Spring Roses

“With its leaves so rich and heavy with elation and its crimson face made brighter with visions of divinity the shadow of a certain rose looks just like an angel eating light.” ― Aberjhani, Visions of a Skylark Dressed in Black

As always, spring weather is topsy turvy here. In the space of one week we have experienced all seasons with temperatures soaring to the mid thirties, then plummeting to the low teens. Seasonal allergies are rampant.

However, with the sun shining, the soil warming, spring has burst into glorious splendour in our garden. Particularly spectacular are the roses. Our front yard is a riot of colours and the soft scent of roses.They are full of buds and blooms. Such a feast for the eyes. Not to mention the bees, butterflies and birds. There is a flurry of activity in the garden.

I want to share with you some of the beauty we feast on every day. I’m only sorry I can’t add a scent!

I have always loved roses. Did you know that even though the rose is renowned for its fragrance, the flower actually contains very little aromatic oil by weight. 60,000 roses are needed to distil a single ounce of oil. That’s about 60 roses PER DROP! No wonder pure rose oil is so expensive. World famous aromatherapist, Valerie Ann Worwood writes: “To inhale rose is to inhale the love and kisses of the angels.” Rose essential oil vibrates at a rate of 320 megahertz of electrical energy. In comparison, essential oil from lavender (one of the next highest frequencies in flowers) vibrates at a rate of 118 megahertz, and a healthy human brain usually vibrates between 71 and 90 megahertz.

The rose of course is a universal symbol of love. Perhaps that’s because they are so heart-stoppingly beautiful. I did a bit of a google search, as I am prone to do, researching the symbolism of the rose. Here’s the list – love, honour, faith, beauty, balance, passion, wisdom, intrigue, devotion, sensuality, timelessness. That’s quite a list.

Pierre de Ronsard. This rose is exquisite. It’s full bloom fills my hand.

However, it seems the symbolism goes even deeper than that. During the renaissance, artworks depicting eight petal roses were symbolic of rebirth and renewal. Alchemist textbooks and artworks use seven petal roses as symbols of inclusion, universal understanding and order. That may have some links to the Pythagorean numerology in which seven is iconic of perfection – in the unfolding of the universe and human understanding. Some traditions believe that the rose is a symbol of the human soul.

Freemasons use the symbology of three roses to represent the guiding principles of Love, Life and Light. The Greek goddess of love, Aphrodite, is often seen adorned with roses. The rose is also known as the carrier of secrets. The Roman term ‘sub rosa’ comes form the practice of hanging roses above meeting tables. It was a tacit understanding that anything said at this table, under the hanging roses, was to remain secret. When I was working we referred to this kind of meeting as being held ‘under the cone of silence’. I like the rose idea better!

The rose of course grows on a bush with thorns on it. Which lends itself to a whole other level of symbolism. The beauty of the rose in contrast to the thorns which represent defense, physicality, loss, thoughtlessness. A balance of the two is required. You could even stretch it to say that through the harsh lessons of the thorn, beauty grows.

The colour of the rose is also deeply significant. Do you find yourself intuitively drawn to a particular colour? Perhaps next time you choose to gift a rose to someone, see what colour beckons you when you think of that person.

Yellow Rose: Joy, Wisdom, Protection, Mature love