The Legend Of The
Beautiful Passionflower
This is my rendition of a Passionflower. In reality they are much
more beautiful. The lacy fringe is much thicker, and in the
center it looks like intricate Indian beadwork. I hope you are
more fortunate than I if you try to find some of these flowers.
They are a tropical plant so are probably more plentiful in the South
than here in New England where I live. To people who are familiar
with them, they are also called "maypops" because when you step on the
fruit that comes from the plant, they make a loud pop.
These flowers also attract butterflies.
I think the story of how the Passionflower got it's name is very
interesting. The Roman Catholic priests found the flowers in
Latin America and named them Passiflora because they thought the parts
of the flower represented Christ's "passion".
The ten large petals represent Christ's ten most faithful
apostles. The fringe above the petals represent the crown of
thorns placed on Christ's head. The five anthers are for the five
wounds in Christ's body and the three stigmas are for the nails that
were placed in his hands and feet when nailed to the cross.
When we look at this flower, we not only see a very beautiful and
interesting flower, but we also are reminded of the suffering that
Christ endured to save us all.
This web page was created by Linda Manthay 2000.
Please visit my Homepage to read
other stories such as this. Thank you. |