrated. Twin hills symbolized the breasts of the Earth Mother. Birth, life & death were all under the dominion of this goddess, and these 3 aspects of life have created a rich diversity of female deities in different cultures: goddess of birth & youth, goddesses of mature womanhood, & goddesses of death & winter.
In the wild, the birch is one of the 1st trees to coloniz new land & prepare the soil for the coming of the forest. This pioneering quality is reflected in its cultural associations. The 1st versions of the ancient Indian wisdom teachings, the Vedas, or "leaves" (of the Tree of Knowledge), were written on birch bark.
The full spiritual strength of the birch shines through in Siberian shamanism. Here it is udesi-burchan, the "deity of the door" to the spirit world. A birch tree is ceremonially chosen in the forest & brought into a special yurt (a tenet covered in skins, used by nomadic tribes). 9 notches are carved into it (9 is the number of the Earth Mother) before it's erected as the central pole. In trance the shaman climbs to the top of the pole while his spirit journeys up the World Tree to the heavens or down to the underworld. He will seek answers from guidign spirits or ancestors, or ask the astral entities of a disease to leave his patient. (We will meat the number 9 & the World Tree again will Odin & the yew tree).
Symbolism: Renewal & protection
Divine Associations: The White Goddess, Brigid (Celtic), Freya & Frigga (Norse), Venus (Roman)
Astrological Associations: Venus
Historical Spotlight: In 1893, the British intelligence officer Captain H. Bower brought back from Turkestan 1 of the world's oldest birch bark manuscripts, dating from c.350ce.
Selected Source:
The Meaning of Trees by: Fred Hageneder
Natural Healing: In Russian & Scandinavian tradition, birch twigs are used to "beat" the body during a sauna. This is an old method to stimulate circulation & increase the bitality of the skin. Similarly, birch is used in Native North American sweat-lodge cleansing ceremonies, by tribes such as the Ojibwa who also cover their tipi floors iwth birch boughs.
Tea from teh young leaves or leaf buds stimulates the gall baldder, kidneys & livers, & can be drunk over 3 weeks as a spring "detox". The leaves are collected in April or May & the dried. Birch leaves also help to relieve the symptoms of gout & rheumatism. The blood-cleansing sap is a general tonic for the whole metabolism. Externally, birch tar oil has been used to treat eczema & psoriasis, & the sap makes an excellent scalp tonic. The young leaves provide a healthy addition to freash salads.
In classical homeopathy, birch has the same effect that the living tree has in the sombre northern landscape - it brings light to darkness. The tree essence of silver birch enhance the ability to expreience beauty & remain calm.
Culture, Myth, & Symbol: Named after the whiteness of its bark, the birch shares its name with the ancient Irish goddess Brigid, both names deriving from the Indo-European word 'bher(e)g', "shining white" . Brigid was a benevolent deity, a muse to poets & the patron of crafts, particularly spinning & weaving.
In Norse & Germanic tradition the birch is associated with Freya, the Lady of the Forest, and Frigga, the wife of Odin (who was originally a wind god). In Russian folklore, the birch itself is called Lady of the Forest. The nourishing, caring birch is an image of the White Goddess, and the Germanic rune Berkana, "birch", stands for motherhood, bosom & protection. Furhtermore, the actual shape of the rune, which is echoed in our capital letter "B", is derived from the "mother mounds" of the Neolithic. These hills were mostly burial mounds & ceremonial places where the mysteries of death & rebirth were celebrated. Twin hills symbolized the breasts of the Earth Mother. Birth, life & death were all under the dominion of this goddess, and these 3 aspects of life have created a rich diversity of female deities in different cultures: goddess of birth & youth, goddesses of mature womanhood, & goddesses of death & winter.
In the wild, the birch is one of the 1st trees to coloniz new land & prepare the soil for the coming of the forest. This pioneering quality is reflected in its cultural associations. The 1st versions of the ancient Indian wisdom teachings, the Vedas, or "leaves" (of the Tree of Knowledge), were written on birch bark.
The full spiritual strength of the birch shines through in Siberian shamanism. Here it is udesi-burchan, the "deity of the door" to the spirit world. A birch tree is ceremonially chosen in the forest & brought into a special yurt (a tenet covered in skins, used by nomadic tribes). 9 notches are carved into it (9 is the number of the Earth Mother) before it's erected as the central pole. In trance the shaman climbs to the top of the pole while his spirit journeys up the World Tree to the heavens or down to the underworld. He will seek answers from guidign spirits or ancestors, or ask the astral entities of a disease to leave his patient. (We will meat the number 9 & the World Tree again will Odin & the yew tree).
Symbolism: Renewal & protection
Divine Associations: The White Goddess, Brigid (Celtic), Freya & Frigga (Norse), Venus (Roman)
Astrological Associations: Venus
Historical Spotlight: In 1893, the British intelligence officer Captain H. Bower brought back from Turkestan 1 of the world's oldest birch bark manuscripts, dating from c.350ce.
Selected Source:
The Meaning of Trees by: Fred Hageneder
