LINDEN TREES ( A POLISH PERSPECTIVE) prepared for the webinar organized by Czechoslovak Genealogy Society International (CGSI) scheduled on 27. April 2019

[→ SLIDE 1 : SHORT INTRODUCTION]

[→ SLIDE 2] In my presentation I will try to show you the Polish perspective on the symbolism of the linden trees. Just like in other cultures across the globe, most of the trees native to our climate held some form of a cultural importance in our folklore. They were, we might say, belived to channel or to boost the – quote unquote - ‘female’ or the ‘male’ energy of the nature. It had its roots in old primeval beliefs and symbolism connected to the basic ideas of the dualistic cosmology, comparable to some degree to ancient ideas or concepts like the Chinese yin yang. One interesting detail I wanted to mention here is the linguistic connection. As you most likely already know, the as well as the other Slavic languages are among the linguistic groups that use grammatical genders: masculine, feminine and neuter. In our context of the sacred trees, their name as a noun in the Polish language usually corresponds with the symbolic ‘gender’ they’ve been assigned to centuries ago – which means the energy they boost. The general word meaning a tree, drzewo, is a neutral noun. What you can see on the slide are only a few examples of trees that are important in our folklore, seen as sacred in the old times. Of those symbolizing the ‘male’ energy I could mention oak, beech and sycamore. Of those symbolizing the ‘female’ side of the nature linden, birch and willow were among the most significant. [→ SLIDE 3] Some of those trees were so extremely important that the names of the months were dedicated to them. To this day the month of July is called lipiec, after the linden tree (lipa). It corresponds with the cycle of its life: in our climate the linden trees bloom usually around the turn of June and July. Other names are known from historical sources describing the archaic Polish language or dialects. For example, March was named brzezień after brzoza (the birch) or April was named dębień after dąb (the oak) [→ SLIDE 4] Some of the sacred trees were seen as ‘blessed’ and channelling only the good, protective energy, while some other could be described as ‘cursed’. Because we’re going to focus on the linden tree, I’ve chosen a few examples of the ‘female’ trees to show you on the slide, with trees like the linden, hazel, or birch being seen as blessed, or channeling the ‘pure’ energy, and trees like willow or aspen having somewhat of a more complex meaning. The word ‘cursed’ which I included on the slide appears in the folklore, however it might be a bit too strong of a word to contain all of their meanings becaue the traditions as we know them nowadays aren’t that one-dimentional. It’s sometimes hard to distinguish what comes from the primeval beliefs and what’s been a more recent interpretation clashing with superstitions or with Christian beliefs. I’ve been told that the willow tree in the cursed trees section is an interesting example, because it differs a little from the symbolism you might know from the western traditions where it usually represents the growth, balance, life and harmony, above all. [→ SLIDE 5] Let me try to describe it just shortly. In our culture willow is most commonly called a symbol of sorrow and grief. It meant yearning and melancholy, maybe a bit like in the English name of the ‘weeping tree’. In this meaning of the willow penetrated even the high culture, for example it’s a common motif in the illustrations accompanying the sorrowful music of Frederic Chopin. In the rural traditions and legends, willow was a tree attracting old spirits, that were called demons or devils through the later Christian perspective. That image was particularly strong with the descriptions of a dying, dry willow. Popular motifs in the Polish legends include a cunning devil appearing on a willow tree or in its hollows at midnight, or a appearing in waters underneath it. And what attracted them? Here we come closer to the primeval Slavic mythology. In the old days willow trees had a connection with the underworld called Nawia, a world enclosed by waters and ruled by the Slavic god . The god appeared as horned and in the folklore his persona had been reduced to a role of a devil over the centuries. Willow remained the place connecting the two worlds – a place where the spirits can appear with ease, and where one could connect with them and ask for divinations, but a dangerous place for the living who would approach it at night, unprepared and unprotected. What’s important, the symbolism of the willow, just like of many other trees, wasn’t that one- dimentional. It was also seen as enhancing fertility or representing the rebirth, thanks to its ability of a fast growth, or symbolizing the joys of music and used as a material for magickal practices or divinations – what again links it here to the god Veles. That’s a broad topic which would require making a separate presentation just about the willow to explain it all in details. Today we’ll focus on the most prevalent ‘blessed’ tree – the