Brighid, the Sun Goddess —by Míchealín Daugherty I am the beauty of the green Earth,  and the white Moon amongst the stars,  and the mystery of the waters,  and the desire of the heart of woman and of man. Brighid of the Celts Brighid is one of the great Triple Goddesses of the Celtic people. She appeared as Brighid to the Irish, Brigantia in Northern England, Bride in Scotland, and Brigandu in Brittany. She is thought to be the Goddess of the Sun; she was born at sunrise and it is said that a tower of flame burst from the her forehead that reached from Earth to Heaven. She was the daughter of the Daghda, and mother of the poet Cairbre, and of the Gods Brian, Iuchar and Iucharba.  Brighid is thought to represent poetry and inspiration, healing and midwifery, hearth fire, smithies and other crafts. She is also a Warrior Goddess. As a warrior Goddess, Brighid favoured the use of the spear or the arrow. Various interpretations of her name include "Bright Arrow," "The Bright One," "the Powerful One" and "The High One," depending upon the region and the dialect. As a Goddess of herbalism, midwifery and healing, Brighid was in charge of Water as well as Fire. Her cauldron of Inspiration connected her watery healing aspect with her fiery poetic aspect. Christianity Adopted Brighid She was canonized by the Catholic church as St. Brighid. The most popular folk tale is that She was midwife to the Virgin Mary, and thus was always invoked by women in labour. Another story was that She was a Druid's daughter who predicted the coming of Christianity and then was baptised by St. Patrick. The Sacred Flame The Goddess Brighid had always kept a shrine at Kildare, Ireland, with a perpetual flame tended by nineteen virgin priestesses called Daughters of the Flame. No male was ever allowed to come near it; nor did those women ever consort with men. Even their food and other supplies were brought to them by women of the nearby village. When Catholicism took over in Ireland, the shrine became a convent and the priestesses became nuns but the same traditions were held and the eternal flame was kept burning. Their tradition was that each day a different priestess/nun was in charge of the sacred fire and on the 20th day of each cycle, the fire was miraculously tended by Brighid Herself. There into the 18th century, the ancient song was sung to her: "Brighid, excellent woman, sudden flame, may the bright fiery sun take us to the lasting kingdom." For over a thousand years, the sacred flame was tended by nuns, and no one knows how long before that it had been tended by the priestesses. In 1220 CE, a Bishop became angered by the no-males policy of the Abbey of St. Brighid of Kildare. He insisted that nuns were subordinate to priests and therefore must open their abbey and submit themselves to inspection by a priest. When they refused and asked for another Abbess or other female official to perform any inspections, the Bishop was incensed. He admonished them to obedience and then decreed that the keeping of the eternal flame was a Pagan custom and ordered the sacred flame to be extinguished. Even then, however, Brighid remained the most popular Irish saint along with Patrick. In the 1960's, under Vatican II modernisation, it was declared that there was insufficient proof of Brighid's sanctity, and she was thus de-canonised. Festival Her festival is held on February 1st or 2nd. It corresponds to the ancient Celtic fire festival of Imbolc or Oimelc which celebrated the birthing and freshening of sheep and goats (it really is a Feast of Milk). Her festival represents the stirring of life again after the dead months of the winter, and her special blessings are called forth at this time. This festival was Christianised as Candlemas or Lady Day and Her Feast day or La Feill Bhride; and it was attended by tremendous local celebration and elaborate rituals. This is also the time of the Snow Moon. Ancient Rite Brighid's fire represents new beginnings, inspiration, creativitvity, re-birth, and growth and renewal. Here is an ancient rite to invite Brighid into your home at the time of her Holiday: Clean your hearth thoroughly in the morning and lay a fire without kindling it, then make yourself a "Bed for Brighid" and place it near the hearth. The bed can be a small basket with covers and tiny pillow added as plain or fancy as you like. If you have no hearth, you can use the stove and put the bed behind it. Then at sundown light a candle rubbed with rosemary oil and invite Brighid into your home and into her bed; use the candle to kindle your hearth-fire if possible. Make your own poem to invite Her or use the ancient song mentioned earlier. Let the candle burn at least all night in a safe place. You might even want to begin the custom of keeping the eternal flame; it is a popular custom in some magickal and Wiccan traditions. Prayer to the Warrior Goddess Brighid. by A.S. Sanderson The Warrior Goddess Brighid Turns the season of the year, as Imbolc enters in, Brighid The Warrior Goddess calls on all who invite her in the Spring. Fire lit arrows from her bow will nae let us let her go, as we stand together each breath each word is Sacred as the hidden word, Bless us Mother. Healing Prayer Prayer to Brighid, Goddess of The Flame. Pray to Brighid when you or a loved one needs healing. I used this prayer, and burned a green candle, when my Familar, Armand (a cat),  was diagnosed with stomach cancer, and within days his tumours had shrunk. See Also: Animal Healing Spell. Copyright © 2005 Ireland's OWN. May be reprinted with permission, and if Ireland's OWN is credited. Special thanks to Kate, Red Moor Cat, for the Prayer to the Warrior Goddess Brighid Page last updated: 3 Feb 2007 Goddess Background and Graphics by Aine's Cauldron Website Design  and Myths & Magic logo by Míchealín Daugherty   Copyright © 2006 Ireland's OWN. All Rights Reserved.