Calendula History, Folklore, Myth and Magic

calendula

While Calendula’s origins are somewhat disputed, there is no question as to how important this garden flower has been in more recent history. Europeans and early American colonists relied on calendula’s sunny disposition and gentle immune boosting properties for protection against the damp, cold of winter. It was a common pot herb, meaning it was often used in soups and stews, as well as a regular ingredient in daily herbal infusions and beauty treatments.

Calendula has been revered as a magical medicinal for centuries as well. Ancient Egyptians used calendula to rejuvenate their skin. The Greeks and Romans used it as a culinary garnish. In ancient as well as modern India, Calendula is often strung into garlands for weddings and religious rituals. Powers of protection and prophecy have been attributed to calendula. Strewing calendula under your bed was said to offer you protection from robbers and thieves and to induce prophetic dreams if you had been robbed, helping you to identify the culprit. When dealing with legal matters, it was considered wise to carry a bit of calendula in your pocket to ensure a positive outcome. Bathing in calendula infusion was thought to give one a healthy, sunny glow that would draw admiration and respect from one’s community.

Calendula Magic

Calendula’s medicinal affinity is for moving that which has stagnated in our defense system. He isolates and quarantines what doesn’t belong, and he helps warm the whole system, urging the body toward healthy circulation. Calendula offers us an opportunity to move that which has stagnated in our lives. He helps us warm and dry the emotional-energetic pools we’ve ignored or not quite noticed. Calendula magic offers us an opportunity to reclaim our boundaries and to make full use of the energy we already possess. Calendula magic is the magic of recognizing and using our wealth.

Calendula’s flowers follow the sun, gathering in those gentle, fiery, nourishing energies. His magic is warming, coaxing us into a brighter disposition and offering us a glimpse into the sunny possibilities even when we’re feeling mired in the dark of winter.  He asks us to seek similar energies in our lives and to use them to bring ourselves and our work into blossom. Calendula magic is the magic of nurturing potential.

As a hearty plant, Calendula is able to live in a wide variety of climates and soils, self-seeding and thriving on minimal care. Calendula magic is the magic of universal opportunity. He shows us that bounty, prosperity, and wealth are available to all of us, no matter our socio-economic situation, should we choose to focus on the bright, nourishing elements in our lives. “You have all you need to flourish,” he seems to counsel.

Calendula magic is the magic of wealth, its potential, its attitude, and its beauty. Blooming from early spring into late fall and even winter, Calendula has much to teach about sustaining wealth. As a mentor and wise companion on your journey, Calendula can show you how to recognize and create the conditions within which true wealth can come into blossom repeatedly. If Calendula has come into your life, look forward the many beautiful ways in which wealth can blossom for you and be ready to make all the adjustments necessary to maintain the conditions that best support those blossoms. Calendula magic is the magic of sustaining wealth.

In astrology, Calendula is considered a masculine plant and is governed by the Sun. His element is Fire.

You may also be interested in:

Browse Herbalism Topics

The Herbal Nerd Society

Gain access to even more with an additional 250 articles, recipes, and more in ad-free viewing.

Become a Member