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Post by lyle on Apr 18, 2016 18:45:11 GMT -1
Hello All,
I’m very happy to see everyone here as I am in the midst of my own awakening to the awenydd path my ancestors would probably have charted. Although American by birth, I have spent much time the last several years in my Cymric homeland and diligently learning to siarad Cymraeg. I approach the Four Ancient Books of Wales as my ancestral compass to follow the hidden ways to the primal lands.
A gathering of ideas has descended on me recently, including RJ Stewart’s teachings on awakening to faery realms which are not of my ancestral land, Charlotte Hussey’s use of glossa to restore ancient pathways, as a means to ‘imagine if you can’t remember’, as she puts it, and coming across Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, a work of fantasy that chronicles the commingling and transformation of deities resettled in North American soil. Although my spirit ancestry has mixed bloodlines, it is the Welsh line which remains the strongest and the most clear of cultural baggage (Native American ancestry remains an open wound).
As a forester traveling in Wales, to research methods of restoring continuous woodland cover, to champion support for the Glastir reforestation payment scheme, my intent has always been to restore and protect the forest; except now I understand why; this woodland realm interface is the portal between surface and underworld, bridging distinct worlds that were once much closer. So I reach forward and backward, both here and there on two sides of an ocean, looking to those of you on this forum for guidance, as I cross this threshold on the awenydd path, empowered by the crossroads realization that there is simply nowhere else for me to be. Awen dwfn /|\
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Post by Lee on Apr 19, 2016 10:19:30 GMT -1
Hiya Lyle,
welcome aboard!
Lee
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Post by Gwenno on Apr 19, 2016 11:29:48 GMT -1
Hello I like 'bendithion'  |
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Post by Heron on Apr 19, 2016 15:31:40 GMT -1
Welcome Lyle - a phob bendith i dithau!
Good to have another awenydd among us.
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Post by lyle on Apr 21, 2016 17:04:44 GMT -1
Heron,
Thank you for welcoming me into the circle. I’ve been delving into the vast treasures of your blogs Fern Law of Faery and Rigantona – as well as the Gorsedd Arberth (you are prodigious); are they archived in the Way of the Awenydd, or is this an entirely new and different endeavor?
Are the awenydd still making contributions to Awen ac Awenydd?
(so many questions, I might as well ask another...)
By the way, is Creatures a work of your poetry? Its looks enticing.
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Post by lyle on Apr 21, 2016 17:14:22 GMT -1
Hello I like 'bendithion' Then you may have many more! |
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Post by lorna on Apr 22, 2016 8:05:15 GMT -1
Hello Lyle and welcome Great to have another awenydd amongst us. I've also been influenced by R.J.Stewart's 'Underworld Initiation' and 'Power Within the Land' - I know Stewart is a big influence on Charlotte Hussey and I'm very much indebted to her work of 'imaginative recall') (as Heron once put it) and with the glosa in my own work. Have you tried writing any glosa? it's a really powerful way of bringing the old texts into the now. Your work bridging American and Welsh heritage sounds really interesting. I'd love to hear more about that. Maybe a topic for the blog?... Siarad Cymraeg... is a bit of a sore point for me. I've worked through 2 different packs (one was very basic and the other was called 'Welsh for Parents' - I bought it as it had 3 CDs so lots of speaking exercises but it didn't have much I wanted to say as I don't have children...) and am still finding it goes in one ear out the other  I've also tried Say Something in Welsh www.saysomethingin.com/welsh/course1 to no avail. However I've promised myself I'm going to have another try with a different book once the journal I'm editing is out the way from Calan Mai. Third time lucky... |
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Post by Heron on Apr 22, 2016 12:24:50 GMT -1
Heron, Thank you for welcoming me into the circle. I’ve been delving into the vast treasures of your blogs Fern Law of Faery and Rigantona – as well as the Gorsedd Arberth (you are prodigious); are they archived in the Way of the Awenydd, or is this an entirely new and different endeavor? Are the awenydd still making contributions to Awen ac Awenydd? (so many questions, I might as well ask another...) By the way, is Creatures a work of your poetry? Its looks enticing. Lots of questions Lyle! The Fern Law of Faery and Gorsedd Arberth ran concurrently for several years using the Google Blogger system. I'd begun to think they had run their course and also wanted to switch to Wordpress so I did so with the new Awenydd blog which was in one way a continuation of the two previous blogs in one, but also marked a change of direction in seeking to explore the Awenydd path. A few posts were revised and re-posted from the old blogs which have also been left as archives that I know continue to be consulted. Rigantona.net is a self-contained web site set up for her. The Awen and Awenydd site set up by myself and Lorna is designed as a repository of awenydd writings past and present and, hopefully, future! Yes Creatures is a collection of my poems. Thank you for your interest in all these projects and if you'd like to contribute to the Awen and Awenydd site by all means make a proposal. |
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Post by lyle on Apr 23, 2016 20:51:18 GMT -1
