Cad Goddeu

[Peregrinator]

The Battle of the Trees

I have been in many shapes,
Before I attained a congenial form.
I have been a narrow blade of a sword.
(I will believe it when it appears.)
I have been a drop in the air.
I have been a shining Star.
I have been a word in a book.
I have been a book originally.
I have been a light in a lantern.
A year and a half.
I have been a bridge for passing over
Three-score rivers.
I have journeyed as an eagle.
I have been a boat on the sea.
I have been a director in battle.
I have been the string of a child's swaddling clout.
I have been a sword in the hand.
I have been a shield in the fight.
I have been the string of a harp,
Enchanted for a year
In the foam of water.
I have been a poker in the fire.
I have been a tree in a covert.
There is nothing in which I have not been.
I have fought, though small,
In the Battle of Goddeu Brig,
Before the Ruler of Britain,
Abounding in fleets.
Indifferent bards pretend,
They pretend a monstrous beast,
With a hundred heads,
And a grievous combat
At the root of the tongue.
And another fight there is
At the back of the head.
A toad having on his thighs
A hundred claws,
A spotted crested snake,
For punishing in their flesh
A hundred souls on account of their sins.
I was in Caer efynedd,
Thither were hastening grasses and trees.
Wayfarers perceive them,
Warriors are astonished
At a renewal of the conflicts
Such as Gwydion made.
There is calling on Heaven,
And on Christ that he would effect
Their deliverance,
The all-powerful Lord.
If the Lord had answered,
Through charms and magic skill,
Assume the forms of the principal trees,
With you in array
Restrain the people
Inexperienced in battle.
When the trees were enchanted
There was hope for the trees,
That they should frustrate the intention
Of the surrounding fires....
Better are three in unison,
And enjoying themselves in, a circle,
And one of them relating
The story of the deluge,
And of the cross of Christ,
And of the Day of judgement near at hand.
The alder-trees in the first line,
They made the commencement.
Willow and quicken tree,
They were slow in their array.
The plum is a tree
Not beloved of men;
The medlar of a like nature,
Over coming severe toil.
The bean bearing in its shade
And army of phantoms.
The raspberry makes
Not the best of food.
In shelter live,
The privet and the woodbine,
And the ivy in its season.
Great is the gorse in battle.
The cherry-tree had been reproached.
The birch, though very magnanimous,
Was late in arraying himself;
It was not through cowardice,
But on account of his great size.
The appearance of the ...
Is that of a foreigner and a savage.
The pine-tree in the court,
Strong in battle,
By me greatly exalted
In the presence of kings,
The elm-trees are his subjects.
He turns not aside the measure of a foot,
But strikes right in the middle,
And at the farthest end.
The hazel is the judge,
His berries are thy dowry.
The privet is blessed.
Strong chiefs in war
And the ... and the mulberry.
Prosperous the beech-tree.
The holly dark green,
He was very courageous:
Defended with spikes on every side,
Wounding the hands.
The long-enduring poplars
Very much broken in fight.
The plundered fern;
The brooms with their offspring:
The furze was not well behaved
Until he was tamed
The heath was giving consolation,
Comforting the people -
The black cherry-tree was pursuing.
The oak-tree swiftly moving,
Before him tremble heaven and earth,
Stout doorkeeper against the foe
