Triquetra on one of the Funbo Runestones, located in the park of Uppsala University. Pic: IantoPF

The Circles of Existence, sometimes called the Triquetra became popular as a result of the television series “Charmed“. In that television series it is represented on the cover of the Hallowell sister’s “Book of Shadows” A book containing spells and incantations passed down by generations of witches.The Triquetra has a much older representation. The word “Triquetra” is a Latin word that translates as “Three cornered” However for the ancient Celtic people it had a sacred and special meaning. The Symbol has been found carved on stones in various parts of North West Europe and is found on the Irish Book of Kells. Its widespread use marks it as something more than decoration. We find the answer to the question of its meaning in ancient story and legend.

The three points have led to some in the modern Pagan movement claiming it as a representation of the Goddess in her three manifestations of Maiden, Mother and Crone or as a representation of the God in his manifestations of Youth, Warrior and Sage.

Here is a much older definition. Welsh words are used. There are literal translations of these words but they do not sufficiently convey the meanings. Certainly not in the context they are used in the old Welsh Myth and legend.

Abred, Our Mortal Home

The first Circle is called “Abred“.This is mortal existence. This is where we are now. Abred encompasses this Earth and all the other Worlds that exist on this material plane. We are born to live out our mortal lives here in Abred. This mortal plane, this Middle Earth, is not some punishment nor is it a testing ground. It just is. It’s the place where we live a mortal existence and experience the “Cause and Effect” laws. Here our actions, whether good or bad have an effect and we must keep coming back here until we have wiped out all of our footprints. When we have learned to live without disturbing the flow of the universe then we will be ready to move on. Until then we are caught in the circle of our mortality. This story illustrates the dilemma:-

Our Mortal Home as seen from Apollo 17 Pic: Wiki

“There was once a priest whose duty it was to sacrifice goats. One day while preparing a goat for sacrifice he heard the goat laugh, a very human laugh. Surprised, he asked the goat why he was laughing. The goat explained that for the past 500 years he had been born as a sacrificial goat, to die on the altar and be reborn only to be sacrificed again but this time he was to be reborn as a man. The priest was pleased for the goat but then he saw a tear in the goat’s eye. He asked why the goat was sad. The goat replied; “Because 500 years ago I was a priest who sacrificed goats.”

Annwn, the Otherworld

We journey from this life to return again. Pic: IantoPF

The second Circle is “Annwn“.When we pass from this mortal existence our spirit, that essence of us that is truly us, enters Annwn. For those who die bravely and honorably in battle this is a place similar to the halls of Odin in Scandinavian legend. Annwn is also a place of rest and reflection; it can be a home of joy and delight for those of a less warlike nature or for those who wish to rest from war. For the wicked it can be a grim and forbidding place but it is not an eternal resting place for anyone.

After we absorb what we have learned and experienced we prepare for our re-birth.

We die into Annwn and are born into Abred to die into Annwn and so on.

Gwynfyd, the “White Life”

The third Circle is called “Gwynfyd“When we have passed all the trials of Abred it is time to move on. Now we go to Gwynfyd, known in Irish as “Tir na Nog” the land of youth. Here, in these undying lands, we face other adventures. Little is known of this Circle. Only that in each transition from Abred to Annwn we become better prepared for Gwynfyd.

Gwynfyd, literally “White Life” Pic: Wiki

The Ceugant

We journey from this life to return again. Pic: srpllc

Now it is time to add the three Circles together, where they intersect forms a sacred symbol that we have come to know as the Tri-Quetra.There are beings that are able to travel freely between all three Circles or spheres of existence. These beings are said to live in the “Ceugant” Sometimes a fourth Circle is added to symbolize the Ceugant itself and the wanderers travelling through the three Circles. This is the symbol of the Ceugant and the travelers of the Multiverse.

inatoPF (‘Pete’) Biography

Born in Wales, I left school when I was 15 and never looked back. Worked on farms and construction sites until I got a job working for a local bus company, South Wales Transport. Just a stopgap until I could find something better. I’ve been driving buses ever since.

Now I live in California. Married to an Apache we have two wonderful sons with brown skin and blue eyes. Yes, trouble all the way. On-line writing is how I fulfill my life time dream of being an author. If you have the same dream join HubPages and start making it a reality.

Though I write about a variety of subjects, my main interests lie in Myths and legends from the past and opinions about the shenanigans of today.

I love the art of driving, Some of my hubs will reflect that.

We’re a Pagan family and our lives are truly Goddess blessed.

We’re also a very fun loving bunch.

My latest project is telling the old Welsh legends the way they were always told with the poetry. The tales were meant to be listened to, not read, studied and analyzed. They are here to be enjoyed and my aim is to tell them before the old ways are lost forever.

http://www.youtube.com/user/Daibanjo47?feature=mhum

I also have a Blog Where the magic never ends;

http://themagicneverends.blogspot.com/

I just found Twitter and I think it’s cool.

