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Saturday 16 March 2024

Wake sleepyhead


 

There is something of Lord of the Rings vibe in the air. 

Brynhild is a favourite Valkyrie of the All Father god Odin. One day she offended him and as punishment, she was put under a spell. She entered a deep long sleep surrounded by a ring of magic flames. This is very similar to the fairy story of the Sleeping Princess. 

A lion that sleeps is a motif for the stars of Leo and also represents a punishment. As lions are symbols of power and strength, to have them sleeping is not positive, but a sign that the lion is dormant and vulnerable.

The prince and dragon slayer hero is the one destined to wake Brynhild/Sleeping Princess. So who really is He? A warrior archetype of the hero. He undoes the curse and frees Her from eternal sleep. 

 Aol wvza pz uva hivba huap-dhy, iba hivba bukvpun aol jluabyplz vm johpuz

Storm Valkyrie

Tuesday 12 March 2024

Dragon bones



Dragons tend to represent sheer power and ultimate strength, but they're seen as duel forces and connected to the earth's magnetic field. In the Western world, dragons have always been regarded as fearsome and dangerous, even destructive with their fiery breaths and monstrous forms, looking like giant serpentine reptiles most of them winged, or like fantastically huge creatures on both land and sea. They terrorise villages, consume livestock and are also a menace. Stories of knights and other brave heroes have gone out to slay these dragons, many died trying to succeed while a few are victorious. However, in the Eastern world, dragons are entirely different and they're respected, even idolised because they're respected for their strength, abilities and beauty. They're protectors and guardians, as well as divine beings among the elements such as Tianlong the celestial dragon. Dragons of the East are believed to pull chariots of the gods across the sky. 


So there is the medicine of dragons, called Os Draconis, or "Long gu". It's believed that the bones of dragons or Long gu will bring healing and calm, balance and cleansing. Dragon bones or Long gu is full of rich calcium carbonate and calcium phosphate. Calcium carbonate is a mineral, of which humans need if they're immune system is low. It helps to relieve heartburn, stomach upsets and acid indigestion. Calcium phosphate or tricalcium phosphate is mineral formula that boosts healthy growth in humans. Dragon bones are also able to calm dizziness, control fevers, sweating, high blood pressure, easing the heart and mind. 


While traditional Chinese medicines use dragon bones, it's also said that it shouldn't be mixed with fish, for it will counteract with gypsum or Shi goa. Dragon bones are grounded and crushed, that can be eaten with herbs. Some dragon bones are found sold on the market in different types. Those include Local (tu), Powder (fen), White (bai), Flower or variegated (hua). So what exactly are dragons bones? The answer is fossils of dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals.

Storm Valkyrie    

Tuesday 5 March 2024

Daffodil, March flower



The flower of March is the daffodil. It's the first sign of Spring, and the vibrant daffodil is also connected to the birth flower of March. Daffodils are big, bright and most of them are golden sunshine yellow coloured. Some might be white or with orange hems, even pink and other fusions. Also the daffodil is called a narcissus jonquil, and a daffadowndilly. It's said that yellow daffodils represent the sun, and white daffodils represent youth and innocence. Orange daffodils tend to be represented with much friendships and positivity. Pink daffodils represent cheer, happiness and gentleness. Daffodils have been used in perfumes and chemistry.

Be wary of eating them, and they can be deadly. Daffodil bulbs have caused deaths after being consumed as these are mistaken as onions. People have fallen very sick and have needed treatment and hospital stays. Back in 2009 at Gorseland Primary School in Martlesham Heath, Suffolk, 12 children became sick from daffodil poisoning when they had a cookery lesson that was supposed to use onions.

Daffodils are called "Rose of Sharon" in the King James Bible. It's in Greek mythology that a handsome young man named Narcissus was transformed into a flower. Daffodils are sacred the Hades, the god of the Underworld, and his wife goddess Persephone. 

More references to daffodils:

Wikipedia Narcissus (daffodil) plant https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissus_(plant) 

Things in the barn daffodil page https://www.thingsinthebarn.com/inthegarden/daffodil

Storm Valkyrie

Thursday 15 February 2024

Silphium the lost flower

 


Silphium is the name of a golden coloured plant that was highly used in ancient times, much favoured among the Romans for it's chemical that was used as a love potion. It was known as an aphrodisiac, and plenty of horny people sought the plant Silphium. It was picked and then collected, sold in markets, sold in shops, given away as gifts to lovers and even used at orgiastic parties. Then two thousand years ago, Silphium became extinct. 

It was eaten too much, and then it stopped growing. Found only on the coast of Cyrenaica, it wasn't able to be harvested or cultivated elsewhere. So it only allowed to grow in its natural place. Lustful Romans ended the flower. Yet, was this true? Let me look into it. The ancient Greeks called it Silphion, but it was a favourite passion flower in demand already, long before the Greeks and Romans. The flower was a food source, cooked and consumed during harsh droughts, bad harvests and disease outbreaks. The flower acted as medicine, a healing herb, and also fed hungry mouths. It was mostly a contraceptive, taken by women who didn't want to get pregnant while enjoying company of men. 

But it was highly valued as an aphrodisiac. The ancient Greeks had coins with the image of the Silphium plant on the reverse side. It was at the reign of Julius Caesar, that a load of Silphium was stockpiled with a value of thousands of pounds, along with gold in the Roman treasure vault. Saplings of Silphium was of the same value as silver. Everyone loved Silphium. But one day, it simply vanished. It was the Roman writer Pliny the Elder who said "only one stalk" of Silphium was found. That stalk was given to Emperor Nero and it was the last time Silphium was reported. 

It was many centuries later after Pliny the Elder (who died in 79 AD) that people searched high and low for the fabled legendary flower Silphium. They looked around the Mediterranean coasts and especially at Cyrenaica where the plant naturally grew. During the Middle Ages, people searched for Silphium over many continents and they travelled with knowledge of botany and historic texts. It was never found and it was concluded the plant was extinct.

A researcher named Mahmut Miski of Istanbul University believes that he found the plant growing on Mount Hasan in Turkey. This plant is scientifically called Ferula Drudeana, although many people debate this and believe it could be a relation nothing more. 

Further info and reading "On the hunt for mystery herb" at Kew: https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/silphium-mystery  

"Gift of Apollo" at Garden of Gods and Monsters: https://gardenofgodsandmonsters.wordpress.com/2013/07/21/gift-of-apollo-and-womens-friend-silphium/  

Storm Valkyrie 🌸