Brigid: Igniting the Inner Fire

Brigid, whose name means “fiery arrow”, was beloved of the Irish Celts, and survived Christian conversion by becoming a Catholic Saint who is still revered to this day.  For the ancient Irish, Brigid was the goddess of all things lofty and elevated, such as high rising flames, upland areas, wisdom, perfection, intelligence, creativity, poetic eloquence, blacksmithing, healing, mystical knowledge, and warfare.  She was the daughter of the Father god, the Dagda of the Tuatha Dé Danann.  Some stories suggest that her mother was The Morrigan, the dark goddess, and with her birth she brought light from the void.


She was considered a solar goddess, and stories of her birth recount her rising from the earth into the sky along with the rising sun with rays of light emanating from her head. With every step she took flowers sprouted and birds sang and soared in the air.  Though she was associated with the sun, it was not the physical sun she represented, but the healing energy associated with it.  Snakes are sacred to Brigid, symbolizing  regeneration and the rising of the kundalini energy that exists and rising within each of us when we are healthy and balanced.

The blackberry is sacred to Brigid, and serves to symbolize her strong protective nature with its defensive thorns, and arching, tangled canes, as well as her healing nature by providing nourishing berries and herbal healing remedies.

Throughout Ireland, one can find shrines built over or near natural springs where people go to pray and receive her healing energy through her sacred waters. 

Imbolc was a significant holiday associated with Brigid.  In the ancient times this was a time to acknowledge that spring was not so far away, despite the tight grip winter still had over the land.  For the ancient Gaels, this time of year was particularly harsh.  It was considered the dead month.  But, despite the harsh winds and icy rain that fell, signs of spring could be found.  Ewes began to lactate, Cows gave birth, Ravens started to build nests, and green buds started to appear on branches and poke through the dirt.

Imbolc was important because it fell on an in-between time, a very powerful and sacred time for the Celts.  Brigid, if properly respected, brought the warmth of the sun, the flame of spring, healed the dead-time, and brought words to the poet’s lips.  Her miraculous powers could change water into ale and stone into salt. With boundless generosity she fed birds, animals, and the poor, and they all loved her in return.

Rabbits and Hares were also ancient symbols of spring.  The hare was an emissary of the Otherworld and a symbol of the in-between time, which made Imbolc a such a sacred time.  It is also the time of year that the footprints of rabbits and hares can be seen in the snow, as they search out the tender green shoots to eat and court their mates.  The snowshoe hare, with its ability to change its coat through the seasons, symbolizes the creativity embodied by Brigid. 

In modern time, Brigid can teach us to look bravely into the darkness and bear witness to the growing light.  It is a time of renewal, of re-affirming those resolutions we took at the beginning of the year to better ourselves. Now is the time to understand that no matter how difficult and dark things may appear to be, it will pass, for in order for darkness to exist light must exist as well. 

She asks us to apply creativity to our lives, to live with passion and in accord with our spirit.  A life that is full of passion, creative and healthy is blessed and burns with Brigid’s fire.

Brigid’s fire is the spark of life.

DoAn


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Ériu – Queen of the Emerald Isle

Ériu was the sovereign earth-mother goddess of Ireland. She was one of a triad of goddesses: her sisters, Banbha and Fodla, were also goddess queens of the land. Ériu was married to the King Mac Gréine (Son of the Sun), who was himself the son of the Dagda, the father god of the Tuatha dé Danann.

When the Milesians (the humans) came to the Emerald Isle, they were confronted by the three sisters, each of them offered the island in exchange that the land be named after them. Banbha and Fodla became poetic names for the island, while Ériu became the chief name. We now know the land as Ireland, the root of the name coming from the name Ériu.

Ériu was an earth goddess, and this painting focuses primarily on that aspect of her. I wanted to tune in to earth energies rather than focus on form. As I worked on the piece, I filled my mind with images of Ireland, the land itself, and its plentiful plant and animal life. I used a photograph of a moss and lichen covered rock in Ireland as a guide to the composition. The range of colors in the painting reflect Ireland’s lushness and richness of life.

