St. Brigit Pic: Kildare Town Heritage Centre

Thanks to the wonderfully informative Kildare Town website, and in particular the section devoted to the Heritage Centre, we have some superb information about Saint Brigit for La Feile Bride or Saint Brigit’s Day on February 1st. The information they provide is also available in more detail in a book that you can get from their shop (although currently out of stock). They say: It is generally accepted that Brigid / Brigit established her abbey and church in Kildare around 480 AD, on the site now occupied by St. Brigid’s Cathedral. Some scholars suggest that her foundation may have evolved from a sanctuary of Druidic priestesses who converted to Christianity. Brigid the saint, inherits much of the folklore associated with the goddess Brigid, a dimension which contributes to her popularity.

It may be an exercise in futility to try separating the historical Christian Brigid/ Brigit from the goddess since, clearly, the two are so interwoven. St Brigid/ Brigit stands at the meeting of the two worlds. Neither the boundaries of Christianity nor the older beliefs can contain her exclusively. [link]

It seems that Brigid / Brigit held a unique position in the early Irish church and society of her day. As Abbess, she presided over the local church of Kildare and was leader of a double monastery for men and women. Tradition suggests that she invited Conleth, a hermit from Old Connell near Newbridge, to assist her in Kildare. Her abbey was acclaimed as a centre of education, culture, worship and hospitality in Ireland, and far beyond, up until the suppression of the abbeys in the sixteenth century.

Nothing remains today of the original Brigidine church and abbey which were probably constructed of timber or of mud and wattle. They were pulled down, rebuilt and enlarged many times as numbers grew in the double monastery for men and women. Cogitosus describes a remarkable building in Kildare in the 7th century.

Saint Brigid’s Early Life

There are many stories and legends relating to Brigid’s/ Brigit’s birth and early years. Brigid/ Brigit, we are told, was born around 453 AD. Although one story suggests Faughart, Co. Louth, as her place of birth, there is a strong local tradition in Kildare that Brigid/ Brigit was born in Umeras, about five miles northwest of Kildare Town. Her father, Dubthach, was a local chieftain whose descendants may now be called Duff or Duffy. Her mother, Broicsech , was a bondmaid in Dubthach’s household and tradition holds that she was a Christian.

Ancient Beliefs

To understand Brigid/ Brigit, the Christian saint, one needs to look briefly at the ancient beliefs that prevailed in Ireland prior to the coming of Christianity.

Male and Female deities, one of which was Brigid/ Brigit, were revered and worshipped in ancient Ireland. A great cult surrounded her. She is associated in Irish Folklore and literature with the gifts of poetry, healing and smithcraft, and is also identified with nurture, fertility and fire. With the coming of Christianity to Ireland, the power of the pre-Christian deities began to wane. Christianity slowly took root, assimilating features of the older beliefs and practices, including, for example, the use of sacred wells, the Celtic celebration of Imbolc and the use of fire. It was at this time of transition that the historical.

It is well worth exploring the Kildare Heritage website, there is a lot more information to discover and photos to see.

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The Book of Taliesin is attributed to the 6th C. poet Taliesin and preserves a few hymns, a small collection of elegies and also enigmatic poems such as The Battle of Trees and The Spoils of Annwfn, in which the poet claims to have sailed to another world with King Arthur and his warriors.

The Battle of the Trees in Machinima

I have set Taliesin’s Battle Of The Trees within two other pieces of writing,  firstly Tacitus’ report of the Roman invasion of the Druid island of Anglesey, followed by another poem by Taliesin which had been mixed in with The Battle of The Trees in a method of concealment to hide the poems meaning from those without understanding.

For the written poem and more details about its meaning, please see my Blog; ( http://celestialelfdanceoflife.blogspot.com/2011/07/battle-of-trees.html )

The Power of Names

The Battle of the Trees poem itself famously details the legendary Gwydion’s account of the trees of the forest which he enchanted to fight as his army against Arawn. Within the ranks of Arawn’s forces were a number of mighty warriors, and one of these was invincible as long as his name remained a secret. Gwydion the enchanter rightly guessed the secret name and won the battle saying these words:

Sure-hoofed my spurred horse,
On your shield Alder sprigs,
Bran is your name, Bran of the branches.

Sure-hoofed my horse of war,
On your hand are sprigs of Alder,
Bran you are, by the branch you bear.

However as Robert Graves explores in his book ‘The White Goddess’ the poem is particularly notable for its striking and enigmatic symbolism and the wide variety of interpretations this has occasioned.  Graves suggests that the trees in this poem correspond to the ancient Ogham alphabet, in which each alphabetic character represents a specific musical note, seasonal cycle, mythological tale and deity.

