|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
Gwion Bach
Gwion BachIn ancient Welsh romance and myth, son of Gwreang. Assigned to stir the magic brew in the cauldron of science and inspiration intended for Ceridwin's son, Gwion tasted the liquid and became gifted with supernatural sight. He fled, pursued by Ceridwin, and the pair were changed successively into a hare and a greyhound, a fish and an otter, a bird and a hawk, and a grain of wheat and a black hen, which ultimately swallowed the wheat. (Compare the metamorphoses of Ceridwen and Gwion Bach with that of the Queen of Beauty and the Djinn in the Arabian Nights Tale of the Second Calendar). This pursuit and magical metamorphosis is a recurrent theme in folklore in the Indo-European tradition and survives also in the Scottish ballad "The Two Magicians" (Child No. 44). Later, Gwion was placed in a bag and flung into the sea by Ceridwin. He was drawn out by Elphin, son of Cwyddus, and was then called Taliesin (Radiant Brow). (See also Wales ) |
|
|
Cite this article
"Gwion Bach." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Gwion Bach." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403802049.html "Gwion Bach." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. 2001. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3403802049.html |
|
Gwion Bach
Gwion Bach, Gwyon Bach. Name of the servant in Hanes Taliesin [The Tale of Taliesin] who wins the gift of poetic inspiration intended for Morfran and becomes, when reborn from the shape-shifting goddess Ceridwen, Taliesin. His many transformations are often compared with those of Tuan mac Cairill.
|
|
|
Cite this article
JAMES MacKILLOP. "Gwion Bach." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JAMES MacKILLOP. "Gwion Bach." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O70-GwionBach.html JAMES MacKILLOP. "Gwion Bach." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O70-GwionBach.html |
|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries:
HighBeam™ Research, Inc. © Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.
The Encyclopedia.com advertising network includes:
