Folklore | The heART of Ritual

The heART of Ritual

musings

Welcome to the MUSINGS room our digital nest. Here you will find an extensive selection of articles, poetry, prose, videos, recipes, and tutorials that journey the natural cycles, seasons, elements, and archetypes in the Celtic Wheel of the Year, as well as our Irish indigenous folklore and customs.

This is lovingly provided as a free community resource, however it is copyrighted content. As such, we respectfully ask that if you share this content outside of this dedicated space, either in whole, in part, or paraphrased, that you credit the author and source. Thank you.

The ancient roots of 'Valentine's Day'

Although the heart is probably the symbol most associate with Valentines Day, it might surprise people that the wolf can also lay claim...

Keening Traditions and the Irish Wake

When looking at the lifecycle in terms of folklore it cannot escape ones notice that many aspects of the life cycle have clearly defined...

The Hazel Tree in Irish Magic, Witchcraft and Folklore

The hazel tree was held in high and mystical regard by the ancient Irish people. In Irish mythology the hazel tree was said to bestow...

Walking Ceremonies, Processional Paths, and The Hidden History of Witchwalking

The history of Witchwalking is as old as movement itself. Like many other examples of occult knowledge, it is a legacy that often...

Sage Advice on how to see the Fae Folk

"The condition favourable to the belief that Fairies are being seen would seem to be that the right type of person should be in an...

Can Fairies Lie According to Irish Lore?

I was interested in a question that Morgan Daimler author posed regarding fairies in Irish lore and whether they are compelled to always...

Fairies and the Changing Seasons

I had a question put to me recently which I found interesting. Do fairies come and go with the seasons, and might one type of fairy be...

The Elf Stone

"The 'Elf-stone' (aka Elf-shot) is described as sharp, and with many corners and points, so that whichever way it falls it inflicts a...

Bluebell Folklore

The bluebell thrives at the start of the warmer weather but will die off from mid-June, when the trees have their full compliment of...

Spring Equinox & The Fairy Hunt

"And beyond them, almost hidden by the moon shadows, were the Lords of the Ever-Living Ones: the antlered helmets of the Wild Hunt, the...

The Fairy Wind

Some believe that the Good People travel within a 'Fairy Wind' to move from one place to another, this is why must never interfere with a...

Blúiríní Béaloidis 08 - Wind & Storms In Folk Tradition

Owing to their impact on human affairs, weather occurrences of all sorts were a source of preoccupation for our forebears, who would look...

Fairy Paths and Ghost Roads

A few posts back I wrote about the secret fairy-paths of the air, and how a person might inadvertently get whisked away being caught up...

Blúiriní Bealoidis 28 - Land & Language

Our guest for this edition of Bluiríní Béaloidis is writer and documentary maker Manchán Magan, whose recent book 'Thirty-Two Words For ...

The Irish Keening Tradition: Singing the Soul Home

Keening, which was once an integral part of the Irish grieving process, began to vanish from before the 1880’s. In many academic papers...

The Folklore of Daffodils and the Return of Spring

I noticed that the first daffodils are beginning to emerge on our local fairy fort, Rathvilly moat, so I wonder if this is a sign of...

Tír na nÓg & The Irish Otherworld

Where, or even what, is Tir na nÓg? Being a Fortean writer who happens to be Irish, as opposed to being an invested scholar or advocate...

Brief encounter with a strange sea creature in the waters off Inis Meáin

"My father was out fishing one night and something came beside the boat, that had eyes shining like candles. And then a wave came in,...

The Secret Fairy-Paths of the Air

In previous posts I wrote about the argument that a person today is so embedded in contemporary life that they have little chance of a...

An insightful description of the Leprechaun

The Leprechauns are merry, industrious, tricksy little sprites, who do all the shoemaker’s work and the tailor’s and the cobblers for the...

The heART of Ritual

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