Myths of the Sacred Tree: Myths from Africa America, China, Sumeria, Russia, Greece, India, Scandinavia, Europe, Egypt, South America, Arabia

Essential to life on earth since the beginning of time, trees hold a special place in our collective consciousness: rooted in the earth, reaching skyward, nourished by the elements, and enlivened by the sap running through their veins, they provide a metaphor for what it means to be human.

Moyra Caldecott has gathered here a collection of myths celebrating the rich symbolism of trees, all bringing to life a time when the natural world was deeply respected and trees and forests were thought to be inhabited by spirits and divine beings.

Bound by the organized structure of modern life, the human spirit yearns for the wildness and freedom of primal nature represented by forests in their natural state. Caldecott's book has captured and given voice to this spirit.

Passionately interested in the meanings of myths and legends on all levels, Moyra Caldecott holds degrees in both English literature and philosophy and is the author of more than seventeen books, including Women in Celtic Myth. Born in South Africa, she was married to the late painter and publisher Oliver Caldecott. She lives in Bath, England.

Introduction

Gilgamesh and the Cedar Forest (Sumerian)

The Huluppa Tree (Sumerian)

Mahavira (Indian/Jain)

The Bodhi Tree (Indian/Buddhist)

The Old Tree (Chinese)

Isis and the Tamarisk Tree (Egyptian)

The Two Brothers (Egyptian)

The Singing Tree (Arabian)

Daphne and the Laurel Tree (Greek)

The Myrrh Tree (Greek)

Persephone and the Pomegranate Tree (Greek)

Orpheus (Greek)

Phaeton's Sisters (Greek)

The Golden Apples of the Hesperides (Greek)

The Transformation of Dryope (Greek)

Aeneas and the Golden Bough (Greek)

The Oak of Dodona (Greek)

The Dream of Nebuchadnezzar (Hebrew)

The Two Trees of Eden (Hebrew)

Eve's Tree of Redemption (Western European/Christian)

The Woman Who Was Turned into a Tree (African/Kenyan)

Two Sisters (African/Kenyan)

Invisibility (African/Nigerian)

The Young Man, the Lion, and the Yellow-Flowered Zwart-Storm Tree (African)

The Baobab Tree (African/Hausa)

Willow Wife (Japanese)

The Wonderful Birch Tree (Russian)

Yggdrasil, the World Tree (Scandinavian)

The Orange Grove and the Enchanted Canary (Flemish)

The Twelve Dancing Princesses (French)

Merlin and the Hawthorn Tree (British)

The Glastonbury Thorn (British)

Deirdre and the Yew Tree (Celtic)

The Piqui Tree (South American Waura)

The Sacred Cottonwood Tree and the Sun Dance (North American Sioux)

The Origin of Stories (North American Seneca)

Selected Bibliography

Index by Species