Celtic Symbols

Welsh is one of the Celtic language that is still spoken today by an estimated half a million people, or about 20% of the people of Wales. There are also people outside of Wales, including people who have emigrated to other places, notably England, who speak Welsh. There is even a Welsh settlement in Argentina! In addition to this, there are scholars from any number of backgrounds who have mastered the language. Still, there are very few people today who speak only Welsh; the vast majority of Welsh speakers also speak English.

The Welsh language goes back at least as far as the 6th Century. Like all languages, it has gone through transitions –from Old Welsh to Middle Welsh to Modern Welsh. While at times the Welsh language was discouraged, even suppressed by English rulers, since the 20th Century there has been an active campaign to keep the language alive. In public schools in Wales, it is mandated that Welsh and English be treated equally, ensuring that the language will not die out.

Another way the Welsh language is thriving is in the realm of music. Along with the Celtic music of Ireland and Scotland, Wales has produced some beautiful and haunting music in its native language. The following video, featuring the popular singer Meinir Gwilym, gives you a sample of Welsh, both spoken and sung.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CsDuUh_iVE&feature=related

The Book of Kells is an Irish manuscript from around 800, written in Latin and elaborately illustrated with religious and mythical art. It was written by monks and is a translation of the four Gospels of the New Testament along with commentary.

Although the Book of Kells is primarily a Christian religious book, it is also of interest to many people as a source of Celtic artwork. It has many illustrations of humans, mythic beasts (known as zoomorphic images) as well as many great examples of Celtic knotwork.

The Book of Kells is composed of four volumes, and the original manuscript is presently on display at Trinity College in Dublin.

The Book of Kells is an Irish manuscript from around 800, written in Latin and elaborately illustrated with religious and mythical art. It was written by monks and is a translation of the four Gospels of the New Testament along with commentary.

Although the Book of Kells is primarily a Christian religious book, it is also of interest to many people as a source of Celtic artwork. It has many illustrations of humans, mythic beasts (known as zoomorphic images) as well as many great examples of Celtic knotwork.

The Book of Kells is composed of four volumes, and the original manuscript is presently on display at Trinity College in Dublin.

Someone has posted a whole series of videos that show how to work with clay to make Celtic style sculptures. I don’t know if you can learn something like this from a video if you’ve never (or hardly) worked with clay before, but it’s still interesting to see how it’s done. And for people who have some experience with clay, it might give you inspiration to sculpt in a more Celtic manner!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBu_TF4ZAxc

Although my focus with the Celtic Symbols blog has been on more esoteric themes, the shamrock is probably the most obvious of Celtic, or Irish symbols. Shamrocks have a long history in Ireland. They are associated with good luck, St Patrick and leprechauns. In Irish, it is spelled seamrog (meaning “summer plant”).

At one time, the shamrock was a plant sacred to the druids. This is believed to be because the leaves form a triad, and this is very important in Celtic symbolism (see my post about the triskele, or triple spiral). St. Patrick was said to have used the shamrock as a way to symbolize the Trinity. Hence, the shamrock is a popular symbol for St. Patrick’s Day.

The plant most commonly associated with shamrocks is the white clover, but other plants with three leaves are sometimes called by this name as well. In the 19th Century, it became a symbol of rebellion against the English, and for a time is was forbidden to display it.

Celtic Wheel of the Year is based on the traditional agricultural cycle, as well as astronomical events such as the solstices and equinoxes. The Celtic Wheel of the Year has eight spokes, and is based on the following holidays:

Samhain (October 31) -this is also called the Celtic New Year. It signifies the beginning of the dark half of the year. From this, we get the modern holiday of Halloween. Samhain was a day to honor the ancestors and it was believed that the veil between the worlds (of the living and dead) was thinnest at this time. So the souls of the dead, as well as otherworldly creatures such as faeries, were free to roam.

Yule/Winter Solstice (approx. December. 21) -this is the shortest day and longest night of the year. While Samhain initiates the dark half of the year, Yule is the height of it. This also means, however, that the days after this begin to get longer as the light half of the year approaches.

Imbolc (February 1) – this day was originally celebrated in honor of the goddess Brigid. It is a preparation for Spring and a time of purification.

Spring Equinox (approx. March 21)- this is the beginning of Spring. In some European cultures it was a celebration of the goddess Ostara, which later became associated with the Christian holiday, Easter. Spring is a celebration of fertility and the lengthening of the days.

