Category: Tree Ogham

The Celtic Ogham in its Tree form, including mythological connections to each letter.

Eadha (Aspen)

“The following curious story reminds one a little of Slavic tales of dead men who dwell in their tombs as in houses. Some of the Slav tomb-dwellers are harmless, others malignant. The malignant ones are dead persons who rise up bodily and go around at night devouring people. When one of these has eaten a victim he rushes back to his grave, for he is obliged to remain wherever he may be at cock-crow; if outside his grave, he falls stiff and helpless to lie there till the next night. There are two ways of giving a quietus to such a ghoul. One is to pin him to the earth by driving a stake of aspen wood through his heart; the other is to burn him to ashes.” – Jeremiah Curtin (Tales of Fairies and the Ghost World, 1895)

The Roots:

Eadha, or Aspen, is the 19th letter of the Ogham.

Robert Graves in the White Goddess lists the Aspen as the tree of rebirth.

Liz and Colin Murray in the Celtic Tree Oracle also give Aspen the powers of rebirth. They add that Aspen is the tree of resistance and shielding, speech and language, and that it has a very close relationship to the wind.

Nigel Pennick in Magical Alphabets calls Aspen a magic preventer, or means of overcoming death. He also sees the tree as a resistance against inhospitable conditions.

John Michael Greer in the Druid Magic Handbook gives Aspen the qualities of perseverance, courage, hard work, defence and inner strength.

Jacqueline Memory Paterson in Tree Wisdom: the Definitive Guidebook echoes many of the above statements but also adds that the Aspen “speaks of what it hears from afar” and is the best hearing of all the trees.

Eryn Rowan Laurie -who does not use the Ogham as a tree alphabet- says that Eadha is the few of divination, dreams, and communicating with the Sidhe or high fairies. It should also be important to note that the plant that Laurie sees as being representative of Eadha, if you can call it a plant, is the colourful mushroom Aminita muscaria. When Laurie does speak of Aspen in Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom, however, she does not give the tree any properties or associations other than the folkloric connections the tree has in regards to the betrayal of Jesus at the time of the crucifixion.

Eadha, or Aspen, is a tree with many associations to death and to the spirit world. It is a protective tree but is also seen as dark or evil. It often appears as a betrayer of Christ. The tree has ties to the grave, spirits of the dead, and to the fairies. In this light, the various interpretations for Aspen suddenly make sense and do not seem so foreign from one another.

Aspen is a tree of overcoming and resistance; both to persecution and to death itself. It is also the tree most often associated with direct communication to the forest through its quivering leaves.

Besides being closely related to the apparitions of the dead and to the Sidhe, Aspen is also associated to the Irish mythological hero Cuchulainn, the Fairy Queen of Scotland, and to the character Gaul found in the Poems of Ossian.

The Trunk:

Aspen is a tree of great power.

At one time, the quivering leaves of the Aspen were believed to be mediators that aided in the communication between our world and the next. They helped the wind speak to the ancestors. They brought news of the deceased. They carried the inspiration of poetry.

The folklore later claiming that the Aspen betrayed Jesus is found throughout Europe. The following quote is taken from the Carmina Gadelica vol.2 by Alexander Carmichael in 1900.

“THE people of Uist say ‘gu bheil an crithionn crion air a chroiseadh tri turais’–that the hateful aspen is banned three times. The aspen is banned the first time because it haughtily held up its head while all the other trees of the forest bowed their heads lowly down as the King of all created things was being led to Calvary. And the aspen is banned the second time because it was chosen by the enemies of Christ for the cross upon which to crucify the Saviour of mankind. And the aspen is banned the third time because [here the reciter’s memory failed him]. Hence the ever-tremulous, ever-quivering, ever quaking motion of the guilty hateful aspen even in the stillest air.”

While the Holly and Oak are also often accused of being the tree used for the crucifixion, the Aspen is given extra special negative attention in folklore. Eryn Rowan Laurie claims that in Scotland people would throw stones at the trees as punishment even in recent times. The quivering leaves have been equated to both guilt and to fear in regards to the betrayal of Christ.

The associations of the Aspen to death may be due to the historical use of the Aspen wand. In Cormac’s Glossary there is an Aspen wand called a Fe that was used to measure the graves of the dead[i]. There was an Ogham inscription cut on it. The wands and their users are called “pagan” in the glossary. It was not advised that anyone, other than the grave measurers, handle the wands. The Aspen rods apparently held bad spirits.

According to Robert Graves, French witches used Aspen or White Poplar in flying spells. In Survival in Belief Amongst Celts published in 1911, George Henderson reports that mare’s milk taken from an Aspen spoon is a cure for whooping cough. In Scotland an Aspen leaf under the tongue made the bearer more eloquent. This magical shift was a gift from the fairy queen[ii].

In Poems of Ossian written in 1773, James Macpherson shares a most beautiful and tragic story. This work was claimed to have been based on “a manuscript” but is now largely believed to be a great work of fiction with mythological sources, or a complete forgery depending on who you are talking to. The tale is poetically beautiful and haunting[iii].

(The Dream of Ossian, by Jean Dominique Ingres,1815)

Gaul, a great warrior, returns from war to marry Oithona. The two had fallen in love before the duties of being a warrior had taken him away. They had eagerly agreed to marry if Gaul survived the expedition. Oithona’s father and brother were also called to the same campaign leaving her alone and vulnerable. In the warriors’ absence, Oithona was stolen and raped by Donrommath a chieftain who she had formerly rejected. He kept her hidden in a cave. Upon his return and the discovery of her absence, Gaul sets sail in search of Oithona.

“A rougher blast rushed through the oak. The dream of night departed. Gaul took his Aspen spear. He stood in the rage of his soul. Often did hid turn to the east. He accused the lagging light. At length the morning came forth. The hero lifted up the sail.”

