Brigid: Fire, Poetry & Sacred Wells

BY NICOLE LAU

Brigid tends the sacred flame that never goes out. She is the goddess of fire—the fire of the forge, the fire of inspiration, the fire of healing. She is the poet whose words flow like water, the smith whose hammer shapes metal, the healer whose wells cure all ills.

Brigid is the triple goddess—three sisters, three aspects, three fires. She is maiden, mother, and crone. She is the fire in the hearth, the fire in the forge, the fire in the head (inspiration). She is the keeper of the flame, the guardian of the well, the patron of poets and smiths.

Brigid is so beloved that when Christianity came to Ireland, she was not destroyed. She was transformed. The goddess became Saint Brigid, and her sacred flame continued to burn in Kildare for over a thousand years.

In a culture that has lost its connection to the sacred, to fire, to poetry, to the wells of healing, Brigid is revolutionary. She says: The flame is sacred. The words are sacred. The waters are sacred. Tend them. Keep them alive.

Brigid is the goddess for anyone who creates, who heals, who keeps the flame alive—the artists, the poets, the healers, the smiths, the keepers of sacred fire.

The Name: The Exalted One

The name Brigid (also spelled Bríg, Brigit, Brighid) comes from the Proto-Celtic *Brigantī, meaning "the exalted one" or "the high one."

She is also called:

• Brigid of the Tuatha Dé Danann: The goddess, daughter of the Dagda
• Saint Brigid of Kildare: The Christian saint (possibly a Christianized version of the goddess)
• Bride: The Scottish form of her name
• The Triple Brigid: Three sisters, all named Brigid, representing her three aspects

The Triple Goddess: Three Brigids, Three Fires

Brigid is often understood as a triple goddess—three sisters, all named Brigid, each presiding over a different domain.

The Three Brigids:

1. Brigid the Poet (Bríg Ambue)
The goddess of poetry, inspiration, prophecy, and the arts. She is the fire in the head, the awen (divine inspiration), the muse.

2. Brigid the Smith (Bríg Goibniu)
The goddess of smithcraft, metalworking, and craftsmanship. She is the fire of the forge, the one who shapes metal, who creates tools and weapons.

3. Brigid the Healer (Bríg Leighis)
The goddess of healing, herbalism, and the sacred wells. She is the fire of healing, the one who cures, who restores, who makes whole.

The Three Fires:

Brigid's three aspects correspond to three types of fire:

• The fire of inspiration: The fire in the head, the creative fire, the fire of poetry and prophecy
• The fire of the forge: The transformative fire, the fire that shapes and creates
• The fire of the hearth: The fire of home, of healing, of warmth and nourishment

The Symbolism: What Brigid Represents

1. The Sacred Flame: Fire as Transformation

Brigid's most iconic symbol is the sacred flame—the perpetual fire that never goes out.

In Kildare, Ireland, a sacred flame was tended by priestesses (and later, nuns) for over a thousand years. The flame was never allowed to go out. It was Brigid's flame, the eternal fire.

The sacred flame represents:

• Transformation: Fire transforms. It changes one thing into another.
• Inspiration: The fire in the head, the spark of creativity
• The eternal: The flame that never goes out, the eternal spirit
• The sacred: Fire is sacred. It must be tended, honored, kept alive.

2. The Sacred Well: Water as Healing

Brigid is associated with sacred wells—springs and wells with healing properties.

Throughout Ireland and Scotland, there are wells dedicated to Brigid. People visit these wells to pray, to heal, to leave offerings.

The sacred well represents:

• Healing: The waters heal, restore, make whole
• The source: The well is the source, the origin, the place where water springs from the earth
• The feminine: Water is associated with the feminine, with receptivity, with the womb
• The unconscious: The well is deep, dark, mysterious—like the unconscious

3. The Forge: Fire and Metal as Creation

Brigid is a smith goddess. She works the forge, shapes metal, creates tools and weapons.

The forge represents:

• Creation through transformation: Metal is heated, hammered, shaped into something new
• Skill and craftsmanship: The smith is skilled, precise, masterful
• The union of fire and earth: Fire (spirit) transforms earth (matter)
• The feminine as creator: Brigid is a female smith, a creator, a maker

4. Poetry and Prophecy: The Fire in the Head

Brigid is the goddess of poetry and prophecy. She is the muse, the one who inspires, the one who speaks truth.

