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HAWTHORN (Crataegus monogyna)
Key: Love
Hawthorn, may, quickthorn or whitethorn is one of the commonest of British trees quickly establishing itself in both grassland and wood. Its slow growth and tangled spiny form makes it an ideal hedging plant for which it has been used down the centuries. Hawthorn flowers between late April and early June, though traditionally it signifies the quarter day of Beltane, the 1st of May, beginning of summer. The blossoms are creamy white, sometimes pink, and they lie densely along the top of the branches. The smell is sweet, musky and erotic. The ripened fruit, the red haws, can be seen colouring the trees towards the end of August. Hawthorn wood is even, fine grained and quite lovely to work with, having a soft orange-pink colour. As a herbal remedy hawthorn is one of the best heart regulators, able to normalise a variety of conditions.
Hawthorn’s primary importance is as a balance and regulator of the energies of the heart chakra. The essence carries the benefit of the herbal preparation in that it will strengthen the heart in whichever direction it requires to normalise the function. Other essences and plants may be deleterious with some heart conditions, hawthorn can be used quite safely in most instances.
Hawthorn relieves stresses placed upon the heart centre – whatever the quality or origin of that stress. It increases trust and the ability to give and receive love. It brings forgiveness, particularly of the self, and helps to cleanse the heart of negativity.
The heart centre is the balance point and the centre of individual awareness. From this point the quality of the self is judged and how the self interacts and relates to all else in the world around it. The heart is the standard by which the individual weighs and interprets all experience. As such, this energy centre needs to remain clear of stress and free from inappropriate beliefs if full potential is to be achieved in life.
As the central pivot of the energy structures of the body, the heart chakra affects every other channel and centre. Hawthorn, by balancing the heart, can help to balance and align all the main energy centres.
Signature: Although appearing a gnarled and thorny tree its flowers feed many insects, birds and small animals through out the year. Because of its thorny branches hawthorn is often associated with Christ’s Passion: the messenger of love.
Comment: Hawthorn, because of its blossom and time of flowering , is closely related to the fecund aspects of the Goddess energy. It also has close folklore associations with nature spirits and fairy beings. For such a small tree (although it can grow in woodland to over 50ft), hawthorn has a strong, powerful and characteristic presence and awareness. Both berries and flowers can be used as an astringent for sore throats, as a diuretic and as a cardiac tonic.