Thank to Ianto for this fantastic post. You can find our more about him and his other posts about Welsh Myth on his blog.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Handster at http://www.handster.com/celtic_myth.html or by using the QR code opposite. It’s als found on the Opera Marketplace as well as AppBrain in the US.
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Elen Hawke/Flick Merauld

It has always been one of our aims to find out as much as we can about how the ancient Celts lived their lives, their priests – the Druids – and about their beliefs and myths. As part of that search we’ve been keen to discover where the Celts came from – what was the world like as the Celtic tribes evolved their unique identity – and also, to discover where the Celts went and what they mean to us in our everyday lives. We have found out that many people live these beliefs, stories and myths today and while we’ve mentioned Druidry, Druidism, Celtic Reconstructionism in passing many times, we thought it was time to start taking a closer look at what some of these fascinating people actually believe and what it means to them.

We’re honoured and privileged to begin our series with the famed Druid author Elen Hawke, the pen-name of Flick Merauld, who has just released a fascinating and easy to read romantic tale set in Brittany where she unfolds many of her views of ancient Breton Celtic life and Druidic belief. We hope you enjoy the article and her book, and invite other modern Druids to take part in this study as Flick has done. Thank you so much, Flick – over to you!

I’m a Druid, though Wicca has formed part of my Pagan journey and still underpins some of my ritual practice. I’m also the author of several books on witchcraft, writing under the name Elen Hawke and published by the American mind body and spirit publisher Llewellyn, and more recently of a novel, The Sacred Marriage, which is available from Amazon as an eBook.

The spiritual journey that has led me to where I am now, both in terms of my Pagan practice and my literary work, has been long and eventful, taking me through many twists and turns that have included an exploration of Eastern spirituality along with personal encounters with the so-called paranormal.

All have been relevant to me – especially those relating to the snippets we have left of the native traditions of Britain – all have, at least in part, reflected my view of the world and have coloured my writing. But two experiences in particular stand out for me.

My first conscious awareness of seeking came to me when I was still very young. When I was around five or six years old my father, an imaginative man, gave me a passage to read from Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows; the part in the chapter The Piper at the Gates of Dawn where Mole and Rat come across the god Pan playing his pipes at daybreak. For anyone who hasn’t read it, it’s worth looking up for its evocative descriptions and its sense of connection to nature.

I wouldn’t say it woke me to a sense of the land, for the world I grew up in was more tranquil, more rural than the one we inhabit now and people weren’t so alienated; but it did focus things and gave me some sort of explanation for the feeling I had of the magic of the natural world. I don’t think that first impression has ever left me.

Countless years later I moved to France with my partner and daughter, where we bought and renovated an old Breton longere or longhouse, built of granite and set in unspoilt countryside in Southern Brittany, not far from the famous standing stones at Carnac and in the heart of the region to which many Arthurian legends are attributed. We arrived exactly on the Spring Equinox, in the midst of the mad profusion of a burgeoning Breton spring. The sense of a Celtic Pagan past is very apparent in Brittany, and our house was surrounded by forests and woods of oak, sweet chestnut, apple trees and mistletoe.  It was a special place, and our land contained a holy fontaine, or healing spring, one of many marking the sources of the myriad streams flowing through the landscape of Brittany.

Furthermore, house and spring and an adjoining chapel were on a confluence of Ley lines, a spot where the gateway between the worlds  was open, and we had many strange and otherworldly experiences while we were there. We also joined in the Midsummer Fête, or Pardon the local people held, a festival that clearly had its roots in ancient times. Once again I was immersed in a mystical world, one I had thought I’d left behind with the erosion of green space in Britain. We were only there nine months, before being forced to return to England, but by then my feet had been firmly set on the Druid path, though I didn’t have a name for it at that time.  However, I did write the first part of the previously mentioned novel while there, set in Brittany and Oxford and drawing on my experiences of the energies of the land, many of which occurrences I was to find were common to other Pagans.

After coming back to England, reading and seeking made me realise I was a Druid, that that was the particular form my spirituality had taken, a label, if you want (though I intensely dislike labels) that most closely coincided with the way I perceived the numinous and, especially, my interaction and relationship with the land, the earth, spirit of place. But I was also drawn very much to witchcraft; and through initiation into Gardnerian Wicca and subsequently running my own coven, I was able to balance certain aspects of my relationship to my femininity and the feminine in nature. It was during this time, while running a discussion group for a large Pagan organisation, that I came to write my books on witchcraft. I spent so much time  answering questions that it seemed practical to write it all down and offer it for publication, so that the knowledge would be readily available to Pagans worldwide.

