#Cormac Mac Airt

[stairnaheireann]

Book of Aicill

The Book of Aicill relates to the criminal law and is often discussed as being on par in significance with the Senchus Mór; although, the latter deals with civil law. Like the mystery of Saint Patrick’s posthumous authorship of the Senchus Mór, the Book of Aicill attributes its authorship to that of the legendary Cormac Mac Airt who is supposed to have ruled as High-King of Ireland during the 3rd…

[etymology-of-the-emblem]

The Sword of Begalta / ベガルタの剣 and Sword of Moralta / モラルタの剣

The Sword of Begalta (JP: ベガルタの剣; rōmaji: begaruta no ken) and the Sword of Moralta (JP: モラルタの剣; rōmaji: moraruta no ken) are two sacred swords of similar appearance and name; the former is tied to the Crest of Reigan, while the latter is to the Crest of Fraldarius. As you likely expected, the names of these blades are intertwined: in the Irish folklore, Moralltach and Be[a]galltach, rendered with the same katakana as in Three Houses, are two swords originally belonging to the sea god Manannán mac Lir. Their names meaning "Great Fury" and "Little Fury", respectively, the blades were handed over to the god Aengus Óg, who then gave them to his foster son, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne. Diarmuid was a member of the fianna (a band of warriors) of Fionn mac Cumhaill and the star of the tale The Pursuit of Diarmuid and Gráinne. At the wedding of their leader and Gráinne—daughter of the High King Cormac mac Airt—the bride and Diarmuid grew attracted to each other (or in some versions, Diarmuid's loyalty succumbed to a geis placed on him by Gráinne). After the guests of the wedding fell asleep from the drinks Gráinne gave them, she eloped with Diarmuid.

Fionn, furious that one of his men had taken his wife, designated Diarmuid a rival he and his fianna must kill. However, his men still respected their former ally, and would often betray their leader to allow Diarmuid and Gráinne safe passage. When next Fionn and Diarmuid met, it was for a year-long feast Gráinne and her children held to repair bonds with Fionn and Cormac. When trouble sounded from the mountain Benbulbin, Diarmuid disregarded his wife's advice and took not his more powerful blade Moralltach, which he used in every previous instance in the tale, but the weaker Be[a]galltach. After learning of the wild boar that has claimed thirty warriors' lives, Diarmuid challenged it. He claimed victory, but not before getting gored himself and breaking his blade on it's hide. Though water consumed from Fionn's hands had healing properties, the bitter warrior twice let his fingers run dry, letting Diarmuid slowly die.

In Fire Emblem, the stats of the Sword of Moralta and Sword of Begalta resemble their inspirations: The Sword of Moralta has one more point of Might and a Critical stat equal to a Killing Edge. The Sword of Begalta makes up for the deficit with a Hit stat of 100, rather than 75, and 5 Weight points less. It's also possible the reason one of the blades is related to the leading house of the Leicester Alliance is due to the occasional conflation of Manannán mac Lir and King Leir, supposed founder of the city of Leicester and inspiration for Shakespeare's King Lear.

This was a segment from a larger document reviewing the name of most every weapon and item in Three Houses and Three Hopes. Click Here to read it in full.

[venicepearl]

"Grania questions the druid", illustration by Henry Justice Ford in The Book of Romance (1903)

Gráinne (Irish pronunciation: [ˈɡɾˠaːn̠ʲə]), sometimes anglicised Grania, is the daughter of king Cormac mac Airt in the Fianna Cycle of Irish mythology. She is one of the central figures in the Middle Irish text Finn and Gráinne, as well as the 17th-century tale The Pursuit of Diarmuid and Gráinne, which tells of her betrothal to Fionn mac Cumhaill, leader of the Fianna, and her subsequent elopement with Fionn's warrior Diarmuid Ua Duibhne.

