the kingsmoon and the mistel-teinn

[laleesh]

white sheets at their feet
like snow on the ground

moon courses down
through stately old oaks
in milky crowns of mistletoe.

[DaBomb]

I feel I am missing something important in your title. What are the kingsmoon and mistel-teinn? The image I can gather from this is very good, and I think it will be even better once I understand the title.

Bryan

[laleesh]

bryan,

i'm so pleased by your interest! the poem is simply my image of the winter moon shining down through the oak trees now laden and abundant in the white-berried mistletoe.

the oak tree, in some circles, is considered the king of trees because of its association with many of our mythical kings/gods - arthur, zeus, jesus, and balder son of odin, to name a few.

the ancient druid priests and other cults before and throughout the christian era worshipped the oak tree and cherished the mistel-teinn (old norse word for mistletoe, teinn meaning "tree") growing entangled in the very topmost branches, crowning the tree. oak was king, and mistletoe with its bright evergreen leaves (green for fertility) and its translucent white berries (semen) were considered a very potent aphrodesiac (magicwise, not to taken orally in any form as the plant is extremely toxic!). on gathering the sacred plant at the winter solstice, great white (virgin) linen sheets were placed under the trees to protect the mistletoe from touching the ground; it was believed that if the plant touched the ground, all of its powers would return to the earth.

while mistletoe and its white berries (semen) was considered masculine, holly with its red berries (menstrual blood) was of course considered feminine.

mistletoe, again in some circles, is a very potent aphrodesiac and a symbol strongly connected to fertility. hmmmmmmm. could that be where the custom of kissing under the mistletoe came from :)? well, actually it is a pale, shadowed, and christianized version of the sexual orgies that accompanied the sacred rites of the oak gods.

it all starts with a kiss.

p.s. i call it the kingsmoon because the full moon nearest the winter solstice is known as the oak moon, the moon of the newborn year, the divine child (there is that fertility thing again!).


thank you, bryan
:)
lala

[DaBomb]

Wow, not only a poet, but also a scholar. I appreciate the history that goes into your poem. Thank you for the enlightenment, and yes it has made the read even better. Another great one Lala.

Bryan

[Territorial Hawk]

I like the poem, and I like the explanation.

It's so different to what we have here.

[Ben Grader]

Intriguing poem, I wonder how many folk realise the number of old traditions, pagan and otherwise that are handed down in a slightly twisted way and still carried out today?