Walpurgisnacht Herblore

April 30th, Walpurgisnacht approaches. This lesser known pagan Germanic holiday is defined by Sturm and Drang or “Storm and stress”. They say March is, “in like a lion, out like a lamb,” and this is in my opinion most definitely reflected in the energetic flavor of this season. 

Both Celts and Germans valued the time of year modern pagans and witches know now as Beltane, for their cultures often overlapped in sacred observances. They both observed the night before May Day as well with bonfires in which they burned fennel, rue, chervil, thyme, chamomile, pennyroyal, and geranium for Celts, and rosemary, juniper, rue, hemlock, blackthorn, and wild caper for Germans. Johann Wulfgang von Geothe, the influential German romantic late 18th century writer,  used the wild night as a backdrop for Faust, revealing this obscure night to a much broader audience, thus reigniting an interest in this wicked holiday through his devilish play. I read Faust as a 15 year old and was immediately transported along with him to the devilish reveries described and the wild evening had at the top of the mountain described in that infernal play. 

This night, as often is the case, is named after the Saint:  Walpurga. She is an 8th-century abbess of Francia, and is celebrated on the night of 30 April and the day of 1 May. This night celebrated the canonization of Saint Walpurga and the movement of her relics to Eichstätt, both of which were said to have occurred on the 1st of May 870. Saint Walpurga was hailed by the Christians of Germany for battling "pest, rabies and whooping cough, as well as against witchcraft." In Germanic folklore, Hexennacht, literally "Witches' Night", was believed to be the night of a witches' meeting on the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz Mountains, a range of woodland in central Germany. As is often the story, this Saint's day superseded the festivities of May Day and supplanted the Old Pagan celebrations, or perhaps grew up alongside them, for folk culture is constantly being born. 

In Eastern Europe, pitchforks of burning hay were waved about this eve to impart the power of the sun to the fields in an act of imitative magic. As in many Scandinavian traditions, people made noise with loud gun firing and noisemaking to drive out evil. In medieval Europe, the night of April 30th represented Queen May’s 11th hour bid to take back forest and field from king winter before he was driven off; one can see a reflection of this more modern pagan mythology in the neopagan stories of the Oak and Holly king. 

Horseshoes are nailed prongs up on the threshold or over the door. Holy bells are hung on the cows to scare away the witches, and they are guided to pasture by a goad which has been blessed. Shots are fired over the cornfields to frighten away ill spirits. If one wishes, they can hide in the corn and hear what will happen for a year. It is also a night to look for signs and omens, for on Walpurgis Night, omens have more weight than at other times of the year save for on St. John's Day, or Midsummer. 

There are many lover’s omens on this eve, just like in Scotland on All Hallows. They say if you sleep with one stocking on, you will find on May morning in the toe a hair the color of your sweetheart's. Girls try to find out the temperament of their husbands-to-be by keeping a linen thread for three days near an image of the Madonna, and at midnight on May Eve pulling it apart, saying:

"Thread, I pull thee;
Walpurga, I pray thee,
That thou show to me
What my husband's like to be."

They judge his disposition by the thread's being strong or easily broken, soft or tightly woven.
It was also believed that the dew on the plants found on the first morning of May first makes girls who wash in it beautiful.

"The fair maid who on the first of May
Goes to the fields at break of day
And washes in dew from the hawthorn tree
Will ever after handsome be."


A heavy dew on this morning presages a good "butter-year." You will find fateful initials printed in dew on a handkerchief that has been left out all the night of April thirtieth.

On May Day girls invoke the cuckoo:

"Cuckoo! cuckoo! on the bough,
Tell me truly, tell me how
Many years there will be
Till a husband comes to me."

Then they count the calls of the cuckoo until he pauses again. If a person wears clothes made of yarn spun on Walpurgis Night to the May-shooting, they will always hit the bull's-eye, for the Devil gives away to those he favors, "freikugeln," bullets which always hit the mark. On Walpurgis Night as on Hallowe'en strange things may happen to one. Zschokke tells a story of a Walpurgis Night dream that is more a vision than a dream. Led to be unfaithful to his wife, a man murders the husband of a former sweetheart; to escape capture he fires a haystack, from which a whole village is kindled. In his flight he enters an empty carriage, and drives away madly, crushing the owner under the wheels. 

