Flidais: Irish Celtic Goddess of the Forest

 Flidais: What Do We Know?

Flidais (pronounced flee-ash) is an interesting and elusive Irish Goddess. She is not well-known, and this is not surprising, considering how little original material we have of her. This lack of material makes her harder to discover than, say, a hugely popular pagan figure like The Mórrígan. It also leaves a lot of room for misinformation to not only sneak in (as it so often does with anything within Celtic paganism), but to stick around. So, what DO we know about her? She is mentioned in some original sources and has her own mythological tale; the Táin Bó Flidais, which is part of the Ulster cycle.

Let's start with her name. Flidais may mean "wet one"(8) and her epithet, Foltchaoin, could mean "Lovely-hair"(4), "Fair-hair"(2), "Soft haired"(8), or "Fine or beautiful hair"(9). Essentially, she has high quality hair. The name Flidais, "wet one", likely points to her strong association with milk (8) and milking animals (cows and deer specifically, we'll get there soon).

The Fitness of Names lists her as one of the Tuatha Dé Danann and Nia Ségamain as her son (2). It also states that Nia Ségamain has the ability to milk does the same way as cows, and that it was Flidais who gave him this "fairy power" (2). Interestingly, her connection to Nia Ségamain is the only concrete link there is between Flidais and deer. Nia Ségamain's name strengthens this connection further, his name meaning: "ség" - "deer" and "main" - "his treasure" (2). So, deer were his treasure (2) and since milk was such a high-value item in ancient Ireland, this treasure was extremely valuable and made him a very wealthy king. This is my own connection being made between the deer milk and his apparent wealth, but I feel Keating (1857) supports me in his interpretation of the surname Ségamain meaning "surpassing in wealth" (11). Nia Ségamain is not her only child, in fact she has at least 6 children, including Ségamain. Her other known children are Arden, Bé Chuille, Dinand, Bé Teite (5), and Fand (6). Fand is the wife of Manannán mac Lir (9). Both Bé Chuille and Dinand are listed as she-farmers (5) and as sorceresses of the Tuatha Dé in the Banshenchus (interestingly, they are listed alongside some of The Mórrínga in the Banshenchus) (3). I couldn't personally find much else on Arden or Bé Teite. Flidais' husband is listed as Adammair in The Fitness of Names (2), but Ailill Finn is her husband in the Táin Bó Flidais (1). She has her own short entry in the Banshenchus, which reads "Flidais was the consort of Ailill Find. Fergus was the too active lover. Though slender she destroyed young men. She decreed hard close fighting" (3).

The Táin Bó Flidais

There are two surviving versions of The Táin Bó Flidais. One survives in the Leabhair na h-Uidhri (The Book of the Dun Cow) and another in the Book of Leinster (1). The version from the Leabhair na h-Uidhri is by far the oldest surviving manuscript of any of the four preludes to the Táin Bó Cúailnge (1). I'm not going to give a detailed summary of her story here (though here's a retelling done by Candlelit Tales if you're interested). I'm here to glean important characteristics or traits of hers from the story.

In the Táin Bó Flidais, Flidais is married to Ailill Finn but lusts for Fergus mac Róg. Fergus had a well-known sexual appetite, in which it took at least 7 women to satisfy him. However, Flidais was so proficient a lover that she alone could satisfy him. Her and Fergus exchange letters every week, and eventually Fergus comes to see her (along with 30 of his men) where she and Ailill lived. Ailill, aware of Flidais' feelings for Fergus, tries to cast Fergus away. Flidais intervenes and convinces Ailill to let Fergus and his men stay for a little while. Flidais and Fergus conspire to kill Ailill, but not before a battle breaks out. During the battle, Flidais took on healing the wounded men. After killing Ailill, Fergus takes Flidais and her cattle away with him and they go to Queen Medb. Here, Flidais' herds provide milk for Queen Medb's army during the Táin Bó Cúailnge every 7th day (1)(4).

There are actually a few notable differences between the two versions of the story. In the later version of the story Flidais has a special magical cow, the Maol (hornless one). The Maol is also called the "Maol Fliodhaise" and can feed at least 300 men per milking (1)(8). In the earlier version of the story, Flidais simply has a herd of cattle that feed Medb's army. Granted, the herd of cattle is still impressive with the amount of milk they supply to the army being exceptional. I noticed in both versions of the Táin Bó Cúailnge I consulted, neither specified where the milk Flidais provided came from. Both versions simply state that she brings the men milk every seventh night (4). Let us also not forget that Flidais' cattle (bhur Fliodhaise) are potentially made up of deer in addition to cows, making the volume and exceptionality of her herd make more sense in context (2). 

