LUGHNASADH - Gathering Fraochans at Brón Trogain.

Along the boreen flowers are becoming fruits and the year is turning towards Lughnasadh.

Honeysuckle flowers depart & berries appear.

The earliest name for Lughnasadh, derived from Old Irish, is Brón Trogain, which likens the earth to a woman in labour, sorrowing as she births her fruit.

As green berries are revealed, the first wild fruit to ripen is usually the fraochan.

Also known as fraughan, bilberry, whortleberry, blaeberry, heatherberry, whorts & hurts.

Fraochans have been known in Ireland since ancient times and their seeds have been discovered during excavations of Viking and Anglo-Norman settlements in Dublin. 

Across rural Ireland it was customary to celebrate this time of year by visiting the heights of the land to pick the berries. 

Purple dye was produced from the berries and the juice was believed to be a cure for eczema

The shrubs grow low on heathland and wet mountainsides where their solitary flowers produce purple-black berries, rich in vitamin C.
Bilberries were traditionally gathered on the last Sunday of July or the first Sunday of August and Domhnach na bhFraochog, Fraochan Sunday, was considered a day of great festivity when people danced, sang and played games in the wild places. 

Ard Éireann on the border between counties Laois and Offaly, 

was a popular place to harvest fraochans.

In 1942 massive crowds were reported as streams of cars, pony traps and bicycles from the surrounding countryside made their way to Arderin to pick the berries.

Large quantities of bilberries for export to Britain were harvested in Carlow, Wicklow, Tipperary and Waterford in the early 20th century. The price paid was very low and the baskets large but hundreds of people picked them to earn money to support their families.

During the 2nd World War imports of bilberries to Britain from Europe were disrupted resulting 

in the price paid to Irish pickers increasing dramatically, especially as British pilots 

reported that bilberry jam improved their night vision.

In earlier times the gathering of fraochans appears to have involved only the young people who would spend the day walking to the slopes, foraging for berries and celebrating. 

In Co. Donegal the aged were not allowed upon the hill tops so berries were strung on long stalks of grass, cuiseógs, to be brought down to them. 

At Glenkitt, Co. Laois people gathered to climb the slopes of Ard Erin in search of berries.

Many accounts describe Fraochan Sunday as a time for courtship, a festival where people could hope to find a husband or wife.

Young men threaded berries, making bracelets as gifts for the young women. 

Custom dictated that the bracelets had to be removed and left on the hill top at the end of the day, although the reason for this has long been forgotten.

A plentiful supply of the berries were thought to bring good luck to the coming harvest.

Bilberry pies called Pócai Hócai, were made by young women to be presented to their chosen partners and fraochan wine, a mixture of sugar and berry juice, was given to lovers in the hope of hastening a wedding.

Perhaps the tradition of courtship associated with Bilberry Sunday is an echo of the old Teltown Marriages lasting for a year and a day, which also took place at Lughnasadh ?

Gathering bilberries upon the heights brought people to the hilltop mounds and fairy-forts and there are accounts of the Old Gods and the Good People being honoured at this time. 

A celebration was held on Knockfeerna Hill, Co. Limerick where flowers and fraochans were strewn around a small cairn, the ‘Struicín’ near the summit, reputedly the entrance to 

Donn Fírinne’s underground palace. 

On the small hill, the Spellick, near to Slieve Gullion, Co. Armagh, everyone who gathered fraochans had to sit on a rocky formation known as the Cailleach Beara’s Chair, for luck.

However Crom Dubh, the ‘black stooped one’, was the pagan deity most associated with the festival and gathering berries any later than Fraochan Sunday was thought to bring his curse. 

Of the many traditions associated with Brón Trogain, later Lughnasadh, it appears that Fraochan Sunday has stood the test of time. In many areas people still pick fraochans on the hills. 

Here in the midlands Ard Erin was silent this year and Glenkitt a lonely place, 

but the fraochans are still thriving on the hills. 

***

Take a sound journey through Glenkitt to Ard Erin with local guide Mick Dowling who remembers the days when thousands gathered on Frochan Sunday. 

Listen online or download the podcast : https://www.podparadise.com/Podcast/534187858/Listen/1343131200/0

Lughnasa, loughs and a last salute to Summer.