Elen Hawke/Flick Merauld

I stopped writing non fiction books on Paganism several years ago. I felt I’d said all I wanted to through that genre and was in danger of rehashing and hyping old material, something that felt dishonest and pointless. However, I continue to write, having returned to my first Love, fiction. I will have a chick lit/soap-opera/humorous type of eBook out next month on Amazon, written under my real name Flick Merauld and called The Aunt Sally Team. Although the book is a fun-filled romp through love, sex and drama, set in Oxford and Cotswold villages and pubs, it has strongly Pagan elements.

Meanwhile I’m a member of the British Druid Order, but also attend a grove run by an OBOD Druid. I’m lucky to live  in Oxford, another ancient place steeped in myth and with its feet in a Pagan past. Close by are the Rollright Stones, The Hoar Stone,  Uffington White Horse and Waylands Smithy, and Avebury and West Kennet Long Barrow aren’t too far away, so I’m lucky to have so many sacred sites to hand.

For anyone interested in reading more about me, please visit my Amazon author page: Elen Hawke/Flick Merauld

Flick’s New Book – The Sacred Marriage by Elen Hawke

As she has done since childhood, Sophie spends the summer with family friend Rory Ballantyne in his old stone longhouse in the heart of Celtic Brittany – a ravishingly beautiful region filled with ancient customs and steeped in the mystery and romance of Arthurian legend. But this year things are changed: her family are involved with their own lives, so she stays there without them. At first she is troubled by tension and quarrels between Rory and his wife, but she is soon distracted by the arrival of gorgeous artist Jason Ryder. Sophie becomes increasingly drawn to Jason but she also realises that Rory is not the older brother figure she had thought him, but a fascinating and attractive man. Then a series of strange dreams opens her to the energies of the land there, forces that seem to want something from her.

At eighteen, Sophie is no longer a child, and she sees the local area and people through different eyes. Gradually she realises that the energies she senses, along with her dreams, emanate from a holy spring dedicated to Sainte Nicole, a Christianisation of a Celtic deity whom locals refer to as the Lady. The spirit of the land is reaching out and Sophie¹s quest to fathom its message brings her, through love and loss, to an understanding of herself that helps her cross the threshold into maturity and gives her the strength to follow her own truth.

Flick’s new book  The Sacred Marriage is available on Amazon.co.uk and on Amazon.com

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Wizzard-Media-Celtic-Myth-Podshow/dp/B004W8QR58 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

The Book of Taliesin is attributed to the 6th C. poet Taliesin and preserves a few hymns, a small collection of elegies and also enigmatic poems such as The Battle of Trees and The Spoils of Annwfn, in which the poet claims to have sailed to another world with King Arthur and his warriors.

The Battle of the Trees in Machinima

I have set Taliesin’s Battle Of The Trees within two other pieces of writing,  firstly Tacitus’ report of the Roman invasion of the Druid island of Anglesey, followed by another poem by Taliesin which had been mixed in with The Battle of The Trees in a method of concealment to hide the poems meaning from those without understanding.

For the written poem and more details about its meaning, please see my Blog; ( http://celestialelfdanceoflife.blogspot.com/2011/07/battle-of-trees.html )

The Power of Names

The Battle of the Trees poem itself famously details the legendary Gwydion’s account of the trees of the forest which he enchanted to fight as his army against Arawn. Within the ranks of Arawn’s forces were a number of mighty warriors, and one of these was invincible as long as his name remained a secret. Gwydion the enchanter rightly guessed the secret name and won the battle saying these words:

Sure-hoofed my spurred horse,
On your shield Alder sprigs,
Bran is your name, Bran of the branches.

Sure-hoofed my horse of war,
On your hand are sprigs of Alder,
Bran you are, by the branch you bear.

However as Robert Graves explores in his book ‘The White Goddess’ the poem is particularly notable for its striking and enigmatic symbolism and the wide variety of interpretations this has occasioned.  Graves suggests that the trees in this poem correspond to the ancient Ogham alphabet, in which each alphabetic character represents a specific musical note, seasonal cycle, mythological tale and deity.

Graves thus argued that the original poet had concealed Druidic secrets about an older matriarchal Celtic religion for fear of censure from Christian authorities, that Arawn and Bran were names for the same underworld god and that the battle was probably not physical but rather a struggle of wits and scholarship: Gwydion’s forces could only be defeated if the name of his companion, Lady Achren (“Trees”), was guessed, and Arawn’s host only if Bran’s name was guessed.

Details of the Cast and Crew of the Machinema

Cast;
As Taliesin and The Bagpipes, Celestial Elf.
As Witches: Brooke Baran, Minxy Kimono, Sienna Panthar, Wicked2712 Bearsfoot,
As Druids: Mikee Martian, Obizoth, Yichard Muni,
As Celtic Warriors: Azzaro, Donjulio Siamendes, Scheer Eberhatz.
All Also doubled as Tree Avatars.

