Astrological Beltane

5th May 2025 06.58 am, BST

While walking through my village this week, I stopped to chat with a lady who has lived in the community for decades. Clutching a bunch of orange tulips, she was heading to commune with her husband, who passed a few years ago. With trowel and fork in hand, spring clearing of his resting site was about to commence.

We were discussing parish news and events on the calendar this month when she suddenly exclaimed with delight, “Oh look, our neighbour has cowslips in her lawn!”

The bright yellow flowers of this member of the primrose family bobbed gently in the breeze and seemed very happy to stand out boldly against the verdant greenery of a recently rain-soaked lawn.

Cowslip, Primula veris

Yellows are always a cheery sight, especially on a grey day; they lift the spirits and make you feel awake and alive. Yet the cowslip, Primula veris, is a little surprising as it has been used medicinally in the past to combat insomnia, something I could do with some help with at the moment, especially as the mornings are lighter each day, the dawn chorus beginning now around 5 am. Beautiful, but not conducive to a lie-in!

From Hartman's Family Physitian, 1696:

'Another way to make Cowslip Wine

… Cowslip Wine is very Cordial, and a glass of it being drank at night Bedward, causes sleep and rest. . . .'

Traditionally, cowslips, as flowers that appear around Beltane, are connected to the Goddess Freyja. Initially, they were known as Our Lady’s Keys. Freyja, being an Old Norse word for Lady, was the mistress of Fólkvangr, a place where half the warriors who died on the battlefield would find themselves; the other half would join Odin in his hall, Valhalla.

In German, Schlüsselblume is Key Flower; we cross a threshold of wakefulness to sleep, with this plant. Hildegard of Bingen named them Heavens Keys, as once Christianity took hold, the keys to eternal life had passed to St Peter, and now the cowslip is often referred to as St Peter's Keys.

We can look at the plant's soporific nature as keys to another kingdom, the world of dreams and illusion as much as of death. The ability to slip gently into a meditative or sleep state allows the mind and body to relax and gives us our beauty sleep. The plant also restores the complexion as it naturally contains saponin, so cowslip can be found as an ingredient in some traditional recipes for facial cleansers and moisturisers.

A feast for the senses, the bright yellow cheery flowers are a joyful sight. For our taste buds, you can eat the leaves in a salad. For our skin, we cleanse and beautify, and for sleep, we can create a tonic to help relax. No wonder this plant is associated with the Goddess of beauty and Taurus season. After all, its name is Cowslip!

Picture Credit

Here in the UK, at 6.58 am, the sign of Gemini rises at the exact moment the Sun reaches 15° Taurus. I found the association interesting, as the Sun is found in the 12th House in this chart, the place we journey to in the liminal world of sleep and dreams. Hildegard of Bingen stressed the symbolic connection of this small yellow flowered plant, which creates a restful sense of ease as a plant of the Sun. It is therefore very apt that there is a solar plant that can be brought into the 12^th place.

Due to habitat loss, the plant is not as prevalent as it once was, but if you do see them in your environment, let them have their moment in the Sun. As May is No Mow May, let their cheerful faces brighten up your day.

(Remember to choose respected sources and trained herbal professionals when working with herbal remedies.)

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Saffron Dennis is an astrologer, crystal therapist, and horticulturalist based in the East Anglia region of the UK. You can book her for a reading or as a speaker at your local or online event at divinebaytree.com