voidycatboi

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Everybody stop what you’re doing RIGHT NOW and celebrate the last Out of Touch Thursday of 2020

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tumblr is for putting your stuff somewhere that's not secret but also not for anyone particular to see so it's true neutral in a really nice way

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Ok

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Source: GrandMamka on twitter

Yes, I asked permission to post ofc ❤️

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Christmas Greenery - I

Have you got your tree ready?

What else have you got ready?

There is a certain tradition concerning evergreen plants, that’s likely older even than very first christmas trees (dated to 15th (remnant of religious Paradise Plays) and 16th century (custom supported by Martin Luther)).

Let me introduce you to Lignum crucis aka...

Mistletoe

Plant as mysterious as potent - growing downwards instead of upwards, seeking shade, suspended between heavens and earth,  living off the trees rather than on its own, retaining fresh green hue thoughout winter, poisonous but used for medicine, its pearly berries an ingrefient of glue that people would use to trap the very same birds which spread mistletoe seeds around. It jas attracted attention of people since ancient times till now as embodiment of indomitable living force and magic that trumps all rules.

Best known as kissing bough, underneath which each kiss means a berry plucked until the last one is preserved til the next season, tradition originating on British isles. Sometime in the span of medieval to early modern period it spread into continental Europe (where brothels also picked it up, but to advertise their services). In 19th century much fuss was made over people kissing in the temples its ties to pagan period and church struggling mightily to supress this tradition, the theories often more conjecture than fact.

And it just happens so, that the church apparently has had the plant adopted long ago by means of a fake birth certificate.

Or to be more precise a legend was born, a legend of "wood of the cross".

The legend says that mistletoes used to be regular trees until Romans felled one to build a cross on which Jesus Christ perished. Deeply ashamed, alternatively cursed by God, the plant withered and shrank into a little shrub hanging limply from other trees. In some versions of the tale it is not only involved in Jesus' death, but also in his coming, being used by Joseph for a crib into which a newborn Saviour was put. Coming full circle, indeed. One can even come across attestations of communion symbolism in that mistletoe lives on the sap of trees much like followers of Christ on his blood. Touched by Jesus himself at the time of his death (and possibly also birth), it must have been very blessed and sacred and so the ideal festive decoration of holy places, protection from witches and other misfortunes and even material for rosaries, tiny dosages swallowed or added to water drank by monks. In Bavaria people would tie its twigs to "palm bushes" (made from willow) for Palm Sunday.

Leo Kanner claims the story emerged around 12th century as one of attempts to assimilate persistent heathenry. Can't beat them, join them, as they say. He says it was a crossover of Germanic folk tales about death (or in later versions only-almost-death) of a beloved deity Baldur struck by a mistletoe arrow (his mother Frigg neglected to make it swear to never harm Baldur) and a satirical Jewish retelling of New Testament (Toled Yeshu). That one portrays Jesus as an insolent sorcerror who went around demanding all trees take oath to never harm him (just like Frigg), only for Judas to procure a massive cabbage core and use that for his crucifiction. Text never approved by Jewish authorities, but very widely circulated in medieval Europe and used by opponents in formenting further anti-semitism.

But these things are difficult to trace. And all the same lignum crucis has become a very catholic thing at the time when catholicism was all that there was. And nicely blended with old and new folk customs.

Irishmen made them into luck charms in the form of bracelets. For Scandinavians it was a sign to end their squables and broker peace. To ensure good crop Austrians would bury the ones from the previous year's celebrations into their fields when giving them their first spring plowing. And Swiss brides would weave it into their wreaths together with barley and verbena. Thunder broom (hi, Perun) and broom of ghost-banishment, or wind's nest it was called by Slavs of old. Serbians had a saying snakes with gemstones and other treasure were to be found underneath mistletoes growing on hazels. Poles used mistletoe brew to bring fertility to their cows. And Czech wisewomen added it to medicines for all kinds of ailments and shared tales of magicians picking locks, turning people invisible and freezing thiefs by smacking them with these evergreen branches. 15th century preacher Tomáš Štítný of Štítné complained about superstitious people seeking blessings of "stienky" (singular "stienka"), assumed to be a name of mistletoe plant.

Just as in the west people of Central Europe and further too started to hang it in their homes and above their doors on the day of Christmas Eve for protection, gift it to their friends to increase its power, in its presence whisper their wishes over flames of candles, count the berries to know how much luck awaits them in the next year and either burn it precisely on the 6th of January or save the bough until the next year, when it's put to rest by those means (or buried in the fields). And why, yes, we might kiss as well.

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Saint Jellyfish Exhorter by seok young choi

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rule #1 of being a child soldier is to have fun and be yourself

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we could create more luigi mangione copycats by putting lead back in paint and gasoline

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northern hemisphere babes we made it to the longest night of the year. we made it. for the next 6 months, every day will give us a little more daylight than the last. let's go. take my hand. climb out of the darkness with me

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folk hero really

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Parent with siblings vs parent with no siblings amiright fellas