Lughnasa was often associated with great assemblies, bonfires on hilltops and dancing 

at the cross roads but it was also a time when water possessed special qualities.

In rural Ireland the largest celebration of the year was at the start of the harvest season when the weather was warm and the first wild fruits were ripe. 

People gathered to celebrate, often at the Fair, before the hard work of harvesting began.

The Christian festival, Lammas, was usually celebrated on the first Sunday of August and in Ireland

it was known by many names, reflecting the rich folk traditions. 

On lakeshores, particularly in the midlands, people came together to celebrate ‘Lough Sunday’ 

which was usually held on the first Sunday of August.

Lough Owel, Co. Westmeath, famous for Lough Sunday gatherings.

The swimming of horses and cattle took place to ensure the health of the animals and it was also an opportunity for people to exchange news, settle marriage contracts, celebrate and to watch the 

horse-swimming contests. 

The most well-known contest was at Lough Owel where large crowds gathered as young men 

on horseback engaged in dangerous water races. 

At Lough Keeran, a small pool known locally as a blessed well, horses were brought to the water 

to swim in order to protect them against ‘incidental evils’ in the coming months. 

The tradition included submerging spancels and halters as an added safeguard although some were left in the well, perhaps as an offering. 

Cattle too were brought to the water and offerings of butter, the Clad Ime, were thrown 

to the lough spirits to guarantee a good milk yield.  

A RAG TREE once stood near Lough Keeran, with the ropes used for tying cows hung on branches in the belief sick cattle would be cured. The tree was later cut down by the order of the Bishop to prevent people from continuing the custom.

As late as 1900’s offerings of butter rolls were still left at this well.

In the 19th century it was recorded that people swam their cattle across the River Boyne to act  

as a charm against the attentions of the Good People and protect against disease.

This custom of driving horses and cattle through rivers, lakes and pools at Lughnasa appears to 

mirror the custom of herding cattle between two fires at Bealtaine which was also executed to protect their well being.

Lough Neagh where the practice of wading through water was not confined to animals.

On the first Sunday of August pilgrims at Lough Neagh and Lough Patrick would recite the rosary then enter the waters to wash feet, hands and heads in the belief that the water at this time contained cures.

Many sacred wells were also considered most potent at this time of year.

St Moling’s Well, Co Carlow where pilgrims waded barefoot through the water 

and children had their heads placed underwater to guard against head ailments.

At Tobar Alt an Easa cattle were driven to the water on the first Sunday of August 

to cure them of illness.

Tubberberrin, in Co. Meath, was famous for being dry all year, but filling with water at midnight on Lughnasa Eve when it gave cures. 

The water stayed in the well for three days before disappearing again. 

The TRADITION at St Keiran’s Well took place at midnight on the first Sunday of August.

The first Sunday in August was known in many places as Garland Sunday when flowers were left on summits, on Neolithic monuments, on graves and at sacred wells “to give a last salute to summer.” 

In Donegal people wore flowers in their clothes to climb hills on Garland Sunday and a hole was dug and the flowers buried as a sign that summer was ended.

Tobernault. Co. Sligo, was visited at this time also. 

And Brigid’s Well at Liscannor is honoured by locals, not in February but on Garland Sunday.

In Co. Galway Lady’s Well was also visited on Garland Sunday when “the girls wore daisy chains and the young men wore flowers in their buttonholes.” to attend the Pattern there.

At the end of the ritual flowers were left in the water.

A visit to the well in recent times shows that the daisy tradition may not be lost.

It is at this time of year that I visit St Lugna’s Well, Co. Offaly, hidden besides the Slieve Bloom mountains. 

The well was restored 1995 but little is known of the saint.

Few find their way here any longer but some of us still visit at Lughnasa to honour the water.

And as the wild flowers begin to pass away and the fruits appear I also give offerings to the 

local river as “a last salute to summer.” 

First harvest - bringing home the turf.

We are approaching Lúnasa, the month when wild fruits and crops are gathered, yet already tractors pass by the door laden with a different sort of yield from the land.

 The turf crop © Jane Brideson

For me the first harvest of the year begins when the turf is brought home from the bog.