Gaul finds Oithona in a cave on an island, alone and wounded. She tells Gaul her story and warns him of the many men of Donrommath. Gaul tells Oithona to hide in the cave until after the battle and rushes off to meet their enemies.

Donrommath smiles in “contempt” at Gaul and his few meagre men, expecting an easy victory.

“Gaul advanced in his arms; Dunrommath shrunk behind his people. But the spear of Gaul pierced the gloomy chief: his sword lopped off his head, as it bended in death. The son of Morni shook it thrice by the lock; the warriors of Dunrommath fled. The arrows of Morven pursued them: ten fell on the mossy rocks. The rest lift the sounding sail, and bound on the troubled deep.”

Gaul then returns to the cave of Oithona to find a mortally wounded youth with an arrow in his side. He tries to heal the youth but discovers that the wound is too serious and that he cannot. As Gaul admits to the unknown hero that he will be “taken in youth” the helmet falls upon the ground and reveals the beautiful Oithona. In her shame she had outfitted herself for battle and joined the outnumbered troops of Gaul. There is both pride and beauty in her as she perishes.

“She fell pale on the rock of Tromáthon. The mournful warrior raised her tomb. He came to Morven; we saw the darkness of his soul.”

The Aspen spear seems to speak of a greater, or more permanent, death than is usually given to ones enemies.

The great Irish hero Cuchulainn is always overcoming death and great enemies. He is a Celtic Achilles whose weakness is that he is forbidden to eat dog meat. After he unavoidably partakes in the flesh of a hound he is eventually killed. This is only after many adventures and battles.

One of his great victories was against three of his enemies who had each armed their charioteers with Aspen wands. Cuchulainn kills all six of them[iv].

If the Aspen wand is used for measuring the grave, then the symbolism found within the tale is both direct and disturbing. The three threes, including the wands, remind us that all of the old myths are riddles. It is clear that Cuchulainn has overcome death once more.

The Aspen, Eadha, is a tree of mysteries and connections to the land of the dead. It can be seen as a tree of great power and resistance to all things, as well as a messenger of the spirits.

Interestingly enough, within the Ogahm Tract, Aspen is spoken of as “friend.”

The Foliage:

Aspen are very closely related to White Poplar. In many places the names for the two trees are used interchangeably. The species are so closely related that they can intermarry and the result is the Grey Poplar. Cottonwood is also closely related. I have often found that accurately identifying each species from one another can be very difficult. This is especially true in regards to the North American species.

The Aspen is the only tree that dominates two letters from the list found in the Ogham Tract or Scholar’s Primer. Eadha is associated with Aspen but so is Ebad. Writers who use the tree aspect of the Ogham have worked around this in various ways. The Murrays use the second Aspen, Ebad, to instead represent “the Grove”, which they also call Koad. Several other writers have since used this association.

One writer, Robert lee “Skip” Ellison, gets around this in another way. I have not yet read Ellison’s Ogham: the Secret language of the Druids as I do not want the book to influence my current tour through the Ogham letters[v]. I am aware, however, that Ellison gets around the above problem by making Eadha represent Aspen, and Ebad represent the White Poplar.

If a person had a strong connection to the Aminita muscaria, and felt that the mushroom had a place within the tree calendar, they could use the Eryn Rowan Laurie association mentioned above. The Eadha letter would be represented by Aminita and Ebad would be the letter used for the Aspen. This is merely another alternative or suggestion[vi].

We will be listing Ebad as “the Grove”, and will leave the association of Aspen to Eadha.

“Evidence now supports the vision of the poet and the philosopher that plants are living, breathing, communicating creatures, endowed with personality and the attributes of the soul. It is only we, in our blindness, who have insisted on considering them automata.” – Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird (The Secret Life of Plants, 1973)

[i]Cormac mac Cuilennain was an Irish bishop and a king of Muster. He was killed in battle in 908ce. The glossary is believed to be attributed to him after his death but not actually written by him.

[iv] Cattle Raid of Cualnge. Ulster Cycle.

[v] I plan to use Ellison during my next cycle through the Ogham along with Caitlin Mathews who wrote Celtic Wisdom Sticks. I have not yet read either book.

[vi] If there is an interest in a similar post written about the Aminita then please let me know. There are various mentions of the mushroom in myth and folklore which can easily be researched and shared.

Ur (Heather)

“When we reflect upon the many unique characteristics of the Heather- its stern beauty of delicate purple bells nestling to a green mantled burly growth of brushwood; its distinctive vitality and strength of endurance; the wild rugged solitude of its native home in the Scottish Highlands, and the untamed spirit of independence which over broods this hermit flower of the mountain crags- it is not to be wondered at that the Heather should have been adopted as a symbol, or badge, by several of the leading clans of Scotland.” – Alexander Wallace (Heather in Lore, Lyric and Lay)

The Roots:

Ur is the eighteenth letter of the Ogham. The tree or plant that Ur represents in the Tree Alphabet[i] is the Heather.

In Magical Alphabets Nigel Pennick claims that this letter represents luck and is an entry point to the inner worlds.

In the White Goddess, Robert Graves also says that Heather is lucky. He goes on to state that Heather has a strong connection with the bee. This is a observation that is made by many other writers including Stephanie and Philip Carr-Gomm[ii], Alexander Wallace[iii], as well as Liz and Colin Murray. The bee represents industriousness, family, community and social interactions. The Heather is not only frequented by bees, but can also grow in Heaths. This growth pattern represents its own gregarious nature.

In their book the Celtic Tree Oracle, the Murrays also say that Heather provides a link to the inner self. Strangely, they also claim that the Mistletoe can be a representative of Ur as well.