[ancestorsalive]

There are no wolves remaining in Ireland now, bar in zoos so it’s hard to believe that they were once so numerous here, that outsiders often referred to Ireland as “Wolfland”. The name for Wolf in Irish is Mac Tíre which literally means son of the countryside which shows how the people considered this magnificent animal to be so integrated into the fabric of our land. They were feared however, and many of our early iron age forts were well guarded against wolves, as much as against human enemies, and the Irish Wolfhound was especially bred to hunt this fearsome predator. There has always been a connection to wolves in Irish folklore. It is said that Cormac Mac Airt, one of the most famous of the High Kings, was raised by wolves and it also makes an appertaining in the famous epic tale of the Táin Bó Cúallgne.

There were stories of half man/half wolf men, such as the Laignach Faelad, a band of warriors who would fight with any king, but only for a terrifying price. Interestingly, there was also the concept of werewolves, such as the werewolves of Ossory (Laois/Kilkenny), who were a clan cursed by a supposed holy man whereby a couple of the clan would have to live as a wolves for seven years, only to be replaced by another couple once that time had passed.

Unfortunately, the last wolf was killed on Mt. Leinster in 1786, hundreds of years after the last wolf in Britain and 100 years after the Scottish wolves became extinct.

The wolf covers the period 28th Oct-24th Nov (in the 13 month lunar calender) and is available on my website celticmyths.ie. I will very shortly have my new 2024 animal lore calendar on sale, so keep an eye out!

- Margaret McKenna

Via Celtic Myths, Art of Irish Lore

[gunelle]

@vitor_gonzalez_art (Vítor González)

1-. El motivu representáu ye una Anfisbena, una mena de dragón de dos cabeces, nun estilu contemporaniu qu'amiesta elementos celtes y vikingos

2-. y 3-. logo Esbardu

4-. y 5-. cover para el disco de Tartalo Music

6-. a

7-. d iluminada

8-. f iluminada

9-. cuervu célticu

10-. Dragon & Cross

11-. dos cuélebres

12-. dos leones luchando

13-. dove

14-. Cormac mac Airt, también conocido como Cormac ua Cuinn o Cormac Ulfada (larga barba)

15-. Birds of Prey

16-. Blodeuwedd, wife of Lleu made from flowers by Math and Gwydion.

17-. Blodeuwedd, wife of Lleu made from flowers by Math and Gwydion.

18-. ciervos

19-. concurso de gaita

20-. y 21-. Belenus

22-. asturies et bretagne

23-. bestias aladas

24-. banda de gaites Candás

[forfeda-project]

"O grandson of Conn, O Cormac," said Carbre, "what were your habits when you were a lad?" "Not hard to tell," said Cormac. "I was a listener in woods, I was a gazer at stars, I was blind where secrets were concerned, I was silent in a wilderness…

~ Tecosca Cormaic

Tecosca Cormaic, or the Instructions of Cormac Mac Airt, is an Old Irish wisdom text where the legendary high king Cormac provides judgements and advice to his son Carbre on how to be a good man and a wise king. Upon being asked about his conduct as a young man, Cormac recounts, among other things, time spent in the woods and wilds of Ireland, saying "it is through these habits that the young become old and kingly warriors."

This piece is built around my favorite line from the Tecosca, and features far more knotwork than I ever want to draw again (but probaly will). Wanted to illustrate this quote for a while, so I'm very pleased with how it's turned out.

[leeoconnor]

Page 3 of the FIONN graphic novel inked up! We have a Fionn now.

Notes! The king is Cormac Mac Airt, allegedly raised by wolves. His crown is based on the Iron Age 'Deal Warrior's Crown', found in Kent. His brooch is the 'Tara brooch', found nearby and dated a way after this, set in 200AD, but I couldn't resist. Behind him is 'Lia Fáil' / 'The Stone of Destiny', which screams when the true king touches it. (You can go and see this at Tara in County Meath, how much screaming it does for you may vary.) The frame shapes are based on Celtic / La Tène art, they never went in for any straight lines or grids, y’see.

[teatitty]

Fuck it here’s some Manannan lore to curb my fury at this pseudo servant bullshit so! 

