This year I decided to make my thunder candle from a mullein stalk, inspired by the very inspiring Polish Folk Witch on her Instagram page. In both Poland and Czechia it was the tradition on Candlemas to have beeswax candles consecrated and then used in the household for a variety of folk magics—the most important of wich was protection against thunderstorms.
I melted a thunder candle from a couple years ago that no longer burned, using a makeshift double boiler from an old measuring cup that I use only for melting wax.
Then I slowly poured the beeswax over the mullein stalk in layers. On the last layer I sprinkled wisteria incense from Alchemy Works , a favorite spot in the spring is sitting in my lawn chair under the wisteria vine. The first picture in this post is taken at the foot of the vine.
Our wisteria:
An obligatory photo of the thunder candle in the window where it is supposed to burn in a thunderstorm to protect the house and a close up of the incense in front of the wisteria vine.
Here is a little history on the use of the mullein stalk as a torch (source):
There are two cultures from which Mullein earned its name as the ‘Candlewick Plant’. Once upon a time ago, ancient Romans dipped the dried flowering spikes of the Mullein plant in tallow or suet in order to make torches. Later, the Greeks found that the dried leaves of the mullein plant were ideal for use as a lamp wick. Prior to the introduction of cotton as a preferred wick material, mullein reigned supreme.
Hag’s Taper:
Mullein has long been a mysterious and mystical plant, favored by herbalists, holistic healers, and yes, presumably, even ‘witches’. There is a long-standing superstition that witches once used (or perhaps still use) mullein for illumination purposes during incantations.