#Pollen germination

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Depth color-coded projection showing a germinating pollen grain of a morning glory attached to the stigma.

By Igor Siwanowicz (USA).

Light Microscopy Awards

[botanyshitposts]

Nothing like inhaling massive amounts of plant semen all summer

*grabs you by the shoulders* listen don’t get it twisted you CANNOT get it twisted. those are plant penises, NOT the sperm. once the pollen lands on the female structure in question, THEN it germinates and makes the sperm. do you know how many college biology students are threatened by this misinformation each year?? how many fall victim to the classic blunder??

[corbinite]

Thinking about the alternation of generations in plants and algae

[tenth-sentence]

SSI incompatibility reactions typically block pollen growth prior to hydration and germination.

"Plant Physiology and Development" int'l 6e - Taiz, L., Zeiger, E., Møller, I.M., Murphy, A.

[greenwitchcrafts]

Mugwort

Artemisia Vulgaris

Known as: Artemis herb, artemisia, artemisia herb, cingulum sancti johannis, felon herb, muggons, naughty man, old man, old uncle Henry, sailor's tobacco & St.John plant

Related plants: A member of the daisy family Asteraceae that consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within it such as chamomile, coneflowers, dahlia, daisy, dandelion, goldenrod, lettuce, marigold & sunflower

Parts used: Leaves & flowers

Habitat & cultivation: Common mugwort is native to Europe and Eastern Asia. Mugwort was brought into North America as early as the 1600’s for medicinal purposes. It spread throughout the Northeastern U.S. as a contaminant on ships and nurseries.

Plant type: Perennial

Region: 3-8

Harvest: The flowering tops of mugwort should be collected once they bloom or right before the blooms open. The leaves of mugwort plants should be collected before the plant flowers. Older leaves & flowers are significantly more bitter

Planting tips: Mugwort seeds can benefit from a special 1 to 2 week treatment called cold moist stratification prior to planting them & need cold weather to break down germination inhibitors. The seeds require light to germinate, so be careful not to cover them when planting. Mugwort does not like to be overwatered & is very drought tolerant. It is also an invasive weed & best kept in a container.

Medicinal information: Historically mugwort has been used in traditional systems of medicine in different parts of the world. Today, mugwort taken orally is promoted for digestive problems, irregular menstruation, and high blood pressure. It is also promoted as a sedative, laxative, anti-inflammatory & liver tonic. Mugwort lotion applied topically can aid in itching caused by hypertrophic scars & When being smoked, it exhibits mild intoxicating properties & strong relaxing properties.

Cautions: Mugwort should not be taken by pregnant people because it may start menstruation and cause the uterus to contract. Little is known about whether it’s safe to use mugwort while chestfeeding. Mugwort might cause an allergic reaction in people with pollen sensitivities

Magickal Properties

Gender: Feminine

Planet: Venus & Neptune

Element: Earth

Deities: Aida Wedo, Artemis, Diana, Isis, Lakshimi & St.John

Magickal uses:

•Place under your pillow to bringing peaceful sleep, prophetic dreams & aid in astral travel

• Add to incense for cleansing and clearing energy

• Place around scrying tools to increase their energy

• Add to herbal smoke blends to stimulate lucid dreaming, astral travel & visualization

• Make an infusion of mugwort to wash magic mirrors and crystal balls to aid in physic workings

• Burn with Sandalwood or wormwood for scrying rituals

• Carry in a satchets for protection and increasing lust, fertility & preventing back pain

• Throw mugwort in a fire during Midsummer for protection for the following year

• Keep under your doorstep to keep annoying visitors away

• Use in tea before bed to encourage lucid dreaming

• Hang mugwort over or on a door to keep unwelcome energies from passing through

• During a storm or when your life feels threatened by impending dangers, toss into your hearth fire or cauldron to keep you safe

•Wash your hands with a mugwort infusion to increase energy flow before tarot or pendulum readings

Sources:

Farmersalmanac.com

The Herbal Alchemist Handbook by Karen Harrison

The Book of Flower Spells by Cheralyn Darcey

Llewellyn's Complete Book of Correspondences by Sandra Kines

A Witch's Book of Correspondences by Viktorija Briggs

The Encyclopedia of Natural Magic by John Michael Greer

Wild Witchcraft by Rebecca Beyer

Plant Witchery by Juliet Diaz

A Compendium of Herbal Magick by Paul Beyerl

Wikipedia

[kuwdora]

ao3 wrapped: 3, 12, 25!

eeeee these are good numbers, thank you for the ask nic!

