"I have been three times in the prison of Arianrhod."
____ Taliesin, Primary Chief Bard
Caer Sidi (Kire SID'y), the Glass Castle or Spiral Tower of the British goddess Arianrhod (Ar-ee-ANN'hrode), is traditionally the place wherein poets serve their apprenticeship. The terms apprenticeship are strict, which is why the great poet Taliesin speaks of Arianrhod's tower as a place of imprisonment. Of his own poetic initiation, we know that he was chased by the Goddess of Inspiration, Ceridwen, and assimilated by her as her own child. Taliesin was one of those who descended into the Underworld of Annwfn (AN'oon) to help the battle leader, Arthur, steal the cauldron of heroes. Like all poets, he is constant in his service of his poetic mistress, who is both muse and inspiratrix.
However many lifetimes our soul may have inhabited, we are compelled to seek the spiraling tower in which our soul is refined. Arianrhod is the mistress who hones the soul, by helping it recognize the configurations and resonances of our soul-track through the stars. This search is not confined to one lifetime or to waking hours; within the spiraling of the soul and within the cavern of dreaming, we come to a deeper understanding of our true living metaphor. By whatever image, metaphor, story, sign or symbol we steer, we will find the clues as we pass through the otherworldly, mystical and subtextual life of our spiritual quest; within the mystery of Caer Arianhrod's labyrinthine turnings, we may discover the very reason for our existence.
"Visualize the spiraling tower of Caer Sidi, the place of initiation and clarity. Ask to be shown the important patterns of your soul-track in your dreams and your reflective moments - those times when you are most truly yourself."
[From: The Celtic Spirit by Caitlin Matthews]
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