Subject: RE: Folklore: Tree of Life From: GUEST,Blandiver (Astray) Date: 21 Nov 14 - 06:32 AM Jesse was a popular image in mediaeval art; there are some beauties, including a much defaced one in St. Cuthbert's, Wells (images on line at Flickr). Damned reformation! It seems to be a custom to make them & decorate them like Xmas trees. Never heard of this before: http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/activities/view.cfm?id=545. Xmas trees as Trees of Life; rather than vestigial pagan rites with tinsel & baubles symbolic of the gonads and viscera of the sacrificial victims of yore. Trees of death! Talking of which, in the Apocryphal Legend of the Rood, Christ is crucified on a cross made from the trees that grew from the dead Adam's mouth. In the Foliate Passion of Norwich Cathedral the rood is green once more as Christ is nailed to the green sins of humanity: Foliate Passion (pic by me) |
Subject: RE: Folklore: Tree of Life From: Joe Offer Date: 20 Nov 14 - 08:29 PM The Tree of Life is a mystical symbol in most cultures, it seems. I think it's a natural thing, not necessarily descended from the religious practices of one culture or another. I have two magnificent Ponderosa pines in my yard that frame the setting sun much of the year, and they naturally draw me into thinking of the transcendant. And also in our area, we have ancient, gnarled oaks. They aren't as big as the pines, but their shape is so attractive to the eye that it cannot be ignored. -Joe- |
Subject: RE: Folklore: Tree of Life From: Jack Campin Date: 20 Nov 14 - 06:23 PM There is a deeply weird Tree of Life legend in some African cultures - described in a book by the South African shaman Credo Mutwa (who is a pal of David Icke and seems to be off his nut now, but that book has some fascinating stuff in it and seems trustworthy). |
Subject: RE: Folklore: Tree of Life From: GUEST,Rahere Date: 20 Nov 14 - 02:16 PM The Jewish Tree is descended from an esoteric tesseract mandala, and therefore probably of Indan origins. |
Subject: RE: Folklore: Tree of Life From: GUEST,Blandiver (Astray) Date: 20 Nov 14 - 04:25 AM Cheers, Joe. There's a interesting WIKI entry on the song, and this lovely old scan from 1802: http://www.hymnary.org/hymn/DHSS1802/II |
Subject: RE: Folklore: Tree of Life From: Joe Offer Date: 19 Nov 14 - 03:20 PM The YouTube recording Jack Blandiver linked to, had this message below it:
I added the title and to Jack's post. It is indeed a beautiful song. There's a thread on the song here (click). -Joe- |
Subject: RADD: Jesus Christ the Apple Tree From: GUEST,Blandiver (Astray) Date: 19 Nov 14 - 04:06 AM This is especially lovely. Anon. From an early 'Methodist' broadsheet, England, circa. 1730. I'm a sucker for Jane Siberry's version : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYNNVLKuyJg. JESUS CHRIST THE APPLE TREE The tree of life my soul hath seen, Laden with fruit, and always green, The trees of nature fruitless be, Compar'd with Christ the apple tree. His beauty doth all things excel, By faith I know, but ne'er can tell, The glory which I now can see, In Jesus Christ the apple tree. For happiness I long have sought, And pleasure I have dearly bought; I missed of all but now I see 'Tis found in Christ the apple tree. I'm wearied with my former toil, Here I will sit and rest awhile; Under the shadow I will be Of Jesus Christ the apple tree. With great delight I make my stay, There's none shall fright my soul away, Among the sons of men I see, There's none like Christ the apple tree I'll sit and eat this fruit divine, It cheers my heart like spiritual wine. And now this fruit is sweet to me, That grows on Christ the apple tree. This fruit doth make my soul to thrive, It keeps my dying faith alive; Which makes my soul in haste to be With Jesus Christ the apple tree. |
Subject: DT Correction: Tree of Life (Eric Peltoniemi) From: Joe Offer Date: 19 Nov 14 - 03:14 AM I bought a Tree of Life Menorah in Jerusalem that I will treasure for the rest of my life. Mine looks like this one, but gold. I've been working on perfecting the text of Eric Peltoniemi's Tree of Life for the Rise Again Songbook. His song uses names of various quilting blocks in the first two verses. He e-mailed me and pointed out two minor corrections in the Digital Tradition version of his lyrics, which are sung by Bok Muir and Trickett. The corrected words are in italics. TREE OF LIFE (Eric Peltoniemi) Beggar's Blocks and Blind Man's Fancy, Boston Corners and Beacon Lights, Broken Blooming on the Tree of Life. CHORUS: Tree of Life, quilted by the lantern light, Every stitch a leaf upon the Tree of Life. Stitch away, sisters, stitch away. Hattie's Choice (Wheel of Fortune), and High Hosanna (Indiana), Hills and Valleys (Sweet Wood Lilies) and Heart's Delight (The Tail of Benjamin's Kite), Hummingbird (Hovering Gander) in Honeysuckle (Oleander), Blooming on the Tree of Life. We're only known as someone's mother, Someone's daughter, or someone's wife, But with our hands and with our vision, We make the patterns on the Tree of Life. On Volume 1 of "Bok, Muir, & Trickett, the First Fifteen Years," Folk-Legacy Rec ords. From the play "Plain Hearts: Songs and Stories of Midwestern Prairie Women ," by Lance S. Belville, with music and lyrics by Eric Peltoniemi. The first two verses are comprised entirely of the names of quilting patterns. @feminist filename[ TREELIFE XX |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: DMcG Date: 12 Apr 02 - 06:01 AM And of course:
There is a tree in Paradise The 'tree of life' seems to be a very common theme in most religions, as 'The Golden Bough' has found. My guess, based on little or no evidence, is that it is something to do with the way a mature tree is clearly alive but is virtually unchanging in a human lifetime. Off the top of my head here are a couple of songs what have that sort of theme
Sair Fyled Hinny (DT: AULD MAN TAE THE OAK TREE) To that theme you could add a 'Tree of Death' motif: the Gallows Tree, neatly linking Odin hanging on Yggdrasil with the life of the Aesir.