linden. [→ SLIDE 6] Linden were among the most sacred of all trees, and probably the most sacred of those representing the ‘female’ aspects of the nature. Of course, there are many small regional differences, and I’ve seen articles arguing whether the linden or the birch, or even the willow should be interpreted as the most important ‘female energy’ tree in the Polish folklore. In the end, it’s all a matter of perspective and the linden was undoubtely among the most important in the Polish rural communities. Linden was usually paired with the oak tree that is undoubtedly the most important ‘male energy’ tree. Together they form a symbiotic relationship, enhancing or supplementing each other. Both are known for their longevity, and could live for hundreds of years in our climate. An overwhelming majority of single trees included in nature protection programs in Poland nowadays are either oaks or linden. [→ SLIDE 7] The linden had many meanings and uses in the Polish culture and folklore. I’ve divided its purposes into three groups: linden as the ‘witness’ of people’s life and fate; as the ‘passage’ connecting to the spiritual world, and as the common ‘material’ where it was used for physical healing which was also extremely important for the common people. [→ SLIDE 8] Let’s take a closer look at the first group of meanings: the ‘witness’ of people’s life and fate. Linden was a common symbol of fertility and of motherly protection. It accompanied the people in their journey from life to death. Apart from enhancing the fertility, it was also believed to help women during the labour. Then, it was said that cradles made from linden wood were the best for the infants, the linden wood ensured protection from harmful spirits. Linden trees were planted on private properties, very often as a tree dedicated to a daughter after her birth, but also simply as a protective tree that was meant to cover the cottages or manors with its soothing shadows. People believed that living ‘under a linden tree’ would bring happiness and a blissful life. Rows of linden were also planted for a similar reason along alleys leading to the property. When leaving the house, they were meant to grant you a safe journey and a safe return. One of the linden’s protective traits, as believed on the countryside, was also to ward off the lightnings – another reason why was it planted close to the households. It was one of many trees that had this trait, in opposition to for example the willow that was said to attract the lightnings. The peaceful atmosphere created by linden made it a good place for community gatherings. Judgements were made in its shadows, especially these which required a peaceful reconciliation. Vows were exchanged under its branches, vows of fraternity, friendship, marriage. These are only a few of the most common examples of the linden being present throughout people's lives. [→ SLIDE 9] In the next group I’ve collected the most important examples of linden’s significance in the spiritual life of the people. It was probably the most important tree able to make a good connection between the world of the living and the spiritual sphere, and reach the gods and saints. Similar to the fashion of planting the linden close to the houses, they appeared also on sacred land, on cemeteries and on the church plots. Linden were believed to purify the surroundings and therefore able to create or strenghten a sacred space. Planted next to a grave, it provided a peaceful rest for the souls, and a coffin made from the linden wood granted a good journey to the afterlife. I could say that a peaceful afterlife was highly desired in the Slavic culture – for example the Polish folklore and rural beliefs were filled with stories about those who met an unfortunate death or weren’t burried properly, and came back as vicious spirits or demons. Preventing that was crucial in the minds of the rural people in the past. Linden’s ability of purifying the surroundings was used in many other ways, for example it was planted next to the water wells. It sometimes accompanied also water springs that were believed to be holy, as it probably amplified the holy water’s healing abilities. Linden wood is one of the common soft woods that had many uses in the everyday life of the people, but one of the most important uses in the context of the spiritual life is the sculpting. Rural artists loved using the linden wood for religious sculptures and it was often treated as the best material for figurines depicting the Holy Mother or female saints. Old linden trees were very often adorned with shrines dedicated to the Holy Mother. Holy figurines were put inside natural hollows in the tree, or inside wooden constructions attached to the trunk. It was also the other way around: linden trees were planted on two sides of pre-existing wayside shrines. Linden wood was extremely important also in creation of religious images, and the most evident are the icons known primarily from the Eastern churches. In the areas of Poland that had or still have a dominant Eastern Orthodox or Eastern Catholic communities, linden wood was the easiest to obtain