When facing a mightier foe,
Do you know when to yield?
To accept the bitter truth,
At whatever the cost may be...
This was the question posed
By King Arthur, to his valiant Gawain,
Thinking all his efforts were in vain...
He did not yet possess
Excalibur, the legendary sword...
Young and uncertain he stood,
But Gawain, wise and resolute,
Advised against seeking excuses.
"When you have nothing to lose,
You can risk everything,
Fight to the death,
To your final breath.
Only then can you claim
The Sword in the Stone, my liege.
Take my counsel," he urged.
It was Merlin, the sorcerer,
Who presented him the sword,
But the price was steep,
For he would never forget
The haunting face beneath the icy water.
From the Lady of the Lake,
Came the chilling touch of Excalibur,
With a curse and agonizing ache,
He claimed the sword,
Bestowed upon the youthful King.
Thus was born Excalibur,
The legendary blade of King Arthur...
feza k.
27.04.2024
Notes: In most popular tradition, the Lady of the Lake or also known as Nimue, gave the Excalibur sword to King Arthur, and it later kept him safe from being wounded in battle. The Excalibur sword is often confused with the sword in the stone drawn by Arthur as proof of his birthright and royalty. While some accounts consider them the same, they are traditionally regarded as different weapons. The origins of the sword Excalibur can be traced through the evolution of its name and by looking at early Welsh legends. The name Excalibur comes from the Welsh Caledfwlch—also Cornish Calesvol and Breton Kaledvoulc’h. The Caledfwlch appears in early Welsh literature, especially in Culhwch and Olwen, one of the earliest Arthurian texts. Geoffrey of Monmouth eventually Latinized the name into Caliburnus, sometimes spelled Caliburn. In Old French texts, it became Escalibor and then finally Excalibur.
In Irish mythology, Irish hero Fergus mac Róich wielded his great sword known as Caladbolg, sometimes spelled caladbou which literally means hard fighter. Fergus used it to cut off the tops of three hills in Ireland’s county Meath, creating the flattened hills we see today. The Welsh Caledfwlch and the Irish Caladbolg are phonetically similar, so some believe that the two swords are related. Still, some scholars suggest that the terms served as generic names for a sword, then the Caledfwlch became the sword of Arthur in the British tradition.
In Celtic tradition, it is common for weapons to have mysterious origins. The Celts also endow supernatural powers to the weapons of warriors, kings, and gods. The Excalibur is a magical sword from another realm, and must be returned to its source. It was a common practice among the Celts to throw their weapons into the lakes and ponds, likely based on Celtic sacrificial rituals.
Source: https://swordis.com/blog/excalibur-sword/
