马比诺吉昂的四个分支 包含于《马比诺吉昂》故事里面最具神话性的故事集被题为“《马比诺吉昂的四个分支》（The Four Branches of the Mabinogi）”
戴伏之子皮威尔 第一个分枝，戴伏之子皮威尔（Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed），说明戴伏（Dyfed）王子皮威尔（Pwyll）和安雯（Annwn，地下世界)的统治者Arawn在一年的时间内交换领土，击败Arawn的敌人Hafgan，并且在他回程的路上遇见一个拥有一匹别人追不上的马的少女Rhiannon。在Gwawl的牺牲中，他设法赢得她的鼓掌。Gwawl是Rhiannon的未婚夫，并且她为Gwawl生了一个小孩，但这个小孩在他出生后即快速消失，Rhiannon被指控杀了他的小孩，并且被强迫将客人背在她背上以做为处罚，这个小孩被一只怪兽带走，并且被Teyrnon]]夫妇所救，这对夫妇将他带大并视如己出，并根据他的金色头发而将他取名为Gwri，直到他和Pwyll的相似之处变得明显。他们将他还给他的亲生父母，Rhiannon因此被从她的处罚中解放，并且给这小孩重新命名为Pryderi.
Pwyll From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the Welsh hero; for the impact crater on Europa, see Pwyll (crater). In Welsh mythology, Pwyll was a lord of Dyfed.
In the First of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi (Middle Welsh prose tales), Arawn, Lord of Annwn, the Welsh mythological otherworld, convinces Pwyll to trade places with him for a year and a day as recompense for allowing his own dogs to feed on a stag Arawn's pack had killed. Arawn arranges to exchange appearances with Pwyll and takes his place at Pwyll's court in Dyfed. Pwyll defeats Hafgan, Arawn's rival, at the end of the year, something Arawn had tried to do and failed. Arawn and Pwyll became lasting friends because Pwyll slept chastely with Arawn's wife.
Pwyll then meets Rhiannon, who appears to Pwyll as a beautiful woman dressed in gold silk brocade and riding a shining white horse after Pwyll sits on the gorsedd or mound of Arberth. Pwyll sends his best horsemen after her, but she always remains ahead of them, though her horse never does more than amble. After three days, he finally calls out to her, and Rhiannon tells him she has come seeking him because she would rather marry him than her fiance, Gwawl. After a year and a day, he won her from Gwawl with her assistance. Their son disappears while in the care of several of Rhiannon's ladies-in-waiting. To avoid the blame, they smear blood from a puppy on Rhiannon, who was asleep.
The child appeared in the court of Teyrnon, whose mare had just given birth but the foal had disappeared. Teyrnon watched his stables on May eve, and sees a mysterious beast coming to take the foal; Teyrnon stopped the beast and found the child outside the stable. He and his wife adopt the child. The child grows unusually quickly and is given the foal born the night Terynon found the lad. Teyrnon, who had once served Pwyll, realizes the child resembles Pwyll, returns him to Pwyll and Rhiannon, who name him Pryderi (care, worry).
Primula From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search For other uses, see Primula (disambiguation). Primula
A modern garden primula cultivar Primula farinosa flowers Primula hortensis Primula prolifera Primula sieboldii Primula verisPrimula (pronounced /ˈprɪmjʊlə/)[1] is a genus of 400–500 species of low-growing herbs in the family Primulaceae. They include primrose, auricula, cowslip and oxlip. Many species are grown for their ornamental flowers. They are native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere, south into tropical mountains in Ethiopia, Indonesia and New Guinea, and in temperate southern South America.
Perennial primulas bloom mostly during the spring; their flowers can be purple, yellow, red, pink, or white. Generally, they prefer filtered sunlight. Many species are adapted to alpine climates.
The word primula is the Latin feminine diminutive of primus, meaning first (prime), applied to flowers that are among the first to open in spring.
Primroses are used as food plants by the larvae (caterpillars) of some Lepidoptera species, including Duke of Burgundy butterfly, Large Yellow Underwing, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Setaceous Hebrew Character and Silver-ground Carpet.
Some species of Primula are commonly known as polyanthus.
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Annwn From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (March 2007)
Annwn or Annwfn (Middle Welsh Annwvn, sometimes inaccurately written Annwyn, Annwyfn or Annwfyn) was the Otherworld in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn, or much later by Gwyn ap Nudd, it was essentially a world of delights and eternal youth where disease is absent and food is ever-abundant. It later became Christianised and identified with the land of souls that had departed this world.