Ériu was also considered a solar goddess, through her marriage to Mac Gréine. When Ériu, as queen, conferred the land to the new human king, she offered him wine in a golden cup. Wine was the symbol of the earth, rich with life and plenty while the cup symbolized the sun, the source of illumination and healing. By using glazing techniques, I incorporated qualities of the sun in the painting as well. Glazing requires very thin layers of color layered over each other. The light shines through the transparent layers to the white canvas below, when the light bounces back, the colored layers blend, creating the different hues. I used only Hansa Yellow Light, Phthalo Blue, and Alizarin Crimson in the paintings. I didn’t mix colors on a palette. All the different colors appear solely from light blending together the multiple layers of color.

Ériu was also a goddess of sovereignty. In ancient times, the Celtic kings were married to the goddess of the land. It was the king’s responsibility to please the goddess, to make sure no one died in childbirth, that the food should grow plentifully, and so on. If the goddess was happy, the people thrived and were happy. If the king was unable to fulfill these duties—the king would be overthrown, having lost favor with the goddess.

I think about how such beliefs truly bonded people to the land they lived on. It was much more difficult to disrespect the land, or to take without first obtaining the permission of the land itself. How many of us today take a moment to consider how our actions affect the land we live on? If we thought of the earth as a living being would it be as easy to treat it so poorly? Imagine how much better off the environment would be if we each thought of ourselves married to the land?

DoAn

Prints are available at Fine Art America 

(Ériu: Queen of the Emerald Isle, 30” x 30”, acrylic on canvas)

Beag: the keeper of the well of wisdom is published!

Emerging Visions, an e-zine for visionary art, edited by Laurie Corzett, has posted its LeapDay Issue on the theme of ImagiNation, and I am happy to announce that my painting, Beag; the keeper of the well of wisdom, was selected to illustrate the issue. Please take a moment to check out the poetry, essays, flash fiction and visual art by the other talented artists and writers.

Brigid (SOLD)

As one of the most popular goddesses worshipped by the Celts, she continues to be a favorite among Christians as many of her stories and myths survived in the persona of Saint Brigid. She was the goddess of all things perceived to be of relatively high dimensions such as high-rising flames, highlands, hill-forts and upland areas; and of activities and states conceived as psychologically lofty and elevated, such as wisdom, excellence, perfection, high intelligence, poetic eloquence, craftsmanship (especially blacksmithing), healing ability, druidic knowledge and skill in warfare. An object connected to the goddess called Brigid's Cross, made of rushes or straw, and woven into a kind of star or cross shape (see image).

Many rituals are associated with the making of the crosses. At one time, these were very common, but now have become rare. Occasionally, in the rural areas, Roman Catholic homes still feature Brigid's crosses. It was traditionally believed that a Brigid's Cross protects the house from fire and evil. Brigid's crosses are associated with Brigid of Kildare, who is venerated as one of the patron saints of Ireland. The crosses are traditionally made on 1 February, which in Gaelic is called Lá Fhéile Bhríde (Brigid's feast day), the day of her liturgical celebration.

I used the Whirlpool Galaxy as the reference for this painting. I found the spiraling arms of the galaxy an echo of the arms of Brigit's Cross, and all the fiery stars being creating within the arms, an adequate representation of the different qualities of this powerful goddess.

DoAn

Beag: Keeper of the Well of Wisdom (SOLD)

At last, the latest painting for the From Beyond the Ninth Wave series is completed. This one is entitled Beag: Keeper of the Well of Wisdom. The goddess Beag (pronounced: BEG), possessed a magic well, which was guarded by her three daughters. When the Irish hero Fionn Mac Cumhail came to the well to ask for a drink the daughters tried to keep him from getting the water. One of the daughters threw water over him to frighten him away, but some of the water trickled into his mouth, giving him wisdom.

This painting is comprised of A LOT of glaze work. Using only three colors (Yellow, Magenta, and Blue), I made fine washes of color over each other, sometimes adding up to 20 layers in places to create colors of depth and intensity. I washed over some of the colors with thin layers of white to create the cloudiness and veiled look to some of the colors. The reference to the painting was a part of the Orion Nebula. I used mainly the color and shapes of the nebula to inspire me, but as I worked on the painting it began to take its own shape. Perhaps Beag was imparting some wisdom upon me? Well, I will have to get back to you about that.

DoAn