Got this from Wikipedia.
Ernmas is an Irish mother goddess, mentioned in Lebor Gabála Érenn and "Cath Maige Tuired" as one of the Tuatha Dé Danann. Her daughters include the trinity of eponymous Irish goddesses Ériu, Banba and Fódla, the trinity of war goddesses the Badb, Macha and the Mórrígan (who is also named Anann), and also a trinity of sons, Glonn, Gnim, and Coscar. Her other sons are Fiacha and Ollom.[1] Ernmas was killed during the first battle of Mag Tuired.
Monday, May 29, 2017
Irish Polythiest (5 Months)
Today marks five months that I've been a practicing Irish Polytheist. It has been an exciting five month and I did add another book to my growing pile of Irish books. I've grown more confident about my path and about where I'm supposed to be in life. Looking forward to continuing to learn and grow. Thankfully the warmth has come back and I don't feel like I'm going insane with this stupid cold that's been around almost all the time.
Warm times are back and I'm hoping for a better summer than last year.
Warm times are back and I'm hoping for a better summer than last year.
Monday, May 22, 2017
Irish Gods: Ogma
Got this from Wikipedia.
Ogma (modern spelling: Oghma) is a character from Irish mythology and Scottish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, he is often considered a deity and may be related to the Gallic god Ogmios.
He fights in the first battle of Mag Tuired, when the Tuatha Dé take Ireland from the Fir Bolg.[1] Under the reign of Bres, when the Tuatha Dé are reduced to servitude, Ogma is forced to carry firewood, but nonetheless is the only one of the Tuatha Dé who proves his athletic and martial prowess in contests before the king. When Bres is overthrown and Nuadu restored, Ogma is his champion. His position is threatened by the arrival of Lugh at the court, so Ogma challenges him by lifting a great flagstone, which normally required eighty oxen to move it, and hurling it out of Tara, but Lugh answers the challenge by hurling it back. When Nuadu hands command of the Battle of Mag Tuired to Lugh, Ogma becomes Lugh's champion, and promises to repel the Fomorian king, Indech, and his bodyguard, and to defeat a third of the enemy. During the battle he finds Orna, the sword of the Fomorian king Tethra, which recounts the deeds done with it when unsheathed. During the battle Ogma and Indech fall in single combat, although there is some confusion in the texts as in Cath Maige Tuired Ogma, Lugh and the Dagda pursue the Fomorians after the battle to recover the harp of Uaitne, the Dagda's harper.[2]
He often appears as a triad with Lugh and the Dagda (The Dagda is his brother and Lugh is his half-brother), who are sometimes collectively known as the trí dée dána or three gods of skill,[3] although that designation is elsewhere applied to other groups of characters. His father is Elatha and his mother is usually given as Ethliu,[4] sometimes as Étaín.[5] His sons include Delbaeth[6] and Tuireann.[7] He is said to have invented the Ogham alphabet, which is named after him.[8]
Scholars of Celtic mythology have proposed that Ogma represents the vestiges of an ancient Celtic god. By virtue of his battle prowess and invention of Ogham, he is compared with Ogmios, a Gaulish deity associated with eloquence and equated with Herakles. J. A. MacCulloch compares Ogma's epithet grianainech (sun-face) with Lucian's description of the "smiling face" of Ogmios, and suggests Ogma's position as champion of the Tuatha Dé Danann may derive "from the primitive custom of rousing the warriors' emotions by eloquent speeches before a battle",[9] although this is hardly supported by the texts. Scholars such Rudolf Thurneysen and Anton van Hamel dispute any link between Ogma and Ogmios.
Ogma (modern spelling: Oghma) is a character from Irish mythology and Scottish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, he is often considered a deity and may be related to the Gallic god Ogmios.
