What is "fire in the head" ??

During the course of researching the Macsen’s Treasure series, I needed to acquire a sense of the spirituality early Celtic people might have practiced before the advent of Christianity. My stories are set in Britain in the second half of the fifth century CE (aka AD for us older folks). In the more remote areas, Christianity took much longer to attain a foothold and my characters would have practiced some sort of Celtic-based paganism.

One intriguing aspect of the old belief system is the notion of shape-shifting, which I have come to interpret as some form of a shamanic altered state of mind, like a trance or hypnosis. The shamans in question would have been druids, among them bards, and one of the many functions of bards was the performance of a ‘boasting’ poem. These poems were meant to commemorate victories as well as proclaim the bard’s shamanic prowess.

“The Song of Amergin,” chief bard of the Irish, goes as follows:

I am the wind that blows across the sea
I am a wave of the deep
I am the roar of the ocean
I am the stag of seven battles
I am a hawk on the cliff
I am a ray of sunlight
I am the greenest of plants
I am the wild boar
I am a salmon in the river
I am a lake on the plain
I am the word of knowledge
I am the point of a spear
I am the lure beyond the ends of the earth
I can shift my shape like a god[1]

The last line sums up the rest of the poem—that the bard has been all of these things because he is able to shift his shape like a god, to place himself in the state of mind of those incarnations. Translations of the poem vary widely; however, one version of the last line in particular caught my attention. It runs: “I am the god who fashions fire in the head.”

So what, in all the world, is “fire in the head”? As early Celts believed the soul is housed in the head and the eyes are windows into the soul, author Tom Cowan interprets the line to mean, “I am the fire of imagination” or “I burn with visions of another world.” I feel “fire in the head” should be taken as more than mere imagination. It could also encompass visions of the future, past life memories, intuition, Akashic records, and many other forms of psychic phenomena.

Hmm. Shape-shifing. Imagination. Altered states of mind. Visions. This got me to thinking. In the series, when I began to develop the main female character of Claerwen, I knew she would be gifted with visions of the future, what we nowadays sometimes call “second sight.” Other authors have used the same device, not only in Arthurian stories, but books set in other times as well. Mary Stewart, in The Crystal Cave and The Hollow Hills, from her trilogy about Merlin, called it simply “the sight.” Both Merlin and his mother had the gift. Elizabeth Chadwick, in Daughters of the Grail, also calls it “the sight.”

As I sketched out Claerwen’s character, I pondered using the same name for her gift. It’s a familiar term that readers easily understand. But I felt it was almost too familiar and therefore trite. What about “fire in the head?” Claerwen is not a bard or druid, but she has a deep abiding sense for the spiritual. As she learns about her gift, she comes to understand, with the guidance of Myrddin (Merlin) that she must “place herself into the path of the gods,” a kind of “stepping into her destiny,” so to speak. Her gift becomes much more than just seeing the future. So, in this regard, when I discovered the term “fire in the head,” and learned of its broad possibilities, I felt its appropriateness for Claerwen’s visions was perfect. The name stuck.

[1] Tom Cowan, Fire in the Head: Shamanism and the Celtic Spirit, 1993, HarperCollins, pp. 28-29

Renditions of Camelot Book Discussion

Come join the fun and find out what that crazy spy Marcus ap Iorwerth is up to! My book In the Shadow of Dragons will be read and discussed on the Yahoogroups Renditions of Camelot reading group all during April 2009. Join for free if you're not already a member. Copies of the book are available from Amazon.com Marketplace (look for the seller, Bardsong Press--they're having a great deal on brand new copies right now!)

Avalon: Gateway to Annwn

What exactly was the Isle of Avalon?

Most scholars agree that it was some sort of spiritual center dating from very ancient times. Its tight association with the historical side of the Arthurian legends draws us to Celtic Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries, where clues of Avalon’s existence begin to emerge from the mists of antiquity.

Literature provides the first references. Probably the most popular version was written by the twelfth-century Welshman, Geoffrey of Monmouth. In his History of the Kings of Britain, King Arthur is carried to the Isle of Avalon to rest and heal after his last battle. The magical sword Excalibur was forged there. Geoffrey further describes Avalon in The Life of Merlin as the home of the enchantress Morgaine le Fey, the island named in Welsh as Ynys Avallach, or "Island of Apples." This is apt, as apples symbolize plenty and magic in Celtic tradition.

