Rose

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Scent Synergies: Citrus

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Hanging a Rose from the ceiling, a tradition which started with the Romans and still continues today (sub rosa) indicates that any conversation which takes place in its presence must be kept in strictest confidence; the Rose belongs to the Lady of Miracles herself, the Virgin Mary. Rosaries even get their name from the Rosehips (and Rose Petals) they were originally made from.

'Seed and Sickle Oracle' by Fez Inkwright

Girls would take a Rose leaf for each of their suitors and name each leaf for one, then watch them in a bucket of water. The last leaf to sink would be her future Husband; Girls would also pick Rses on Midsummer’s eve, believing that sleeping with one beneath their pillow would make their future Husband appear in their dreams that night. In Moroco Bay was used alongside Rose on Saint Valentine’s Eve for love divination, by putting two Bay Leaves across a pillow and sprinkling it with Rose Water while saying “Good Valentine be kind to me. In dream let me my true love see”; throwing Rose leaves on a fire was good luck, though the Italian variant was to scatter them on the ground.

Roses were also connected to death and were used to decorate tombs by the ancient Greeks, who believed they protected the remains of the dead. Welsh custom was to plant a White Rose on the grave of an unmarried woman. Roses were also planted on the graves of lovers in England, so they would eventually grow to intertwine. In Surrey, young women whose lovers died would plant roses on their graves. In Switzerland, Grave Roses are so common that Graveyards are often called ‘Rose Gardens’.

In West Scotland, if a white Rose blooms in autumn it’s regarded as an omen of an early death. A red Rose, however, is a sign of an early marriage. A Welsh belief adds that a summer Rose blooming in November or December spells bad luck. A Dorset belief was that smelling a white Rose was bad for your health, but a red was beneficial.

The provision of a Rose as a condition of tenure was quite widespread. Rent day was often Midsummer Day; under a deed of 1626, an annual rent of two pennies and a Damask Rose is still paid. But the time of payment varied. Some land at Wickham, County Durham, for example, was held by the service of one Rose at Pentecost ‘si opetatur’ (if required), and, rather more difficult, the manor of Crendon, Buckinghamshire, was held by the service of one chaplet of Roses at Christmas. Hungerford too has a condition of presenting a Red rose to the reigning sovereign whenever they pass through the town.

'Elsevier’s Dictionary of Plant Lore' by Donald Watts

Roses are one of the oldest perennial shrubs, probably originating in North Persia. Now they are grown around the world, with more than 10,000+ colors and varieties, most of which bloom between May and September.

They are the master herb of love, and are closely associated with the Virgin Mary (the Rose Without Thorns). They will bring peace, empowerment, attract love, and mend the pain of loss. The plant is also considered good luck.

Rose Hips are high in Vitamin C and are most used for jellies, whereas the deepest red petals are most sought for other medicinal uses. Rose Water works simultaneously on the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual bodies all.

'The Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia of Magical Plants: A Practical Guide to Creating Healing, Protection, and Prosperity using Plants, Herbs, and Flowers, Revised' by Susan Gregg

Roses are a popular flower to work into spells, flower fascinations, and charms of all varieties; working with the different colors of Roses is similar to working with the different colors in Candle magic.

'Cottage Witchery: Natural Magick for Hearth and Home' by Ellen Dugan

Rosa spp: Feminine, Venusian, Water; Love, psychic powers, healing, love divination, luck, and protection.

Roses have long been used in love mixtures, owing to the flower’s association with emotions. Rose Water distilled from the petals can be added to baths. A Tea of Rosebuds drunk just before sleep induces prophetic dreams. Roses planted in the garden are said to grow best when stolen.

'Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs' by Scott Cunningham

The Rose is an herb of love; both the flower and hips are used; Rose Petal Syrup can be made by adding 2 times the amount of sugar to petals’ weight and infusing in hot water. Rosehips should be gatherers after the first frost when they are red.

'A Druid's Herbal for the Sacred Earth Year' by Ellen Evert Hopman

Love, lost or fast love, fullness of life, healing and caring; it is a suitable herb for Ostara, Beltane, Litha, and Mabon, and for Full Moon rituals in particular.

'Green Witchcraft: Folk Magic, Fairy Lore and Herb Craft' by Ann Moura

Roses are wonderful for love magic. They open up the mind, heart, body, and spirit, and make them receptive to both love and pleasure.

'Healing Magic: A Green Witch Guidebook to Conscious Living' by Robin Rose Bennett

Rebirth, resurrection, funerals and memorials, initiations, love, luck, passion, sexuality, sensuality, seduction, and marriage.

