Folklore of Wales

by Anne Ross

  Some instinct drove him early the following morning to leave home and to cross the mountain speedily. He soon reached the edge of the lake and impatiently waited for her to reappear and reassure him. The poor sheep and goats were browsing on the precipitous sides of the Van; the cattle were straying amongst the rocks and large stones; it rained and the sun shone from time to time, but the youth took no notice of them. All he was concerned about was the reappearance of the girl. He had been there through the morning and the afternoon, which now was fast turning into evening and night was not far off, but there was no sign of his beloved. The boy looked sadly over the waters and, to his amazement, saw some cows walking along its surface. Would they, he wondered, be followed by their mysterious mistress?

  He was not disappointed, for the girl did reappear and to his lovesick eyes she was even more beautiful than before. She came towards the land and he rushed to meet her in the water. Her smile emboldened him to take her hand, nor did she refuse the lightly-baked bread which he offered to her. Moreover she consented to become his wife on condition that they should live together until he should strike her three times without a cause, and this is known as ‘the three causeless blows’ (tri ergyd di-achos). To such conditions he readily agreed; indeed he would have agreed to anything at the time. All he wanted was to secure her hand in marriage. And so the lady of the lake became engaged to the widow’s handsome son and, letting go of his hand, she disappeared below the water. He was desperate with grief and almost decided to throw himself into the deepest water and to end his life.

  He was on the very point of taking his own life, when out of the lake came two exquisite girls who were accompanied by an elderly, grey-haired man with a noble countenance and a firm, straight body, and with all the force and power of a young man. He spoke to the despairing youth in a soothing, gentle way, saying that as he, the widow’s son, proposed to marry one of his daughters, he would agree to the marriage provided the youth was able to recognise which of the two girls before him was his beloved. This was no easy task because the girls were absolutely identical. It seemed to him a total impossibility to choose the right one and, should he take the wrong one, then all would be lost for all time. While he anxiously examined the two girls he was unable to perceive a single difference between them. Suddenly, one of them put her foot very slightly forwards. This movement, slight though it was, was observed by the youth, and he noticed some variation in the way in which they had tied their sandals. This small discovery instantly resolved the dilemma, for he had noticed on previous occasions the beauty of the lake girl’s feet and ankles and the peculiarity of the way in which she tied her sandals. He boldly seized her hand. ‘You have chosen aright’, said her father, ‘Be a good and faithful husband to her, and I will give her as a dowry as many cattle, horses, sheep and goats as she can count without drawing in her breath. But you must remember, if you are unkind to her at any time, and strike her three times without a cause, she and all her animals will return to me.’

  So that was the marriage settlement to which the widow’s son happily agreed, and his bride was asked to count the number of sheep she was to have. She immediately adopted an old mode of counting, by fives — one, two, three, four, five; one, two, three, four, five — and so on until the rapidity of her breath failed her and she was exhausted. The same process of counting was used to find out the number of goats, cattle and horses she would acquire and the full number of each species emerged from the lake the instant they were called by her father. Then the young couple were married, though we do not know anything about the ceremony, and afterwards went to live at a farm, Esgair Llaethdy, somewhat more than a mile from the village of Myddfai; they lived together in joy and prosperity for many years, and had three beautiful boys.

  It came about that at one time a christening was to take place nearby, to which the young couple were invited. On the day, his wife seemed very unwilling to go to the christening, saying that the walk was too long for her. He told her to go and get one of the horses which were grazing nearby. She replied that she would, if he would get her gloves for her, which she had left behind in the house. He went to the house and came back with the gloves, and finding that she had not gone for the horse after all he playfully smacked her shoulder with one of the gloves, saying, ‘Go, go.’ She then reminded him of the terms of their marriage. He was not to strike her without a cause and had done so. She warned him to be more careful in future.

  Another time they were together at a wedding. Guests had come from all the surrounding countryside and, with one thing and another, were full of high spirits and happiness. She, however, suddenly and with no apparent reason, burst into tears and sobbed alarmingly. Her husband touched her on her shoulder and asked the cause of her weeping. She told him: ‘You are heading for trouble because that is the second time you have hit me without a cause.’

  Years passed by. The children had grown up and they were remarkably brilliant young men. In the midst of so much happiness in his home the husband had almost forgotten that he could lose all the reasons for his happiness in a split second, were he to give her the third causeless blow. He was very careful in case any small happening should take place, which his wife would regard as a breach of their marriage contract. She had told him that as her love for him was as strong as ever, he must be careful lest through some careless act he should give her the third and last blow over which she herself had no control and which ‘would separate them for ever’. It was her destiny. It came about that they were at a funeral and in the midst of the mourning and weeping and general grief she seemed to be in the highest spirits he had ever witnessed. She started to break into fits of uncontrollable laughter and this so deeply shocked her husband that he touched her, saying: ‘Don’t laugh!’ She told him that she laughed because people when they die, are free from trouble, and getting up, she went out of the house saying, ‘the final blow has been struck. Our marriage contract is cancelled and finished. Farewell.’ Then she made off in the direction of Esgair Llaethdy and there called her cattle and other animals together, each by its own name. They all came to her at once. Her little black calf had been slaughtered, but it came alive again, and walked off with the rest of the stock at the command of their mistress. It was springtime and four oxen were ploughing in one of the fields. She called to them, and they came to her. And away they all went, animals and the lake lady, over the Myddfai mountain and to the lake from which they had come. Once there, all disappeared underneath the waters, only leaving behind a deep furrow made by the plough which the oxen pulled into the lake after them, which is there to this day to testify to the truth of the story.

