Otherworld

Goddess2u

Member
"The "Otherworld" was a domain of Celtic deities or supernatural beings such as the "Fairy People". The Otherworld was considered to be the Celtic version of heaven (or even hell to most Christian writers).
They were hidden from mortal eyes by strong Otherworld magic. They were situated in all sort of places. Some of these Otherworlds were located on the islands, the dunes, dun-hills, forests, rivers, and lakes. A grand castle or even humble cottage could be the Otherworld, which would, appeared at night for mortals, but would probably vanish in the morning.
Normal rule does not apply in the Otherworld. A year may seem to pass in the Otherworld, but in the real world centuries may have passed. Time seemed to have stand still. Nor does the people who live there, aged like mortals. They seemed to remain forever young.
The Otherworld also seemed to be able to move from one location to another. Or there may be only one Otherworld but it exist everywhere. In another word, the Otherworld is a paradox. Entering the enchanted place, may be close by or it could be a place far away."

I found this at the following site and thought it was interesting. I love fairies and anything to do with them. I thought perhaps you would enjoy this reading as well.
http://www.timelessmyths.com/celtic/celtworld.html
 

Rhonda Tharp

Active Member
Interesting post - I'd read that the sidhe was where the fairies dwelt, and that after Briain pried his parents apart - Donn and Danu, Donn became the Underworld and Danu became the heavens... Some of your descriptions reminded me of Avalon from Arthurian legend.
 

RLynn

Active Member
In Wolfram's Parzival the Grail castle was in the Otherworld. The first time he found it, he failed to ask the crucial question, and the castle vanished the next day. Many events in the Arthurian legends involved interactions with the Otherworld.
 

LegendofJoe

Active Member
Wow! Wolfram. I read that book years ago. A little heavy. I preferred the simplicity of of Chretien's version: Perceval, Or the Story of The Grail. He pretty much created the story, and Wolfram Von Eschenbach refused to give him credit for it. Too bad Chretien died before he finished it.
I also enjoyed the Welsh version in the Mabinogion called Peredur. It has a strange ending.
 

RLynn

Active Member
I'm not trying to whitewash him, but I'm not 100% certain that Wolfram knew that he was stealing from Chretien. There are a few other possibilities. A bit of trivia: Don Quixote was immersed in the writings of Chretien de Troyes, and it was conjectured that this is what caused his madness.
 
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