sol-hailstorm
Sun & Hailstorm
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Candle making.
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Jesmonite trays and candle holders.
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COCA DE SANT JOAN
A MIDSUMMER RECIPE FROM CATALONIA
Midsummer to Saint John’s Eve is a very magical period in the Northern Hemisphere, we celebrate the longest day and the shortest night of the year, the heat of the sun and the ripening of the summer fruits. On these days of warmth and light the veil between the worlds fades and magic impregnates the air. The air we all breathe.
On these dates spirit communion and communication are easier to achieve and rituals by sacred places are common. We purify ourselves jumping over fire, burn our wishes written in paper in the bonfires, we wash ourselves beautiful, healthy or young with morning dew and some even collect ashes from the burnt fir trees for protection spells. These are just a few examples of Midsummer traditions I grew up with and that we share with other nations across the Northern Hemisphere.
Midsummer/Nit the Sant Joan/Nit de les bruixes (St John’s Eve or Witches’ Night) is huge in Catalonia and these dates are very often a key element in Catalan mythology. It’s the time when fairy queens kidnap their lovers, when girls become fairies and when witches cast powerful spells to name a few. I could probably write a book or two on the Catalan Midsummer but I thought I would share something you can make, personalise and enjoy at home. We love food and we love this brioxish Midsummer cake which is traditional, delicious and travels pretty well wherever you want to eat/offer it.
Let the baking commence!
Ingredients for the dough:
⦁ 300g white bread flour
⦁ 2 eggs
⦁ 45g sugar
⦁ 30g butter
⦁ 7g salt
⦁ 60g water
⦁ 2 tsps vanilla extract
⦁ ½ tsps cinnamon
⦁ 1 tsps lemon zest
Ingredients for the custard:
⦁ 50g yeast ⦁ 500ml milk
⦁ 40g corn starch
⦁ 100g sugar
⦁ ½ tsps lemon zest or the skin of 1 lemon
⦁ 1 cinnamon stick
⦁ 1 vanilla pod or 2 tsps vanilla extract
⦁ 3 egg yolks
Toppings:
⦁ Sugar
⦁ pine nuts or slices almonds or hazelnuts
⦁ fruit
⦁ 1 beaten egg (to brush)
Part 1- the dough
⦁ We’ll mix the flour, the eggs, sugar, salt, lemon zest, vanilla, cinnamon, yeast, water and 10g butter all together. Slowly, we’ll add the rest of the butter, 10g at a time, making sure our dough is smooth and everything is well incorporated.
⦁ We’ll work the dough well. When the dough is not sticky any more, we’ll take a piece and stretch it. If the dough is stretchy and it doesn’t break, it’s ready. We’ll let it rest 30 minutes.
⦁ We’ll stretch the dough into our desired shape, usually oval or round, an inch thick more or less. We’ll brush it with the beaten egg and let rest until it doubles its size. The longer the rest, the better, so we’ll give it at least 3 hours.
Part 2- the cream/custard
⦁ We’ll take 5-6 spoons of our 500ml of milk and use them to dissolve the corn starch in a cup.
⦁ We’ll heat the rest of the milk in a saucepan with the lemon peel, the vanilla and cinnamon stick.
⦁ We’ll beat the egg yolks with the sugar in a bowl.
⦁ When the milk starts boiling, we’ll turn the fire down and remove the lemon peel and cinnamon stick. Then add the milk with corn starch and the egg yolks with sugar and mix well. We’ll stir it well in the saucepan at a low heat until thick and finally, we’ll let it cool down covered in cling film.
Part 3- Assembling and baking
⦁ We’ll transfer the cream into a pipping bag.
⦁ We’ll brush the dough with egg again. Sun motifs are common and fitting but some people will just draw lines with the cream to ensure there’s a bit of cream through the whole cake.
⦁ Another option is dividing the dough in two and using the cream as a filling rather than a topping and decorate with fruit or nuts on top.
⦁ We’ll finish dusting the cake with sugar and baking it at 220 Celsius for around 15 minutes or until golden.
