Yew Meaning and magickal uses

An ancient churchyard evergreen of death, rebirth and the long memory of ancestors.

• Intentions: Wisdom, Protection, Divination
• Element: Water
• Planet: Saturn
• Day: Saturday
• Parts used: Symbolic only; best honored from a distance

Safety: Yew is highly toxic. Every part, including leaves, bark, wood, sawdust and the seed inside the red berry, can be fatal if swallowed, and even a small amount of leaves can kill dogs, cats, horses and livestock quickly. Never eat any part, never burn it or use it in incense, teas or baths, and never carve or sand yew without gloves and a mask. Wash your hands after touching it and keep children and pets away. Use symbols instead.

How to use it

• Honor it without touching. Visit an old yew in a churchyard or park, sit nearby and reflect on what endures in your life. Leave nothing edible beneath it and touch nothing to your mouth.
• Work with the rune. Instead of using yew itself, draw or carve the rune Eihwaz, the yew rune, on a candle at Samhain for endurance and ancestral connection. Let the candle burn safely.
• Photo on the altar. Place a photo or drawing of a yew on your ancestor altar as a symbol of continuity between the living and the dead. Add a candle and name your ancestors aloud.

Works well with: Eihwaz, Samhain, Black Candle, Saturday, Saturn, Waning Crescent

Folklore

Yews can live for well over a thousand years, and many British churchyards hold yews older than the churches themselves. Because the tree is evergreen, long-lived and deadly, it became a symbol of death, eternity and rebirth. Old hollow yews send down new trunks inside themselves, appearing to renew from their own decay. Medieval longbows were made of yew. In witchcraft yew belongs to Samhain, the ancestors and the rune Eihwaz, and is best honored from a respectful distance.