Eryn Rowan Laurie in Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom seems to have quite a different take on Ur and the Heather plant. She claims that the Ogham letter Ur is representative of death, fate and finality; by its connection to the soil[iv]. Laurie also claims that Heather independent from the letter- is linked to poverty[v].

John Michael Greer brings the various beliefs together in his explanation of Ur found in the Druid Magic Handbook. He says that Ur represents “Power, creation, death and rebirth, symbolized by the Heather bush; spiritual power and creativity, a door opens in the inner world.”

Besides being linked to the bee, Heather is connected with mountains and the country of Scotland. The plant has links to fairies such as the Cluiricaune. Heather is also connected to witches, apparitions and also makes an appearance in at least one Cailleach tale.

Ur, or Heather, is the plant of death and the dead, luck, family and community, and can also help us to connect with the inner worlds.

The Trunk:

“Heather is the four leaf clover of the Scottish Highlands.[vi]”

Heather, or Ur, does not appear very often in recorded Celtic folklore.

The Cluiricaune, who we spoke of in Ngetal, knew the secrets of brewing a heather beer. We also looked at an apparition that touched and killed a cow in Ohn; the Ogham letter covered last week. This apparition rose from the Gorse and Heather plants to bring about the destruction of the hapless creature. Both of these stories were discussed previously and can also be found in Fairy Legends of the South of Ireland by Thomas Croker.

The greatest wealth of memory regarding the Heather plant is found in Alexander Wallace’s 1903 book Heather in Lore, Lyric and Lay. There is no greater resource than this book for anyone interested in a study of the cultural significance of Heather to the Celtic people.

Throughout the book there are many poems and stories related to Heather. In folklore the white Heather represented unselfish love. It was considered very unlucky for anyone to bring Heather indoors. The plant could, however, be used as protection against witches. At Beltane, Rowan and Heather branches were carried around the sacred fire three times before being raised above dwellings to protect the house’s occupants against the evil eye. On the other hand, throwing Heather after a person was supposed to bring them good luck.

Heather is often seen as a Scottish national symbol. The plant is associated with ancestors and is found on many clan badges.

“Macgregor as the rock, Macdonald as the Heather.”[vii]

Fairies are said to live in Heather bells and Heather honey is supposed to be one of their favourite foods. Apparently Heather, like Ivy[viii], does not grow in the land of the fairies. This may explain the fairies great affinity for the flower.

There is a story from Heather in Lore, Lyric and Lay regarding a Heather fairy that I will share in its entirety due to its unique nature. It was originally told by a Mrs Grant of Laggan. The tale regards one of the fairy hills that Highlanders would often hear “fairie music” from.

“A little girl had been innocently loved by a fairy that dwelt in a tomhan[ix] near her mother’s habitation. She had three brothers who were the favourites of her mother. She herself was treated harshly and taxed beyond her strength; her ’employment was to go every morning and cut a certain quantity of turf from dry, heathy ground for immediate fuel ; and this with some uncouth and primitive implement. As she passed the hillock which contained her lover, he regularly put out his hand with a very sharp knife of sudi[x] power that it quickly and readily cut through all impediments. She returned cheerfully and early with her load of turf, and as she passed by the hillock she struck on it twice and the fairy stretched out his hand and received the knife.

“The mother, however, told the brothers that her daughter must certainly have had some aid to perform the allotted task. They watched her, saw her remove the enchanted knife and forced it from her. They re-turned, struck the hillock as she was wont to do, and when the fairy put out his hand, they cut it off with his own knife. He drew in the bleeding arm in despair; and supposing this cruelty was the result of treadiery[xi] on the part of his beloved, never saw her more.”

This is not the only dark story regarding the Heather plant. Witches in Scotland at Samhain were supposed to ride over Heather on black tabby cats. Heather can also be connected to the Cailleach; the primordial Celtic hag goddess.

It is said that whenever a hunter sees the Cailleach singing and milking the hinds upon a hillside, it is a warning. The vision is telling the hunter that he should not go, “roaming the Heath that day.” To ignore the warning was to invite a swift and merciless death[xii].

Heather, or Ur, is a magical herb indeed. The stories in Heather in Lore, Lyric and Lay do speak of death, apparitions, family and luck. Perhaps the “inner worlds” that the Ogham authors speak of are simply more references to the Spiritworld or the lands of the fey?

If this is true, then the above stories verify this Heather connection as well.

There are too many tales of the fairies to list, which speak of them as being “the dead”[xiii]. If this were to be the case, then all of the various associations given to the Heather plant would not be as different from one another as they would at first appear.

Heather is a key to the realms of the mysterious. Some may see these lands as being external and separated from oneself, while others may choose to dive into the deepest hidden worlds that are found within.

Perhaps they are one and the same.

The Foliage:

The Heather plant that represents Ur is Calluna Vulgaris.

Calluna Vulgaris is considered an invasive species in British Columbia as it is sometimes found to have naturalized. This non-native immigrant, however, is the Heather that is the same plant referred to in Celtic myth and legend. What we call Heather in British Columbia is not the same plant.

These are the native types of mountain Heather from the Cassiope  and also the Phyllodoce Genus . The Mountain Heathers are close relatives of Calluna Vulgaris belonging to the same family Ericaceae[xiv]. Some of the species, such as White Mountain Heather or Yellow Mountain Heather, are common throughout the Pacific Northwest and BC.

The Heather of myth is usually a purple flower.

“According to the classical writers, the Druids taught three important things: Honor the gods. Do no evil. Live courageously.” – Tom Cowan(Yearning for the Wind)


[i] The Ogham was not originally intended to be used as a Tree Alphabet. See previous posts.

[ii] The Druid Animal Oracle.

[iii] Heather in Lore, Lyric and Lay.