Your cake will be your interpretation of Midsummer, of the season and of the spirit of the place where you live. For this reason, I haven’t being specific with the fruit used for the toppings, while someone may choose to use fruit or not, I would always advice using local produce. If you have the chance to grow or pick your fruit, even better.
I also like to make another traditional Midsummer cake made with puff pastry and filled with the custard (leftover from the recipe above) and berries. Topped with a bit of meringue and pine nuts.
Happy Midsummer everyone!
*This recipe was first published in Witch magazine, Midsummer special. Available at Issuu.
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One of the most powerful moments I experienced as an ancient history student was when I was teaching cuneiform to visitors at a fair. A father and his two little children came up to the table where I was working. I recognised them from an interfaith ceremony I’d attended several months before: the father had said a prayer for his homeland, Syria, and for his hometown, Aleppo.
All three of them were soft-spoken, kind and curious. I taught the little girl how to press wedges into the clay, and I taught the little boy that his name meant “sun” and that there was an ancient Mesopotamian God with the same name. I told them they were about the same age as scribes were when they started their training. As they worked, their father said to them gently: “See, this is how your ancestors used to write.”
And I thought of how the Ancient City of Aleppo is almost entirely destroyed now, and how the Citadel was shelled and used as a military base, and how Palmyran temples were blown up and such a wealth of culture and history has been lost forever. And there I was with these children, two small pieces of the future of a broken country, and I was teaching them cuneiform. They were smiling and chatting to each other about Mesopotamia and “can you imagine, our great-great-great-grandparents used to write like this four thousand years ago!” For them and their father, it was more than a fun weekend activity. It was a way of connecting, despite everything and thousands of kilometres away from home, with their own history.
This moment showed me, in a concrete way, why ancient studies matter. They may not seem important now, not to many people at least. But history represents so much of our cultural identity: it teaches us where we come from, explains who we are, and guides us as we go forward. Lose it, and we lose a part of ourselves. As historians, our role is to preserve this knowledge as best we can and pass it on to future generations who will need it. I helped pass it on to two little Syrian children that day. They learnt that their country isn’t just blood and bombs, it’s also scribes and powerful kings and Sun-Gods and stories about immortality and tablets that make your hands sticky. And that matters.
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Halloween (or Castanyada, or Tots Sants in Catalan) has its origins in the pagan religions practised in Europe for millenia before the arrival of Christianism. These were dates to honour the ancestors and prepare for winter. People would deep clean their houses and decorate them with candles, lamps and carved parsnips or pumpkins. Children would knock at their neighbours houses and get sweet treats in exchange for a song or solving a riddle. People would cast lots, read the future and attempt to contact their dead. Cemeteries were clean and redecorated and preparations were made to ensure people had enough food to survive the winter.
Across Europe it was common to leave a plate of food at the table for the ancestors to dine with the family. Over time people started bringing these food offerings to the cemeteries and this is how Catalans came to bring (and eat) panellets at the tombs of their deceased. These little marzipan cakes would have been previously blessed by a priest, tradition lost now that Catalan society is much more secular. Today, while people may bring flowers to the cemeteries, they will most likely skip the church’s service and eat the panellets at home. In fact, panellets are often made at home. They’re pretty simple little cakes easy and fun to make at home with children.
The ingredients we’ll need are:
1 medium size sweet potato
250g of ground almonds
200g of caster sugar
2 eggs
lemon zest
100g of pine nuts/chopped almonds
7-8 spoons of dissecated coconut aprox.
50-60g of cocoa powder aprox.
icing sugar
as many bowls as flavours we want
The measure given above will make around 20 panellets of 3-4 different flavours.
Firstly, we will prepare the marzipan by baking the sweet potato until soft. We’ll let it cool down a bit, peel it and mash it with a fork. Then we’ll add the sugar and the lemon zest and mix all ingredients with our fork. When the sugar is incorporated, slowly, slowly, we add the ground almonds and 1 egg. We’ll work the mixture with our hands and let it rest covered in cling film inside the fridge overnight (or at least 4 hours).