Flidais' Associations

So, what can we gather about Flidais from this information? Well, her connection to milk and milking animals is obvious. Through this she is obviously a deity of abundance. She brings abundance through food, but I would suggest that it could also apply to wealth. Nia Ségmain's associations with wealth contribute (2)(11), but also the simple fact that cows were the currency of ancient Ireland. The more cows you had (and therefore the more milk you had), the wealthier you were, and Flidais clearly had a lot of milk. 

There is a connection to her being a healer in her role of healing the men in the Táin Bó Flidais (1). There is another connection to her being a healer in the Leabhar Breac, there is a healing spell written out in the lower margin of page 99 that addresses her and her daughters (10). Though, it seems she can hurt as well as heal. She does not take an active violent role in the Táin Bó Flidais, but she is the source of conflict and does contribute to the demise of Ailill (1). Her entry in the Banshenchus, while short and the only reference to her being directly violent, may hint that her actions of violence particularly target men (3).

The argument for her being connected to motherhood or being a motherly figure can also be made. Her close association with lactation (albeit in animals), her 6 children, and at least 1 reference to directly giving one of her children a gift (Ségmain's ability to milk both cows and does) (2)(5). She also takes on a providing role in the Táin Bó Cúailnge (4).

She is passionate and emotional in her relationship with Fergus (1), falling in love with him quickly and willing to take action to be with him. She is also of course passionate in a sexual sense as well, being equal to seven women. Though I would personally caution against labeling her as a "Sex Goddess". It clearly isn't her biggest focus; it's just something she happens to be good at. Personally, I take it as an example of her passion and dual nature.

In terms of animals, her connection to cows is the strongest stand out, with deer a close second. O hOgáin states that "she was said to have had a herd of deer as well as of cattle, and both wild and domesticated animals were known as her 'cattle' (bhur Fliodhaise)" (8). In other words, saying that all animals are her "cattle". This may be a bit of a stretch for some, but it follows directly off her strong associations with cattle and deer, so it makes sense to me.

In my opinion, the association with both domestic and wild contributes to her being seemingly dual natured. She is both domestic (cattle, motherhood, healer) and wild (deer, sexual, violent). She both loves Ailill and helps destroy him (1).

Modern Misinformation

Now we are finally getting around to the misinformation I mentioned in the first paragraph. The modern view of Flidais is very focused around deer and the forest. While this isn't exactly wrong, it is largely overblown. She is commonly referred to as the "Celtic Goddess of the Forest" (hence the name of this post) or even "Irish Artemis". Her associations with deer completely overshadow everything else about her, and there are a few reasons for this. Firstly, it's only been relatively recently that scholars have been focusing on taking Celtic deities on their own merit. What I mean by this is that for a long time, it was extremely common for scholars to directly compare or equate Celtic deities to Greco-Roman ones. This leads to a lot of headaches because there was no care given to cultural context. Celtic culture is fundamentally different to Greco-Roman culture, therefore Celtic deities can never be directly equated to Greco-Roman ones without misunderstanding who they are.

Since this post is about Flidais, I'll use her as an example. I've seen quite a few academic sources equate Flidais to Artemis/Diana (usually never fully explaining why) and can only assume purely based on the fact that both are associated with deer. Flidais is not a huntress, her deer are not prey she hunts down, they are part of her herds that she watches over and milks. Further, of course, is that Flidais' association with domestic animals is just as strong, if not stronger, than her association with wild ones. Admittedly, I'm no scholar or expert in Greco-Roman deities. However, I do know that Artemis is largely considered a Goddess of the hunt, the wild, protection of young girls, and chastity. Flidais only shares maybe one of those associations with her (the wild-but not even in the same way as Artemis is). They differ in some pretty significant ways that I hope are obvious.

This merging with Artemis/Diana has contributed to some long-lasting misconceptions about Flidais. One of which is the idea that Flidais rode in a chariot drawn by deer, which has no textual evidence. This article suggests this may be from partially assimilating her with Diana, who was sometimes depicted on coins as driving a chariot drawn by deer (7). Flidais being seen mainly as a Goddess of the forest, the hunt, of wilderness, etc., is almost certainly from the same type of assimilation.

