Neolithic Shamanism: Spirit Work in the Norse Tradition - Raven Kaldera 2012
Leek (Allium porrum)
The Green World: Plants
Raven: We think of herbs as magical, but we dismiss the spirits of so-called food plants because they are too familiar. We don’t see their power, but the ancients did. Father Leek is a protector of men in all walks of their life. When I see a young man who is unsure of himself, I feed him leek soup and ask Father Leek to help him. I ask the same if I see one who is too eager, who has no impulse control and no common sense, who needs a father to calm him down. This spirit is the oldest and tallest member of the Allium genus. He drives away evil spirits and lifts the immune system, the inner warrior. He gives virility, courage, endurance, and sureness of self. Father Leek has seen men go to war to protect their families, go to the fields to toil for them, and go to new lands to find a new life. He is the sword of the Green Man.
Galina: I’ve never understood why we are so ready to dismiss “food plants” when it comes to shamanic work. Cooking is one of the most essential, fundamental ways of nourishing a person: body, heart, mind, and spirit. Those plant spirits who have agreed to enter into this type of ongoing contract with humanity have the potential to be some of our strongest and greatest allies. Leek, whether the one seeking him out is male or female (for there are women who seek out the ways of the warrior as well as men), helps one develop a quiet confidence and bravery. He helps one find the means and tools to stay the course even when it is long, terrifying, and hard. He is a shining warrior and the teacher of warriors, and the old, gnarled veteran to whom they come to share their tales and find solace from the harshness of their fear.
The word leac in Anglo-Saxon meant any layered vegetable, or more specifically a member of the genus Allium, which includes onions and garlic. The Allium that seems to have the oldest history in northern Europe is the vegetable that we still call leek; to us it may be an obscure soup veggie in the back of the garden, but to the Germanic peoples it was a sacred plant of the highest order. It symbolized the male principle, being long and stavelike, and it was paired with flax (also known as lina) as the female principle. The spear and the spindle were symbols of male and female, and flax was spun, while leeks were shaped like spears or swords. Both Allium and flax have preservative qualities, and they were used together to preserve amulets made of flesh—for example, in the Icelandic Flateyjarbók (Flat-island Book), a farm wife preserves a horse’s penis by wrapping it with leeks and other herbs in order to make a cult object (likely for male fertility).
Leeks are carried as protective amulets in battle and are planted around the house to drive away evil. They are protective for men in general, and a man who puts bits of leek into ale drunk out of a vessel inscribed with the Nauthiz rune will never be deceived by a woman.
The Leekwight is very masculine and stoic, but with an inner fire. This is not the young, hotheaded warrior; this is the older, seasoned, controlled fighter who is nonetheless eager for the fight. The Leekwight is focused, goal oriented, and protective, and it is no wonder that this is a good plant spirit for men with a tendency toward rash and impetuous behavior. The Leekwight also seems able to calm down excess drinking, if it gets in the way of effectively doing what is necessary.
A female-identified person can also call upon Father Leek, although he is traditionally a male protector. However, he will also look after a woman’s male side, or help her to find a worthy male mate, or help her to win the respect of a male-dominated group. He is also a good protector and guide for women who are called to what are traditionally considered male pursuits, such as warriorship. While warriorship is neither male or female at heart, it has traditionally been the purview of men in our culture, and Father Leek helps women navigate and hold strong against any harassment or prejudice they might face in that pursuit. He can help a worthy woman rid herself of the burden of the type of feminization that says women should be dependent, weak, and passive. Introducing a girl child to Father Leek early on, and asking his protection over her, can go a long way toward shielding her from some of the more insidious messages of victimhood that still define what it means to be female in our twenty-first-century world.
Exercise: Leek’s Courage
While you can grow leeks in your garden—and that would be ideal—it’s also easy to find Father Leek in the produce section of the grocery store, and always pleasant to take him into your body as part of dinner. Ingest some leeks and let them seep into your bloodstream, then sit with him and ask him for his alliance. Holding and using a knife at the time is helpful, but it should be a utilitarian knife, and you should be doing useful things with it, like chopping vegetables or whittling. If he is willing to speak to you, ask him for aid in any of the above things we’ve mentioned, and make the requisite deal. Father Leek is fair, but he expects people to hold themselves to certain standards of courage and maturity, and if he cannot subtly guide them, he will eventually abandon those who are continually spineless and too paralyzed to do what must be done.