Beneath The Bark
Essay
Subscribers Exclusive: Excerpt from the first of my A- Z of Rewilding Story Zines
Beneath The Bark
‘Folklore Of The Ash Tree’
One of the most famous ash trees in story resides in Norse mythology. Yggdrasil sits at the top of the nine worlds - Asgard, Vanahiem, Aalfhiem, Midgard, Jottunhiem, Helhiem, Niflhiem, Muspellhiem and Nidvellir - joining them together with its roots. The tree was created from a golden seed and this tree is an ash tree.
Within its mighty arboreous arms sits an eagle who holds the knowledge of all things. At the base of the tree the dragon Nidhog nibbles at the roots and between the two runs Ratatoskr the squirrel conveying messages from one to another. But the ash has always been a part of folklore and mythic life in the UK, way before the Norsemen arrived with their mythology.
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