December 2017 – Irish Celtic Warrior Hero Cuchulainn
The session covered:
More exploits of the Irish Celtic warrior hero Cuchulainn, the greatest hero the world has ever known.
This session carried on with the story of the Champion’s Portion. After many trials of their strength and courage, Cuchulainn won the contest and claimed the Champion’s Portion. Consistently, Cuchulainn showed greater strength and courage than the other two warriors, Laoghaire and Conall. However the crucial thing was that he was also an honourable man. He kept his word and stayed to face another giant, when the other two turned tail and ran. That was what made Cuchulainn a true champion.
November 2017 – Cuchulainn
The session covered:
More exploits of the Irish Celtic warrior hero Cuchulainn, the greatest hero the world has ever known.
Cuchulainn was called Setanta when he was born and given the warrior name of Cuchulainn when he was nearly seven years old after he killed a guard hound in self-defence and replaced the hound by defending its owner’s property until a new one was trained. The hound was owned by a smith called Culann, Cuchulainn means ‘The Hound of Culann’.
The wooing of Emer – Emer was the daughter of Forgall of Leinster and was the most beautiful woman in Ireland. Cuchulainn wanted Emer and she set him some trials to win her hand. It was during these trials he travelled to Skye with the aid of a magical wheel provided by his father Lugh the Celtic sun god. In Skye he trained with Scathach a great female warrior and became an accomplished warrior and gained Gae Bolga a barbed spear which would split into 30 barbs. It was also here he had the prophesy that he would live three and thirty years and die at the peak of his glory. Eventually Emer was his.
Throughout there was a discussion on how he met the list of attributes of the hero.
The Champion’s Portion – We started this rollicking and entertaining tale of the Champion’s Portion. Bricriu was a Chieftain of Ulster who built the finest house in a year and a day and invited warriors Cuchulainn, Laoghaire and Conall Caernach, amongst others to a magnificent feast with the intention to cause discord. Though they were wary and set conditions Bricriu managed to set seeds of dissension as the tale progressed. The Champion’s Portion was a fabulous part of the banquet which would be given to the best warrior. Bricriu told each of the three warriors they would have it and should send their charioteers to claim the portion as theirs. The ensuing fight is described in detail with hyperbole, and continues until it is realised that Bricriu had a hand in the proceedings. Bricriu then spoke in turn to Fidelma the wife of Laoghaire, Lendar the wife of Conall and Emer setting in motion another chain of events which involved unseemly sprinting and the near destruction and restoration of Bricriu’s new house.
This provided the storyteller with more opportunities to illustrate Cuchulainn’s strength and skills.
References:
Wayland D Hand, “Boundaries, Portals and other Magical Spots in Folklore” Folklore Society, University College (1983)
Claire O’Kelly, “Concise Guide to Newgrave”
October 2017 – Conall Caernach
The session covered:
The exploits of the Irish Celtic warrior hero Conall Caernach, including the story of the Boar of Mac Dathro, in which Conall got the better of the Connacht champion Caet Mag Macha.
There was also a discussion on the part hero/part fertility god aspects of Conall’s character, and the suggestion that he started his mythological career as a god, who was given a warrior hero persona over time, as his story was told and retold.
Started a new hero called Cuchulainn and discussed his unusual origins and childhood – tradition of a triple birth with a human mother and the sky god as his father, setting out for Emhain Macha to begin his warrior training when he was just five years old.
September 2017 – Cattle Raid of Cooley
The session covered:
The cattle raid of Cooley involving Queen Medb of Connacht, her consort Aillil, a young Cuculainn, Ferghus Mac Rioch, Cormac and Conall Caernach.
There are recurring themes of betrayal, loyalty and honour.
Symbolism such as running water at a ford which is linked to magic, wizards could not cross, a crossing point from this world to the other world, so was an access point for gods.
The tale uses exaggeration to entertain the audience and for example to show how great a warrior Cuculainn was.
References:
Marie Heaney, “Over Nine Waves: A Book of Irish Legends”, ISBN: 9780571175185, 1995
As at November 2017, this is available on the internet.
In addition there is a wealth of information on the stories and characters on the internet.
August 2017 – Characteristics of the Mythical Hero
June was away, this was a free group session.
