Night of the Green Man

A deluge. Thunder, lightening...and our StoryBook Club met on this most perfect May evening to discuss the legend of The Green Man.

He is a legendary pagan deity who personifies Life and Death. Growth and Decay. He is honored most especially at spring time, during Beltane (May Day) along with the May Queen (who personifies Mother Earth)...after all....Mother Earth needed someone to bring forth spring with!

You may have just recently come into knowledge of him, or you may have known about him for many years, for the The Green Man is believed to have begun as a pre-Christian entity, the spirit of nature personified as a man.

Most often associated with the Celts, his visage of a man peering out between leaves, entangled with vines, has often become a fertility symbol associated with pagan rites of growth and the cycle of life.

I, personally, had always associated him with life, nature, growth, earth, trees, sex, but there is his other powerful attribute, that he is also the symbol of death and of endings. After all, does not nature reclaim it's own in the end? Are we not worn down by time, worms, fire, and rain like all of creation?

 

This is why many "Wicker Men" are built...for us to remember that we are transient beings...

here today....

gone tomorrow.

Good stuff to remember.

Of course, it seems that the Church tried to make The Green Man, a personification of evil...meaning...that nature itself is evil. It is not evil, how'ere, in our technological world, we are becoming less and less comfortable in the out of doors, preferring a life of indoor pursuits, and becoming afraid or scared of "the woods" and all the "wolves and evil creatures in it."

Carl Jung wrote in his theory of compensation- that an archetype will reappear in a new form to draw attention to imbalances in society at a particular time, when it is needed. The Green Man is rising in our culture now, to balance our awareness, and to show our lack of care towards nature.
OF COURSE, The Green Man is returning now, because there is so much danger in his realm.

The earth needs our help.

We met up at Squirrel Haven, and very much enjoyed the stimulating conversations that started with The Green Man, and drifted to many tales of earth, technology, the ozone layer, the cutting of the rain forests, to cell phone zombie attachments (which take us off The Green Man's path) to that of the earth's decimation...to yes, even The Hulk (being the green man that he is as well.) We felt that The Hulk, while NOT The Green Man, does indeed, personify ANGRY NATURE, with earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes and acts of Mother Earth who is trying to rid herself of a terrible parasite (i.e. Man).

Intelligent conversations were indulged in as well as good green food: Spinach Artichoke dip and Rosemary Bread rounds, Veggie Casserole with Quinoa, Sauteed Kale, Lemon Cilantro Rice and Black Beans, Kiwis,
along with delicious adult beverages of: Cabernet, Riesling, Cheladas, Tequila Lemonade with Mint, and Buttered Rum. Green was also shared and the conversations were hearty and we laughed and chatted more.

There really aren't a lot of movies that feature The Green Man, so we watched a clip of the movie "Hell Boy" wherein they featured "A Forest God", an Elemental who also personified Nature.

It is a heady responsibility that we have this day to take care of our Mother Earth. The Green Man is our reminder to keep in touch with her and to do our best to make sure we honor her needs and that we do not become greedy bastards and use her up, but instead that we also replant, reseed, and re-cultivate good back INTO the earth,  instead of just being takers.

Favorite quote of Merlyn's of the evening, as noted by Stephanie:
"Well, AGAIN, that brings us back to The Hulk." :)

Yah.
Angry Nature.

Let's not have an Angry Nature God.

Let us love and protect her and let the May Queen and The Green Man, live in love together peaceably.

 Let's have Green Man parties all our whole lives long!
(Here's a pic from several years ago when we were in Florida with friends! Loving the shirts and dresses!)

 
So, get outside!
Plant some flowers!

Celebrate The Green Man!!