Next day we will divide the marzipan in 3 parts to make panellets of different flavours and we’ll separate the yolk from the whites of the 2nd egg into 2 different bowls/containers and beat them.
For the pine nuts/almonds panellets we will portion our marzipan and shape little balls an inch or so wide. We’ll wash them in the egg white and coat them in the nuts. Before baking, we’ll brush them with the egg yolk.
For the coconut panellets we’ll mix the marzipan with the coconut, shape it into balls or cones, wash them in the egg white and coat them with more coconut.
For the chocolate panellets we’ll mix the marzipan with the cocoa powder, shape it into balls and coat in icing sugar for a dusty finish.
Lastly, we will bake the panellets at 200 Celsius for 10 minutes. Optionally, we can decorate them too.
Enjoy!
This panellet is slightly bigger than the others, I froze some nutella in an ice tray and coated with the marzipan. It turned very well and it looks perfect with a little marshamallow on top.
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Dear you,
This is a pick a card mini reading with 4 piles. These readings are general and may not resonate with everyone but if you come across this reading and feel it was fate, then I hope you find it helpful or interesting :)
Decks used are Amor et Psyche oracle cards by Georges Barbier and Rachel Paul, and Sexual Magic Tarot by Laura Tuan and Mauro de Luca.
Best,
L
1- PENDULUM
People drawn to this pile may already be involved with someone, if not, there’s potential to meet someone soon. This is a very sensual and sexually intense connection which will deepen into something more emotional pretty quickly. One or both of you may have experienced some power struggles in past relationships, or you may have approached love, the pursuing and seduction of others as a sport. These past patterns may still be felt in this new or current connection, and they may even add some spice between you, but you’re ready to take things further with this person and connect to a deeper level. This will develop into a long lasting romantic relationship that will bring a lot of joy and passion to both of you.
2- SHELL
People drawn to this pile may feel a bit unsatisfied with their current situation. We take a look around and all we see is happy couples, our friends going on dates and having fun, while we seem to be missing out. Maybe romance seems dead to us, maybe the routine killed it, maybe things didn’t work out, but we still have so much to offer, and so much to experience. At this time we need to process these less nice feelings and thoughts that run through our minds and realise that nothing last forever, everything is transforming constantly, so we do too. By letting go of these less pleasant thoughts and feelings, we open ourselves up to new opportunities, may these be with a new lover or our spouse of 20 years. There’s potential to reignite our fire, we just need to let ourselves go and have some fun.
3- HAG STONE
People drawn to this pile are urged to speak (and overthink) less and do more. There’s the potential to reconnect with someone or ourselves through touch, through the physical exploration of the bodies. It’s time to believe in ourselves and let our instinct guide the process. We can manifest the love/sex life we yearn for and how we’ll do this will become clearer as we learn more about our own pleasure and let go of the need for control. People drawn to this pile are likely to be very spiritual and their challenge here is to experiment and integrate the magical and spiritual power of raw sexuality in themselves.
4- TEA LIGHT
People drawn to this pile may be experiencing or will experience soon a wild, free, happy and passionate love like they may have never experienced before. This is a love which is passionate and intense, but also tender and sweet. With this love we may feel like children again, we may feel like we fell in love for the first time. This is a refreshing and uninhibited connection which brings a lot of joy and excitement to both parts, even if we may not feel 100% sure in the beginning, even if we don’t see this connection developing into a more stable long term relationship, it will for sure be a positive and fun adventure at the very least.
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The deck used for this readings is The Illustrated Herbiary by Maia Toll. I just bought this lovely deck recently and I’m loving it. Being a herbalism enthusiast I just wish the deck included more herbs!
The cards are quite big, especially if you have tiny hands like me, and the artwork is beautiful. The accompanying book includes a ritual and a reflection on each card.
Please note all the quotes below are taken from the book and are Maia Toll’s words.
