Having discovered Dr. Davies of Mallwyd’s Latin Translation of our Welsh Proverbs among many other ancient MSS. in the library at Llanvorda, and soon after having found, also the original, from which his was transcribed, among the same valuable collection, I thought I could not undertake a more useful work to my country, than to publish the same, and dedicate it, as the first fruits of my labours, to my munificent patron, Sir W. W. Wynn. The exact time when that ancient bard and philosopher, called by the Welsh Hen Gyrys o Iâl, flourished, cannot be accurately ascertained. Two collections of Proverbs, made by him, and written on parchment, are now extant in the above library, and, at the end of the said book, a fair copy of Hywel Dda’s laws; and from the best judgment, which can be formed from the appearance of the said MSS. and the mode of writing, or form of the hand, it may with safety be pronounced to be about five hundred years old. To the former of these two collections is annexed the following note respecting the author: “Mabieith Hen Gyrys o Iâl, yr hwn a elwit Bach Buddugre a Gado Gyfarwydd, a Gwynfarch Gyfarwydd, a’r hen wyrda a ddyvawt y Diarhebion o Ddoethineb, hyd pan veint gadwedig, gwedy hwynt, i roddi dysg i’r neb a synio arnynt; canys crynodeb parablan llawer a synwyreu y cynghoreu doethbrud a ddangosir ar vyrder, i’r neb a’u dyallo yn y diarhebion.” Iâl, where this celebrated old Cyrys resided, is a mountainous district, containing five parishes, situated towards the north-east corner of the county of Denbigh; and Buddigre, where he lived, is near, if not within, the limits of the parish of Bryn Eglwys. It is evident, that this collection of Proverbs was made from various works of a great number of old bards, living in different ages; for many of them are taken from the compositions of Llywarch Hen (Llywarch the Aged), and from the poems of Aneurin and Taliesin, and several from those of other bards much more ancient, whose effusions have unfortunately perished.
It is more than probable, that many of these pithy sentences and proverbial sayings, these aphorisms of wisdom and axioms of prudence, were the productions of the venerable Druids; and they exhibit, in the present imperfect form, in which they have been delivered to us, no despicable specimens of those verses mentioned by Cæsar, in the seemingly enigmatical mysteries of which their pupils were initiated, and spent many years in acquiring and committing them to memory. And he farther informs us, that, notwithstanding these learned sages made use of Greek characters in transacting both their public and private affairs, yet their disciples were not permitted to write these verses, principally, (as it appeared to him,) for two reasons; in the first place, because, if they were allowed to do so, the mysteries of their profession would soon be divulged: and, secondly, if these aphorisms were committed to writing, the noviciates, confiding in such artificial aids, would no longer be at the pains of sufficiently exercising their memories. Many of these poetical proverbs are composed in that peculiar kind of metre, which is distinguished by the name of Englyn Milwr, and these verses are possessed of such strong internal marks of antiquity, that I may with safety pronounce them to be the genuine productions of the Druids. And, as they are by no means unworthy of being considered as the real effusions of those learned sages and philosophers, it will not, I hope, be deemed a digression, or by any means irrelevant to the object of this introduction, to gratify the reader with a specimen of one of these oracular compositions, together with a close literal Latin version. The first two lines of these poetical
triplets seem to contain some of the privileges of the Druids, and the third generally exhibits some maxim of wisdom or axiom of prudence. The following were transcribed from the Red Book of Hergest, in the library of Jesus College, Oxford:—
| 1. | 1. |
| Marchwiail bedw briglas, A dyn fy nhroed o wanas; Nac addef dy rin i wàs. | Virgulta betulæ viridis Meum pedem e compede solvent; Secretum tuum juveni ne reveles. |
| 2. | 2. |
| Marchwiail derw mewn llwyn, A dyn fy nhroed o gadwyn: Nac addef dy rin i forwyn. | Virgulta quercûs de luco Solvent pedem meum e catenâ: Ne reveles secretum tuum virgini. |
| 3. | 3. |
| Marchwiail derw deiliar, A dyn fy nhroed o garchar: Nac addef dy rin i lafar. | Virgulta quercûs frondosæ Pedem meum e carcere liberabunt: Ne reveles secretum tuum homini loquaci. |
The foregoing stanzas, as well as many others of the same description, are still extant is the above mentioned book, called Llyfr Coch o Hergest, and likewise in several MSS. in the libraries of Llanvorda near Oswestry, and Hengwrt near Dolgellau; and, on account of their having accidentally been discovered among the compositions of that ancient bard Llywarch Hen, Dr. Davies and Edw. Llwyd have hastily and inconsiderately pronounced them to be some of his productions; but the frequent recurrence of the oak, their favourite tree, and the dark allusions to the druidical rites and privileges, most evidently and convincingly, (in my opinion,) denote their origin to be from that source. But here it may be objected, that the Druids could not, (as Cæsar declares it was not their usual practice,) have committed these verses to writing. Granted it was so in his time; yet it is manifest from the poems of our celebrated bard Taliesin, that, in subsequent times, they did not strictly adhere to this resolution; for many of their pretended mysteries are divulged in his compositions. It is also evident, that, in these early ages, the Druids were not the only persons, who were thus cautious of revealing their secrets to the vulgar; but the Bards also endeavoured to conceal their poetical rules and metres, from the public; for their book of prosody, containing the intricacies of the art, is distinguished by the name of Cyfrinach y Beirdd, (i.e. The Secret of the Bards,) and they were strictly prohibited from explaining these, except to their own noviciate disciples, which continued to be their practice nearly to our own times. But, notwithstanding these strict prohibitions, it is well known, that the poetical compositions of the bards were publicly recited; and it is evident that, after the commencement of the Christian æra, the Druids were not so scrupulously cautious with respect to these rules of secrecy, which may be proved from some stanzas, which I have seen in an ancient MS., denominated Englynion Duad, probably from a bard or druid of that name. Some few of the lines I shall here subjoin, for the inspection of the reader.
Bid gogor gan iâr,
Bid gan lew drydar,
Bid oval ar a’i câr;
Bid tòn calon gan alar.
These lines have been introduced into our Welsh proverbs; and the following remark is made on them at the end of Dr. Davies’s MS. copy.
“Gwyl y rhagor y sydd rhwng y rhai hyn ar rhai sydd yn Llyfr Coch, a hen gopiau eraill; a gwybydd fod y gerdd hon yn hen iawn; gan fod cymmaint o ymrafael rhwng yr hen gopiau.” i.e. Advertat lector quàm variant inter se exemplar Hergestianum et alia exemplaria in hoc cantico, et sciat, hoc carmen ob differentias prædictas esse vetustissimum.
Those learned men are, therefore, mistaken, who suppose, that the Druids never committed any of their compositions to writing; when it is evident, that these and others of their productions have been conveyed down to us. Taliesin, as I have before hinted, informs us,
that he was instructed by them in many of their mysteries, particularly in that of the μετεμψυχωσις, and in many other rudiments of their philosophy. And hence it is, that his works are more obscure than those of any other of the ancient bards.