Sacred Herbs: Part 2- Belladonna

Belladonna

The Quintessential Witches herb... If you can get hold of it that is :)

Atropa Belladonna

Poisonous

Folknames: Banewort, Deadly nightshade, Devils Cherries, Witches Berry

Scott Cunningham- Cunninghams Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs pg 53

“Gender: Feminine

Planet: Saturn

Element: Water

Deities: Hecate, Bellona, Circe

Ritual uses: The priests of Bellona, according to ancient tradition, drank an infusion of Belladonna prior to worshipping Her and invoking Her aid. Bellona is a roman Goddess of War

Magical uses: Today belladonna is little used in herb magic due to its high toxicity- All parts of the plant are extremely poisonous and there are still reports of death resulting from accidental ingestion of deadly nightshade. In the past it was used to encourage astral projection and produce visions, but safer alternatives are available today and belladonna is best avoided.”

Despite Cunningham’s warnings does it surprise anyone that I still want to get hold of this gorgeous plant? :) Unfortunately most places won’t ship to South Africa because of theft but a girl can only dream...

Circe was known one of Hekate’s priestesses, and in some cases she is described as her daughter. Unfortunately the origins of many of the so called lesser gods has been lost to us non-Grecians and I struggle to find much on her. Circe is famous for her role in the myth of Odysseus, turning him and his entourage into pigs after they had gorged themselves on a feast.

Circe often being described as trained by Hekate in one way or another, was trained in the poison arts by Hekate. (If I am mistaken please help me along, because as I mentioned before my literature on Hekate and Circe especially is incredibly limited)

Belladonna along with other poisonous herbs like opium poppy, wolfsbane and poison hemlock have said to have been used by witches  as a flying ointment. The sheer toxicity of the ingredients is laughable for it to have ever been used by us mere mortals but the thought of these dangerous herbs makes my pulse race- oops my dark side is showing :D

Belladonna contains a number of toxins which cause hallucinations, delirium and death. As a hallucinogen it is still sometimes used by the brave and/or stupid.

The herb has a long history of use as medicine, cosmetic and most importantly poison.

The name Atropa comes from one of the Greek fates Atropos. The name belladonna means “beautiful woman” and of course it is indeed a seductively beautiful plant, but that seduction is as dangerous as that of a femme fatale. The plant was often used to dilate pupils in women and as a facial cosmetic.

The fruits of the plant are shiny black berries. These are especially attractive to children, and is often lethal.

 The belladonna is part of the nightshade family (Solanaceae), it’s cousins include potato, eggplant/brinjal/aubergine, tobacco, tomato, mandrake, jimson weed/datura and chilli peppers. For those of us who yearn for belladonna but cannot get hold of it, we should do well in cultivating her often tasty cousins.

I have black nightshade which is not a true nightshade but it is close enough in a substitute.

All parts of the plant contain tropane alkaloids. The ingestion of a single leaf in an adult can be fatal and the root is thought to be the most toxic part. The plant is poisonous to many domestic animals.

Belladonna is used in medicinal tinctures, decoctions and powders with controlled toxicity levels, used for gastrointestinal disorders. Some of the toxins are used for many other medicinal purposes but the plant should never be used in its natural state for any medicinal purposes.