Moon 1
The Moon of Initiation
Moon One of the Avalonian Cycle of Revealing is called the Moon of Initiation and is associated with the herb mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris). The lunar month begins on the first full moon when the sun is in Scorpio; the full moon is in Taurus. It is the first of four moons during the Time of Ceridwen. This full moon corresponds with the Station of Descent in the Avalonian Cycle of Healing, and it is the holy day of Calan Gaeaf.
It is here the journey begins, standing on the rim of the Cauldron of Transformation. Just as summer shifts into winter, just as night is birthed by day, it is by entering the shadow that we find the seeds of Sovereignty within. We pause here at this threshold place, straddling the light and dark halves of the cycle and the light and dark halves of the self. We pause to look behind us to see the path that has led us to this moment, to acknowledge all that we have accomplished, to take stock of the resources we have at our disposal, and to identify the places where our life’s harvest has not yet been abundant. And then, knowing where we have come from, we turn to set course to where we wish to go. We turn our sight inward and seek out the places of challenge, the places that hold pain, the places that know fear. We commit ourselves to the work ahead and set our intention for change … and then dive head first into the cauldron.
It begins.
The Mythic Portion
On an island in the middle of Lake Tegid lived Ceridwen with her husband, Tegid Foel (“Tegid the Bald”) and their two children. Her daughter Creirwy was the most beautiful of maidens, and her son Morfran was the most hideous of youths. Determined to help Morfran compensate for his appearance and be able to take his place in the world, Ceridwen immersed herself in study of the alchemical arts, at last discovering a formula which would gift her son with wisdom and the powers of prophecy.
The Work of the Moon of Initiation
In her tale, we learn that Ceridwen has two children: a daughter named Creirwy (“the Purest,” “Lively Treasure,” or “Dear One”) and a son named Morfran (“Sea Crow/Cormorant” or “Great Raven”). Creirwy was accounted to be one of the most beautiful women who ever lived, while Morfran was so hideously ugly and deformed he was given the name Afagddu, which means “Utter Darkness.” Ceridwen believed her son would never be accepted into society because of his fearsome visage and so became determined to help him by brewing a Draught of Wisdom and Prophecy that would grant him extraordinary abilities that would compensate for his appearance.
In the language of mythic symbolism, Llyn Tegid (possibly from the word teg, meaning “fair” or “beautiful”) can be seen to represent the deep Otherworld of the intuitive Unconscious, which holds at its center the elusive home of Ceridwen, that island-core of our being centered in and at one with the Divine. Her two children represent the dual aspects of the Self: that which is sovereign and Conscious (Creirwy) and that which is shadow (Afagaddu), the wounded part of Morfran, who represents the Unconscious. Through the process of rarefaction and transformation as represented by her study and undertaking of the discipline of alchemy, Ceridwen seeks to bring that which is in shadow into the light of wisdom, to spin gold from the dross.
Ceridwen’s children embody beauty and ugliness. Wholeness and woundedness. Light and darkness. We too are her children, and like them, we are made of shadow and Sovereignty—the hidden and Unconscious, and the revealed and Conscious. Ceridwen can be seen to represent our Higher Self or what connects us to Source. This part of us knows the truth of our greatest potential as well as what prevents us from actualizing it.
In the Avalonian Tradition, the dark half of the year symbolically represents the Cauldron of Transformation within which we engage in the inner shadow work that will ultimately bring us deep soul healing; we use the Moon of Initiation to begin this process. Like Ceridwen, we must assess our needs with clarity, find the place where our shadow is most in need of attention, and begin to make our way down the inner path leading us to what is most in need of illumination. It is only when we bring the light of recognition into the utter darkness of our fear, pain, and embraced limitations that we can claim the wisdom that awaits us in the bottom of our cauldron.
Ceridwen didn’t look upon her son, recoil in horror, and dismiss him from her sight. Instead, fueled by the power of a mother’s unconditional love, she embarked upon a lengthy and difficult process to help her son achieve his greatest potential; she sought to gift him with what would allow him to overcome his greatest challenges—the gift of wisdom. Our shadows need mothering, and with the assistance of allies like Ceridwen and the healing energies of mugwort, we can give it—and ourselves—the gifts of transformation and rebirth.
