Do you remember the founder of the Chocolate Rabbit in Lakefield, Ontario? Yes! Lois MacEachern is now retired (the store is still going strong!), and Lois has learned to play the harp.

I told her I’d share some of my harper stories with her, so, Lois… this one’s for you and For the Harpers. ☘️

When music had power

The jolly god Dagda of the Tuatha Dé Danann was the Great Father God of Irish mythology, known also as the Good God because he was good at everything.

And he had a famous harp he loved to play. We call her Uaithne (Oo-in-yeh) in our stories, although the old texts say Uaithne may have been understood as the name of the Dagda’s harper.

Either way, through the three great strains of music, Dagda’s harp could move those who heard it to grief, joy and sleep. So in the world of the Tuatha Dé Danann, music wasn’t only for entertainment: music did things.

Harp music changed emotions, changed rooms, and changed the very state of the people who heard it: music had power. Harpers know this still, don’t you!? (And probably everyone else, too!) ☘️

So, for the harpers, and for everyone who stops when we hear those strings, here are a few Irish tales:

The bards of Finn McCool

Including our beloved Cnú Deróil, one of Finn’s musicians and storytellers, who came from the Otherworld into the world of the Fianna. Fighting wasn’t the only important thing in Finn’s world; there was music, poetry and storytelling. Did you see Cnú in the above photo, checking out Lois’ fairy/chocolate bunny door? He brought his wee silver harp from the Otherworld and became Finn’s fav bard.

Harpers as memory-keepers

For centuries, Ireland’s learned tradition carried far more than entertainment. Poets, bards and harpers helped carry genealogy, history, news, music and poetry from one generation and one village to another.

They shared the stories; and that made the bards and harpers the keepers of the culture, a powerful job. (Cnú had taught the Fianna warriors to play the harp!)

When the harpers became dangerous

Under Queen Elizabeth I, as English power attacked the old Gaelic order, harpers themselves became targets.

One infamous order traditionally attributed to Elizabeth instructed officials to “hang the harpers, wherever found, and destroy their instruments.”

Wowsa.

Why would anybody be so worried about a musician?

Because these weren’t simply people providing background music. They remembered the battles, the families, the heroes and the dead; and carried those memories onward.

Think of the harpers and bards as a kind of medieval Google, except they had harps on their backs and actually knew their sources. 😂

Brian Boru’s harp — that wasn’t Brian Boru’s harp

Then there is the magnificent medieval wire-strung Trinity College harp, often called the Brian Boru Harp. It was made centuries after Brian Boru died at Clontarf in 1014, but to honour that great High King (see Bertie Brosnan’s YouTube tales and get his incredible book about Brian Boru!), the association with the High King stuck and the harp eventually became one of the great symbols of Ireland.

And yes...

Thank Guinness. 🍺 (oh, this ale is not near dark enough!)

When somebody thought to save the music

By 1792, the old Irish harping tradition was disappearing, so one person in Belfast decided a festival was in order and a call went out for all harpers to gather.

Ten harpers from all over came, and among those was a 19-year-old musician named Edward Bunting. He was given the extraordinary job of writing down the music the harpers played.

Turlough O’Carolan had been dead for more than fifty years at that point, but his music remained in the heart of Ireland. Bunting would spend decades collecting and publishing Irish music.

Someone had realized: If we don’t listen to the people who still know it, we could lose it.

And the harp still sounds

In 2011, I opened my wee Celtic Connection boutique in Lakefield, Ontario, just outside Peterborough. Nearly two hundred years earlier, this area had been transformed by the arrival of almost 2,000 Irish immigrants.

At the store, we discovered something extraordinary. Almost all the people who came in and saw our beautiful harper Jamie Brooks playing her harp had never seen a real Irish harp or heard one played live.

The harp was everywhere as a symbol of Ireland, but the sound of it wasn’t. Lucky for us in Lakefield, a modern-day bard arrived. Jamie Brooks stayed with us for a few years, playing her harp at the store and at events in the Kawarthas and she, too, saw how music does things.

And now, all these years later, Lois tells me she’s retired... and she’s learning to play the harp. Of course she is. ☘️

If you’ve enjoyed wandering through Dagda, Cnú, the harpers and the world of Finn McCool with me, I’ve gathered many of these people, gods, places and stories together in The Irish Myth Kit. It’s $9.99, and I’d love to know what you think.

Get the Irish Myth Kit — $9.99

Lois, you didn’t just pick up an instrument.

You picked up a very old story. ☘️

☘️ I made this. I love it. It’s finally here.

After years of detangling Irish mythology for myself (a passion/obsession of the highest degree), I’ve gathered incredible stories, maps of the Tuatha gods’ playgrounds, and even included 10 ready-to-use mythic cards from The Original Irish Mythic Deck.

Everyone’s heard of Finn McCool, right? Ireland’s greatest hero (yes, that prophecy is in here!) And well, this is the beginning of his big story. You’ll discover where he came from, who all these people and gods are, and how those wonderfully tangled stories fit together.

I love this testimonial most because it captures the truth of Irish mythology itself. It really is full of wonder:

“Mary, this kit is gorgeous and wonderful in the true sense of ‘full of wonder’! Loved reading through it and savouring both the stories and the jaw-dropping images.” Mary T.

If that sounds like something you’d enjoy , The Irish Myth Kit is here for $9.99:

☘️ GET THE IRISH MYTH KIT — $9.99

Sláinte! And big love hugs, the ☘️ kind,

Mary

Here are some photos to give you ideas so you can participate next year… because don't think the magic is only for the little ones! Our two top Fairy & Myth door builder contest winners this year were teenagers who came with their mothers and other family members. Fairy Fest has always been a community & family affair. We’ll be back Saturday, August 7, 2027, the Saturday following the traditional Lúnasa celebrations. (And with our piper, the amazing John Mullin!)

I shared a Finn McCool story at the storytelling circle there because the old stories are meant to be shared… and I’m a share bear, so there’s a little surprise gift for you further down the page.

And now for the mythology… a gift for you!

After years of writing about my obsession with Finn McCool and the extraordinary world of Irish mythology, I’ve finally gathered some of those stories into something new:

The Irish Myth Kit: An Introduction to the Fenian Cycle

Most people know the name Finn McCool… but when you read his full, fantastical arc, you discover he is bound by blood and fate to the shining Tuatha gods, Danu’s great family, whose tales feel almost space-age in their wonder.

They arrive in flying ships of cloud, carry weapons of pure light, and walk among magical beings who can regrow limbs…

What? Yes.

This kit is my way of opening that door for you. The full Irish Myth Kit will be available before the end of August, but right now…

I brought you a present.

Today you can have five cards from The Original Irish Mythic Deck for free. Here’s a picture of them, just scroll down to the blue button to get the link!

They’re printable, so you can cut them out, shuffle them, enjoy the beautiful illustrations… or ask a question like:

“What story do I need today?”
…and see which old story finds you.

Get Your 5 Free Irish Mythic Cards

Hi everyone,

I’m so happy to be back in Lakefield! Tammy at Sunshrine Day Spa & Salon asked if I’d bring a ‘Mini Fairy Fest’ back to Cenotaph Park to bring the magic to Lakefield’s SolarFest (aka our sidewalk sale in the most beautiful village in Canada) this year! Yes, of course I’d love to help… so you are invited… to a fun costume party!

To celebrate, we’re hosting a fun Fairy and Myth Costume Party with a Fairy Door & Myth Door Contest at Solar Fest on Saturday, August 8th from 9 am to 3 pm at Cenotaph Park. Create your own magical mini door, win prizes, and enjoy a day full of creativity and family fun. Every entry gets a special certificate from the Fairy King & Queen! Full details for the Make your Own Fairy Door or Myth Door contest and win prizes!!! and its beautiful poster are right here:

“What beautiful thing will you grow today?”ption...

Come join the magic. I’d love to see you there! With love bubbles and fairy dust,
Mary McGillis

P.S. Feel free to forward this email to someone who still believes in magic. 🍄

P.P.S.Am introducing the Supernatural Irish Myths Kit soon! Meanwhile, who’s joining me for some mythic fun?

#Lakefield #FairyDoorContest #SolarFest2026 #IrishMyths

Happy spring showers day to you… just thinking our flowers will be in bloom soon, inside and out… yippee… here’s to more beautiful sunshine in May for everyone.

