| The Dagda | |
|---|---|
Chief/leader of the Gods. | |
| Member of theTuatha Dé Danann | |
| Abode | Brú na Bóinne |
| Weapons | |
| Battles | Magh Tuiredh |
| Artefacts | |
| Genealogy | |
| Parents | [citation needed] |
| Siblings | Ogma |
| Consorts | |
| Children | |
The Dagda (Old Irish:In Dagda[ˈd̪aɣða],Irish:An Daghdha) is considered the great god ofIrish mythology.[1] He is the chief god of theTuatha Dé Danann, with the Dagda portrayed as a father-figure, king, anddruid.[2][1][3] He is associated withfertility,agriculture, masculinity and strength, as well as magic, druidry and wisdom.[2][4][5][6] He can control life and death (cf.his staff), the weather and crops, as well as time and the seasons.
He is often described as a large bearded man or giant[5] wearing a hooded cloak.[7] He owns a magic staff (lorc) of dual nature: it kills with one end and brings to life with the other.[8] He also owns a cauldron (thecoire ansic) which never runs empty, and a magic harp (Uaithne, though this may be the name of the harper), which will not play unless called by its two bynames, and the harp can fly itself to the Dagda when thus beckoned. He is said to dwell inBrú na Bóinne (Newgrange). Other places associated with or named after him includeUisneach,Grianan of Aileach,Lough Neagh andKnock Iveagh. The Dagda is said to be the husband ofthe Morrígan and lover ofBoann.[5] His children includeAengus,Brigit,Bodb Derg,Cermait,Aed, andMidir.[2]
The Dagda's name is thought to mean "the good god" or "the great god". His other names includeEochu orEochaid Ollathair ("horseman, great father"), andRuad Rofhessa ("mighty one/lord of great knowledge"). There are indicationsDáire was another name for him.[5] The death and ancestral godDonn may originally have been a form of the Dagda,[9] and he also has similarities with the later harvest figureCrom Dubh.[10] Several tribal groupings saw the Dagda as an ancestor and were named after him, such as theUí Echach and theDáirine.
The Dagda has been likened to the Germanic godOdin, the Gaulish godSucellos,[2] and the Roman godDīs Pater[5] orJupiter.[11]
The Old Irish nameDagda is generally believed to stem fromProto-Celtic: *Dago-dēwos, meaning "the good god" or "the great god".[12][13][14]
The Dagda has several other names or epithets which reflect aspects of his character.[15]
The name Eochu is a diminutive form of Eochaid, which also has spelling variants of Eochaidh and Echuid.[22] The death and ancestral godDonn may originally have been a form of the Dagda, who is sometimes called Dagda Donn.[9]
The Dagda was one of the kings of the Tuatha De Danann. TheTuatha Dé Danann are the race of supernatural beings who conquered theFomorians, who inhabited Ireland previously, prior to the coming of theMilesians. TheMórrígan is described as his wife, his daughter wasBrigit,[23] and his lover wasBoann, after whom the River Boyne is named, though she was married toElcmar and with whom he had the god Aengus. Prior to the battle with theFomorians, he coupled with the goddess of war, theMórrígan, onSamhain.[24][25] (Cf.§ Family).
Of Dagda it is stated "He was a beautiful god of the heathens, for the Tuatha Dé Danann worshipped him: for he was an earth-god to them because of the greatness of his magical power", in theMiddle Irish languageCoir Anmann (The Fitness of Names) says:[26]
Tales depict the Dagda as a figure of immense power. He is said to own a magic staff, club or mace which could kill nine men with one blow; but with the handle he could return the slain to life. He owned a magic harp.