Modern Associations and Practice

So, does that mean that most modern pagans that worship Flidais (of which there are very few anyway) are wrong? Well, despite how harsh I may have sounded, not entirely. I think completely ignoring her domestic side is doing both her and her potential followers a disservice, in that the full picture of who she is is not being presented to people. But her wild associations are there too and ignoring them in an attempt to over-correct the current view of her would be silly and doing her a similar disservice.

I think it makes sense to associate Flidais with the woodlands. If her herds are made up of cattle and deer (or even potentially all animals), then that's where they live. Of course, she would want the habitat of her herds to be healthy. I think it makes sense to envision her using a chariot drawn by deer. Chariots were important in Celtic society (though notably none have been found in Ireland), and her associations with deer are strong enough to justify it. It may not be a historically accurate image or portrayal of Flidais, but it can be a beautiful one. It's just important to know where information comes from.

Material offerings to Flidais should ideally be milk or milk-products. Milk, butter, yogurt, cheese, etc. would all be ideal. Offerings of service or time could include caring for any pets you have, volunteering to help the environment or wildlife in some way, or making sure everyone in the household eats. One could pray to her for matters of healing (both humans and animals), abundance, guidance, wisdom, sexual confidence, and even protection (in the sense that mothers protect their charges). If you are a lactating parent, you might consider connecting to her. 

In my personal practice I try to keep all aspects of her in mind, but I do find myself defaulting to viewing her as an "Animal Goddess". What can I say, I'm an animal person, and I love how she encompasses all animals. Even so, she can surprise me, showing up to guide me in an almost motherly way. I offer her milk regularly and pray to her for healing and protection for my (domestic) pets. The wisdom and guidance she's given to me (and continues to) has been beyond the realm of animals, so her influence is by no means limited to that. In my experience, she is balanced and strong. Her dual nature makes her wise, and I have experienced her as both gentle and firm. Firm in that she does not tolerate disrespect (not that you'd be trying to disrespect any deity...right?) and she will be honest with you. Gentle like you'd expect from a mother figure. She is honorable, strong, passionate, and steady. I have personally found her to be a consistent, steady, and gentle presence. Though, I'm sure her presentation to individuals depends on what they best respond to, like a mother knowing how to best approach her different children.

Flidais continues to enrich my life, and while I have only been worshipping her for around 2 years at this point, I expect her to be a presence in my life for quite some time to come. She is more than a Goddess of animals, the wild, the woodland. She is a Goddess of domestic and wild, cattle and deer, motherhood and abundance, passion and wisdom, and more than that still. 

Healer of all, destroyer of men, Flidais the Queen; may your herds, the bhur Fliodhaise, forever prosper. For you, always.

Sources

1. The Driving Cattle of Flidais (Táin Bó Flidais) from Heroic Romances of Ireland, Vol. II by A.H Leahy, 1906. Heroic Romances of Ireland, Vol. II
2. The Fitness of Names (Cóir Anmann) Cóir Anmann: Fitness of Names lines 25-26
3. The Lore of Women (Banshenchus) Banshenchus
4. The Cattle Raid of Cooley (Táin Bó Cúailnge): Leinster version Táin Bó Cúalnge from the Book of Leinster p.146, Dunn Translation (Section 6, The March of the Host) 6. The March of the Host | My Site 1
5. The Book of Invasions (Lebor Gabala Erenn) Lebor Gabala Erenn pt 4 line 62
6. The Lore of Place Names vol. 3 (The Metrical Dindshenchas) The Metrical Dindshenchas poem 49, p.261
7. A Celtic Deer Goddess? theses.univ-lyon2.fr/documents/getpart.php?id=lyon2.2009.beck_n&part=159144
8. The Lore of Ireland - An Encyclopaedia of Myth, Legend and Romance by Dáithí O hOgáin, 2006 print.
9. Dictionary of Celtic Mythology by James MacKillop, 1998 print.
10. 'A spell called Éle' by J. Borsje in G. Toner & S. Mac Mathúna (Eds.), Ulidia 3: Proceedings of the Third Internation Conference on the Ulster Cycle of Tales, University of Ulster, Coleraine 22-25 June, 2009; in memoriam Patrick Leo Henry (2013) A spell called Éle (pdf download available)
11. Foras Feasa ar Éirinn by Geoffrey Keating, 1857. p 260-261. Foras Feasa Ar Eirinn Do Réir an Athar Seathrun Céiting, Ollamh Ré Diadhach... - Google Books