Graves thus argued that the original poet had concealed Druidic secrets about an older matriarchal Celtic religion for fear of censure from Christian authorities, that Arawn and Bran were names for the same underworld god and that the battle was probably not physical but rather a struggle of wits and scholarship: Gwydion’s forces could only be defeated if the name of his companion, Lady Achren (“Trees”), was guessed, and Arawn’s host only if Bran’s name was guessed.

Details of the Cast and Crew of the Machinema

Cast;
As Taliesin and The Bagpipes, Celestial Elf.
As Witches: Brooke Baran, Minxy Kimono, Sienna Panthar, Wicked2712 Bearsfoot,
As Druids: Mikee Martian, Obizoth, Yichard Muni,
As Celtic Warriors: Azzaro, Donjulio Siamendes, Scheer Eberhatz.
All Also doubled as Tree Avatars.

Grateful Thanks to Taliesin the Bardic Poet, and to Robert Graves for his inestimable research,
to Tacitus for recording Cornelius Tacitus historical account of the Roman attack on Angelsey, Tacitus Annals XIV,
( http://www.roman-britain.org/places/mona.htm )

Also to Freesound.org/
for use of their music and audio samples from which I created the soundtrack
Creative Commons Sampling Plus 1 License
( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/sampling+/1.0/ )

Many thanks to ;
Sliver Gray for providing Dryad Avatars, Auburn, Sapling, Nelroth and Auranox,
Lazrith Fardel for providing Alder and Dark Treant avatars,

Other props include;
Bagpipe Bird Avatar by Nowhere Phobos,
The Ent by Papadopoulus Barzane,
Piscium Navis Houseboat by Marcus Parrott.

Filmed at;
Gaia, co Enchantress Sao,
Ruins Falls, co Sliver Gray,
Tir Na nOg at Mystica co FreeSky Republic

Filmed on SecondLife via Phoenix 1.5.2.908,
On Windows XP using Fraps and Serif MoviePlus X3.
Casting Coordinator Sienna Panthar,
Conceived, Directed and Produced by Celestial Elf 2011

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
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The Bend of the river Boyne, or Brú na Bóinne in Co Meath Ireland, contains over forty archaeological sites and has been an important ritual, social and economic centre for thousands of years. Many of the tales we have told and will tell are based in the Bru na Boyne area. e.g Episode 021 Fostered by Milk Pails. The universal value of the site was recognized in 1993 when it was designated a World Heritage Site, only one of three in Ireland.

The Heritage Council in collaboration with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government is currently drafting a Research Framework for Brú na Bóinne, re-assessing key priorities and looking at where future research should be directed. Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2008-12-23 10:26:08. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Pic: Daily Mail

On the 3rd October, the Daily Mail reported that archaeologists have discovered Stonehenge’s little sister – just a mile from the famous monument. The prehistoric circle, unearthed in secret over the summer, is one of the most important prehistoric finds in decades. Researchers have called it ‘Bluehenge’ after the colour of the 27 giant Welsh stones it once incorporated – but are now missing.

The find is already challenging conventional wisdom about how Stonehenge was built – and what it was used for.

Bluehenge was put up 5,000 years ago – around the same time as work began on Stonehenge – and appears to have been a miniature version of it.

The two circles stood together for hundreds of years before Bluehenge was dismantled. Researchers believe its stones were used to enlarge Stonehenge during one of a number of redevelopments.

Professor Tim Darvill, Stonehenge expert at Bournemouth University, said:

This adds to the richness of the story of Stonehenge.

We thought we knew it all, but over the last few years we have discovered that something as familiar as Stonehenge is still a challenge to explore and understand. It wouldn’t surprise me if there weren’t more circles.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1217752/Henge-stones-Unearthed-site-monuments-little-sister.html#ixzz0TH2pbtTj

Originally posted 2009-10-07 17:58:09. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Pictured L- R are Archaeological Geophysicist Kevin Barton, Juraj Papco, Igor Murin, Pavol Zahorec, Dr Conor Brady archaeologist with DkIT and Prof Roman Pasteka. Pic: Ciara Wilkinson.

The possibility that Newgrange could have a second passage tomb, which may also be aligned with a solstice event, is being explored by a team of Irish and Slovakian archaeologists who are using ground-breaking technology to probe the world-famous tumulus.Already part of the Bru na Boinne World Heritage Site, Newgrange is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Ireland and if a second chamber is uncovered, it will add to its already global iconic status.

Newgrange is synonamous with sunrise on the winter solstice but the possibility that it has another as yet unknown chamber is not being ruled out. Indeed, the neighbouring mounds at Knowth and Dowth each have two passages.