[iv] The Ogham Tract.

[v] Laurie is the Ogham expert that I probably respect, and agree with, the most. I disagree with her on this point, however, which may seem strange as she is much more knowledgable than me on Celtic mythology and the Ogham. I do not understand the poverty connection to Heather, however.

[vii] Heather in Lore, Lyric and Lay.

[viii] See Gort post.

[ix] Fairy dwelling.

[x] I am not sure what this means.

[xi] Breech of faith.

[xii] We should be thankful that Alexander Wallace preserved so much of the lore associated with the Heather in a single place. I have merely skimmed the surface of this highly recommended book.

[xiii] Katherine Briggs. The Fairies in Tradition and Literature.

 

Ohn (Gorse or Broom)

“The wren, the wren, the king of all birds, St. Stephen’s Day was killed in the furze; Although he be little his honour is great, so, good people, give us a treat.” – Peter Ellis (the Druids)[i]

 

The Roots:

The seventeenth letter of the Ogham is Ohn, which is usually listed as the Gorse. According to Robert Graves, some lists use Scotch Broom instead[ii].

Gorse is also known as Sea Gorse, Furz, Furze, Furse or Whin. It is a close relative to the Broom plant belonging to the same tribe Genisteae, with the main differing quality being its sharp thorns or spikes. In Cad Goddeu –the Battle of the Trees- Broom even seems to become the parent of the Gorse -within the poem- when the story says that, “The Brooms with their offspring [arrived?]: the Furz was not well behaved, until he was tamed…”  Interestingly, though unrelated, the “Gorse” is also said to be great in battle elsewhere in the same poem[iii].

James Frazer, in the Golden Bough, says that in folk rituals the Furz and the Broom were often interchangeable. This may be why some of the Ogham lists use Broom instead of Gorse. It may also be why Robert Graves left Broom out of his Ogham list as the plant for Ngetal[iv] and instead replaced it with the Reed Grass. Perhaps he thought that the Broom and Gorse were too similar to one another to each have a letter in the Ogham? Another possibility that I have mentioned before is that he may have chosen this placement more to support his tree calendar theory than for any other historical or mythological significance.

Liz and Colin Murray in the Celtic Tree Oracle said that Gorse represented the collecting together of various objects for ones journey. They compared the Gorse to the magpie, which is a highly intelligent bird believed to collect shiny objects for its nest.

John Michael Greer agrees saying that Ohn is the few of attracting, of combination, possibility, growth and potential[v].

Nigel Pennick also believes similarly that Ohn is the letter of continuous fertility, collecting and dispersal[vi].

Robert Graves reminds us that Furz is one of the very first flowers to be visited by bees collecting nectar and pollen in the spring. It is a plant, he claims, that is also good to use against witches[vii].

Eryn Rowan Laurie says that Gorse is the plant for foundations and the journey. Ohn is also related to ones path, choices, direction and intention. The energy of the Broom plant, on the other hand, is of healing and of wounding[viii].

The Broom is listed in the Ogham tract as associated to healing and physicians. The Gorse is associated to the wheel of the chariot, and by extension to travelling[ix].

Both the Broom and the Gorse have strong connections to witches and to the fairies. The Gorse in particular has a connection with the Cailleach, the great hag Goddess who is sometimes named the Queen of the Fairies.

Ohn is the few of journeys and of the preparation for the mission at hand. The Gorse speaks of darker tools and attitudes needed to succeed upon the path, while the Broom reminds us that we must be ready to heal and create if we are called upon to do so.

The Trunk:

According to James Frazer in the Golden Bough, “old straw, furz or broom was burned in Scotland for Beltane fires “a little after sunset.” Broom was also burned to repel witches.

The connection of Gorse, or Furz, and Broom to witches, fairies and protection seems to radiate throughout many myths. It is never entirely clear however if the plants are beneficial or harmful. Perhaps they are both.

The Golden Bough tells us that Gorse was burned as a sort of smudge to bless and protect the cattle from witches on the Isle of Mann.

In the Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries by W.Y. Evans-Wentz, 1911, we are told that Furz fires were sometimes built as a gift to the fairies to keep them warm. The book also says that any gifts of gold given to a person by the fairy may turn to Furz blossoms if that person told another of the source of their newfound wealth.That was if their telling didn’t outright kill them!  Eryn Rowan Laurie also speaks of the gold found beneath the Gorse.

The same text gives us a story from the Isle of Mann. There was apparently a “strange woman” who was seen to have materialized within the Gorse bush and walked over it, “where no person could walk”, and touched one of the cows that belonged to the witness. A few days later the heifer fell over dead. Witches and fairies seemed to have always been after the cows in those days, as well as the milk and butter that they produced, as this was the wealth of the Celtic ancestors. It seems to have been a common belief that witches and fairies coveted this wealth.

In the Fairy legends of the South of Ireland by Thomas Crofton Croker, 1825, we are also told of an apparition that growled like “burning Gorse.”

The Broom plant seems to be a little lighter.

The most famous story involving Broom was previously covered when we discussed Duir, the Oak, and that is the story of Blodeuwedd, “flower face.” She was created by Gwydion and Math to be the wife of Lleu who had a curse placed on him, by his mother, to wed no mortal woman. This story is found in the Mabinogion. The plants used to create Blodeuwedd are listed as the flowers of Oak, meadowsweet and Broom. She was created from vegetation and was thus not mortal and a suitable wife for Lleu. In this highly symbolic and charged tale Blodeuwedd ends up betraying Lleu with Gronw Pebyr, a passing hunter. Gronw is eventually killed and Blodeuwedd is made into the owl, a bird which is hated by all, by Gwydion to punish her.

