Secret of the apple tree

Since time immemorial, the apple a permanent place in the mythology of humanity. Mostly he was devoted to the goddesses of love, eroticism, fertility and immortality. The Greek Hesperides, daughters of the night, lived in a garden where the golden apples of the sun grew. This garden was guarded by a hundred-headed draak.Hesperiden
A Greek legend was the hero Herakles twelve accomplish difficult tasks. One was that he rose from the garden of the Hesperides to steal three golden apples. Along the way he Atlas, the sky carrier. He takes from him the burden of the heavens over. In exchange, Atlas catch the apples. This works when Herakles the dragon has slain with his arrows. But Atlas would rather go with the apples of it than the burden of the heavens to take on. By a ruse succeed Herakles to get the apples.
When the Greek legend spoken about apples, quince are usually intended or pomegranates. The throw from the apple was always a sign of affection.
The apple belonged to Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, but also with Demeter, goddess of fertility, with Venus, the Roman goddess of love and sensuality, with Hathor, the Egyptian goddess of love, by Iduna, the goddess of Love in the Nordic peoples.
Dionysus, god of wine, which had created the apple and gave it to Aphrodite.
In the Norwegian epic Edda explains that the gods eat the apples of Iduna to stay young.
AtlasIn the Euro-Asian cultures, the apple was also a symbol of love and fertility, but also perfection of the earth and the cosmos.
The Celts, the sacred apple. Of all the trees in the forest of Avalon (the island of apples) grew, the apple tree was the most noble, for he was the tree of immortality. Therefore King Arthur rode to the secret forest of apple trees to his heavy wounds to heal, which also succeeded. Avalon
In Christian symbolism, the apple is often associated with the Virgin Mary, inherited from the mother matriarchalische religions. But soon got the apple a negative connotation as a symbol of sin and temptation because the prelates patriarchalische it so wished. The white goddess of the ancient religions changed the corrupt, naive, seductive Eve, who dared to break God's commandment and the Tree of Good and Evil to eat. From here, the Latin phrase "malum malo e 'derived meaning" evil came from the apple or the apple that was picked by Eva brought us misery. "
For the famous physicist Newton (1643-1727) was the apple tree to tree of knowledge. He was the fall of an apple the law of gravity discovered.
The orb, symbol of the globe, symbol of world domination in antiquity. He was often depicted in the hand of Nike, Greek goddess of victory.
Nike


The apple in the story
Apples play an important role in the tale of Frau Holle. On her way through the underworld meets the girl an apple tree, crying: "Shake me, for my apples are all ripe!" She shakes the tree and is rewarded with a shower of gold, while her stepsister carelessly to the tree passes. If wages are they covered with a rain of pitch. apple of Frau Holle
Snow White ate the apple was poisoned by her jealous stepmother, and fell to death.
In the tale of a princess Vogel Grief cured of her illness by eating apples.
William Tell was a apple from the head of his son shooting.
After the first attempt had succeeded, he refused to shoot a second arrow and ended up in jail.




In his tale "Der Apfel," writes the German author Werner Bergengruen the following:
"Above a wall raised the branch of an apple tree, which hung a single apple, the apple had a beautiful color, its shape was that of a perfect sphere. Three people walked along this wall. She looked up and saw the apple. First thought: 'this is a delicious fruit. Its fragrance is sweet and its flesh is white and definitely sturdy. The hand that will pick the apple and the tongue will taste him, is fortunate. "
The second thought, "there was much need for this fruit to be what he is: the wild oerboom, a noble entloot, the experience of many human generations, diligence of the gardener, gardening art, suitable soil, sun and rain - and especially patience.
The third passing thought: "this apple is round like a globe, and as rich in color. He encloses all the kingdoms and their glory. Our ancestors ate. Who help professions, will participate in this rule and the orb paths as the child of the Virgin to the apple in the hand of his mother grabbed him playfully in his palm and held, because that's how the great masters painted. "
As the apple for these three people have different meanings, so my story has a triple meaning: a literal a moral and a mystic. "
Goddess Iduna


The magic of the apple tree
The use of the apple tree as food and birth tree is ancient. The apple tree was at the birth of a child planted. Verpieterde the tree, you had to with the early death of the child taken into account, he grew prosperous, it predicted that a long life. Well-being and distress are closely linked to the apple tree. The soul of man was the soul of the tree identified.

At weddings was the apple in the function of many peoples fertility symbol. The wealth of seeds gave information about the fertility of the couple.
In ancient Greece had a couple, according to the law of Solon, at the conclusion of the marriage or apple quince apples to eat to stimulate their fertility.
In Switzerland shields the supervisors of the bride and formed an apple from the shell characters. This was the future of the couple predicted.
They saw the tree, often as an oracle tree. When the cutting of the apple seeds damaged, damaged one with it's own life. Ate an apple for Christmas with Christmas, one would swear up. Ate an apple for the last rites, it was damned for eternity.
Apple trees were often witches and monsters associated. On Friday night dancing witches in the witch tree.
The nightmare appeared in the shape of an apple, and the entrance to the cave of the immortals is under an apple tree.
Witch Tree


Fruit of love
The apple has always been associated with the female bosom. That was when the ancient Greeks so. According to the saga Phryge, in order to escape a conviction in the courtroom have bared her bosom. This left the judges not cold. They were enchanted by the beauty of the two "shining apples." They condemned her.
The submission of an apple was a symbol of love. Together eating an apple was a sign of solidarity.
In the Celtic horoscope symbol is the apple of love. A person between December 23 and January 1 was born, who would possess the following characteristics: the apple is not really strong, but possesses grace and charm, strong personal charisma into old age. Her / his entire life, she / he is emphatic, sometimes happy, sometimes unhappy in love, and always ready to flirt or a love affair. She / he finds a partner in her / him best. Then he / she will find peace in love and not adultery. The apple man can not stand up for themselves and therefore can be abused by others. She / he is suitable as a scientist and under favorable conditions will achieve a lot in this profession. She / he lives like in the here and now and do not like in the future. Often, she / he is a little distracted and careless.