He fights in the first battle of Mag Tuired, when the Tuatha Dé take Ireland from the Fir Bolg.[1] Under the reign of Bres, when the Tuatha Dé are reduced to servitude, Ogma is forced to carry firewood, but nonetheless is the only one of the Tuatha Dé who proves his athletic and martial prowess in contests before the king. When Bres is overthrown and Nuadu restored, Ogma is his champion. His position is threatened by the arrival of Lugh at the court, so Ogma challenges him by lifting a great flagstone, which normally required eighty oxen to move it, and hurling it out of Tara, but Lugh answers the challenge by hurling it back. When Nuadu hands command of the Battle of Mag Tuired to Lugh, Ogma becomes Lugh's champion, and promises to repel the Fomorian king, Indech, and his bodyguard, and to defeat a third of the enemy. During the battle he finds Orna, the sword of the Fomorian king Tethra, which recounts the deeds done with it when unsheathed. During the battle Ogma and Indech fall in single combat, although there is some confusion in the texts as in Cath Maige Tuired Ogma, Lugh and the Dagda pursue the Fomorians after the battle to recover the harp of Uaitne, the Dagda's harper.[2]
He often appears as a triad with Lugh and the Dagda (The Dagda is his brother and Lugh is his half-brother), who are sometimes collectively known as the trí dée dána or three gods of skill,[3] although that designation is elsewhere applied to other groups of characters. His father is Elatha and his mother is usually given as Ethliu,[4] sometimes as Étaín.[5] His sons include Delbaeth[6] and Tuireann.[7] He is said to have invented the Ogham alphabet, which is named after him.[8]
Scholars of Celtic mythology have proposed that Ogma represents the vestiges of an ancient Celtic god. By virtue of his battle prowess and invention of Ogham, he is compared with Ogmios, a Gaulish deity associated with eloquence and equated with Herakles. J. A. MacCulloch compares Ogma's epithet grianainech (sun-face) with Lucian's description of the "smiling face" of Ogmios, and suggests Ogma's position as champion of the Tuatha Dé Danann may derive "from the primitive custom of rousing the warriors' emotions by eloquent speeches before a battle",[9] although this is hardly supported by the texts. Scholars such Rudolf Thurneysen and Anton van Hamel dispute any link between Ogma and Ogmios.
Monday, May 15, 2017
Irish Gods: Caer
Got this from Wikipedia.
Caer Ibormeith was the Celtic goddess of sleep and dreams. In Irish mythology, Caer Ibormeith was a daughter of Prince Ethal Anbuail of Sid Uamuin in Connacht. Every alternate Samhain she would change into a swan, in which form she would remain for a year before becoming human again the following Samhain. She eventually married Aengus of the Tuatha de Dannan, but first he had to pick her out, in swan form, from a group of one hundred and fifty other swans at Loch Bel Dragon (Now Lough Muskry in the Galtees.) Having chosen correctly, he turned into a swan himself and they flew away, to the fortress of the River Boyne at Drogheda, singing beautiful music that put all its listeners asleep for three days and nights. With Aengus, Caer was the foster-mother of Diarmuid.
The story of Fionnuala and the other children of Lir shares the motif of transformation into swans.
Caer Ibormeith was the Celtic goddess of sleep and dreams. In Irish mythology, Caer Ibormeith was a daughter of Prince Ethal Anbuail of Sid Uamuin in Connacht. Every alternate Samhain she would change into a swan, in which form she would remain for a year before becoming human again the following Samhain. She eventually married Aengus of the Tuatha de Dannan, but first he had to pick her out, in swan form, from a group of one hundred and fifty other swans at Loch Bel Dragon (Now Lough Muskry in the Galtees.) Having chosen correctly, he turned into a swan himself and they flew away, to the fortress of the River Boyne at Drogheda, singing beautiful music that put all its listeners asleep for three days and nights. With Aengus, Caer was the foster-mother of Diarmuid.
The story of Fionnuala and the other children of Lir shares the motif of transformation into swans.
Monday, May 8, 2017
Irish Gods: Nuada
Got this from Wikipedia.
In Irish mythology, Nuada or Nuadu (modern spelling: Nuadha), known by the epithet Airgetlám (modern spelling: Airgeadlámh, meaning "silver hand/arm"), was the first king of the Tuatha Dé Danann. He is cognate with the Gaulish and British god Nodens. His Welsh equivalent is Nudd or Lludd Llaw Eraint.