(E. Wallcousins. From Celtic Myth and Legend. Charles Squire, 1905)

While the Broom’s most famous story is one of creating a beautiful woman the Gorse’s most relevant tale seems to speak of old age, death and destruction.

A most interesting story is told of the Cailleach in the Carmina Gadelica that relates to the Gorse. The Cailleach, the great hag, is often seen as the goddess of winter. In the first week of April she would use her magic wand to keep the vegetation from growing by swinging it back and forth over the struggling signs of new growth. Eventually, she would be overpowered by the elements of spring. She would eventually admit defeat and fly off in a rage screaming:

“It escaped me below, it escaped me above,

It escaped me between my two hands,

It escaped me before, it escaped me behind,

It escaped me between my two eyes,

It escaped me down, it escaped me up,

It escaped me between my two ears,

It escaped me thither, it escaped me hither,

It escaped me between my two feet.

I throw my druidic evil wand

Into the base of a withered hard Whin bush,

Where shall not grow ‘fionn’ nor ‘fionnidh,’

But fragments of grassy froinnidh.”

This chant extracted from Visions of the Cailleach by Sorita d’Este and David Rankine gives the reason why other plants do not grow beneath the Gorse[x]. It is also a clue as to the harnessing of the powers of winter, to witches to come, through the use of a wand of Gorse.

Whether the Gorse or Broom is seen as either positive or negative, it is clear that these plants are flora of a once highly respected magical tradition.

The Broom seems to offer wealth, healing, and manifestation.

The Gorse or Furz seems to offer wealth, destruction, and protection from manifestation.

Both plants could have been seen as powerful allies, upon the road that one was to journey upon.

The Foliage:

When one considers that the Gorse and the Broom both grew, and continue to grow, out in the open and needed to be tamed -by our ancestors- then the parallels between the two plants becomes apparent. Both plants were often burnt back by shepherds and farmers to preserve the land from being overwhelmed. Gorse on the one hand had spiky thorns while the Broom was softer but just as prolific.

In the Ogham Tract[xi] the trees and plants of the Ogham are listed according to their rank. Some trees are seen as chieftain trees, some are seen as peasant trees and some are seen as shrub trees. Interestingly enough, the Furz is listed as a chieftain tree but -as Whin- is listed again as a peasant tree[xii]. It is also assumed that Broom is listed as a shrub tree in this particular order by its absence. Under Brehon law[xiii], however, both the Broom and the Furz are given the lowest rank of “bramble” trees.

The listing of Gorse as a chieftain plant during these earlier times probably had a great deal to do with the respect that was given to it. There seems to be a common theme in the tree and plant mythology of the Celtic ancestors and that was that the thorn plants –Hawthorn, Blackthorn, and Blackberry- were protected by the fairies and thus were sacred, feared, or both.

According to Eryn Rowan Laurie the Gorse was used in some parts of Ireland instead of the Hawthorn as the May bush. This could have only been possible if the Gorse was a greatly respected plant of the times, for it to have been used in this way.

Unrecognized and powerful, like the ivy plant, the Gorse and Broom are considered in many places to be invasive and aggressive plants that threaten the native growth of local flora. Today these weeds have sought out the attention of millions of dollars in a bid to remain acknowledged and recognized.

Perhaps, this is merely a coincidence.

“Our outer world is progressively diminished and corrupted by abuse of technology, greed and indifference to the welfare of other orders of life, and romantic adventurers often complain that there is nothing left to explore, no liberating challenge or experience. But liberation comes from within, both within ourselves and within the Underworld that is the original source and image for our planet.” –R.J. Stewart(Earth Light, 1992)


[i] Another version of this old Irish song is found in the Golden Bough by James Frazer.

[ii] The White Goddess.

[iii] D.W. Nash translation. Ibid.

[iv] Ngetal is the thirteenth letter of the Ogham.

[v] The Druid Magic Handbook.

[vi] Magical Alphabets.

[vii] The White Goddess.

[viii] Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom.

[ix] http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/ogham.html

[x] A similar tale found in the same book has the Cailleach throwing a black hammer instead of a wand, and having it land beneath the Holly tree instead of the Gorse. Again, this is the reason given for the scant vegetation found beneath the Holly.

[xi] http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/ogham.html

[xii] Robert Graves believed that this was a mistake and should have been Holly instead.

[xiii] Irish law. The White Goddess.

Ailm (Fir or Pine)

“Out of my experience, such as it is (and it is limited enough) one fixed conclusion dogmatically emerges, and that is this, that we with our lives are like islands in the sea, or like trees in the forest. The maple and the pine may whisper to each other with their leaves, and Conanicut and Newport hear each other’s foghorns. But the trees also commingle their roots in the darkness underground, and the islands also hang together through the ocean’s bottom. Just so there is a continuum of cosmic consciousness, against which our individuality builds but accidental fences…” –William James (The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries)[i]

The Roots:

The sixteenth letter of the Ogham is Ailm. This is the Scotch Fir or Scots Pine.

There is a lot of confusion regarding which tree should be assigned to Ailm. The Ogham tract says that it is the “Fir” tree. The Fir tree is also listed within the tract as a possible choice for Gort, the Ivy, as well. Robert Graves named the tree representing Ailm as the Silver Fir based on the mention of the Fir tree within the text[ii]. This choice is generally accepted as being correct.

The first Silver Fir, however, is not believed to have been introduced into neighbouring Scotland until 1603[iii]. The Ogham Tract is from the Book of Ballymote believed to be written in about 1390[iv]. Before the 18th century the Scots Pine was known as Scotch or Scots Fir[v] so the mention of the “Fir” within the Ogham Tract is most likely a reference to the Pine[vi]. The Scots Pine is native to the British Isles and would have been better known in Ireland. Pine is also mentioned within the Ogham tract, but various names for the same tree are found for other letters as well. For example the Yew is also the Service Tree, Blackthorn is also Sloe, and Quicken is also the Rowan. It is likely that both Pine and Fir refer to the Scotch Fir or Scots Pine. The variety of names given for the same species may be a poetic recording or even from the translation by George Calder in 1917[vii].

