Dagda

A leader of the Tuatha Dé Danann and one of the principal gods of Old Irish tradition; often cited with the definite article, the Dagda; also known as Eochaid Ollathair [father of all], Ruad Rofhessa [lord of great knowledge], and Deirgderc [red eye, i.e. the sun]. Sometimes, though not usually, seen as the son of Eithne(1), who was also the mother of Lug Lámfhota. The Dagda was proclaimed as the ‘Good God’, not for moral import, but rather because he was good, skilled, in so many endeavours: he was a warrior, an artisan, a magician, and an omniscient ruler.

Before going into battle he proclaimed, ‘All that you promise I shall do for myself.’ Among his two principal possessions were a huge cauldron and a mighty club. The cauldron had been brought with the gods from Murias and was one of the four treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann; it provided inexhaustible bounty for the Dagda's followers. The Dagda's club was so great that it had to be dragged on wheels, and left a track as deep as the boundary between two provinces. The size and potency of the club suggests parallels with the striker of the Gaulish Sucellus and the hammer of Thor. In addition the Dagda possessed two marvellous swine (one always cooking, and still alive), and ever-laden fruit trees; these may imply powers over fertility.

For all his prowess, the Dagda was often portrayed as uncouth, even oafish, but benevolent. He dressed like a peasant with a tunic that came only to his rump, an effect some commentators describe as comic. His career as a spy against the Fomorians was thwarted when they discovered his taste for porridge.

The Dagda is often seen married to Boand, the river-goddess, although her usual husband is Nechtan (1). Among his many children are the sons Áed Minbhrec, Bodb Derg, Cermat, and Midir, as well as the daughters Ainge and Brigit. His most celebrated child is Angus Óg, the god of youth and beauty, according to a complex story told in two versions. Most commonly the Dagda mates with Boand adulterously, as she is then married to Nechtan, and the parents ask Elcmar to be foster-father as a means of hiding the affair. In the alternate version the Dagda assumes the persona of Eochaid Ollathair to seduce Eithne(2) (another name for Boand), cuckolding Elcmar, who has become her husband; in this version Midir is the foster-father. Brug na Bóinne first belongs to the Dagda, but it passes to his son Angus Óg. The Dagda's best-known tryst is with the Mórrígan, the war-goddess, whom he met at Samain (1 November). She is standing astride the river Unshin (or Unius) in Connacht, apparently tending to her washing. They have intercourse, and Mórrígan promises her assistance in a coming battle. Her washing is made of the heads and limbs of those about to die.

The Dagda takes an active role in Cath Maige Tuired [The (Second) Battle of Mag Tuired], in which he slaughters many of the rival Fomorians. Even his magical harp Úaithne helps to kill nine of the foe. But at the battle the Dagda is killed by the buck-toothed Caitlín, wife of Balor. In later folk tradition the Dagda is thought to have four great palaces in the depths of the earth and under hollow hills, and to have reigned for eighty years.

The Dagda's alternate names, Eochaid Ollathair [father of all] and Ruad Rofhessa [lord of great knowledge] testify to his high position in our reconstruction of the pre-Christian pantheon, but his precise role is not known. To the extent that he was an ancestor deity of the Irish, he is sometimes identified with Donn (1), ruler of the dead and the Otherworld. Speculation from the early 20th century asserted that he was a sky-god, a storm-god, an earth-god, or the sun itself. In addition, the Dagda has been thought to be a counterpart of Cronus, Hercules, and Dis Pater.