IRISH SUPERSTITIONS

Long, long ago…

The first people in Ireland came from the European mainland around 7000 B.C., settling on the northeast coast, near what is now Larne in Northern Ireland. Around 3000 B.C., another group of settlers arrived. They used domesticated (tamed) animals and grew grain.

When the Bronze Age spread from the Middle East about 2000 B.C., metalworkers in Ireland learned to make bronze, a mixture of copper and tin which are both plentiful in Ireland.

Near 400 B.C., the Celts arrived in Ireland from the area between the Rhine and Danube rivers in Europe. Their language became what is now Gaelic, or Irish. The Celts were farmers who grew cereal grains and flax, a fiber plant. They also raised large herds of cattle and sheep along the rocky hillsides.

Druids

Little is known about Celtic religious beliefs. We do know they believed in a life after death, and in another world, called Tir na nog (Land of Youth). Their priests, who were from the educated class called Druids, offered sacrifices to the gods.

Since Christian times Druids have been thought of as wizards and soothsayers. In the pre-Christian pagan Celtic society, Druids became an intellectual class of philosophers, judges, educators, poets, historians, doctors, seers, astronomers, and astrologers.

The word Druidae is believed it to come from the Greek word drus, meaning "an oak." Dru-wid combines the word roots "oak" and "knowledge" (wid means "to know" or "to see" – from the Sanskrit vid). The oak, together with the rowan and hazel, was an important sacred tree to the Druids. Druid, then, was a title given to learned men and women possessing "oak knowledge" (or "oak wisdom").

With their concentrated system of learning which was known in Ireland as the Brehon Law, They grew more powerful than Kings. They were allowed to pass between warring tribes and were prohibited from carrying physical weapons. It is believed they could vanquish their enemies with words alone!

Training curriculum for Druids1st yearBronze Branch grammar, 20

stories, BardOgham Tree alphabet

7-9 Years Silver Branch 95 stories, prophetic invocation, Ovateand styles of

poetic composition

12-20 years Gold Branch 120 orations and the four arts of Druid poetry

It was in the 17th century that the idea that stone circles, like Stonehenge, served as "Temples of the Druids". This idea was picked up in the early 18th century in a book about Stonehenge, calling it "a Temple Restored to the British Druids”. In the 19th century, Stonehenge was dated back to a period much earlier than the time of the Druids (that is, to about 2000 B.C.E., however the Druids don't appear in any historical record until 1800 years later). Still the belief continued to be held that Druids were pre-Celtic inhabitants of Britain and that the religious beliefs and practices of the Druids were held in stone circle structures like Stonehenge.

FairiesNot only were Druids able

to foretell the future, they also had magical skills. The famous Irish hero, Cuchulainn, was said to have returned from the land of the fairies after he met and fell in love with a fairywoman named Fand. Unable to forget her, he was given a potion by the Druids to make him forget his most recent adventures and ease his wife’s jealousy.

The ancient Celts not only believed in the magical powers of the Druids; they believed in an entire civilization of fairy folk.

Also known as dullaghan, far dorocha, Crom Dubh, he is often seen around midnight during Irish festivals or feast days. He is described as a wild, black-robed horseman riding a snorting steed as black as coal across the countryside. He has been seen carrying his head on the saddle horn of his horse or raised high in his right hand. The head is the color and texture of stale dough or moldy cheese, and very smooth. A broad, hideous grin spreads from ear to ear. The eyes are small and black; they dart about like malignant flies. The entire head glows from decay and the dullahan uses it for a lantern to show the way along the dark, narrow roads of the Irish countryside. Wherever the dullahan stops, a person dies.

The dullahan possesses supernatural sight. When he holds his severed head high in the air, he can see for great distances. Using this gift of sight, he can spot the house of a dying person, no matter how far away it may be. People who look out their windows to see him pass are rewarded by having a bucket of blood thrown in their faces or by being blinded in one eye.

The dullahan uses a human spine for a whip. His horse emits sparks and flames from its nostrils as it races past. In County Tyrone, the dullahan is said to drive a black coach known as the coach-a-bower (from the Gaelic coiste bodhar which translates as 'deaf or silent coach'). The coach is drawn by six black horses, and speeds by so fast that the sparks from the wheels hitting the road sets the bushes on fire along the sides of the road. Every gate magically opens to let the coach through, even if it is locked, so no one is safe from the dullahan.

The Pooka

Of all the fairies, none is more feared in Ireland than the pooka. It is always seen at night, creating harm and mischief, and it can transform itself into many terrifying forms.