The session covered:
A discussion driven by selecting heroes, this covered Beowulf, King Arthur/Lancelot and Robin Hood, and tying up their characteristics with the list provided. It was interesting to see how many different legends had evolved around each one.
It was a short high level session and it was suggested that these heroes could be discussed further in future.
Characteristics of the Mythological Hero – transcribed from June’s notes
1/. The hero generally belongs to the aristocratic warrior society of his time
2/. The hero is superhuman, not like ordinary men. He has superhuman strength, daring, courage, beauty. The hero also has unusual origins that mark him out as special from birth (e.g. mixed god/human parentage).
3/. The hero is not just a macho man. He is cultured as well. He does not always depend on strength and courage alone; he can use cunning and brain power to get himself out of trouble.
4/. The hero is usually courteous, kind and fair in his dealings with anyone who plays fair with him. But whenever he encounters rudeness or unwarranted aggression, or meanness, or cowardice, he will give as good as he gets.
5/. For the hero fairness, honour, reputation, loyalty, are all-important, and must be safeguarded. If a hero loses honour, or his reputation he has lost everything. The hero follows the warrior code of conduct. He fights strictly according to the rules, and respects his opponents, because his own honour and reputations as a warrior depend on doing just that.
6/. The hero has a restless spirit. He is not content to settle for the limitations of human existence. He longs for adventure and goes to find it. He tries to fight against his own mortality, and to do great deeds so that his name at least will live forever.
7/. The hero often dies a tragic and/or untimely death. He espouses the idea of a brief life filled with glory, again so that his name will live on after he is gone.
8/. Through his career, the hero often has help from the gods, but this help is not unconditional. I he offends the gods, they will turn against him.
9/. The hero is very likely to offend the gods, because he has failings. He knows the rules, and the importance of following the rules, but he does not always do it. The hero can be rash, devious, mean-minded, boastful, ungrateful, overbearing, foolish, arrogant. Worst of all perhaps, so far as the gods are concerned, he can get above himself and forget that while he is superhuman, he is not yet as god. When the hero steps out of line, one or more of the gods, or Fate, will intervene to bring him back to earth.
July 2017 – Heroes From Celtic Myths and Legends
The session covered:
A recap of some of the information about hero Conor Mac Nessa – the mythological King of Ulster. Conor possessed all the most desirable qualities in a king- skilled warrior and wise and fair in his judgements, but there was also another less positive side to his character.
The legend of Deirdre and the Sons of Uisnech. In this legend there was a beautiful girl called Deirdre, a nurse, a Druid, Conor Mac Nessa, a young handsome warrior called Naoise who was one of the sons if Uisnech and a prophecy concerning the future of Ulster. All did not end well for Ulster via a very complicated narrative involving duty, symbolism, betrayal, and conflicting and unresolvable loyalties.
There were a large cast of characters including Ferghus Mas Rioch a Red Branch champion who was a complex character of prodigious appetites but a strong moral code. It was suggested in earlier mythology that he was a fertility god who then morphed into a warrior hero. Ferghus is also featured in the epic tale of the Cattle Raid of Cooley along with Queen Medb of Connacht.
These myths are very early, for example The Book of the Dun Cow was written in the 12th century using language seen in the 8th century.
References:-
Proinsias Mac Cana , “Celtic Mythology”, Littlehampton Book Services Ltd, 1969
Michael Dames, “Ireland A Sacred Journey”, Element Books; New edition, 2000
Miranda J Green, “Dictionary of Celtic Myth and Legend”, Thames & Hudson; 2nd Edition,1997
As at September 2017, these are available on the internet.
June 2017 – Heroes From Celtic Myths and Legends
The session covered:
The introduction of the topic – Heroes from Celtic myths & legends with some general information on the aristocratic warrior society that forms the background to the Hero myths.
Characteristics of the mythological hero – a warrior, handsome, brave, strong, skilled fighter, superhuman with unusual origins, strong sense of honour and loyalty and playing by the rules, a restless spirit, a close relationship with the gods, and help from the gods in his career. Alongside all the positives, we also noted that the mythological hero was not perfect, he had failings which often led to his downfall.
