This folk or fairy tale was collected at Islay, Argyll in 1859 and published by the Scottish folklorist J.F.Campbell in his collection Popular Tales of the West Highlands,vol.1.I will give an outline of the tale, then a psycho-spiritual interpretation showing how it enscapulates the growth of the soul and development of the human being from the lower to the higher nature.
Outline of the folk tale
There was a new king, and being a merry young fellow, he thought he would play a game with the Gruagach, a hairy supernatural being.The soothsayer advised him not to go, but said that if he must,and should he win, he should ask for the "cropped rough-skinned maid that is behind the door."The king won the game and was offered his pick of twenty young girls, but he refused them all, and chose the "cropped rough-skinned maid."On the way home she changed into "the lovliest woman that is on the earth" and the king was "full of joy at getting such a charming woman"for his wife.
Next day the king said to his new wife that he must have another game with the Gruagach.Oh , she said , he is my father, and you must chose as your stake the "dun shaggy filly that has the stick saddle on her."
"How did thy young bride please thee yesterday?" asked the Gruagach as he greeted the king.
"She pleased fully," replied the king.They began gaming, and the king duly won the filly.He rode her home, and she was a fine horse, the "swift heroine".The king and his wife "were cheery together that night."Next day the queen advised him not to game with the Gruagach anymore, for if he loses, the Gruagach "will put trouble on thy head."
The Gruagach won the game and his stake was that the king must get him the sword of light from his brother, the king of the oak windows, otherwise "the cropped rough-skinned creature" would chop his head off.The king returned to his wife full of gloom."Her face and her splendour gave some pleasure to the king when he looked upon her brow, but when he sat on a chair to draw her towards him, his heart was so heavy that the chair broke under him."
The queen eased his worries, saying: "Thou hast the best wife in Erin, and the second best horse in Erin.If thou takest my advice, thou wilt come well out of all these things yet."
Early next day the queen prepared everything for the king's journey.She told him to take the advice of the dun shaggy filly, who then carried the young king to the castle of the king of the oak windows with great speed,outpacing "the swift March wind."The young king reached into a window and grabbed the sword of light.He sped away on the filly and after a while they stopped and looked back.A swarm of horses were following them.'See the black horse with the white face,' said the filly,'he is my brother and the best horse in Erin.The king of oak windows is riding him, so cut off his head and jump on the horse.'This is what the young king did, and they dashed home.
"The queen was without rest until he arrived.They raised music and they laid down woe." On the morrow the young king was off to see the Gruagach.The queen told him that he must kill the Gruagach by stabbing him through a mole on his neck.She kissed him goodbye, and "called on victory of battlefields to be with him."He met the Gruagach and dispatched him with a sharp quick thrust of the sword in the neck.
On returning home he found that the queen and the horses had been stolen by a giant. Immediately he set off to rescue them.As dusk fell he found himself beside a green wood, so he lit a fire and settled down for the night.A slim dog apppeared and told the king that he had seen the giant and his captives the previous night. The dog watched over the king that night, then brought him meat in the morning.As the king left, the dog said to ask his aid if he was ever in trouble.
Next evening the king made a fire near a precipice of rock.A hoary hawk appeared and then fetched for the king three ducks and eight blackcocks.The hawk had seen the fugitives too.She pledged her aid to the king as he set out on the morrow.
The third evening found the king making a fire beside a river.An otter said the fugitives had passed through last night.She then got him three salmon from the river to eat.She watched over him that night, and next day pledged her aid as the king continued his pursuit of the giant.
The king went on until he reached a chasm in a rock, and he looked down where saw his queen and horses held captive.He found an entrance and the queen began crying when she saw him.The horses hid the young king from the giant.The queen asked the giant where his soul was, telling him that she wanted to take care of it.The giant believed her and said:"There is a great flagstone under the threshold.There is a whether [castrated ram] under the flag.There is a duck in the wether's belly, and an egg in the belly of the duck, and it is in the egg that my soul is."
When the giant went away on the morrow's day, the king and queen raised the flagstone and out went the wether.The king called on the slim dog of the greenwood to get the wether.Likewise the hoary hawk got the duck when it flew away, and the otter fetched the egg from the ocean after it fell out of the belly of the duck.The queen crushed the egg between her two hands and the giant fell down dead.Thecouple took away the giant's gold and silver.They "passed a cheery night" in turn with each of the three helpful animals.They returned home to "a hearty hero's feast, and they were lucky and well pleased after that."
INTERPRETATION OF THE TALE
The Fool of the Tarot
The young king is like the Fool in the Tarot.As well as being used for divination, the Tarot is also a system of initiation, containing much symbolic meaning regarding the soul's journey from the darkness of ignorance to the light of wisdom.The Fool is depicted as a young person wearing homespun clothing, with a small sack on a stick and a dog for a companion.He is facing some sort of danger, such as the edge of a cliff or a lurking crocodile.