Manannan is, of course, one of the most well-known and popular Irish Deities, chiefly known as being a great Merchant, Sailor and a God of the Sea (and occasionally described as a Fomorian). He owned swine that could be resurrected when killed, and those who ate of their flesh would be granted immortality

The Isle of Man was the throne of Manannan, his stronghold was on the top of Barrule, and he held his court from Manannan's Chair at Cronk y Voddy

In Irish mythology, Manannan was killed in battle by Uillenn Faebarderg in the battle of Magh Cuilenn and is said to be buried in the Tonn Banks, off the coast of Donegall. Many shipwrecks have occured there and the spirit of Manannan is supposed to ride on the storm. The Tonns form one part of a triad known as "The Three Waves of Erin"

He’s associated with Alder, Hawthorn, Ragwort, Burdock, The Crane, Horses, Pigs, Salmon, the Triskelion and The Triton

On Misummer Eve, the Manx would bring a tribute of rushes to South Barrule for him!

He is further identified with several trickster figures: the Gilla Decair and the Bodach an Chóta Lachtna ("the churl in the drab coat"). Manannán is given several names, bynames, epithets and surnames. His name is spelt Manandán in Old Irish, Manannán in modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic, and Mannan in Manx Gaelic. Some of the names equated with Manannan include: Oirbsiu or Oirbsen, Duartaine O'Duartaine, Cathal O'Cein (Cathal is derived from battle and means "great warrior"), Gilla de ("Boyservant") and Gilla Decair ("Troublesome boyservant") 

His most common epithets reinforce his connection with war and the sea:

Mac Lir, which means "son of the sea" or "son of Lir/Lyr”

Mac Alloit or Mac Alloid, which means "son of the soil or land" (effectively making him a son of sea and land)

chief of your [Tuatha De] kings

senior of your [Tuatha De] hosts

lord of champions

shining light of your batallions

tutor in valor, in feats of arms, in magic

foster son of the Dagda

the great and mighty

There are a shitton of places named after him all over Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. In Ireland, most of them are on the coast or contain water features. They include Mannin Lake (Loch Mhanainn) in County Mayo, Mannin Bay (Cuan Mhanainn) in County Galway, Mannin Island (Manainn) in County Cork, Cashelmanannan (Caiseal Mhanannáin, "Manannán's ringfort") and Sheevannan (Sí Mhanannáin, "Manannán's fairy mound") in County Roscommon and then Derrymannin (Doire Mhanainn, "Manann's oak") in County Mayo, and Carrickmannan (Carraig Mhanainn, "Manann's rock") in County Down. 

Also in Ireland, Lough Corrib takes its name from Manannán's alternate name Oirbsiu or Oirbsen. The placenames Clackmannan (Clach Mhanainn) and Slamannan (Sliabh Mhanainn) in Scotland may also refer to Manann

He appears in all four cycles of Irish Myth, most famously in the tale of Fand and Cu Chulainn’s affair. Some of these tales include:

In the Ulster Cycle: Tochmarc Étaíne ("The Wooing of Étaín"), Serglige Con Culainn ("The Wasting Sickness of Cúchulainn"), Tochmarc Luaine "The Wooing of Luan"

In the Cycles of the Kings: Immram Brain maic Febail ("The Voyage of Bran son of Febal)", Echtra Cormaic maic Airt ("The Adventure of Cormac mac Airt"), Compert Mongáin ("The Birth of Mongán")

In the Mythological Cycle: Lebor Gabála Érenn ("The Book of Invasions"), First Recension, Altram Tige Dá Medar ("The Nourishment of the Houses of Two Milk-Vessels")

other Old Irish texts: Sanas Cormaic ("Cormac's Glossary"), The Voyage of Bran, Compert Mongáin, His Three Calls to Cormac ("Cormac's Adventure in the Land of Promise")

Manannán was associated with a "cauldron of regeneration". This is seen in the tale of Cormac mac Airt! Here, he appeared at Cormac's ramparts in the guise of a warrior who told him he came from a land where old age, sickness, death, decay, and falsehood were unknown (Tír na nÓg) ).

