Essay 2 - The AWEN as a symbol

AWEN is a Welsh, Cornish and Breton word for “inspiration". In the Welsh tradition,
awen is the inspiration of the poet bards; or, in its personification, Awen is the
inspirational muse of creative artists in general: the inspired individual is described as
an awenydd.

The AWEN is the most common symbol used in Druidry, often incorporated in the
badge or logo of the various Druid Orders. In form, it consists of a vertical bar, with
another similar bar on either side, their tops inclined towards the centre. Various
examples are shown at the foot of this page.

The AWEN represents three bars of light. These symbolise the Druidic/Bardic tradition
of Creation. According to this tradition, everything that we understand as ‘Creation’, that
is, this physical universe together with the Astral or Spiritual Planes were caused to be
by the action of the Divine Spirit pronouncing the Sacred Name. Instantly, all worlds and
existences sprang into being, shouting in joy the Sacred Name and illuminated by the
three shafts of Divine Light that is the visual representation. The sound of the Name
was the sweetest music ever heard and every atom and particle resonated in harmony
with the Sound that brought it into existence. From that time on, every object that exists,
mineral, vegetable or animal sings back to the Divine Creator, softly and sweetly, the
sound that brought it into being. This is the universal harmony of all existences that the
Druids have recognised time out of mind.

The AWEN, then, symbolises both the instant of Divine Creation and the visible
representation of the Sacred Name. As such, it is a valuable spiritual tool for
contemplation and meditation.
The word ‘awen’ is Welsh, which derives from Brythonic, the language of the historical
Bards and Druids, and means ‘inspiration’. Druids regard this as not only flashes of
original thought or visualisation, but the literal ‘breathing into’ of the Divine Essence that
supports and maintains the whole of creation. In this sense, it is linked to the concept of
the universally resonating sound of the Sacred Name. When Druids sing the word
AWEN in unison in their meetings and ceremonies, it is a tangible acknowledgement of
the Divine origins of this and all existences, of the celebration of the Divine Agency that
maintains the entirety of Creation and a representation of the sound of the Sacred
Name that resonates and vibrates within every particle of our being and has done since
that first moment of Creation.

You will notice that there are three aspects there. It is a characteristic of Druidry that
often (although not always), concepts, connections and teachings that are by nature
Spiritual, abstract, intellectual, or otherwise non-physical tend to group themselves in
bunches or clusters of three. An example is the group of concepts associated with “past
- present - future". On the other hand, those matters which mostly relate to the physical
world have a tendency to group in fours. In this sense the AWEN becomes a valuable
study tool. The Druid will often discover new insights or come to a new spiritual or
abstract awareness by looking at a problem or proposition in terms of the threefold
structure of the AWEN.

Where shown the three spots are often said to represent the three spots of wisdom that
flew from the Cauldron of Cerridwen.

The AWEN also represents wisdom, learning and science. The ancient British
Druidic/Bardic form of writing, known as the Coelbren, was composed entirely of straight
lines; right-slanting, upright and left-slanting, exactly as the bars of Light of the AWEN
from which it was consciously derived. There were no horizontal or curved lines. As the
form of the AWEN comprised the origin of all letters, then it necessarily contained the
origin of all wisdom and knowledge capable of being written down.

There are numerous interpretations about the symbol of the AWEN and who is to say
which is right or wrong?

PRONUNCIATION GUIDE- Eng; ‘ah-wen’. Fr; ‘ah-ouenne’. Es, Po, It; ‘a-u-en’
Chris Turner and Geoff Boswell © 2010