The pooka most often appears as a sleek, dark horse with sulphurous yellow eyes and a flowing, wild mane. It roams the countryside after dark ripping down fences and gates, scattering livestock in terror, trampling crops and causing damage to farms.

In County Down, the pooka changes into a small, deformed goblin who demands a share of the crop at the end of the harvest. That is why some of the crop, called the 'pooka's share', is left behind by reapers even today. In other areas, the pooka turns into a huge, hairy monster who terrifies anyone who goes out at night; in Waterford and Wexford, he appears as an eagle with a massive wingspan; and in Roscommon, as a black goat with curling horns.

The Pooka

The mere sight of the pooka prevents hens from laying eggs or cows from giving milk. He terrifies late night travelers by swooping them up on to his back and then throwing them into muddy ditches or bog holes. The pooka has the power of human speech, and has been known to stop in front of certain houses and call out the names of those he wants to take upon his midnight rampages. If the person refuses, the pooka will destroy his property out of sheer vindictiveness.

The name “pooka” may come from the Scandinavian pook, which means 'nature spirit'. Such beings were very moody and had to be constantly placated or they would tear up the countryside, destroying crops and causing illness among livestock.

Changelings

Fairy women in Ireland find birth very difficult. Many fairy children die before birth and those that do survive are often deformed.

The adult fairies are repulsed by these deformed infants and will refuse to keep them. They trade them for healthy children whom they take from humans. The wizened, ill tempered creature left in place of the human child is generally known as a changeling and has the power to work evil in a home. Any child who is not christened or possesses charm and beauty is particularly at risk of being stolen.

It is their temperament, however, which most marks the changeling. It often howls and screeches throughout the waking hours, producing a sound and frequency that try the bounds of mortal endurance.

There are three types of changelings: actual fairy children; senile fairies who are disguised as children or, inanimate objects, such as pieces of wood which take on the appearance of a child through fairy magic. This last type is called a stock.

Changelings often have physical deformities; a crooked back or lame hand are common. About two weeks after their arrival in the human household, changelings will already have a full set of teeth, legs as brittle as chicken bones, and crooked hands like a birds' talons covered with light, downy hair.

Ill luck will come to a family with a changeling because it will drain away all the good fortune that might come. So families who are cursed with a changeling are very poor, struggling desperately to feed the ravenous monster in their home.

A changeling’s features appear wrinkled and aged with yellow, parchment-like skin. This fairy also has very dark eyes, which glow with a wisdom far older than its apparent years.

As it grows up, the changeling may take up an instrument, often a fiddle or the Irish pipes, and will entrance everyone who hears it.

The Grogoch

Grogochs began as half humans, half-fairy aborigines who left Scotland to settle in Ireland. The grogoch resembles a very small old man, covered in coarse, reddish hair or fur. He wears twigs and dirt from his travels. Grogochs are not noted for their personal hygiene: there are no records of any female grogochs. The grogoch can withstand searing heat or freezing cold. He lives in caves, hollows or clefts in the landscape. In many parts of the northern area of Ireland, there are large leaning stones which are known as 'grogochs' houses'.

A grogoch can make himself invisible and will let just certain trusted people to see him. He is quite sociable and he may even befriend certain humans and help them with their planting and harvesting or with domestic chores in exchange for a jug of cream.

He likes to scuttle about in the kitchen, looking for odd jobs to perform and will invariably get under people's feet. Like other fairies, the grogoch has a great fear of the clergy and will not enter a house if a priest or minister is there. If the grogoch is a nuisance, it is best to get a clergyman into the house and drive the creature away so he can torment someone else.

The Banshee

The bean-sidhe is a woman fairy believed to be an ancestral spirit who comes to forewarn members of certain ancient Irish families of their time of death.

The banshee appears in three different forms: a young woman, a dignified matron, or an old hag. She represents the Celtic goddess of war and death. She usually wears either a hooded cloak or the winding sheet of a corpse. She is often pictured washing the blood stained clothes of those who are about to die.

In some parts of Ireland, a banshee is referred to as the bean chaointe (keening woman) who makes a wailing cry so piercing that it shatters glass. The sound has been described as "a thin, screeching sound somewhere between the wail of a woman and the moan of an owl".

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Leprechauns

Some believe the name leprechaun comes from the Irish leath bhrogan (shoemaker), others say it comes from luacharma'n (Irish for pygmy). These diminutive old men are frequently found in an intoxicated state, caused by home-brew poteen. However they never get so drunk that their hands become unsteady enough to affect their shoemaking work.

