Why do we kiss under mistletoe? - Carlos Reif

Zakaj se poljubljamo pod omelo? - Carlos Reif

Translator: Nika Kotnik Reviewer: Matej Divjak

The sight of mistletoe may either send you scurrying

Ob pogledu na omelo se boste ali pognali v tek,

or if you have your eye on someone,

ali pa, če vam je nekdo všeč,

awaiting an opportunity beneath its snow white berries.

čakali na priložnost pod snežno belimi plodovi.

But how did the festive Christmas tradition of kissing under mistletoe

A kako se je ta slavnostna božična tradicija sploh začela?

come about?

The long lived custom intertwines the mythology and biology

Ta stara tradicija prepleta mitologijo in biologijo

of this intriguing plant.

te nenavadne rastline.

There are more than 1,000 species of mistletoe which grows the world over.

Obstaja več kot 1000 vrst omele,

ki rastejo po vsem svetu.

In fact, the ancient Europeans were so captivated

Pravzaprav so bili starodavni Evropejci tako očarani

by the plant’s unusual growth habits that they included it in their legends

nad nenavadnimi načini rasti te rastline,

da so jo vključili v svoje legende in mite.

and myths.

In ancient Rome, Pliny the Elder described how

V antičnem Rimu

je Plinij starejši opisoval, kako so druidski svečeniki v starodavni Angliji

the Druid priesthood in ancient England believed that mistletoe

verjeli, da je omela rastlina, ki so jo z nebes dali bogovi.

was a plant dropped down from heaven by the gods;

that explained its unlikely position amongst the high branches

To je pojasnilo njeno nenavadno pozicijo med najvišjimi vejami nekaterih dreves.

of certain trees.

They also believed it had powers of healing and bestowing fertility.

Prav tako so verjeli, da zdravi in podarja plodnost.

Meanwhile, Scandinavian legends told of the plant’s mystical qualities

Skandinavske legende pa so pripovedovale o mističnih lastnostih rastline

in the story of the god Baldur and his adoring mother, Frigg,

v zgodbi boga Baldra in njegove ljubeče mame Frigg,

goddess of love, marriage and fertility.

boginje ljubezni, poroke in plodnosti.

Frigg loved her son so much that she commanded every plant,

Frigg je imela svojega sina tako rada, da je ukazala vsaki rastlini, živali

animal and inanimate object to vow they’d never harm him.

in neživemu predmetu, naj ga nikoli ne ranijo.

In her fervor, however, she overlooked the mistletoe.

V svoji vnemi pa je spregledala omelo.

The mischievous god Loki realized this oversight,

A nagajivi bog Loki je to ugotovil

and pierced Baldur’s heart with an arrow carved from a mistletoe branch.

in predrl Balderjevo srce s puščico,

izrezljano iz veje omele.

Frigg cried tears of such sadness that they formed

Frigg je tako jokala,

da so solze oblikovale bele plodove omele,

the mistletoe’s pearly berries,

making the other gods pity her and agree to resurrect Baldur.

s tem pa se je zasmilila ostalim bogovom, ki so se strinjali, da oživijo Balderja.

Hearing the news, Frigg became so overjoyed that she transformed

Ko je to izvedela Frigg, je bila tako vesela,

da je spremenila omelo iz simbola smrti

the mistletoe from a symbol of death into one of peace and love.

v simbol miru in ljubezni.

She mandated a one day truce for all fights

Zaukazala je enodnevno premirje za vse boje

and that everyone embraced beneath its branches when they passed

in da naj se vsi objamejo pod njenimi vejami, ko se srečajo,

to spread more love into the world.

in s tem širijo ljubezen po svetu.

In the 17th century, British colonists arriving in the New World

V 17. stoletju so Britanski kolonisti, ki so prispeli v novi svet,

found a different but very similar looking species of mistletoe.

našli drugačno, a po izgledu zelo podobno vrsto omele.

They applied it to these tales of magic, fertility and love,

Uporabili so jo v teh pripovedih o magiji, plodnosti in ljubezni,

spreading the mistletoe hanging tradition from Europe into America.

in s tem razširili tradicijo obešanja omele iz Evrope v Ameriko.

