Eguzkilore, The Sun Flower Of Basque Mythology
It is well known that humanity is full of legends, stories that have been passed down for hundreds of generations to this day, even some of them are still "practiced".
It is the case of Eguzkilore or flower of the sun, that until today, is a symbol of protection that defends homes from witchcraft, evil spirits, disease, lightning and storms and other enemies of the human race.
What is the Eguzkilore and what is its meaning?
Many plants have been attributed magical properties, and this is one of them. If you have had the opportunity to visit the Basque Country (or have seen videos of its streets), surely something that looks like a sunflower must have caught your attention, hanging on the doors of the houses. Well it's not a sunflower, it's about the Eguzkilore, whose scientific name is'Carlina acanthifolia'.
This 'Flower of the Sun' is accompanied by a legend from Basque mythology, which you will find at the end of this note or picha here.
But basically.
It is an amulet that protects houses. It is said that evil spirits have to count one by one all the seeds that make up the heart of this variety of thistle (sun flower) before they can cross the threshold of a house. But they don't have time to finish before dawn. With the sunrise, which this flower resembles, the night ends and the evil spirits lose their power.
If you seek the protective powers of a Eguzkilore, not just any carlina, it must be the acanthifolia. It is very easy to confuse this variety with other pugs, such as acaulis, gummifera wave vulgaris.
You can see the complete Carlina file here 
But also, I warn you that you cannot tear it off if you find it in the field:
Climate change and mass consumption have led this species to have to be classified as "rare" or "threatened flora". The carlina it is an endangered plant in the wild, and is now a protected species. Do not pick them up if you find them on the side of the road, otherwise you will be fined!
Where can i get a Eguzkilore
So if I can't collect it in the wild, where can I get it? Well, there are some stores specialized in natural Eguzkilores (which are the ones that are worth it).
An example is Eguzkilore.online.
They grow their own Eguzkilores in a completely natural way on their farm in Álava (one of the three Spanish provinces that make up the autonomous community of the Basque Country). Let us remember that the carlina is a biennial plant, Therefore, the time required for its flowering is two seasons.
After flowering, they properly dry the plant, also naturally, and have them for sale on their website. Honestly, it is the most natural thing you will find, if you see their page you will see that they are all different. This speaks without doubt of a totally handmade and natural process.
The Legend of the Eguzkilore or Flower of the Sun
The fear of the dark has accompanied man since he appeared on earth and many stories and stories portray this panic at the absence of light, such as this legend related to the Eguzkilore flower.
At the dawn of time, man existed but there was no light, since neither the moon nor the sun were made and darkness dominated the world.
In this panorama without any clarity or source of light, men roamed the earth with a permanent fear of all the things that emerged from the earth and that have populated all the horror fables since then: Demons, fire animals, nags that They flew, gigantic dragons throwing their flames, all kinds of dark goblins, witches and beings that were not of this world.
With all this, the caves were the only refuge where men felt minimally protected from such horrors and finally tired of living in fear, they decided to go to Amalur, mother earth, to ask for their help and a solution to their pitiable situation.
The legend tells that Amalur answered their prayers and created for them an element of light, a celestial body that he placed in the heavens and which he called Ilargi, which is the moon that we all know and admire today.
With the moon created, the Dantesque figures fell back, frightened by that weak but new unknown light that allowed them to see.
The men were also frightened like the creatures, because they did not know the light either and they still remained in the safety of their caves, until little by little, noticing that the terrifying beings no longer appeared, they dared to leave, celebrating this freedom from which now they enjoyed.
However, it did not take long for the creatures to get used to the new situation, they stopped fearing the light of Ilargi, which was harmless to them, and again they came to the surface to fill the humans with terror.
Faced with this ineffective solution, the men thanked Mother Earth for the help offered, but again asked Amalur for an element with more power to keep the creatures at bay.
Then Amalur created a being of luminous light like no one had ever seen, whom he called Eguzki and that we all recognize each day today as the sun that illuminates us and gives life.
In this way, the day was created and also the night, now they could differentiate themselves from what was once a uniform darkness.
Men immediately became accustomed to its heat, to its radiant light and also understood that all life germinated with its presence, and what was more important, it drove away the terrifying dark beings, who could never bear such clarity and could only do their forays of harassment at night, when the light from Ilargi was unaffected.
Thus, men roamed the earth happily during the day, and at night they again took refuge in their caves. The problem was only partially solved.
Men still wanted a solution, and again they asked Amalur for an answer so that their nights would also be free from the terror that continued as soon as the sun disappeared.
Amalur then created a flower full of beauty, so similar to Eguzki, that the dark beings fled when they saw it, since they believed that it was the very sun that they avoided so much.
Amalur called Eguzkilore (eguzki = sun, lore = flower) to this flower and gave them to men who were protected by the flower of the sun ever since.
The legend has been maintained to this day, and Eguzkilore remains a protective flower that is frequently seen on the doors of homes, defending its inhabitants against the creatures of the night, demons and witches, the harmful spirits that roam, the diseases, natural disasters and all those things that harm human beings.
The flower of the sun protects against all the evils of this world and that is why even today this flower is searched for and hung on the doors once it is dry.
Other legends also surround the Eguzkilore flower, which relate that the flower placed on the door makes the dark creatures believe that it is the sun itself rising at dawn, which is a sign of retreat. The other story that remains as a legend is that no witch can enter a home until all the seeds of the flower have been counted, but there are so many that they never manage to do it before sunrise, at which time they must retreat to their homes. dark underground worlds.
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