The Holy Rosary - Full

🌼 🌹 🌻 The Language of Flowers: Daisy. The name daisy come from "day's eye" because the flower is only open during the day and closes up at night. Another name is "thunderflower" since it blooms in the summer when thundershowers are common. In addition, the daisy is believed to keep away lightening. For this reason, it was also kept indoors.

The flower symbolism associated with the daisy is purity, innocence, loyal love, beauty, patience and simplicity. Daisies are believed to be more than 4,000 years old and hairpins decorated with daisies were found during the excavation of the Minoan Palace on the Island of Crete. Even further back, ancient Egyptian ceramics were decorated with daisies.

According to an old Celtic legend, whenever an infant died, God sprinkled daisies over the earth to cheer the parents up. It was customary to give parents a bundle of fresh daisies to improve their spirits and ally grief. In Norse mythology, the daisy was Freya’s sacred flower. Freya was the goddess of love, sensuality, beauty, and fertility, and as such the daisy came by symbolize childbirth, motherhood and new beginnings. Daisies were sometimes given to congratulate new mothers.

They also mean chastity and transformation because of the Roman myth of Vertumnus and Belides. According to the myth, Vertumnus, the god of seasons, agriculture and gardens, became utterly enchanted by the dainty nymph, Belides. Vertumnus was so beguiled and infatuated with Belides, and would not cease pestering Belides with his unwanted affections. Being the sweet nymph she was, Belides transformed herself into a field of daisies rather than hurt Vertumnus' feelings.

Among Christians during the Middle Ages, the daisy sometimes represented the Vergin Mary who gave the flower life with her tears. Alternatively, some medieval artists sometimes used a daisy as an emblem of the Christ child. It is said that a group of daisies lead The Wise Men to the child’s manger. They likened the flower to their guiding star abov.

Daisy’s are composite flowers, meaning that they actually consist of two flowers combined into one. The inner section is called a disc floret, and the outer petal section is called a ray floret. Because daisies are composed of two flowers that blend together so well, they also symbolize true love. The daisy, and its meaning, also inspired renowned authors throughout history. Shakespeare, (1564 - 1616), used a daisy chain in Hamlet to represent Ophelia’s innocence.

Since the daisy has no aroma, it was found predominatly in folk medicine. The main constituent is the flower heads sometimes along with leavs. These were steeped for treating colds. Since they were edible, there was no harm to this practice. Some healers also recommended the tea for kidney problems and arthritis pain. Daisies can be found in many parts of the world, including Europe, North America, Asia and Africa.