Irish Culture & Heritage Blog
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The Well-Fed Does Not Understand The Lean.
All over our world, people are starved of recognition, compassion, acceptance, and shockingly hundred of years on, basic food and water. We pride ourselves on the marvels of our modern world and its technological progressiveness, but all of these advances are still benefiting only a potion of our world and leaving the rest to suffer and struggle for their very survival. -
Under the shelter of each other, people survive. - Sean Fhocail Series
The Irish language is often remarked upon for it's poetic turn of phrase and that is no more obvious in the sean fhocail - or 'old words'. Sean fhocail are well known sentences that some might see as cliché, but when each one of them is considered in more than just passing, the deeper wisdom and cultural insights can be glimpsed.
Ar scáth a chéile, a mhaireann na daoine translates as "Under the shelter of each other, people survive." -
"A good Start is Half the work". - Tús Maith Leath Na Hoibre
Tús Maith Leath Na Hoibre translates as "A good Start is Half the work".
Often in our lives we fall afoul of a difficult to perceive influence which we are exposed to all of the time in our modern world. We are constantly shown how "great" a thing is in its completed state and rarely the effort that went into getting it there. -
Níl Saoi Gan Locht - This is not a Wise Man without Flaw
The Irish language is often remarked upon for it's poetic turn of phrase. To really appreciate how true these comments are one needs to turn to a book. Not a dictionary, in this case we mean a history book. -
The Fire Festivals of Ireland
The fire festivals of Ireland form one of the main cycles by which pagans mark the year. These festivals are still honoured today and used in conjunction with the cycle of the equinox as the basis of many a spiritual or ritual practices. -
If my Coat is Inside Out....
There are many many ways to get into the Irish Otherworld. The folk lore of Ireland is littered with tales of fairy rings, stray sods, fairy trees, mist walls, sidhe steeds, and boats. Each of these mundane appearing things are more than what they seem, functioning as a doorway or stepping over point from our world to the Other. -
Fairy Ring - Do Not Enter.
Ireland has long been a place set between the worlds and here to this very day we have some very firm and rightly observed lore about the folk of the Otherworld. From our early stories we are told the sidhe and the danger that may befall the unwary. One such danger is known as the fairy ring. -
The Time Wasted, That is not Spent in Ireland
In our work here we have the privilege of sharing in many peoples first experiences of native Irish culture and spirituality, some of which occur here in our island as Ireland still calls strongly for distant people to come and place their feet upon the soil. On so many occasions I have heard folk say 'I cant wait to come back' or even more telling ' I don't want to leave'. It was hard for me to truly comprehend the draw of Ireland until I spent more than a few days away from her. -
Sovereign - Just a word? Or can it be a state of mind?
Sovereign.
Whenever I say this word out loud it always feels heavy upon my lips, as if the word itself carries some indefinable mass. What we can define though, is our current understanding of the word itself.
noun
- a monarch; a king, queen, or other supreme ruler.
- a person who has supreme power or authority.
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The Time Wasted, That is not Spent in Ireland
"I feel, more and more, the time wasted, that is not spent in Ireland." - Lady Gregory.
Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory was an Irish dramatist, folklorist and theatre manager. She co-founded the Irish Literary Theatre and the Abbey Theatre, and wrote numerous works for both companie
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Labhair Gaeilge Liom (Speak Irish with Me) - An Invitation to Conversation
Labhair Gaeilge Liom... Is é Gaeilge teanga na h'Éireann. Labhraíonn a lán daoine Gaeilge, usáideann rionnt daoine é gach lá.
Speak Irish with Me... Irish is the language of Ireland. Lots of people speak Irish, some use it everyday.
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I Swear by the Gods My Ancestors Swore by...
Our world has changed, and yet for all of that forward progress, some of us find ourselves looking back. Gazing into the past. Seeking insight and meaning. Searching for a greater connection to the natural world all about us.
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