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Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: catspaw49 Date: 11 Apr 02 - 07:57 PM As it was a large part of the Shaker tradition and religion, I'm surprised that the Shaker Tree of Life hasn't come up. Spaw |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Celtic Soul Date: 11 Apr 02 - 07:21 PM I had thought there was also a "Tree of Life" in one or more of the Celtic traditions. There is a knotwork representation I have seen where the limbs spread out and over, and join the roots. Anyone know about this one? |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Bill D Date: 11 Apr 02 - 04:39 PM diverging from the direction the thread has taken, you don't say what color this fretboard is....the tree that is 'usually' called "Tree of Life" these days is Lignumvitae which is named, not for ancient mystical ideas, but for it's presumed medicinal qualities. There are 3 or 4 species of this genus, 'guiacum', which grow from south Florida and Mexico thru Central America to northern S. America...it is a VERY dense, hard, resiliant wood which is slightly oily and used for mallets and things like housings for ship's propellors. Perhaps the fretboard is made from that...(the natural color of Lignumvitae is greenish-yellow to dark brown, may darken with age... |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Bardford Date: 11 Apr 02 - 12:25 PM Check "The Golden Bough", by Sir James George Frazer, for stacks of tree-related (and other) mythologies. It might interest you to know that in Germay, a way back, if one was caught stripping the bark from a tree, "the culprit's navel was to be cut out and nailed to the part of the tree which he had peeled, and he was to be driven round and round the tree till all his guts were wound about its trunk." Not a lot of canoe building going on in that neighbourhood, methinks. Online at: |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Paul from Hull Date: 11 Apr 02 - 11:52 AM Hmmm.....now you have said about 'World tree' though, its does sound like thats more accurate, from what I remember (& its YEARS ago when I read about this Norse stuff...hence why I was surprised that I got the spelling right!) |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: mack/misophist Date: 11 Apr 02 - 11:39 AM I must correct myself; Odin Allfather gained immortality by hanging himself from Yggdrasil for nine days and nights. So for Aesir it's a tree of life. |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: mack/misophist Date: 11 Apr 02 - 11:32 AM Paul From Hull; I think Yggdrasil is 'world ash' or 'world tree' not tree of life.(Ash trees were important. The first man, 'Ask' was carved from ash.) It's rooted in the core of the earth, or rather, midgard. The tree of life is also a common ornament in oriental carpets. |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Steve Latimer Date: 10 Apr 02 - 02:24 PM And I thought it was just prettying up my banjo. I ought to be a whole lot more inspired when I play now. I'll be a lot more careful with my language when I mess up. |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Paul from Hull Date: 10 Apr 02 - 02:17 PM I got it right??? I'm amazed....but yes you got a point about the Runes......*G* |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: DMcG Date: 10 Apr 02 - 01:55 PM Paul from Hull: We would ALL owe you a beer - except you forgot to use runes - you can't really represent it with a Latin alphabet. Phew! (We named our company web server yggdrasil with the same allusion) |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Jerry Rasmussen Date: 10 Apr 02 - 12:56 PM Genesis 2:9 "And out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the Garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil."
And in Revelations, 22:1-2 "Then he showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also on either side of the river, the tree of life, with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month, and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."
The imagery of the tree of life flows through the bible, from the first to the last book. Jerry |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Paul from Hull Date: 10 Apr 02 - 12:28 PM There is also a Tree of Life in Norse Mythology, called Yggdrasil (& if I've spelt THAT right I think I deserve a beer from each of you!!! *LOL* (but I think youre probably safe!)) |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: katlaughing Date: 10 Apr 02 - 12:19 PM There;s more HERE |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Steve Latimer Date: 10 Apr 02 - 12:06 PM MMario, Thank you for the link. Wow, no wonder I'm distracted!!
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Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: MMario Date: 10 Apr 02 - 11:52 AM evidently "tree of life" type patterns are rooted (no pun intended ) in the Kabbalah. |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Ebbie Date: 10 Apr 02 - 11:47 AM "On the other side of Jordan In the green fields of Eden There the Tree of Life is standing There's a bright, bright side somewhere." (Carter Family) Don't suppose this helps? Ebbie |
Subject: RE: Tree Of Life? From: Amos Date: 10 Apr 02 - 11:45 AM Ya might want to check that Ole Testament, I think. A. |
Subject: Tree Of Life? From: Steve Latimer Date: 10 Apr 02 - 11:42 AM The Aria Banjo that I recently bought from the auction has a "Tree Of Life" Fretboard. I find that it's very ornate, although a bit distracting (heck, Fielding missed the fifteenth fret when he played it). My question is, where does the "Tree Of Life" originate, and what does it represent? Thanks in advance. Steve |
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