Ellen Evert Hopman - The Sacred Herbs of Spring: Magical, Healing, and Edible Plants to Celebrate Beltaine

THE SACRED HERBS OF SPRING

A book that is meant to be worn through use over the years and should be at hand each year when the green first appears on the trees.

ANDREW THEITIC, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER OF THE WITCHES ALMANAC

Hopman provides a beautifully researched, international, cross-cultural, pan-millennial framework for understanding the ancient festival and its evolution into modern time.... It shines with the authors love of the plant tribes of the earth.

MICHAEL R. GORMAN, DRUID AND AUTHOR OF THE CELTIC PHILOSOPHERS STONE

A must-read for anyone on the Druid path, and of great interest to anyone in herbal lore and Pagan traditions.

JOANNA VAN DER HOEVEN,AUTHOR OF THE BOOK OF HEDGE DRUIDRY

The green world through the lens of Hopman will transport you to magical realms yet unseen. This book is destined to be a classic!

ORION FOXWOOD,AUTHOR OF THE TREE OF ENCHANTMENT

Hopman has gathered a far-ranging collection of herbal lore.... Folk beliefs and modern ritual imagery are supplemented by a wide variety of seasonal recipes and concoctions, from Dandelion Mead and Rowan Berry Liqueur to Lilac Scones and Marigold and Lemon Balm Cheesecake.

SHARON PAICE MACLEOD,AUTHOR OF CELTIC MYTH AND RELIGION

Weaves together the magic of sacred herbs with wonderful recipes. Hopman provides easy-to-follow herbal formulas and remedies that will fill the beginner as well as the advanced practitioner with the inspiration and magic of the herbal spirits.

CHRIS ALLAUN,AUTHOR OF UNDERWORLD

This book reconfigures the information and provides us with not just a reference of herbs for this time of year but also a collection of useful information for understanding the Sabbat.... This excellently researched work is a must-have for any herbalist as an important resource.

T. SCARLET JORY,EDITOR OF WYNTERGREENE MAGAZINE

Beautifully illustrated... a book to keep on a shelf in the heart of your home, as youll be reaching for it often.

GARY AND RUTH COLCOMBE,HOSTS OF CELTIC MYTH PODSHOW

Hopman shows us how the old lore worked all around the worldand still works now. This book will bring the herbs of spring to light for each of us.

ELEN SENTIER,AUTHOR OF SHAMAN PATHWAYSTREES OF THE GODDESS

This rich compilation should be on the shelf (or e-reader) of anyone interested in herbs or Pagan practices.

MORVEN WESTFIELD,AUTHOR OF THE OLD POWER RETURNS

Rife with rare treasures of history, wise womans lore, and practical magic. Her research is unparalleled and encompasses a lifetime of scholarship and devotion. This book gives great hope to the human relationship with the procession of the seasons and our Mother Earth.

ELYSE POPPERS,AUTHOR OF THE LITTLE LOVE BOOK

A comprehensive viewincluding recipes, illustrations, lore, and caveatsof the various herbs, barks, berries, and so on for your Beltaine celebration.

J. T. SIBLEY, PH.D.,AUTHOR OF THE WAY OF THE WISE

The power of The Sacred Herbs of Spring goes much beyond its medicinal preparations. Hopman takes us on an enchanted journey into the world of Fairies and Elves, spirits that lead us along an avenue into the Otherworld, the world beyond.

NICHOLAS BRINK, PH.D.,AUTHOR OF BEOWULFS ECSTATIC TRANCE MAGIC

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Many thanks to Chris Aldridge for a beautiful and inspiring foreword. Thanks are due to Kevin Sartoris for his continuing inspiration. Most of all, endless thanks to the Spirits of the green plants, roots, seeds, trees, and flowers that inspired the work.

Song of Summer

Summer-time, season supreme!

Splendid is colour then.

Blackbirds sing a full lay

If there be a slender shaft of day.

The dust-coloured cuckoo calls aloud:

Welcome, splendid summer!

The bitterness of bad weather is past,

The boughs of the wood are a thicket.

Panic startles the heart of the deer,

The smooth sea runs apace

Season when ocean sinks asleep,

Blossom covers the world.

Bees with puny strength carry

A goodly burden, the harvest of blossoms;

Up the mountain-side kine take with them mud,

The ant makes a rich meal.

The harp of the forest sounds music,

The sail gathersperfect peace;

Colour has settled on every height,

Haze on the lake of full waters.

The corncrake, a strenuous bard, discourses,

The lofty cold waterfall sings

A welcome to the warm pool

The talk of the rushes has come.

Light swallows dart aloft,

Loud melody encircles the hill,

The soft rich mast buds,

The stuttering quagmire prattles.

The peat-bog is as the ravens coat,

The loud cuckoo bids welcome,

The speckled fish leaps

Strong is the bound of the swift warrior.

Man flourishes, the maiden buds

In her fair strong pride.

Perfect each forest from top to ground,

Perfect each great stately plain.

Delightful is the seasons splendour,

Rough winter has gone:

Every fruitful wood shines white,

A joyous peace is summer.

A flock of birds settles

In the midst of meadows,

The green field rustles,

Wherein is a brawling white stream.

A wild longing is on you to race horses,

The ranked host is ranged around:

A bright shaft has been shot into the land,

So that the water-flag is gold beneath it.

A timorous, tiny, persistent little fellow

Sings at the top of his voice,

The lark sings clear tidings:

Surpassing summer-time of delicate hues!

TRADITIONAL IRISH POEM,TRANSLATED BY KUNO MEYER

FOREWORD

By Chris Aldridge

Across the vastness of Gaia, the Gods have nurtured plants both for their own pleasures and for the benefit of humans along the often hard roads of life. The beautiful blooms of the world have greeted us alongside every path we have walked, even in Divine manifestations such as Chloris, the Goddess of Flowers. The plants and herbs of Earth are literally a plethora of gifts from the immortals, placed in various areas around us so that with each passing step we take, there might be assistance from the Divine world that never wishes to abandon us or see us in agony or despair. Like a caring and compassionate mother or father or good friends, the Gods leave us little gifts around the house to make our day just a bit better.

There is hardly a God without a plant of their own, whether it be the precious hyacinth of Apollo (formed from his admiration for humans), the intriguing cypress of Artemis, the elaborate and liberating vines of Dionysus, or the pure and as of today unknown Moly that Hermes gave Odysseus to shield him from the magic of a chaotic Witch. There is also hardly a spell or ritual that cannot be benefited by a plant, whether it be a Rose for Aphrodites love or a simple stick of Sage to banish evil or negativity.