Leprechauns guard ancient treasure, burying it in kettles or pots. This may be one reason why leprechauns tend to avoid contact with humans whom they regard as untrustworthy, greedy creatures. If caught by a mortal, he will promise great wealth in exchange for his freedom. He carries two leather pouches. In one is a silver coin that returns magically each time it is paid out. In the other, he carries a gold coin which he uses to bribe his way out of difficult situations. This coin usually turns to leaves or ashes once the leprechaun has parted with it. Never take your eye off a leprechaun -- he can vanish in an instant.

Leprechauns form two groups - leprechaun and cluricaun. Cluricauns are known to steal or “borrow” things, under the cover of darkness, raiding wine cellars and breaking into pantries. They will also harness sheep, goats, dogs and even domestic fowl and ride them throughout the country at night. The leprechaun is known as Ireland's national fairy. They can also be called lurachmain, lurican, lurgadhan.

The Merrows

“Merrow” originally referred to the Gaelic words muir (meaning sea) and oigh (meaning maid) so they were a type of mermaid. Mermen - the merrows male counterparts - are rarely seen. In appearance, mermen are hideous and scaled, with pig-like features and long, pointed teeth. Merrows, though, are very pretty and known for their flirtations with mortals.

Merrow differ in appearance from humans. Their feet are flatter and their hands have a thin webbing between the fingers like a frog’s foot. Don’t think that merrows are kind and well-meaning towards mortals. Part of the sidhe, or fairy world, they live in Tir fo Thoinn (the Land beneath the Waves) and they have a natural hatred for humans. In some parts of Ireland, they are considered to be messengers of doom and death.

Merrows swim through ocean currents in special clothes that give them speed. Sometimes they are seen wearing a small red cap made from feathers, called a cohullen druith. They have also been seen wrapped in sealskin cloaks to disguise themselves as seals. To come ashore, the merrow must leave her cap or cloak. If any human finds them, he will have power over her since she cannot go back into the sea until she has them. Irish fishermen have been known to hide a merrow’s cloak in the thatches of his house, to persuade a merrow to marry them. Merrow brides are very rich, with fortunes of gold they have discovered in shipwrecks beneath the sea. The merrow, though, will search out the cloak to return to the sea and she will leave her human husband and children behind.

Fairies are thought to live in what we call a middle world, between that of living humans and the Otherworld of the dead. It is said that Ireland has the greatest knowledge of the fairy world. They even have maps of paths between fairy forts where they live. Fairy forts are called raths. They are the ruins of old houses dating back centuries to the Celts. The Irish believe that the Druids worked their magic in these raths and their magic still surrounds them. There are over 2,000 raths in Ireland.

Other fairy sites include oddly shaped trees or bushes that stand in a meadow all alone. Mountains and forests are another favorite hiding place for fairies.

Other Irish Superstitions

Because the Irish have such a long history of believing in magic, fairies, and ghosts, is it any wonder that they have many superstitions which serve as a guide on how to live their daily lives? Here are some of their superstitions. Don’t be surprised if you have heard of a few. The Irish brought their superstitions with them when they immigrated here during the Great Potato Famine in the middle of the 1800s.

A child born at night is believed to have the ability to see ghosts and fairies, and if the child is fortunate enough to be born at the stroke of midnight, it is thought that the child will be very intelligent, perhaps even a poet of excellence.

Three is the most important number in Ireland. This belief dates back to ancient times. Early literature refers to several Celtic deities who were triplicate. Major events in folk tales often occur three times, and triads figure prominently in Irish proverbs. The number three has connotations of roundness and totality and many ritual acts such as walking around a bonfire on St. John’s Night or doing rounds at a holy well were performed three times. If someone dreamed of the same thing three nights in a row, it was though that the dream was true.

An ancient tendency among the Celtic peoples was to consider fair hair especially beautiful, deriving from the notion that brightness was a divine trait.

A “cow lick” or tuft of hair standing up over the forehead was taken as a sign of health and intelligence in a child.

Never cut a baby’s fingernails until it is one year old, or it will be “light-fingered” and become addicted to stealing.

There is nothing more dreaded by the Irish or considered more dangerous than the Evil Eye. If someone gives you the evil eye early in the morning, your luck will be bad the entire day. If the evil-eyed person recites a curse over a sleeping child, the child will surely die. In order not to be accused of having the evil eye, it is best to say a blessing out loud over the child so all can hear and know you wish the child no harm.

The bed of someone who is ill must be placed north and south never crossways.

