What's so special about Basil?

As I read The Pot of Basil, there were many curious questions flowing through my mind. The main character Isabella was madly in love with a man named Lorezno. They were both prohibited to see each other. Her back round comes from a family of wealth and Lorenzo is one of her brother’s slaves.

Each day, the feelings they have for each other grew. The idea of them being together was immoral. Isabella’s brothers felt that they there is something going on between the two. Lorenzo gets taken into the forest assuming that is where he is going to work. The brothers murder him and leave his body hidden there.

As Isabella wonders where he could be, she is told that he had gone over seas to work. One night, a ghost comes upon Isabella’s dreams and tells her what has happened to him. The next morning, she runs off into the forest to see Lorenzo lying there. She spends her time sitting next to Lorenzo morning from morning to night.

One day, Isabella goes and cut off his had and puts it into a pot of basil. Her tears water the basil which grows into a beautiful plant. The brothers become curious and steal the pot away from their sister. Inside they find Lorenzo’s head has been berried in there.

The big question that kept me wondering is, “Why did Isabella burry Lorenzo in a pot of Basil?” As I researched this plant, I found a few interesting things that helped me answer that question.There are many different types of herb plants but Basil is the most popular one. The Ancient Egyptians are popularly known for embalming mummies. Even though I did project on Ancient Egyptian Medicine, little did I know that this herb was used for the embalming process. In Ancient Greece, this plant was a symbol of mourning. During those days, basil was known as Basilikon Photon or a royal kingly herb.

John Keats must have known about this plant as he was roaming around Europe. Basil was first originated from India but played the biggest role in Greece. Hinduism was spreaded throughout Europe, and when a basil grew it symbolized internal life. Although there has been no researched found whether if Keats believed in this religion.