Neolithic Shamanism: Spirit Work in the Norse Tradition - Raven Kaldera 2012
Fir (Abies spp.)
The Green World: Plants
Raven: There is a row of fir trees outside my house, planted by the Finnish settlers who lived here for generations. They put them in because they missed the firs of their homeland in this New England woods of pine, oak, and colorful maples, or so we believe. They stand like a row of ancestral guardians, watching over the house, which goes back almost two hundred years. I went out to ask them if they had a purpose, and they told me, “Guard the house.” There is a reason that we bring evergreen into the home at Yule and that the fir became the most popular Yule tree, the only tree sacrificed for the privilege of coming into the home itself. Grandmother Fir is a home guardian. She is wedded to Grandfather Spruce, who protects the elders, the wisdom of the tribe. Together, this tall and sturdy pair looks after the weakest and most vulnerable. I carry a charm, a Christmas ornament that is a fir tree in the snow, for her blessing on my home.
Galina: Fir is the other spirit, in addition to Juniper, that fascinated me as a child. She turns up in a lot of faery tales, particularly Russian folktales, and from the very first time I encountered one of these stories, I knew she was magic. She protects children particularly, and one of the gifts she brings is a sense of wonder and magic about the world. She protects the spirits of the young, and in this she is a formidable guardian.
Supposedly Saint Boniface made the fir tree a symbol of Christianity after he chopped down a sacred Pagan oak and a fir sapling grew up in its place. The fir tree was the classic Christmas tree for hundreds of years, complete with Martin Luther’s myth (and various other myths) of seeing stars in the tree branches, or of seeing a glowing child speaking from a fir tree. Before that, however, fir species (of which there are over fifty, but only about six are native to northern Europe) were dug up and brought into the home, along with a lot of cut evergreen boughs, as a way to welcome the woodland spirits into the home and bless it. Evergreens were a sign of life in the deadness of winter, when all other trees had lost their leaves and were slumbering.
Fir is the traditional Yule tree and is sacred to the Ancestral Mothers and the living mothers as well, as Yule is known in Old Norse as Modraniht. It is also a secondary sacred smudging herb for Siberian shamans, used with juniper. It brings the blessing of the Earth with its scent and can be used for recaning or as an asperger for Northern Earth goddesses, such as Nerthus or Jord, or any land spirit, or the element of Earth in general.
Grandmother Fir is a powerful guardian. She came to us as tall and strong, black hair tumbling down her back in many braids, cloaked in evergreen and snowy furs, holding a staff. “I protect the Mothers,” she said, “for they are the hope of the tribe, and I protect hope.” In her capacity of representative of that which survives the winter cold, she does indeed guard hope, and she is especially protective of breeding women and children. Planting a fir tree outside the house, or even carrying a twig, can help protect mothers and children who might be at risk for abuse.
Exercise: Evergreen Protection
As you did for the birch, find a fir tree and sit under her branches. Instead of milk, offer bread and butter. Speak of your home and all the people in it, and your love for them. Talk about their worth and why they are worthy of protection. Ask Grandmother Fir for her protection, and wait. If you get an answer, it will be quickly; if nothing happens after a while, pack up and go home. If she speaks to you and agrees to protect your home, take some twigs with you and hang them over the most-used doorway wrapped in a bit of dark green cloth.
If you do forge a bond with her and you own land, planting a fir tree might be wise. At the very least, even if you only live in a city apartment, you will have to be careful of how you dispose of any fir trees you buy at Yule. Grandmother Fir has no problem with being a Yule tree, sacrificed for the sacred solstice, but she wants to be honored during and afterward. As you decorate the tree, thank her for her sacrifice, and hang the over-the-door bag on the tree for the duration, after which it is returned to the door. The disposal of any Yule tree should be undertaken with care—it should be carefully gathered up and either taken to an outside location to be burned or else carefully dismembered and burned in a large woodstove or fireplace. Never throw the tree out in the trash or mulch it—Grandmother Fir wants to go up in flames. The match should be set alight by the mother of the household or the oldest child, and Grandmother Fir thanked for her generosity.