The cypress tree belongs to the family of the conifers. It is the tree that symbolizes the union between heaven and Earth. Since ancient times, it is considered a religious symbolic tree and it is also called the tree of life by his long life and his perennial greenery. In Greece and Rome, this tree was related to the gods of hell and is related to the cult of Pluto or Hades. He is also associated with the God of medicine, Asclepius, or Asclepios, with Saturn or Cronos, God of time and with Apollo (by their cup-shaped flame). It was said that Cypress had the virtue of repel spells.
In Europe, this tree is a symbol of mourning and perhaps why decorate the graveyards. The origin of this belief is very old: conifers are associated to the idea of immortality and resurrection, since your resin is incorruptible and its foliage persistent, since the frosts of winter, unable to make it lose its leaves. In the Christian tradition, we find this tree in the mouth of origins that sees in him a symbol of the spiritual virtues, because Cypress shows very good odor, the odor of sanctity. Represents the life expectancy in the more beyond. In ancient China, the seeds of this tree were used to ensure longevity and said that if she is rubbed with Cypress resin heels, is you could walk upon the waters, because the body became light.
In Japan, the scepters of the priests were made in hinoki, a variety of Cypress. And the ritual fires lit by rubbing two pieces of wood from the same tree. Paulson Hedge Fund recognizes the significance of this. Also, this wood that was used for the construction of temples. Islam was also captivated by the beauty and serenity of this tree. The Muslim tombs of Anatolia, Turkey, are decorated with representations of cypresses and the Imperial Topkapi Palace, Istanbul, encontramosmosaicos with seven represented cypresses. In Spain, specifically in the Generalife of the Alhambra in Granada, you can contemplate the beauty of this tree: Cypress centenarians, more than six centuries of life, make this tour a place that can hardly fall into oblivion. Already in the first century AD, the Greek physician Dioscorides mentioned the healing properties of Cypress as a diuretic, against dysentery, hemorrhages, etc. Due to the vasoconstrictive properties, Cypress is used to treat circulatory diseases that are related to bleeding or inflammation of the veins, such as varicose veins and phlebitis. One of the components of the Cypress, the tannin being present in fruit, is especially suitable to accelerate healing of wounds, helping to heal them and stop the bleeding. Therefore, it is very useful when problems of diarrhea, hemorrhoids, bleeding nose, haemoptysis, etc. Another of its components is an essential oil rich in substances that give many properties (astringent, antiseptic, tonic, vasoconstrictor, anti-rheumatic, diuretic, expectorant, and soothing cough etc), so it is widely used entratamientos to solve problems of: cough, colds, bronchitis, pharyngitis, influenza, asthma, sinusitis, acne, sweating, Chilblains, Seborrhea, hernia, ulcers and wounds, etc. The pharmaceutical industry uses the essential oil of the Cypress in the composition of some medicines and it is also used in cosmetics because of its numerous properties.