Cerridwen
Cerridwen had two children a beautiful girl and a hideous boy. To try and compensate for her son's ugliness, she brewed a potion which would bestow upon him great wisdom. While she was brewing the mixture, she ordered a young boy, Gwion, to watch the fire and stir the cauldron. Whilst stirring, a few drops of the liquid splashed onto Gwion's finger (either that or he took the drops knowingly) and he licked them off. Gwion instantly became filled with knowledge and inspiration.
Cerridwen was filled with fury by this and went to kill Gwion who fled from her. Bestowed with new powers by the potion he had just drunk, Gwion turned himself into a hare, Cerridwen then transformed herself into a greyhound. Gwion dived into the water as a fish and Cerridwen followed him in the shape of an otter, he flew as a bird, she as a hawk. Finally Gwion became a grain of wheat and hid in a barn. Cerridwen became a black hen and swallowed him.
When Cerridwen resumed her human shape, she found that she was preganant, 9 months later she gave birth to Gwion, but he was so beautiful she could not kill him. She cast him in a bag out on the river and he was caught on the fish weir of Prince Elphin. When the Prince saw Gwion he called him 'Radiant brow' (Taliesin). Taliesin became the greatest and wisest of all the bards.
Cerridwen (white grain) is the goddess of the arts and poetry. Her symbol is a white sow. She is also the goddess of dark prophetic powers and rebirth. She is the keeper of the cauldron of the underworld. There is much debate about which aspect of the triple goddess Cerridwen takes. Many see her as the Crone, although she is also known as the Mother. It is probable that she is both of these and the Maiden, and takes the form that is appropriate at the time.
Cerridwen has also been linked to the cat cult as she gave a kitten to the people of Arvon, which grew to be the Palug Cat, one of the Three Plagues of Anglesey. She is also associated with wolves and it is possible that she was the centre of a cult dating from neolithic times. One of her names is Hen Wen (old white one).
Adapted from 'A guide to the Gods' by Richard Carlyon