Is his name in all lands.
The corn-cockle bound together,
Was given to be burnt.
Others were rejected
On account of the holes made
By great violence
In the field of battle.
Very wrathful the ...
Cruel the gloomy ash.
Bashful the chestnut-tree,
Retreating from happiness.
There shall be a black darkness,
There shall be a shaking of the mountain,
There shall be a purifying furnace,
There shall first be a great wave,
And when the shout shall be heard,
Putting forth new leaves are the tops of the beech,
Changing form and being renewed from a withered state;
Entangled are the tops of the oak.
From the Gorchan of Maelderw.
Smiling at the side of the rock
(Was) the pear-tree not of an ardent nature.
Neither of mother or father,
When I was made,
Was my blood or body;
Of nine kinds of faculties,
Of fruit of fruits,
Of fruit God made me,
Of the blossom of the mountain primrose,
Of the buds of trees and shrubs,
Of earth of earthly kind.
When I was made
Of the blossoms of the nettle,
Of the water of the ninth wave,
I was spell-bound by Math
Before I became immortal.
I was spell-bound by Gwydion,
Great enchanter of the Britons,
Of Eurys, of Eurwn,
Of Euron, of Medron,
In myriads of secrets,
I am as learned as Math....
I know about the Emperor
When he was half burnt.
I know the star-knowledge
Of stars before the earth (was made),
Whence I was born,
How many worlds there are.
It is the custom of accomplished bards
To recite the praise of their country.
I have played in Lloughor,
I have slept in purple.
Was I not in the enclosure
With Dylan Ail Mor,
On a couch in the centre
Between the two knees of the prince
Upon two blunt spears?
When from heaven came
The torrents into the deep,
Rushing with violent impulse.
(I know) four-score songs,
For administering to their pleasure.
There is neither old nor young,
Except me as to their poems,
Any other singer who knows the whole of the nine hundred
Which are known to me,
Concerning the blood-spotted sword.
Honour is my guide.
Profitable learning is from the Lord.
(I know) of the slaying of the boar,
Its appearing, its disappearing,
Its knowledge of languages.
(I know) the light whose name is Splendour,
And the number of the ruling lights
That scatter rays of fire
High above the deep.
I have been a spotted snake upon a hill;
I have been a viper in a lake;
I have been an evil star formerly.
I have been a weight in a mill.
My cassock is red all over.
I prophesy no evil.
Four score puffs of smoke
To every one l who will carry them away:
And a million of angels,
On the point of my knife.
Handsome is the yellow horse,
But a hundred times better
Is my cream-coloured one,
Swift as the sea-mew,
Which cannot pass me
Between the sea and the shore.
Am I not pre-eminent in the field of blood?
I have a hundred shares of the spoil.
My wreath is of red jewels,
Of gold is the border of my shield.
There has not been born one so good as I,
Or ever known,
Except Goronwy,
From the dales of Edrywy.
Long and white are my fingers,
It is long since I was a herdsman.
I travelled over the earth
Before I became a learned person.
I have travelled, I have made a circuit,
I have slept in a hundred islands;
I have dwelt in a hundred cities.
Learned Druids,
Prophesy ye of Arthur?
Or is it me they celebrate,
And the Crucfixion of Christ,
And the Day of Judgement near at hand,
And one relating
The history of the Deluge ?
With a golden jewel set in gold
I am enriched;
And I am indulging in pleasure
Out of the oppressive toil of the goldsmith.