  The poor boys, her sons, often went down to the lake, hoping that their mother would come to them once more, but they were aware of her supernatural nature. On one of their walks, at a place near Dôl Howel at the Mountain Gate, still called Llidiad y Meddygon, the Physicians’ Gate, she suddenly appeared, and addressed her eldest son, Rhiwallon, telling him that his calling was to benefit mankind by freeing them from pain and distress by healing every kind of disease. To help him achieve this, she gave him a bag full of medical prescriptions and instructions. She told him that if he paid strict attention to them, he and his family would become, for many generations thereafter, the most skilled physicians in the country. So promising to meet him when her advice was most badly needed, she disappeared. But on several occasions she met her sons on the banks of the lake and once she even went with them on their return home, as far as a place, the name of which still survives, Pant y Meddygon, the Dell of the Physicians. Here she showed them the various herbs and plants which grew there and informed them of their medical properties or virtues, and the knowledge she gave to them, together with their unrivalled brilliance, soon caused them to achieve a celebrity that no one before them had ever possessed. And so that their knowledge should never be lost, they wisely committed everything to writing for the good of mankind through all ages.

  The story of the physicians of My
ddfai has been handed down through many generations. Rhiwallon and his sons became physicians to Rhys Gryg, Lord of Llandovery and Dinefwr Castles, who awarded them with rank, lands and privileges at Myddfai so that they could continue in the practice of their art and science for the healing and benefit of all who should come to them for help. In this way they gave freely to those who could not afford payment the best medical advice and treatment. So the fame of the physicians of Myddfai spread over the whole country, and continued for many centuries among their descendants.

  We have large numbers of the recipes used by these famous physicians for healing. Herbs and plants naturally are the main ingredients and these would seem to have been known down the long ages, handed down orally until they were committed to writing as recipes by the famed physicians of Myddfai. They are far too numerous for many to be included in this book, but I think it would be of interest to the reader to have some idea of the kind of recipes and remedies that were available.

  Toothache, that common evil that causes so much distress to the patient can be treated in the following way: ‘Take distilled water of red roses, a small portion of beeswax, and a little fresh butter, say an equal quantity of each; let the ingredients be mixed together in a dish upon embers, then let a linen cloth be dipped herein and apply to the affected jaw as hot as it can be borne.’ (The Physicians of Myddfai, John Pughe p.302)

  To heal a wound: ‘Take yellow wax, melt on a slow fire, and take bruised cumin seed, mix with the molten wax, then stir these ingredients with a stirrer until cold. Apply this as a plaster to the wound.’ (op. cit. p.303)

  For inflammation of the mammae: ‘Take agrimony, betony, and vervain and pound well, then mix them with strong old ale, strain well and set some milk on the fire; when this boils add t(e liquor thereto and make a posset thereof, giving it to the woman to drink warm. Let her do this frequently and she will be cured.’ (op. cit. p.310)

  For the bite of a mad dog: ‘Seek some plantain, and a handful of sheep’s sorrel, then pound well in a mortar with the whites of eggs, honey, and old lard, make it into an ointment and apply to the bitten part, so that it may be cured.’ (op. cit. p.311)

  For a pain in the cardiac region: ‘Take the centaury, pound well, boil in old ale and express well, afterwards boil to the half, take that with twice as much honey, and boil moderately; take a cup-ful thereof fasting for nine days, and it will remove the pain and oppression from the region of the heart without fail.’ (op. cit. p.323)

  For a headache: ‘Whoever is frequently afflicted with a headache let him make a lotion of the vervain, betony, chamomile, and a red fennel; let him wash his head three times a week therewith, and he will be cured.’ (op. cit. p.333)

  For pain or swelling in the thighs: ‘Take a quart of sage wine and a handful of thyme, boil together, and when half boiled add some fresh butter, then boil down from a quart to a pint; when you go to bed wash your feet well therewith; then dip a linen cloth therein, and apply three or four fold to the painful members as hot as you can bear it for six or seven nights, it will do much good without doubt. If you have any brandy or blessed distillation, add a spoonful thereto when sufficiently boiled, mixing it well.’ (op. cit. p.364)

  For paralysis: ‘Take a portion of rue, of coarse salt, of the white and yolk of an egg, and a little black soap [I think this must be coal tar soap — Author]; let the rue and salt be bruised together in a mortar, the egg and black soap being added thereto, mixing the whole well together. Apply it as a plaster to the affected part, and it will be cured.’ (op. cit. p.387)

