Thereafter
It was early spring when I brought to my studio a bouquet of coral peonies. For seven days I watched silent and perplexed, the transfiguration of the flowers into light and spirit. The red, sensuous petals stretched and unfurled, shedding pigment and flesh to become translucent, fragile, almost not there. How is it possible for a flower to nearly dematerialize? Can there be conscious intent, a deep yearning?
Altani, my Greek scholar friend, listens attentively. To decipher the enigmatic behavior of the flower, start with the name, she suggests. Use the tools of etymology and annagramatization. The etymology of the name Paeonia, leads me to Paieon / Paean. Homer mentions that Paean was physician to the Olympian gods; he healed the wounded Ares and Hades with herbal remedies. Homer also mentions that Paieon was a disciple of Asclepius; after his death, Paieon is transformed into the flower Paeonia. The Athenians venerate this plant for its palliative qualities.
Hippocrates and Dioscorides, renown physicians from Ancient Greece, write and document the deep medicinal properties of the root and seeds of the plant, noting it was named after a great healer.
I continue with annagramatization. The first rule requires separating the first letter of the name and analyzing it carefully; the first letter denotes either through its graphic representation or its conceptual identity something important. Then the remaining letters are examined.
The first letter ‘P’ in the Greek alphabet looks like and stands for a gate, a portal; the remainder of the name means eternity:
P [ O R T A L ] + E T E R N I T Y
P A E O N I A flower with the healing power of beauty / access to eternity through the portal of the soul
Paeonia is a medicinal, healing plant that provides access to eternity through the gate of the soul.