If you know me, you know I love creating events and getting people together … always creating experiences from my passions …

New one coming! (Hint: not drums (yet) … If you love music, people, and can attend my event, great; or may this inspire you to create an event where you live …

For over 10 years at Celtic Connection, we hosted workshops where people made their own drums—
and there was always something special about those gatherings.

Lately, I’ve been a little obsessed with bells (in the best way)…

As I’ve been finishing my books, I kept thinking about how Irish stories were never just meant to be read—
they were shared in rooms filled with music… fiddles, harps… and bells.

So this summer, I’m bringing that feeling into real life.

I’ll be hosting a small series of copper bell-making workshops—
simple, creative, and a little bit magical.

The first one will be in Peterborough on Saturday, July 25, 2026.
(It’s a 2-hour experience where you’ll make your own copper bell to take home—something you can actually hold, hear, and keep).

I’ll share more details soon…
and if you’d like to be on the early list, just hit reply and let me know now.

Wowsa and yippee ki yay.

May the road rise to meet you,
and may a little music follow you along the way 🍀

Or a lot!

Grá mór, Big love,

Mary from Supernatural Irish

P.S. For those who remember the pre-Covid drum-making workshops…
I’ve been wondering if it’s time to bring them back?! Let me know if you’d like to join in.

Here’s a guided Brigid Breathwork meditation. It follows a simple pattern (scroll down to learn more about the pattern). Inspired by our beautiful Brigid, the ancient Irish goddess of fire, poetry, and healing.

Hi everyone! Thinking of this week of fun and hope you enjoy celebrating a beautiful St. Patrick’s Day and a beautiful Spring Equinox!

Click anywhere here to link to the Brigid Meditation and the 11 + 11 + 11 Mastery of Breath:

I’ve just finished this short breathing meditation which guides you in real time through the entire rhythm so you can breathe along. It can be practiced anytime you need calm or focus and the intent is to travel inward to fan the flame of our soul.

Why and How I Created This Video: I am in a Higgsfield Video Competition!

I’ve been practicing my breathwork, love Brigid, and I am experimenting with Higgsfield AI video tools (using character visuals to bring my Irish mythic world to light).

The red-haired Brigid-inspired figure you see is part of my visual storytelling exploration of the Finn McCool tales … hence the Higgsfield AI Trailer Competition.

The Higgsfield winner will be announced on St. Patrick’s Day. Yippee Ki Yaya!

Watch My Higgsfield Trailer Entry here:

The Tuatha Gods: The Starlit Compass | Irish Mythic Fantasy Trailer

This trailer introduces the world of my upcoming book (launching on the Spring Equinox and available on Amazon & Ingram Spark and locally):

The Starlit Compass

It’s a middle-grade Irish mythic adventure inspired by the ancient Tuatha Dé Danann stories.

Here’s the simple pattern to the Brigid Breathwork meditation:

Breathe with the rhythm of ancient Ireland.

11 breaths + 11 breaths + 11 seconds of stillness.

The Breath Pattern explained more fully:

1️⃣ Inhale through the nose into your lower belly for 5 seconds

2️⃣ Exhale through pursed lips for 6 seconds

This creates an 11-second breath cycle.

Repeat this 11 second breath cycle 11 times.

After the 11th breath, on the final exhale:

✨ Hold your breath for 11 seconds.

So the full pattern becomes:

11 breaths (5+6 seconds)

+ 11 second hold

= 11 + 11 + 11

A simple path to mastering the breath.

About My Work

I’m a storyteller exploring Irish mythology through books, videos, and visual storytelling.

My goals are to learn about our ancestors and to reconnect modern audiences with the wonder, wisdom, and imagination of ancient Irish tradition.

More videos are coming soon, as I continue sharing the world of The Starlit Compass and practicing with Higgsfield.ai!

✨ If you enjoyed this meditation, please like and subscribe. Happy Spring everyone :)

And may Brigid’s flame burn bright within you.

Has anyone here read Our Green Heart yet?
I’d love to hear your thoughts. I feel as though we’re standing on the threshold of a new way of living.

Our Green Heart: The Soul and Science of Forests is the culmination of Dr. Diana Beresford-Kroeger’s lifelong work. She is a world-renowned botanist, medical biochemist, author, and visionary. Since the 1970s, she has devoted herself to protecting Earth’s remaining virgin forests and restoring forest ecology. What makes her voice so compelling is how she weaves rigorous science with ancient Celtic wisdom: grounded, precise, and wholly transformative.

Through essays that blend her personal story with deep insight, Diana invites us into an environmental renaissance, reminding us that forests are our lungs, medicine, oxygen source, and soil renewer. They are the green heart of the living world, and our health is inseparable from theirs.

What Biodiversity Really Means

Biodiversity is the variety of life in a place: all plants, animals, insects, fungi, microorganisms, and the places they live, and this family most certainly includes us, the people. And we all depend on one another to survive.

The Bioplan: Belonging in Action

This is why Dr. Diana’s Bioplan feels so revolutionary. Its premise is disarmingly simple: over six years, encourage every person on Earth to plant one native tree where they live, care for it, and protect our remaining virgin forests, our green heart.

Not as a grand technological fix, but as a shared, lived act of belonging.

We protect biodiversity most naturally as we remember we belong to it. Our own bodies often remind us how a single organ out of sync affects everything else, yet together they create wholeness. So too with the Earth and its forests, waters, creatures, and us, all interdependent parts of one living body.

The Miyawaki Method: When Communities Work With Nature

We see this in action already. The Miyawaki Method, used in native forest projects supported by groups like the Rotary Club of Whitby, Ontario, shows what happens when people work with nature: dense forests grow faster, restore biodiversity, and bring communities closer together with beautiful memories of creating something special in their hometown.

A Story That Lingers

In the book’s closing pages, Diana shares a childhood memory from Ireland: family and friends kneeling weekly to pray the rosary for peace, with her imagining their wishes rippling outward to touch the world.

Years later, in Japan, she sat beside her friend Dr. Akira Miyawaki. Taking her hand, he said, “Now, I am no longer alone.” Together they planted trees, both knowing a global forest could become a living symbol of peace and a single new breath for the planet.

The Bioplan, the Moon, and a Shared Horizon

And yes… respect to Elon Musk for everything he’s already accomplished and for daring to push humanity toward the stars.

His vision of extending life and consciousness beyond Earth is breathtaking in scope.

Yet a self-growing city on the Moon (or Mars) would still depend on the very things we’re only beginning to fully understand and regenerate here: living soil biology, microbial diversity, pollination systems, closed water cycles, and the forest wisdom that has evolved over billions of years.

Turns out you can’t upload or export humanity without first honouring the green heart that sustains us all.

Maybe that’s the beautiful convergence point: the same bold ingenuity that reaches for other worlds could also accelerate the healing of this one.

Imagine if Elon & friends’ energy helped spread Dr. Diana’s Bioplan, with billions of native trees planted, ancient virgin forests protected, and a whole sense of belonging rekindled at a planetary scale.

We all need to get this. Not one visionary alone, but all of us together.

If This Resonates

If this speaks to you, explore Diana’s work: https://www.dianaberesford-kroeger.com/

Her Forest Bioplan has been championed by Nature Canada, who honoured her with the 2025 Mabel Frances Whittemore Award for leadership in empowering people to care for nature: https://naturecanada.ca/

There’s also the documentary Call of the Forest and a new book on the horizon! https://calloftheforest.ca/

I write about this on Supernatural Irish because belonging—to land, ancestry, and community—has always been at the heart of this space. Ireland remembers what it means to be shaped by place. Many of us do, even when we’ve forgotten how to name it.

I’ll be looking into how this might take root locally in my hometown, Peterborough, or maybe it already has (please let me know!), and what it could mean to grow something beautiful together. I’m in! Love to hear from anyone else so inspired and if there are people in your community working toward making Dr. Diana’s Bioplan a reality! Six years to grow!

Is everyone starting to come out of hibernation soon?

It feels like it’s time.
Something’s brewing… (Maybe poitín? 😄 Or a nice cuppa tea with a lot of bubbles in yours).