“The absolute best case scenario would be to demonstrate there is an undiscovered passage and chamber within Newgrange because, despite how it may look, the mound has not been fully excavated,”

explained Dr Conor Brady, archaeologist with Dundalk Institute of Technology.The north-west side of the mound has never been excavated so

“it is technically possible there is something there on that side of the mound”,

he said.

After a week battling high winds and stormy weather, Dr Brady said:

“The windy weather conditions prevented comprehensive coverage of the entire mound because the instruments are so sensitive. The early indications are that we did not identify another chamber of the same size as the existing one.
“There may still be a second chamber in the Newgrange mound, possibly smaller. We will know more later when the data collected are fully analysed. What we are absolutely sure about is the technique works and could be used to search for chamber in other mounds.”

Fuelling the speculation of another chamber are local stories of when the caretaker of the monument opened up the tomb some 40 or 50 years ago and heard a big crash. She went into the chamber expecting to find it collapsed but it hadn’t,

“and whether there was something else in the monument that had collapsed is the question,” Dr Brady added.
If the surveys do confirm another passage, Dr Brady said:

“It will change the way we think about Newgrange. It could be aligned with the winter solstice sunset; Newgrange will be a completely different entity after that”.

Read the full story at the Meath Chronicle site.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
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Wow! Druid, Shaman, Priest, Warrior-cult, Ancient Celt…?

The essence of man and nature for sure. This is a music video! I’ll see if I can find out more about these guys because the drumming and evocative musical environment is so powerful!

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
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Irish Lady and young girl, c. 1570 Pic: Irish Tribes

Thanks to the Irish Tribes website, specialists in Irish Genealogy, for this article exploring the significance of the ‘Seanchas’. For the Ancient Celts, Law, History and Genealogy were all very much an integral part of their society and background. They begin with:- Seanchas   Until the 17th century, Seanchas was the indivisible combination of Gaelic law, history, and genealogy, carefully conserved by each clan’s hereditary scholars.  It was the underpinning of your ancestors’ lives, the very foundation of Gaelic society since the first Celts came to Ireland about 800 B.C.

Gaelic Society

This is how Professor Daniel Binchy described ancient Irish society:

“tribal, rural, hierarchical, and familiar (using the word in its oldest sense, to mean a society in which the family, not the individual, is the unit) — a complete contrast to the unitary, urbanised, egalitarian and individualist society of our time.”

Daniel Binchy was the Senior Professor of the School of Celtic Studies at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.

Celtic Tribes & Ancient Irish History

With this mindset, Ireland’s ancient Celtic tribes created pre-Christian and early Christian Ireland.  We know of the Cruithin, Bolg, Laighin, Connachta, Eoghanachta, Uladh, Féini, and more.  We know the impact they had on Ireland’s early history before the Fall of Rome, rarely (although without much detail) even before the Sack of Delphi.  And we can trace their direct descendants to the modern day.

Kingship & Leadership

As a further demonstration of this mindset, men and women like Eochu Mugmheadhon, Niall Naoighiallach, and Gráinne Ní Mháille acted within and in cooperation with their kinships rather than as their dictators.  Irish kings were elected and leaders were chosen.  They were not arbitrarily imposed by concepts like divine right and primogeniture.

Rights & Privileges

Your ancestors’ rights and privileges depended upon belonging to their particular kinship group.  The rights and privileges of the Dál gCais were different from the rights and privileges of the Connachta.  Those of the Connachta were different from those of the Eoghanachta, and so forth.  Hence the importance of genealogy to the Irish for millennia.  Without it, your ancestors could not claim their rights.

The Intertwining of Genealogy, Law, and History in Gaelic Society

Genealogy identified kinship.  Kinship determined rights and privileges.  Competition for rights and
privileges helped make history.  Seanchas tracked it all.

Summary

Seanchas is a river of information about our ancestors, created by our ancestors, for our ancestors.  And for you.

Find out more about your own Irish Genealogy on the Irish tribes website.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
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The Sixth Production Diary from The Wealdon and Downland Open Air Museum, Cuckmere Haven near Eastbourne and The Long Man of Wilmington featuring Damh the Bard. Here we can see separate scenes of the Gods as well as Damh appearing “as a man, alone on a hill…” and also giving a quick performance below the magical Long Man of Wilmington. Bit by bit we learn more about the film

Esther, Annie and George are 3 people whose lives have reached a crisis point. On the night of 31st October, all three find themselves drawn to a clearing in the woods. Secrets are revealed and nothing will ever be the same again as an ancient power emerges from the shadows…

As you know this movie was inspired by the works of Damh the Bard and the Director, Gary Andrews, has put the whole story together into something new and astounding, something with a powerful message for today’s youth and we are so excited to see the film’s launch sometime around the end of 2011.