 

[Peregrinator]

Kat Godeu: Battle of the Trees

O F F I C I A L A R C H I V E S : E S S A Y S ( s e e a l s o : e
a r t h )



The Battle of the Trees, or Kat Godeu, figures heavily in John Williams' 'Duel
of the Fates' -- it is where he got the words, which were then translated into
Sanskrit for the actual composition.
What follows here is difficult for those unfamiliar with Welsh literature and
legend. Nevertheless it's the most intelligent, readily available, if brief
explanation of the Kat Godeu on the web. It contains many references which, if
you become fascinated enough to follow up on them, will provide you with an
incredible adventure in medieval Welsh legend and its analysis.
The page it's taken from is by Thomas Green, and is about the Welsh origins of
Arthurian legend (of which the Battle of the Trees is a part). If you'd like
to read more, click here.
The Battle of the Forest
Kat Godeu is one of the so-called transformational poems of the 14th-century
Book of Taliesin. As it stands the poem itself certainly dates from later than
the 6th-century but contains elements which may reflect much older sources,
for example the possible survival of pagan tree-lore (John B. Coe and Simon
Young The Celtic Sources for the Arthurian Legend (Llanerch 1995) p.141).
The bulk of the poem is concerned with a great mythological battle fought by
an army of magically animated trees, the forest thus animated, it has been
convincingly argued, being the famed Coed Celyddon, 'the Caledonian Forest'
(Ifor Williams The Poems of Taliesin (Dublin 1968) pp.xliii-xliv; Rachel
Bromwich (ed. and trans.) Trioedd Ynys Prydein. The Welsh Triads (University
of Wales Press, Cardiff 1978) pp.207-8, 540; Marged Haycock 'The Significance
of the 'Cad Goddau' Tree-List in the Book of Taliesin' in M.J. Bell et al
(edd) Celtic Linguistics: Readings in the Brythonic Languages for T. Arwyn
Watkins (Amsterdam 1990) pp.308-9). Arthur himself is named only once, when
the 'druids of the wise one' are commanded to 'prophesy [to] Arthur' (lns.
237-8. The text here could mean either 'of Arthur' or 'to Arthur' but it seems
more likely that they are to prophesy to him: see Patrick Sims-Williams 'The
Early Welsh Arthurian Poems' in Bromwich et al (edd.) The Arthur of the Welsh:
The Arthurian Legend in Medieval Welsh Literature (Cardiff 1991), pp.33-71 at
pp.51-2) - however, near the beginning of the poem the 'lord of Britain' is
mentioned in the context of the battle and this should very probably be seen
as a reference to Arthur (see Haycock 1990, p.298):
Keint yg kat godeu bric / Rac Prydein wledic
I sang in the van of the tree-battalion (or 'in the battle of the branchy
trees') before the lord of Britain. (lns 26-7; Sims-Williams 1991, p.52)
Thus in Kat Godeu we appear to have a poem which dates from after the
6th-century (but which may contain earlier elements) and which features a
mythical battle fought by the trees of Coed Celyddon that is in some (perhaps
major) way associated with Arthur. As such it is difficult to avoid connecting
this battle with the Cat Coit Celidon linked with Arthur in chapter 56 of the
Historia Brittonum. The case for seeing the Historia's Cat Coit Celidon as
this mythical battle is given further credence by the researches of Oliver
Padel which indicate that Arthur was originally a legendary hero and that the
list of battles given in the Historia is merely the result of the
historicisation of this figure - as such there is absolutely no reason to
believe that all the battles referred to in chapter 56 were historical (see
O.J. Padel 'The Nature of Arthur' in Cambrian Medieval Celtic Studies 27
(Summer 1994) pp.1-31. See Haycock 1990 for an alternative interpretation of
Kat Godeu).
Copyright © 1998, Thomas Green. All Rights Reserved.

 

[Peregrinator]

The tops of the beech tree have sprouted of late,
Are changed and renewed from their withered state.

When the beech prospers, though spells and litanies
The oak tops entangle, there is hope for trees.

I have plundered the fern, through all secrets I spy,
Old Math ap Mathonwy knew no more than I.

For with nine sorts of faculty God has gifted me,
I am fruit of fruits gathered from nine sorts of tree--

Plum, quince, whortle, mulberry, respberry, pear,
Black cherry and white, with the sorb in me share.

From my seat at Fefynedd, a city that is strong,
I watched the trees and green things hastening along.

Retreating from happiness they would fein be set
In forms of the chief letters of the alphabet.

Wayfarers wandered, warriors were dismayed
At renewal of conflicts such as Gwydion made;

Under the tongue root a fight most dread,
And another raging, behind, in the head.

The alders in the front line began the affray.
Willow and rowan-tree were tardy in array.

The holly, dark green, made a resolute stand;
He is armed with many spear-points wounding the hand.

With foot-beat of the swift oak heaven and earth rung;
"Stout Guardian of the Door", his name in every tongue.

Great was the gorse in battle, and the ivy at his prime;
The hazel was arbiter at this charmed time.

Uncouth and savage was the fir, cruel the ash tree--
Turns not aside a foot-breadth, straight at the heart runs he.

The birch, though very noble, armed himself but late:
A sign not of cowardice but of high estate.

The heath gave consolation to the toil-spent folk,
The long-enduring poplars in battle much broke.

Some of them were cast away on the field of fight
Because of holes torn in them by the enemy's might.

Very wrathful was the vine whose henchmen are the elms;
I exalt him mightily to rulers of realms.

Strong chieftains were the blackthorn with his ill fruit,
The unbeloved whitethorn who wears the same suit.

The swift-pursuing reed, the broom with his brood,
And the furse but ill-behaved until he is subdued.

The dower-scattering yew stood glum at the fight's fringe,
With the elder slow to burn amid fires that singe.

And the blessed wild apple laughing in pride
From the Gorchan of Maeldrew, by the rock side.

In shelter linger privet and woodbine,
Inexperienced in warfare, and the courtly pine.

But I, although slighted because I was not big,
Fought, trees, in your array on the field of Goddeu Brig.