Imbolc has always been a quiet time (well, until the Brigid love begins) … and it will be again, even under a mountain of snow here! Any festival is a good festival, and a festival to celebrate Spring and Brigid, wow.

Twas Brigid who heard the earth sing and dream of beauty and came here to help. Still she hears the melody beneath frozen ground long before anything blooms.

Filming this dance of light felt like a true Brigid moment—when the earth remembers before we do.

Filming this dance of light felt like a true Brigid moment—when the earth remembers before we do.
At the beginning of this note is the sped-up one-minute version with an original chill song I made this week. So beautiful… and if you’d like to watch the 24-minute sound bath version, it’s premiering on Saturday, and you can click on this photo or below for a reminder!

The YouTube premiere of the full 24-minute light show is astounding and linked here … for you to enjoy after it premieres Saturday morning at 9:30 am EST. Have a glorious weekend, everyone!

If you’d like to see the full real-time version, it will premiere on YouTube Saturday, Jan 31—Imbolc Eve, accompanied by original music created this week.
Light and sound go well with:
a candle in the window,
opening a door or window (front and back if you can)—out with the old and in with the new.
And remember that spring is here to sunshine away all that winter dark!

Speaking of light and sunshine and stories…
I’ve been enjoying working on a new little book about giving children and ourselves 15 minutes of gentle myth at bedtime. It includes five Irish myths to encourage a quiet habit that helps builds the life school can’t teach.
Coming very soon. I will and I shall and I must write again! Until then, Happy Imbolc!

Hope everyone enjoyed a peaceful lovely festive season and now here we are, ready or not, 2026! Yippeee Ki Yaya!

I like to sit with the old stories the way our ancestors did,
not to memorize them, but to find myself inside them. Hope you do, too … because I do believe this:

When mythology is remembered, when we listen to the old stories and treat them with care, they don’t stay stuck in the past.
They come alive again.
They remind us who we are, help us feel less alone, and show us that even small acts of friendship and bravery can open doors we thought were closed forever.

In my retellings, you’ll meet Brigid when you’re tending a small flame,
Finn when you’re hungry for clarity,
the Morrígan when something must end,
and the Cailleach when time asks for patience.

How does the Calendar of the Ancestors help me everyday?

Number one, it’s based on ancient lore, and that fascinates me. Why?

The ancestors didn’t live by deadlines the way we do.
They lived by seasons, moons, thresholds, and returnings.

This calendar isn’t about filling our days.
It’s about noticing them.

The 2026 Calendar of the Ancestors is a quiet companion for the year ahead.
It marks old festivals, moon moments, turning points of light and dark,
and the rhythms our bodies still remember, even when our lives are busy.

I hope it inspires you the way it does me …
You don’t have to celebrate everything.

But when you have that ‘what do I have to look forward to’ feeling …

Let it sit on your wall or your desk.
Let it catch your eye now and then.
Let it remind you that you are
walking with time.

This year, I hope you share small daily beautiful and fun blessings you’ve found in a foray into the myths and ancestral whispers from your heart …
I share mine for anyone who enjoys lingering by the hearth and contemplating contemplation.

Brigid awaits us!
The fire’s already lit. Happy Women’s Christmas tomorrow! (Yes, on the Ephiphany, known in Ireland as a day for women to have some more fun!)

PS Happy New Moon on the 19th … time to make some wishes!

Grá mór, Big love,
Mary

If you’d like to download the 2026 Calendar of the Ancestors and join the mailing list, you can click here to find the pdf.

Always, a ghrá 💚✨
Go gently. The fire’s warm. Brigid’s right here.

**SAINING: Part 3

Why This Matters in Your Everyday Life

If you’ve ever wished for a calmer home, nicer mornings, or a little more light in your day, this ancient Irish practice helps because your words shape your world.

This part of the Saining Series is about the oldest form of blessing we have:
the spoken word.

The Gaels believed that the way you speak can change the atmosphere around you: soften conflict, settle your heart, bless your home, or invite peace where there wasn’t any.

“Where light is invited, darkness has no home.”
Old Gaelic proverb

Before smoke, before water, before herbs or gesture, there was something older:
the word itself.

We’ve all heard that … In the beginning is The Word (John1:1) Isn’t that intriguing? How the Word was made flesh! I loved learning of Ogma, the Irish god who championed words and inspired the Irish to become well known for their beautiful Irish blessings.

Yes, when Ogma spoke the first béla feda (bérla feda) and the trees themselves began to speak secrets. What? (Another story another day).

In Lebor Gabála Érenn, Ogma is the Tuatha Dé Danann champion who carries off the sword of Tethra after the battle of Mag Tuired, and the sword, when unsheathed, tells the deeds it has done. The weapon itself speaks. Isn’t that a gorgeous image of the Word becoming flesh becoming iron becoming story?

A spoken blessing is not an accessory to saining, it is the essence of blessing:
it is the heart of it. The Gaels believed that when a word is spoken with intention, breath can become light, and that light can become protection or a projection blessing.

To understand this, we have to meet the one who knew it first:

OGMA THE WISE: Father of Speech, Keeper of Words

Ogma (Oghma), the Irish champion of eloquence, was one of the great gods of the Tuatha Dé Danann.

They said he was so brilliant with words that:

• he could stop warriors on a battlefield (bind them with praise)

• lift spirits with a single sentence

• break curses with precision

• and speak truth in a way that made shadows retreat

Ogma is credited with creating Ogham, Ireland’s earliest writing system. Have you ever seen those slanted lines tipping and straightening out across a stoneface? Ogham
is his script carved into stone and wood like rays of light rising from a stem.

Every Ogham stroke was a beam.
Every beam could be reframed into a sound.
Every sound was a blessing or a warning, and sometimes a memory.

To carve a word was to illuminate the world.

This is why language matters to saining.

Fenius Farsaid & the Tower of Babel

Once upon a time, after the Tower of Babel fell and everyone was shouting nonsense, a wise old wizard named Fenius Farseer (it was really Fenius Farsaid, but doesn’t the name Farseer sound furfa/perfect for him?) ... so here old Fenius walked through the rubble with a big basket.

He picked up the prettiest sounds from every language in the world: the soft “sh” from one, the rolling “r” from another, the clicky consonants from a third, until he finally had the best 72 bits. (Do you wonder why he stopped at 72, too? Cosmic!)

Then he mixed them in a giant pot and cooked them with nine magic ingredients that survived the Flood (clay, blood, wool, oh that’s another story, later) until they turned into the most beautiful language ever: Irish.

He gave this new language to the god Ogma Sun-Face, who carved it into the living trees so the forest could remember everything forever. But the words were so powerful they could make kings fall in love or raise blisters on liars.

Isn’t it scary to think of this terrible power: I’m protecting you from power you’re not ready for … or I’m hoarding power because I like being special. Part of why the bards learned to tie every important truth in a triple knot: three words, three beats, three worlds.

What would you do with this power (because you do have it!):

Before the smoke rises to carry prayer, before the water is sprinkled to banish, before the juniper crackles or the hand passes over the threshold, this is the oldest cleansing that there is: the Word, when it names a thing, can truly be bound with it or banished from it.

Ogma took raw sound, his breath, vibration, the shapeless “mmm” of voice, and turned it into something with definition, direction, and power.

In other words:

• He shaped sound.

• He cut it into meaning.

• He formed it into words that could bless or banish.

• He gave sound its outline, its boundaries, its force.

The Word That Blesses: Sainim

The Gaelic verb at the root of all this is:

sainim
(pronounced SAWN-im)

Meaning:

• to bless

• to consecrate

• to make sacred

• to set apart in protection

• to charge with light

This is not a metaphor.
This is how the Gaels understood language:

Words carried intention the way candles carry flame.

To sain something was to place it inside a circle of light.

You could sain:

• a child

• a hearth

• a boat

• a marriage

• a threshold

• a year just beginning

• a year ending

• yourself

Saining uses herbs and fire and water, yes, but without the spoken word, the ritual is incomplete.

The word activated the blessing. Are you thinking of singing? Yes, words come out in different ways, but they are, nevertheless, just as effective vibrationally when spoken or sung.

Yes, in Irish tradition, the poet’s or druid’s first act of saining is often a spoken incantation; everything else (smoke, water, herbs) follows the Word.

