November 23 - Mari Lwyd

The Mari Lwyd is a wassailing tradition from Wales. Involving a mare skull carried on a pole and trailed by a sackcloth. 

A weird thing, made weirder by the fact that it is meant to embody a spirit that wishes to enter a house… through song. The homeowner has to return the request with a song of their own, and which is followed by a series of flyting-esque requests and rebuttals. Should the homeowner fail to provide a response, then they had to provide the spirit with food and drink, and plenty of it!

Strange, and fantastic. 

I like to say that each valley in Wales has their own legend. I haven’t personally visited each, but it could be true. I count the Mari Lwyd among my favourites. I grew up on tales of tylwyth deg (fairies) inhabiting the icy tarns of Snowdonia and the fell hounds of the other world chasing anyone who loses themselves in the misty Beacons. I recently walked the Beacons themselves, and it was cold.

It gives me insight into the feeling those storytellers had when traversing this land, accompanied only the skirling winds. The sound of the wind was a banshee cry, the cold bite of the air the frozen breath of the wyrm dwelling in the nearby cave. All these things made for amazing stories upon their return to the cosy tavern down in the village. 

But I inevitably digress. I had never seen the Mari Lwyd as a child. The first time I experienced it was on a frigid morning a few years ago in Cardigan, where the spirit was being hoisted above the assembled crowds. It passed by the Russian cannon on the steps to the Guildhall, and it sang in Welsh. Each time the pole was raised, the jaws of the skull clacked together, and the bells rang. 

I’ll have to make one myself!

Something which I encourage is the preservation of the old traditions, and the creation of new ones. If a culture is anything, it is fluid and ever-changing, and growing. As a writer, I try to do my part in creating new mythology for readers to enjoy. I do my best. With the Halloween festivities petering off, we swap pumpkins for holly and embrace the Yuletide with open arms… albeit wrapped up in several layers!