Wednesday, July 13, 2005
UI's Celtic Mythology - Ceridwen
Ceridwen was a Welsh goddess of fertility and the mother of Afagddu, reputedly the ugliest man in the world. To compensate for his looks Ceridwen boiled a cauldron of knowledge for a year and a day so that Afagddu could become wise and respected, and she set Gwion Bach, the second son, to watch over the pot. But Afagddu was denied the prophetic gift when a drop fell on Gwion Bach's finger and he unthinkingly sucked it. In fury, Ceridwen chased and ate Gwion Bach, only later to reincarnate him as Taliesin, who was the greatest of all the Welsh bards.
Ceridwen had another equally ugly son, Morfan, who was also a fearsome warrior. He fought with King Arthur in his last battle, at Camlan. At first none of Sir Mordred's men would fight Morfan because they thought he was ugly enough to be a devil.
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Even though I'm paying homage to Celtic mythology and even though these are myths, I have to say this particular story doesn't seem to make sense. If Ceridwen ate Gwion Bach, how was she able to reincarnate him as Taliesin?
Actually, now that I think of it, maybe it's best that you don't answer that!
Ceridwen had another equally ugly son, Morfan, who was also a fearsome warrior. He fought with King Arthur in his last battle, at Camlan. At first none of Sir Mordred's men would fight Morfan because they thought he was ugly enough to be a devil.
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Even though I'm paying homage to Celtic mythology and even though these are myths, I have to say this particular story doesn't seem to make sense. If Ceridwen ate Gwion Bach, how was she able to reincarnate him as Taliesin?
Actually, now that I think of it, maybe it's best that you don't answer that!
# posted by United Irelander @ 2:23 AM 
© 2008 United Irelander.
