Written by By H.E.
Harvest festivals and fairs
August is known in our Belgian-Limburg region for its mid-harvest festivals and fairs. These centuries-old traditions caught my attention in a special way this year. These festivals date back a long way and often coincide with the Assumption of Mary, a holiday recognized by the Vatican since 1950.
This veiled lady, who is all too easily associated with the cult of the goddess, is therefore honored in the month in which harvest festivals have had a fixed place on the calendar since time immemorial. And strikingly, on the day around the full moon.
I couldn’t shake the feeling that I needed to look into this further. That feeling was confirmed when I discovered the custom surrounding the blessing of the bouquet of herbs. I will take you along on my journey of discovery, but please be aware that much of what I describe is based on oral tradition, herbalists, and local history circles. Without wanting to make assumptions, I invite you to draw your own conclusions.
The herb bouquet with many names
Kruidwoesj, kroedwösj, kroetwèsj, kruidwis, or donderkruid—these are just a few of the names given in folk tradition to a bundle of native herbs associated with ancient rituals and customs. It is striking that these are always indigenous herbs, which implies that the exact composition of such bouquets may vary slightly from region to region. In Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, … To this day, these colorful herb bundles are woven as part of living traditions—some sacred, some folkloric—that draw from both ancient pre-Christian rites and the Christian calendar of saints and seasons.
The composition of a herb bouquet or herb bundle is never completely fixed, but follows traditional guidelines that are often based on local customs, oral tradition, and symbolic value. Typically, such a bouquet contains a combination of protective, medicinal, and nourishing plants. Herbs believed to ward off evil include queen’s wort (Eupatorium cannabinum), wild marjoram (Origanum vulgare), mullein (Verbascum thapsus), St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum), willow herb (Epilobium augustifolium), and poppy (Papaver rhoeas). These plants are traditionally associated with warding off negative influences, both physical and spiritual. In addition, healing herbs are added such as valerian (Valeriana officinalis), yarrow (Achillea millefolium), tansy (Chrysanthemum vulgare), chamomile (Matricaria recutita), tormentil (Potentilla erecta), mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), and wormwood (Artemisia absinthum), each with a specific effect in folk medicine. Finally, we have symbolically linked, nourishing herbs with abundance and the blessings of the land. Examples include ears of rye (Triticum cereale) and wheat (Triticum vulgare), as well as the green leaves of the walnut tree (Juglans regia), which are said to promote protection and fertility. The exact selection varies from region to region, but the underlying structure — protection, healing, and abundance — remains constant.
This carefully composed bouquet of herbs is traditionally taken to church on or around August 15, sometimes decorated with blue ribbons — preferably seven cubits long — as a sign of devotion and symbolic protection. According to tradition, the bouquet must be picked by hand before sunrise. The use of iron tools is strictly forbidden, in line with a widespread belief in folk magic: iron breaks the subtle, mystical power of plants. A knife would disturb the natural spirit of the herb, causing it to lose its protective and healing properties. Only herbs picked with bare hands retain their full energetic effect — pure, untouched, and in harmony with the rhythm of nature. This habit strongly reflects an animistic worldview.
Protection and fertility
As a lover of traditions, folk tales, and myths, I could already sense a juicy story. What inspired people to practice this mystical ritual? How did this presumably pagan ritual become important enough to be Christianized? To answer these questions, we will first look at Christian tradition and then try to link it to ancient folk beliefs.
Firstly, the herbs had the function of warding off evil. The bouquet was placed above the front door or in the attic. At the sign of encroaching evil, a piece would be broken off and cast into the hearth — the rising scent and flames believed to drive darkness from the threshold. People would say intense prayers to Saint Donatus, the patron saint against thunderstorms, or pray the Gospel of Saint John—a custom closely linked to the presence of St. John’s wort in the bouquet, a plant that has traditionally been considered particularly powerful in warding off evil influences. Here we encounter an important player in our story, namely Saint Donatus. A name that may ring a bell. He will therefore receive our full attention in the next segment. When foes or foreboding figures came near, a handful of the herb might be cast from the window — a silent plea for protection carried on the wind.
A second reason for keeping the ‘kroedwus’j was the fertility of the land. It was believed that the power of the blessed bouquet not only offered protection but could also bring prosperity. Before sowing, the farmer took a few grains from the old bundle. With a simple but soulful hand movement, he scattered this seed over the field, as a blessing on the field.
The bouquet, too, came to symbolize a longing for children. As the people of Maastricht would say: ‘She has received her herb bouquet.’ Was it hung above the bed? Were leaves or blossoms quietly taken? No one can say for sure.”
Saint Donatus and the Mother Goddess
Saint Donatus of Arezzo is venerated in the Catholic tradition as the patron saint against lightning strikes and thunderstorms. His veneration extends to the Low Countries and the Rhine region. He is invoked for protection of home and hearth, against storm damage and external harm. Farmers also found support in this saint of lightning, whose blessing was supposed to protect the harvest. Donatus is often depicted with a sheaf of wheat or a vine next to lightning—an image that emphasizes the connection between fertility and protection. His image still adorns candles and sacred objects in rural churches.
But behind this saint may lie an older spirit: Donar, the thunder god of the Germanic forest. He was not only the personification of storm and lightning, but also watched over the land, the farmer, and his crops. In a time when people still understood the language of rain and earth, rituals were woven into the rhythm of the seasons. A bountiful harvest was a blessing, a promise of life. For the people of that time, a successful harvest was of vital importance. Rituals and sacrifices helped the farmer to appease the forces of nature and the gods. A bountiful harvest meant not only food, but a year of prosperity.
Finally, we may wonder where the custom of using the bouquet of herbs to promote fertility comes from. Is this an echo of Donar? After all, some sources refer to him as the protector of marriage and family. His role then seems to be related to fertility and the continuation of the offspring, and thus also to the desire to have children as a sacred task within the web of life. Or should we rather interpret this ritual as a form of devotion to Mary? As discussed in the next paragraph, she may bear the traits of a primordial mother goddess.
If Donar was renamed Donatus, we might ask ourselves who Mary has become in these Christianized herb rituals. Is she merely the Holy Virgin in the Catholic sense, or does she carry echoes of an older time within her? Her veneration on August 15, her role as queen of heaven, mother, protector, and bridge between heaven and earth, evokes the image of a primordial mother goddess—rooted in pre-Christian earth, inspired by ancient voices.
Perhaps we hear in her a whisper of Fria – also known as Frig or Frau Holle – the Germanic goddess of love, harvest, and magic. Or is she the figure of the mother of mothers, the ancient Mother Earth, revered by the Germanic peoples as Nerthus, also known as Hludana?
In popular devotion, Mary is given a much broader, more earthly role than theology attributes to her – just like the primordial goddesses who preceded her. Perhaps – just perhaps – an ancient voice still rustles beneath her blue cloak, a reminder of what was and what never completely disappeared.
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donatus_of_Muenstereifel
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kruidwis
https://herboristengilde.nl/de-kroedwusj/
http://www.eifelnatur.de/Niederl%E4ndisch/Seiten/Kroedwusj.html
https://kerkradewiki.nl/kerkrade/kroedwusj-d91/
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