The Awen

One of the many challenging aspects in training to be a Priest or Priestesses of Cerridwen is trying to get your tongue round some of the Welsh words used in the calling in of our Goddess. The portal to Cerridwen’s realm is Lyn Tegid (Lake Bala) in north Wales and is the place where some of us choose to dedicate as Sisters or Brothers of Cerridwen at the end of our first year of training; or to initiate as Priest or Priestess at the end of our second year.

Course teacher, Bee Helygen, lived in Wales from 2003 to 2017 before moving to Glastonbury and it was in Wales that she first connected with Cerridwen and subsequently developed the Priestess of Cerridwen Training. Being an accomplished linguist, Bee naturally picked up more than a smattering of Welsh ( Level 3 EQF qualification in Welsh she tells me) and as she studied the Mabinogion and other ancient texts, uncovering as much as she could about Cerridwen, many Welsh words found their way into the training.

Whilst some trainee Priestesses of Cerridwen manage admirably in confidently pronouncing various Welsh words and phrases in their invocations of Cerridwen there are some of us, myself included, who struggle – it seems like my pronunciation changes every time I call in! And so, I was delighted when someone suggested we did a Welsh word feature with pronunciation and usage.

Bee has started off this season with a word even I can pronounce, but it’s super important and in fact isn’t generally spoken but sung in our Cerridwen ceremonies and rituals.

 

 

Next newsletter, I vote for Swynwraig!

 

Sidika, Priestess of Cerridwen