A dart made of mistletoe is what is said to have killed the Nordic god, Balder. The blind god Hodr was tricked into shooting it, by Loki.
Holly is a shrub and its berries are red. The Holly King is associated with winter as a symbolic representation of the end of the growing season (death of the Green Man) and the beginning of the winter season.
Mistletoe is not the same as holly. Mistletoe should not be eaten by people as it causes serious gastrointestinal upset. However, birds are able to eat the fruits of the mistletoe. According to wikipedia:
Mistletoe first sprouts from bird feces[citation needed] on the trunk of the tree and in its early stages of life it takes nutrients from this source.[citation needed] Species more or less completely parasitic include the leafless quintral, Tristerix aphyllus, which lives deep inside the sugar-transporting tissue of a spiny cactus, appearing only to show its tubular red flowers,[6] and the genus Arceuthobium (dwarf mistletoe; Santalaceae) which has reduced photosynthesis; as an adult, it manufactures only a small proportion of the sugars it needs from its own photosythesis but as a seedling it actively photosynthesizes until a connection to the host is established.
Both plants have a long history of usage by Celtic, Nordic, and Mediterranean people as well as used as symbolic representations for winter.
by Rita Jean Moran (www.thelibrarykids.com)
Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mistletoe
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holly_King_(archetype)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holly
No comments:
Post a Comment