Firs and Pines -as well as Spruces, Cedars and others- are part of the same family known as Pinaceae. These conifers share a prehistoric heritage as members of the first trees growing in many areas upon the land of our planet. The close relation -and primordial ancestry- make them more akin to one another than many other trees that have
greater differences. For this reason the Pinaceae trees are easily interchangeable, and the choice to honour one above another -within the Ogham list- may feel quite comfortable to many students of the Ogham.

Liz and Colin Murray speak of Ailm as being a few of “long sight and clear vision[viii].” Nigel Pennick –who suggests the few represents the Elm, however- agrees. He adds that Ailm is about, “Rising above adversity” as well[ix].

John Micheal Greer lists the attributes of Ailm as vision, understanding, seeing things in perspective, and expanded awareness[x].

Robert Graves calls Ailm or the Fir, “the Birth Tree of Northern Europe[xi].”

Eryn Rowan Laurie also says that Ailm represents, “origins, creation, epiphany, pregnancy and birth[xii].”

Ailm, the Scotch Fir or Pine, is the tree of new beginnings and clarity of perspective. These ancient trees also seem to represent the Cailleach, the Celtic hag goddess.

The Trunk:

Robert Graves, in the White Goddess, claimed that there was a Gallic Fir goddess named Druantia who was also known as “the Queen of the Druids.” She was also apparently “the mother” of the tree calendar.

I have never been able to find a reference -before Robert Graves that is- that even mentions such an important figure as “the Queen of the Druids”. New age pagans speak of her often enough though, and she even has a page on Wikipedia that references two Llewellyn authors from 2006. As far as I can tell, this goddess is completely fictitious.

Robert Graves’ Druantia is fictitious. Just like his tree calendar that she was supposed to have been the mother of.

Graves proposed that the Ogham was actually a tree calendar and much of the White Goddess is actually a poetic essay supportive of this idea. The calendar starts on December 24th with the Birch tree. Each of the thirteen months of the year continue then as Rowan, Ash, Alder, Willow, Hawthorn, Oak, Holly, Hazel, Vine, Ivy, Reed, and then Elder. His justification is an interpretation of an old Irish poem the Song of Amergin which he believed was a code left for those with poetic sight –him- to find answers within. He reaches into his own interpretations of myths and observations of nature to support these conclusions.

The idea is actually quite beautiful and many people like the idea of an Ogham calendar and have adapted it into their own lives.

Liz and Colin Murray took the idea and ran with it a little further several  decades later. They perceived things differently though. They believed that the year would have started at Samhain – Halloween- and so took the same calendar but just made it begin earlier at October 31st. Fair enough. This is truly the beginning of the Celtic year according to most scholars. The justification for many of Graves’ choices however fell short with the Murray’s shift though. It did not make sense, at least as Graves had described it, to have the Hazel/Salmon month in July when the salmon clearly run in fall – as one example.

Since then many have believed full heartedly in a tree calendar. The Ogham was not even really a tree alphabet –as we have discussed many times before- how could it then be a tree calendar?

I don’t see anything wrong with using an Ogham tree calendar, as long as one is aware that it’s not based on historical fact. As long as that individual is not passing on that same information as “the truth” to other seekers then what is the harm in any new shaping of old ideas? Perhaps there is a niche crowd that needs a Fir goddess Druantia just like there seems to be a pocket of people who want to believe in Cernunna the female counterpart of Cernunnos[xiii]?

The problem is that those who seek are often looking for real connection to the past, to the spirits of old, and ultimately to themselves and nature. I know that I felt misled when I began to realize that the teachers of the faiths that resonated most deeply within my soul were just as confused as I was, maybe even more so. They had no real relationship with the spirits they professed to. Why else would they assume that it was okay to make things up about beings that others believed were real and divine even? Was it because there were times that they were unable to find answers, so they decided to fill in the blanks themselves?

The conifers, for example, do not make as many appearances in myth as some of the other trees do.

According to Fred Hageneder in the Meaning of Trees, the Pine had special meaning to the Scottish. He claims that this tree was considered a good place to be buried beneath by clan chiefs and warriors. This is further supported on the Trees for Life: Restoring the Caledonian Forest website. In the ‘Pine mythology’ section Paul Kendall says that the Pine was used as a marker for the burial places of warriors, heroes and chieftains[xiv].

In more folkloric times Pine cones were often used in spells. They were carried to increase fertility, for attracting wealth, money and were also seen as powerful herbs for purification rites and protection spells[xv].

In mythology Merlin climbed the Pine of Barenton in a Breton story, “To have a profound revelation, and he never returned to the mortal world[xvi].” This is revealing as tree climbing appears in various shamanistic traditions around the world.

In the Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries W.Y. Evans-Wentz shares a story about St. Martin and a sacred Pine found in Tours, central France[xvii] that is worth sharing. Apparently, when St. Martin threatened to fell the tree to prove to the locals that it wasn’t sacred, “The people agreed to let it be cut down on the condition that the saint should receive its great trunk on his head as it fell.” St. Martin decided not to have the tree cut down after all!

The conifers -being the trees of the ancient forest- do seem to reach out to us as the Cailleach, the hag or crone aspect of the goddess that speaks to us from the times immemorial. These trees, the Pine, Spruce or Fir, are strong and green even in the midst of winter and were in fact some of the very first trees to climb out of the oceans.

