Latin: Carduus benedictus, Cnicus benedictus, Carbenia benedicta, Centaurea benedicta
Also Known As: Holy Thistle, St Benedict's Thistle, Our Lady's Thistle, Cursed Thistle (often called this right after someone has stepped on it!)
Family: Asteraceae
Habitat and Description: Blessed Thistle is an annual, which does not usually grow to more than 0.6 of a metre tall. It flowers from May to September, and can grow easily in most soil types, although it does tend to prefer positions with full sun. The flowers are yellow and about 4cms across, with red stems and toothed, prickly leaves with prominent paler coloured veins. Each leaf ends with a spine, and the stem is covered with white down. As with most thistle types, it is a regular and unwelcome visitor of flower beds, meadows and road sides.
Parts Used: All parts of the plant are used in herbal medicine.
Constituents: The herb contains mucilage, bitters, essential oils, tannins, flavonoids and alkaloids, potassium and manganese salts. Also contains triterpenoids and sesquiterpene lactones such as cnicin. In addition to the above, Blessed Thistle also contains lignans such as arctigenin and volatile oils such as citronellol. flavonoidA chemical that gives a substance its flavour
Planetary Influence: Mars – associated with people born under the sign of Aries.
Associated Deities and Heroes: The plant is sacred to Thor, Vesta, Priapus and the wine Gods Bacchus and Pan.
Festival: Winter Solstice, Yuletide
Constitution:Cool and dry
Actions and Indications: This herb is useful in the treatment of women's problems, as it acts as an emmenagogue, relieving painful periods and headaches related to menstruation, and will bring on suppressed periods. It can also help relieve excessive, heavy and painful bleeding during the menopause. Blessed Thistle can be used to increase milk production in nursing mothers. It is a useful tonic to girls just beginning their menses.
The herb also has a strong bitter principle, stimulating the appetite and aiding digestion. It also stimulates the liver and encourages bile flow. It is useful for problems associated with poor liver function, such as headache, lethargy, short temper, anorexia, indigestion, flatulence and colic. Blessed thistle can also be used to treat diarrhea as it has an astringent action. The plant bitters are also antimicrobial, enhancing and supporting the immune system. Unlike its cousin Milk Thistle, Blessed Thistle is bitter and pungent tasting instead of sweet, oily and protective, and has a more active, 'moving' effect on the liver, spleen and bile as a result. Where Milk Thistle tends to protect and regenerate, Blessed Thistle rolls up its sleeves and gets in there, sorting out problems with bile flow and regulation and helping to remove gallstones.
In addition to its effects on the digestive system, Blessed Thistle is useful for the respiratory system as it is expectorant, antiseptic and vulnerary. It can be used to treat infections, weak lungs, catarrh and colds, as well as influenza that has settled into the chest causing chest infections. It is possible it could also be used to treat pneumonia, as it is excellent in the treatment of wet, congestive conditions of the respiratory tract.
There have also been found to be anti-neoplastic actions in Blessed Thistle, meaning that it could be very useful in cancer treatment. A hot infusion of the herb can be used as a diaphoretic, making it helpful in the relief of fevers. The herb can also be used to speed healing of cuts and minor wounds, and acts as an antiseptic. The herb is an excellent blood purifier as it acts on all the eliminatory channels in the body.
Interestingly, the plant is also useful in improving memory and poor concentration as it improves the flow of blood to the brain, as well as relieving congestive headaches related to live dysfunction. In addition to this, it is a useful heart and venous tonic, can help sluggish circulation, and is anti haemorrhagic.
All in all, Blessed Thistle is a greatly undervalued, highly useful herb that really doesn't deserve its poor reputation – much like Dandelion, which it would pair up quite nicely with! The general consensus is that Blessed Thistle is the European version of Boneset, with similar actions.
Spiritual and Energetic Uses: As Blessed Thistle is also a strong liver herb, I think it could also be used to help release deep seated anger and related negative emotions that needs to be expressed and cleansed before the user can get on with their lives. If the uses to bring joy and vitality are also taken into account, this would be a very useful herb for this as it would gently remove the negative emotions and help the user to replace them with positive ones.
Blessed Thistle is also a plant of endurance, helping us to cope with bad times and look forward to better things. It never ceases to amaze me how many of the warming herbs can do this! Thistle would probably combine quite nicely with Rosemary for this property, especially when the person's unresolved anger is what is tying them down and stopping them from enjoying life.
Magical Uses: Blessed Thistle is associated with all the maternal aspects of the Mother Goddess – an association which surprises me considering the unwelcome appearance of the plant. It is used in consecration, love and counter magic.
Blessed Thistle is a herb of protection, and bestows spiritual, physical and financial blessings. It is carried to bring joy, protection, vitality and energy to the bearer. The plant can also be used to remove hexes from people.
It is sometimes used at the Autumn Equinox to provide the endurance to last through the winter – this might be useful considering the difficult winter we have all just endured!
Folklore: The Saxons called the plant Ever Throat due to its bristly appearance, although I have to say I cannot personally see the connection! During the Middle Ages, the plant was used to expel tapeworms.
The thistle family in general has always had a fairly poor reputation, and was long regarded as a cursed plant, a curse aimed at the earth and at man in particular. Many people are familiar with the unique pain of stepping on a thistle in bare feet, after all! It has been used in the past as a weather predictor as the dried flower bracts apparently close when rain is forecast.
The thistle is the national emblem of Scotland just after the wars with Denmark, as the thistle acted as a warning for the sleeping Scots when a barefooted Dane stepped on the plant and cried out in pain.
Dose: 3g of the dried herb as an infusion three times a day. 10mls of the tincture three times a day.
Contraindications: The herb should not be taken during pregnancy due to its emmenagogue properties. A strong infusion of the herb can cause vomiting and diarrhea.
As the herb is part of the asteraceae (daisy) family, if you have an allergic reaction to any other kind of daisy you should handle this plant with care as it could have the same effect.