Legend of Holly, Ivy and Mistletoe

Subject: Legend of Holly, Ivy and Mistletoe Sat Nov 15, 2008 2:52 am

Legend of Holly, Ivy and Mistletoe

The custom of decorating homes with evergreens during the holiday season has been practiced worldwide for thousands of years. Evergreens are symbols of enduring life because they stay beautiful in the winter when most plants wither and die. They have always been associated with winter festivals. It was believed that the evergreens held magical power because of their perennial greenness. Homes were decorated with these plants in the hope of enticing the spirits of the woods inside to bring good luck in the coming year.
Legends describe holly as masculine because it uses it's thorns to protect itself the way a man would use a weapon to protect himself. Ivy is considered feminine because it entwines or embraces whatever it is near. Mistletoe is thought to bring good luck and fertility .
A 15th century Christmas carol tells of the contest between the holly and the ivy for the place of honor in the hall. The song is a duet with each part claiming his or her superiority. In the end the holly, with its red berries, wins over the ivy and its black berries.
The legend of kissing under the mistletoe has it roots in a Scandinavian myth. Legend has it that the Norse God, Baldur was protected from evil by everything that came from the elements of fire, water, air and earth. But an evil spirit formed an arrow from mistletoe and killed him. The tears of Baldur's mother, Frigga, became the white berries of the mistletoe. His life was restored and Frigga, being the Goddess of Love and Beauty, is said to have kissed anyone passing under the mistletoe. The myth of mistletoe spread throughout the land and even enemies would call a truce when they met underneath it.