SEAGULL’S FEATHER
SELF-HEAL
“Like a pebble dropped in a pond, Self-heal ripples outward, allowing healing to begin”
This card’s message goes beyond healing and speaks of finding our truth, our centre, and of expansion. Only by finding our centre, understanding what constitutes the core of our problems, our fears, our limitations, and our passions and desires, we start to unfold ourselves, opening our wings, rippling outward, becoming a healthier and happier version of ourselves.
By getting to know ourselves deeply, understanding our energy, owning our power, we can create change and start manifesting the life we want to live.
ATHAME
CHICKWEED + PASSIONFLOWER (they fell together)
“Chickweed remind you: wherever you are is a fine place to begin”
These cards talk about feeling overwhelmed by some situation, maybe we want to advance in something very quickly or we have very grand dreams and aspirations. Maybe the pressure to be “successful” is becoming too much to handle. Chickweed and Passionflower remind us that slowly, a step at a time makes it. It doesn’t matter how small the step. They also remind us to take our time to relax and (maybe?) do nothing. We can grow better after our inner batteries are replenished and we feel renewed.
While the Passionflower invites us to take stock of ours lives and strive for balance, the Chickweed reminds us to appreciate the small things in life. Sometimes the smallest things can make a big difference.
CROW’S FEATHER
MULLEIN
“She’ll sing the relationship of bone to water, or air to skin”
This card tells us that we need to see the big picture of a situation. We need to understand how the parts relate and connect to each other and how we fit in this web of connections. If we feel in the dark with some matter, we feel lost, we can’t see what path to take, we should listen to Mullein and observe the patterns of life emerging in front of our eyes. Maybe we tried the same strategy over and over again, just to fail each time and feel frustrated, depressed and angry at ourselves. Mullein reminds us to take our time and distance to observe the situation, the processes, to allow the patterns to become clear.
As the Self-heal said above, if we centre ourselves, if we get to the core of things, if we integrate that knowledge, we know what buttons to press to create the change we want.
HAG STONE
STARFLOWER
“Grace isn’t something you keep for yourself”
The Starflower’s message is about sharing our gifts with the world, understanding we all can find and share grace by doing what makes us happy. She reminds us to be as kind and generous to ourselves as we’re to others. Life is about balance, giving and taking, we’re a gift to the world and the world is a gift to us. By taking care and empowering ourselves, we can take care and empower others. It doesn’t matter how small our contribution to the world seems to us, what may seem small to us, may be huge for someone else.
The Starflower also reminds us that our energy supplies are limited and we all need some time to recharge. Booking some time off, a spa day or a retreat time to time may work wonders and enable us to keep sharing with the world.
SHELL
LADY’S MANTLE
“Do you doubt your ability to visit the dark forest and come out stronger and more whole?”
Lady’s Mantle encourages us to face our fears and traumas, our shadows, our past. Her message is one of encouragement, there’s nothing we cannot handle, our spirit is strong. Whatever we may have to deal with, we have the bravery and fortitude to overcome it. But what if we’re too afraid or don’t know where to go, where to start? Lady’s Mantle says a step a time makes it, all healing starts with a baby step. She warns us avoidance will just keep us in the darkness, in pain, to emerge to the light we have to face our shadow. It will be worth it.
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Pick a card mini reading, 3 cards on each pile.
The Greenwood Tarot.
I was planning to upload something yesterday for Summer Solstice but unfortunately I had a bad migraine and I couldn’t get much done at all. I hope you find something helpful in these mini readings. They’re very general and may not resonate with everyone as this is a pick a card reading with only 5 options, but you may find it entertaining.
I hope you all had a great Midsummer!
Dry Rose
Finding healing in connecting with our truth. This is a time for introspection, self-reflection and rest. People drawn to this pile may be feeling drained, tired, spent and/or may be dealing with health issues and deep feelings of loss. Whatever our personal situation, we need to know that this shall pass too. A step at a time makes it, and brings us closer to our full recovery. Despite how isolated we may feel at times, we are surrounded by people who want to support us, and we would do well to reach others and avoid too much time alone. Health and happiness are the daughters of balance. Create greater balance in your life, reconnect with your passions, open your heart. A period of renewed joy lies ahead.