The Fool is the person who is embarking on the journey of self discovery.S/he is unworldly and full of enthusiasm, but innocent of pending dangers.The young king is warned by the soothsayer not to be insolent in wanting to play a game with the Gruagach.But the king has his mind made up and he is going ahead anyway.Experience of life is not gained by sitting at home.To learn and grow we have to plunge into life and take our chances.The innocence and bravado of the Fool/king is his protection and motivation.As the saying goes, "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread".But we need various experiences in order to make us wise.Because he doesn't know or care about the dangers that lie ahead, the young king can boldly take a chance.
The Fool can be likened to Aries, the first sign of the Zodiac.This sign heralds the arrival of Spring, when new life stirs after the dormancy of Winter.Aries the ram is full of energy as he charges ahead, butting into obstacles or pushing them aside with his horns.This upsurge of life energies must gain new experiences and test itself in the world.
The Gruagach
The Gruagach is the "Hairy One", a kind of brownie or Otherworld being who appears in Scottish folklore and challenges the young hero.The Gruagach represents the lower nature which must be contended with for growth of the soul.He (or she) is not all bad, for he provides experiences and rewards for the questor.Campbell reports that a Gruagach used to haunt Skipness Castle and she would do odd jobs for the maids (p.24).
Having a game and a wager
The game is not specified, but the Gaelic word used is TAILEASG, which means sport, game, mirth, chess, backgammon, draughts (Campbell,p.22).Down through the ages, all sorts of games have been popular.They feature in many folk and fairy tales, involving a wager.The hero will win some games at first, then he will lose and have to undertake a difficult task or tasks.
First encounter with the soul
The young king wins his game with the Gruagach, who offers him a choice of twenty beautiful maidens.He turns them all down and picks the "cropped rough-skinned maid." On the way home she turns into a beautiful young woman.In many tales such transformations occur, a classic example being the frog who turns into a handsome prince.This represents an the awakening to the soul.Robert A. Johnson says that this can occur at ages sixteen and forty-five (or in the forties).I remember that at sixteen my experience of nature became very intense.I was aware of the "visionary gleam" of the natural world.I was totally enthralled by two love stories: "First Love" by Turgenev and "The Apple Tree" by John Galsworthy, which ignited feelings of romantic love (in reality projections of the soul onto a feminine recipient).The young king's soul journey is underway.
Symbolism of the horse
The king marries his "charming woman", and is eager for another game with the Gruagach.The queen advises that he play for "the dun shaggy foal", which he duly wins.This is no ordinary horse, but a "heroine" whose stick saddle is really of gold and silver.
Horses were highly regarded in antiquity.They were used in battle and hunting, and horses were prestigious possessions.Epona and Rhiannon were Celtic horse goddesses who could shape change into this animal.There is much symbolism associated with the horse.It can represent the instincts or the lower nature, which in our story are being tamed by the young king.Horses have psychic sensitivity, thus this horse can help the young king on his quest.In many tales and legends a flying horse carries the hero, such as Pegasus the winged horse of Greek legend.
Losing the game: seeking the sword of light
The young king loses his third game with the Gruagach.Sooner or later the hero must lose a game so that he can undertake new adventures and experiences.Our hero's task is to get the sword of light of the king of the oak windows for the Gruagach, otherwise "the cropped rough-skinned ceature " will chop his head off.The sword is the typical weapon of the sun-hero, often used against primordial monsters, for example, Beowulf fighting Grendel.In nature-myths the hero, like King Arthur, gets the sword from a stone or water, which represent the primeval forces out of which life emerges.Light stands for intellect, wisdom, or knowledge, a major objective of the quest.Failing to get knowledge and wisdom means a sinking back into the lower nature, represented by the rough-skinned creature.
A new challenge
The queen cheers up her gloomy husband and gives him encouragement.Thus the higher soul is an inspiration and makes life worthwhile.The young king's horse is a superb animal and she tells him how to get the sword.The king of oak windows is another representation of the lower self, who is overcome by the sword of light.
The end of the Gruagach
As possessor of the sword of light, the next task for the young king is to kill the Gruagach.The queen tells him to stab him through a mole on his neck.The mole is a sign to help the young king accomplish his task.God put a mark on Cain to distinguish him ( in this case for his own protection).The Gruagach is disfigured, as are various giants who have something inferior or a tragic flaw, such as Goliath, Og, the Titans, and the Cyclops.This shows that the lower nature is incomplete and it has to be transformed by the higher nature.
Death is a transformation
In many folk and fairy tales the hero kills a giant, a dragon or some such monster.Death is not a finality and the end of everything.It is a stage in a continuous cycle of transformation.For example when leaves die and fall to the ground they provide nutriment for other plants.They live on in the new plants.When a human body dies it releases the soul, which is born into the spirit world (called the Summerland in Celtic mythology).A human birth is a "death" of a soul in the spirit world.When a hero kills a monster, he is transforming his lower nature into his higher nature, which is the essence of human evolution.