 The local bog with turf  'footed' to dry © Jane Brideson. 

The dry, black crop will provide fuel for a household throughout the winter months. 

A visit to the bog is a visit to a strange land, another world.
A place of deep waters, black earth and big skies. Alone there, surrounded by deep silence broken
by the call of birds and whispering wind, you can feel the age of the land and see time written in
the turf banks.

Turf bank with dark waters reflecting the sky © Jane Brideson.

Turf has been cut and used as fuel for centuries and the early inhabitants of Ireland also 

sojourned there. To our ancient ancestors the unique atmosphere and dark, still waters appear to 

have been associated with gateways to the Otherworld.  

Discoveries of objects made from precious metal, pottery and stoneware deposited in bogs may represent offerings made to the gods across the ages.

 Coggalbeg bog hoard from the early Bronze Age © 100objests.ie 

 To read the full story behind this find click HERE

These areas are still important for the people of rural Ireland, many of whom spend long hours saving turf.
On my local bog the turf is now cut by machine, rather than by hand but the process is still labour intensive, requiring good weather and the help of neighbours. 

Types of slane © connemaranews.org  

In some areas turf is still harvested using traditional methods. 

The slane is used to cut the turf into long sods, which are then spread out to dry.

Turf and golden hoards are not the only treasures to be found. 
My visit, on a fine summers' day, saw the bog coloured by heather, bog cotton and wild flowers.
The unique flora here once provided communities with herbal remedies and dubh-poill,  hole black,
a black dye used for clothing.

Turf was also understood to bring good health at calving when it was rubbed three times under the belly of a cow to protect her and her newborn calf from troubles.

Wild flowers, bog cotton & heather © Jane Brideson.

The bogs' association with the Otherworld meant that it was viewed as a source of protection against the attentions of the Good People and it was believed that scattering the ashes from a turf fire on the doorstep could prevent an unattended child from being taken by the fairies. 

Brighid's Cross made from turf © Jane Brideson.

Moulded turf is still used as protection in the form of a Brighid's Cross hung by the front door. 

Returning home from this other world visit I called in on neighbours for a chat and was given tea
and home made apple pie, then sent on my way again with gifts.

Gifts © Jane Brideson.

Freshly laid eggs & the result of last years harvest - apple jelly.

Lying in the grass was yet another gift...

Turf  by the roadside © Jane Brideson.

two sods of turf  by the side of the road which later went on the fire in the studio to fill the end
of the garden with its' distinctive scent.

 Burning turf © Jane Brideson.

Watch Jim's video on Irish TV by clicking the link below to hear his reminiscences of cutting 

and saving turf in the traditional way:

IRISH TV LINK

The White Mare & the Horse Whisperer

The White Mare & the Horse Whisperer by Jane Brideson

Watercolour, & gouache  

Model: Vincent O'Brien

My painting of the White Mare and the Horse Whisperer is finally finished.
It was inspired by the Otherworldly horses of folklore, the Sídhe and stories told about the ability
of a famous horse whisperer in Ireland.

Distant fairy fort

Horses have been important here since 3,000 BCE  and are associated in mythology with several deities: Macha in Ulster, the DAGDHA, DONN and MANANNÁN MAC LÍR,
as well as with the rites of kingship on the HILL OF TARA where the Goddess of Sovereignty
took the form of a white mare.

Donn

A strong relationship between horses and water was seen at Lughnasadh when horses were swam
in rivers to protect them from harm during the year and tales of the fearsome each uisce,
the water horse, who was believed to live in lakes and the sea, was well known across the island.

Horses feature in many stories about the naming of places and one such tale tells of a lake in
Skreen, Co. Sligo near the Ox Mountains.
It was here that a local farmer found a horse on the shore which he caught and took home.
Many years passed and the farmer found the horse to be strong, gentle and easy to work.
One day however he struck the placid horse for the first time and the creature changed, rearing
and snorting violently. Before the farmer could dismount the water horse plunged into the lake
taking the man with him.
The farmer's body was never found but his heart finally floated to the surface and gave the
lake its' name, Lough Aghree, Lake of the Heart.