If you are pursued at night by an evil spirit, or ghost of the dead, and you hear footsteps behind you, try to reach a stream of running water. If you are able to cross it, the devil or ghost will not be able to follow you.

Friday is the unluckiest day of the week, and no one should begin a journey, or move into a new house, or begin a business, or cut a new dress pattern on a Friday. Never EVER bring a cat from one house to another on a Friday.

The first person seen by a cat that has wiped it's face with it's paws may be the first of a household to die.

If the palm of your hand itches you will be getting money.

Breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck.

Marry in May and rue the day. Marry in April if you can, joy for maiden

and for man.

Irish legend holds that a man once lived who was known as Stingy Jack. He invited the Devil to have a drink one night at the pub, but when it came time to pay, he persuaded the Devil to change into a sixpence. Instead of paying for the drink, though, Jack plopped the sixpence in his pocket and kept it stored next to a silver cross which prevented the Devil from changing back. In the end, Jack made a deal with the Devil -- before he set the Devil free, the Devil had to promise not to harass Jack. The following Halloween, Jack died and his soul was turned away from the Gates of Heaven. He went to see the Devil, but the Devil told him to go away because Jack had made him promise not to claim his soul.

But Jack didn't want to leave because it was pitch dark and he couldn't find his way. The Devil tossed Jack a glowing coal for Jack put inside a turnip, and ever since, Stingy Jack's evil soul has been roaming the faces of this earth carrying his “Jack ‘o Lantern”. 

If 3 people are photographed together, the one in the middle will die first. THIRTEEN

If 13 people sit down at a table to eat, one of them will die before the year is over. UMBRELLA

Dropping an umbrella on the floor means that tIf the person buried lived a good life, flowers will grow on the grave. If the person was evil, weeds will grow. MIRROR

If a mirror in the house falls and breaks by itself, someone in the house will die soon.here will be a murder in the house.

On Twelfth Night the dead walk, and on every tile of the house a soul is sitting, waiting for your prayers to take it out of purgatory.  

Redheads are thought to be harbingers of ill luck. The superstition was said to have stemmed from the legend about a goddess named Macha, who is often associated with horses and races. Her husband, Cruinniuc, often bragged about her running speed.  When the king of Ulster heard this, he dared Macha to race with his fastest horses. Even though Macha was then pregnant, if she failed to win, her husband would be executed. Despite her pleas for mercy, she was forced to run. Macha finished in first place, but exhausted, she underwent premature delivery in the field and bore twin sons. She then cursed the Irish men and their descendants, that they would experience pains as excruciating as those during labor. In the famous battle of Ulster, her curse spared her twins and 17-year-old Irish legendary warrior Cúchulainn. Consequently,  the young hero was able to win the war without soldiers backing him up. Macha, who just happened to be red-haired, has been greatly feared ever since.

In general, red-headed people are often said to be of fiery temperament. Meeting a red-haired woman is also believed to bring bad luck. Other current superstitions related to red hair are that a man bumping into a female redhead on his way to work will procrastinate and go back home, and a male or female redhead in a red coat is a bad luck omen.

When Ireland adapted the Christian religion years later, Oíche Shamhna became Hallowmas (later called Halloween) and All Saints’ Day. October 31 is the official Halloween date, November 1 is All Saints’ Day, and November 2 is All Souls’ Day. On these days, people commemorated the lives of the dead and honored them through offerings, prayers, and sacrifices.

It is believed that the spirits are at their most potent during the Oíche Shamhna. A great number of superstitions have evolved from this season, which is still observed. Among these superstitions are:

Birds such as ravens and water-wagtails are Satan’s messengers of bad luck;

Leave an ivy leaf soaked in water overnight, and when no spots form on the leaf, then the person doing the ritual will have a year of good health;

Tossing hair locks into the bonfire will result in a dream of a future mate;

Throwing dust on the feet of fairies and goblins will make them release the souls they have seized;

Blackberries should not be part of meals of this season because they will attract the puca, a shape-changing creature that causes widespread damage. The puca will emit slime and those who eat the slime will be ill;

Food should be offered to the wandering spirits because they also need nourishment—when the food disappears, the spirits have eaten it. Tradition dictates that food of the dead should not be consumed by humans;

Never look back upon hearing footsteps because spirits will be seen and when they stare back, they can kill;

Calling someone’s name three times can be deadly to the name-owner.

After recovering from an illness, swear not to comb your hair on a Friday or kneel and pray facing the full moon to express gratitude for the grace to live on until death.

For their child to not have a club-shaped foot, married women should avoid stepping on graveyards or tombs when they are pregnant.  If they did so, they should kneel down and pray immediately and make a sign of the cross on their shoe soles thrice.