Shell
We’re entering a very rewarding period when we will enjoy the results of our hard work and honest self-analysis. It hasn’t been easy to get here. We made mistakes, and we learnt from them. We fell, and we got up. We felt weak, but we’re strong now. We’re more mature and resilient than we were yesterday, and we’re ready to set the foundation of our lives. In our flesh and bones we have a deep understanding of where we come from and where we want to go. We have the drive and energy to move forward confidently. These are exciting times! The only caution though, we should avoid committing to more than we can handle, make sure we get a well deserved rest/holiday, and make time to celebrate and share our luck with others.
Stone
It’s time to re-balance and realign ourselves with our true nature and passions. We may feel drained and victimized. It’s very likely we could be facing some issues at work, within some social group or even at home. We have allowed others to exploit and abuse our kindness and generosity, and it’s time to take our power back. Reclaim your power and identity back, a new whole way of understanding the world. This could mean a completely different way to relate to work, wealth and money. It is not richer who has the most money or possessions, but who needs less of those. If you have been thinking about quitting your job and follow your dream, this could be your chance. Time to rethink what success really means to us.
Dry Maple Leaf
A very transformative period full of opportunities lies ahead. Those drawn to this pile are entering a very creative period, full of possibilities. This is a turning point in our lives, when we may have to give up something to make space for something else to come. It may be hard giving up on things and people we’re attached to but we can place our full trust in the universe, the changes ahead are for the best. During this period we may notice some odd synchronicities, we may feel our intuition is heightened and feel he anticipation of what is to come. We may be receiving good news very soon, meanwhile, let’s keep an open mind and an open and generous heart.
Wooden cat figure
This is a time to face our demons, connect with our inner warrior and being kind to ourselves. These cards show some emotional turmoil, fear, confusion sometimes, anxiety and even a bit of a tendency to over-react too. We may have been dealing with some sort of trauma in the past but good news are we’re getting to the point where we’re gaining greater mental clarity, discipline and inner peace. This is a period when we will discover how strong we are, how smart we are, and when we’ll embody the hero we have been all the way long but we may have forgotten. Fear and anxiety dissipate and we finally raise above our circumstances. Our situation, our experiences, don’t define us, we’re more than that. An experience lasts some time, our souls are eternal.
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COCA DE SANT JOAN
A MIDSUMMER RECIPE FROM CATALONIA
Midsummer to Saint John’s Eve is a very magical period in the Northern Hemisphere, we celebrate the longest day and the shortest night of the year, the heat of the sun and the ripening of the summer fruits. On these days of warmth and light the veil between the worlds fades and magic impregnates the air. The air we all breathe.
On these dates spirit communion and communication are easier to achieve and rituals by sacred places are common. We purify ourselves jumping over fire, burn our wishes written in paper in the bonfires, we wash ourselves beautiful, healthy or young with morning dew and some even collect ashes from the burnt fir trees for protection spells. These are just a few examples of Midsummer traditions I grew up with and that we share with other nations across the Northern Hemisphere.
Midsummer/Nit the Sant Joan/Nit de les bruixes (St John’s Eve or Witches’ Night) is huge in Catalonia and these dates are very often a key element in Catalan mythology. It’s the time when fairy queens kidnap their lovers, when girls become fairies and when witches cast powerful spells to name a few. I could probably write a book or two on the Catalan Midsummer but I thought I would share something you can make, personalise and enjoy at home. We love food and we love this brioxish Midsummer cake which is traditional, delicious and travels pretty well wherever you want to eat/offer it.
Let the baking commence!