Contents [hide] 1 Name and etymology 2 Sources 3 Neo-druidism 4 See also 5 References
[edit] Name and etymology Middle Welsh sources suggest that the term was recognised as meaning "very deep" in medieval times (Sims-Williams 1990). The appearance of a form antumnos on an ancient Gaulish curse tablet, however, suggests that the original term may have been *ande-dubnos, a common Gallo-Brittonic word that literally meant "underworld" (Lambert 2003). The Modern Welsh spelling Annwn is pronounced [ˈanːʊn] AN-oon.
[edit] Sources In the First Branch of the Mabinogi, entitled Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed, the eponymous prince offends Arawn, ruler of Annwn, by baiting his hunting hounds on a stag that Arawn's dogs had brought down. In recompense he exchanges places with Arawn for a year and defeats Arawn's enemy Hafgan. Meanwhile, Arawn rules Dyfed. During this year, Pwyll does not sleep with Arawn's wife, earning himself gratitude from Arawn. On his return, Pwyll becomes known by the title Penn Annwn, "Head (or Ruler) of Annwn."
In Culhwch and Olwen, an early Welsh Arthurian tale, it is said God gave Gwyn ap Nudd control over the demons lest "this world be destroyed." He led the Wild Hunt. A Christian story tells of the Welsh Saint Collen entering Gwyn's palace to banish him with holy water.
In the Book of Taliesin, an esoteric poem called 'Preiddeu Annwfn' (conventionally translated 'The Spoils of Annwn') on its face tells a tale of Arthur and his knights traveling through Annwn, searching for a magical cauldron possessed by nine women. Only seven come back from the journey. It may be a precursor of later Holy Grail stories involving King Arthur and his knights. Scholars say the spelling in the text of the poem is 10th century. But Welsh poetry was for centuries transmitted orally by the bards and storytellers and it is possible that the tradition behind the poem dates back to the 6th century, the period of Taliesin, or earlier; however the poem itself is not regarded as the work of the historical Taliesin.
Neo-druidism Some people have claimed that the door to Annwn was at the mouth of the Severn near Lundy Island or on Glastonbury Tor[citation needed]. Glastonbury has been interpreted by some as a sacred "Isle of the Dead", and is also revered as a place where saints and kings are buried. Supposedly, on a certain day of the year, this door would open, and the inhabitants would welcome humans in for feasting and celebration, upon the condition that they took nothing back with them to the human realm. This went on until one reveller kept a flower in his pocket. From that day on, the door has remained closed.
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Arawn in Welsh Mythology In the First Branch of the Mabinogi, Pwyll mistakenly set his hounds upon a stag, only to discover that Arawn had been hunting the same animal. To pay for the misdeed, Arawn asked Pwyll to trade places with him for a year and a day, and defeat Hafgan, Arawn's rival, at the end of this time, something Arawn had attempted to do, but had been unable to. Arawn, meanwhile, took Pwyll's place as lord of Dyfed. Arawn and Pwyll became good friends because, though Pwyll wore Arawn's shape, he slept chastely with Arawn's wife.
In Welsh folklore, the Cŵn Annwn or "Hounds of Annwn" ride through the skies in autumn, winter, and early spring. The baying of the hounds was identified with the crying of wild geese as they migrate and the quarry of the hounds as wandering spirits, being chased to Annwn. However Arawn himself is not referred to in these traditions. Later the myth was Christianised to describe the "capturing of human souls and the chasing of damned souls to Annwn", and Annwn was equated with the "Hell" of Christian tradition.
Some writers, notably Robert Graves, have written of an incident in which Amaethon steals a dog, lapwing and a white roebuck from Arawn, leading to the Cad Goddeu (Battle of the Trees), which Arawn lost to Amaethon and his brother, Gwydion. However the standard text of 'Cad Goddeu' in the Book of Taliesin makes no mention of Arawn and Graves based his interpretations on inaccurate early translations.
According to Koch[1], the name Arawn may be derived from the Biblical name Aaron, the name of Moses’s brother, and so is ultimately of Hebrew origin and meaning ‘exalted.’ That the name ‘Aaron’ had currency in Wales as early as Roman times is shown by Gildas who wrote that ‘Aaron and Iulianus were Christian martyrs at Urbs Legionis (the ‘city of the legion,’ probably Caerllion-ar-Wysg) in the time of the Emperor Diocletian.’ a cleric of the Old Welsh name Araun witnessed two charters of 860 preserved in the book of Llandaf[2].
=================== Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed Arawn, Lord of Annwn Primula Perennial primulas bloom mostly during the spring; their flowers can be purple, yellow, red, pink, or white. Generally, they prefer filtered sunlight. Many species are adapted to alpine climates. The word primula is the Latin feminine diminutive of primus, meaning first (prime), applied to flowers that are among the first to open in spring.