The Albion Diaries tell the Behind the Scenes story of the production of the Spirit of Albion movie. Marq English of MEV Productions is producing these video diaries of the film’s production, so you can get some idea of what’s coming and how it has all been put together.

Video Diary Filmed and Edited by Marq English.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
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The CMP Logo Pic: Gary

In this show we start to summarise the Irish Mythological Cycle as we’ve met it so far in the first 29 story episodes. Not only is this show finishing off a whole branch of Celtic Mythology, but it also celebrates the Autumn Equinox for 2011, so we’ve made it a real cracker and split it into two halves. We’ve got an epic poem, 4 great songs in this first half and we take a look at the Origins of the Manuscripts which these stories come from and highlight some of the themes we’ve noticed in the stories.

This was the question we asked you: what themes do you think are the most important, and this show includes your ideas as well as ours.

We conclude our examination of the Irish Mythological Cycle in the Second Part of this show which will be dropped into the feed and available for download 2-3 days after this one so you have chance to listen to the show and keep it fresh in the old brain box before we finish of the show with the end of the poem, the other observations we’ve made and yes more great music!

Phew!

How to Listen

The Episode is available for subscribers on the feed, or you can download it or listen to it from our Episodes page. You can find the Shownotes for this episode in the Shownotes section.

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Hope you enjoy it,

Gary & Ruthie x x x

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
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Pic: R Z

The Autumn Equinox or Harvest Home is also called Mabon, pronounced ‘MAY-bon’, after the Welsh god Mabon ap Modron, which means literally ‘son of mother’. Mabon appears in ‘The Mabinogi tales.  Some Druids call this celebration, Mea’n Fo’mhair, and honour  the Lord of the wild wood , by offering libations to the trees.  Other Druids use the Welsh  ’Alban Elfed’, meaning ‘light of autumn’.

This is the point of the year when once again day and night are equal – 12 hours, as at Ostara, the Spring Equinox. The Latin word for Equinox means ‘time of equal days and nights’. After this celebration the descent into winter brings hours of increasing darkness and chiller temperatures. It is the time of the year when night conquers day. After the Autumn Equinox the days shorten and nights lengthen.

To astrologers this is the date on which the sun enters the sign of Libra, the scales, reflecting appropriately the balanced day and night of the equinox. This was also the time when the farmers brought in their harvested goods to be weighed and sold.

Harvest festival

This is the second festival of the season of harvest – at the beginning of the harvest, at Lammas/Lughnasadh, winter retreated to his underworld, now at the Autumn equinox he comes back to earth. For our Celtic ancestors this was time to reflect on the past season and celebrate nature’s bounty and accept that summer is now over.

Harvest Home marks a time of rest after hard work, and a ritual of thanksgiving for the fruits of nature. This is the time to look back on the past year and what you have achieved and learnt, and to plan for the future.

The full moon nearest to the Autumn Equinox is called the Harvest Moon and farmers would harvest their crops by then, as part of the second harvest celebration. Mabon was when livestock would be slaughtered and preserved (salted and smoked) to provide enough food for the winter.

At the South Pole they will be celebrating the first appearance of the sun in six months. However, at the North Pole they will be preparing for six months of darkness.

During Medieval times, the Christian Church replaced Pagan solstices and equinox celebrations with Christianized occasions. The Autumn equinox celebration was Michaelmas, the feast of the Archangel Michael.

Ageing Goddess

At this feast the triple Goddess – worshipped by the Ancient Britons/Celts – is now in her aspect of the ageing Goddess and passes from Mother to Crone.  At this time  the Goddess offers wisdom, healing and rest. Then as the wheel of nature turns, she is reborn as a youthful virgin at  Imbolc, Febuary 2nd, in the following year

Mabon Traditions

The reaping is over and the harvest is in,

Summer is finished, another cycle begins’

In some areas of the country the last sheaf of Corn was kept inside until the following spring, when it would be ploughed back into the land. In Scotland, the last sheaf of harvest is called ‘the Maiden’, and must be cut by the youngest female in attendance.  In contrast the first sheaf was cut by the Lord / Land owner.

Apples

The apple is the symbol of the Fruit Harvest and is represented in many sacred traditions. It is a symbol for life and immortality, for healing, renewal, regeneration and wholeness. It is associated with beauty, long life and restored youth. To honour the dead, it was also traditional at Mabon to place apples on burial cairns, as symbolism of rebirth and thanks. This also symbolizes the wish for the living to one day be reunited with their loved ones. Mabon is also known as the Feast of Avalon, deriving from the meaning of Avalon being, ‘the land of the apples’.

Source

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Description Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.