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)?

Some Kind of Disaster my TWN Season 3 missing scene fic with Yen and Jaskier is the one I’m most proud of this year. (Though to be fair I only managed to finish/post 4 fics this year so it’s a small pool… But still!) This fic hits all of the emotional beats that had been swirling in my head for a few years now, so I was over the moon when I got to the end of the fic and it was done and it was everything I wanted. Such a great feeling to see it into the world.

12. How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year?

The number of WIPs are always too many. Prioritizing my WIPs is hard at the best of times, heh. I had maybe 6-7 active WIPs in the past year that I didn’t finish. On top of a few more new WIPs and ideas that wanted to be WIPs. Hard to stay focused.

As I said in previous ask, I have a yennskier nonsexual kink fic to work on. Since I’m still very much in witcher mode regardless of time between seasons.

But I still have my 20k+ Ciri fic that I really want and need to revisit. I have 30k+ more Jaskier fic that I yearn to work on. It's really matter of me poking @littlestsnicket and maybe enlisting some other folks to wave pompoms in my periphery to remind me that I want to go chasing that’ finishing-a-longfic/series feeling.’ I forever need to practice sharing more WIPs on main.

I may try to finish and post a little radskier ficlet I wrote in…idk I want to say March? And then there’s a Vilgefortz ficlet that I started last year, too that I think could be within finishing distance.

25. Did you receive any gifts this year?

I have a BOUNTY of gifts from this year! Like, so many. So blessed, everyone is having so much fun and I'm loving it all. Strap in, I got a squeeful recs list for you all.

Chantress did a podfic of my TWN Triss/Yenna ficlet Germinate which was a complete and wonderful surprise and is so, so lovely.

@astaldis did a remix of one of my Yennefer/Jaskier drabbles and it’s so great! It’s called Completion, very sexy feelings and hottness.

@she-who-drank-vodka-with-cats picked up a prompt I shared in the Smubbles server for some Meve/Reynard Thronebreaker awesomeness. It’s called the benefits of a prince consort. My prompt was: meve/reynard foot massage and comfort. ❤️❤️❤️

@sassaffrassa wrote me a smutty Geralt/Jaskier edging drabble called Stamina and it's of course 🔥🔥🔥🔥 Sass also wrote me Scavenger’s Reign Azi/Levi sex pollen drabble called flowering because robot yuri and sex pollen!!!!! If ever an an alien planet would have sex pollen, it would be Vesta. 🔥🔥🔥

@flootzavut gifted me a Jaskier fic called you do not get to hurt me which was a lovely surprise, lots of queer Jaskier messy feelings. I had a great time tossing the idea ball back and forth with flooty on this one when they were a little stuck on it. And the finished fic is so great and achey and I want to roll around in the Jaskier feelings all the time. Love you flootyfloots. I was bamboozled with love and utter surprise when I got an AO3 notification saying I was gifted a Stargate work. From none other than MSSalieri/troyswann who has been archiving their SG fic over the last few years. It’s an Elizabeth Weir and Daniel Jackson fic inspired by a prompt I offered Salieri several lifetimes and platforms ago. Salieri is an author and artist I have loved for an eternity, and I spent a lot of time reading and studying her fic when I was also first starting out writing fic. Trying to figure out how to do this prose thing. Really, just amazing…so much in a short fic. Reactivating the dormant Stargate feelings. The fic is called Unknown Waters. my prompt I had given Sal: If one tries to navigate unknown waters one runs the risk of shipwreck.

And then. There’s @ialwayscomewhenyoucall. Lira. Lira! Who I am constantly egging on with my Doctor Who Ten/Jack prompts in the @smubbles-etc discord server. Lira is just as delighted by my prompts as I am fucking excited to see what she comes up with. I’ve dumped approximately 200 million Doctor Who Ten/Jack prompts into the server this year. She’s been making me feel like a winner, lol. Lira is frolicking with prompts and I’m kicking my feetsies. ALSO Lira, have you made any headway on that Ten/Jack having sex performance for a paying alien audience prompt? Maybe for Smubble’s Wanksmas event? :D

Doctor Who Ten/Jack drabbles by LiraelClayr007:

Roses are Red - prompt: jack in lingerie. doctor admiring.