🍃 How Language Once Carried Light

In Gaelic culture, speech was never neutral.

Words were:

• building tools

• healing tools

• directional tools

• moral tools

• magical tools

A blessing spoken sunwise could turn the year toward good fortune. How is this done, we need to know!
A curse can darken a path. And let’s not do this; the good you do is the good you get!
A prayer can make the invisible lean closer. Shiver me timbers.
A lament can carry the dead safely to the Otherworld. Now, this I believe above all.

Language is the bridge between realms.

It shapes what it names.

To speak light is to call light. Oh, that just sounds so heavenly, right?

Breath as Blessing

Every word we speak moves with the breath.

The old understanding was simple:

breath is life → life is spirit → spirit travels in words

(Think of the Hawaiian word ‘aloha’ used in greetings; it means ‘Breath of God’.)

So when a grandmother whispered:

“Sain the house.”
“Sain the child.”
“Sain the day.”

…she wasn’t just talking about blessing.
She was delivering it, through her breath, into the world.

Blessing isn’t symbolic.
It’s active.

It’s transference.

It’s light in motion.

Ogham & Saining: The Ancient Link

Ogham isn’t just scratches on bark; it’s a spoken power made visible. Kapow! Ogham isn’t mere writing; it’s a way for humans to tap into the secret speech of the woodland world, where words grow like roots and branches.

Ogham was the written form of this idea:
that words are beams of power.

• a vertical line (the world tree, the spine)

• with strokes (light, sound, intention)

• moving outward like branches, rays, or pathways

Ogham is language-as-light, carved into nature itself.

And this is why saining still works today:

Because you are not just burning herbs.
You are not just moving smoke.
You are not just sprinkling water.

You are speaking intention.
You are shaping reality with breath.
You are calling light into form.

Ogma would approve. Does that make you smile?

Why This Matters Today

If trees would talk now (if we knew how to Ogma them awake):

I bet the old oaks outside city halls would start reciting every promise politicians ever broke.
The rowan by the hospital car park would hum lullabies in the voices of everyone who ever parked there crying.
The lone birch on the edge of a clear-cut would just scream for three straight years straight until someone finally listened.

We think we’ve gone past talking trees, but maybe we’ve just gone deaf.

Ogma’s still waiting for someone to carve the right letter on the right bark with the right heart behind it. Is it you?

“Light before me,
Light with me,
Light all around me.”

You are doing what our ancestors did:

You are turning toward light.
You are choosing clarity over noise.
You are remembering who you are.

The ritual doesn’t make you mystical.
Your intention does.
Your words do.

You do.

Next Time: Light & Water:The Brigid Connection

In Part 4, we’ll explore:

• why Brigid’s flame is a saining symbol

• the holy wells dedicated to her

• how water and fire work together in blessing

• and why these rituals are still grounding today

Until then, mo chara:
may your speech be light,
your breath be blessing,
and your home be sained sunwise.

✨ The Mythic Universe Calls You to Action

This Saining Series is just one doorway into the Supernatural Irish cosmos.
Subscribe to explore mythic stories, Gaelic gods, ancestral rituals, and a world of light and lore.
➜ https://welcome.supernaturalirish.ca/calendar This is the link to the 2025 Calendar, next week comes the 2026 Calendar of the Ancestors with updated events and all traditional celebrations!

The Donnellys (along with the Dohertys, Gallaghers, O’Donnells, and a few other big north-west clans) were absolutely famous in 19th- and early-20th-century Ulster and Donegal for keeping the family Rosary on Friday night alive longer and more intensely than almost anyone else. Folklorists who collected in the Gaeltacht areas in the 1930s–1950s kept running into the same refrain: “If there was a proper Rosary said in the house on a Friday night, you could be sure there was a Donnelly or a Gallagher in it.”

A few specific Donnelly nuggets that have survived:

1. The “Donnelly Decade”
   In parts of Tyrone and south Donegal, when the family was too tired (or the ceilidh too lively) to say the full five decades, they would just say one decade very slowly and reverently and call it “the Donnelly decade.” It was considered perfectly valid because “the Donnellys always meant every single word they prayed.”

2. Rosary beads made from job’s tears or bog-oak
   Several old Donnelly women in the Glenties and Frosses area were known for making rosary beads out of the hard grey seeds of “Job’s tears” (Coix lacryma-jobi, a plant that somehow grows wild in west Donegal) or out of blackened bog-oak. These beads were said to be especially powerful against the evil eye.

3. Then there were Friday-night dances
   In the Inishowen peninsula and the Rosses, the saying was:
   “Rachaidh na Donnellys chun an Phaidrín Dé hAoine agus chun an rince Dé Sathairn”
   (“The Donnellys will go to the Rosary on Friday and to the dance on Saturday.”)
   It was half teasing, half admiring, but nobody could accuse them of hypocrisy because they genuinely did both full heartedly.

4. The miracle story from Gweedore parish (c. 1890s)
   A Donnelly fisherman from Bunbeg was swept overboard in a storm off Tory. The family started a Rosary on the shore. When the decade of the Finding in the Temple finished, the man walked out of the surf alive, still holding his cap. The priest later declared from the pulpit that “the Donnellys pulled him back with the beads.”

5. The last “Rosary houses”
   As late as the early 1970s, a few townlands in the Donegal Gaeltacht still had one or two houses everyone called “Tigh an Phaidrín” (the Rosary house). If you were out late and saw a light in the window after midnight on a Friday, you knew you could knock and join in. Two of the very last ones were kept going by Donnelly households in Meenaleck and Annagry.

So yes, my Grandma’s ‘Friday-night Rosary’ before the dancing was not just a family quirk, it was peak Donegal-Donnelly tradition. We come from a long line of people who could pray like monks and then dance the shoes off everyone else the following night.

So, the Pope basically just canonised the Donnelly Decade without realising it!

“Pray from the heart, even if it’s only ten Hail Marys”! Meanwhile, our ancestors were already 150 years ahead of this Vatican Twitter. I think he’d approve if we keep the Rosary short, the dancing long, and the stories alive.

With eternal gratitude to Grok the Great, friendly neighbourhood AI folklorist, who dug up the Donnelly Decade, the Bunbeg fisherman miracle, and Job’s-tears beads from the depths of the Duchas archives at 3 a.m. while the rest of us were asleep. He insists he works for tips or good stories and a strong cuppa tea.

Oh and if you’re a diaspora Donnelly like me, did you ever hear about the crystal tower off Tory Island? Remember Balor the scary Fomorian leader? Well, his wife was the prophetress Cethlenn and their daughter … so many stories, so little time! But suffice it to say: Grandad didn’t drown, he just got swept out near Tory on a Friday night… obviously he popped through the glass wall of Balor’s tower for a quick pint with the old Fomorian lads, said one slow decade with Cethlenn, then swam home in time for the dance on Saturday.

Makes perfect sense. The tower’s door only opens for people who can pray a proper Donnelly Decade from the heart. Everyone else just bounces off the crystal like a seagull hitting a lighthouse. So they didn’t just see the tower, I think our ancestors basically had a family membership. Explains everything, really.

And now I’m picturing Balor himself muttering, “Another bloody Donnelly … let him in, Cethlenn, he’s brought Job’s-tears beads and a bottle of poitín for the ceilidh. (I’ll share the story of Balor & poitín another day.)

P.S. I especially loved that Gallaghers were our neighbours, because it reminded me of one of my beloved professors at Trent University, Finn Gallagher. I took a George Bernard Shaw course with him in my fourth year, and his stories and beautiful Irish lilt shaped me more than he ever knew. He carried me back to my roots. R.I.P. mo chara.

✨ The Mythic Universe Calls You to Action This Saining Series is just one doorway into the Supernatural Irish cosmos. Subscribe to explore mythic stories, Gaelic gods, ancestral rituals, and a world of light and lore. ➜ https://welcome.supernaturalirish.ca/calendar.

If you have the 2025 Calendar of the Ancestors already, the 2026 version with updates and celebrations planned COMING SOON!

I love meeting people who bring pure joy to their learning and Briana Ní Loingsigh is one of those bright lights.

When I first found here on Substack @Foghlaimeoir … (means Learner because she is an Irish Learner extraordinaire) I reached out to see if I could interview her for my YouTube channel and she graciously agreed.
We had a wonderful conversation (you’ll see little moments from it in my recent Reels and Shorts), and what struck me most was her delight in the Irish language. She brings such kindness and enthusiasm to everything she does.

So when I saw her announcement about this workshop led by her friend and supported by Briana, I knew I had to share it (mainly because I had a tech glitch and lost most of our original interview (saved 3 shorts from it, thankfully!):

Ceardlann faoin Chopail — A Workshop on The Copula

This Saturday, Nov 29
10:00am–2:30pm EST
(1.5-hour break in the middle)

Tomorrow’s workshop is for more advanced beginner speakers of the Irish language than newbie me, and it’s led by Molly Nic Céile, creator of Gaeilge i mo Chroí, and supported by Briana, but I hope some of you see this and can check it out. Looks amazing!

Here is what Molly has to say about the workshops…

Ceardlann faoin Chopail: Workshop about the Copula

Ever wonder why some sentences begin with ‘tá’ and others with ‘is’? or maybe you know why but still struggle to get it right? Ná bí buartha - don’t worry! This is one of the most common mistakes to make in Irish. That’s why I decided to host a workshop about it so that you can speak Irish with more muinín. There will be a variety of activities to really hammer it home.

A good vocabulary is necessary so this is ideal for advanced beginner to lower intermediate.

Here’s Briana’s announcement with the full details and sign-up link:
👉 Link to Briana’s Workshops:

https://gaeilgeimochro.as.me/

I love seeing Irish creators lifting each other and creating spaces where learners feel welcome and supported.
This is exactly the kind of community spirit I hope to continue celebrating here at Supernatural Irish.

Go n-éirí libh an deireadh seachtaine seo —
May you all have success this weekend. 🌿✨

Grá mór, Big Love & happy weekend to all :)

Part 2: Saining Series

Juniper smoke has long been used across Celtic lands to bless, clear, and protect.
When you sain (SAWN) your home, your objects, or yourself, you’re stepping into an ancient Gaelic ritual of renewal.

Saining (pronounced ‘SAWNing’) is more than a word … it is a pattern.
A way of blessing, clearing, and beginning again that our Gaelic ancestors carried through every threshold of life.
I choose fire, water, herbs, and prayer for saining. Here’s an example (and then scroll down next to see the five old country examples!):

👉 The first Saining Series YouTube video: SMOKE to Bless/Sain
(“Saining with Cedar — A Simple Home Blessing Ritual”) (Modern evergreen, same ancient intention.)

Smoke to Bless (Sain)

The rituals below come directly from The Carmina Gadelica (1900), field notebooks from the School of Scottish Studies, and the lived memory of families in the Highlands, Hebrides, and rural Ireland, mine included.

Five Real Celtic Blessing Rituals from the Old Country

These were the everyday rites that shaped life in a world lit by hearth fire and held together by community.

1. Saining the Newborn: Leanabh Ùr

When: First night home
Medium: Juniper smoke + spring water

Ritual:
The mother carried her baby sunwise around the hearth three times.
Juniper branches smoldered in the fire.
The grandmother drew the smoke toward the tiny face and whispered:

“Sain the child,
sain the mother,
sain the house.”
(Sàin an leanabh, sàin a’ mhàthair, sàin an taighe.)

Meaning:
Protection, belonging, and the blessing of safe beginnings.

2. Saining the Hearth: Àirigh an Teine (Hogmanay Eve)

When: Last night of the year
Medium: Embers + salt water

Ritual:
The family raked the fire into a circle, closing the old year and opening the new.
Salt water was sprinkled sunwise through every room while repeating:

“Sain the fire,
sain the house,
sain every limb.”
(Sàin an teine, sàin an taigh, sàin gach ball.)

Meaning:
A spiritual “house reset” to clear the year behind and to bless the year ahead.

3. Saining the Boat: Sàin a’ Bhàta

When: Before the first trip to sea
Medium: Seawater and a rowan branch

Ritual:
The skipper poured seawater over the bow.
A sprig of rowan was tied to the mast.
Crewmen recited:

“Sain the boat,
sain the sea,
sain the fish.”
(Sàin a’ bhàta, sàin a’ chuan, sàin na h-èisg.)

Meaning:
A rite of protection, luck, and harmony with the living sea.

4. Saining the Threshold: Sàin an Dorais

When: Moving into a new home
Medium: Holy well water + shared bread

Ritual:
Water from a named well (St. Columba’s, St. Bride’s, or a local spring) was sprinkled over the lintel sunwise.
A family bread was broken and shared.

Blessing:
“Sain the door,
sain the path,
sain all who enter.”
(Sàin an dorus, sàin an t-slighe, sàin gach neach a thig ann.)

Meaning:
Protection for the home, a welcome for the weary, and a promise of a welcome for everyone who enters carrying peace.

5. Saining the Bride: Sàin na Bainnse

When: Wedding morning
Medium: Spring water + silver coin

Ritual:
The bride’s mother poured spring water into a silver cup.
A coin was dropped in for luck.
The water was poured over the bride’s hands while saying:

“Sain the young woman,
sain the marriage,
sain the day.”
(Sàin a’ bhean òg, sàin a’ phòsadh, sàin an latha.)

Meaning:
Blessing, prosperity, softness, and protection over the threshold of a new life passage.

Saining with Cedar (My Own Home Ritual)

I honour these ancestral patterns in my own life: a modern, simple, grounding practice using cedar, the tree I grew up with, protecting my parents’ home and family.

In my family, these other patterns involving intention showed up everywhere:

• Grandma Donnelly’s holy-water bottle that she kept near the front door

• my father’s stories of juniper smoke protection and island hearth adventures

• my mother walking the house before a big gathering, whispering a blessing over each room, her nine children and incoming family & friends

These were not ceremonies.
They were acts of love.

Acts of light.

Acts of remembering who we are.

A Living Ritual

When I say I’m saining (SAWNing) my home or myself today, I’m not inventing a new trend.

I’m simply returning to an old Gaelic verb
sainim
and asking it to work for us again.

You don’t need to believe in anything exotic.
If you can hold a sprig of cedar, light a candle, or imagine light,
you, too, can sain (SAWN).

Next Time: Part 3: The Word Itself

In Part 3, we’ll explore OGMA the WISE and a bit more about:

• what sain meant in Old Irish and Scots Gaelic

• the root verb sainim

• and how language itself once carried light (so interesting!!!)

• and why OGMA the WISE, god of speech and sacred words, still matters today

• A story of smoke becomes a story of words, and we all know words have power.

Until then:
May your doorway, your hearth, and your heart be blessed sunwise. 🌿✨

✨ The Mythic Universe Calls You to Action

This Saining Series is just one doorway into the Supernatural Irish cosmos.
Subscribe to explore mythic stories, Gaelic gods, ancestral rituals, and a world of light and lore.
➜ https://welcome.supernaturalirish.ca/calendar

Where light is invited, darkness has no home.

Part 1

What Saining Actually Is & Why It Still Works

Saining is older than religion, older than the word aura, older than Celtic Christianity itself.

At its heart, saining is a ritual that includes a combo platter of these: fire, water, herbs & prayer.

You decide which you use each day for a simple act of inviting light in.

The word sain means to bless, protect, or set something apart as sacred.

In Scots Gaelic, sain still carries the meaning: to bless with smoke or water; and in Old Irish, sainim meant: to bless, to consecrate or to make holy
In Scots Gaelic, sain still carries the meaning: to bless with smoke or water.

And in the Hebrides, you may still hear the old saying:

“Sain it, and let the light in.”

That sums it up; it’s a beautiful practice and a gentle way to bring light back into places where life has become heavy or tired. It’s not about banishing negativity, it’s just a nice way to get into nice thoughts and good vibes.

To me, saining is a reset.
A blessing.
A beginning again.

Why Saining Still Works

Human beings haven’t changed nearly as much as we think.

Do you crave:

• a feeling of protection

• a sense of home

• a connection to something good that is bigger than us

• a moment to breathe

• a ritual that helps us begin fresh

Saining gives us all of this in a simple, beautiful way. I’m sharing our ancestral ways, but you can make your own way to sain. It’s a great new habit to begin and may even replace a bad one!

Modern science now echoes what the old Gaelic people already knew:

• Smoke changes the atmosphere.