Passing under a hempen rope causes death and will cause evil in the next life.

Hair locks should be hidden from birds. Headaches will befall the owner if a bird brings the locks to its nest.

Shaving every Sunday starts toothaches; to prevent it, always have the jawbone of a haddock as a talisman.

Place an earthworm inside the hand of a newborn seventh son and let it stay there until it dies; this will enable the infant to possess the power to cure when he grows up.

Dropping coins while onboard a boat can bring a heavy storm.

A person who looks at a cat rubbing its paws on its face will die ahead of his housemates.

Walking counterclockwise twelve times around the Black Church in St. Mary’s Place will make the devil appear and grant any wish to the witness provided that the devil takes the witness’ soul upon death.

One form of witchcraft makes a person ill or violently harmed by nailing his photo on an oak tree or placing it upside down in front of a pitcher filled with water.

A ritual for invisibility: Cut a raven’s heart into three, place beans inside each portion, and then bury them right away. When the bean sprouts, keep one and place it into the mouth. Invisibility occurs while the bean is inside the mouth.

Wearing an iron ring on the ring finger relieves rheumatism. Tying the seeds of a dock (a type of weed) to a woman’s left

arm will result in pregnancy. To cure tonsillitis, apply hot potatoes placed in a stocking on

one’s throat. There are two ways to cure a child’s mumps: one is rubbing

the head of the child, covered with blanket, behind a pig so the infection will transfer to the animal; another is gathering black stones before the sun rises and casting three of them in God’s name, another three in Christ’s name, and the remaining three in the Virgin Mary’s name, while the sick child with a rope on his neck is tied to a holy well. The second way is effective when done on three consecutive mornings.

To get rid of warts, get some soil under the pallbearer’s feet while attending a burial ceremony; put the soil like a paste on the wart; then make a wish that it will be gone soon.

To remove a sty on one’s eyelids, point to the direction of a gooseberry thorn nine times while chanting “Away, away, away!” 

Apply a fair amount of bull or hare’s blood or distilled water with walnuts to lighten the appearance of freckles.

Mint tied on the waist cures stomach pains. Boiling and making a drink out of a nettle (wild plant) sourced

from churchyards is believed to cure dropsy. Boiled daisies take the red out of sore eyes. Boiled milk cures boils. Rubbing unsalted butter on stitches will heal them. Letting a person sick with fever rest on the seashore will cure

him as the waves will take the fever from him. A freshly cut potato rubbed on warts and buried in the garden

afterward is an effective cure. Fishermen should keep the first salmon catch Finishing a cup of nettle soup on May 1 (May Day) prevents

rheumatism for a year. A herring tail should be rubbed on a child’s eyes during the

Epiphany on the 6th of January to avoid being sickly during that year.

Spiders kept in a bag and worn as a pendant or necklace itself will cure fever. Opening the bag will cause bad luck.

Walking around a burning flame during St. John’s Eve or Midsummer’s Eve spares one from being sick the whole year.

Covering an open wound with two fingers while reciting a prayer to the Father, Son, and the Virgin Mary will close and heal it.

If a family dies, the house can still be inhabited by others without worrying about safety, as long as a small flock of sheep will be brought in to sleep for three consecutive nights.

Taking a shorter route when taking the coffin to its grave will be taken as an insult to the dead that its soul will not rest in peace.

When taking a corpse through a march it must not fall down as this will bring chaos and tragedy to the dead person’s family.

If a newborn baby dies, his coffin should not be nailed on top otherwise his mother will never have children.

A bird entering a house is a death omen. Killing sea otters can cause death to the

slayer.

To be able to see the face of the future spouse in dreams, borrow a wedding ring and play with a piece of wedding cake by passing it through the ring thrice.

Ten hemlock leaves in powdered form mixed in food or drink act as a love potion. Likewise, the skin scraped by a woman from a corpse buried for nine days serves the same purpose. A woman ties this to the leg of her husband or lover while sleeping and removes it before he wakes up. The skin should be hidden from everyone else for her man to keep loving her.

Potions made of herbs should be paid for with silver except for love charms and incantations; they should be given and not bought.

A horse race or a 30-meter run from the church after the wedding ceremony to the newlyweds’ house brings luck to the couple.

Mothers-in-law should break bread over their new daughters-in-law’s heads to pass on their culinary and household management skills.

A horse’s rear tooth that fell off and a purse manufactured using a weasel’s covering can be amulets against greed for money.

Éireann go Brách!