Beltane (May 1) -this is the counterpoint in the year to Samhain. Mayday celebrations continue to this day, and throughout history this day has been dedicated to the exuberance and fertility of this time of year.

Summer Solstice (approx. June 21) -this is the longest day of the year, the counterpoint to the Winter Solstice. In Celtic lands this was a day when faeries were about, and gifts were left for them.

Lughnasa/Lammas -this is a pre-autumnal festival of the harvest. The god Lugh was an Irish Sun god, who was also the master of many skills. He has been associated with Hermes and Mercury.

Autumn Equinox/Mabon -this is the beginning of Autumn, and the next harvest festival as the dark half of the year once again approaches.

As you can see from this, Celtic Wheel of the Year has mostly survived from ancient times right to the present, though the names of some of the festivals have changed.

It should be noted for the purpose of historical accuracy that what has come to be known as the Celtic Wheel of the Year is a combination of ancient tradition and more recent, mostly Wiccan and neo-Pagan reconstruction. The Celts did celebrate many of these festivals, in particular Samhain, Beltane, Lughnasa and Imbolc, but they probably did not conceive of the eight-spoked Wheel as many see it today. There seems to be a natural beauty and symmetry to the Wheel of the Year image, and I don’t see a problem calling it the Celtic Wheel, as it owes so much to that tradition, but it’s worth clarifying that the idea is not a perfect representation of ancient beliefs.

The White Goddess, by Robert Graves, is a difficult book to describe, as it is to read. However, it contains a storehouse of knowledge and inspiration about mythology, poetry and, specifically, Celtic tales, which makes it of special interest to this blog.

Graves wrote this in the 1940s. He is putting forth a very complex argument, though the book is almost like an epic poem. He is trying to prove that the Goddess is the inspiration for all true poetry. He uses ancient Celtic tales, especially the Welsh poem, The Battle of The Trees to decode the symbolism of Ogham (the Celtic Tree Alphabet) and how it relates to ancient gods and goddesses. For people interested in Celtic symbols and Ogham in particular, the material about the meaing of tree names makes it worth reading.

This book is actually a root source for much of the modern neo-Pagan movement. It has been criticized by scholars as inaccurate. I don’t know if it’s meant to be taken literally, but I don’t think it should be approached in this manner. The difficult style, that jumps from subject to subject and from one culture to another, is all about connections and synchronicities. As best I can understand, Graves is giving an inspired example of how everything at one level is connected through poetry and mythology.

Although I don’t think he mentions Jung in the book (I haven’t read it in a while -and it really needs more than one reading anyway), but it definitely relates to some of Jung’s ideas about synchronicities and the collective unconscious. I would recommend anyone interested in poetry or mythology to give The White Goddess a try and not try too hard to understand it all.

Crop circles are a fascinating and controversial topic. While not specifically Celtic in nature, they do mainly occur in or near lands where the Celts have dwelt, namely the British Isles. Some crop circles do exhibit patterns found in Celtic symbols such as Celtic knots, Celtic crosses or triskeles (triple spirals). Of course, many other patterns appear as well.

There are many theories about what these mysterious and often beautiful patterns mean and who constructed them. These theories include that they are man-made hoaxes, created by extraterrestrials, made by hidden forms of energy or that they are some kind of distraction or “disinfo” campaign on the part of the goverment or Illuminati.

There is a definite link between crop circles and sacred geometry, especially spirals. Those who maintain that all crop circles are hoaxes have a difficult time showing how such intricate patterns can be constructed in what is often a very short time.
The following video looks at some of the connections between crop circles and ancient sacred sites:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVD_uZhf5EQ&feature=related

Jen Delyth is a Welsh artist who has created many beautiful works based on her interpretation of Celtic symbols and designs. She has books, calendars, t-shirts and other items with spirals, zoomorphic images such as dragons and other symbols. Much of her work also incorporates her concept of the Celtic Tree of Life. The tree of life is a theme common to many traditions, from Norse to Kabbalistic. Trees certainly play a significant role in Celtic cosmology, as we can see from the Ogham, or tree alphabet which uses names of trees to signify letters.

Jen Delyth is an artist who is both keeping old Celtic artistic traditions alive and bringing them into the future, as her designs are at once ancient and contemporary.

What follows is a video by Jen Delyth, Land of the Blind, Trance Peace Concert, with some great images to go with the music.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAXz81xmJmE