The above poem, an early Celtic work of great antiquity also known as "The Battle of the Trees," was originally composed by Gwion and is found in the Book of Taliesin, a Thirteenth Century Welsh manuscript. The work documents a battle between Arawn, King of Annwfn and a ploughman named Amaethon. The hostilities ostensibly arose through an act of theft committed by Amaethon. The crux of the poem centers on the use of a magical staff which transforms trees into fighting men and is believed to be the recordation of the powers ascribed to the trees at that time.
There are many varied translations of the original version...the one which appears here was taken from "The White Goddess" by Robert Graves.

 

[Peregrinator]

RealMagick Article: Gwydion and the Battle of the Trees by John Patrick Parle






One of the common themes in Welsh mythology involves raids into the
Underworld. This nether land realm is called by different sources
Annwn, Achren, Caer Sidi, or by modern English references: Hades or
the Otherworld. The images of the Welsh Underworld were similar to
the Irish Celts and their portrayal of the Fomor under-demons who
lived beneath the sea. The Welsh gods made forays into the
Underworld to gain precious commodities for themselves and mankind.
The god Gwydion once invaded the Underworld, but was captured by
Pwyll and Pryderi. The jail where he was lodged was known in legend
to make its captive either inspired or mad after a single night.
Gwydion escaped after a stay there, and emerged as the gifted bard
of the gods. His ordeal did not prevent him from making other raids
into the Welsh Underworld.
The beings of the nether land realm had three possessions that
Gwydion felt should be made available to mankind: the dog, the deer,
and the lapwing bird. Gwydion made a boon request for these
creatures, but King Arawn of the Underworld refused, and was held
strong in this position with the help of Brân. Gwydion enlisted the
help of his brother Amaethon, the god of agriculture, and Lleu to
lead a battle march on King Arawn's dominion.
The footsoldiers in this invasion of the Underworld were a battalion
of trees, brought to life by Gwydion's magic. Each of the types of
trees had strengths or weaknesses in this army. For instance, the
oak trees caused the heaven and earth to tremble in their advance
forward; the birch fought courageously; the holly and hawthorns
defended themselves with their spikes; the willows and rowans
arrived as reinforcements; and so on.
This Battle of the Trees saw a formidable opponent guarding the
gates of the Underworld--a terrifying one hundred-headed beast! But
magic carried the day. It was determined that the gods and the
battalion of trees could not win the battle unless they guessed by
name one of the ferocious fighters of the Underworld army. Gwydion
was on the mark--he named Brân. Thus the powers of darkness lost the
battle, and dogs, deer, and the lapwing birds became available to
mankind.
Another raid of the Underworld by Gwydion made available yet another
precious commodity--pork. Celtic expert Georges Dottin claims that
the ancient Celts had roasted pigs and swine as their favorite meat.
Indeed, the pig and boar are frequent figures in Celtic metalwork
art. It is not surprising that the Celts invented a myth to account
for the beginnings of the cooking of pork among them.
As the story goes, Gwydion heard that a strange new beast had become
popular in Dyfed, a Welsh territory connected with the Underworld.
King Arawn of the nether land had given animals named "pigs" to
Pryderi of Dyfed. The flesh of the pig was considered to be better
and sweeter than the flesh of oxen.
Gwydion wished to obtain some of these pigs and received consent for
a boon journey from god Mâth, himself residing in Caer Dathyl.
Gwydion, in myth "the best teller of tales in the world," led a
group of eleven other bards to Pryderi's palace in Dyfed.
Magnificent story-telling was given to the court of Pryderi. In
return, Gwydion made a boon request for these wonderful new
animals--the pigs. Pryderi refused though, saying that he had
promised King Arawn that he would neither sell nor give away the
pigs.
Through magic and chicanery Gwydion was able to obtain some of the
pigs and made his way back to Caer Dathyl. According to Charles
Squire, even to this day there are many place names in Wales between
Dyfed and Caer Dathyl that contain the word "pig," in commemoration
of this journey.
Pryderi of course was enraged. He pursued Gwydion and two battles
were fought over the pigs. Finally, Gwydion and Pryderi engaged in
single combat. In this Pryderi was slain, and Gwydion and the forces
of light became the ultimate victors.

 

[gravyrug]

Have you read The White Goddess? It's a great read, even if some of the conclusions are fairly far out.