Nuada was king of the Tuatha Dé Danann for seven years before they came to Ireland. They made contact with the Fir Bolg, the then-inhabitants of the island, and Nuada sought from them half of the island for the Tuatha Dé, which their king rejected. Both peoples made ready for war, and in an act of chivalry allowed their numbers and arms to be inspected by the opposing side to allow for a truly fair battle. During this first great battle at Mag Tuired, Nuada lost an arm[1] in combat with the Fir Bolg champion Sreng. Nuada's ally, Aengaba of Norway, then fought Sreng, sustaining a mortal wound, while the Dagda protected Nuada. Fifty of the Dagda's soldiers carried Nuada from the field. The Tuatha Dé gained the upper hand in the battle, but Sreng later returned to challenge Nuada to single combat. Nuada accepted, on the condition that Sreng fought with one arm tied up. Sreng refused, but by this point the battle was won and the Fir Bolg all but vanquished. The Tuatha Dé then decided to offer Sreng one quarter of Ireland for his people instead of the one half offered before the battle, and he chose Connacht.[2]
Having lost his arm, Nuada was no longer eligible for kingship due to the Tuatha Dé tradition that their king must be physically perfect, and he was replaced as king by Bres, a half-Fomorian prince renowned for his beauty and intellect. The Fomorians were mythological enemies of the people of Ireland, often equated with the mythological "opposing force" such as the Greek Titans to the Olympians, and during Bres's reign they imposed great tribute on the Tuatha Dé, who became disgruntled with their new king's oppressive rule and lack of hospitality. By this time Nuada had his lost arm replaced by a working silver one by the physician Dian Cecht and the wright Creidhne (and later with a new arm of flesh and blood by Dian Cecht's son Miach). Bres was removed from the kingship, having ruled for seven years, and Nuada was restored. He ruled for twenty more years.[3]
Bres, aided by the Fomorian Balor of the Evil Eye, attempted to retake the kingship by force, and war and continued oppression followed. When the youthful and vigorous Lugh joined Nuada's court, the king realised the multi-talented youth could lead the Tuatha Dé against the Fomorians, and stood down in his favour. The second Battle of Mag Tuired followed. Nuada was killed and beheaded in battle by Balor, but Lugh avenged him by killing Balor and led the Tuatha Dé to victory.[4]
Nuada's great sword was one of the Four Treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann, brought from one of their four great cities.
Nuada may be the same figure as Elcmar, and possibly Nechtan.[6] Other characters of the same name include the later High Kings Nuadu Finn Fáil and Nuadu Necht, and Nuada, the maternal grandfather of Fionn mac Cumhaill. A rival to Conn of the Hundred Battles was Mug Nuadat ("Nuada's Slave"). The Delbhna, a people of early Ireland, had a branch called the Delbhna Nuadat who lived in County Roscommon. The present day town of Maynooth in County Kildare is named after Nuada (its Irish name is Maigh Nuad, meaning The plain of Nuada).
Nuada's name is cognate with that of Nodens, a Romano-British deity associated with the sea and healing who was equated with the Roman Mars, and with Nudd, a Welsh mythological figure. It is likely that another Welsh figure, Lludd Llaw Eraint (Lludd of the Silver Hand), derives from Nudd Llaw Eraint by alliterative assimilation.[7] (The Norse god Týr is another deity equated with Mars who lost a hand).
The name Nuada probably derives from a Celtic stem *noudont- or *noudent-, which J. R. R. Tolkien suggested was related to a Germanic root meaning "acquire, have the use of", earlier "to catch, entrap (as a hunter)". Making the connection with Nuada and Lludd's hand, he detected "an echo of the ancient fame of the magic hand of Nodens the Catcher".[9] Similarly, Julius Pokorny derives the name from a Proto-Indo-European root *neu-d- meaning "acquire, utilise, go fishing"
In Irish mythology, Nuada or Nuadu (modern spelling: Nuadha), known by the epithet Airgetlám (modern spelling: Airgeadlámh, meaning "silver hand/arm"), was the first king of the Tuatha Dé Danann. He is cognate with the Gaulish and British god Nodens. His Welsh equivalent is Nudd or Lludd Llaw Eraint.