Hero Conor Mac Nessa – the mythological King of Ulster. Conor possessed all the most desirable qualities in a king- skilled warrior and wise and fair in his judgements, but there was also another less positive side to his character, as in the legend of Deirdre and the Sons of Uisnech, which will covered in the next session.
May 2017 – Creation Mythology – Creation Myths of South America
June was away this session so the group did some research and had a discussion.
The session covered:
Maya – This starts with a watery void with grandfather and grandmother deities. These deities gave birth to twin brothers one of whom was known as the Maize God who married and fathered two sons. Following a ball game the twins were summoned to the underworld where after a series of trials they were sacrificed. The Maize God’s severed head magically impregnated the daughter of an underworld god who gave birth to another set of twin brothers who were called the Hero Twins. The Hero Twins excelled as hunters, ball players and tricksters. They tricked their half-brothers’ turning them into monkey men who were patrons of all the arts.
In the Maya myth the creation is an iterative process. The creation is imperfect so the cycle ends and the god tries again. The first beings were made from mud, the second from wood, third is flesh and the fourth is maize dough which is the current cycle.
Valleys of the Chibcha – These people lived in the mountain valleys of what is now Colombia to the North of the Inca empire. Their myth starts with darkness then the god Chiminigagua sets the light within him free using a flock of great black birds to disperse it. Later he sets up the sun in the sky and the moon. This god did not make man this was done by a female god Bachue and her son and they procreated and their off-spring populated the world.
Inca Creation Myths – These accounts were recorded by priests, from information on pottery, architecture and the legends which survived amongst the native people. The world started as covered in darkness then out of a lake, the modern Lake Titicaca, a god called Con Tiqui Viracocha emerged. More detailed information on this can be found via the Crystalinks site, details in the reference section of this post. Many familiar themes come up.
Inca – Chac the god of rain who covered the four corners of the world.
Northern Andean Tribes – An all powerful divinity called Sibu who had the power to grow men and animals from seeds.
Rubber Ball – A new item is the rubber ball which comes up more than once and is something of an enigma. The rubber ball had associated ball courts where sacrifices and prayers were made.
Common South American themes –
Dark world, water as a source of people, birds, maize, trees and tree of life. The South American myths are bird orientated.
Common World Themes–
There are common creation myth themes such as a great flood.
Although the land masses were separate, due to climatic conditions there was a greater uptake of water into ice which lowered the sea levels considerably by around 300 feet. There would have been land bridges which we don’t see today. Changes in climate conditions would have encouraged people to migrate, taking with them their myths and folklore. It is estimated that at one point the human population may have dropped to fewer the 10,000 people.
References:-
There is a lot of information available online and in books, some of the sources used in the discussion are listed below.
Link to the map of human migration on national Geographic Site :- https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/human-journey/
World Mythology in Bite-Sized Chunks-M.Daniels-(M.O’Mara Books 2016.) Useful handbook to dip into as reference/guide. Short bibliography & website info.
Mythology – An Illustrated anthology of World Myth and Storytelling “ edited by C Scott Littleton , published by Duncan Baird Publishers . ISN 1-904292-00-3. Second hand copies are available on Amazon from about £4 + p&p, more recent edition for £10
The Maya eight edition Michael D Cole, published by Thames & Hudson ISBN 978-0-500-28902-0
The Mesoamerican Ballgame by Vernon L Scarborough 1993 ISBN 978-0-8165-1360-4
Link to Crystalinks Inca Creation Myths – http://www.crystalinks.com/incacreation.html
April 2017 – Easter – No Session Held
March 2017 – Creation Mythology – Creation Myths of North America continued
The session covered:
North America-
The myths of the people of the First Nations, this was an oral tradition so information was transcribed.
In the previous session we covered the Huron and Iroquois myths, they were located north of Lake Erie, around the USA/Canada Border.
The Maidu people were located in what is now known as California. The legend starts with a dark water filled world with two ‘persons’ floating on a raft, Turtle and Father-of-the-Secret-Society. The Earth-Initiate came down from the sky onto the raft, his face is never seen but his body shines like the sun. Similar to the Sky Father in other myths. From here the land is created by tiny amounts of mud brought up from the sea bed by Turtle. The Earth-Initiate calls his sister the sun and his brother the moon, he called the stars and they appeared. Humans were made from the red earth. Life is made to be easy but when the Earth-Initiate went back above the Coyote brought hard work. When people die they go to the spirit house in the West.