Grateful Thanks to Taliesin the Bardic Poet, and to Robert Graves for his inestimable research,
to Tacitus for recording Cornelius Tacitus historical account of the Roman attack on Angelsey, Tacitus Annals XIV,
( http://www.roman-britain.org/places/mona.htm )

Also to Freesound.org/
for use of their music and audio samples from which I created the soundtrack
Creative Commons Sampling Plus 1 License
( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/sampling+/1.0/ )

Many thanks to ;
Sliver Gray for providing Dryad Avatars, Auburn, Sapling, Nelroth and Auranox,
Lazrith Fardel for providing Alder and Dark Treant avatars,

Other props include;
Bagpipe Bird Avatar by Nowhere Phobos,
The Ent by Papadopoulus Barzane,
Piscium Navis Houseboat by Marcus Parrott.

Filmed at;
Gaia, co Enchantress Sao,
Ruins Falls, co Sliver Gray,
Tir Na nOg at Mystica co FreeSky Republic

Filmed on SecondLife via Phoenix 1.5.2.908,
On Windows XP using Fraps and Serif MoviePlus X3.
Casting Coordinator Sienna Panthar,
Conceived, Directed and Produced by Celestial Elf 2011

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Wizzard-Media-Celtic-Myth-Podshow/dp/B004W8QR58 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

Knotwork Stained Glass Pic: Three Swans Studios

We welcome our Guest Blogger today, Tim Lazaro, with this fascinating piece giving his views on Celtic Knotwork. He says: The Celtic knot is perhaps the most identifiable of all Celtic art. The knot work is designed in a way that has neither a beginning or an end to the lines and are designed with more in mind than to be pleasing to the eye. They are symbols which show us how we can all be part of the never ending cycle of life and where we add our own strand in the fabric of time. The symbolic meanings attached to knot work may or may not have any truth to their historical basis though and is not concrete as there are no written records of what the various Celtic knots were originally created for.

The knots are not designed to be merely pleasing to the eyes. They are also symbols that can show us how we are all part of a never ending cycle of life, where we each add our particular strand in the fabric of time and space.

These designs are not only exquisite and beautiful…they also compel the beholder to ascribe the knot meaning, even though the Celtic knot meanings may or may not have any historical basis in fact, and their meanings lie in the eyes of their creators. The symbolic meanings are however abstract in the sense that they relate to the universe and life rather than human emotions or the relationships we have with one another.

The endless strands indicate the bonds that tie us together and as each generation passes, the weave gets stronger and larger as this happens the Celtic knot patterns get more complex. The strands begin to bring themselves back on one another; much like the forthcoming generations will continue to bring the next chapter of generations after that.

The interwoven lines in the Celtic knot are symbolic to the how we are interwoven with those around us and how we continue on into eternity just as others do. They are a reminder of how we are all wrapped up with those who will be joining us in the life and in the life after. Each loop in the Celtic knot is individual and cannot be separated from the whole, just as our relationships in life do the same.

Spiritual Beliefs

It is believed that the interlacing of the strands is a protection against evil. Those who are joined together can defeat evil more so than when we are on our own. The more intricate the interlacing is, the more powerful the protection.

Celtic knots have also been referred to as the endless knot or mystical knot because of their esoteric or spiritual meaning which alludes to beginnings and endings. On looking at a Celtic knot is not easy to find where the strands begins and where they end. This translates into our primal selves and how we contemplate the infinite cycles of rebirth in both the physical and ethereal realms.

On a less spiritual note, Celtic knots also relate to the knots own endless nature. The Celtic knot has an infinite path and because of this it can also represent a life cycle which is uninterrupted. Celtic knots can be used as charms to ward off sickness or ill fortune which might disrupt or interrupt our peaceful, stable existence. Celtic knots were used as an emblem and were either worn or placed in a home.

The Celtic Trinity knot represents unending love whether it is between lovers or spouses or between friends, and even the love that exists between a father and a daughter, parent and child. This knot is a fine example of one of the Celtic love symbols.

Mythology

There exists a myth in Celtic tradition which tells of a woman called Bridget and her father. Bridget sat and meditated close to her dying father. As she meditated, she began weaving a Celtic knot using rushes she found near the river. Rushes were common materials found in all Irish homes and which were used to cover the floor. While she was weaving her father noticed that she was making a knot, he asked her to explain what she was doing and after she told him the significance of those Celtic knot designs, he was moved to accept Christianity and was baptized before he died.

About the Author:

Tim Lazaro is a Celtic Symbol enthusiast. He owns and maintains All About Celtic Symbols, a resource for Celtic Knot Patterns lovers and hobbyists.

Author: Tim Lazaro
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Low-volume PCB maker

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Wizzard-Media-Celtic-Myth-Podshow/dp/B004W8QR58 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

The CMP Logo

We’d like to wish all of our listeners and readers a very happy, prosperous and love-filled 2012! The Wheel has turned again and those New Year’s Resolutions, those promises to do something advantageous, are probably beginning to take effect by now! Some for the better and some for the worse Did I really promise I’d do that? How much weight have I got to lose!!!?? So we try to avoid resolutions on New Year’s Eve or Day – they generally get broken anyway and that’s no good for how you feel when facing a challenge.

