Our traditions: The symbolism of the "verba" (03/30/97)

Our traditions

The symbolism of the "verba"

by Orysia Paszczak Tracz

Are the pussy willows out where you live? One sign of spring is the pussy willow, the blooming "verba," whose leaves appear later. It is the most beloved tree in Ukrainian folk culture, and its symbolism goes back to the earliest human existence in Ukraine.

Come to think of it, every aspect of nature - every tree, plant, bird and animal, as well as forces of nature such as fire and water - goes back in symbolism to those earliest times. It is fascinating to ponder the meaning in every folk song, proverb and custom. Behind each word of a folk song, for example, lies symbol upon symbol.

The first line of a song usually begins with a description of some aspect of nature, which would relate to the human story following in the rest of the song. For example: "Vysoka verba, vysoka verba shyrokyi lyst puskaie; velyka liubov, tiazhka rozluka, serdenko znyvaie" (The tall willow grows a wide leaf; a great love, a difficult parting, the heart is devastated). In this song, the willow is the symbol of sadness.

Not only is the willow celebrated in song, if is actually used as a symbol. After church services on Palm Sunday (Kvitna, or Verbna, Nedilia - Blooming, or Willow, Sunday), branches of the willow are used to symbolically tap a person for strength, happiness and health. This is after the pussy willow branches have been blessed in church and distributed after the service. (Except along the Black Sea, palms do not grow in Ukraine, and thus would be inappropriate for this holy day).

On the way home from church, the catkins were swallowed as a precaution against fever and sore throats. They were also mixed into kasha (porridge) in the belief that all the willow's spring potential and energy will pass into the person eating the kasha. We now know from world folk medicine that the inner bark of the willow contains the same painkiller found in aspirin.

After the blessed verba is brought home - even today in North America - the branches are placed behind the icons hanging on the walls, to keep away the "nechysta syla" (the unclean, i.e., evil spirit). This seems redundant, because isn't an icon's power enough for that? But what this practice shows us is that the belief in the willow's power is much older than the fairly recent (well, only 1,000-year-old in Ukraine) power of Christianity against evil.

The blessed willow branches also are planted in the garden, for the good future of young adults. If the willow takes, the young folks will marry and be healthy. That's no problem, because rarely does a willow not take root. A friend of the family, a religious man, later bemoaned the moment he stuck his verba branch into the soil near his garage. Within a few years, his backyard was a willow woods - but it was "blessed," and he hesitated about cutting it down!

The blessed willow branches were carried around the homestead after liturgy around the barn and the beehives, to ensure fertility of the animals and a good yield of honey. On the Feast of St. George, the cattle were first sent out to pasture with a willow branch, being tapped lightly for strength.

It was believed that holding a blessed willow branch in the direction of threatening clouds would prevent lightning, hail and storms. Willow branches were thrown into fires, because this was believed to lessen the fire's destructive powers. In some areas catkins were buried into the first furrow, so that the grain would come up as quickly as the willow does.

Water wells were surrounded by willows to protect them from evil powers, and to ensure that the water remained pure and strength-giving. The ponds in which clothing was washed also were surrounded with planted willows, to keep away illness and to keep the water clean.

The previous year's blessed willow branches were used to light the oven for baking paska and babka (the Easter breads). In many localities, blessed willow branches were placed into the caskets of the dead. Midwives especially had such branches in their caskets, to keep away the souls of those children who dies before being baptized.

The verba's branches and roots represent the ancestors and the family and clan tree. It was considered the ideal tree, and a poetic image of the whole family. It also stood for the symbol of a mother and married woman. As well, it denoted a worried girl, or sadness in general.

It was also believed that the willow is the sky holding up the sun. Because it grows so quickly, it was believed to have magical properties. For this reason pieces of the willow were placed in the water in which a woman about to give birth was bathed. After the birth, the midwife washed her hands and the new mother's hands in water with willow pieces in it so that the baby would grow as quickly as the willow.

The willow bears no fruit, so it is also a symbol of infertility. The phrase "to hide in the willows" (which really do hide someone) meant to lead a loose or immoral life. Since it is so difficult for a willow to dry out or die, just such a willow must be the place of the devil it was thought, because only his intervention could cause such a thing.

This Kvitna Nedilia, we may just look at the pussy willow in a different light, and show it even more respect.

With the hope that winter is finally behind us, I wish that you may be "tall as the willow, healthy as the water, and wealthy as the earth." (Budte velyki iak verba, zdorovi iak voda, i bahati iak zemlia).

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