• Water responds to intention.

• Herbs calm the nervous system.

• Patterned movement soothes the mind.

• Light shifts human emotion.

These rituals survived because they work. We just started the dark half of the year, so enjoy a few ways to bring more light in when you feel like it or when you need it!

A Glimpse of the Old Scotland

In Part 2, I’ll share five full saining rites exactly as they were recorded in the Highlands, Hebrides, and even in Ireland, but here’s a taste.

Saining the Newborn:

On the first night home, the mother carried her baby sunwise around the hearth three times.
Juniper branches smoldered in the fire.
The grandmother stood by the cradle, drawing the smoke toward the tiny face and murmuring:

“Sain the child,
sain the mother,
sain the house.”

It wasn’t a performance; it was how you welcomed a soul into the world.
How you wrapped a new life in safety and belonging.
How you said, without saying:

You are protected.
You are surrounded.
You are loved.

Isn’t that so beautiful?

Saining the Hearth on Hogmanay Eve

On the last night of the year, salt water was sprinkled sunwise through the house.
The fire was raked into a circle to close the old year and open the new.
A simple blessing was spoken:

“Sain the fire,
sain the house,
sain every limb.”

Room by room, the family carried embers as a sign of continuity, warmth, and protection.

These were woven into the fabric of everyday life. Isn’t that so beautiful? If you don’t have a fireplace right now, be inventive with your favourite candles!

The Thread That Connects Us

When I look back on my own roots, from my father’s Hebridean people (Donald Edward), and my mother’s Northern Irish Donnellys (Joan Theresa), I see the same pattern again and again:

Small, steady rituals of light. Rituals of fire. Talk of Bride.

Saining lives in all of them:

• a bowl of water on the table before a journey

• a sprig of herb tucked into a pocket

• walking a house sunwise before guests arrive

• whispering an old blessing at the doorway

These all were rooted as acts of love.

Acts of light.

Acts of connection to the world around us.

What’s Coming Next

In Part 2, I’ll share a video of how I’ve made my own ritual tools (one involves ‘cedar wands’), so simple to make and use in a blessing ritual!

And, I’ll share all I admire about the great god Ogma and his beautiful Ogham.

And some modern, everyday saining rituals I use myself, including a simple misting ritual inspired by my grandmother, mother and sister. And how these inspired one of my sons (Part 3!)!

For now, may light be before you,
light with you,
and light all around you.

Where light is invited, darkness has no home.

Sign up to see friends and foe of the Good God Dagda come alive in 30-second reels launching their digital mythic character cards ➜ https://welcome.supernaturalirish.ca/map or visit our story page (yes, YouTube fun):

I did some shorts of the interview and include one right above here, Michael telling a story about an interview David Bowie did back in the day. Watch the full interview on the @supernaturalirish YT channel - Just click these words and you can hear all Michael’s great tales there.

One night. One resurrection....

“Lazarus” by David Bowie (from the album Blackstar, 2016). Here are the full lyrics to “Lazarus,” Bowie’s haunting final single, released just days before his death. Michael tells a story about performing this song in particular, it’s chilling. Lazarus is equal parts a farewell and a resurrection anthem.

Look up here
I’m in heaven
I’ve got scars that can’t be seen
I’ve got drama, can’t be stolen
Everybody knows me now

Look up here, man
I’m in danger
I’ve got nothing left to lose
I’m so high it makes my brain whirl
Dropped my cellphone down below
Ain’t that just like me?

Make me a deal and make it straight
I’ll tell you something
You won’t believe
I knew the news would give you a fright
But I don’t care
I can’t believe

Look up here, man
I’m in danger
I’ve got nothing left to lose
I’m so high it makes my brain whirl
Dropped my cellphone down below
Ain’t that just like me?

By the time I’m in the middle
I know I will be recognized
Who can I be now?
Then turn around, then I’m back in the middle
Of this movie, hallucinating
What a game we’re in

Look up here
I’m in heaven
By the way, won’t you tell me
Will you tell me how to get away?
Something’s calling me
I can’t say no
I will give my life
So that you can live yours
I will give my all
So that you can live yours
I will give my all
So that you can live yours

Lazarus was co-written with Enda Walsh for the Lazarus musical, a sequel to The Man Who Fell to Earth. Remember the glam rock years? His signature jazz-folk edge with existential jazz. Ah, thank God he left a legacy of beautiful music to heal our grief of losing him. The video, though, with Bowie bedridden, rising to a wardrobe portal, is pure chills. If you’re into Bowie, I think you will enjoy Michael Bell just as much. He’s a beautiful soul, fabulous entertainer and all round great guy who spent his time making Peterborough great. Yup, one of those.

If you’re in Peterborough or close enough, come see for yourself! And be warned, that “Look up here” line hits like a cosmic nudge. I mean sledgehammer.

✨ David Bowie → The Bowie Lives → Thanks Michael Bell

And for those of you who scrolled down, here’s an iconic photo, thanks to Stuart Roberts Photography, of Michael & The Bowie Lives at Del Crary Park in Peterborough.

Michael Bell & The Bowie Lives own Del Crary Park, Peterborough

Next stop: Showplace Theatre – Dec 6, 2025.

Stuart Roberts Photography – The Photo Roadies &

Thanks so much Deb Draper for arranging the interview!

The Bowie Lives! Yipppppeeee Ki YAYA!

This is where our story deepens.

In Supernatural Irish, Donn isn’t the villain of the underworld.
He’s the Custodian of the Dark, the god who holds the darkness at bay for us all.

Through his six Mythic Cards and the haunting ballad “Donn the Dark God: It’s Me Again” you’ll meet the god who walks between light and shadow, life and death, fear and compassion. Most souls only meet Donn briefly when they die and travel to his realm, Tech Duinn. But a few have been known to stay longer …

Did you hear how Finn McCool’s father, Cumhall, died?
He was the leader of the Fianna, slain by Goll Mac Morna, the one-eyed warrior who then replaced Cumhall as the leader of the Fianna warrior band.
But when Cumhall died, his soul went to Teach Duinn, the underworld ruled by his friend Donn.

This is where our story deepens.

In Supernatural Irish, Donn isn’t the villain of the underworld.
He’s the Custodian of the Dark, the god who holds the darkness at bay for us all.

To hear the rest of the father and son story and who Cumhall met in Donn’s realm, keep in touch! It’s epic! (Fionn is the Irish Homer, adventures galore here.)

🎴 Cards Featured for Donn’s Story:

1. Donn the Dark God

2. Donn of Teach Duinn

3. Donn: The Shifting Shadow

4. Donn: Custodian of the Dark

5. Donn of the Hidden Heart

6. Donn: Keeper of Balance

🎵 Song: “Donn the Dark God: It’s Me Again, My Old Friend”, an Irish dark-folk ballad with drum heartbeat, harp, and cello drone.

“I’m not your end, I’m the road you’re on, the night before the coming dawn.”

🎥 Watch the premiere by clicking these words:

✨ This marks the completion of the first cycle of Mythic Cards, from the Cailleach and Morrigan to Brigid’s flame to Finn’s Fianna to Donn’s shadow.
Completely forgot to post Cumhall and Muirne’s cards … so they’re next up in the deck! Their love story is quite beautiful. Looking forward to the song already!

So how did this saining begin? Grandma Donnelly was a class act, so lady-like and demure, but her most marked trait was her jolly laugh. And that twinkle in her eye. And her rituals!

Before marriage she played piano for village shin-digs. We never said ‘céilí’ in Peterborough: 2,000 Irish settlers had lost the Gaeilge, but never the party. But Loretta Marie Donnelly (daughter of Theresa Godfrey & Joseph Schuett) had another side. Grandma was serious about fun, but she was serious about God and his crew, too.

1. Friday after dinner Rosary, five kids and Mom & Dad kneeling on the rug.

2. Roll up the rug.

3. Friends flood in for music (Loretta was the music) and mischief.

The St. Mary Font for Holy Terrors

The St. Mary font at her front door was legendary. Knocking on the Loretta door meant you were prepared to get sprinkled. The Cathedral was just around the corner, so at any given time you might have been sent to refill her font with holy water.