He is lord and guardian of the Blessed Isles, Mag Mell, and Emhain Abhlach, the Isle of Apple Trees, where the magical silver apple branch is found. When he visits the land of the living, his movement is compared to the wind, a hawk or swallow, and sometimes takes the form of a thundering wheel rolling across the landscape

Manannan had a crapton of magical artifacts; he gave Cormac mac Airt his goblet of truth; he had a ship that didn’t need sails nor oars named "Wave Sweeper" (Scuabtuinne); he owned a cloak of mists that granted him invisibility (Féth Fíada, which also changed into every colour you could think of and when Manannan was angry would produce a thunderous clap when flapped), a flaming helmet, and a sword named Fragarach ("Answerer" or "Retaliator") that could slice through any armour and upon command when pointed at a target could make that target answer any question truthfully. He also owned a horse called "Enbarr of the Flowing Mane" which could travel over water as easily as land. Some sources say that, to Manannán, the sea itself was like a flowery plain

Mannanán bestowed upon the warriors of the Tuatha Dé the Féth fíada, Fleadh Goibhneann (the Feast of Goibniu), and Mucca Mhannanain (Mannanán's swine) whose regenerating flesh provided food for feasting by the gods, similar to Odin's boar Sæhrímnir in Scandinavian myth. He also owned a speckled cow that he and Aengus retrieved from India (some sources say it was Greece) along with a dun cow, two golden goblets (Grails), and two spancels of silk 

In "The Fosterage of the House of the Two Pails”, Eithne refuses to eat or drink anything from the houses of Mannanán and Aengus except for the honey-flavored, intoxicating milk from the Speckled and Dun Cows

In the Dinsenchas, Manannán is also described as the father of Ibel, after whose death Manannán cast draughts of grief from his heart that became Loch Ruidi, Loch Cuan, and Loch Dacaech

You can find an early Manx poem about Manannan titled Manannan-beg-mac-y-Lheirr, "little Manannan, son of the Sea". The tale "Manannan at Play" features the god as a clown and beggar who turns out to be a harper. Manannán (here in his trickster guise of the Bodach), plays a number of pranks, some of which result in serious trouble; by the end of the tale, he compensates for the pranks that got him in trouble

Some folklore that he appears in include “O’Donnell’s Kern” where he appears as a kern or serving man at the courts of various historical persons from 16th Century Ireland. As a kern, he is repeatedly described as wearing thinly striped clothing and leather brogues (shoes) soaking with water, having ears and half his sword protruding from his mantle, and carrying three scorched holly javelins (elsewhere described as a single javelin) in his right hand. In this guise, he again appears as a trickster, walking into his hosts' homes uninvited and undetected by the guardsmen

I’ve spoken of this next tale plenty of times so I won’t go into full details but he is a chief figure in the Fenian “The Pursuit of the Gilla Decair and His Horse.” Two other tales would be “O’Neill’s Horse Race” and “Giant” where he, as Orbsen, is said to be a giant who fought another giant named Uillin on a spot marked by a standing stone in Moycullen

In Book of Fermoy, a manuscript of the 14th - 15th century, Manannan is described as “a pagan and lawgiver among the Tuatha Dé Danann, and a necromancer possessed of power to envelope himself and others in a mist, so that they could not be seen by their enemies.” He was such a magnificent Sailor among the European continent that it was said he could predict the weather simply by looking at the stars

(For some extra lore: Fand, his beautiful wife, started her life as a sea bird and was herself a deity of the sea but was later reduced to a simple Fae Queen)

[irelandseyeonmythology]

Does Old Irish have a word for bear? If so, did they refer to a bear by traits rather than it's name, as in some european languages? Did bears ever get mentioned in any of the manuscripts you've studied? I find myself wondering where this creature now-extinct in Ireland fit into the language. Maybe from there, I'd be able to imagine what the irish landscape with bears in it would've been like?

Thank you! We do have a few words for bears!

Bears often show up in the names of warriors and kings, similarly to how we often see names that are clearly taken from dogs, wolves, and horses. ("Conall", "Eochu", etc.)