 

[Peregrinator]

Have you read The White Goddess? It's a great read, even if some of the conclusions are fairly far out.

I haven't. I came across this because Tim Powers uses a fragment in his The Drawing Of The Dark, one of my all-time favorite swords and sorcery novels.

 

[gravyrug]

I haven't. I came across this because Tim Powers uses a fragment in his The Drawing Of The Dark, one of my all-time favorite swords and sorcery novels.

I read it while I was doing a lot of reading on mystical subjects. It's nearly as far-reaching as The Golden Bough, and more fun to read.

 

[Peregrinator]

I read it while I was doing a lot of reading on mystical subjects. It's nearly as far-reaching as The Golden Bough, and more fun to read.

Really? That's quite a recommendation. Well, the far-reaching part is; "more fun to read" isn't saying a whole lot. I keep picking that damned thing up and falling asleep.

 

[gravyrug]

Really? That's quite a recommendation. Well, the far-reaching part is; "more fun to read" isn't saying a whole lot. I keep picking that damned thing up and falling asleep.

Graves is a better writer. His wild speculation is almost like reading a fantasy novel.

 

[Peregrinator]

Graves is a better writer. His wild speculation is almost like reading a fantasy novel.

Sounds like fun. I'll pick it up. Thanks! You never know what a thread like this will turn up.

 

[Peregrinator]

Bump.

 

[busybody..]

http://www-uxsup.csx.cam.ac.uk/~fanf2/hermes/doc/talks/2004-05-techlinks/yawn.jpg

yawn

snooze


http://jimmyakin.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/stll_alarm_clock_snooze.jpg



Shhhh....................

http://systemaxonline.com/animated/snooze.gif

 

[busybody..]

http://www-uxsup.csx.cam.ac.uk/~fanf2/hermes/doc/talks/2004-05-techlinks/yawn.jpg

 

[busybody..]

http://gr.bolt.com/games/xbox/sports/dead_or_alive_xtreme_beach_volleyball_venus.jpg

Just so we ALL dont fall asleep

 

[Peregrinator]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/Peregrinator/Krusty.jpg

 

[busybody..]

here http://www.wacky-packs.com/smads/schtick.jpg

you can have it back

 

[busybody..]

You are damn lucky Im here

Im giving this thread a life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But I got me a holiday in an hour or so, and I wont be here till Sunday

Try to CONTAIN your sadness

OK?

 

[HappyMisha]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v649/Peregrinator/Krusty.jpg

I love this!

 

[Image]

Thank you, thank you, Pergy!

 

[Peregrinator]

You are damn lucky Im here

Im giving this thread a life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But I got me a holiday in an hour or so, and I wont be here till Sunday

Try to CONTAIN your sadness

OK?

Enjoy. G-d's blessings on you and your family.

 

[Peregrinator]

Thank you, thank you, Pergy!

My pleasure. I figured you'd show up here.

 

[Peregrinator]

I love this!

Me, too.

 

[atmas]

Have you had any contact with the Mabinogion? A collection of Welsh myths that strongly informed the Arthurian legends and that are oddly approachable even if I've stolen all the books containing them from my local library (of course, along with Geoffrey of Monmouth's "History of the Kings of England").
The Mabinogion, along with the Elder Edda, was something upon which Tolkien was a considered expert. His tsories "Smith of Wooton Major" and "Farmer Giles of Ham" were heavily influenced by Celtic (Mabinogion) myth.

 

[Peregrinator]

Have you had any contact with the Mabinogion? A collection of Welsh myths that strongly informed the Arthurian legends and that are oddly approachable even if I've stolen all the books containing them from my local library (of course, along with Geoffrey of Monmouth's "History of the Kings of England").
The Mabinogion, along with the Elder Edda, was something upon which Tolkien was a considered expert. His tsories "Smith of Wooton Major" and "Farmer Giles of Ham" were heavily influenced by Celtic (Mabinogion) myth.

I haven't. I was just thinking of digging into the Norse myths again, since it's been such a long time. Maybe I'll take a look for the Mab instead.

 

[busybody..]

Enjoy. G-d's blessings on you and your family.

Thx Perg!!!!














































well, this thread put me to sleep for several days and Im back

and guess what?

its still



































http://www.gregfiering.com/liladult/strips/boring.gif