  A sleeping potion: ‘Take the juice of opium (poppy) (see 9) and of eryngo, or of the seed of the latter, compound them into pills with milk, let these be ministered to the patient. One will induce sleep in general, but if not let him take another, and another again, if required, taking care that two or three hours should intervene between each dose in order to watch their effect before another is given.’ (op. cit. p.400)

  The following charm was administered by one the three sons of the lady of Lake Van:

  A charm for uterine disease which was given by Rhiwallon the physician to Gwyrvyl, the daughter of Gruffydd ap Tewdwr — I adjure thee, thou diseased uterus by the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, so that thou mightest not inflict pain, nor have power (for evil) in me, Gwyrvyl, the daughter of Rhys, the servant of God, either in the head, breast, stomach, or any other part of my body. Let God the Father prevail, let God the Son prevail, let God the Holy Ghost prevail. Even so be it. Amen.’ (op. cit. p.454)

  For the toothache: ‘Get an iron nail and engrave the following words thereon: agla, Sabaoth, athanatos, and insert the nail under the affected tooth, then drive it into an oak tree, and whilst it remains there, the toothache will not return. But you should carve on the tree with the nail the name of the man affected with toothache, repeating the following: By the power of the Father, and these consecrated words, as thou enterest into this wood, so let the pain and disease depart from the tooth of the sufferer. Even so be it. Amen.’ (op. cit. p.454)

  The above are just an example of a large number of recipes for healing given by the physicians of Mawddwy. At the very end they have an interesting note of Useful Things. The list begins:

  Infusion. Pouring water or other fluid in a boiling state upon herbs or whatever other ingredient may be required.

  Decoction. Boiling the herbs or ingredients in the water or fluid required.

  Pottage or Porridge. Pouring boiling or cold water or other fluid such as may be required upon the herbs or other ingredients, leaving them to stand, then straining under a press.

  Soakage. Pouring cold or boiling water or other fluid on any substance capable of being influenced thereby, so as to become incorporated with what is poured thereupon.

  Confection. Fluids mixed with powders or other substances capable of being administered as a draught.

  Potion. A draught or fluid prepared according to art.

  Essence. An amorphous or odoriferous substance, which may be taken in a draught by mouth, or injected into the nostrils, head, rectum or other part.

  Electuary. Substances incorporated into a dough so as to be eaten. Constitution. The disposition which is in a man, or other living being, or herb, or other matter; being their virtue, inherent property, or nature.

  Pills. Incorporated medical substances, formed into small balls, so as to be taken at a gulp.

  Bath. An infusion or decoction in which the patient or his limb is to be put.

  Fomentation. To be applied as a wash to a hurt, whether hot or cold, as may be wanted.

  Regimen. The food and drink as regulated by medical advice.

  Having looked at the list of Useful Things in detail, I think the next guide to medical treatment, entitled The Essentials of a Physician, should be left to the reader to peruse as they are lengthy, very detailed, and extremely interesting. Sufficient to say, the text begins with the words:

  These things should be in the possession of a physician: And then follow the characteristics which should distinguish him, which are called the Essentials of a Physician.

  The first essential will be sufficient to indicate to the reader the nature of the essentials:

  A lancet to bleed or open an abscess, also a knife, somewhat larger.

  The termination of this fascinating book on the Physicians of Myddfai ends with such interesting comments that I feel I should quote them in full here as they form a direct link with the Llyn y Fan Fâch story with which we began:

  And thus ends this Book of Medicine, and I, Howel the Physician, the son of Rhys, the son of Llewelyn, the son of Philip the Physician, have selected the same from the authorised Old Books of the original Physicians of Myddfai, even Rhiwallon the Physician, and his three sons Cadwgan, Gruffudd, and Einion, and the other Physicians, their sons and descendants, who succeeded them.

  And I, Howel the Physician, am regularly descended in the male line from the said Einion, the son of Rhiwallon the Physician of Myddfai, being residen
t in Cilgwryd, in Gower. May the grace and blessing of God attend this book, and him who studies it as a directory of the art, for the love of God, and the health of the diseased and maimed.

  Amen. With God’s help even so let it be.

  Morfydd E. Owen has contributed a perspicacious paper, Medics and Medicine, which deals largely with the court physicians and emphasises the universal Celtic tendency of cherishing and preserving whatsoever was archaic and traditionally founded in Celtic society.

  Charms (Swynion)

  The following entry in E. Owen (p.262) is entitled ‘The Conjuror’s Dress’. The word conjuror has somewhat misleading connotations. One imagines a stage on which one talented in conjuror’s arts, for example pulling a white rabbit out of a hat or sawing in half a beautiful girl lying in a coffin-like box, and to find the word here causes some confusion until one remembers that conjuror has meanings other than that of the traditional stage magician. Personally, I believe that the so-called conjuror of whom Owen is writing in the following passage is closer to the old Druidic order of Vates or seers. The passage runs as follows, and this should help to clarify the case: