Manawydan

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Manawydan Fab Llŷr [ mana'wɘdan vaːb ɬiːr ] ("M., son of Llŷr") is a character from Welsh sagas such as the Mabinogion , where he is portrayed as a peaceful scholar and magician. Like his Irish namesake Manannan mac Lir by the Túatha Dé Danann , he is also seen as a god of the sea , after Birkhan the name Manawydan is derived from Manaw, the Cymric name of the Isle of Man. In the Trioedd Ynys Prydein ("The Triads of the Isle of Britain") he is mentioned as "one of the three yielding nobles" and "one of the three golden cobblers of the Isle of Britain".

His parents were Penarddun and the sea god Llŷr , who corresponds to the Irish god Lir , who sired two other offspring in addition to Manawydan, namely Bran and Branwen . According to the second branch of the Mabinogion, he still has two half-brothers, Nissyen and Efnisien , who come from Penarddun's association with Euroswydd, who, according to the tales of the Welsh Triads, held Llyr prisoner.

stories

War against ireland

The second branch of the Mabinogion, Branwen ferch Llŷr ("Branwen, the daughter of Llŷr"), tells the story of Manawydan's sister Branwen, who married Matholwch , King of Ireland. When Bran, King of Britain, learns that Branwen is being treated badly by her husband, he moves his army to Ireland. Matholwch, frightened by the large crowd, agrees to let his son Gwern rule. Some Irish nobles do not like this development and hide in sacks of flour to attack the Welsh people. A formidable battle ensues, which only seven Welsh survive, including Manawydan and Pryderi .

Mortally wounded, Bran orders that his head should be cut off and buried, as it is still alive and is supposed to protect Wales from intruders. When Branwen also dies of grief a short time later, rule passes to Manawydan, who passes it on to his cousin Caswallawn in order to secure peace in the kingdom.

Marriage to Rhiannon

In Manawydan fab Llŷr ("Manawydan, the son of Llŷr") the story is told: After the fight in Ireland Manawydan travels to Dyfed , where Pryderi offers his mother Rhiannon to marry him .

"You're one of the three yielding nobles."

They are with Pryderi and his wife Cigfa when the whole country is turned into a wasteland by magic. The four remaining people decide to move to England, where they want to earn their living as saddlers and sign makers. Everywhere, the high quality of their work is making the local artisans almost unemployed, which is why they plan to murder Manawydan and Pryderi every time.

“Between me and God,” said Pryderi, “my advice is not to leave the city, but to kill these mean guys there!” “But not”, said Manawydan, “if we got involved in a fight with them, that would bring us it would give us a bad reputation and we would be thrown in jail. It is better for us, "he said," to go to another city and earn our living there. "

The belligerent Pryderi is always held up by the peace-loving Manawydan and the group eventually moves back to Wales.

Pryderi and Rhiannon caught from the bowl

One day Manawydan and Pryderi go hunting there and pursue a white boar who leads them to an abandoned castle with a gold bowl in it. Pryderi is bewitched when he touches the bowl despite Manawydan's warning. When her husband returns alone, Rhiannon decides to free her son, but also falls under the spell of the curse and disappears with the castle at midnight.

Manawydan and his daughter-in-law Cigfa return to England to live as a shoemaker, but again there are problems with the other craftsmen. Manawydan brings wheat seeds with him to Wales, which he spreads on three fields. The grain in the first two fields is eaten away by a group of mice overnight, but on the third night Manawydan, who was lying in wait, caught a fat mouse. He decides to execute her when three important people appear and offer him money for the mouse. In the Christianized version, a cleric appears first, then a priest and finally a bishop. He lets Manawydan determine the price for the life of the mouse himself and he chooses a magic spell that brings the deserted land back to its normal state and also frees Pryderi and Rhiannon.

Eventually it turns out that Llwyd ap Cil Coed , a friend of Rhiannon's former fiancé Gwawl , is responsible for transforming Dyfed and also enchanted the golden bowl that captivated Pryderi and Rhiannon. The mice were also his work and the fat mouse that Manawydan caught is his pregnant and therefore slower wife. Thanks to Manawydan's ingenuity and skill, the land is being brought back to its original state and repopulated. Rhiannon and Pryderi are also freed from their curse and Llwyd has to swear never to seek revenge.

Pa ŵr yw'r porthor?

In what is probably the oldest surviving Arthurian legend (in the Llyfr Du Caerfyrddin - “The Black Book of Carmarthen”), Pa ŵr yw'r porthor? (“Who is the gatekeeper?”), Manawydan is one of King Arthur's companions , who with him has to answer questions from the gatekeeper Glewlwyd Gafaelfawr .

See also

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Helmut Birkhan: Celts. Attempt at a complete representation of their culture. P. 682.
  2. ↑ Bernhard Maier: The legend book of the Welsh Celts. The four branches of the Mabinogi . P. 139, notes 55.14 & 60.25. The other two “golden cobblers” are Caswallawn and Llew Llaw Gyffes .
  3. ↑ Bernhard Maier: The legend book of the Welsh Celts. The four branches of the Mabinogi . P. 36 ff.
  4. ↑ Bernhard Maier: The legend book of the Welsh Celts. P. 139, notes 55,14. See Trioedd Ynys Prydein ("Triads of the Isle of Britain")
  5. ↑ Bernhard Maier: The legend book of the Welsh Celts. The four branches of the Mabinogi . P. 59.
  6. ↑ Bernhard Maier: The legend book of the Welsh Celts. The four branches of the Mabinogi . P. 55 ff.
  7. ^ Bernhard Maier: Lexicon of the Celtic religion and culture . P. 264.