The Tradition of Resolves

It’s a funny tradition really – I mean, why choose this day to make life-changing choices on? I can’t think of any mythological link to the tradition that might point to a Celtic link for Resolutions – they generally seem to have addressed each problem when the problem arose. There are many traditions associated with the New Year, such as first-footing and the particularly Scottish Hogmanay but these are more in keeping with purification and blessings. Saying goodbye to the old year and welcoming in the new. According to a survey carried out earlier in the year, the five most popular resolutions are going to be:

1. Be financially-savvy
2. Read at least one book a month
3. Eat properly
4. Get enough sleep
5. Keep a journal of awesome moments

[Source: Wiki]

I think the only one of those that I manage regularly is the sleeping!

What are our plans for 2012?

So what are we planning for the next year and a day? Well, as you know, our shows has been somewhat erratic over the last two years owing to my health problems, but as I continue to build up strength we are planning to become more regular and reliable with our shows. It still continues to surprise me how weak I actually am – apparently it can take up to 18 months for your cells to recover from having a chemo-beating! How can you be tired at a cellular level? Very strange

Anyway, it is a continual joy to us both as my strength increases to be able to do more and more! We can go out and do things together, which leads me on to talk about one of the things we are hoping to be able to do for you this year. In our search to understand how modern Celts live and how they link to the old stories and the mythology, we hope to be able to talk to some influential people in the field and bring you those interviews.

We’re trying to divide the jobs amongst ourselves now to make sure they all get done. I’m writing the scripts fort the new Welsh shows (and the first two are already under my belt! Yay!), Ruthie is working hard on the Holiday Specials and we’ve got Carina trying to fill in all the gaps!

As well as that, we’ve got two Special shows planned all about the Spirit of Albion movie that’s coming out at Beltane. We’ll be talking to the actors and some of the people behind the scenes and trying to give you some feeling of the amazing experience this movie is going to be. To have been involved in the filming was an enlightening experience for us, but more than that there were so many of those ‘magical’ moments in the filming, that the feeling is certain to come across in the final film! We are also hoping to talk to the Director, Gary Andrews, and the Songster, Damh the Bard, about the sources, the inspiration that set the film going in the first place. That should be fun

The highly skilled production team have released a wonderful new trailer for the film for the New Year, and if you haven’t seen that already, make sure you check back tomorrow, because we’ll be sure to bring you that as well.

We’ve also got a nice backlog of wonderful music, stories and non-fiction books to bring you some superb pieces from! I’m working on some more artwork for the App, along with some new Appisodes only available to App owners to keep you guys happy as well So much good stuff – you won’t be able to believe it! At least, that’s our hope and we keep pinching ourselves to make sure It’s going to be a wonderful 2012 for us all!

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

Irish Claddagh Unity Candle Pic: Brides’ Village

Guest blogger Brian Cross gives us some useful tips on creating our own Irish or Celtic Wedding: Feeling connected to your culture? Nothing compares to the celebration of heritage that can be found at a traditional Irish wedding. An authentic Irish wedding ceremony blends beautiful symbolism and art into a romantic tapestry inspired by centuries of history and tradition. Learning the stories behind these traditions, where they began, and what they mean to us today, is part of what makes Irish traditional weddings so personal and so special. Where did the Claddagh ring come from? Why do Celtic knots look that way?

What is the significance of the shamrock? We’ve compiled a bit of background as well as some key tips and ideas for adding these and other elements to an Irish Celtic wedding design of your very own!

Is Your Traditional Irish Wedding “Irish” Enough?

• Most modern weddings already draw from Irish and Celtic tradition, so don’t worry that your own wedding isn’t Irish enough. Instead, use your ceremony as an opportunity to educate your guests!

Looking forward to the bouquet toss or relaxing on your honeymoon? You can thank the Irish and the Celts for both! Most brides don’t realize it, but many of the most popular features of the modern wedding are direct descendents of Irish and Celtic culture.

By working a little history of some popular traditions into your ceremony, you can easily give your guests a Celtic experience that is as fun and romantic as it is informative. The back of your wedding programs, for instance, is a great place to explain the origins of your favorite traditions or the meaning of the symbols your guests may encounter at your celebration. There are literally hundreds of stories, and researching them can be some of the most fun you’ll have planning your wedding.

Use Celtic Knots for Your Wedding Rings and in Your Theme

• Celtic knots are a universal symbol for eternity that have come to define Celtic culture and the look of Irish weddings.

Celtic knots are one of the most ancient styles of art still practiced today. Incredibly intricate and mathematically precise, these designs have been perfected over the centuries and can be used as the main visual element of your Celtic wedding design.

