Mistletoe in mythology - especially during Advent

Our visit to the Christmas market in Naumburg yesterday has once again deepened the mystery of the customs surrounding the mistletoe that is hung on front doors during Advent - what is the truth behind this ancient mythology?

Is it just a commercial product for sale?

Mistletoe became a myth in ancient Greece

Ancient Greece is the first known culture in which mistletoe was worshipped. The Greeks called its white berries "oak sperm" and viewed them as a symbol of male fertility. In Greek mythology, Aeneas wore a mistletoe to protect himself on his journey to the underworld and to ensure his return.

The druid Miraculux, known from the Asterix comics, only appears much later!

The Nordic story, perhaps better known as mythology, says that the goddess Figg lost her son, the god Baldur, to an arrow made of mistletoe. After his death, she swore that the mistletoe would kiss everyone who passed under it, as long as it was never used as a weapon again. The story of the kiss has led to the tradition that we still know and love today:

This famous custom originally comes from England. In the 18th century, the mistletoe berries were supposedly called "kissing balls". According to tradition, the custom says: If two people meet under a mistletoe, they are allowed to kiss. This kiss stands for romance on the one hand and friendship on the other. If a woman who is standing under a mistletoe is not kissed, she will not get married the following year.

Mistletoe to ward off evil spirits and demons

Mistletoe was used primarily as a protective plant against evil spirits, demons and witches. It was often worn around the neck as an amulet, attached to the roof truss or hung on stable entrances and front doors - as we still do today at Christmas and New Year. Mistletoe is often hung over front doors, especially during Advent.

The mistletoe is actually more of a parasite, because the mistletoe pushes its root-like haustoria deep into the branches and ducts of its host tree, weakening it and this also has a negative effect on the fruit, for example on an apple tree. If you want to harvest fruit, you should therefore not leave any mistletoe on the apple tree.

The rootless mistletoe grows semi-parasitically on deciduous trees such as poplars, willows, hawthorns, birches, hazels, locusts, lindens, maples, hornbeams and apple trees. They use their haustoria to extract water and the mineral salts dissolved in it from their host, but they carry out photosynthesis themselves.

Mistletoe is one of the plants that benefit from climate change. They particularly like to attack trees that are already damaged and weaken them further. Mistletoes should always be removed from the garden.

Please read as well:

Christmassy Naumburg - Christmas in the courtyards and cellars

Literally getting old - mounds and megalithic tombs near Lohmen