In the Black Book of Carmarthen, one of the ancient Welsh books on which Geoffrey of Monmouth very likely based much of his History, it is said that Arthur’s tomb was secretly located in Avalon. Pagan Celts did not believe in death, but that the soul lives forever. Therefore, Arthur would not be thought of as dead, but merely sleeping, waiting for the call to his next coming. Presumably, because of its significance to the society of Arthur’s day, Avalon had very likely existed for quite some time and was considered the only place special enough to take the mortally wounded king. Why else would a leader of his great stature be taken there? No other leader before or since is associated with the Isle.

It is nearly impossible to define Avalon’s purpose without seeking its physical location as part of the same task. While no location can be absolutely proven, just as Arthur’s very existence has never been conclusive, the legends are very probably rooted in reality. Most indications infer, albeit circumstantially, that Glastonbury in Somerset, England was the location of Avalon. Glastonbury’s name is the Anglicized descendant of the Celtic (primitive Welsh) name Ynys Witrin, or Glass Isle. In the fifth century, the marshy area around Glastonbury flooded cyclically, cutting off higher ground and creating an island. In calm weather, the water would lie smooth as glass. Glastonbury Tor, a large, oblong-shaped hill rising above the town, is flanked by apple orchards, and has been for time out of mind, giving the name Ynys Avallach credence as well. And in Arthur’s day, the area was occupied by people of the same stock the modern Welsh descend from, their names, traditions, stories, and legends following.

Many theories as to Avalon’s purpose have crossed the scholarly world. Using the assumption that Glastonbury is the likely location, one of the most intriguing ideas arises from the strong sense of ancient paganism tied to the area. In the Book of Taliesin, the poem The Spoils of Annwn tells how Arthur and his knights descend into Annwn, the Celtic Otherworld, to steal a mystic cauldron of inspiration and plenty. Annwn is the realm of Gwyn ap Nudd, king of the Faeries and lord of Annwn, and the Tor is his sacred mountain. Avalon is portrayed as a gathering place for departed spirits preparing to go to Annwn, and Gwyn guards the portals. The cauldron magically provides unending nourishment and rebirth. This is the original grail which Arthur’s knights quested after so desperately, before Christian believers shifted its importance to their own purpose. Supportive evidence shows that Glastonbury Tor is artificially terraced in a pattern reminiscent of pre-Christian ritual paths, similar to others across Europe associated with Goddess worship. Archaeology has determined that the pattern is more ancient and complex than originally thought, a seven-circuited labyrinth rather than a simple spiral. There are also persistent rumors of a secret chamber within the Tor, into which people wander and return to the world mad, a trait identified with faery encounters.

In a more recent line of reasoning, author Marion Zimmer Bradley takes this interpretation a bold step further. Combining it with Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History in her book The Mists of Avalon, she beautifully portrays Avalon as Morgaine le Fey’s domain. Morgaine is the last high priestess of the ancient goddess religion before Christianity takes over. She is the Lady of Lake, and Avalon is the most sacred site in Britain, the obvious location for Excalibur to have been forged, the grail to be kept, and Arthur to be taken as he lay dying from his battle wounds. It is the mystical place where one crosses from Cylch y Abred, the middle world we live in , to Annwn, the Otherworld. While Bradley’s interpretation has been presented as fiction, there is logical research behind her theory. Ancient Celtic tradition across Britain and Europe includes the belief that we are connected to the earth by an umbilical, known by the Greek term, omphalos, the "navel of the world." A cosmic axis, sometimes symbolized by an upright stone, connects the upper world of Gwynvyd (heaven) and lower world of Annwn, running through the middle world (Abred). The omphalos is considered a place of spiritual power, a center where this world and the others cross most powerfully. Consistently, Glastonbury Tor is a prime candidate as an omphalos. Its very shape is womb-like, and its persistent tradition of spirituality has always been and still is like a magnet to people of all faiths.

History is purely an interpretation of the evidence we have gathered about life in the past. Many times the "facts" are circumstantial, a combination of archaeology, literature, and human supposition; for each historian you have, each will give a different viewpoint. Into the fifth and sixth centuries, the Celtic oral-based customs prohibited writing down stories, genealogies, scientific knowledge. There is little left to forge our theories from, and we may never truly understand Avalon. Sadly, and literally, nothing was written in stone.

This article first appeared in Faces of the Goddess magazine, Spring 1998
© Kathleen Cunningham Guler

Photo © Lynne Newton

Cover art for A Land Beyond Ravens

The cover art has been decided for my forthcoming book, A Land Beyond Ravens!

Three concepts were presented and after a little tweaking and several rounds of discussions with my editor, the one posted here became the winner. It was my first choice--when I first saw it, I was totally blown away. Many authors are never consulted about the cover art on their books and end up with unsuitable illustrations. I am one of the lucky ones, to be able to give input.