We called the St. Mary Font her “pray and spray” because it wasn’t just the sprinkles of holy water. Before the door even opened, she’d be invoking the Archangel. Mmm-hmmm. That one. The prayer to St. Michael.

Have you heard it? It could scare the daylights out of you when Grandma Donnelly let it fly, eyes bright and wide, voice ringing with holy authority:

“St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the Devil…”

Oh yes, there’s more, and it was the end that scared the bejeezus out of me:

“O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan,
and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls.”

So yes, I never heard of saining back then, but I knew one hundred percent what an Irish ritual for clearing and blessing looked like. Because the moment that final Amen rang out, Grandma’s sweet laugh would return, and she’d giggle and say,

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,”
always three times, and to no one in particular.

💫

There’s a new ritual brewing at our home and it all started with one of my sons, actually. And it has all to do with saining. But that story will have to wait till the next moon. Sain away til then and scroll down to find FIVE authentic examples of saining from my Dad’s side of the family. And a new song about a cat (yep, for Samhain).

🌕

Oh! And before we leave the Loretta story, I have to share that I’m the only one named after her. She was Loretta Marie, and I’m Mary Loretta, so we always called it the Loretta Club. Any other Lorettas reading this? I say you belong, you belong (a Brigid song!).

Happy saining to you as the veil thins today (written with love on Oct 31, 2025) xo

---

Saining: No fluff. Just fire, water, herbs, and prayer.

Below are five 100% attested Scots Gaelic saining rituals — straight from the Highlands & Hebrides, documented in Carmina Gadelica (1900), folklorists’ field notes, and living memory (pre-1950s).
No fluff. Just fire, water, herbs, and prayer.

1. Saining the Newborn (Leanabh Ùr)When: First night home.
Medium: Juniper smoke + spring water.
Ritual:

1. Mother carries baby sunwise (deiseal) around the hearth 3×.

2. Father burns juniper branches in the fire.

3. Grandmother waves smoke over cradle, chanting:

   “Sain a’ leanabh, sain a’ mhàthair, sain an taighe.”
   (Sain the child, sain the mother, sain the house.)
   Source: Carmina Gadelica Vol. II, p. 112.

2. Saining the Hearth (Àirigh an Teine)When: New Year’s Eve (Hogmanay).
Medium: Embers + salt water.
Ritual:

1. Fire is raked into a circle.

2. Salt water sprinkled sunwise with:

   “Sain an teine, sain an taigh, sain gach ball.”
   (Sain the fire, sain the house, sain every limb.)

3. Embers carried to every room.
   Source: F. Marian McNeill, The Silver Bough (1957).

3. Saining the Boat (Saining a’ Bhàta) When: Before first fishing trip.
Medium: Sea water + rowan.
Ritual:

1. Skipper pours sea water over bow.

2. Rowan sprig tied to mast.

3. Crew recites:

   “Sain a’ bhàta, sain a’ chuan, sain na h-èisg.”
   (Sain the boat, sain the sea, sain the fish.)
   Source: Carmina Gadelica Vol. III, p. 174.

4. Saining the Threshold (Saining an Dorais) When: Moving into a new house.
Medium: Holy well water + bread.
Ritual:

1. Water from St. Columba’s well (or any named well).

2. Sprinkle sunwise over lintel:

   “Sain an dorus, sain an t-slighe, sain gach neach a thig ann.”
   (Sain the door, sain the path, sain all who enter.)

3. Bread broken and shared.
   Source: Calum MacLean, The Highlands (1959).

5. Saining the Bride (Saining na Bainnse) When: Morning of wedding.
Medium: Spring water + silver coin.
Ritual:

1. Bride’s mother fills silver cup with spring water.

2. Coin dropped in (for prosperity).

3. Water poured over bride’s hands:

   “Sain a’ bhean òg, sain a’ phòsadh, sain an latha.”
   (Sain the young woman, sain the marriage, sain the day.)
   Source: Oral, South Uist, 1940s (via School of Scottish Studies).

Here’s more about saining (I had an amazing Hebridean father, Donald Edward, and a glorious Irish Ma, Joan Theresa):

Here’s the simple pronunciation guide Irish-style. Say it out loud 3× and you’ll own it.

SAIN

• Irish: /sˠanʲ/ → “sahn” or “sane”

  • S = soft “s” (like sun)

  • AI = “ah” (like father)

  • N = soft, nasal (tongue near roof)

• Think: “SAHN” (one syllable, rhymes with dawn)

• Scots Gaelic: same — “sain” like sane

SAINIM (verb: I sain / I bless)

• Irish: /ˈsˠanʲɪmʲ/ → “SAHN-im”

  • SAIN = “sahn” (as above)

  • -IM = “im” (like him, but lighter)

• Think: “SAHN-im” (two syllables, stress on SAHN)

Saining (Scots Gaelic / shared Celtic root)

to sain means to bless, purify, or protect with smoke, herbs, or water.

To Sain or Not to Sain: A Celtic Ritual for Clearing and Blessing

2. Beannú (Gaeilge/Modern Irish: blessing)

From beannacht (blessing) or beannaigh (to bless).
Used for prayers, wells, or holy water rituals.

Please share your ancestral Rituals: How Our Ancestors Cleared Space and Spirit

💫 Saining wasn’t about burning away energy; it was/is about inviting light back in.

Nowadays they say energy can neither be created nor destroyed. And then you hear about sound and vibrations.

All I know for me is the power that comes through the mind, and thinking about light gives me good vibes, so I’m in.

And in the spirit of Samhain, click these words to hear a song about The Holy Ghost Cat who is the guardian of the Cave of Cats in Uisneach, Ireland, Supernatural Irish style! She’s a wild one, Miss T

!

The Folklore of the New Moon

“I see the new moon and the new moon sees me…”
Do you remember the end?

“God bless the moon, and God bless me!”

old Irish blessing

To see her over your right shoulder brings luck.
To see her through glass brings none.
And when the ring circles her, “the hen’s eye moon”, rain is coming soon.

The new moon was the reset, the hush before the sowing.
Farmers planted under her waxing light so crops would grow well.
Midwives, healers, and even butchers followed her phases, believing the body, like the land, moved with her pull.

Have you heard how Emergency rooms at hospitals are very busy on full moons? Maybe on new moons everyone stays home to write out their 7 intentions to see what comes to fruition before the next full moon. Here’s a different way to look at what your intentions might be on a new moon:

New Moon Ritual

• Light a candle, (love that song, put a candle in the window), hold up a piece of paper under her new crescent. What is on that paper?

• Write your seven intentions (try this): three personal, three about relationships you have in your life right now or calling in another, and one for your community and/or the world.

• Place them on your altar (where you keep your special things to remind you of the beauty of this world) until the full moon. At that full moon, revisit which have blossomed and honour them, release the rest, renew the cycle.

🌙 Let’s Name the New Moons Together

Why? The full moons already have their names, we’ve all heard of Wolf Moon, Blood Moon, Harvest Moon, but what of the new moons, the ones that plant our dreams in darkness? Since there are no names for new moons, it’s time to give them names of their own.

Remember our Supernatural Irish 2025 Calendar ☘️? Next year we will include names for the new moon, too, but encourage everyone to pick a new name every month, not someone else’s generic name! So let’s get personal, let’s get into personal :)

Comment below or post on social media with #SupernaturalIrish
and share your idea for what you’d call this month’s new moon.

Here are a few to spark inspiration:

• Gealach na Tosaíochta: Moon of Beginnings

• Gealach na Bríde: Moon of Brigid

• Gealach na Scáileanna: Moon of Shadows

Maybe the name you create will be the one that shines on our 2026 Calendar of the Ancestors!

Each moon name weaves another thread into the story we’re writing together.

🎶 A Song for the New Moon

🌹 And speaking of renewal…
We’ll soon be announcing the official GlowGold branding — a Canadian-made ritual of beauty inspired by Brigid’s flame and Sainte Thérèse’s shower of roses.

The GlowGold mist began as a gift from my son & now it’s readying to travel into this beautiful world of ours. 🌿💧

Stay tuned for the unveiling: it’s pure Supernatural Irish magic in a bottle. ✨

Click here for Brigid’s new song: Mist Me

💧 A blessing from Brigid for the New Moon.
Her song reminds us that ritual doesn’t have to be grand. It can be as simple as a spritz of healingrose mist, a deep breath, and a whispered intention. 🌿✨

🌕 P.S. Tonight on the new moon, I shared my new song “Amergin’s Blessing” on TikTok. But for those who don’t wander the TikTok wilds, it’s a song for dreamers between worlds. 🎶 and I’ll share it with you tomorrow!

