Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) was a Benedictine nun and a German mystic of the Middle Ages. She dealt with such diverse disciplines as religion, medicine, biology and music. Von Bingen was the tenth child in her family and therefore went to church at the age of eight. The woman, who was a mother figure for her in the monastery was named Jutta. Von Bingen only told Jutta about her periodic visions, in which she spoke directly with God. She wrote down these experiences in her own alphabet so that she could keep the experiences secret. Although von Bingen was often sick in bed during her life time, she had a very long life.
Apart from the Bible, she also studied plants from her garden and how they could be used as remedies. In addition, she composed many songs that are sung to this day. Later in life von Bingen became an abbess and she traveled a lot in Germany to preach. For a woman in the Middle Ages, she had a lot of power. To this day, Hildegard von Bingen is known far beyond the borders of her homeland for all she contributed.