One of the most famous would, of course, be the word, no longer in usage in the present language, "art." Famous examples include Art mac Cuinn (father of the more famous Cormac mac Airt), Art Imlech, and, of course....king Arthur. (Who isn't strictly Irish, but whose name comes from a similar root.) We know that this word goes back at least to the time of the Gauls, with the goddess "Artio" being attested, and Proto-Celtic *artos, which in turn derives from PIE *h₂ŕ̥ḱtos. What is perhaps most interesting, for reasons I'll note in about a paragraph, is that it in itself SEEMS to be derived from a PIE word meaning "destruction." This PIE word's descendants include Latin "ursus" and Greek "arktós."

But, as you guessed, there's another name for bear, and that is the one that survives into the present language: Originally it is just "Math", "Good", though that ends up becoming "mathgamain", "the good calf", which, in the present language, becomes "mathúin". (Though as far as I'm aware, it's more common to just use the English loan word"béar.") The most popular holder of this name was probably the 10th century Munster king Mathgamain mac Cennétig, ill-fated elder brother to Brian Boru.

So, what appears to have happened is that, at first, you had them using a euphemism to describe the bear as a way of avoiding the Indo European Bear Taboo (to speak of something is to summon that thing), but then, as time goes on and THAT word becomes the technical word for the bear, you replace it with something else. "GOOD BEAR. GOOD BOY. NICE BEAR."

Not unlike what you see with the Sidhe, when you think about it. And, of course, wolves, who are known in the modern language as "mictíre", "sons of the land". There is another word for wolf, "faolchú", which is derived, in turn, from the word "fáel", which has roots in Proto Celtic and PIE, but, as far as I know, it isn't the popular word to describe a wolf.

To my knowledge, we don't have any actual bears appearing in the literary material, though, as J.P Mallory discusses in "In Search of the Irish Dreamtime", we have a number of cases where heroes are likened to bears. (It's particularly interesting to me because, while there could be a negative tint to metaphors concerning wolves, though NOT a unanimous thing, there doesn't seem, as far as I know, to have been one regarding being likened to a bear. Perhaps because, like how the Fianna only became really prominent in the literary tradition after the decline of actual Fianna bands, it was easier to admire something you didn't have to deal with on the regular.)

[stairnaheireann]

How Young Cormac Mac Airt was Recognised as King

In ancient times, the people of Ireland were internationally renowned for their love of law and their intricate justice system. Law was the articulation of fairness and the embodiment of justice, the application of the law to real scenarios was seen as a manifestation of justice in action, an affirmation of the natural harmonising order of the cosmos. It was Sir John Davies, an Englishman who was…

[thecorpselight]

A certain protective device in circular form is mentioned in an Old Irish tale, Scela Eogain 7 Cormaic, The Tidings of Eogan and Cormac. We read in this tale that the druid-smith Olc Aiche wants to protect the newborn future King Cormac mac Airt by putting five girdles (cresa) on Cormac to protect him 'against wounding, against drowning, against fire, against sorcery/bewitchment, against wolves, against every evil'. Tomas O' Cathasaigh gives two interpretations for this protective ritual. His first suggestion is that we are dealing here with metaphorical girdles: the druid-smith casts protective incantations on the infant. Another possibility is to see the ritual as an initiatory mutilation ceremony, in which the criss would be a stripe on the skin. Lugaid Riab nDerg (Lugaid Red Stripe), the father of Crimthann Nia Nair, is described as having such girdles (cresa). Although the second explanation is possible and a ritual of laying material girdles on the baby should not be discounted either, let us pursue the first interpretation of verbal protection. Other early Irish incantations also prescribe casting a spell on someone or something, whereby the verb for 'casting' may be a form of fo-ceird, which is the same verb as that used in the case of the druid-smith. This ambiguous verb may indicate both putting an inscribed piece of parchment on someone or something and uttering words directed to the intended object. Similarly, texts belonging to the lorica genre may have been both uttered and worn on one's body. O Cathasaigh points out that the first three dangers are identical with three dangers mentioned in the seventh stanza of The Deer's Cry. Christ is invoked here against poison, burning, drowning, and wounding. If we look at the protective ritual of the druid-smith from the perspective of loricae, we may interpret the sixth addition (against every evil) as the safety clause, found in this genre of protective text. This genre explicitly calls forth the image of protective spiritual girdles; a good example is the late Middle Irish Klosterneuberg lorica, where they are connected with saints and with a serpent. An earlier example of a spiritual girdle is found in the Old Irish glosses to the Pauline epistles. Verse 14a in the important biblical passage on spiritual armour in chapter 6 of Ephesians (State ergo succincti lumbos vestros in veritate, 'Stand therefore, having your loins girt about you with truth') is glossed 'that is: the girdle of truth around you'. It is possible that the druid-smith implicitly protects the baby against the evil eye with the fourth girdle or circle. As O Cathasaigh points out, the meaning of adgaire can be inferred from and Old Irish gloss to the Paulin epistles. In Galatians 3.1, Paul exclaims: O insensati Galatae! Quis vos fascinavit..., 'Oh senseless Galatians! Who has bewitched you...?' The meaning of the verb fascino includes 'casting the evil eye', and baskaino in the Greek source text also signifies 'bewitch (with the evil eye), envy'. Hence, it is possible that Irish adobragart, glossing fascinavit, signifies 'has bewitched (with the evil eye)'.

