Goddess Blodeuwedd
Welsh goddess of treachery, Blodeuwedd.
Blodeuwedd, or "Flower Face," is the Triple Goddess's Maiden aspect, together with Arianrhod and Cerridwen, who constitute the triad.
- She is the goddess of spring, initiations, and flowers, but she is most remembered for her husband Llew, or Lugh, the sun god's deception, adulterous betrayal, and murder.
- She is regarded as the May queen, and her holy marriage to Llew is seen as the blood sacrifice required to keep the Wheel of the Year turning.
Blodeuwedd is transformed into an owl as a punishment for her treachery, symbolizing the sensuous maiden's eventual transformation into the wise crone.
- For the nine blooming flowers that gave birth to her: primrose, bean, broom, meadowsweet, burdock, nettle, oak, hawthorn, and chestnut, she is regarded a ninefold goddess unto herself.
- Blodeuwedd, along with Arianrhod, Branwen, Cerridwen, and Rhiannon, is one of Avalon's five goddesses.
