Morgan Le Fay (Priestess)

The famed Morgan le Fay is the beautiful, intelligent and talented female counterpart to the magician, Merlin. There is no doubt that the portait of Morgan the Goddess is of great antiquity. More than eight centuries have passed since her literary debut in Vita Merlin, and yet Morgan continues to fascinate and inspire modern works. Her divine origins can be traced through early Welsh genealogy. Under teh name Modron, her father is Avallach and her grandfather the God Beli. Morgan is also associted with the Gaulish goddess Matrona and the Irish Morrigan (Greater queen"), goddess of war and death.

Morgan reinforces teh femine principle of teh Moon, as enchantress she draws on its lunar power. Having prepared herself, she accepts its disturbing influence, experiencing it as enriching rather than frightening. Morgan neitehr resists nor abosesses over the moon's expression and insight. In league with the moon, she benefits from sharpened intuition and psychic abilities which aid her when she returns to her journey and the blinding light of day.

A winterless isle was said to be the home of Morgan and her sisterhood of nine. Here they studied, among other subjects, medicine and teh magical arts. Morgan was particularly revered for her healing talents. Under the influence of medieval Christianity, Morgan's historical character bcame debased. Sensitive to her obvious Pagan origins and femininie power, she is stripped of her divinity andleft simply as Arthur's half sister, a meddling witch. As history has demonstrated, the witch others becomes the scapegoat and so Morgan is made to carry the blame for the troubles of the land.

In teh romances, Morgan takes every opportunity to provoke Arthur. She steals Excalibur, gives him the gift of a cloak that burns, and busies herself devising some humourous means of exposing Guenevere's affair. Morgan involved the unsuspecting Tristram in one of her plots, sending him to one of the king's tournaments bearing a shield which depicted the king and queen with Lancelot standing atop their heads. In another attempt to expose Guenevere, she sent a magical drinking hornto the court. Only a faithful woman could drink from the horn without spilling its contents. Whether Morgan is portrayed in a positive orr negative light, she consistently maintains an air of mystery. Even when on friendly terms with her brother and staying at his court, she would often disappear into the night, preferring her own company and the moonlit woods to the activity of the court.

From Ferguson, Anna-Marie. Keeper of Words. 1995 Llewellyn Publications. St. Paul, Minnesota. (102-103)