"Primary chief poet
Am I to Elphin.
And my native country
Is the place of the Summer Stars.
"John the Divine
Called me Merlin,
But all future kings
Shall call me Taliesin.
"I was nine full months
In the womb of Ceridwen.
Before that I was Gwion,
But now I am Taliesin.
"I was with my king
In the heavens
When Lucifer fell
Into the deepest hell.
"I carried the banner
Before Alexander.
I know the names of the stars
From the North to the South.
"I was in Caer Bedion
Tetragrammaton.
I accompanied Heon
To the vale of Hebron.
"I was in the canon
When Absalom was slain.
I was in Llys Don
Before the birth of Gwydion.
"I was patriarch
To Elijah and Enoch.
I was there at the crucifixion
Of the merciful Mabon.
"I was the foreman
At the construction of Nimrod's Tower.
I was three times
In the prison of Arianrhod.
"I was in the ark
With Noah and Alpha
I witnessed the destruction
Of Sodom and Gomorrah.
"I was in Africa
Before the building of Rome.
I came here
To the remnant of Troy .
"I was with the Lord
In the manger of the ass.
I upheld Moses
Through the water of Jordan.
"I was at the Cross
With Mary Magdalene.
I received the muse
From Ceridwen's cauldron.
"I was a harping bard
To Deon of Lochlin.
I have gone hungry
For the Righteous One.
"I was at the White Mount
in the court of Cynfelyn.
In stocks and in fetters
For a year and a day.
"I was in the larder
In the land of the Trinity.
And no-one knows whether my body
Is flesh or fish.
"I was instructor
To the whole universe.
I shall be until the judgement
On the face of the Earth.
"I have sat in the perilous seat
Above Caer Sidi.
I shall continue to revolve
Between the three elements.
"There is a marvel in the world
Which I cannot reveal."