The Dagda
Father-god of the Tuatha Dé Danann, owner of the magic cauldron
- Name
- 'The good god'; also Eochaid Ollathair, 'father of all'
- Known from
- Cath Maige Tuired; Lebor Gabála Érenn; Dindsenchas
- Treasures
- Cauldron that left no one hungry; club; harp
- Home
- Brú na Bóinne (Newgrange)
- Consort
- The Morrígan (at Samhain); Boann
The 'good god' of the Tuatha Dé Danann, with a club that kills and revives and a cauldron from which no one went away hungry.
What is The Dagda known for?
The Dagda, 'the good god', is a chief figure of the Tuatha Dé Danann and a father god in Irish mythology. He is also called Eochaid Ollathair, 'father of all', and Ruad Rofhessa, 'lord of great knowledge'. He is associated with abundance, strength and wisdom.
He owns a cauldron, one of the four treasures of the Tuatha Dé, from which no company ever went away unsatisfied, a huge club that kills with one end and restores life with the other, and a harp that commands the seasons. Before the Second Battle of Mag Tuired he unites with the war goddess the Morrígan at Samhain, and he plays a comic but powerful role in the battle story. Later tradition makes him king of the Tuatha Dé after Nuadu, and he is linked to the great passage tomb of Brú na Bóinne (Newgrange).
Like the other Tuatha Dé, the Dagda is known from medieval Christian manuscripts that recast pre-Christian gods as an ancient people.
His cauldron is one of the four treasures the Tuatha Dé Danann brought to Ireland.
Mentioned on these pages
- Rabbit holeTuatha Dé Danann
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Dagda'Reference
- Nancy Effinger Wilson, 'Lebor Gabála Érenn (The Book of Invasions)', Irish Mythology (Texas State University Pressbooks)Reference
- Wikipedia, 'The Dagda'Reference
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