More questing
The young king returns home to find that his queen and horses have been stolen by a giant.The struggle between the lower and higher nature is not over yet, it is a long and arduous affair."The spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak."Various mystics and seekers have written about the "dark night of the soul", that period on the path when all is dark and hope is lost.The darkest hour is just before the dawn and on must press the young king.
Companion animals
Our hero sets off to find his queen and horses.He meets the dog of the greenwood, the otter of the river and the hawk of the rocky precipice, all of whom help the king.Animals play a vital role in the lives of indigenous people.In the Australian aborigine's Creation or Dreamtime, animals and humans were interchangeable.The shaman has close contact with a certain animal which is his spirit guide and helps him cure people and gives him information.Many indigenous people have a totem animal with which they identify and cannot eat except under special circumstances.
The three animals in our tale represent the three lower worlds of experience, corresponding to the elements earth, water and air.On the Tree of Life they refer to Malkuth, Yesod and Hod.The dog represents the element earth, the physical aspect of life.The otter refers to water, the emotional nature, and the hawk represents air or the lower thinking aspect.The otter brings salmon to the king, which represents wisdom, and figures prominently in Celtic mythology.In each encounter the young king lights a fire.Animals cannot use fire, it is only for humans, and it represents spirit.The young king must experience these realms of existence as part of his development.The lower realms must be fully experienced before higher development can take place.Otherwise, unresolved complexes can break out and upset the balance of the personality.
Final victory
The giant is found and defeated.The separable or external soul (or heart) is common in folk tales.In the Norwegian tale The Giant Who did not Keep his Heart in his Body, the hero is aided by a raven, a salmon and a wolf to get the giant's heart from and egg inside a duck's belly.
Significance of the number "three"
Three appears frequently in our story.There are three adversaries: the Gruagach, the king of the oak windows and the giant.The are all representations of the lower self.The young king plays three games with the Gruagach.He takes three days and nights to reach the giant, which is not to be taken literally but involves the symbolism of three.There are three helpful animals who each make three appearances.
The symbolism of three often appears in mythologies.Some examples are: the triple goddess-virgin,mother and crone (related to the new, waxing and waning phases of the Moon); three Furies, Graces, Sirens, Harpies;Father, Son and Holy Ghost; three days; a choice of three; three headed monsters; combat with three enemies and so on.
Three relates to initiation, which is central to our story.Jonah spent three days in the belly of a whale (i.e. the lower realms), the Christ rose after three days.This symbolism can be traced to the fact that the Moon disappears from our sight for three days between the old Moon and the new Moon.During this period the Moon is "fertilised" by the Sun, thus continuing the life cycle.Kuhn relates how the evolving soul must traverse the mineral, vegetable and animals realms before manifesting in the human realm, thus giving completeness with the number four (p.453).
Concluding remarks
There are different ways to interprete fairy and folktales.I believe
that the above exposition, in terms of the struggle between the lower and
higher natures, offers insights into human evolution.
In contrast, a Jungian approach would say that the monsters were the
terrible devouring mother and/or the unconscious, to be conquered by the
young king who represents the conscious mind and evolving self.The queen
would be the anima or female side of the young king.(My reservations about
Jung
are noted elsewhere.)
True knowledge of human evolution was distorted by Christianity and driven inderground.It survuved, in varying degrees of completeness, in Qabalah, astrology, tarot, alchemy, myths and legends, fairy and folk tales.The latter are stripped down to the bare bones, leaving a fuller explanation of human evolution to be found in the esoteric teachings.
Some references
Asbjornsen and Moe Norwegian Fairy Stories Translated by Helen
and John Gade (Oxford University Press,1924)
Campbell, J.F. Popular Tales of the West Highlands (Alexander
Gardner,1890)
de Vries, Ad Dictionary of Symbols and Imagery (Elsevier Science
Publishers, 1984)
Fortune, Dion The Mystical Qabalah (Aquarian Press, 1987)
Frazer, J.G. The Golden Bough abridged ed.(Papermac, 1987)
Gray, William G. The Ladder of Lights (Helios Book Service,
1968)
Green, Miranda Animals in Celtic Life and Myth (Routledge, 1992)
Herder Symbol Dictionary (Chiron Publications, 1986)
Johnson, Robert A. He: Understanding Masculine Psychology (Harper
& Row, 1989)
Kuhn, Alvin Boyd The Lost Light: an Interpretation of Ancient Scriptures
(Kessinger, 1997)
Lang, Andrew Red Fairy Book (Kestral Books, 1976)
Matthews, Caitlin & John The Aquarian Guide to British and Irish
Mythology (Aquarian Press, 1988)
----------Hallowquest: Tarot Images and the Arthurian Mysteries
(Aquarian Press, 1990)
Meyer, Rudolf The Wisdom of Fairy Tales (Floris Books, 1995)
Rudhyar, Dane Astrological Signs: the Pulse of Life (Shambhala,
1978)
Yearsley, Macleod The Folklore of Fairy-Tales (Singing Tree
Press, 1968)