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Catholic Question Corner
What do jasmine flowers have to do with
Our Lady?
A picture paints a thousand words, they say. The miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe speaks to the truth of that old saying. Every detail on the Tilma—no matter how tiny—speaks volumes.
Let’s take a quick look at just one of these features: the four-petaled jasmine flower on Our Lady’s dress. In Aztec culture, each petal of the jasmine represents a direction—north, south, east, or west—and each direction is governed by its own god. At the same time, the jasmine is associated with the sun god, whose main temple was built over a system of natural caves in the shape of a four-petaled flower. So, the four-segmented shape represents the entirety of the cosmos, with the sun god in its center.
The four-petaled jasmine flower, therefore, is a symbol of the highest divinity, the sun god himself, who is the center of all. On Our Lady’s dress, this flower is found directly over her womb, indicating to the Aztec people that she herself carries the only true God, the true Center of the cosmos.
Thus, the tiny flower—half-hidden in the thick folds of a gloriously floral garment—steadfastly proclaims in silent humility that Our Lady is the Mother of the Most High God.
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