'The Hearth Witch's Compendium: Magical and Natural Living for Every Day' by Anna Franklin

Called the ‘Queen of Flowers’ by Sappho, Roses are a highly cultivated flower. Their origins go back 3,000 years ago to Iran. Magical uses include abundance, to fortify wealth and draw more, beauty, clearing, blessing, dreams of your true love, emotional healing (especially after heartbreak), friendship, protection, purification, love, secrecy, and spirituality.

'The Magic of Flowers: A Guide to Their Metaphysical Uses and Properties' by Tess Whitehurst

Rose (Greek: Isaphinus; Latin: Rosa; Chaldees: Glerisa). Take the grain or corn of it, and the corn of Mustard Seed, and the foot of a Weasel, and hang these in a tree, and it will not bear fruit. If it be put about a net instead, fishes will gather there. If it is powdered and put in a lamp, and after the lamp is kindled, all men shall appear black as the devil. If the powder is mixed with olive oil and with quick Brimstone, and the house anointed with it while the sun is shining, the house shall appear inflamed.

* The Rose has been in cultivation since Roman times but has never been regarded as Officinal. The properties attributed are never consistent; Olive Oil and Powdered Sulfur ('Quick Brimstone') are inflammable and this recipe and the one following are clearly from The Book of Fires which deals with supposed hallucinogens absorbed through smoke ("Put in a Lamp").

'The Book Of Secrets of Albertus Magnus: Of the Virtues of Herbs, Stones, and Certain Beasts; Also A Book of the Marvels of the World' by Michael Best and Frank Brightman

Rose serves as an example of a plant that is both Angel and Devil, love and death, both pleasure and pain. It is her duality of both Seductive Vixen and Funerary Hag, and the space in between, wherein the astute value [of her concealed streams of power] lies.

Roses have an ancient connection with death and have been used in funeral customs throughout olden times […] People of Ancient Greece decorated tombs and graves with them, believing that the dead would be protected by the power of the Rose. It was a Welsh custom to plant a white Rose on the grave of an unmarried woman. And in England a garland of White Roses was used to decorate the grave of a virgin. In Switzerland, the custom of planting Roses by the graves of the dead led to cemeteries turning into Rose Gardens. Generally, in lore, the white Rose was associated with death, where the red Rose was associated with love.

Within some lore, the Rose was connected with the Devil. The Wild Rose, specifically Eglantine (Rosa Rubiginosa) and the Dog Rose (Rosa Canina) both have extremely sharp and large thorns […] The downward pointing thorns hook into the skin, digging deeper as one tries to escape from their grasp [...] From France [Eglantine] rosehips were called 'Devil's Bread' and sometimes the names 'Rose Sorciere' and 'Rose du diable' were used as well; a folk story tells that the Eglantine's thorns are pointed downward because after the Devil was excluded from heaven, he used the plant to make a ladder […] in order to climb back up. When the Eglantine would only grow as a bush rather than a tall vine, he placed the thorns in their hooked position out of Spite.

[Rose's] capacity to hold beauty as well as death, evil as well as good, can be inferred by her physical expression of sweet blooms and painful thorns- but more importantly, by visiting with and courting her spirit power […] Personal experiences show that trance and dreams of this Plant Spirit result in an infernal Mistress, one capable of frightening and causing [terror …] She is one whom requires both blood and sacrifice, and if given with truth and respect, can bring immense relief of suffering, trauma, and sorrow; it is as if this plant understands the depths of pain that can be unleashed upon the Human Soul, but one must treat with her darkness in order to understand her gifts.

Rose has long been a symbol of secrecy and silence. Some old buildings in Europe with plaster ceilings had a Rose imprinted in the middle of certain council chambers to remind that what was spoken of in the room could not be repeated, as it was "under the Rose" or sub rosa […] Because of its connection with secrecy, the Wild Rose was sometimes used to represent illicit love. [Likewise] A Rose often appears over confessionals in a Church for its secrecy association, used as such since 1526.

While not overly sedative in a physical sense, the Rose has subtle but powerful effects on the nervous system. Her sweet perfume can be lulling and gently mind altering. Magically, she can both seduce and disorient, leaving one under a cloak of pleasurable illusion. Possessing both the power of secrecy and trance induction makes for a valuable glamour.

'The Witch's Cabinet: Plant Lore, Sorcery, and Folk Tradition' by Corinne Boyer

Roses may be used fresh [for Asperging] or in the form of Rose Water […] Rose Water is a supreme Asperge, especially for purposes of Consecration, and may be used in the form of a Mist.

'Ars Philtron: Concerning the Aqueous Cunning of the Potion and Its Praxis in the Green Arte Magical' by Daniel Schulke