In the tract found in theYellow Book of Lecan, there were three items the Dagda named together, his staff (lorc), there was the shirt (léine) of protection from sickness, and the cloak (lumman) of shape-shifting and color-change.[a] The "great staff" (lorg mór) had a smooth end which brought the dead back to life (he resuscitated his son Cermait Milbél with the smooth end), but the staff's rough end caused instant death.[8][27]
The staff/club is also described in theUlster Cycle narrative,Mesca Ulad,[27] where it was called the "terrible iron staff" (lorg aduathmar iarnaidi).[28][29]
The Cauldron of the Dagda is one of theFour Treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann,[30] of which it was said "an assembly used not to go unsatisfied from it".[31]
The cauldron "signified plenty and generousity".[32] Hence, his magic cauldron was otherwise known as thecoire ansic ("the un-dry cauldron").[citation needed][33]
AfterÚaithne, the Dagda's harper was abducted by theFomorians, the Dagda went to the enemy's hall and retrieved his magicharp, which had two names, according to the text of theCath Maige Tuired ("Second Battle of Moytura").[34] And when the Dagda called upon his harp by its two names: "Come Daur Dá Bláo / Come Cóir Cetharchair /Come summer, come winter.." the harp leapt off the wall and came to him. The harp was forbidden by the Dagda from issuing any sound, unless thus called upon by the names,[34] which translate to "Oak of Two Meadows"[35] and "the Four Angled Music";[36]Hence, harp was a richly ornamented magic harp made ofoak which, when the Dagda played it, put the seasons in their correct order;[citation needed] The Dagda had the skill to play the "Three Strains" (joy, sorrow, sleep) which he used to immobilize the Fomorians and escape.[35]
He possessed two pigs, one of which was always growing whilst the other was always roasting, and ever-laden fruit trees. He is also described as being the owner of a black-maned heifer that was given to him for his labours prior to the Second Battle of Moytura. When the heifer calls her calf, all the cattle of Ireland taken by the Fomorians as tribute graze.[36]
The Dagda is said to be husband ofthe Morrígan, who is called his "envious wife".[5][37] His children includeAengus,Cermait, andAed (often called the three sons of the Dagda),Brigit andBodb Derg.[2] He is said to have two brothers,Nuada andOgma, but this may be an instance of the tendency totriplicate deities.[5] Elsewhere the Dagda is linked exclusively with Ogma, and the two are called "the two brothers."[23] In the Dindsenchas, the Dagda is given a daughter named Ainge, for whom he makes a twig basket or tub that always leaks when the tide is in and never leaks when it is going out.[38] The Dagda's father is named Elatha son of Delbeath.[39] Englec, the daughter of Elcmar, is named as a consort of the Dagda and the mother of his "swift son".[40] Echtgi the loathesome is another daughter of the Dagda's named in theBanshenchas.[40]
Before the Second Battle ofMag Tuired the Dagda builds a fortress forBres called Dún Brese and is also forced by theFomorian kingsElatha, Indech, andTethra to buildraths.[23] In the lead up to the Second Battle of Mag Tuired, when Lugh asks Dagda what power he will wield over the Fomorian host, he responds that he "will take the side of the men of Erin both in mutual smiting and destruction and wizardry. Their bones under my club will be as many as hailstones under feet of herds of horses".[23]
The Dagda has an affair withBoann, the goddess of the River Boyne. She lives atBrú na Bóinne with her husbandElcmar. The Dagda impregnates her after sending Elcmar away on a one-day errand. To hide the pregnancy from Elcmar, the Dagda casts a spell on him, making "the sun stand still" so he will not notice the passing of time. Meanwhile, Boann gives birth toAengus, who is also known as Maccán Óg ('the young son'). Eventually, Aengus learns that the Dagda is his true father and asks him for a portion of land. In some versions of the tale, the Dagda helps Aengus take ownership of the Brú from Elcmar. Aengus asks and is given the Brú forláa ocus aidche; because in Old Irish this could mean either "a day and a night" or "day and night", Aengus claims it forever. Other versions have Aengus taking over the Brú from the Dagda himself by using the same trick.[41][42]
It has been suggested that this tale represents thewinter solstice illumination of Newgrange at Brú na Bóinne, during which the sunbeam (the Dagda) enters the inner chamber (the womb of Boann) when thesun's path stands still. The wordsolstice (Irishgrianstad) means sun-standstill. The conception of Aengus may represent the 'rebirth' of the sun at the winter solstice, him taking over the Brú from an older god representing the growing sun taking over from the waning sun.[43][42]
TheTochmarc Étaíne, tells the story of how Bóand conceives Aengus by the Dagda.[44] In the Aislinge Oengusso or Dream of Aengus the Dagda and Boand help Aengus to find a mysterious woman who he has fallen in love with in his dreams.
In a poem aboutMag Muirthemne, the Dagda banishes an octopus with his "mace of wrath" using the following words: "Turn thy hollow head! Turn thy ravening body! Turn thy resorbent forehead! Avaunt! Begone!", the sea receded with the creature and the plain of Mag Muirthemne was left behind.[45]
In theDindsenchas the Dagda is described as swift with a poison draught and as a justly dealing lord. He is also called a King of Erin with hosts of hostages, a noble, slender prince, and the father of Cermait, Aengus, and Aed.[46]
He is credited with a seventy- or eighty-year reign (depending on source) over theTuatha Dé Danann, before dying at Brú na Bóinne, finally succumbing to a wound inflicted byCethlenn during the battle of Mag Tuired.[47]
The Dagda has similarities with the later harvest figureCrom Dubh.[10] He also has similarities with the Gaulish godSucellos, who is depicted with a hammer and a pot,[2] and the Roman godDīs Pater.[5]
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link);English translation:§163–§164, p. 71{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)| Preceded by | High King of Ireland AFM 1830–1750 BC FFE 1407–1337 BC | Succeeded by |