Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain: Hero Myths in the Mabinogion [Paperback]

Caitl?n Matthews (Author), Caitlín Matthews (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2002

The authoritative reader's companion to the ancient Celtic myths in the literary masterpiece, the Mabinogion.

• Thoroughly updated edition of Mabon and the Mysteries of Britain (UK).

• Illuminates the rich archetypal patterns and meanings in the Four Branches of the Welsh Mabinogion.

According to prophecy, a liberator will come to bring light, truth, and freedom to every generation. His mythic title is Mabon, but his identities are many-including Arthur the King, whose coming we await. So says the mythic Welsh text the Mabinogion, which includes some of the oldest magical stories from British mythology and which has been intriguing and beguiling readers for centuries. 

In Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain, Celtic scholar Caitl�Matthews unlocks the encoded meanings of the Mabinogion and establishes it firmly as a precursor to other living myths of the West. From her fascinating study of these stories emerge two of the major figures of the Celtic tradition: the archetypal Mabon, deliverer and liberator of the land, and Modron, his mother, the Great Goddess herself. The initiatory pattern of Britain's inner guardians is revealed through the succession of the Pendragons, as each rises through the ages from boy, hero, and king to the role of Mabon. As descendants of the ancient Celtic oral tradition, the rich themes and archetypal underpinnings of the Mabinogion are stories for all time.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The Mabinogion is the source of some of the oldest myths of the Celtic tradition. Though no actual text of the stories is included in this volume, Matthews, cofounder of the Foundation for Inspirational and Oracular Studies and author of 36 books, offers a companion to help elucidate the mythology. After a lengthy introduction discussing the Welsh storytelling tradition, she introduces each of the four branches of the Mabinogion. Each chapter begins with a synopsis of the story and is followed by detailed commentary on specific aspects. A third section extrapolates further, showing connections with other mythologies from Greek and Roman to Irish and British Arthurian traditions. Graphs and charts help to keep the complicated relationships and patterns of action in perspective. Unfortunately, the author assumes considerable knowledge on the part of the reader. Superscripts appear throughout the text, but they are merely references to numbered sources in the bibliography. Recommended for libraries that support strong folk studies collections.
Katherine Kaigler-Koenig, Ellis Sch., Pittsburgh
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"The Mabinogion is one of the great treasure troves of our Western spiritual heritage, but to truly appreciate and learn from it we need a guide who can elucidate not only its mythology, context, and history, but also its spiritual depths. Caitlín Matthews expertly leads us into the heart of these Mysteries."
(Philip Carr-Gomm, Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids and author of Druidcraft and Druid Mysteries )

"I have found Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain to be essential reading. Matthews makes valuable connections between myth and enduring cultural practices. No other study takes the reader through the Mabinogion more masterfully. This book is an indispensable guide to indigenous Celtic literature and myth."
(Ari Berk, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Mythology and Folklore, Central Michigan University )

"Recommended for libraries that support strong folk studies collections."
(Katherine Kaigler-Koenig, Library Journal, September 1, 2002? )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Inner Traditions; 2 edition (August 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892819200
• ISBN-13: 978-0892819201
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,286,686 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Hello! I'm Caitlin Matthews. I live in Oxford, England with my partner, John Matthews and two warring white cats who, despite our best efforts, can't abide each other and live on different floors of our small house.

I'm primarily known for being the author of many books including Singing the Soul Back Home, Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain, Psychic Shield, and Sophia, Goddess of Wisdom. I write in the fields of metaphysical non-fiction, poetry, fiction, folkstory and myth, as well as writing books for children. I'm known for my research into the Celtic and ancestral traditions, and the ways in which I provoke exploration of the creative metaphysical field, and how we can apply it to our spiritual path.

With John Matthews, I've written the Encyclopedia of Celtic Wisdom, the Arthurian Tarot and Walkers Between the Worlds. Our latest collaboration is the StoryWorld series of cards and books for storytellers of all ages, which started coming out in 2009 - many more titles to come in 2010.

