Lugh - The Many Gifted One

Lugh: The Many Gifted One

"There is a man at the door," said the doorkeeper. "His match

would be hard to find; every art answers his skill."

___ Gofraidh FionnO'Dalaigh, in Osborn Bergin, "Irish

Bardic Poetry" (trans. CM)

The nickname of the Irish god Lugh (LOO'kh) is Samidanach, or "The Many-Gifted One." He earns it when he comes to the court of King Nuada (NOO'a-ha) just as everyone is sitting down to feast. The doorkeeper challenges Lugh for his name and skill, for no one without a special art or skill may enter Tara. Lugh tells him that he is a smith, a builder, a champion, a harper, a hero, a poet, a magician, a healer, a cup-bearer, and a fire-keeper. His boast is tested by everyone there, and he is ultimately admitted.

Lugh is what we now call a 'Renaissance man', one whose many skill pass beyond narrow categories of accomplishment, spilling over into many fields of artistic skill. His boast at Nuadu's court causes as much skepticism as would that of a man attempting to enter Congress or Parliament who claimed to be a great politician, a military hero, a Nobel-winning scientist, a shaman, a pop musician, a film star and a poet of international acclaim all rolled into one

Lugh's many-gifted nature holds sway at this time of year, reflecting the rich variety of harvest, heralding the beginning of the many-colored autumn months. For ourselves, the month of August enables us to pass the narrow confines of our daily occupation and enjoy the full range of our own skills and abilities as we take our vacation.

"On this day of festival, review your own many-gifted nature with appreciation. How does it serve your community? Which of your gifts are you hiding away? Which ones will you be enjoying this autumn?"

[From: "The Celtic Spirit" by Caitlin Matthews]

On this day we pass into the Lughnasadh Quarter of the Wheel of Year. The autumn quarter of Lughnasadh brings the gift of maturity and is a time of physical harvest and spiritual garnering. It sees the greatest change in weather from broiling heat to dark and chilly nights.

It is the time for celebrating the harvest and sees the busy preparations for winter. In the human growth cycle, Lughnasadh corresponds to the period of mature adulthood when a certain steadiness and responsibility have been established. It is a good time to celebrate the lives of all who have helped stabilize and uphold the noble values of life, of all who have exercised good judgment and steered the doubtful into the harbor of certainty, of all holy ones whose guardianship has saved us from life-disabling mistakes.

[From "Celtic Devotional" by Caitlin Matthews]