Modron, Afallach, and Avalon

[@KrisHughes]

ONLINE CLASSES: Tales of the Old North starts 29th Jan. PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN tinyurl.com/TON25 Taliesin Connections starts 22nd February tinyurl.com/talcon25 PLEASE support me on Ko-fi! (or take a class). With the political and economic uncertainty at the moment, my teaching income has dropped. Please support me on Ko-fi at: ko-fi.com/krishughes Thanks! You can always find out about upcoming classes at: tinyurl.com/GDclasses

[@Davlavi]

Looks very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

[@carsepeel9466]

Great work! You are a wonderful teacher!

[@KrisHughes]

Aw! Thank you.

[@carsepeel9466]

I see similarities between this story and the tale of Iain Ciar MacLeod, 4th Chief of Dunvegan my 15th great grandfather. Its said he fell in love with a fairy princess and that her father would only allow her to stay with him a year and a day. After giving birth to a son she returned to her people.

[@KrisHughes]

I only remember something about a white deer in relation to him. Can you point me to a source to the fairy princess story - I'd like to see it. thanks!

[@carsepeel9466]

@@KrisHughes kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKaakIx3rK2mhZI

[@timflatus]

It does seem as if each region or kingdom had its own localised version of Avalon; much like each region had a "Gwent". If you ask the Bretons they will point you to Broceliande

[@KrisHughes]

Indeed.

[@brennanmacdowell284]

Thank you! Great as always! A favorite topic of mine, so recaps appreciated. Have you looked, by the way, at Kirkmadrine/Kirkmedan placenames in Galloway - where you have already shown the Mabon placenames - as just maybe referring to Modron rather than the notion of an otherwise unknown 'St. Medan'? Or, am I way off, wishful thinking?

[@KrisHughes]

This is new to me, so I can't answer your question with any certainty. "Madrine" seems possible, but "Medan" less so. I don't really know.

[@knowen32]

Thank you

[@KrisHughes]

You're very welcome!

[@KrisHughes]

Chapters: 0:00 Modron’s stories 8:30 Afallach’s many faces 13:43 Where is Avallon? 16:36 Who is the king of Annwfn?

[@Davlavi]

may need to pin this comment.

[@johnmcmahon9062]

We have a similar story with Áine and Gearóid FitzGerald where an outsider with no providence or link to Ireland attacks a goddess. This must have being a way to interlope into a culture and claim a divine line from an local ancestor. I think Brighidh's 19 'nuns' may be connected to the nine priestresses from those historical accounts.

[@KrisHughes]

I know the story you mean, but I don't view the story of Modron and Urien as an attack - I really think that's a serious mis-reading of the story. I would say it's much more analogous to the Dagda and the Morrigan at the Unshin in the Cath Maige Tuired. Modron is there to confirm Urien as the rightful sovereign. Was it really 19 nuns in Gerald of Wales? I was thinking nine, but don't really know.

[@johnmcmahon9062]

@@KrisHughes I do understand what you mean about Modron not being an attack. The attack on Áine (as i know of it) happened during an aisling (dream/trance/vision), however i cannot find where i read that! Memory is not always 100% i will post my source when i find it again (its actually taken from an older story). In short i think both are historical 'outsider' human men who are trying to claim a native ansestor through a divine line, the stories are different in details, but the goal purpose i feel is the same (similar to sovereignty goddesses). With An-Daghdha and An-Morrighian i feel these are two divinities rather than a historical human trying to claim a dvine lineage. I think the 19 Nuns (of kildare) have their origin in the older nine prietesses that you mentioned - they may have doubled in number over time. In Ireland we don't have Modron but some say Boand is an Irish version (following her sons name Macan-Og).

[@KrisHughes]

@@johnmcmahon9062 Yes - I'll be looking at Boand and Aengus later on in the course I'm currently teaching on Mabon and Modron. I did a bunch of research on Aine a few months back. It required some digging, and one thing I never found, that I have seen mentioned often is the thing about her turning into a red mare. I've seen that mentioned by bloggers and trustworthy-ish sources, but couldn't find a primary reference at all.

[@johnmcmahon9062]

@@KrisHughes So interesting i had to have a look for that 'Red-Mare' - 6 books later and a few internet searches all i could find is a Wikipedia page saying she is 'represented' by a red-mare (not that she is one). I have not found a ref- for this but maybe people are mixing her up with her husband Echdae (horse-god - horse of the heavens, i.e. the sun). The White-lady (Bean-fhionn) of lough-gur and the White-horse Gaeroid rides on the lake may also have something to do with that - but are clearly white not red.

[@KrisHughes]

@@johnmcmahon9062 I do think there's more to it that just the Wikipedia entry. I haven't found the ultimate source - ** I've even asked Morgan Daimler** and she doesn't know either. She's very good at finding where stuff like that started. Any number of people have asked me why I don't include Aine in my list of horse goddesses.

[@jandunn169]

Thank you for this video!!!! I love your beautiful wallpaper..... My Welsh family tree shows descent from Meirchaum, who, it is said, was the grandfather of Urien of Rheged. So I find these stories quite interesting to decipher. Caitlin Matthews in her "Ladies of the Lake" book, pg. 69-71, says that Morgan Le Fay was the Otherworldly lady Urien met at the Ford in Llanferres, while in other tales and in Excalibur, she marries him later in life. Caitlin does make the case that Morgan at times fills the role of the Modron, as does Rhiannon in the Mabinogi until another Mabon is born.

[@KrisHughes]

Wow! A descendant of Meirchion Gul. Very impressive. Caitlin has her own take on things. I actually discuss that in this video. kzbin.info/www/bejne/kISveZuAobx0d9E

[@jigold22571]

Please.Fortingall.💐🕊❣️🔥🙏

[@wynbock]

LIKE #38! 2:48AM 10/02/22

[@netizencapet]

Thumbs down for obnoxious request to like, subscribe, & sponsor.

[@KrisHughes]

Yeah, that was 15 seconds of your life you'll never get back. Then another 20 or 30 to leave the comment ...

[@netizencapet]

@@KrisHughes True, but I liked your reaction, hence the comment was worth posting.