The lonely Lake of the Heart © rootsweb

Folklore tells of the belief that horses are sensitive to the presence of ghosts and Otherworldly
beings and will halt if a spirit is close by and refuse to move. If the rider looks between the horses
ears he too will be able to see the sídhe.

Their importance to humans meant that horses had to be protected from the good people,
who would steal them, ride them through the night, then return them the next morning lathered
and exhausted. To counter their intentions a slip of rowan would be tied to the mane or seven hairs knotted into it.
Others believed that horses were able to protect themselves by sneezing to keep the sídhe at bay.

In the west many fine horses were thought to be descendants of Otherworldly stallions.
The supernatural horses from the caves of Kilcroney, on the Burren and the sea horses which
emerged from Galway Bay, were reputed to have mated with local mares and produced a famous
blood line.

There were also tales of the fíorláir, ‘the true mare’, a name given to the seventh consecutive filly
foal born to a dam. This foal was understood to be safe from all evil and that her rider would be safe from all harm.
On the spot where the true mare was born a four-leaved shamrock would grow having the power to heal and protect anyone who picked it.
In general horses were considered to have luck attached to them with horse shoes being hung on
or above doors and halters kept in the home, even if the horse had been sold.

Horse-Whispering was the secret method which certain people used to tame unmanageable horses
and it was believed to be a gift passed down through generations of travelling families from father
to son. There are several opinions as to the actual method used in horse whispering or charming,
some say it is the application of a certain balm to the horse's muzzle, whilst others maintain the
secret lies in a calming spell whispered into the ear.

Portrait of Sullivan by Harrison Weir

One of the most famous whisperers of the eighteenth century was Daniel Sullivan from Mallow,
Co. Cork who was secretive about his methods, claiming that he could not explain his power.
His success with race horses was well known throughout the country and in his native Cork it was
said that if he spoke to a horse it would lie on its back with all four legs in the air and remain so calm that a glass full of drink could be balanced on each hoof.
Today horse whisperers are found across the world but none have been able to emulate Sullivan's feat!

See video below in which white horses and water horses still symbolise power, the Otherworld and Ireland :

For information on Fairy Horses please visit Living Liminally
The story about Lough Gur and the white horse can be found at Voices from the Dawn

Lughnasadh Blessings.

I recently took a break from writing to enjoy the great weather and to visit author, Dan Cronin in Kerry.

We have been writing to each other and talking on the 'phone a great deal after I visited The City last year - see ANU post August 2012.
His book about his homeplace in the foothills of the Paps of Anu was invaluable and Dan, who is 92, is truly an inspiration. 

Dan and Margaret, gave us a great welcome when we arrived and we could have stayed for hours talking about mythology, folklore and life.

Margaret and Dan

Back home we recently celebrated the first harvest, Lughnasadh or Brón Trogain, the older name for the festival at a local site in the foothills of the Slieve Bloom. 

 Tobar Lugna, Lugna's Well, Co. Offaly.

Photo by Colin Russell

The offerings included berries, herbs, flowers, barley and turf.

Photo by Colin Russell

Tomorrow I am back working on the book but wish you all 

Lughnasadh Blessings and a fruitful harvest.

LUGH

Lugh’s name may have its roots in early words such as leuk, 'light' or lug, oath. 

His titles include Lámfhada, 'Long Arm' and Samhildánach, 'Equally Skilled in Many Arts'.

The Milky Way, Sliabhbra Luigh, is known as Lugh's Chain. 

Places within the painting associated with Lugh are:

Carn Uí Néid, Mizen Head, Co. Cork, Tory Island, Co. Donegal, Cruachan Aigle, 

now Croagh Patrick, and Sliabh Bladhma, the Slieve Bloom where the Lughnasadh 

fire was lit on Arderin, An Earagail, 'The Oratory', Mount Errigal, Co. Donegal, 

Lugh's Seat, on Moytura Hill, the Hill of Tara and Newgrange.  

Lugh holds the Sleá Bua, ‘Spear of Victory” as his light shines upon Rath Lugh, 

Co. Meath. In one story Lugh finally kills Balor, his evil grandfather at Mizen Head

and he places Balor’s head in the crook of a hazel tree, where it splits the tree in two. 

Bronze spear head, described by William Wilde in 1861, now in the National Museum

of Ireland, Dublin.