Ingredients for the dough:
⦁ 300g white bread flour
⦁ 2 eggs
⦁ 45g sugar
⦁ 30g butter
⦁ 7g salt
⦁ 60g water
⦁ 2 tsps vanilla extract
⦁ ½ tsps cinnamon
⦁ 1 tsps lemon zest
Ingredients for the custard:
⦁ 50g yeast ⦁ 500ml milk
⦁ 40g corn starch
⦁ 100g sugar
⦁ ½ tsps lemon zest or the skin of 1 lemon
⦁ 1 cinnamon stick
⦁ 1 vanilla pod or 2 tsps vanilla extract
⦁ 3 egg yolks
Toppings:
⦁ Sugar
⦁ pine nuts or slices almonds or hazelnuts
⦁ fruit
⦁ 1 beaten egg (to brush)
Part 1- the dough
⦁ We’ll mix the flour, the eggs, sugar, salt, lemon zest, vanilla, cinnamon, yeast, water and 10g butter all together. Slowly, we’ll add the rest of the butter, 10g at a time, making sure our dough is smooth and everything is well incorporated.
⦁ We’ll work the dough well. When the dough is not sticky any more, we’ll take a piece and stretch it. If the dough is stretchy and it doesn’t break, it’s ready. We’ll let it rest 30 minutes.
⦁ We’ll stretch the dough into our desired shape, usually oval or round, an inch thick more or less. We’ll brush it with the beaten egg and let rest until it doubles its size. The longer the rest, the better, so we’ll give it at least 3 hours.
Part 2- the cream/custard
⦁ We’ll take 5-6 spoons of our 500ml of milk and use them to dissolve the corn starch in a cup.
⦁ We’ll heat the rest of the milk in a saucepan with the lemon peel, the vanilla and cinnamon stick.
⦁ We’ll beat the egg yolks with the sugar in a bowl.
⦁ When the milk starts boiling, we’ll turn the fire down and remove the lemon peel and cinnamon stick. Then add the milk with corn starch and the egg yolks with sugar and mix well. We’ll stir it well in the saucepan at a low heat until thick and finally, we’ll let it cool down covered in cling film.
Part 3- Assembling and baking
⦁ We’ll transfer the cream into a pipping bag.
⦁ We’ll brush the dough with egg again. Sun motifs are common and fitting but some people will just draw lines with the cream to ensure there’s a bit of cream through the whole cake.
⦁ Another option is dividing the dough in two and using the cream as a filling rather than a topping and decorate with fruit or nuts on top.
⦁ We’ll finish dusting the cake with sugar and baking it at 220 Celsius for around 15 minutes or until golden.
Your cake will be your interpretation of Midsummer, of the season and of the spirit of the place where you live. For this reason, I haven’t being specific with the fruit used for the toppings, while someone may choose to use fruit or not, I would always advice using local produce. If you have the chance to grow or pick your fruit, even better.
I also like to make another traditional Midsummer cake made with puff pastry and filled with the custard (leftover from the recipe above) and berries. Topped with a bit of meringue and pine nuts.
Happy Midsummer everyone!
*This recipe was first published in Witch magazine, Midsummer special. Available at Issuu.
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Decks: Heart of Faerie Oracle by Brian & Wendy Froud + Jolanda Tarot.
1- Shell
New season, new beginnings for those that picked the shell. After a time of turmoil, confusion and/or uncertainty, we will finally start receiving some good news and entering a more positive period with new projects, people and opportunities. Whatever uncomfortable situation we find ourselves in right now, it won't last much longer and we will soon rise above our problems and worries. This new season we may be meeting a new lover, finding a new job or enrolling in a course that may change our lives. Any new project or relationship we enter during this season will help to grow enormously, providing us with outlets to explore our potential, creativity and passions. It will be a time to rediscover ourselves in some of our facets.
2- Mistletoe
Those that picked the mistletoe are reminded to enjoy the small things in life and to have fun. It is very possible that we are going through a heartbreak, disappointment, stress, and/or feelings of fear, regret and loneliness or emotional isolation, which are very understandable given the pandemic and how it has affected our lives. It is OK not to feel OK, we all cope the best we can and we shouldn't torture ourselves further by thinking we're not doing or we're not good enough. One day we'll look back and realise how far we have come, it's fine if we cannot see it right now. While we may be dragging some of these not so nice feelings into the new season, soon we should find greater freedom and opportunities to reconnect with people, to count our blessings, and to have loads of fun!