Nuada was king of the Tuatha Dé Danann for seven years before they came to Ireland. They made contact with the Fir Bolg, the then-inhabitants of the island, and Nuada sought from them half of the island for the Tuatha Dé, which their king rejected. Both peoples made ready for war, and in an act of chivalry allowed their numbers and arms to be inspected by the opposing side to allow for a truly fair battle. During this first great battle at Mag Tuired, Nuada lost an arm[1] in combat with the Fir Bolg champion Sreng. Nuada's ally, Aengaba of Norway, then fought Sreng, sustaining a mortal wound, while the Dagda protected Nuada. Fifty of the Dagda's soldiers carried Nuada from the field. The Tuatha Dé gained the upper hand in the battle, but Sreng later returned to challenge Nuada to single combat. Nuada accepted, on the condition that Sreng fought with one arm tied up. Sreng refused, but by this point the battle was won and the Fir Bolg all but vanquished. The Tuatha Dé then decided to offer Sreng one quarter of Ireland for his people instead of the one half offered before the battle, and he chose Connacht.[2]
Having lost his arm, Nuada was no longer eligible for kingship due to the Tuatha Dé tradition that their king must be physically perfect, and he was replaced as king by Bres, a half-Fomorian prince renowned for his beauty and intellect. The Fomorians were mythological enemies of the people of Ireland, often equated with the mythological "opposing force" such as the Greek Titans to the Olympians, and during Bres's reign they imposed great tribute on the Tuatha Dé, who became disgruntled with their new king's oppressive rule and lack of hospitality. By this time Nuada had his lost arm replaced by a working silver one by the physician Dian Cecht and the wright Creidhne (and later with a new arm of flesh and blood by Dian Cecht's son Miach). Bres was removed from the kingship, having ruled for seven years, and Nuada was restored. He ruled for twenty more years.[3]
Bres, aided by the Fomorian Balor of the Evil Eye, attempted to retake the kingship by force, and war and continued oppression followed. When the youthful and vigorous Lugh joined Nuada's court, the king realised the multi-talented youth could lead the Tuatha Dé against the Fomorians, and stood down in his favour. The second Battle of Mag Tuired followed. Nuada was killed and beheaded in battle by Balor, but Lugh avenged him by killing Balor and led the Tuatha Dé to victory.[4]
Nuada's great sword was one of the Four Treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann, brought from one of their four great cities.
Nuada may be the same figure as Elcmar, and possibly Nechtan.[6] Other characters of the same name include the later High Kings Nuadu Finn Fáil and Nuadu Necht, and Nuada, the maternal grandfather of Fionn mac Cumhaill. A rival to Conn of the Hundred Battles was Mug Nuadat ("Nuada's Slave"). The Delbhna, a people of early Ireland, had a branch called the Delbhna Nuadat who lived in County Roscommon. The present day town of Maynooth in County Kildare is named after Nuada (its Irish name is Maigh Nuad, meaning The plain of Nuada).
Nuada's name is cognate with that of Nodens, a Romano-British deity associated with the sea and healing who was equated with the Roman Mars, and with Nudd, a Welsh mythological figure. It is likely that another Welsh figure, Lludd Llaw Eraint (Lludd of the Silver Hand), derives from Nudd Llaw Eraint by alliterative assimilation.[7] (The Norse god Týr is another deity equated with Mars who lost a hand).
The name Nuada probably derives from a Celtic stem *noudont- or *noudent-, which J. R. R. Tolkien suggested was related to a Germanic root meaning "acquire, have the use of", earlier "to catch, entrap (as a hunter)". Making the connection with Nuada and Lludd's hand, he detected "an echo of the ancient fame of the magic hand of Nodens the Catcher".[9] Similarly, Julius Pokorny derives the name from a Proto-Indo-European root *neu-d- meaning "acquire, utilise, go fishing"
Thursday, May 4, 2017
The Celtic Wanderer up for Four Months
Today marks four months that this blog has been up. Thanks everyone for following me and reading my posts. This blog is now entering the warm months and I'm looking forward to writing about the trip and all the other things. Pretty exciting summer is coming up.
Monday, May 1, 2017
Irish Gods: Fand
Got this from Wikipedia.
Fand ('tear') or Fann ('weak, helpless person') is an otherworldly woman in Irish mythology. The two forms of her name are not phonetic variants, but two different words of different meaning, and the history of her name is debated.
Fand appears most prominently in the Ulster Cycle tale, Serglige Con Culainn (The Sickbed of Cúchulainn) as the daughter of Áed Abrat, sister of Lí Ban and one Angus, and wife of Manannán.[2]
She enters the story in the form of an otherworldly sea bird. In her sea bird form, she flies with a flock of enchanted birds, with each pair joined together by a silver chain. Fand, flying with her sister Lí Ban, stands out from the rest as they are connected by a gold chain.
The hero Cúchulainn hurls stones at the seabirds, one of which passes through Fand's wing feathers. Later, Fand and Lí Ban return in the form of "Otherworldly women" and confront him on the shore of the lake. They beat Cúchulainn with horsewhips until he falls ill and lies abed for a year, unable to rise.