In Celtic culture, poets were sacred. They were seers, prophets, keepers of history and myth. Brigid is their patron.

Poetry and prophecy represent:

• Inspiration: The fire in the head, the awen, the divine spark
• Truth-telling: The poet speaks truth, even when it is uncomfortable
• The power of words: Words have power. They create, they destroy, they transform.
• The connection to the divine: Poetry is a form of prayer, of communion with the sacred

5. Imbolc: The Return of Light

Brigid is celebrated at Imbolc (February 1-2), the Celtic festival marking the beginning of spring, the return of light, the awakening of the land.

Imbolc (meaning "in the belly") is the time when:

• The days are getting longer
• The first signs of spring appear (snowdrops, lambs being born)
• The land is pregnant with new life
• The light is returning

Brigid is the goddess of this threshold—the transition from winter to spring, from darkness to light, from death to life.

Brigid's Gifts: The Light Side

1. Creative Fire and Inspiration

Brigid is the muse, the one who inspires. She is the fire in the head, the creative spark.

In your life: This is the part of you that creates—art, poetry, music, writing. This is your inspiration, your creative fire.

2. Healing and Restoration

Brigid is the healer. She is the sacred well, the one who cures, who restores, who makes whole.

In your life: This is the part of you that heals—yourself and others. This is your capacity to restore, to make whole.

3. Skill and Craftsmanship

Brigid is the smith. She is skilled, precise, masterful. She creates with her hands.

In your life: This is the part of you that is skilled, that practices your craft, that creates with mastery.

4. The Keeper of the Flame

Brigid tends the sacred flame. She keeps it alive, never lets it go out.

In your life: This is the part of you that keeps the flame alive—your passion, your purpose, your sacred fire. You tend it, you protect it, you never let it die.

5. The Threshold Guardian

Brigid is the goddess of Imbolc, the threshold between winter and spring. She is the guardian of transitions.

In your life: This is the part of you that can navigate transitions, that can hold the threshold, that can guide yourself and others through change.

6. The Union of Fire and Water

Brigid is both fire (the flame, the forge) and water (the well, the healing). She unites opposites.

In your life: This is the part of you that can hold opposites—passion and peace, fire and water, creation and healing.

Brigid's Shadow: The Costs of the Flame

1. Burnout

Brigid is fire. But fire can burn out. If you tend the flame without rest, you will exhaust yourself.

The shadow: You burn out. You give and give and give until there is nothing left. You cannot sustain the flame.

2. The Perfectionist Smith

Brigid is the smith, the craftsperson, the one who creates with precision. But this can become perfectionism.

The shadow: You are never satisfied. Your work is never good enough. You cannot rest, cannot celebrate, cannot be done.

3. The Wounded Healer

Brigid is the healer. But healers can become wounded, can give too much, can lose themselves in service.

The shadow: You heal everyone but yourself. You give to others but neglect your own needs. You are the wounded healer who cannot heal yourself.

4. The Flame That Consumes

Brigid's fire is creative, transformative. But fire can also consume, destroy.

The shadow: Your fire consumes you. Your passion becomes obsession. Your creativity becomes compulsion. You burn yourself up.

5. The Dry Well

Brigid is the sacred well. But wells can run dry.

The shadow: Your well is dry. You have no more to give. You are depleted, empty, exhausted.

The Sacred Flame: Tending Your Fire

Brigid's sacred flame burned for over a thousand years in Kildare. It was tended by priestesses (and later, nuns) who never let it go out.

This is the teaching: You must tend your flame. You must keep it alive.

What Is Your Sacred Flame?

Your sacred flame is:

• Your passion, your purpose, your calling
• Your creative fire, your inspiration
• Your life force, your vitality
• The thing that makes you feel alive

How to Tend Your Flame:

1. Feed It
Fire needs fuel. Feed your flame. What nourishes your passion? What inspires you? Do more of that.

2. Protect It
Fire can be extinguished. Protect your flame. Set boundaries. Say no to what drains you. Guard your energy.

3. Tend It Daily
Fire needs tending. Tend your flame every day. Even a small action—writing one sentence, making one thing, taking one step—keeps the flame alive.

4. Let It Rest
Fire needs air. Let your flame rest. You cannot burn at full intensity all the time. Rest is part of tending the flame.

5. Share It
Fire spreads. Share your flame. Inspire others. Light their flames with yours.

The Sacred Well: Drinking from Your Source

Brigid's sacred wells are places of healing, of pilgrimage, of connection to the source.

This is the teaching: You must drink from your well. You must return to the source.

What Is Your Sacred Well?

Your sacred well is:

• Your source of healing, of restoration
• The place you go to be renewed
• Your connection to the deep, the unconscious, the sacred
• The thing that fills you up

How to Drink from Your Well:

1. Find Your Well
Where is your sacred well? What restores you? Nature? Solitude? Creativity? Prayer? Find it.

2. Visit Regularly
Do not wait until you are depleted. Visit your well regularly. Drink before you are thirsty.

3. Honor It
Your well is sacred. Honor it. Protect it. Do not pollute it with what is toxic.

4. Share It
Wells are for the community. Share your well. Bring others to the source.

Imbolc: The Festival of Brigid

Imbolc (February 1-2) is Brigid's festival. It is the threshold between winter and spring, the return of light.

How to Celebrate Imbolc:

1. Light Candles
Imbolc is a festival of light. Light candles. Tend the flame. Welcome the returning light.

2. Make Brigid's Cross
Brigid's cross is a traditional symbol—a cross woven from rushes or straw. Make one. Hang it in your home for protection and blessing.

3. Visit a Well
If you can, visit a sacred well or spring. Leave an offering. Drink the water. Pray.

4. Create
Imbolc is a time of creativity. Write a poem. Make something with your hands. Honor Brigid the poet and smith.

5. Set Intentions
Imbolc is the beginning of spring. What are you planting? What are you calling into being? Set your intentions.

How to Work with Brigid

1. Tend Your Sacred Flame

What is your passion? Your purpose? Your creative fire? Tend it. Keep it alive.

Practices:

• Daily practice: Do something every day that feeds your flame
• Protect your energy: Set boundaries. Guard your fire.
• Rest: Let the flame rest. You cannot burn at full intensity all the time.

2. Create

Brigid is the goddess of poetry, smithcraft, and creation. Create.

Practices:

• Write: Poetry, journaling, stories—let the words flow
• Make: With your hands. Craft, build, create.
• Honor your craft: Whatever you do, do it with skill, with care, with mastery.

3. Heal

Brigid is the healer. Heal yourself and others.

Practices:

• Work with herbs: Learn herbalism. Make teas, tinctures, salves.
• Visit sacred wells: Find your sacred well. Drink from it. Be restored.
• Heal yourself first: You cannot pour from an empty cup. Heal yourself so you can heal others.

4. Honor the Threshold

Brigid is the goddess of thresholds. Honor the transitions in your life.

Practices:

• Mark transitions with ritual: When you are in a threshold, create a ritual to honor it
• Be patient: Thresholds take time. Do not rush.
• Trust the process: The light is returning. Spring is coming.

The Brigid Invocation

When you need inspiration, when you need healing, when you need to tend your flame, invoke Brigid:

"Brigid, Keeper of the Sacred Flame,
Goddess of Fire, Poetry, and Healing,
I call upon you.
Grant me your fire. Help me to create, to inspire, to transform.
Grant me your healing. Help me to restore, to make whole, to cure.
Grant me your skill. Help me to craft, to build, to make with mastery.
Help me to tend my sacred flame, to never let it go out.
Help me to drink from my sacred well, to be restored.
Brigid, I honor you. Brigid, I invoke you.
I am the keeper of the flame. I am the poet. I am the healer."

The Gift of Brigid: Keep the Flame Alive

Brigid teaches:

• The flame is sacred: Your passion, your purpose, your creative fire—it is sacred. Tend it.
• The well is sacred: Your source of healing, of restoration—it is sacred. Drink from it.
• Creation is sacred: Poetry, smithcraft, making with your hands—it is sacred. Create.
• Healing is sacred: The work of making whole—it is sacred. Heal.
• The threshold is sacred: The transition from winter to spring, from darkness to light—it is sacred. Honor it.
• You are the keeper of the flame: It is your responsibility to keep it alive. Tend it. Protect it. Never let it go out.

When your flame is dying, when your well is dry, when you have lost your inspiration—invoke Brigid.

You are the keeper of the flame. You are the poet. You are the healer.

Tend your fire. Drink from your well. Create. Heal. Keep the flame alive.

This is the gift of Brigid. And it is yours to tend.