Nine Herbs Charm facts for kids

The Nine Herbs Charm is a very old poem from Anglo-Saxon times. It's also called the Nigon Wyrta Galdor or the Lay of the Nine Healing Herbs. This special charm was written down about a thousand years ago in a book called Lacnunga. People believed it could help heal sickness using nine different plants.

What is the Nine Herbs Charm?

This ancient poem is a type of magic spell or prayer from the Anglo-Saxon people. They lived in England a long, long time ago. The charm tells you how to prepare and use nine special plants to fight off sickness and poison. It's found in a very old book called Lacnunga, which is now kept safe in the British Library in London.

The Story of Woden

One exciting part of the charm talks about a god named Woden. He was an important god in the old Germanic religions. The poem describes Woden helping the plants fight against a snake's bite.

A snake came crawling, it bit a man.
Then Woden took nine glory-twigs,
Smote the serpent so that it flew into nine parts.
There apple brought this pass against poison,
That she nevermore would enter her house.

This part suggests that Woden used special twigs, perhaps with magical symbols called runes, to help the plants win against the poison. It's one of the few times Woden is mentioned clearly in old English poems.

The Power of Numbers

The numbers nine and three appear many times in the charm. These numbers were very important in old Germanic beliefs and stories. For example, Woden used nine twigs to defeat the snake. This shows how people back then thought certain numbers had special powers or meanings.

Why is the Charm Important?

The Nine Herbs Charm is important because it gives us a peek into how people thought about medicine and magic long ago. Experts believe it's a very old, non-Christian story that was later changed a bit to fit Christian ideas. When spoken aloud, the poem has a powerful, almost musical sound, which people believed made it more effective. It shows how people used plants and believed in gods to help them stay healthy.

See also

• Galdr
• Hávamál
• Mímir
• Merseburg Incantations