Mythology of the Red Fern

The Red Fern seemed to persist in my searches, appearing throughout history and varying countries in legends and mythological stories and rituals. Here are some of the different ones which I found.

Eared Lady Fern in May

Mythology of the Red Fern:
Slavic tradition dictates that couples wishing to be married would go out to the woods in search of a fern flower, which was only supposed to bloom at night, which allowed them to engage in sexual activities and become married. The mysterious fern flower became a powerful symbol of fertility and couples wishing to have children sought the flowers in order to have better odds at reproduction. The fern flower itself became a euphemism for sex.

In Wilson Rawls' novel Where the Red Fern Grows, Billy finds a red fern growing amid the graves of his two beloved animals. When Old Dan and Little Ann tree a mountain lion, Billy tries to save his dogs with a hatchet, only to have to be rescued by the two. Old Dan dies of the mountain lion's inflicted injuries and Little Ann dies of heartbreak from losing her companion. After seeing the red fern growing on the graves Billy remembers that the plant is a symbol of eternity, planted by an angel, which will never die.

A Native American legend tells of a young boy and girl who are lost in a blizzard. When the Spring comes, they are found frozen together holding hands. Between them there is a red fern growing, symbolizing the eternity of their friendship. The place in which the fern grew from then on was considered sacred ground.

In another myth of unknown origin a fern only blooms during the summer solstice. A person who comes across the fern flower was said to be endowed with fantastic gifts such as great wealth, luck, and the ability to interpret the speech of animals.

In a Hawaiian legend, Kamapuau, the god of rainfall and certain aspects of nature had a tempestuous love affair with Pele, the goddess of volcanoes and eruptions. At one point, Kamapuau attempted to capture Pele while she was inside one of the volcanoes by building a large house over the opening of the volcano. The house was built entirely of ferns, which did not hold Pele inside.