wormwood

     I had no idea about wormwood until reading Rusalky tales.  With my head in the clouds on some subjects, psychoactive herbs, one might think, my ears will have been pricked years ago.  Here is what is out there for information on this shrub, golden flowered, green as grass lore.  I was told it grows like a weed and while strange looking, resilient!
     Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) is used for protection, love, psychic abilities and summoning spirits.  Burn wormwood in an incense blend to heighten psychic power, burn in incense with sandalwood to summon spirits.  Place magical sachets of wormwood underneath the bed to attract a lover.  The Egyptians used the plant as an antiseptic, a stimulant and tonic, and as a remedy for fevers and menstrual pains.
     Its aromatic leaves and flowers are naturally rich in the terpene thujone, an aromatic, bitter substance believed to induce an inexplicable clarity of thought, increased sense of perception, enhanced creativity, inspiration and the ability to see beyond.  The wormwoods are members of the great family of compositae and belong to the genius Artemisia, a group consiting of 180 species.  It is closely allied to mugwort.  The whole family is remarkable for the extreme bitterness of all parts of the plant.
     With the exception of rue, wormwood is the bitterest herb known.  According to the ancients, wormwood counteracted the effects of poisoning, by hemlock, toadstools and the bite of a sea dragon.  The plant is of some importance to the peoples of Mexico whom celebrate their Great Goddess of Salt by a ceremonial dance of women who wore on their heads, garlands of wormwood. 

folk names 

Absinthe

Old woman

Corwn for a King

Madderwork

Wormot

gender: masculine

planet: Mars

element: fire

powers: 

psychic powers, protection, love, calling spirits.

carried at the waist, wormwood is protective, hung in a bag

on the rearview mirror of a car, it prevents accidents.

burn it on charcoal to call up helpful spirits.

Samhain incense contains wormwood and mugwort.

(use with plenty of ventilation)

according to old grimoires, if it is burned in a graveyard

the spirits of the dead will rise and speak.

-many of the metaphysical attributes were cited with

The Deepest Well 

rusalky

     The Rusalky is a dusky elf with a curious history among humans.  Many negative connotations can be found although I prefer to hold my belief from a rather trusted source which does not intercept with the more christian systems.  The Rusalky were originally girls who drowned, committed suicide, were strangled or were buried without a funeral.  Maybe because of the harshness in life they lead, they can be harsh with humans.  Sometimes those who can not answer their riddles are tickled to death.  Those they catch in the woods without wormwood in their pockets will see the same fate. 

      Their activity schedule begins mid-April where they surface the water, or sit on the banks of streams and lakes, combing their long green hair.  After six weeks they move into the trees and beg for linen from passersby which is then carefully washed and spread out to dry.  Any human who steps on the wash will lose either strength or coordination, so the story goes.  The following week they collect feathers and straw to build warm nests in underwater palaces.  During this time, they also walk for the first time in grain and hay fields, slipping invisibly through the stalks, singing, clapping their hands and making grain wave in the winds.  Beginning in July the dance, into each night by the light of the moon and draw men into their circles.  Those who have joined them may never recover, but the grain grows better where they have danced.  By the first snowfall, they vanish and hibernate in the nests until Spring.