In Irish mythology, the Tuatha De Danann were the Irish race of gods that possessed great fertility powers and Dagda the Good was one of it's most important gods. He was the God of all knowledge, abundance, and of life and death. He was very powerful; he could control the weather and assure a great harvest. For example, when he played his harp, he brought the 4 seasons. He also owned a Cauldron of Plenty and two pigs to feed each hungry person. Dagda had an eight-pronged war club that was so ridiculously heavy that it took eight very very strong men to carry it. With one end of the club he could kill nine people with a single blow, but with the other end he could restore them to life.
He took this club into battle with him against the Fomorians, which were a giant race of monsters and were the Tuatha De Dannan's worst enemies. The Fomorians knew Dagda loved to eat so they challenged his appetite. Pretending to be nice they stated, "Welcome Dagda. We know that you must be very hungry, so we are preparing your favorite meal for you: porridge." The Fomorians poured into a gigantic cauldron eighty gallons of milk, flour, fat, bacon, pig, sheep, and goat. The Fomorians insisted that Dagda eat all the porridge if he wished to remain alive and return to his people. Dagda was not intimidated by this challenge. He finished every little bit of the porridge. When he got up, the Fomorians laughed at his huge belly. But really the laugh was on them. The whole point of Dagda visiting his eneimes was to distract them from the upcoming war and give the people of Tuatha De Dannan more time to prepare. The Fomorians were also known for their great power of fertility and that is why Dagda did that.
Works cited:
Works cited:
- Lindemans, Micha. "Tuatha Dé Danann." Tuatha Dé Danann. N.p., 3 Mar. 1997. Web. 25 June 2014. <http://www.pantheon.org/articles/t/tuatha_de_danann.html>.
- Rosenberg, Donna. World mythology: an anthology of the great myths and epics. 2nd ed. Lincolnwood, Ill.: NTC Pub. Group, 1994. Print.