The Celtic Evil Eye. Jacqueline Borsje.

[a-soul-with-no-king]

“𝕿ell me, O Cormac,” said his son once, “what were thy habits when thou wert a lad?”

“𝕭e not too wise, be not too foolish

be not too conceited, nor too diffident

be not too haughty, nor too humble

be not too talkative, nor too silent

be not too hard, nor too feeble

If you be too wise, one will expect too much of you

If you be foolish, you will be deceived

If you be too conceited, you will be thought vexatious

If you be too humble, you will be without honour

If you be too talkative, you will not be heeded

If you be too silent, you will not be regarded

If you be too hard, you will be broken

If you be too feeble, you will be crushed.”

— The Instructions of King Cormac

Tecosca Cormaic is an old Irish gnomic text and it presents a dialogue between the legendary King of Ireland, Cormac mac Airt, and his son, Coirpre Lifechair. I couldn’t find much information about it online. I copied the text from Celtic Myths and Legends by Peter Berresford Ellis. Jeff Lilly writes on druidjournal.net that the text is "taken from the Book of Ballymote, which dates to about 1390. The “Instructions” themselves are certainly much older — probably they date to pre-Christian times, since they fail to mention God anywhere."

[therealuniverse]

THE MILKY WAY OVER CNOC AN OIR This image, taken by Alan Egan, shows the Milky Way over Cnoc an Oir, the highest point in North Kerry, Ireland. It was taken with a Nikon D800 with a Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 lens at 14mm with a shutter speed of 30sec, ISO of 1250. There are many stories associated with Cnoc an Oir; one of the more well-known is that of Diarmuid Ua Duibhne and the beautiful princess Gráinne.

Fionn mac Cumhaill was the aging leader of the warrior band called the Fianna, and he was grieving over the death of his wife Maigneis. His warriors arranged a wedding between their leader and Gráinne, the daughter of High King Cormac mac Airt; she is deemed to be ‘the fairest of feature, and form, and speech, of all the women of the world together’. At their betrothal feast, Gráinne discovers Fionn is older than her father and becomes distressed; she becomes enamored with Fionn's handsome warrior Diarmuid. The betrothal arrangements have gone too far for Gráinne to break it off without spilled blood between Fionn and her father, so she slips a sleeping potion to the guards and encourages Diarmuid to elope with her. At first he refuses out of loyalty to Fionn, but relents when she lays a geis (a curse, sometimes a gift) on him, forcing him to comply. The two lovers hide in a forest across the River Shannon, and Fionn immediately pursues them. They evade him several times with the help of other Fianna members and Aengus Óg, Diarmuid's foster father, who conceals Gráinne in his cloak of invisibility while Diarmuid leaps over the pursuers' heads. Diarmuid Ua Duibhne and Gráinne eventually made their way to the top of Cnoc an Oir, so they could keep an eye out for the Fianna. -TEL Image: Alan Egan https://www.facebook.com/AlanEganphotography Read more about the legend of Diarmuid and Gráinne here: http://www.squidoo.com/diarmuid-and-grainne