of all the types of woods seen as sacred – keep in your mind that it always depended on local geography. According to the research article I’ve found, the linden wood was the most popular material for icons in the Carpathian area up to the 17th century. [→ SLIDE 10] The last group is dedicated to the many uses of linden in the old rural medicine. The juices, flowers, the bark, the plhoem, and so on – people tried to heal themselves with that sacred tree in numerous ways. Most of the linden’s properties are widely known nowadays, therefore I’m not going to dwell into much details in this section. When getting ill, the peasants’ first treatment was often to drink linden juices or infusions from the flowers. Similarly to the ability of purification which I described in the previous group, linden was used to clear a person’s mind, and in many related healing rituals. Sometimes, even just touching the linden with prayers was believed to take at least a part of the illness out of the body. [→ SLIDE 11] Importance of the linden tree was evident and the tree penetrated many spheres of Polish culture. It was mentioned in poems of Jan Kochanowski, who was regarded to as the greatest Slavic poet before the 19th century. He was known to have a habit of sitting under a linden tree planted next to his house, which he described a few time in his works. Among his numerous poems, he published three epigrams dedicated most likely to that particular linden. [→ SLIDE 12] Here you can see a translation of the most well-known of his epigrams, dedicated to the linden. I’m not going to read it out loud now, but I recommend you to come back to it later and embrace it in peace. If you’re a person who likes reading poetry, you can try to find other works by Kochanowski – his poems are an interesting example of Slavic poetry from the Renaissance era. [→ SLIDE 13] Linden as well as the oaks were sometimes planted as a commemoration of important historical events: victories, treaties. There aren’t as many events from the Polish history we know of when these trees were planted on a mass scale like it’s known from the Czechoslovak history, but an important and quite well-documented case occurred in 17th century during the reign of the king Jan Sobieski. In the year 1683 the Polish troops were expected to assist in the battle of Vienna. Both while marching out from the Polish Kingdom towards the city and coming back victorious, the troops as well as locals in the towns they passed through planted trees on behalf of the victory – these were mostly oaks representing the strenght and victory, but also many linden. They are commonly regarded to as ‘Sobieski’s Trees’. That event occurred quite far in the past, and we don’t have a full spectrum of informations about them. A few years ago the Polish government announced a program where the trees were searched for in an attempt of creating a catalogue, and sadly not as many as expected were confirmed to be still existing nowadays. There’s a website with several confirmed trees pinpointed on the map – most of them around the region of Silesia, where the Sobieski’s troop marched through. It could match the many legends – according to one, the king personally initiated that event, and planted a linden tree himself next to a cloister in Gliwice, before departing to Vienna. [→ SLIDE 14] Apart from the Sobieski’s victory trees, people planted also the linden in appretiation of Sobieski’s beloved wife – nicknamed Marysieńka. Their marriage was described as rare at those times, because they formed a loving and understanding relationship, and their fondness of eachother was widely known in the kingdom. The so-called Marysieńka linden weren’t included in the state program collecting locations of the victory trees which I mentioned in the previous slide, therefore it’s rather impossible to say how many of the “Marysieńka linden” were planted or how many survived over the centuries. I know of a few of them, for example one located in the town of Dobczyce, not far away from my home town. It was planted on the sacred land belonging to a local old church. Over the centuries, it was adorned with a small shrine dedicated to the Holy Mother. The tree was heavily damaged during the late stages of World War 2, but then restored by the local community. Now it’s under protection as a natural monument, still with the shrine on its side. [→ SLIDE 15] There are dozens if not hundreds of significant locations in Poland connected to the linden trees, either by the name, or by legends, or by a presence of an old linden tree appearing in local history. A good example could be the village of Święta Lipka in northern Poland. That name means literallly a Sacred Linden. The place is connected to legends about miracles, and its old basilica is believed to be built above a much older sacred grove of the Old Prussians, the extinct Baltic tribe related to the modern-day Lithuanians. Example of a significant so-called family tree could be the Reymont’s Linden located in the village of Prażki in central Poland, on a property that was aquired by the family of Władysław Reymont, a Polish writer