But what do they mean? A great deal of debate surrounds the exact significance of these braids and what they meant to early Celtic artists. No complete record explaining the “language” of Celtic knots has ever been found, but research suggests the Celts were first inspired by the elaborate root systems of oak trees. The Celts believed trees were natural symbols of eternity, and there is strong evidence that the endlessly repeating patterns in Celtic knots were intended in part to represent the infinite cycles of the natural world.

In spite of the mysteries surrounding Celtic knots, few will dispute their stunning beauty and their ability to capture the imagination. The connection between the endless weaves of these knots and the unbreakable bonds of love is immediately recognizable, and Celtic knots are rightfully one of the most versatile decorative symbols of an Irish wedding.

Experience the Love, Loyalty, and Friendship of the Claddagh Ring

• The Claddagh ring is ancient symbol that represents the three qualities of any successful marriage.

You may have seen them on the fingers of young brides or in movies and television — the Claddagh ring is a centuries old design that has recently made a comeback among women and even some men as a symbol of Irish pride and heritage. Named after a small fishing village in Ireland, the Claddagh ring features a circle that ends in two hands clasping a heart topped with a padded crown.

Each of the three parts of the Claddagh ring has a specific meaning that has made it a favorite addition to the modern Irish wedding ceremony. The hands represent friendship, the heart of course represents love, and the crown represents loyalty. The traditional expression associated with the Claddagh ring explains it simply, “With my two hands I give you my heart, and crown it with my loyalty.” The combination of these elements is also considered by many to be a metaphor for the Catholic Trinity, while the circular nature of the ring itself, like the Celtic knot, is also said to be an expression of infinity.

• Claddagh designs can be used for more than just wedding rings and look beautiful on a variety of wedding accessories.

While Claddagh wedding rings are becoming increasingly common, they can be worn by unmarried women and are a popular standalone fashion. Claddagh rings can also be used in other parts of your wedding and often make appearances on unity candles, embroidered onto ring pillows (a particularly nice use for the design), and even wedding cake toppers.

• The myths surrounding the origins of the Claddagh ring are full of adventure, magic, epic romance, and make for great stories to tell at your wedding.

The exact origins of the Claddagh ring are shrouded in legend; though elements from the design such as the clasped hands have been traced clear back to the Roman Empire. The look of the Claddagh ring as it is known today dates to the 1600s, but Irish folklore has at times credited a fisherman, a prince, and even a magical eagle as the original artist.

Our favorite story of the ring’s origin is also the most romantic and is likely partially true. A fisherman named Richard Joyce was attacked and captured by Algerian pirates near the West Indies and sold into slavery in Tangiers. A slave to a goldsmith for over 14 years, Joyce is said to have designed the ring as a promise that he would one day return to the love he left behind in Ireland. Joyce was eventually freed; he went back to Ireland with his ring, married his sweetheart, and became a successful goldsmith in his own right.

Use Shamrock Accents for an Immediate Irish Flourish

• Shamrocks don’t just “look” Irish, they are also connected to Celtic knots and Claddagh rings in meaning.

Shamrocks are by far the most widely recognized emblems of all things Irish and are, of course, an indelible part of St. Patrick’s Day. No Irish wedding ceremony would be complete without a nod to them, but the deeper significance of the shamrock and its relationship to other Irish symbols is perfect for tying your wedding theme together.

Just as with the three parts of the Claddagh ring, the three leaves of the shamrock is also an important symbol of the Holy Trinity. According to legend, St. Patrick himself used the shamrock in his travels to explain the concept the Trinity to converts across Ireland. Even more, the trefoil shape of the shamrock is also found over and over again in many Celtic knots.

The accuracy of the St. Patrick story is debatable, but don’t expect the shamrock to disappear from Irish culture anytime soon. They are the ultimate natural symbol of what it means to be Irish and are a simple blend of all the stories, faith, and timelessness of Irish heritage.

• Use shamrocks as a natural complement to the other symbols of your wedding.

The decorative potential of shamrocks is essentially endless and you can feature them anywhere from your wedding gown to your table confetti. We especially like seeing them used in centerpieces and bridal bouquets, but what’s best to keep in mind is that Celtic knots, Claddagh rings, and shamrocks can all be used interchangeably and their special meanings complement one another. Find a balance that feels right for you, and your Irish wedding will be as authentic as you want it to be.

Irish Traditional Weddings Are a Way to Tell Your Story

The best part of Irish traditional weddings is there’s always more to explore, learn, and discover! Irish and Celtic culture is a deep well that can be drawn from again and again when planning your wedding, and now you have all the basics you need to get started. So, go ahead and lose yourself in the stories and the artwork for awhile — you’ll find that the true magic of Ireland is in its stories and ultimately in your heart!

About the Author:
Brian Cross has been an active freelance writer and researcher since 2007. He also regularly writes articles, tips, and content for BridesVillage.com, an independent retailer of wedding accessories.