[lethe-rpg]

Kilchrohane (Cill Chróháin) has been a peculiar Irish town for hundreds of years. It’s not a place tourists ever visit and its population doesn’t even reach 200. However, the best kept secret of Kilchrohane is that werewolves live freely amongst the humans, existing as leaders and protectors of the town. Being born with the gene has been considered an almost sacred thing as it is said they descend from legendary Irish king Cormac mac Airt, who is believed to have been raised by wolves. Few know, however, that Cormac was in fact a werewolf. The Children of Cormac, as the Irish werewolves have been calling themselves for generations, have kept the tradition alive of embracing their wild side with every full moon. Ewan was born as one of these sacred beings, revered and respected even from before he was triggered. It was easy growing up being one of those that were above regular humans and he always enjoyed the attention, the superiority. After becoming a full-fledged werewolf his sense of self-worth only grew as he was faster, stronger, better than most.

Ewan wouldn’t have left Kilchrohane had it not been for Siobhan Flynn, the human woman he fell in love with. They had known each other for years but she was a “second rate” citizen in town as she was a regular, plain human. A union with her was heavily frowned upon but Ewan chose her anyway. He didn’t know then that it was most likely all out of a whim, that he just didn’t want to be told what he couldn’t do. The pair got married in their early twenties after they left their hometown, and then they left Ireland altogether to start anew elsewhere: San Francisco. Their love shone brightly for a while, but it also burned out just as strongly. Ewan couldn’t embrace the wolf within and Siobhan didn’t want him to, she wanted a normal life. But Ewan refused to stoop to be normal. Their tempestuous relationship ended eight years later with a little son caught up in the middle. He’s been a lone wolf for the past years, paying visits to his boy whenever Siobhan allows it and ultimately ended up settling in the only place where he can be what he really is, a true Child of Cormac, again: Lethe.

The werewolf has been living in the supernatural town since April of 2020, thrilled to be surrounded by those that are like him and the many others that are gifted by different special abilities. Nothing and no one is regular in Lethe and he can live without limits again. It is a good place to be in but there is something missing still: Ewan wants to get his son back by whatever means necessary and turn him into what he is meant to become.

[cerastes]

Like there’s something essentially ball-flipping about fucking old timey writers going hard, because, look, listen, folk and religious customs from ancient times went HARD. 

Look at Old Norse legends, look at the Nibelungelied, look at Susano’o, look at Tokiyo, look at Beowulf, look at each individual member of the Round Table, look at the entirety of fucking Ireland, which had FOUR SEASONS of balls to the walls myths and legends, and each slaps, because you either have Cu Chulainn, Fionn mac Cumhail, the Tuatha De Dannan, or Cormac mac Airt, and you cannot go wrong with any of them.

Old timey folksters went HARD.

But, like, in the Middle Ages, when elitist pieces of crap made literature for ~*~ladies and gentlemen~*~, we lost a HUGE chunk of Balls-Flipping Quotient (BFQ from here on). It was decided that the Common Man And Woman had no business writing raw as all fuck literature, it had to be Clean, Smooth, Refined. You still had fun stories like Ivanhoe here and there, but man, there was a lot of spice missing, a lot of potential BFQ that could be there, yet was absent. This famine lasted until not too long ago.

Not everyone adhered to this criminal ideology.

You romp enough old musty stories a lot, and you find Don Quijote de la Mancha, you find The Fortress Unvanquishable Save For Sacnoth, you find The Destruction of Sennacherib, you find Lazarillo de Tormes, and you realize, there were men and women, there were spirit rebels out there, ravenous for some BFQ, and their pens were loaded with the most insolent ink they could muster to purchase from iron and titanium dioxide, because you can’t take the spice from words, you can’t take the BFQ from literature like you can’t take the BFQ from mythology.

These starving landsknechts were not going to take it.

And you can tell I am not lying from how well these insolent, fun, roller coasters are what we remember the most instead of the vain and proper reads.