Searching Deeper
Ceridwen makes her home on an island in Llyn Tegid, a glacial lake of great depth found in the Penllyn region of northern Wales, near the present-day town of Bala. There are no islands in Llyn Tegid, which seems to orient the island-home of Ceridwen firmly in the realm of the Otherworld or else put it in line with the many instances of submerged residences so prevalent in Celtic myth. However, local folk tradition recounts two separate origin tales for Llyn Tegid, both of which include the inundation and drowning of an old town or castle.
In the first tale, the old town of Bala was ruled by a cruel prince who mistreated his people; every day he heard a voice say, “Dial a ddaw, dial a ddaw!” (“Vengeance will come, vengeance will come!”), but he mockingly dismissed the voice every time. One day, the prince’s grandson was born and there was a celebration in the town. A young harpist from a neighboring village was hired to entertain the guests during the feasting, during which the people engaged in wild excess. Taking a short break at midnight, the harpist heard a voice in his ear saying, “Dial a ddaeth, dial a ddaeth!” (meaning “Vengeance has come, vengeance has come!”). A small bird appeared to the harpist, and it led him out of the palace and into the hills where he promptly fell asleep. When he awoke the following morning, he saw that where before there had been a town was now only a large lake with his harp floating on the water’s surface.9
The lake was henceforth called Llyn Tegid, after the cruel prince whose name was Tegid Foel, the same as Ceridwen’s husband. She does not appear at all in this tale, nor is Tegid himself present in Ystoria Taliesin, only named, in the same way he is mentioned in the Welsh Triads and the court list of Culhwch ac Olwen—primarily to establish a lineage for named warriors and courtiers. Perhaps in the same way that Ceridwen is not named a goddess in her tale and is presented only as a witch, the mythic memory of an Otherworldly being named Tegid Foel may have attached itself to this inundation myth; there is nothing in any of the Arthurian references to Tegid Foel which marks him as being a cruel prince who terrorized his people before perishing in a flood as punishment.
The other inundation tale concerns a well at the center of the ancient village of Bala, called Ffynnon Gywer or Gower’s Well. The well was in the care of a guardian whose duty it was to cover the well with its lid every night, lest the spirit of the well grow angry and vengeful. One night, alas, the guardian was distracted by some festivities in town and forgot to secure the well cover. When the last villager had gone to bed, water began to spew out of the well and the village began to flood. Desperate, the people of Bala tried to correct the guardian’s oversight, but it was too late. Realizing what he had done, the guardian ran away but was quickly overtaken by the angry waters, which drowned him. The residents of Bala did what they could to escape the rising waters, but nothing could save their village, and by the time the sun had risen, the whole of it was underwater. Today, it is said, when the surface of the lake is still, one can see the ruins of the drowned village … but the spirit of the well is said to still not be appeased. There is yet another prophecy, remembered in a rhyme, which says:
Y Bala aeth a’r Bala aiff
A Llanfor aiff yn llyn
(“Bala has gone, and Bala will drown again, and Llanfor will become a lake.” Llanfor is another town a few miles away from Llyn Tegid.)10
There doesn’t appear to be any historic foundation for these inundation tales, and similar stories exist in a few Welsh coastal towns, but none have to do with a freshwater lake like Bala. A sad aside, in 1965 the Welsh village of Capel Celyn was evacuated and purposefully flooded to create a reservoir for the English city of Liverpool. There were many protests and acts of civil disobedience, but the British government in London went through with the plan regardless of local sentiment.
These tales aside, Llyn Tegid has another unusual property in addition to being the largest natural lake in Wales: the Afon Dyfrdwy, also known as the River Dee, runs through it; it is said that the current of the river causes the waters of the lake to churn and rock in such a way that the abundance of slate that makes up much of the lake bed is shaped by the water to form long, slender pieces of stone. To me, these have always been suggestive of the arthritic digits on the hands of a crone. I remember once while deep in work on the shores of Llyn Tegid, the words “Ceridwen’s fingers” came into my mind. In sharing this flash of Awen with others, this name has become increasingly attached to these naturally shaped pieces of slate ever since. And how fitting, because just as the landscape shifts to accommodate the needs and challenges of the environment, so are we changed when we enter the alchemical vessel of Ceridwen’s cauldron, constantly becoming shaped and smoothed and rarefied in the wake of this magical current, in the ebb and flow of our own inner light and shadow.