Hello Lyle and welcome Great to have another awenydd amongst us. I've also been influenced by R.J.Stewart's 'Underworld Initiation' and 'Power Within the Land' - I know Stewart is a big influence on Charlotte Hussey and I'm very much indebted to her work of 'imaginative recall') (as Heron once put it) and with the glosa in my own work. Have you tried writing any glosa? it's a really powerful way of bringing the old texts into the now. Your work bridging American and Welsh heritage sounds really interesting. I'd love to hear more about that. Maybe a topic for the blog?... Siarad Cymraeg... is a bit of a sore point for me. I've worked through 2 different packs (one was very basic and the other was called 'Welsh for Parents' - I bought it as it had 3 CDs so lots of speaking exercises but it didn't have much I wanted to say as I don't have children...) and am still finding it goes in one ear out the other I've also tried Say Something in Welsh www.saysomethingin.com/welsh/course1 to no avail. However I've promised myself I'm going to have another try with a different book once the journal I'm editing is out the way from Calan Mai. Third time lucky... Hello Lorna, thank you for welcoming me in to this very special gathering. I just returned from RJ's workshop this past weekend in North Carolina; it was very solid grounded faery contact work that led to several breakthroughs for me. I've already begun striking up a conversation with Charlotte about her work as well. It is most encouraging for me to hear how much her theory of imaginative recall has meant to you, since you can well imagine how profoundly gratifying it is for someone like me on the other edge of the sea to have this tool for developing second sight through textural transmission of the awenyddion lore. I am just now beginning to write in the glossa form to work through several of the ideas expressed in the Welsh Triads and the Mabinogian. Should I share them here and put them up on an existing board or start a new one? Speaking of which, yes, I’d love to start a board along the lines of bridging American and Welsh heritage as a core awenydd practice. Is this the kind of thing to pass by Lee? Then there is the Welsh language issue. I’m returning to Aran’s tried and true SSIW. I’m there with you. I practiced diligently a few years ago, but then I stopped and now I’m starting again. I feel it really is a good solution, though – for speaking conversationally, that is. Here is something that may inspire you: www.bbc.com/cymrufyw/35959264?ns_mchannel=social&ns_campaign=bbc_cymru&ns_source=twitter&ns_linkname=wales%3FSThisFBIf you are anything like me, these oral drills require some degree of supplication and much repetition. Should you decide to, I could practice with you on Skype or WhatsApp. |
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Post by lorna on Apr 26, 2016 16:04:29 GMT -1
@ Lyle, do feel free to share your glosa in the Bardic Arts section. We should really be making more use of that. I'd love to hear about your experiences using it too. Yes, start a new discussion on the Brython project thread. Maybe we could replace the Middle Welsh Course, which isn't happening with some kind of forum where Welsh learners can provide each other with mutual support. The development of a list of resources for Welsh learners would be good too. And also something on bridging America and Wales - maybe separate. Thanks for the link. I only understand parts of it but understand it's about enthusiasm for learning Welsh. I *think* I have Skype but am not sure how to use it... will take a look. Thanks for the offer. I am massively undisciplined when it comes to slow, repetitive stuff Oh and I second welcoming your involvement with the Awenydd site. Would you be able to write a definition of your path as an awenydd for the 'Modern Definitions' section as a starter and maybe take a look at the other sections and see what you have to offer? |
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Post by lyle on Apr 28, 2016 10:45:20 GMT -1
@ Lyle, do feel free to share your glosa in the Bardic Arts section. We should really be making more use of that. I'd love to hear about your experiences using it too. Yes, start a new discussion on the Brython project thread. Maybe we could replace the Middle Welsh Course, which isn't happening with some kind of forum where Welsh learners can provide each other with mutual support. The development of a list of resources for Welsh learners would be good too. And also something on bridging America and Wales - maybe separate. Thanks for the link. I only understand parts of it but understand it's about enthusiasm for learning Welsh. I *think* I have Skype but am not sure how to use it... will take a look. Thanks for the offer. I am massively undisciplined when it comes to slow, repetitive stuff Oh and I second welcoming your involvement with the Awenydd site. Would you be able to write a definition of your path as an awenydd for the 'Modern Definitions' section as a starter and maybe take a look at the other sections and see what you have to offer? Hi Lorna I’d love to delineate a transformative process of shape-shifting (reshaping me, that is, a work-in-progress) into the awenydd as both destiny and legacy for the Modern Definitions section of Awen ac Awenydd – and thank you (and Heron!) for the invitation. I’m actually just now reading Charlotte’s ‘Awenydd at the Crossroads’; as always, she provides very enlightening insight into the inspired shamanic awenydd practice of Brythonic mythopoesis. And thank you for inviting me to post my glosa musings on revisioning Welsh deity as a sacred landscape – here on Caer Feddwyd ‘Bardic Arts’ board or Awen ac Awenydd ‘Bardic Heritage’ section? I’m poring through Heron’s vast archive to mark out my trail. And then, I’d be glad to start a modern Welsh language board in the ‘General’ section of Caer Feddwyd as a resource and hopefully a forum for non-native ‘speakers’ (writers) to use their Welsh. I must admit my fascination for keeping the Middle Welsh thread in place, since, at some point, I'll probably wish to go down that road myself, especially when I decipher medieval manuscripts like the Red Book of Hergest for obscure references (e.g., Heron’s meditation on Mererid). A modern Welsh language forum might help stimulate interest in the Middle Welsh course. As far as Skype, it’s notoriously unreliable, although I use it all the time. The best app for international use is WhatsApp – it’s completely bomb-proof for texts, voice texts (!), and even free international phone calls  . It may only work on smart phones, though. And yes, the SSIW drill is a slow slog; for me, it just has to be a source of cultural pride (as well as a personal achievement) for me to keep pushing through. But, some days…  And thanks again for inviting me to post on the Awen site...I'll be hanging out over there soon? BTW, bright blessings for your launch of Beautiful Resistance #2 |
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I've also tried Say Something in Welsh 
. It may only work on smart phones, though.