3- Stone
The gift of wisdom is in store for us this new season. We may feel more philosophical than usual but that's because we find ourselves in a crossroads moment. It's time to make decisions and moving forward, letting go of what no longer serves us and finding out what path we really want to take. This season will be a time to take stock, put our thoughts in order, understand that we have come a long way and acknowledge the lessons learnt and what's been left behind. As we shed the old skin and learn to see things from a different perspective, we are able to see and make room for new ideas, new projects, new people. This is a time of personal growth when we have the chance to become more mindful and wise.
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Official Pagan Tartan
We'd like to welcome you to the newly woven Official Pagan Tartan!
Created in Scotland in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Pagan Federation!
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CARLINE THISTLE
A Basque legend says in old times men and women lived in darkness, hiding in caves, not daring to venture outside more than strictly necessary. Witches and evil spirits chased and terrorised them constantly, and in despair they prayed to Amalur, Mother Earth, for protection. Amalur heed their prayers and gave birth to Ilargi, the Moon, and her silvery light filled the world and scared the witches and the evil spirits away. Amalur's human children lived in peace for some time until the witches and evil spirits grew used to Ilargi's light and started chasing them again. They prayed to Amalur once more and she gave birth to Eguzki, the Sun, who shone brighter than her sister and scared the witches and evil spirits into hiding. Men and women were finally able to leave the caves, they built their first houses and basked in Eguzki's light. But Eguzki and Ilargi took turns watching over people and when Eguzki rested and the night fell, the witches and evil spirit sneaked inside the houses and tormented them. They prayed once more to Amalur, who filled with compassion for her children, created a flower with the shape and the brightness of the Sun. People kept it at home and its thorns and solar power kept the witches and evil spirit away forever more.
This mystical flower is a carline thistle (carlina acaulis). Basque people call it eguzkilore (sun flower), and across the Pyrenees is also known as cardo de bruixas (witches' thistle) and card caderner (goldfinch's thistle) among other names. Pyrenean people have dried and pinned carlines on their doors to protect themselves and their houses from evil spirits and curses for centuries, if not millennia. The best time to pick a carline is said to be St John's Eve or Midsummer's Night.
The name “carline” comes from Charlemagne who is credited with discovering the flower, guided by an angel, and using it to treat the bubonic plague.
Carline thistle is native of alpine regions and grows at high altitudes between 1,100 m and 2,450 m.
A member of the Asteraceae family, carlines are completely covered in thorns, even their fruits, and they have a single big flower of silvery white or yellowish petals. They attract bees and butterflies during their flowering season and provide nutritious seeds for birds , such as goldfinches, during autumn and winter. Carlines protect their polen by closing their petals during humid days and they continue to open and close depending on the weather even after they have been cut and dried. They also open during the day and close at night exposing all their thorns which are said to keep witches entertained all night long counting them, something they cannot resist and that prevents them from breaking into the houses during the dark hours.
Carline thistles are highly appreciated in traditional medicine for their antibacterial, diuretic, antimicrobial, antispasmodic, carminative, diaphoretic, emetic, digestive, and purgative properties. They are used to treat skin conditions, toothache, and common cold and flu. Carline thistles are edible and can be cooked while still young and tender. To eat them, we just need to remove the leaves one by one, and eat the tender fleshy bits and heart, and discard the rougher parts of the leaves.
I don't own the pictures. Found on google.
#Carline thistles#ethnobotany#alpine plants#solar symbol#witchcraft#protection#magic#pyrenees#folk medicine#the old apothecary#midsummer
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Recommended documentary, a bit old but very interesting. I often wish people were more open minded, more receptive to that which cannot be easily or scientifically explained.
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