Gods, Myths and Heroes - Part 56

 Cu Chulainn and Ferdiad

Today we have a Celtic myth about Cu Chulainn, who has been called the Irish Achilles, from the Irish Ulster Cycle.  Cu Chulainn was the son of the god Lugh and a mortal mother.  He lived in Ulster (northern Ireland).  As a child, he was named Setanta until he was attacked by the fierce guard dog of the smith Culann.  After killing the dog in self defense, he offered to take its place as a guard until a replacement could be found, earning the name Cu Chulainn (the hound of Culann).

Above, from the Tain Wall in Dublin, which depicts incidents in the story of Cu Chulainn, we see the boy Setanta fighting the dog.

Homosexuality was accepted in Celtic culture.  Aristotle wrote in the 4th century BC that the Celtic peoples "openly approve of male love."  In the 1st century, the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus noted that Celtic men preferred to have sex with each other, and it was an insult if a guest refused an offer of sex from a Celtic man.

So it was with Cu Chulainn and his foster brother Ferdiad, who was his best friend as well as his lover.  Above, a modern painting showing Aengus, the Irish god of youth and love, at right, blessing Cu Chulainn and Ferdiad.

Cu Chulainn and Ferdiad were both great fighters, equal in the use of all weapons with two exceptions: Ferdiad had horn-like skin which no weapon could pierce, and Cu Chulainn had a magic spear called the Gáe Bulg.  He was given this spear by the great warrior Scáthach, who, by the way, was a woman.  This spear had to be thrown with the feet, not the hands, and once it pierced its victim, seven barbs (or thirty, depending on the version of the myth) sprang out, killing the victim.

Ferdiad had been exiled from Ulster for some reason, and he went to Connacht (western Ireland).  He became a warrior in the army of Connacht.  When Connacht invaded Ulster,  Cu Chulainn invoked the right of single combat to defend a ford that the Connacht army had to cross.  According to the rules, one warrior from each side would fight each other, and both sides would accept the outcome.  Of course, Cu Chulainn and Ferdiad ended up fighting each other.  They fought for three days at the ford (above, on the Tain Wall).

Some writers today say that Cu Chulainn and Ferdiad were just friends, not lovers, but consider this: at the end of each day of fighting in the strangely ritualistic single combat at the ford, they threw down their weapons, and then “they came up to each other and each put his arm round the other’s neck and gave him three kisses.”  That sounds to me like they were more than friends.

On the last day of their fight, Cu Chulainn sent for the Gáe Bulg spear.  Cu Chulainn threw a light spear at Ferdiad's chest, causing him to raise his shield, and then Cu Chulainn picked up the Gáe Bulg with his toes and thrust it up Ferdiad's asshole.  Yes, that's really part of the myth.  I couldn't find any paintings or sculptures illustrating this interesting combat technique, so we'll have to imagine that the rod above is the Gáe Bulg.  Ferdiad's skin could not be pierced, but his asshole could, as Cu Chulainn presumably knew from personal experience.  Then the barbs of the Gáe Bulg sprang out inside Ferdiad, killing him.

Although Cu Chulainn had won a great victory, he was overcome with remorse at killing his friend and lover.  Above is a statue in Ardee, County Lough, Ireland, the town where the ford where they fought is located.  It shows Cu Chulainn carrying away the body of Ferdiad after he killed him.  A unique Irish tragedy.