21 Jan 2013 Gardening: Ancient remedies offer modern applications
by Jan Spann
With the Christmas season just past, most of us can easily name myrrh and frankincense as herbs and spices named in the Bible, but can you name any others?
Long before pharmaceuticals and cleaning products were readily available, herbs and spices were used as antiseptics, cleansers and food preservatives. Herbs and spices alike are rich in legend and lore and also in business. Wars were fought, trade routes established and culture and countries founded all in the name of the plants we call herbs, and many are still in use today.
Even before the mention on their travels with the Magi, frankincense and myrrh are recorded several times in the Old Testament. Frankincense was used in ancient rituals and was once considered an effective remedy for ailments such as toothaches and leprosy. Both are derived from the gummy sap that oozes out of trees and dried for essential oils or chewed like gum. Ancient Egyptian women used myrrh oil as a rejuvenating facial treatment, and frankincense was charred and ground into a powder for the dark eyeliner made famous by Cleopatra. These two oils are still used in Chinese medicine, and many Western medical researchers are investigating new uses, such as cancer treatment and pain relief.
Aloe, a succulent plant that thrives well in arid conditions and is used as a topical treatment for burns and abrasions, is believed to be the only plant saved from the Garden of Eden (“like aloes that the Lord has planted,” identified in the 24th chapter of the book of Numbers). The ancient Egyptians held garlic in high esteem, and our favorite Tex-Mex cuisine would be sadly lacking without cumin, mentioned by Jesus as he rebuked the scribes.
Hyssop, known as a holy herb, was used to cleanse the temples and other places the Egyptians considered sacred (“Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean” Psalms 51:7). A branch of hyssop was used to convey the sour wine to Christ on the cross. The parable of the mustard seed recalls that even though this spicy seed is small when planted, it soon grows into a huge tree. God can use even a tiny speck of faith in us to help shape our journey with Him.
In the artemesia family, wormwood is frequently mentioned in the Bible, usually for its bitterness. According to legend, wormwood grew from the serpent’s trail as it slithered away from the Garden of Eden. It is effectively used as an insecticide and is known as a dangerous hallucinogen called absinthe, used by van Gogh and Picasso.
Rue hales from the Mediterranean region, has long been a symbol of sorrow and repentance and now gives its name to the definition of regret, as in “rue the day.” Called the herb of grace in early Christian times, pungent rue branches were sprinkled with holy water and used at religious ceremonies.
Turmeric has found favor as the poor man’s saffron and is now recognized as an anti-inflammatory and expectorant that helps with asthma and bronchitis.
In our modern world, salt is one of the cheapest commodities available, but in Biblical times, salt was used as money as well as a cautionary tale. Who can forget Lot’s wife who broke God’s command to not look back and then turned into a pillar of salt? Other uses for this household staple in those long ago days were preservative, disinfectant, seasoning, burial and other rituals. In the New Testament, believers were called the “salt of the earth,” a phrase that today connotes a person well grounded and respected.
One of my favorite culinary herbs was held in high esteem as well. A symbol of remembrance and faithfulness, rosemary was used at weddings and funerals, two of the early church’s holiest ceremonies. Some lore notes that the rosemary plant would never grow higher than six feet in 33 years so as to not stand taller than Jesus. Another story tells that the flowers were originally white but changed to blue when the Virgin Mary hung her cloak on the bush while fleeing from Herod’s soldiers with the Christ child.
Colonial churchgoers carried fennel and dill to prayer meetings in early American times to curb appetite, and leaves of the costmary (in the chrysanthemum family) served as bookmarks in Bibles and prayer books. The herb came to the rescue when a congregant felt drowsy.
And while not a spice or herb, the dogwood is well loved in the South, both for its beauty and its symbolic link to Christianity. Legend holds that the wood of the dogwood tree was used in the cross on which Jesus was crucified and thus cursed by God so that the tree’s growth pattern would be stunted and twisted. The legend also includes the dogwood’s flowers, which has two long petals and two short petals, forming the shape of the cross.
The center of the blossom resembles a crown of thorns and is typically darker than the rest of the bloom.
As researchers study ancient remedies and uses, we are learning that many of these choices are more beneficial to our health than some prescription drugs. Whether culinary or medicinal, aromatic or symbolic, herbs and other plants hold special sway in our culture, in both past and present times.
A Conway resident, Jan Spann has been gardening for 20-plus years and has been involved with the Faulkner County Master Gardeners for 11 years. She and her husband, Randy, have five children and eight grandchildren.