Because, in the end, we move for that BFQ. It’s like vitamins for us. Nothing ignites a fire under a reader’s bloodstream hotter than reading about an old, somewhat demented old man wearing the epochal equivalent of a toilet seat as a helmet ramming a windmill full speed and getting Aikido thrown harder than anything gravity has ever touched for his problems, and then realizing this iconic scene is merely 10% of the power of other, even better, even crazier scenes in the book.

By the Gods, please read, not because it’s an ~*~intellectual~*~ thing to do, it’s just bloody fun.

[badriano11]

Love vs. Honor: The Irish myth of Diarmuid's betrayal

Gráinne, daughter of King Cormac mac Airt, princess of Tara, and bride-to-be, was furious. Fionn Mac Cumhaill, leader of the Fianna, Ireland’s most celebrated band of warriors, had just arrived at her castle. Gráinne had believed she was betrothed to a young soldier, bold and brilliant enough to be her equal. Yet upon their arrival, it became clear she was expected to marry Fionn himself; who, while once a legend, was far past his prime. Gráinne would not suffer this insult.

Before the wedding, the King held a great banquet. As the warriors told tales of Fionn’s strength and magical healing hands, Gráinne waited to enact her revenge. But while scanning the room, her eyes locked on to one of the guests. Diarmuid, one of Fionn’s bravest soldiers and foster child of the God of Love himself, was renowned for his stunning beauty. Perhaps this was the bold warrior the princess had imagined? Only one way to find out.

Gráinne swept into action, slipping a sleeping draught into the partygoers’ goblets. Soon the hall fell silent— save for two unenchanted guests. The pair immediately felt a powerful connection. But Diarmuid hesitated. He’d never put his interests before the Fianna’s. Seeing Diarmuid waver between duty and desire, Gráinne took the decision out of his hands. With a light kiss, she placed a geas on his brow— an ancient spell that bound them together, for better or worse.

As the pair escaped, Diarmuid’s heart was racing. Had he really betrayed Fionn for a woman he’d just met? To answer his son’s questions, Angus Óg appeared beside them. The God of Love blessed their union and eased his son’s concern. But he also warned that endless difficulties lay ahead.

At the palace, Fionn awoke full of wrath. He rallied an epic war band that quickly caught up to the lovers. To buy time, Diarmuid and Gráinne conjured a massive enclosure with seven doors. While Gráinne escaped with Angus Óg, Diarmuid went door to door seeking Fionn. Some of the Fianna sought peaceful surrender, others itched for combat. Diarmuid gave neither. But when he finally heard his leader’s voice calling for blood, he knew there was no turning back. Launching himself over the barricade, Diarmuid leapt to Gráinne’s side. The chase was on.

The pair ventured west, where they soon encountered the giant Modan. Eager to help the lovers, he guarded them at night and carried them by day. And once the pair had crossed countless rivers and hills, their fear began to ease. They left the forest’s cover, laughing, flirting, and growing bolder each day.

But Fionn saw their contentment was an opportunity. He enlisted three sea chiefs to capture the wandering lovers. Diarmuid scared them off with mystifying sword tricks— only for Fionn to send poisonous hounds. Diarmuid and Gráinne fled yet again into an even more tangled forest— a sight which filled the Fianna with exhaustion. They implored Fionn to give up the hunt, and at this, their leader grew quiet. He’d already lost a dear friend— now it seemed his wrath had cost him the respect of his men as well. Swallowing his rage, he called off the chase.

For years, Gráinne and Diarmuid lived in peace. In time, Angus Óg even brokered an agreement between the warriors, and their conflict faded into memory. But Gráinne never forgot the love god’s warning.

One day, Fionn invited Diarmuid on a boar hunt high in the mountains. While the two were riding, a venomous boar charged them and mortally wounded Diarmuid. As he bled, the old warrior begged his friend for water, as all the Fianna knew drinking from the hands of Fionn Mac Cumhaill could save their lives. But as Fionn turned to aid Diarmuid, his old resentments came rushing back. For just a moment, his fingers parted, letting the water trickle to the ground. And by the time Fionn realized his mistake, it was too late. And the embers of rage that long burned inside him were finally quenched by tears.