Black and (TARDIS) Blue - prompt: atyptical bruising patterns that jack is really into and wants more of immediately.

Different Body, Same Hearts - prompt: jack/ten reunion blowjob, the thrill of it all after so long.

Working together - a remix of my Refrain fic - Jack wants more. The Doctor is happy to give it to him.

You Can Wait - remix of my Syllable ficlet - Jack isn't allowed to come until the Doctor does.

From his knees - remix of my Reverence ficlet - Jack worships the Doctor.

Tether - The Doctor is spiraling after saying goodbye to Rose and his other self. Jack sees, and knows how to help. (not my prompt but lira's gotten so spun up from all my other prompts that I am still getting the goodies, ehehe)

The Doctor’s Song - Jack loves the sounds the Doctor makes. (not my prompt but still my joy !!!)

It’s a New Day - During sex, Jack asks the Doctor a question. He's surprised by the answer (not my prompt but still my gift, yes yayay)

❤️❤️❤️ I didn't manage to write/finish/post as much fic as I would have liked but I still had a great time with all the ideas and words from my brilliant friends. Here's to another year of awesome fic.

[bakawitch]

Dunno how, but I somehow finished it. Tiredly sketched, probably not gonna redo it for a while. Behold!

The Mortality Miracle Box

Each of the kwamis represents concepts built around life/death. These specific kwamis are more like lab made spiritual parasites that find themselves a suitable host and attach themselves to them. These are their more appealing base forms. They don't have eldritch god forms like canon kwamis because they are not gods, but they do have a hidden form that resembles real-life parasites. They don't have set miraculouses, instead they inject themselves into the host bodies. They also have the ability to take over their hosts' bodies during transformation.

Fungus of Reanimation

Kwami: Immo

they/it

Tool: staff

Power: Parasitism - The power to reanimate corpses with the use of spores released from the staff. The corpses are animated by fungi colonies, and they often grow over the bodies of the zombies.

Rabbit of Evocation

Kwami: Riitus

she/her

Tool: hammer

Power: Séance - The power to summon spirits from the ground by smashing the hammer on it. The spirits often resemble cartoonish dust bunnies.

Dragonfly of Invigoration

Kwami: Faata

they/them

Tool: fans

Power: Fight and Flight - The power to go into a frenzy during which the user becomes temporarily stronger and faster and immediately regenerates all bodily harm on themselves, no matter how severe. The ability sometimes activates on its own when the user is injured.

Feret of Germination

Kwami: Valla

he/him

Tool: pollen bombs (basket)

Power: Gardenia - The power to control and accelerate the growth of plants in a certain radius.

Cat of Realisation

Kwami: Ress

he/him

Tool: throwing darts

Power: Snare - The power to cause someone to have a hard truth revealed about themselves, which causes the target to freeze up and become petrified.

Fox of Divination

Kwami: Guuri

she/her

Tool: scrying mirror

Power: Oracle - The power to ask questions and receive relevant prophecies from the mirror. The prophecies are usually communicated through riddles and rhymes, and they always come to be.

Deer of Retrospection

Kwami: Oriia

he/her

Tool: cassette player

Power: Rewind - The power to create a cassette tape that replays anything that has ever happened in the location in which the user is currently located in the form of an illusory projection. The tape can also be weaponised.

Dove of Fulguration

Kwami: Riell

she/her

Tool: pendulum

Power: Lunation - The power to emmit a hot bright light that disintegrates things in its way. The closer something is to the light and/or the longer it's exposed to it, the more likely it will get vapourized completely.

Wolf of Separation

Kwami: Aalis

they/them

Tool: scissors

Power: Double Trouble - The power to separate the body from the shadow and give it limited access to the physical world. The user can communicate and exert full control over the shadow.

🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄 🍄

And that's it! Still can't believe I finished these this fast XD

[gabessquishytum]

"maybe [Gilbert's] into that" well okay now i'm having Thoughts!! because yeah just imagine, dream feels it when hob falls asleep and enters the dreaming, normally hob comes to him but this time he doesn't, so dream goes off to find his lover instead.

turns out hob didn't make his way to the palace because he was... otherwise occupied. dream thinks hob's just sitting naked in the grass of fiddler's green when he first gets a look at him. hob's looking awfully flustered for that to be all he's doing, though.

when dream stands in front of him the ground shifts, mounds rising under the grass and moving to push hob's legs apart before smoothing out again to leave him good and exposed -- and to give dream a good view of the mess of slim vines playing between his legs. there are a few in his ass and in his cunt, stretching him wide around without filling him up. there's one buried deep in his little peehole, another wrapped tight around the base of his swollen clit.

there's one leading deep into his cunt, and dream isn't clear of that one's purpose at first, not until hob squirms under dream's gaze and dream watches that vine pull taut when hob even begins to lift his hips away from the vines. that one's pushed through hob's cervix, tiny where it's buried in that tight hole but ballooning wide inside his womb so any little movement hob makes tugs at his cervix. it keeps him very effectively in place without tying him down, but it's also a deeply humiliating way to be restrained -- which means hob's dripping wet and writhing as much as he can manage and begging dream to do something because his holes are stretched open so wide but he feels so empty and he's desperate for something to properly fuck him.

dream expect he'll take pity on hob. eventually. but dream's been very clear that his arcana have full rights to play with hob as they wish, hob's been equally clear that he's thrilled with that arrangement, and dream's hardly going to get in the way if fiddler's green is enjoying himself, is he?

-🐈‍⬛

Ooo yes I really do love the idea of Dream "sharing" Hob with the major arcana!!! It's kind of a new thing ever since Dream returned from his imprisonment; a way for him to reconnect with these parts of himself that have become distant. But as wholesome as all that is, of course it leads to debauched shenanigans.

And Hob has never been fucked by an entire landscape before, so he's having a great time. Fiddler's Green is so much more thorough than any lover Hob has ever had - maybe because he moves and manipulates Hob’s body in a totally way totally different to how a being with hands and genitals would. He delves inside Hob like he's searching for the perfect place to plant a seed, and fuck if that isn't incredibly arousing.

But Fiddler's Green does like to tease, and its beautiful agony for Hob. He gets stretched open and exposed without having the thick shaft of something inside him that he craves. Gilbert could definitely fuck him full with some kind of plant-based phallic instrument, but he simply chooses not to. He likes having Hob wide open and gaping. Perhaps a little pollen will slide into his cunt, or maybe Fiddler's Green will use a vine to plant a proper seed inside Hob’s desperate womb. If he's feeling generous that seed will germinate grow with tendrils that wriggle inside and make Hob wet with tears and slick.

Dream loves to lie down in the grass beside Hob and watch him being absolutely ravished by the surrounding foliage. Hob is so whiney and needy when he's being so thoroughly fucked. A proper pet slut for the dreaming. If he's lucky, Dream might just take pity and slide his finger down to play with one of Hob’s holes. Usually he's mean, and wiggles his finger into the poor overstretched peehole. But if he's been very, very good, Hob might to cum (yet again) with Dream's fingers in his pussy.

There are so many holes to choose from, and plenty to share. Perhaps the Corinthian and Gault might pop by to join in and see how Gilbert has reduced Hob to a drooling mess. And pick up some tips for the next time they get to play with him <3

[constantlymisspelled]

The Mandalorian Peace Lilly, which only grows flower buds and new growth when a drought breaks. If the good waters last too long, the lilies go to dormant, having gathered enough water to keep leaves growing, but don’t flower past the first year. If the waters disappear, they go to seed, and spread themselves in the cracks and crevices of the old deserts of Mandalore. Peace Lillie’s have not been seen on Manda’yaim since the Dral Haran, and cannot be propagated by any sentient. They only survive in the woods of Zanbar, Concord Dawn’s southern desert regions, and the Ordo Minor Plateaus.

They require a minimum of a full week of rain fall to germinate, and require full sun on their leaves, and full shade on their stalk, resulting in these lilies growing in puddles, cliff faces, water falls, fallen trees, and the cracks in buildings. They are considered the symbol of Mandalorian Harmony, or the closest many Traditionalists will come to peace. None of the plant is edible, although it is not poisonous. The known uses of this plant are for special events as decoration, offerings to Mandalorian Deities such as Death, Hard Won Victory, and Catastrophe.