By the 18th century, people in Britain had turned this

V 18. stoletju so ljudje v Britaniji to spremenili v Božično tradicijo,

into a Christmas tradition.

But this custom comes down to more than just human imagination.

a tradicija je več kot samo človeška domišljija.

All of it was inspired by the plant’s intriguing biology.

Vse to so navdihnile zanimive lastnosti te rastline.

We see mistletoe as a festive decoration, but draped on tree boughs in the wild,

Omelo vidimo kot praznično dekoracijo,

a ovita okrog vej v naravi je poznana kot deloma parazitska rastlina.

it’s known as a partly parasitic plant.

Mistletoe relies on modified roots called haustoria

Omela je odvisna od spremenjenih korenin, imenovanih havstoriji,

that penetrate the tree bark and siphon off the water and minerals

ki predrejo drevesno deblo

in sesajo vodo in minerale,

trees carry up their trunks.

ki jih imajo drevesa v svojih deblih.

To colonize nearby trees with its seeds,

Za kolonizacijo bližnjih dreves s semeni,

mistletoe depends on birds and other creatures

je omela odvisna od ptičev in drugih živali,

to do the dispersing.

da jih razširjajo.

Birds that eat the mistletoe’s sticky white berries

Ptiči, ki jedo lepljive plodove omele,

sometimes get rid of the gluey seeds by wiping them off onto tree bark,

se včasih znebijo semen tako, da si jih obrišejo na lubju.

or with a bit of luck,

Ali pa z malo sreče, izločijo neprebavljeno seme na drevo,

they excrete the indigestible seed onto a tree where it germinates

kjer vzklije in začne rasti.

and starts to grow.

With its resilience and foliage that stays lush

S svojo odpornostjo in listi, ki ostanejo bujni,

even while the surrounding trees lose their leaves,

tudi ko ostala drevesa izgubijo liste,

you can see why mistletoe captivated our superstitious ancestors.

lahko vidite, zakaj je omela očarala naše vraževerne prednike.

They saw these as signs of the plant’s magical qualities and fertility.

To so videli kot znake njenih magičnih lastnosti in plodnosti.

Even today, the mistletoe inspires wonder

Še dandanes omela vzbuja občudovanje

with the diversity of wildlife it supports.

z raznolikostjo življenja, ki ga podpira.

More than just a parasite, it’s also known as a keystone species.

Več kot samo parazit, znana je tudi kot ključna vrsta.

It's eaten by a diversity of animals, including deer, elk, squirrels, chipmunks,

Jedo jo raznolike živali,

Vključno z jeleni, losi,

vevericami, veveričkami,

porcupines, robins, bluebirds, mourning doves,

ježevci, taščicami,

drozgi, golobicami

and the butterfly genus Delius.

in metulji vrste Delias.

Some mistletoe species produce dense bushes,

Nekatere vrste omele delajo gosta grmovja,

which are excellent nesting locations for a variety of birds.

ki so odlično mesto za gnezdenje različnih ptičev.

And despite their parasitic relationship with trees,

In kljub svojemu parazitskemu odnosu z drevesi,

mistletoes can also help other plants.

lahko omela pomaga drugim rastlinam.

For instance, juniper sprouts near mistletoe to benefit

Na primer, brin poganja blizu omele,

da ima koristi od ptičev, ki jedo plodove.

from the visiting berry-eating birds.

Through the many benefits it provides,

Skozi mnoge prednosti, ki jih omela prinaša, vzpodbuja raznovrstnost

mistletoe influences diversity and allows ecosystems to flourish.

in omogoča razvoj ekosistema.

You might even say, that for this iconic plant,

Lahko celo rečemo, da pri tej ikonični rastlini, življenje imitira legendo.

life imitates legend.

In the wild, mistletoe has the power to bring things together.

V divjini ima omela moč, da združuje

And in our own traditions we see that happening too.

in to vidimo tudi pri naših tradicijah.