ARIANRHOD. A matriarchal Welsh triple moon goddess, both virgin and mother. Famed for her beauty, she may be identical to the Cretan moon goddess, Ariadne. Like all moon goddesses, she has a special love, concern, and responsibility for all life, especially for the green growing things of the earth. One derivation of her name is "high fruitful mother who turns the wheel of the heavens"; the other is "silver wheel." Her name tells us of her role as keeper of the heavens and of the cycles and changes of time. She lives in a castle in the Corona Borealis, where she watches over souls in a purgatory filled with beings awaiting rebirth. Arianhrod, keeper of time, giver and nurturer of life, shows us the universality and cyclicity of our lives, she is there to nurture us through the dark night of our soul changes.
