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HEALING TREES Sacred trees with healing powers are found in almost every culture and age. They are seen as a gift from the Earth Goddess and a source of her continuing healing of those who come to the tree or sacred grove. In India sacred trees are visited by petitioners seeking blessings, especially for health and fertility, from the indwelling spirit or deity who is usually regarded as female and a manifestation of the Earth Goddess? Food and flowers are left at the foot of the tree or shrine and ribbons of cloth or coloured wish bags are tied to the tree. In Africa among the Northern Sotho people, the sacred Marula tree is known as the marriage tree. A woman who wishes to conceive a boy will drink the infused bark of the male tree. In many parts of f Africa women still carry bark from sacred trees to make them fertile. In the folk tradition of Europe until the beginning of the twentieth century, trees were likewise attributed magical healing powers. For example children were passed nine toes though the cleft in an ash tree and the branches then bound together as a symbol of the healing process. The Celtic Druids worshipped not in temples, but in groves of trees. These natural woodland sites may have predated the Celts. Those that have been identified are frequently centred on a convergence of earth energies. In former Celtic groves in Wales, Brittany, Ireland and Cornwall the trees are still adorned with ribbons, trinkets and petitions for healing and blessings. The Australian Aborigines used healing remedies from trees such as tea tree and eucalyptus centuries before they entered more conventional medicine Tea tree leaves were inhaled by the Aborigines to prevent nasal, throat and chest congestion and ground into a paste to relieve burns and skin infections. Working with healing trees Below I have listed specific trees and their healing properties, physical, emotional and psychic that grow in different parts of the world. Trees from different lands can also be found in Botanical Gardens or arboretums so that wherever you live you can touch them and absorb their healing powers (see p00) You can also buy their extracts in herbal form from pharmacies or herbalists who will advise you on dosage and any prohibitions, for example during pregnancy. Small trees in a pot can create a sacred grove indoors or on a balcony or patio. Two or three bonsai trees at work will also provide an instant healing grove if tensions are rising. But every tree is a powerful source of spiritual healing that can help your own immune system to fight any illness or sorrow. Because trees are rooted so firmly in the earth, receive water through the roots and from the rain and light from the sun, they are an enduring source of earth healing in the most concrete of squares in a city centre. You can sit against a tree in a forest that may be hundreds or even thousand years old. Yews can live more than two thousand years and some oaks a thousand years old. a lot of accumulated power and wisdom. In woodlands or a local arboretum , look for a circle of trees that can become your own sacred grove. You may find your special tree that feels right for you in your local park or in your garden. The following method is one I use not only as part of my private Druidess work but as a stressed mother and working woman when I feel unwell, unloved and unlovely. I have also listed trees and their specific healing powers you can absorb spiritually just by being close to them. But as I said any tree will help to ease pain whether physical or emotional and restore well -being Merging with the essence of the tree
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