Mythology
For a variety of different reasons, holly has strong association
with Christian symbolism. Partly seen in the passion and crucifixion of Christ,
with the tree having prickly leaves, four-lobed flowers (mirroring the points of
the cross) and blood red berries, the association extends further than this. The
last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, was the tau (Tav), a T-shaped cross and the
letter T re-occurs in the gaelic tarbh (bull and pronounced the same),
and Tannus, a gaulish thunder god armed with triple thunder
bolt.
The symbolism is also apparent in the story of Gawain and the Green Knight, where the latter comes to Arthur's court, challenging a knight to behead him on condition that he be allowed to return in a year's time and 'balance' the conditions that will occur in the intervening year. Similar sacrificial metaphor is found, not only in christian religion, but in Lleu Llaw Gyffes (Bendigeidfran), Bel, and in Nemi, the oak king, ritually sacrificed each summer. Like the glas-tann (green sacred tree), these are usually concerned with the holly and oak as aspects of the same thing, with oak as king of the waxing half of the year and holly as king of the waning half of the year, and the rites of passage between father/son and the lore connecting inheritance and geis. This lore is still alluded to in the carol 'of all the trees that are in the wood, the holly is the best'.
A similar parallel is the bull with the club foot,
who represents both the conditions of kingship and also has three cranes on his back (cranes representing the alphabet's letters
brought from Egypt).
Added notes: two halves also "spear that roars for blood" (iron grey) "battle-waging spear" and "I embolden the spearman" from Taliesin (greek is prinos and hysge, while brythonic has kelynn).
'Who so ever ageynst Holly do crye, In a lepe shall he hang full hie. Alleluia!'
(Folkard 1892)
lesem yellow cairngorm.
glaring hot. weekday, Tuesday. Mars.
the word tinne in gaelic refers to the full set of pipes
