Saint Dyfnog

Saint Dyfnog was an early Welsh saint. His feast day is 13 February. Dyfnog was the son of Medrod ab Caradog Freichfas and a brother of the grandfather of Cwyfen, coming to the area from North Britain. Dyfnog is said to have come from a wealthy family but chose to become a monk and to live simply. He built a small wooden church on the property which is now the Church of St Dyfnog, Llanrhaeadr. The 16th-century Welsh poet Dafydd ap Llywelyn ap Madog included a tribute to Saint Dyfnog among his works. It is said that the poet was cured from a pain in his ribs and made a pilgrimage to the saint's well in thanksgiving. There is also a cywydd (a traditional Welsh poem) to him by an anonymous poet in Llanstephan MS 167 dating to the end of the 17th century. The poet says there was an image of Saint Dyfnog in the church at Llanrhaeadr. He described him as a man who had renounced the world, wore a shirt of thick horse hair fastened with an iron belt, lived on bread and water and did penance by standing under the stream of cold water. He continued by describing the variety of miraculous cures owed to the water of Saint Dyfnog's Well and the vast number of people who came to bathe there. Saint Dyfnog chose to settle in an isolated wooded area with a spring-fed stream. The stream had a waterfall; legend has it that because Saint Dyfnog would stand in the cold waters for extended periods doing penance, clad in a hairshirt with a chain belt of iron; this was the reasoning for its curative powers. Over time, the stream became known as Ffynnon Dyfnog or Dyfnog's well. As devotion to the saint increased, the waters became known for their healing powers. Many pilgrims came to bathe in the waters and pray, hoping to be cured of their ailments. The waters of the well were reputed to be especially effective for skin conditions, arthritis and rheumatism. Those seeking relief for their illnesses would leave a donation to be used for the upkeep of the well and the church.