Seeking Sovereignty Within:
Journaling Prompts and Self-Reflective Questions
Moon One
The Moon of Initiation
The Time of Ceridwen
Mythic Focus: Ceridwen begins to gather the herbal components needed to create the Elixir of Wisdom for her son Morfran, who was also called Afagaddu—a name that means “Utter Darkness.”
Personal Insights Around This Moon’s Mythic Portion: Meditate upon the portion of Ceridwen’s story associated with this moon, and reflect it within yourself. Her story is your story.
The Focus of the Moon of Initiation by Phase
Seek the lessons of the Moon of Initiation at each moon phase by using the stations of the monthly Cycle of Healing; be sure to journal all of the insights, symbols, and guidance you receive from each goddess at each moon phase. As you work with the information you receive between each phase, perhaps following the daily process outlined in Chapter 3 of this book, and using tools such as trance postures and doorways as detailed in Avalon Within, be sure to record those insights in your journal as well.
Full Moon: Connect with Ceridwen, as this is one of the four moons that make up her time, to set up your work for the month and to receive insight on the issue of focus. This is also the Station of Descent in the cycle of the sun, marked by the holy day of Calan Gaeaf, and so will establish the work of the dark half of the year.
Third Quarter: Station of Descent in the cycle of the moon. Bring the issue of focus to Rhiannon to explore through the filters of the Station of Descent and the Moon of Initiation.
Dark Moon: Station of Confrontation in the cycle of the moon. Bring the issue of focus to Ceridwen to explore through the filters of the Station of Confrontation and the Moon of Initiation.
First Quarter: Station of Emergence in the cycle of the moon. Bring the issue of the focus to Blodeuwedd to explore through the filters of the Station of Emergence and the Moon of Initiation.
Night before the Full Moon: Station of Resolution in the cycle of the moon. Bring the issue of focus to Arianrhod to explore through the filters of the Station of Resolution and the Moon of Initiation.
At any point in the month, bring the issue of focus to Branwen to explore through the Station of Integration and the Moon of Initiation. Some women will do this on the night after the dark moon in counterpoint to working with Arianrhod on the night before the full moon.
Herbal Ally for the Moon of Initiation
Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris)
Creating the Mother Elixir: On the night of the full moon, create your Mugwort Lunar Elixir using the directions found on page 105 of Chapter 4. Be sure to label and date the bottle you are using to store the Mother Elixir. Journal your experiences around the creation of the Mugwort Elixir.
Prepare the Daughter Elixir: After you have made the Mother Elixir, use the directions found on page 107 of Chapter 4 to prepare a dosage bottle for use in the daily experience of this elixir throughout the month. Remember to use a blue or amber dropper bottle for this purpose, and to clearly label your Daughter Elixir.
Daily Work with the Mugwort Elixir: As discussed in Chapter 4, begin your daily exploration of the Mugwort Elixir. Be sure to journal everything you can about how the elixir makes you feel, what you think its energetic actions are, where it sits in your energy body, and any and all impressions, insights, symbols, visions, and memories it presents to you:
Week One of Moon One: Immerse yourself in the lunar elixir by taking it every day, reflecting upon how it makes you feel, and journaling all of the insights that come to you when you meditate upon the energies of the elixir.
Week Two of Moon One: Continue to take the lunar elixir daily, but this week spend time experiencing and comparing the energetic impact of mugwort as an essence, and mugwort as a magical herb that you burn, as detailed in Chapter 4. Again, reflect upon how each makes you feel, and journal all of the insights that come to you when you meditate upon the energies of the elixir and the energies of the herb itself.
Week Three of Moon One: Continue to take the lunar elixir daily, but this week spend time researching the medicinal, folkloric, and magical uses of mugwort, beginning with the information provided in Part Three of this book. Compare your findings this week with your direct experiences, being sure to journal all of the insights and connections you’ve made.
Week Four of Moon One: Continue to take the lunar elixir daily, but this week meditate upon the mythic portion of the month and reflect upon the ways in which the energies of mugwort are related to the present portion of Ceridwen’s tale, and how it helps you to build a relationship with Ceridwen herself.
End of Moon Reflections: Under what circumstances could you see yourself using the Mugwort Elixir in support of your work and personal process? If you had to describe the actions of this lunar elixir using one word, what would it be? What about using one sentence? What about using a whole paragraph? Again, be sure to journal everything.