Rowan Williams

This book is an excellent and informative translation of the medieval poems that are attributed to the Taliesin persona. This translation was performed by two eminent Welsh poets, the first being Gwyneth Lewis, known in part for her words which are inscribed above the Wales Millennium Center in Cardiff.

There are two inscriptions, one in Welsh and the other in English, each inscription having a different meaning. The Welsh inscription is: CREU GWIR FEL GWYDR O FFWRNAIS AWEN, which translates to: Creating Truth Like Glass From Inspiration's Furnace. The English inscription reads: IN THESE STONES HORIZONS SING.

The other poet that contributed to this translation is Rowan Williams, a former Archbishop of Canterbury. You really couldn’t hope for more qualified translators than the two who worked on this translation.

This edition has a superb introductory section, 77 pages in length, that excellently explains the history and heritage of The Book of Taliesin. I always recommend reading a book before reading the literary introduction, that way you can decide what the text means to you, after reading, I then go back and read the introduction, to see what others say and to obtain the background information. One of the great things about poetry is that what it means to you can be different than what the text actually says, and as long as you don’t insist that your interpretation is the only correct one, no wrong is done. The body of this book is positively littered with extremely helpful footnotes and explainers, and each poem is proceeded by a brief historical introduction which is also quite handy. A Welsh language pronunciation guide is also included, which made reading much easier. This edition contains all that you could wish for in a translation of this type. If you’re looking for a more scholarly work, see Legendary Poems from the Book of Taliesin by Marged Haycock, she has a translation and a transcription of the original text side-by-side.

A translation can never contain the elegance and force of an original, but in this case the translators did very well. The language was simple yet forceful and moving. Regarding the poetry itself, I loved the questions it asked, often asking them without an answer. It was a good mental exercise.

Here are a just few of my favorite lines:

My spear shaft of ash is my holy awen. - Taliesin’s Plunder

Through language, skilled man,
Make majestic trees seem
Like a hundred-strong army,
Resisting the vigorous,’
Spendthrift warlord. – The Battle of the Trees

Do you know what you are
When you’re fast asleep—
Body or soul,
Or shining angel? – Young Taliesin’s Works

Noble is truth when it shines,
More noble when it speaks,
Nobly it came from the cauldron, - Teyrnon’s Prize Song

I will certainly be re-reading this again in the near future. Even writing this review and going back over some of the material has me itching to start over. I highly recommend this edition and translation.

Cross posted on my blog … (more)

This was a good read, but a little lacking in length -- the subject matter could have been developed more thoroughly. With Andrei Rublev's 'Hospitality of Abraham' icon, Williams does a good job discussing the icon specifically, but in other instances -- such as the icon of the resurrection -- he uses it as an opportunity to opine about the resurrection generally. Which is not a problem per se, as his theological reflections are sound and well-written, but it somewhat misses the richness of icon qua icon.… (more)