math

a science (or group of related sciences) dealing with the logic of quantity and shape and arrangement

In Welsh mythology, Math ap Mathonwy (Math, son of Mathonwy) was a king of Kingdom of GwyneddGwynedd who needed to rest his feet in the lap of a virgin unless he was at war, or he would die. The story of Math is the fourth book of ''The Four Branches of the Mabinogi''.

The Mabinogi of Math -

Math is tricked by his nephews - Math's nephew Gilfaethwy had fallen in love with Goewin, Math's footholder. His brother, the magician Gwydion, devised a plan to make Goewin available. He told his uncle about an animal that was new to Wales, called pigs, and how he could get them from their owner, Pryderi of Dyfed. He took a band of men, including his brother, to Ceredigion, where they disguised themselves as bards to gain audience with King Pryderi.Gwydion was a skilled ''cyfarwyd'' (storyteller) and regaled the court with his tales. Having charmed the king, he offered to trade the pigs for some horses and dogs, which he had conjured through magic. Pryderi agreed to the trade and Gwydion and his men took the pigs back home to Gwynedd, but his trickery was revealed and Pryderi waged war against Gwynedd. While Math went to battle, Gilfaethwy raped Goewin.The war ended when Gwydion killed Pryderi in single combat. Upon his return to his castle, King Math went to rest his feet in Goewin's lap, but could not, as she was no longer a virgin. He took her as his wife to save her honor, and then as punishment, banished his nephews, turning them into a breeding pair of deer for a year, then wolfwolves, and finally pigs. They had three children over the three years: Hydwn, Hychdwn, and Bleidwn.

Gwydion and his nephew - After their punishment was over, Math asked their advice as to who should be his next virgin footholder. Gwydion suggested his sister, Arianrhod. To test her virginity she stepped over Math's magic wand but immediately gave birth to a young boy (Dylan Eil TonDylan) and a blob, proving that she was not a virgin. Dylan immediately left for the sea after birth. Gwydion hid the blob in a chest and later found it had grown into a boy.The boy (unnamed) grew extraordinarily quickly and he and Gwydion grew very attached to one another. After four years, Gwydion took the boy to see his mother. However, she refused to recognise him out of shame and anger that Gwydion should have nurtured the boy and cursed him that he should have no name unless she gave it to him. To trick her into naming him, Gwydion disguised himself and the boy as shoemakingshoemakers and as they were making shoes for her, Arianrhod declared the boy to be of skillful hand, and thus he was named Lleu Llaw Gyffes ("Lleu Skillful Hand").His trick revealed, Arianrhod cursed the boy again that he would name take arms until she gave them to him. Time passed and Lleu grew big and strong. Again, Gwydion disguised his son and himself, this time as bards, and like he did to Pryderi, entertained Math's court with stories. The next morning, he made it seem like the castle was under attack. Arianrhod, not knowing of their true identity, asked them to help defend the castle, and thus Lleu got his weapons. Furious at being tricked again, she cursed him once more that he would never have a human wife. By this time, Math took pity on the boy and helped Gwydion create a woman from flowers, whom they named Blodeuedd (flowers). She and Lleu married, and he was also given a cantref to rule over.

Lleu and Blodeuedd - One day, when Lleu was away from home visiting Math, Blodeuedd saw a nobleman, named Gronw Bebyr, passing and invited him to stay (for it would be rude not do so). They fell in love and concocted a plot to kill Lleu. Blodeuedd found out from Lleu how he could be killed — with one foot on the back of a deerbuck and the other on a bath of water, underneath a canopy, using a spear that had been made over the course of a year only on Sundays. She told this to Gronw and he set out to make the spear.A year later, she persuaded Lleu to demonstrate this odd position where he might be killed. Suspecting nothing, he did so. Gronw, who had been waiting in ambush, threw the spear he had made at him. However, rather than dying outright Lleu turned into an eagle and flew away wounded. Gronw then took Blodeuedd and Lleu's land. Gwydion went searching for his nephew and, by following a pig, found him (still an eagle) in a very bad state at the top of an oak tree by a lake. He called him down from the tree with three stanzas of poetry, transformed him back into a man and nursed him back to health. Then Lleu sought revenge on Gronw and his wife.Blodeuedd heard of this and fled, taking her maidens with her, but they were so frightened, that they ended up walking backwards to make sure nobody attacked them from behind. Unfortunately, they ended up falling into a lake, with only Blodeuedd surviving. Gwydion captured her and instead of killing her, turned her into an owl, naming her Blodeuwedd ("flower-face", the modern Welsh languageWelsh word for "owl").Gronw offered Lleu land or money as payment, but Lleu would only accept one resolution: that he throw a spear at Gronw in the same way that he had been attacked. Gronw accepted, but asked that a large stone be placed between him and Lleu. Nevertheless, Lleu threw the spear right through the stone and killed Gronw. After this he took back his lands and later succeeded Math as king of Gwynedd.

Reference -

The Mabinogi of Math work=The Four Branches of the Mabinogi !URL=http://www.mabinogi.net/ma th.htm? date=August 9 year=2005 Category:Fictional kingsCategory:Welsh mythology DEBUG REDIRECT (math ap mathonwy)

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