Known colouration of this plant’s flowers are white, yellow white and orange, and white, red and purple. The stems are often a vivid green, made of soft celled forming plant matter with high water content and a waxy coating, and the leaves a dark, striped green that often spiral out of water by up to a meter, with a waxy top, and a lightly furred underside to preserve moisture from the once hot but still liveable sun of Manda’yaim. The stamen is usually a rich, vibrant yellow gold, and it is no longer known what animal once pollenated the species.

It shares similar features with the common herbs used on Mandallia for sanitation and wound care, although knowledge of its preparation was lost with the Temples of Mandalore. Although considered a weed on Concordia, most citizens of other planets view it as sacred, and a sign that Mandalore is still full of soul.

Due to its inability to grow on Manda’yaim, that planet of its origination, the planet is often considered cursed, even during times of relative peace.

[All Fanon. I wanted symbolism for my growing pantheon, and I took inspiration from Satine’s many jewels and decorations and decided that some of them once meant something specific to the Faithful of Mandalore. I’m pushing Mandalorian Culture and Religion as less western, and more towards something of a mix between some forms of Hinduism in practice, and what we know of Viking and ancient Nomad Warrior Culture. I want it to feel like Mandalore (as a place and a people) is old, but still ever changing - like the white sands that now cover their home, there is so much more left to become. If the galaxy only lets them be.

Let me know what you think! And if you have any ideas or head canons as to what biomes and vegetation Ancient Mandalore supported.]

[tomorrowsgardennc]

garden update // june 25th 2024

parsley has been keeping an eye out for rain for me. still no sign of any anytime soon. rainbarrels have run dry, and i'm scared to open my water bill.

my pumpkin plants are going absolutely bonkers. one of my favorite parts of having a raised bed is letting the plants flow out. be free, plants, be freeeeee!! i actually want the pumpkins to take over, i can't wait. i have been pinching back the male flowers, though, so the plant can focus its energy elsewhere. but there were a few flowers i couldn't tell if male or female, so i let them bloom. turns out they were male, but the bees are drunk with pollen. maybe i shouldn't be pinching them back as often...

my carrots are going to seed, which wasn't my intention actually 😅 i grow carrots purely for the carrot tops - absolutely delicious when treated like an herb. i don't even thin my carrots out when they germinate. i'm starting to pull some anyway, with parsley's help of course.

last year i started ground cherry seeds in june, and they grew exactly like tomatillos and i got a bountiful harvest in august. this year i started the seeds (saved from last year) at the same time as the tomatoes, and they're dwarf sized!! not even 2 feet tall. they're starting to produce, though. i mean, if they stay dwarf thalen by all means! but at the same time... i hope they do get taller and i get another bountiful harvest in late summer. my favorite tomato is starting to produce, too - the green doctor cherry tomatoes. i'm going to be entering them into a contest in 2 weeks, so i hope i get a lot more by then!!

i took some cuttings from a pomegranate tree about... uhh... 2 months ago now?? and they're starting to grow new leaves!! no roots, though... i might need to transfer them into soil rather than water for root development. probably be on this week's to do.

my dwarf cucumbers and dwarf cantelope are chugging along. they need lots of water, but hopefully that water bill will be worth it in the end.

[botaniqueer]

Baby euphorias! I love how they look like weird tiny aliens when young. (Cactuses on the other hand look ugly for the longest time after their Cotyledon stage)

I can’t remember if this is all of them or if there were a few more seeds but def most of them have germinated.

The proud orb dad who has birthed them

Now for the long wait to see what kinds of babies come from this. Idk if they were pollinated already by like-species but I made a point of going around the sale floor and collecting pollen from every flowering euphorbia species I could find. :P The oldest one looks like what I’ve seen of E. obesa seedlings but we’ll have to see once they’re all older.