Tuscarora people are one of the 6 nations of the Iroquois from where North Carolina is now. It explains how the Sky Holder made the world and the plants and animals. A long time later he created 6 pairs of humans and told each pair where to live. The Sky Holder took the Tuscaroras further south towards the Roanoke River, and stayed with them and taught them. They were the preferred people as he did not stay with any of the others.
Haida people were located along the coast of what is now British Columbia. The Raven is the central figure who created rocks out of the water so he could rest. These became the Queen Charlotte Islands. The Raven made two women from sea shells and only later was a man created by throwing limpet shells at one of the women.
These myths have the common themes such as the ocean/water similar to the primeval sea, a mother earth type figure, sky spirits, good/evil. There are similarities between the North America and Australia myths where people are seen to have animal ancestors.
February 2017 – Creation Mythology – Creation Myths of Australia and North America
Useful Reference – A. W. Reed Aboriginal Myths, Legends and Fables, 1982, Reed New Holland, Sydney, 2000.
This can be found by searching on the internet and may be available in second hand book shops.
The session covered:
Australian creation myths continued-
Great Spirit Father – this was a belief in the south east of Australia, he was known by a number of names and in the new South Wales he was called Baiame, he was thought, non-corporeal. He shaped the earth and all on it by thought alone.
The session looked more deeply at two myths associated with Baiame. Baiame and Marmoo and Baiame and Man.
- Baiame and Marmoo – how the world created by Baiame was changed by Marmoo the Spirit of Evil and the opposite of all that was good.
- Baiame and Man – the creation of the world by thought, how day and night were created. The creation of man incorporating the wisdom and majesty of Baiame and the subsequent creation of woman.
Great Mother Myth – Most of the myths are male dominated but in some parts of the Northern Territories there is the Great Mother. The Great Mother wandered the Earth in Dreamtime and gave birth to all living things.
Diverse Themes – The Ancestor Myths which are very physical and the Spirit Myths are very different.
The group discussed how this could come about. It has been suggested ancestor myths are older than the Great Spirit myths and reflect an earlier belief system which was replaced as people became more sophisticated.
An alternative view is that the Great Spirit myths were influenced by contact with Europeans/Christians. There is a contra view which is that these were likely to be much older than that as they occur in areas where there was little or no contact such as the outback.
North America-
Covering the myths of the people of the First Nations. This was an oral tradition.
Huron and Iroquois myth. – In 1874 information was recorded from a Huron Chief when he was 70 remembering the traditions from when he was young. A woman fell from the sky and a Great Turtle brought earth from the sea bed to make land for the woman to live on. This grew larger to form a great country which was borne on the back of the Great Turtle. The woman had twins a Bad Brother and a Good Brother.
This topic will be completed next session.
January 2017 – Creation Mythology – Creation Myths of New Zealand and Australia
The session covered:
Common Themes–
There are themes which appear in creation mythology which occur in more than one culture. There are theories as to how these myths became common and widespread. Perhaps this was spread by travelling people. They have commonalities with each other which could be explained by similarities in society structure, agricultural environment so could have been used to explain the world. An alternative view is there is something fundamental within humans which lead to a need to explain things so we do not feel totally helpless. It formed a basis for discussion at the session.
How would this apply to remote areas of the world such as New Zealand and Australia?
New Zealand Creation Myths–
The New Zealand myths, these have similarities with other cultures creation myths in that they started from darkness (Te Kore) and had the sky (Ranginui the Sky Father) and earth (Papatuanuku the Earth Mother) which were separated to create a space between them. Then followed explanations for the winds and storms, the stars etc.
It is relatively small, with well-connected communities and the myths were relatively uniform across New Zealand and considered learned.
Australian Creation Myths–
Australia is more fragmented. The people were more dispersed, separate and isolated with different languages and dialects, living in very different climates and environments. There are a myriad different myths and legends for creation. They are on a more human scale.
Dreamtime and ancestor mythology was widespread. In this time is not linear, the ancestors are still here, transformed, and are part of the world. Sudden events happen.