Although I'm the author of over sixty books, most of my work is oral rather than written. As a teacher of ancestral, shamanic and metaphysical traditions, I go all over the world, working with communities and spiritual institutions. With John Matthews, and my dear colleague Felicity Wombwell, I co-founded The Foundation for Inspirational and Oracular Studies, which is dedicated to the mythic, oracular and sacred arts. Our FiOS shamanic training programme teaches students the ancestral wisdom and healing arts as living sacred traditions in which we still engage.

As a singer, I play Celtic & medieval harps, sruti and psaltery. My CDs include Deep Well in the Wild Wood: Songs from the Place Beyond and the latest, Earth's Own Heart: Songs from the Faery Hills appears in 2010. I was the Pictish language originator and song-writer of Song of the Exile for the 2004 Jerry Bruckheimer film King Arthur and I appear frequently on international radio and television.

For the last 20 years, I've had a shamanic practice in Oxford dedicated to healing soul sickness and ancestral fragmentation. I use my voice to help open the way between the worlds, to sing the soul's essential nature, tracking it through the client's story and bringing it homeward, with the help of spirit allies who have chosen to work with me.

I'm currently working on Rekindling Ancestral Hearths: a book to help us come into good relationship with our ancestors. I believe that being in commuinion with our ancestors and gifting spirits is essential for the wellbeing of our world, and lies at the root of war and peace.

If you want to know more about my courses, events and forthcoming books, you are cordially invited to visit www.hallowquest.org.uk.

For new readers of my work, there is no 'one book' that conveys all that I teach, but the following practical books may be a helpful guide for you to begin somewhere:

Walkers Between Worlds - for a grounding in where our spiritual traditions arose.
Singing the Soul Back Home - for a guide on how we come into come relationship with our gifting spirits
Celtic Devotional - for a post-denominational way of spiritually acknowledging each day and season
Psychic Shield - for those who need a friendly guide to how the universe and ourselves rub off each other and how we can do it more harmoniously

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Further Discussion of the Mabinogian, December 14, 2002

By 

Boudica (Ohio USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain: Hero Myths in the Mabinogion (Paperback)

This book is a re-release of "Mabon and the Mysteries of Britain", first published in 1987, which is now out of print. The author has revised and updated this new version.

We are mostly familiar with the stories and heroes of the Mabinogian. The stories are of Welsh origin. They are the stories of knights and ladies which have entertained us for many generations.

Ms. Matthews is a researcher into the Arthurian legends, Celtic traditions and has published many books in this vein. This is the first of her books that I have read, and I found it interesting as I am familiar with the Mabinogian.

The start of the book delves into Welsh pronunciation, in order to help the reader sound out some of the names from the book. There is also a section on Welsh story telling, helping the reader understand where and how these stories came about. Ms. Matthews then disassembles the stories of the Mabinogian for the reader, discussing the imagery, the language and the suggested meanings of the different parts of the story. She does a splendid job of making this easy for the reader to understand, and based on her research gives interesting insights into some possibilities of the inner meanings of the material that may have eluded the reader.

She also includes family trees, story progressions and various translations in order to help the reader come to a fuller understanding of what these stories represent. There is also a very complete bibliography in the back of the book as well as the book being indexed.

All in all, this is a fine book to explore the Mabinogian with, and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking to better understand some these wonderful stories. This would benefit the beginner as well as provide good discussion material for those who are familiar with the material presented here.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent research- but requires dedication, August 10, 2006

By 

Stacey L. Simmons "epona girl" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain: Hero Myths in the Mabinogion (Paperback)

The book is nicely written and expertly researched, but without reading as a companion to the Mabinogion it gets a little hard to read. The author warns you of this in the beginning, so the responsibility is with the reader. It is wonderfully done, with excellent insights.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Key to the Men's Mysteries of Celtic Tradition, December 11, 2002

By 

"morgaine_of_avalon" (NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain: Hero Myths in the Mabinogion (Paperback)

Celtic scholars and neopagans will find this a useful book - but those dedicated to reclaiming the ways of our ancient Celtic ancestors will find it an invaluable key to The Matter of Britain as it was known in the time before Arthur. Profound, revelatory, impeccably researched, "Mabon" and "Reclaiming the Gods" by Nicholas Mann are perhaps the two most important books on the ANCIENT Celtic masculine mysteries ever to be published.