Dark aleCrow feathersThe name of a fear spoken aloud
Invocation Approach
Tone
Sharp and destabilising
Address
NemainFrenzyLady of Panic
Relationship
The wind that takes the mind away at the worst moment
Warning
She does not answer with calm and should not be called for courage
Resonance
Those who face battle those who must know panic from the inside
Symbols
CrowThe screamBattle standard
Mythology Summary
Nemain is the battle-fury whose name means frenzy or venom, one of the Morrígna named with Badb and Macha in Cath Maige Tuired and in the Táin. In Táin Bó Cúailnge the Nemain is the panic that falls on armies and scatters them, and a gloss in the Yellow Book of Lecan counts her among the raven-women who incite battle. Apart from the battlefield she has almost no narrative: she is the terror of the host personified.
Modern Practice
Called on sparingly for facing panic and for understanding what fear does to a crowd; she is a diagnostic presence rather than a patron. The practical work is to prepare in advance for the moment the mind leaves.