Solace in the Wilderness part II

“Nature both gives and takes life, and these two aspects are completely interdependent: nothing can flourish or be healed without destruction. Hence, Celtic tradition pairs fierce and powerful animals with gentle goddesses. … These deities themselves embody the paradox of life and death in mutual collusion, as they are the patrons of those who hunt the animals as well as the hunted.”

~Juliette Wood in her The Celtic Book of Living and Dying, p. 26

If you have not, please read part I for an introduction and associations with certain Wild Animals in Arthurian myth.

When I was in the middle of writing part I, I decided to ask for guidance on animals from my oracle and Tarot card decks. The second two animals I received were Bee and Cat.

Bee and Cat by Frances Wilson; Child of Fire by Joanna Powell Colbert

For me, bees and cats are a bridge to the wilderness as they are both part of our lives, but may seem closer to the fringes of society than other animals we are around often. When I think of bees within Arthurian mythos, I immediately think of Avalon and its orchards, which would need many beehives to ensure the pollination of apples. I envision Druid beekeepers on Avalon. In Vita Merlini, Geoffrey of Monmouth writes that Avalon’s orchards are always abundant and take care of themselves. But, surely, even in an Otherworldly place, bees would be present? In the Neolithic, we find evidence that the bee was associated with the Otherworld. Now that we know how hives work, what honeybees do, what they provide to Nature and as part of Nature, we can understand that they are part of the cycle of birth/life, death, and regeneration. They provide the often unseen (or unrecognized) work of creation that, to us, seems to magically occur. Perhaps bees are an essential part of the mythos and spiritual life of the Isle of Avalon. I like to think that they are. We can meet the bee in the wilderness, in Avalon, and in our own backyards. John Matthews writes that “It is also said that the bee makes a sound like the buzzing on an ill-tuned harp – a detail which shows the respect for which the bee was held by a people for whom the harp was an instrument of magic as much as music” (p. 143); a very fitting description for an animal that gives us so much.

For some (usually those who don’t have cats as pets), cats are an aloof animal who may seem closer to the wild than not. I was one of those until my allergic-to-cats mother actually got a cat. Lucy was a tender and loving cat. Her remaining son, Lucky, is a sweet boy who always says hello and loves to be pet. There appears to be one Arthurian tale with a cat in it, but he is a villain whom Arthur slays, and I’m not feeling that he’s a domesticated cat at any rate.

The Doubtful Path from The Camelot Oracle illus. by Will Worthington
The Healer from Celtic Wisdom Oracle illus. by Wil Kinghan

Today, I’d like to share a little bit about Arthurian hermits who I believe would have definitely had a cat. As I wrote in part I, sometimes we are thrust into the wilderness and, if we are lucky, find animal helpers there. There are those, however, who willingly choose a life of wildness. They choose kinship with animals and the wild over humans. Sometimes, those who are lost and wandering come upon them and find respite, healing, and wisdom or become a forest dweller themselves, helping those they encounter. As Juliette Wood so eloquently puts it, “Nature can release its healing strength only by holding its potential for destruction in check through the actions of intermediaries, such as nature gods and their human counterparts, the druids and healers” (Wood p. 26). These hermits temper the destruction of the wilderness.

from The Camelot Oracle, illus. by Will Worthington

When I think about hermits within Arthurian myth, I first think of Blaise. Blaise was a hermit who lived in the wilderness. He sheltered the mother of Merlin while she was pregnant and became a mentor and guide for Merlin throughout his life. There is a 12th C. storyteller named Bleheris who seems to be connected with Blaise and may be a memory of his storytelling prowess. Stories at a fireside when we are feeling despondent or are lost can be a happy and healing way to end the day.  

I next think of Dindraine who was an anchoress and who helped her brother Perdeur on his grail quest. She is a curious figure and seems to be fully Christianized; perhaps she is a link to the early Celtic Church where living close with Nature and asceticism was part of the hermit calling. I’d like to recommend a lovely movie, which illustrates for me the ideals of the hermit healer being confronted by the onslaught of Christianity. “Le Moine et la Sorciere” is a 1987 French film by Pamela Berger and Suzanne Schiffman, but can be found under its English title, “Sorceress.” In the film, the forest dweller, Elda, is accused of heresy because she helps the people in the nearby village by her seeming Witchcraft. I couldn’t help but think of this movie when writing about Celtic hermits.

Christine Boisson as Elda in “Sorceress”

This may seem funny, but I think a cat is a perfect animal companion for these hermits who choose a solitary life in Nature. This brings to my mind the solitary healer with her cat. Perhaps this may be a Romantic picture of a kindly forest Witch, but this is how I choose to see these figures. When we are lost in the wilderness and all seems hopeless, we may come upon a hermit who is willing to offer some small comfort. I may, at times, feel lost in the wilderness of seemingly endless Covid restrictions, or sadness about my son’s distance learning, or missing family and friends, but if I seek out hermits like Blaise and Dindraine, hopefully with their cat winding around my leg, I will be met by a warm hearth and some words to lighten my heart. May you find your way throughout the Wilderness and find some solace there.