In Visions of the Cailleach Sorita d’Este and David Rankine describe the Cailleach as follows; “Some tales portray her as a benevolent and primal giantess from the dawn of time who shaped the land and controlled the forces of nature, others as the harsh spirit of winter.”

The references in the Celtic myths to the Pine or Fir are indeed sparse. This does not mean that the conifer trees were not sacred, however. As Hageneder reminds us, “The Pine is the tree that features most frequently in the badges of the Scottish clans”. From a culture where symbols are keys to the land of spirit and of the fey, that tells us something indeed.

Though mysterious and illusive, Ailm, the Scotch Fir or Pine, is the tree of primordial beginnings and deep understandings.

The Foliage:

The first trees were actually giant ferns. Then there were palm-like trees called cycad, which still exist in some places today.

Arriving at, “About the same time that the first warm-blooded mammals appeared, the conifers became for millions of years the dominant trees on the planet. Their seeds, contained in distinctive cones, enabled them to dominate the environment and overshadow the spore plants, and to spread into habitats where there had been no previous growth. Today’s descendents of those ancient conifer forests –pines, spruces, firs, larches, cedars, cypresses, and junipers – include some of our tallest trees and the oldest living plants.[xviii]”

Today the Scots Pine is the most widely distributed coniferous tree in the world and a “keystone species for the Caledonia forest[xix].”

The Silver Fir, however, is highly sensitive to air pollution. They are extremely endangered. The last wild Silver Fir tree died in Bavaria Germany only a few years ago[xx].

A great tragedy.

“Go to the rock of Osinn,” said the hag, “where the withered pine spreads its bare branches to the sky. There, as the moon rises, walk three times withershins round the riven trunk, and cast the broth on the ground before her.” – George Douglas (Scottish Fairy and Folk Tales. 1901)

[i] William James is quoted in The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries by W.Y. Evans-Wentz (1911).

[ii] The White Goddess.

[iii] http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-6UEJ3L

[iv] Oxford Dictionary of Celtic Mythology.

[v] Firefly Encyclopedia of Trees.

[vi] Eryn Rowan Laurie in Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom, says that Fir and Pine seem interchangeable within the Ogham tract text, most especially the Irish word gius which seems to apply to them both. Her statement seems to support my theory even further.

[viii] Celtic Tree Oracle.

[ix] Magical Alphabets.

[x] The Druid Magic Handbook.

[xi] The White Goddess.

[xii] Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom.

[xiii] Helmut Birkahn is a German Celtic historian quoted by Sabine Heinz in Celtic Symbols.

[xv] Tree Wisdom: the Definitive Guidebook. Jacqueline Memory Paterson. Etc.

[xvi] Fred Hageneder.

[xvii] This would not be considered a Celtic story due to the time frame and geographical area.

[xviii] The Secret Life of the Forest. Richard M. Ketchum.

[xx] Fred Hageneder.

Ruis (Elder)

“It is far easier to be sensible in cities than in many country places I could tell you of. When one walks on those grey roads at evening by the scented elder-bushes of the white cottages, watching the faint mountains gathering the clouds upon their heads, one all too readily discovers, beyond the thin cobweb veil of the senses, those creatures, the goblins, hurrying from the white square stone door to the north, or from the Heart Lake in the south.”  – William Butler Yeats (the Celtic Twilight. 1893, 1902)

The Roots:

The fifteenth few of the Ogham is Ruis, the Elder tree.

The Elder is yet another tree with strong associations to the fairy realm. The Elder is also said to be the tree of witches.

John Michael Greer called this letter the few of, “resolutions, fulfillments, and endings.” With the completion of any path, he continues, comes the advancement of new beginnings[i]. Liz and Colin Murray likewise call the Elder the tree of regeneration. It is, they state, the essence of, “life in death and death in life[ii].”

Robert Graves calls the Elder tree, “The Tree of Doom.” He also calls it the witch’s tree[iii].

Nigel Pennick seems to agree with him, but elaborates much further. He claims that Ruis is sacred to the dark aspects of the Mother Goddess, which is the hag. Pennick also says that it is the Ogham letter of “timelessness[iv].”

Eryn Rowan Laurie -our favourite Celtic reconstructionist- calls the Elder a tree of cursing and ill fortune by some, but a “protective force” of others. She links Ruis –but not necessarily the Elder tree- to intensity, passion, guilt, frenzy, jealousy and shame[v]. These associations are strongly supported by the Ogham Tract, from the Book of Ballymote, as being valid. Ruis is stated there as a the letter of “shame,” “blushing,” “redness of face.” and “the glow of anger.”

Elder is a tree of the fairies and is often associated with the Cauldron of Rebirth found in legend.

While the various meanings of Ruis seem to contradict one another on the surface there is a common thread throughout.

The Elder is a tree of power and should be dealt with in a reverent fashion.

The Trunk:

The Oxford Dictionary of Celtic Mythology claims that the Elder is, “A tree of the fairy world.” The dictionary reports that, “many individual [Elder] trees are thought to be haunted by fairies or demons[vi].”

Perhaps it is the Elder tree’s ability to regenerate that has garnered a place for it in the realms of witchery and fairy folklore? This is a trait that led Liz and Colin Murray[vii], as well as Jacqueline Memory Paterson[viii], to associate it with the Celtic Cauldron of Rebirth[ix].

In Ancient Legends, Mystic Charms, and Superstitions of Ireland Lady Wilde says that the Elder is sacred alongside the Yew and the Ash tree. The bark of the Elder tree, as we covered previously, was also one of the, “Seven fairy herbs of great power” along with Ivy and Hawthorn. Included in Lady Wilde’s book are various spells. An example is the use of Elder and Apple roots to expel evil spirits from the body in a type of medieval pagan exorcism. Perhaps, it is these old half-remembered spells that gave the Elder its witchy reputation instead?

It would seem that Lady Wilde isn’t the only one to associate Elder with witches. Robert Graves said that in Ireland witches would ride an Elder stick -instead of the more traditional Ash- as a steed[x]. Jacqueline Memory Paterson claimed in Tree Wisdom: the Definitive Guidebook, that witches used Elder in divination. Eryn Rowan Laurie also claimed that to, “Anoint the eyes with [Elder] sap would allow the person to see in the Sidhe realm,” or the land of the fairies[xi].

Perhaps much of the folklore surrounding the tree is a result of the belief that some of the Sidhe actually reside within the Elder itself?  In The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries Evans-Wentz says that in the Isle of Mann the Elder tree was inhabited by fairies. He goes on to share a tale in which a woman who merely ran into an Elder tree, experienced “immediate and terrible swelling”.

Fred Hageneder likewise included the British Isles in his list of European countries that held the Elder tree as, “The traditional guardian tree of the household and farmyard.” Hageneder reveals that, “It was said that the good house spirit of the home resided in the Elder bush, and as recently as the 19th century it was a widespread custom to bring her an offering of water, milk or beer, together with cake or bread, at least once a week and even daily[xii].”

The Elder wand, or staff, was also believed to be imbued with power.

The tradition of the Elder has even gained a foothold within the popular culture of present day. In J.K. Rowling’s incredibly popular Harry Potter series, it is an Elder wand that is one of the three Deathly Hallows found in the book of the same name. What is perhaps even further revealing, the wand is also known as “Deathstick” or “The Wand of Destiny”. Rowling has often been acknowledged as having used the mythology of the Celts within her stories as a source of inspiration[xiii].

Like many other goddess trees, such as the Blackthorn or Hawthorn, the Elder carries a white flower in the spring and a dark fruit in the fall. Maybe this physical feature is the reason for the trees mythological status?

Maybe it is the trees association with passion and revelry that makes it a most ideal associate to the fairy kingdom? For where else do mortal men, women, and children meet with the fairy than in the places of celebration? It is a well known fact that the fairy of legend like to dance and to feast, so perhaps it is in this state that the two kingdoms become the closest? For it seems that when humans and the Sidhe are dancing side by side -parallel to one another in sisterly realms- that the bridge is crossed and the worlds become one.

Whatever the cause may be for the tree’s grand status within the realms of legend, it is important to note that the Elder is another tree that can both protect us and harm us. It is for this reason that Ruis should be dealt with reverently.  It is for this reason that Ruis -the tree of regeneration, protection, ill luck and passion- has always been both feared and respected.

The Foliage:

Elder has been called the Country Medicine Chest by many[xiv]. The list of healing properties attributed to the Elder tree is extensive. Jacqueline Memroy Paterson calls Elder the “Queen of Herbs”.

Folklore remedy lists are exhaustive in nature.

There are several pages dedicated to Elder in almost any herb book. In the Healing Plants Bible the leaves are listed as diaphoretic and diuretic, aiding in the treatment of wounds and bruises. With St. John’s wort and soapwort, the extract inhibits both the influenza and Herpes simplex viruses. Elder also has uses for ulcers, colds, fevers, bronchitis, coughs, skin complexion issues, sunburn, and can help protect against infections. It is also anti-inflammatory, antiviral and antibacterial and helps reduce the damage of bad cholesterol.  The same book also says that, “as an immuno-stimulant, the juice is beneficial to AIDS patiants”. It has recently been shown to have promise as an additive in weight reduction supplements. The oil is also believed to help alleviate the pain of arthritis.

According to Lesley Bremness in Herbs, Elder bark is given for epilepsy and the roots treat lymphatic and kidney ailments. “In Chinese medicine the leaves, stems, and roots are used to treat fractures and muscle spasms.”

A leaf tea can also be used as a more natural insecticide in gardening.

It would seem that Ruis, the Elder tree, truly is the Country Medicine Chest.

Caution:  It should be noted here that the Elderberry fruit growing naturally in the Western parts of North America is toxic. The toxins can be removed through cooking according to the British Columbian Nature Guide. Parts of various other types of Elder are also poisonous and the use of the plant should be with the guidance of an experienced mentor only or by using previously prepared remedies by an accredited herbalist.

 “How full of a mystic antiquity are the names of the lotus, the olive, and the ash! Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Scandinavia spring to our minds as the words are heard. The syllables seem haunted to this day by the dryads that the Greek mind saw in every tree. They carry us back to the age of the nymphs who made their home in pools and seas. There was a time when nature seemed to man but as the garment of some large sweet presence that lived and breathed within it. Alas, that age is gone. Irish elder and quicken still point to the neighbourhood of the Neolithic doorsill, but no longer are they held to guard the village with their mysterious benedictions.” –Sister Nivedita (Studies From an Eastern Home. 1913)


[i] The Druid Magic Handbook.

[ii] The Celtic Tree Oracle.

[iii] The White Goddess.

[iv] Magical Alphabets.

[v] Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom.

[vi] James MacKillop.

[vii] The Celtic Tree Oracle.

[viii] Tree Wisdom: The Definitive Guidebook.

[ix] In Celtic legend the Cauldron of Rebirth, or Pair Dadeni, is a magical item found in the second branch of the Mabinogion and is attached to the legend of Bran, “the Blessed”. The item can revive the dead back to life if they are placed within it. The cauldron is eventually destroyed during a great battle –the same battle that has Bran ask that his head be cut off- when Bran’s half brother pretends to be dead and is placed inside of it.

[x] The White Goddess.

[xi] Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom.

[xii] The Meaning of Trees.

[xiv]Fred Hegeneder, Helen Farmer-Knowles, etc.

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