[salamandergoo]

It’s official! I completed 31 prompts for @strangerthingswritersguild’s kinktober calendar! Thought I’d make a lil master post here :)

All fics linked under the cut

Day 1: And There Will Be No Tenderness, No Tenderness | Stommy | Hate Sex | E

Day 2: Heart Shaped Lock | PomPomPistol | Collaring | M

Day 3: No Life Til Leather | Freak/Gareth+Poly!CC | Leather | E

Day 4: Ribbon Bound | Jopper | Safeword | E

Day 5: Hold Me Down and Love Me | Steve/Gareth | Negotiation | E

Day 6: So Pretty in a Dress | Chrissy/Jonathan | Uniforms | E

Day 7: Orange Rope Bondage | Jargyle | Bondage | E

Day 8: Subspacing Out | Eddie/Jonathan | Accidental Subspace | E

Day 9: Feeling Good? | Jargyle | Aftercare | E

Day 10: Swap and Fuck | Stancy | Sharing Clothes | E

Day 11: Under the Blanket on Movie Night | Argyle/Nancy | Exhibitionism | E

Day 12: Sleep Warm | Rovickie | Sleeping | G

Day 13: A Birthday Surprise | Eddie/Jeff | Toys | E

Day 14: I’m on the Edge With You | Eddie/OMC | Edging | E

Day 15: Let Me Be Everything | Chrissy/Carol | Cuddling | M

Day 16: Germination | Tommy/Jonathan | Sex Pollen | E

Day 17: Playing Groupie | Jonathan/Corroded Coffin | Free Use | E

Day 18: Practicing | Eddie/Jeff | Practice | M

Day 19: Restless Dreaming | Jancy | Wet Dreams | E

Day 20: Reverence | Nancy/Carol | Worship | E

Day 21: Hitch a Ride | Stargyle | Riding | E

Day 22: From the Bottom, From the Back | Ronance | Blood | E

Day 23: Work it Harder, Do it Faster | Argyle/Gareth | Rough | E

Day 24: Moments and Momentos | Chrissy/Argyle | Souvenir | E

Day 25: Adrenaline Hangover | Jopper | Adrenaline | T

Day 26: Sensual Soup | Jargyle | Taste | M

Day 27: Your Faith Can’t Save You Now | N/A | Tentacles | T

Day 28: Call Me, I’ll Arrive | Steddie | Phone Sex | E

Day 29: Movie Night Continued | Poly Spicy Six | Group Sex/Mutual Masturbation | M

Day 30: Bandages and Kisses | Stonathan | Safe | T

Day 31: Doctor Flores, Proctologist | Stargyle | Costumes | E

[dougdimmadodo]

Common Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

Family: Aster Family (Asteraceae)

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Originating from the Americas, the Common Sunflower can now be found on every continent except Antarctica, both in cultivation (where it is grown for its edible seeds, useful oils and iconic flowers) and in the wild as an invasive species. Typically growing in open habitats with damp, nutrient-rich soil, members of this species are often said to turn to face the sun, although this is not strictly true; young Common Sunflowers do position their developing flowers to face towards the sun throughout the day, but upon reaching maturity their flowers remain fixed in place, almost always facing east - as the sun rises in the east, this means that the dark surface of the mature flower heads are heated up each morning, making them more attractive to ectothermic ("cold-blooded") pollinating insects. What is typically thought of as the flower of a sunflower is actually a large flower-supporting structure called a flower head, and upon closer inspection the "face" of the flower head is covered in a large number of tiny true flowers called florets - while cultivated varieties and the invasive populations descended from them only ever develop a single flowerhead, wild individuals often branch out and develop several, each supporting up to 2,000 florets. Each flower head supports both pollen-producing "male" florets and pollen-receiving "female" florets, and upon being pollinated female flowers develop into small, black, dry fruits commonly referred to as "sunflower seeds", although in reality the pale rounded structures within the "seeds", known as sunflower hearts, are the true seeds, with what is typically thought of as a sunflower seed serving to attract small animals to swallow them and allow the seeds within to be dispersed in the animals' dung. Although they reach considerable sizes (with wild individuals growing to be up to 3 meters/ 10 feet in height, with some cultivated varieties reaching even greater heights,) Common Sunflowers are short-lived, germinating, reproducing and dying in only around 10-18 weeks.

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Image Source: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/57983-Helianthus-annuus

[path-with-no-path]

Grow Back Your Horns

The Devil Card Is Dionysus

You close your eyes, seeing black: the black of a black bear against the night, apparent only briefly, when moonlight strikes flintlike against the oiled fur along the bear’s spine. You hear the darkness of sound: the loon’s song tunneling through lake water, the velveteen thump of a hummingbird moth against the window. Petrichor: rain waking up the warm, deep scent of the soil. A lover’s fingers pinching out the candle. The heft of overripe plums. Honey almost peppery with wildflower pollen. Walking inside the barn at night, animals shuffling against each other, cooing and mooing like blind electrons, dream-dancing around an atom.