who won the Nobel Prize for his novel ‘The Peasants’ in 1924. He was known to travel to the village for its peaceful atmosphere, perfect for writing. That linden is believed to be around 350-400 years old. I’ve included the names on the slide for you, so it’s easier to look them up later with the correct spelling. The last example that I want to include here is my home town Myślenice located to the south from the city of Kraków. There’s a peculiar tree in our coat of arms, adorned with medieval axe and chopper. Our historians argue what type of a tree should be portrayed there, because the oldest known stamps and historical documents mention an oak tree. However, in the local culture the linden playes the important role, and is mentioned in the oral stories and legends. Moreover, there used to be a certain linden, growing alone on a hill seen from the town’s main square, that was said to be the unofficial symbol of the town. Unfortunately, it was destroyed by a storm a few years ago, but still plays an important role in the consciousness of the locals. According to historical documents, that particular linden was planted only in 19th century, possibly on a place of an older tree. Legends mention a story about two feuding brothers clearing the forest from two sides for firewood during a harsh winter. They eventually met by a linden but were surprised by a snow storm. They hid in the linden’s hollows what not only saved their lives but also made them come to terms with each other. When the storm ended, they burried the hatchets -or the axes seen on the coat of arms. Linden was a symbol of reconciliation for our town, a bright promise in a rather troubled history of the place. [→ SLIDE 16] There are numerous Polish legends mentioning the linden, and some common tropes about the tree. Linden was undoubtely a sacred material in the rural stories. Branches or cords made from linden phloem were mentioned in stories as a magickal weapon able to neutralize or even enslave a devil or a vampire. The phloem was also used to craft shoes by the peasants, and in some legends those shoes protected the owner, and – if made in a certain way – they could even lead to great treasures. Such linden shoes were appearing in some local versions of the legend about the mystical flower that could be found only on one night during the year. It was a common motif in the Polish rural stories for the gods to be were wandering on the earth. Many of those stories tell about the Holy Mother that spotted the linden during one of her walks. She then chose that tree to be her home on the earth, and that’s why the people adorned those trees with sacred shrines. A lot of revelations of the Mother Mary were said to happen on the linden. According to ethnographers, Mother Mary was undoubtely a figure where many pre- Christian beliefs in the old goddesses syncretized over the centuries. [→ SLIDE 17 : ENDING NOTE] © Dagmara Dziekan, April 2019

CONTACT: lamusdworski.wordpress.com [email protected]

SOURCES:  Barbara Ogrodowska: "Medycyna tradycyjna w Polsce", Wyd. Muza, 2012  Barbara Ogrodowska: "Zwyczaje, obrzędy i tradycje w Polsce. Mały słownik", Wyd VERBINUM, Warszawa 2001  Andrzej Szyjewski: "Religia Słowian", Wyd. WAM, Kraków 2003  Adam Szary: „Bieszczadzkie motywy roślinne. Między światem żywych a krainą zmarłych”; Wydawnictwo „Carpathia”, Rzeszów 2015  Bronisław Gustawicz: "Podania, przesądy, gadki i nazwy ludowe w dziedzinie przyrody. Cz. 2, Rośliny", Kraków 1882; available at: https://polona.pl/item/podania-przesady-gadki-i-nazwy- ludowe-w-dziedzinie-przyrody-cz-2-rosliny,MTg5ODU1NTk/106/#info:metadata  Jacek Olędzki: "Filodzoon. Ciesząca się życiem - albo - Ogławianie. Kultura wierzby"; in: "Polska Sztuka Ludowa - Konteksty", 1994 t.48 z.3-4; available at: http://cyfrowaetnografia.pl/ dlibra/docmetadata?id=2314  Stanisława Gajewska: "Obraz dębu i lipy w literaturze polskiej i litewskiej XIX – p. XX wieku. Studium porównawcze"; Wilno 2011; available at: http://gs.elaba.lt/object/elaba:2051582/  Małgorzata Drożdż-Szczybura: "Symboliczne znaczenie roślin uprawianych w tradycyjnej zagrodzie. The symbolic meaning of plants grown in a traditional homestead"; in: "Środowisko Mieszkaniowe", 2018, 22/2018; availavle at: http://www.ejournals.eu/housingenvironment/2018/(22)2018/art/11237/  "Folklor Rzeszowiaków - obraz przemian według badań terenowych 2014-2016"; Muzeum Kultury Ludowej w Kolbuszowej, 2018; available at: https://issuu.com/muzeumkulturyludowejkolbuszowa/docs/folklor_rzeszowiakow  Anna Kosiorek, Tomasz Ważny: "Gatunki drewna stosowane w ikonach karpackich", in: Ochrona Zabytków 50/3, 315-320, 1997; available at: http://bazhum.muzhp.pl/czasopismo/31/?idno=3512  Robert Piotrowski: "Diabeł spętany. Motyw zniewolonego czarta w polskich przekazach folklorystycznych i etnograficznych", in: "Literatura Ludowa" 4-5/2017; available at: http://apcz.umk.pl/czasopisma/index.php/LL/article/view/LL.4-5.2017.002  Edyta Pietrzak: "Historyczne spojrzenie na mistyczne związki ludzi z drzewami", in: "Maska" Nr XXVII, 2015; available at: http://www.maska.psc.uj.edu.pl/numery/numery-regularne/numery-21-30/numer-xxvii