Cúchulainn eventually regains his health by the favor of Fand when, via negotiators (Lí Ban, and Cúchulainn's charioteer, Láeg), Cúchulainn reluctantly agrees to travel to the Fand's otherworld island and help her in a battle against her foes. Cúchulainn and Fand then become lovers.
The relationship does not last, as Cúchulainn's wife, Emer is very jealous and comes to attack the couple with a troop of women armed with knives. Fand sees that Emer is worthy of Cúchulainn, and obviously upset by their affair, so Fand chooses to leave him. She chants a poem, and then returns to her husband Manannán, who shakes his magical cloak of mists between Fand and Cúchulainn, that they may never meet again. Cúchulainn and Emer then drink a drink of forgetfulness, provided by the druids.
Other appearances in Early Literature
According to MacKillop, 'her mother is sometimes given as Flidais, the woodland deity. In variant texts she is described as the wife of Eochaid Iúil, one of Labraid's enemies vanquished by Cúchulainn'.[3]
The goddess or otherworldly woman, Niamh of the Golden Hair, is said to be a daughter of Manannán. As Niamh and Fand share some of the same characteristics, it is possible Niamh is also the daughter of Fand. Some sources mention another possible daughter of Manannán, Cliodna, but as Manannán is known to have partnered with a number of goddesses and mortal women, her connection with Fand is unclear.
Appearance in Modern Literature
Fand inspired William Larminie's Fand and Other Poems (Dublin, 1892) and Arnold Bax's tone poem The Garden of Fand (1916).[4]
Fand has also appeared as a recurring character in Kevin Hearne's The Iron Druid Chronicles series.
Fand ('tear') or Fann ('weak, helpless person') is an otherworldly woman in Irish mythology. The two forms of her name are not phonetic variants, but two different words of different meaning, and the history of her name is debated.
Fand appears most prominently in the Ulster Cycle tale, Serglige Con Culainn (The Sickbed of Cúchulainn) as the daughter of Áed Abrat, sister of Lí Ban and one Angus, and wife of Manannán.[2]
She enters the story in the form of an otherworldly sea bird. In her sea bird form, she flies with a flock of enchanted birds, with each pair joined together by a silver chain. Fand, flying with her sister Lí Ban, stands out from the rest as they are connected by a gold chain.
The hero Cúchulainn hurls stones at the seabirds, one of which passes through Fand's wing feathers. Later, Fand and Lí Ban return in the form of "Otherworldly women" and confront him on the shore of the lake. They beat Cúchulainn with horsewhips until he falls ill and lies abed for a year, unable to rise.
Cúchulainn eventually regains his health by the favor of Fand when, via negotiators (Lí Ban, and Cúchulainn's charioteer, Láeg), Cúchulainn reluctantly agrees to travel to the Fand's otherworld island and help her in a battle against her foes. Cúchulainn and Fand then become lovers.
The relationship does not last, as Cúchulainn's wife, Emer is very jealous and comes to attack the couple with a troop of women armed with knives. Fand sees that Emer is worthy of Cúchulainn, and obviously upset by their affair, so Fand chooses to leave him. She chants a poem, and then returns to her husband Manannán, who shakes his magical cloak of mists between Fand and Cúchulainn, that they may never meet again. Cúchulainn and Emer then drink a drink of forgetfulness, provided by the druids.
Other appearances in Early Literature
According to MacKillop, 'her mother is sometimes given as Flidais, the woodland deity. In variant texts she is described as the wife of Eochaid Iúil, one of Labraid's enemies vanquished by Cúchulainn'.[3]
The goddess or otherworldly woman, Niamh of the Golden Hair, is said to be a daughter of Manannán. As Niamh and Fand share some of the same characteristics, it is possible Niamh is also the daughter of Fand. Some sources mention another possible daughter of Manannán, Cliodna, but as Manannán is known to have partnered with a number of goddesses and mortal women, her connection with Fand is unclear.
Appearance in Modern Literature
Fand inspired William Larminie's Fand and Other Poems (Dublin, 1892) and Arnold Bax's tone poem The Garden of Fand (1916).[4]
Fand has also appeared as a recurring character in Kevin Hearne's The Iron Druid Chronicles series.
Happy Beltane (2017)
Today is the Sabbath known as Beltane. I talked about what this Sabbath is all about and I want to show off my Sabbath altar. I hope that you enjoy seeing it and happy Beltane.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)