Ceridwen
The Initiator. N demipower of inspiration (She/Her)
Pantheon: Celtic (Welsh)
Symbol: A cauldron
Realm: Outlands / Tir na Og / Wandering
Known Proxies: Taliesin (proxy human bard [he/him] / NG)
Ceridwen (pronounced ke-RID-wen), the night hag of inspiration, roams the mystical lands of Tir na Og, cloaked in magical disguises. She’s no ordinary demipower, mind you. She’s a meddler, and loves nothing more than moving amongst mortals and petitioners incognito, stirring up creativity in the brain-boxes of the bashers she encounters—but only if they put in some effort themselves. She particularly loves bards, poets, illusionists and transmuters, and is something of a weird muse to them. Weird because she’s a frightful looker when she’s doing her hag routine, which is a shame as it tends to scare off berks who could otherwise have learned all sorts of darks from her.
Now there’s a weird tale around her proxy, and sort-of-son, Taliesin too. Chant goes she had two children; Creirwy, who was as beautiful as they come, and Afagddu, who had a face only his mother could love. But Ceridwen, she’s not one to dwell on details like that. “Brains before beauty,” she says, and gets to brewing up a cauldron of knowledge, hoping to give her son a brain-box to make up for his looks. It’s a year and a day’s work, and Ceridwen set a young scullion called Gwion to mind the pot, and make sure the caldron doesn’t bubble over. But fate’s got a funny way of turning the tables. A few drops of the brew scald Gwion, and instinctively, he licks it off. And just like that, all the wisdom meant for Afagddu is now swirling in Gwion’s brain-box instead!
Ceridwen, livid as a storm cloud, gives chase to Gwion. The lad, now wise to the ways of the world and then some, transforms into all manner of speedy critters, but Ceridwen eventually catches him, and in a fit of rage, she swallows him whole. Later, she relented and vomited him back out again, but as her own son. This lad, now known as Taliesin, becomes one of the greatest bards around, and Ceridwen’s proxy, while poor Afagddu remains as he always was.
Source: Jon Winter-Holt, mimir.net
