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THE THREE WITCHES
…An Interlude
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzTYLWArvjY
BACK IN THE DAY
 The Greek Moirai
 The Roman Parcae, or Fata
 The Germanic Norns
THE GREEK GIRLS
 Clotho was responsible for spinning the thread of life on her
spindle.
 Lachesis measured each life thread as long as it was supposed to
be, which was determined by the sisters.
 Atropos, Lady of the Shears, determined how a person would die
and would then cut the thread. She was immobile in her choice; she
had an inability to second-guess herself
THE ROMAN GIRLS
 Nona (Italian for Grandmother) was in charge of the spinning.
 Decima (…like decimal? Hmmm) was there to measure.
 Parcae cut each thread. Pronounced [par-kay].
THE GERMANIC GIRLS
 Urd (fate)
 Verdani (necessity)
 Skuld (being)
 They did their work at the base (in the roots) of the World Tree
Yggdrasil in the realm of Asgard.
 In these myths, the three were in charge of simply slowing the
aging/rotting process by feeding the roots with magical mud. Each “life”
was a root for them to tend.
T.B.S.A.G.R.
 Ergo…
 Our word “cloth” comes from Clotho.
 Lachesis is today either associated with Homeopathy, or is one of
the best gaming mice (mouses?) you can buy.
 Atropa (fr. Atropos) is Greek for deadly nightshade.
…AND EMBELLISHED
 Moira/Moirai: not an immortal, but a mysterious, tremendous power;
stronger than the gods themselves
 Scorn fate and you bring on Nemesis (translates as righteous anger)
with her consequence
 Homer told us that they are a fearsome immortal triumvirate, but
separate one from the trio, and they will separately wither and die
 Hesiod said that they can only ascend to Mount Olympus when all
men have finally become completely wicked
MILQUETOAST HAPPENS
 “Fate” is also the root of the word fae
 Translates as “That which has been spoken,” implying a prepronounced destiny (everyone from Zeus to Pandora adds their two
cents)
 320 AD: Roman Empire converts to Christianity and the old myths
quickly became fireside tales
 Tales about the gods were diluted until they became the fae, an
invisible but present race (gnomes, fairies, gremlins, goblins, trolls, etc.)
CHICKEN OR EGG?
 Is our life more of a fate-driven path, or do we have absolute free
will?
 Was Macbeth evil because he was evil, or did the Witches plant
that idea in his head, making him thus?
 What do you think of when I tell you not to think about the color
red?
REFERENCES
 Hamilton, Edith. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes.
New American Library, Boston. 1942.
 Evslin, Bernard. Heroes, Gods, and Monsters of the Greek Myths.
Bantam, NY. 1966.
 Warren, Rex (Fwd). Encyclopedia of World Mythology. Galahad,
NY. 1975.