Works Cited and Suggested Reading

The Celtic Saints by Elaine Gill, paintings by Courtney Davis

Celtic Wisdom Oracle by Caitlin Matthews, illustrated by Wil Kinghan

The Camelot Oracle by John Matthews, illustrated by Will Worthington

Celtic Totem Animals by John Matthews, illustrated by Frances Wilson

Celtic Sacred Landscape by Nigel PennickThe Celtic Book of Living and Dying by Juliette Wood

Blessings of the green,
~Hayley

Solace in the Wilderness, part I

It is the very end of summer. Covid is as strong as ever. Where I live in southern California, we have been besieged, first, by extreme heatwaves and then now by devastating wildfires. The wilderness has advanced into our known world and brought us back into its own. At Lammas, when I celebrated my personal sacrifices so as to reap a bountiful first harvest, it was hard to relive all the personal and family sacrifices that I and so many others have willingly given. Autumn Equinox approaches. It is often dubbed The Witches’ Thanksgiving and, again, I will find myself thinking on those things for which I’m thankful as well as those things I have successfully harvested in my life. Right now, when I am in-between these Sabbats, fully entrenched in a heat wave and feeling creatively and otherwise depleted, I find it difficult to look at my sacrifices and personal harvests as any great accomplishments. At times like this, I turn to story to fill me with renewed vigor for these and other things.

In the Arthurian mythos there are tales of those who are lost and wandering. Sometimes, it is a knight lost in another world. Perhaps it is a desert landscape or an enchanted wood in which he finds himself. At any rate, he is not in any civilized environment. The knight may have set out on a quest, but could not complete it for some reason; or he may be grief stricken and left his known world for the wilderness. There is an oft quoted Tolkien line: “Not all who wander are lost.” But for many wanderers, they are indeed lost and have no hope on the horizon.

illustration by Gustave Dore

After writing the first two paragraphs, I spent several days struggling to articulate how I wanted this post to move forward. I decided to ask my Tarot and oracle cards for some guidance. I have the Celtic Totem Animals boxset by John Matthews. The mini animal cards almost feel like an afterthought to the book and accompanying CD, but it has helped me to find my way in this instance, and is actually a really neat addition to the set. I spread the deck and felt compelled to pull three cards. I received Eagle, Bear, and Bee. The following day, I pulled two cards from my Gaian Tarot, which is by Joanna Powell Colbert. The first card seemed to be part of the prior day’s pull, as it was the Two of Fire and had a very peaceful cat on it. Cat is also part of the Matthews book and deck set. Sometimes, when we become lost in the wilderness, we encounter animals. In myth, it is in these animals that we may find answers, purpose, or solace.

Wild Animals may be what frightens us most about becoming lost in the wilderness, but in Arthurian and broader Celtic myth, wild animals are not always what they at first appear.

Eagle

In the oldest Arthurian text that we have, “Culwch and Olwen,” the eagle that the adventurers encounter, is the second oldest animal alive. He has pecked a mountain into a rubble hill and, thus, has literally changed the shape of the landscape and has great wisdom beyond human understanding. I like to think of the eagle as having an eternal knowing; great wisdom of those things which are and have been.

Eagle & Bear from Celtic Totem Animals, art by Frances Wilson

In a 16th century manuscript, we find an Arthurian poem, believed to be at least four centuries older, “The Dialogue of Arthur and Eliwlod.” Arthur encounters an eagle in an oak tree who, upon seeing Arthur, laughs at him. Arthur soon discovers that the eagle is his nephew, Eliwlod, reborn as an eagle. This conveys that eagles are a great part of our understanding of Celtic beliefs in rebirth and transformation. The eagle, himself, basically tells Arthur that there is no escaping death.

Bear

I’d like to quote a bit from Celtic Totem Animals by John Matthews:

“No Celtic story in which the bear appears has survived, yet it is to be found in the illuminated manuscripts prepared by the Celtic monks, and on even older carvings from Romano-British times. Its strength and stamina, coupled with its hibernatory habits, make it not only a powerful companion to have at one’s side but also an excellent guide in the realm of sleep and dreaming” (p. 142).

I very much associate the bear with rebirth, as the bear descends into the Earth Cave every winter and returns aboveground in spring with her cubs. The Continental Celtic Goddess, Artio, (her name comes from the Celtic word for bear), is a Goddess we can go to to ask for fierce protection for ourselves and our families, as we all know of the ferocious devotion of a mother bear. We can ask for her guidance when descending into the unknown, help with dream interpretation, and at the shift of seasons when things change for good or ill. Mythically, when we encounter bear, we may be at our most lost in the wilderness, but we need only remember the priorities of the Mother Bear and ask for her help traveling within the wilderness.

Gallo-Roman bronze statue found in Berm Switzerland in 1832. Inscription reads: To the Goddess Artio from Licinia Sabinilla

To be continued in Solace in the Wilderness part II