Welcome to the Devil card.

Or, as he should be known, the Dionysus card.

For here is our favorite god of revolution, lovemaking, vegetation, soil, dance, and fermentation, thinly cloaked with Christian prejudice. Elaine Pagels maps the history of the Christian Devil in her book The Origin of Satan, demonstrating that pre-Christian Jewish ideas of devils were neutral or even positive.1 And very often Devil imagery leads directly back to the worship of theriomorphic vegetal gods.

Originally, as Pagels tells us, the idea of “devil” had no theological baggage; it meant simply “stumbling block.” The genderless figure of a devil was seen as a course correction. Something that blocks the wrong way forward. You are forced to stop and reassess. You step closer to your true desires and purpose as a result. This devil, then, is closer to the modern idea of the guardian angel. It shepherds you away from danger, sometimes loudly, sometimes gently. Pagels shows that as Christianity developed, it found a “scapegoat” in the goat-horned god Dionysus. Racism, misogyny, and anti-Semitism were poured into the now-singular Devil, who didn’t represent evil so much as the bowl where the dominant culture could ferment its most violent prejudices.

We see traces of this history in the card itself. The horns, bat wings, and bird feet recall older pagan practices that venerated nature and animal gods. In the earliest depictions of the card, the Devil is most like the blended Dionysus: half animal, with both breasts and a phallus. The darkness of the Devil card is not the black of absence but the inky, living dirt with germinating seeds, sucking up moisture and nutrients to feed an entire forest. Simplistic interpretations of the Devil card warn of excess, overinflated egotism, and abuse of power. But the Devil as Dionysus is actually the antidote to these vices. These interpretations are misdirections from the true symbols of patriarchal capitalism: the Emperor, the Chariot, and the Hierophant. Let us entertain a new interpretation of this card. The Devil has been a dumping ground for hate and prejudice. But it has also been the place where older, more fertile practices have survived as stowaways.

Look at the Devil card and you will see the doubling of the Lovers card. Chained to a black block with the Devil crouching above them, two lovers incline their horned heads toward each other. They look at their shared chains. Some interpretations warn that the lovers have given into their animal instinct and fallen into “hedonism.” If so, good for them. We could all use more animal instinct. We need to put our horns back on and start thinking less as individuals and more as patchy, contaminated relationships to other peoples, ecologies, and modes of consciousness.

In the Lovers card the man looks at the woman, while the woman stares away from him, up at a disembodied angel—a monotheistic sky deity. The lovers are not truly connected. They lack reciprocity. Abstraction dominates. The woman looks at the sky and not at herfeet or at her earthly partner. The lovers of the Devil card, by contrast, heal the Cartesian abstraction of the Lovers card. Both gaze at the chain that connects them. They incline their heads downward toward the earth and inward toward each other.

We are not mindless symbols, the card seems to say—not flat cards flying out of a deck. We are sticky, unruly relationships, intimately tied to the earth, to each other, and to those theriomorphic Dionysian deities that slip in and out of the imaginal realm when we need a “stumbling block” course correction. What if we reinterpreted the chains of the Devil card as mycelial rootlets? This is mushroom intelligence, linking and dispersing information. Probing and splitting. Slipping backward on itself. Involuting.

The lovers of the Devil card are rooted to the earth and to each other. They remind us that we haven’t always been outside the garden. The garden is just below our feet. We don’t need a grand spiritual awakening in order to come back into this Edenic consciousness. We just need to pay close, special attention to the connections that already constitute us. The lush, environmental contexts that shape our desires, our appetites, and our stories. Let us give thanks to the Devil card for holding hatred without dissolving underneath it. Let us thank this Dionysian goat-god for protecting the lovers below his bat wings, for helping them grow horns again, and teaching them how to send down roots.

I don’t just want to reclaim the Devil for the masculine. I want to place him firmly between people, between plants, between lovers. He teaches us to grow connective tissue in soil through Indigenous land practices, soil regeneration, and the cultivation of native mycorrhizal communities. But he also, simply, heals our ability to love, not with our meatless language or our minds, but with our whole, messy, indeterminate, gender-flickering, bat-winged bodies.