He finds that the dead man is his own brother. Faced by the person whom he believes to be the Devil, responsible for his misfortunes, the wretched man is ready to worship him if he will protect him. He finds that the seeming Devil is in reality his guardian-angel who sent him this dream that he might learn the depths of wickedness lying unfathomed in his heart, waiting an opportunity to burst out. Both May Eve and St. John's Eve are times of freedom and unrestraint. People are filled with a sort of madness which makes them unaccountable for their deeds.

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Cuckoo Bird by Basil Ede 1960

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+The Herbs of Walpurgisnacht+

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Elder: At this time, protection bundles of Elder leaves hungover animal’s stalls with wild roses in Bohemia and in Northern Europe, crosses of hawthorne, rowan, and birch were nailed to lintels of both house and barn. Essentially, this Germanic Walpurgisnacht celebration resembles Celtic Beltane. In other European countries, sprigs of ash, hawthorn, juniper, and elder, once sacred to the Old gods, are now used as a protection against evil witchery.


Hawthorn: The root words for hedge, hag and haw all have the same origin. Some say that on April 30th the hags shall turn themselves into Hawthorns. This stands as a warning to any wandering folks out on this eve to not tarry around the hedges and beneath these thorny trees lest they run into the hag herself! 

Oak: A German witch may conjure good weather on May Eve by filling a man’s shirt with Oak leaves and hanging it from a branch of a tree to sway in the wind. This charm will bring good winds to chase away the rain.

Birch: Birch is often associated with the shining, virginal energy of the May Queen or young vernal goddesses, however the infamous witches broom itself can claim the largest stake in the birch this night. Birch twigs and an Ash wood handle are often said to be the traditional woods for the witches broom throughout Western Europe. It is also the species of the legendary Ygdrasill world tree of nordic folklore (although there is some debate about this as Yew is also suspected by some historians.)

Dill: The name comes from the Norse “dilla” meaning to lull or soothe. Hung in the household bunches of dill keep witches away. Wearing a pouch of dried dill over the heart will protect the wearer from hexes. “Vervain and dill hinder witches from their will.”- Michael Drayton. “Nymphidia”- 1627

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Dill

Chervil: It is one of the Nine Herbs in the Nine Herbs Charm, and is considered sacred to Odin, or Wotan/ Wodan. It originates in the Middle East but was used as a blood cleanser in the European Middle Ages and was a part of Lenten periods.  

Juniper: Burned to sanctify and cleanse the home after a long winter, it was also hung about in sprigs above the door. It was also believed a spirit dwelt in the tree much like the Hydelmor or Elder mother. The Juniper spirit is called Frau Wacholder (Mrs. Juniper). 

Mullein: Said to light the rituals and ceremonies of Roman witches. 

Rosemary: The Latin name means “dew of the sea”, for the blue-indigo flowers that dot it’s fragrant branches. It was used as a fumigant herb in the Middle Ages and was always in demand for its used as a strewing herb as well. It was often used at both weddings and funerals. In the Harz, on Walpurgisnacht, farmers burnt rosemary, juniper, and hemlock on their torches to keep witches away. It is also a key ingredient in the infamous historical perfume known as Hungary water.

Fennel: In Greece, fennel seedlings were carried in pots through the streets to welcome Spring. Throughout Europe it was used to strew, and as a cure all. 

Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum): The beautiful scent is sweetest after drying. In German it is Waldmeister, or master of the forest.

Rue:  Witches dislike the smell of Rue, and is one of the herbs gathered alongside rosemary, juniper, blackthorn, wil caper, and hemlock on a Thursday and then burned on Walpurgisnacht to keep away evil. Also used to keep away pixies, Fae and elves.

Rue

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I am planning this year to observe Walpurgisnacht with a feast and revel with friends, rolling into our celebration of Beltane the following day. My last name Beyer means, "from Bavaria" and for me, as a person of German heritage living on Turtle Island, it feels grounding to celebrate the holidays that feel appropriate from my ancestors. While the Brocken mountains are far away and unknown to me, I live on a mountain and will hold the Witches meeting and dance the night away. However and if ever you choose to learn more about this interesting day, bless the coming of the May!

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Works Cited

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Cora Linn Daniels (Editor), C. M. Stevans (Editor). “Encyclopædia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World”. (Volume II) Hardcover. November 4, 2003.
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Porteous, Alexander. “The Forest in Folklore and Mythology”. United States: Dover Publications, 2012. p. 93-34.

Raedisch, Linda. “Night of the Witches: Folklore, Traditions & Recipes for Celebrating Walpurgis Night”. United States: Llewellyn Worldwide, Limited, 2011.