Author: Brian Cross
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Ishtar’s Gate

Ishtar’s Gate is a website devoted to pushing the boundaries of scientific understanding by examining evidence and discussing theories that are not normally consdired related. We are very proud to publish the questioning and stimulating article below written be Ishtar herself and urge you to visit her site and explore the very lively forum. Over to Ishtar:

Some of us Celts like to warm themselves by the fire at night with the knowledge that we’re really half-Atlantean. After all, are we not descended from Igraine, King Arthur’s mother, who, some myths tell us, was from an Atlantean bloodline? And in the alluring half light of those flickering flames, we dream about the mythical drowned island of Hy-Brasil, which is said to reappear every seven years off the west coast of Ireland, and other tales about sunken lands under the waters of Cardigan Bay. And so it is not an unlikely proposition that these lands were actually Atlantis and that we are half-Atlanteans.

But is it true?

Well, there is no doubt that, after the last Ice Age, the melting of huge glaciers did cause massive flooding of land all around the world, and the British Isles was no exception. This artist’s impression, based on known geological data, shows what could certainly be Hy-Brasil and another island called Waveland just before ‘the big melt’ around 12,000 BCE.

Figure 1. Just before the big melt 12,700 BC.©Michael Bix

However, whether Cardigan Bay or Hy-Brasil was actually the legendary island of Atlantis (Atlas’s Isle) first mentioned in Plato’s dialogues Timaeus and Critias, is another matter. And to understand why, we really need to learn a little about how myths work. So please bear with me while I lay out that toolkit before using it to re-examine the myth of Atlantis.

The cognitive world of our ancestors

Most mythologists and shamans understand ancient myths to be allegories or metaphors for what we call, today, scientific processes, and most of these myths deal with the way in which our ancestors perceived how the creation of the universe occurs.

For instance, we now understand that our ancestors did not live in just one world, as we do today. They lived in three realms, known as the Upper World, the Middle World and the Lower World. These three dimensions are extra dimensions to this one — they exist on a completely different 4D time/space continuum, and in fact, there is no Time there. It was in these extra dimensions that our ancestors set their myths with great panoramic dramas played out over the 4D landscapes of the three worlds which were reflected in this 3D dimension back here by 1) the celestial spheres (the heavens, 2) Middle Earth or Midgard (the Earth plane) and 3) the Underworld.

The Underworld is the portal to the 4D extra dimensions through what we call the imagination, although in this case, imagination doesn’t mean ‘make believe’; the imagi-nation is the nation or realm of images accessed through the right hand hemisphere of the brain by shamanic trance. Instead of our thoughts being in words, in the right hemisphere they present themselves as pictures and as is always said: “A picture speaks a thousand words”; therefore they are very effective way of carrying and transmitting information.

Why creation myths begin with a flood

All creation myths, whether the Hebrew Genesis, the Sumerian Enuma Elish, the Norse Edda, the Indian Srimad Bhagavatham, and the Maya and Egyptian creation myths are all set in these three 4D worlds and they ALL start and end with a flood. The flood represents the End of Times and the Beginning of Times. These so-called creation myths should really be called creation-maintenance-destruction myths (as reflected in triumvirate gods such as Brahma the creator god, Vishnu the maintainer god and Shiva, the god of destruction). This is because the ancients also had a holographic view of the cosmological processes, and reflected in their stories how the microcosm within the macrocosm was continually birthing, dying and then being reborn again, from the smallest atom to the largest galaxy.

So just as at a birth of a child, the first sign that the birth is imminent is when the mother’s water ‘breaks’ (the amniotic sac breaking causes its water to flood out) so a flood in mythology signifies creation or “a new life”. However, because creation comes at the end of a previous cosmological cycle, these mythological floods are associated with death as well as birth.

This type of cosmological model is seen in concentric circles with ever-increasing circles going out from the Earth at the centre, to represent how the whole of creation circumambulates around a pole. For instance, we have neutrons, protons and electrons processing around the cell nucleus (microcosm) to the macrocosm of sun and the planets revolving around it, and even higher than that. Everything circles or spirals around some sort of nucleus.

Figure 2. The microcosm

Fig 3. The macrocosm

Click on an image to enlarge it

Beyond the circle of the sun lies the circle of the Milky Way. In Egyptian mythology, the Milky Way was represented by Hathor, whose original name, Mehturt, meant ‘great flood’. In the Norse myths, the same cosmic cow is known as Audhumbla, and from Audhumbla´s udder floods rivers of milk, which is why we call it the Milky Way.

Fig 4. Hathor as the Milky Way

Releasing the waters of the firmanent

In myths, it is usually the Hero who releases the waters of the firmanent, or the flood of milk, from the grip of a sea serpent, at the end/beginning of a cycle, so that this birth/death or creation/destruction can take place. So this is why you may have seem such pairings as Zeus and the Typhon, Indra and Vritra, Marduk and Tiammat, and Thor and the Midgard Serpent or Jörmungandr, to name but a few serpent or dragon slayers. In Norse mythology, this battle between Thor and Jörmungandr takes place at an event called Ragnorak, which is the name of the Norse Apocalypse or Armageddon. (That Ragnorak comes at the end of a precessional cycle (or astrological age) we know from the numbers that are used, but that’s a story for another day.)

