St Beuno’s Chapel and Holy Well

There are many chapels named after st Beuno. But these two BOTH claim to contain his relics. The larger one, the first one in the video at Clynnog, was built at a place where St Beuno had a ‘clas’ a type of a seminary for priests or an Oratory where priests and lay brothers lived together. Some narratives about St Beuno call him an Abbot or a Bishop. The Holy Well became a starting point for Pilgrims to gather and head to Bardsey Island, just off the southern tip of the Llyn peninsula, where it’s claimed that over 20,000 saints are buried. Before they set off the pilgrims would trace the sign of the cross on a pilgrim rock, such as shown on the video, claimed to have been touched by St Beuno himself. It’s years of tracing a sign of the cross on this stone that’s carved the cross. These pilgrim rocks were also way points to direct pilgrims. St Beuno himself often retreated for quiet prayer to nearby Pistyll, where the smaller Chapel in the second part of the video is shown. A ‘tall monk’ buried under its Altar, where the original 7 th century church was, is claimed to be St Beuno. Legend has it that he wanted to rest quietly. The rushes laid in the church, probably date back to the tradition that pilgrims would bathe at the Holy Well and lie on St Beuno’s grave, at his chapel. There is another Holy Well near the chapel at Pistyll too.

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thanks for posting this,i visited st buenos over twenty years ago and have never forgotten it,a very special place