Finger Trees

FINGER TREES

The hand is a mysterious, uniquely human tool,
of great power and sensitivity. Besides all
the ordinary and extraordinary things we make
with our hands, we use them to caress, stimulate,
hurt, or heal. The fingers are channels of
energy for good or ill, the fingertips points
of energy release.

In Celtic folklore, each of the five fingers
of the hand has its own character, power, and
function; each is related to a specific part of
the body and to one of the planets. Each finger
also has a metal and a particular tree associated
with it. The fingertips are oracular agents
related to particularly powerful trees – the thumb
to the birch, the forefingers to the rowan, the
middle or fool’s finger to the ash, the ring finger to
the alder, and the little or ear finger to the willow.

Page 156 Sign of the Tree
Meinrad Craighead
1970s; Stanbrook Abbey; Ink on Scratchboard; 12×10; Mat is signed

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