Fig 5. Thor goes fishing for the Midgard Serpent/Jörmungandr

The Pillars of Hercules

Next we must deal with the Pillars of Hercules, beyond which, according to Plato, lay the land of Atlantis. There are two pillars of Hercules, and they guard the gate or portal to the extra dimensions. These two pillars are used as literary device to indicate that the hero (Hercules or Ulysses) has left the every day world when he goes through them, in the same way today we use the device of: “Long, long, long ago, deep in the mists of the time.” This is a signal to the listener that they will need suspend their judgement because they will be entering another world with different rules. This ‘other world’ is known in mythology as the Underworld.

In the Renaissance, the two pillars were said to bear the legend: Nec plus ultra (“nothing further beyond”) which was the equivalent of “Enter at your peril” for sailors and navigators.

In Dante’s Inferno, we see Ulysses justifying risking his crews’ lives by going through into the world of Nec Plus Ultra or the Pillars of Hercules by insisting that it is the true explorer who dares to venture where others fear to tread in the quest for knowledge. After passing through the Pillars of Hercules, and after a further five months at sea, Ulysses sights the mountain of Purgatory. Purgatory, as we know, is not in this world and therefore we can rationalise that neither are the Pillars of Hercules which Ulysses has to go through to reach Purgatory.

Jason (of the Argonauts) also has to pass through the two pillars of ‘clashing rocks’ (the Symplegades) in his quest for the Golden Fleece.

Fig 6. A cartoonist’s view of the Symplegades

We see these two Pillars of Hercules again and again in religious iconography, for instance, showing up in the Temple of Sol-Ammon as Boaz and Jachim. They appear at Tyre, Byblus, Paphos, and Telloh, and in shrines dedicated to Astarte, they are represented by the two ash trees standing guard either side of her doorway.

We can also see them in the Sumerian tale of Adapa as Tammuz and Gishzida who guard the gateway to Heaven, and the two columns also turn up on the High Priestess Tarot card.

Fig 7. Tammuz and Gishzida

Fig 8. The High Priestess

So I believe that we are wasting our time looking for the Pillars of Hercules in the sea … any sea, whether the North Sea or the Straits of Gibraltar…. as much as I believe we are wasting our time looking for a real lost land of Atlantis, even though there were surely inundations of huge tracts of land which were submerged following Ice Ages and comets and then ‘rose’ again when the water again became trapped in glaciers.

But the inundation of Atlantis itself is just another creation-destruction myth, a death-rebirth myth, a tale of the amniotic sac bursting, dying, to release the waters heralding new life, and this process never ends. Atlantis is continually being drowned and rising again in the life-death-rebirth cycles going on around all the time, at every level.

Every night, Atlantis goes under and then rises up again. With each daily cycle, the Milky Way seems to move around the Heavens and also throughout the year, it appears to undulate, to go up and down like a serpent, because of the tilt of the Earth.

This continuing cycle of the Milky Way is also seen as a fertility dance of the male Father god and the female Mother god that the ancients visualised as simulacra in the Milky Way ~ with their never-ending dance of life, death and rebirth.

Figure 9. The fertility dance in the Milky Way

Figure 10. Graphic of Milky Way

Figure 11. Ancient Danish rock art of Milky Way couple

This article was first published on Ishtar’s Gate (www.ishtarsgate.com) a website and forum dedicated to the study of early man through archaeology, anthropology and mythology to reveal his shamanic roots.

© Ishtar Babilu Dingir 2010

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If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

Welcome to the first in what we hope will become a regular feature. We are providing a mirror or an opportunity for bloggers to extend their audience and to provide our readers with some fascinating views on Celtic Mythology. If you have something to say, or have said something that you feel ought to be said about the world of the Celts, then let us know! All copyright rights will remain with you and full credit will, of course, be given. This is a blog by Kirsten Campbell, a student of Archaeology and Celtic Civilisation with a gift for the creative.  Kirsten is an aspiring writer of historical fiction and here she speculates about the possibilities of ancient prosthetics – artificial limbs. Her home on the web is Kirsten’s Scribbling Corner.

Ancient Prosthetics 101

I mentioned in my post on character names that Aelius, the Roman protagonist of my Severan novel, will later gain the epithet “Argentocoxos” (Silver Foot), the name of a Caledonian referred to once in passing in Cassius Dio’s account of Septimius Severus’ campaigns in northern Britain. The big question was: how do I get from “Aelius” to “Argentocoxos”? It was going to have to be a nickname of some sort, but why was Aelius going to end up being called “Silver Foot”? Continue Reading »