I keep looking at them, now that they are placed in our fruit bowl on the dining table.
They are so beautiful, that breaking them open almost seems to be a sacrilege, instead I shall tell you a bit more about this wonderful fruit.
In Christianity many paintings of the Madonna Virgin and Child prominently display a pomegranate. Ancient Egyptians were buried with pomegranates in hope of rebirth and the Hittite god of agriculture is said to have blessed followers with grapes, wheat, and pomegranates. The seeds were sugared and served to guests at Chinese weddings. When it was time to consummate the marriage, pomegranates were thrown on the floor of the bedchamber to encourage a happy and fruitful union. Berber women used pomegranates to predict the amount of their offspring by drawing a circle on the ground and dropping a ripe pomegranate in the center. The amount of seeds expelled outside the ring allegedly prophesied the number of her future children.
Mohammed believed pomegranates purged the spirits of envy and hatred from the body and urged all his followers to eat goodly amounts. In ancient Greek mythology Persephone was held captive in the Underworld Hades, causing her mother Demeter, goddess of plenty and harvest, to bring about permanent winter. Persephone swore she would not partake of food until her release. However, she could not resist the tempting pomegranate, consuming nearly the entire fruit before halting herself and leaving only six seeds uneaten.
So, here we are in our humble garden full of pomegranate trees and using the name of this wonderful health giving fruit as a symbol of our yoga venue.