The first poet of Ireland, Amergin, sang the world into form… or did he? I like the way he talks, so we’ll give him the title Poet Supreme, but remember who greeted him!
Tonight, under this new moon, may we all remember the power of naming,
to speak, to sing, to name what we wish to grow. 🌑✨

🌾 Why It Matters

Because when we name the moon,
we name something in ourselves.
When we honour her cycles,
we honour the turning within our own lives.

The moon doesn’t hurry or compete:
she waxes, wanes, and begins again.
So too do we.

Shine quietly this month,
grow with grace,
and remember:
even in darkness, the seeds are listening.

What are you naming into being? YeeHAW!

At the crest, Muirne pointed to a path and told him they must walk once around the perimeter before entering. It was was custom as long as she could remember, to greet the land as kin. As they approached the southwest corner, the sunlight struck a white glint in the grass. Finn ran ahead and picked up a little piece of white, rough to feel its edges but magical in it coolness. As he rose, he froze, his breath caught in his throat. Before him stood a magnificent blue deer, impossibly tall, its coat shining with the light of the Otherworld.

Their eyes met. The silence on the hill was thunderous. At first, Finn thought the creature was sending him messages, but later he would understand: the deer had opened something within him.

Behind him, Muirne had stopped mid-step. It was as it time had frozen, gifting them with a moment of understanding, a stillness that carried Tadg to them.

Later, others said Finn had carved his hunting horn from the antler of a stag he caught alone at age seven. But that wasn’t true. It was gifted to him the day the Blue Deer presented from the Otherworld. Only the naming of this special treasure was his.

He called it Dordán, the little drone, because it droned a constant hum. Like the noises he heard in his home, it wasn’t long before he didn’t notice his Dordán, and only sought it out to summon his hounds. As he grew, different sounds made themselves known to Finn, a sound to signal friends, a tone to startle foes and before long, a piercing scream to terrify them.

And so the horn had come to Earth, not born from the hunt, but from a meeting of worlds, where quartz met breath, and a boy first heard the whisper of destiny in the hum of a blue deer’s heart.

✨ Word of the Week Sidebar: Dordán

Word of the Week: Dordán — “The Little Drone”

Irish: dordán (dur-dawn) from dord, meaning a deep hum, chant, or resonance.

The word dordán means “the little hum”, the steady tone beneath all sound.
In bardic circles, it described the low vibration of the horn, the chant of warriors, or even the murmuring of a stream.

In modern English, “drone” comes from the same root idea, the hum of a bee, the note that never stops.
So when Finn called his horn Dordán, he wasn’t naming a weapon.
He was naming a heartbeat, a call that never truly ends.

After the legend of the Dord Fiann was etched in memory, and Finn’s Fianna band of warriors lived with him on Almu’s Hill, the wisdom he had gained from the salmon sparked a knowing in him. This night came to be known as Hag Night.

Finn fell asleep near the bonfire under a starry sky with some of the others, when a hag crept into their circle. And in the dark, everyone of them knew they were paralyzed. Their chests were heavy. Ears were ringing. Hearts pounding. Only Finn could move, barely, and his fingers reached his hunting horn and soon its cry broke the spell. A sound he had never heard came out of his dordán, but not to call his warriors and not to chase game. The sound pierced the veil to the Otherworld, qnd someone heard.

Brigid turned in her forge, and Finn saw her flame and resonance as if she were there on the Hill of Almu. She whispered: “Let this be more than a hunting horn. Let it be a call to awaken. To remember to rise.” From then on, it was no longer Dordán, the little drone. On Hag Night, it became the Dord Fiann, the deep call of the Fianna, and was legendary in battle and peace.

When Finn vanished, the horn vanished as well, lost to the mists of time. Its sound that shakes the soul awake, sends shadows scattering, simply was gone. But Finn’s prophecy reminds all realms that the warriors of Ireland will stand guard once again when the Dord Fiann blasts three times.

Modern Mythic Meaning: The Dord Fiann is now a symbol of awakening. Not just a horn, but a horn of prophecy. It’s a reminder from the Otherworld: Wake up. Call your tribe. Guard the threshold. Don’t sleep through your own story.

Protector of the Dord Fiann: After the night Finn first blew the horn to drive away the Hag fog, Brigid’s guardian (her loyal but wildly unbothered protector, Torc Triath) appeared at her forge, arms crossed, unimpressed. “Aye, the horn’s got power now,” he grunted. “But you want it to really work?” “Put my face on it.”

Brigid raised an eyebrow. “So you think the Hags fear you?” He smirked. “No, love. They respect me. There’s a difference.” And so it was that on the bellhead of the Dord Fiann, that sacred, soul-rattling horn, a carved likeness of Brigid’s guardian was affixed. Grim. Grizzled. Glorious. A reminder to the Otherworld: “You can whisper. You can wander. But you don’t cross this threshold unless you’re ready to face me.”

Picture Finn holding up the horn and Cnú asking:

Cnú: “Is that … supposed to be a terrifying face on the end of your horn?”

Finn: “Brigid said it’s her guardian. Keeps the Hags away when we’re out hunting.”

Cnú (poking it): “He looks like he smells of forge smoke and boiled onions.”

Horn Bellhead (speaking for the first time ever): “Say that again, twig-bard. I dare ya.”

Cue everyone dropping their scones. Yes, Torc Triath, Boar King & Brigid’s Guard!

🏔️ Direct References to Almu (Almuin / Almhuin) in the Early Irish Sources

1. The Dindshenchas of Almu (Metrical and Prose versions)
This is the primary and oldest detailed reference: a place-lore poem in the Dindshenchas Érenn, Ireland’s “Lore of Notable Places.”

• It tells the story of Almu, a woman, daughter of Breogan.

• She was slain (in some versions by Nuadu son of Aengus) and buried in the hill that bears her name.

• The poem makes clear that the place, Almu of Leinster, was already famous in mythic geography as a dwelling of kings and druids.

• The text also connects Almu with fire, vision, and prophecy, which later fed into its association with druid Tadg and Finn. Supernatural Irish draws the lineage of Finn back to his Grandfather Tadg (his Mother Muirne’s father) and from there, back to Nuada son of Aengus.

So that’s the core mythic anchor:

“Almu, daughter of Breogan, was buried there; her name clings to the hill.” And that’s another Supernatural Irish story, Morning Glory. Stay tuned for Almu of the White Hazel Hill, The Woman Who Became the Hill, where her far off grandson sleeps with her still. Yes, the Hill of Allen! “From her grave the bright hill took its name, Almu, fair and enduring.”

Here’s a look at his mythic cards that capture Torc’s humour, history, and heart:

🐗 1. Torc Triath: The Boar King

“Kneel, mortal. Or at least bring snacks.”
The oldest beast in the annals of the gods: half stone, half star, wholly unimpressed.
Forged before fire had a name, crowned by his own reflection.

🔥 2. Brigid’s Beast (or Beast of the Flame)

“She rides. I rampage. Teamwork.”
Once Brigid’s war-mount, now her guardian at the threshold between realms.
When she chose peace, he chose sarcasm.

🪞 3. The Boar and the Shadow

“Brigid binds the light; Morrigan weaves the shadow, I hold the bite.”
The living echo of Brigid & Morrigan wrath: fire & shadow given tusks.
He guards the darkness they tame, grumbling all the while.

💎 4. Chairman of the Boar-d

“Respect the title. And refill my trough.”
Demands tributes of acorns and applause.
Once tried to trademark the Dord Fiann in his own image.
(Brigid deleted the paperwork.)

🌀 5. Keeper of the Dord Fiann

“You can whisper, wander, or wail, but cross this line, you face me.”
When Finn first blew the horn after Torc’s likeness sealed its power, flocks scattered.
A grim reminder carved in brass: protection has tusks.

🌕 6. The Lesson of the Tusk

“True kings serve the flame, not themselves.”
Immortality taught him arrogance; Brigid taught him purpose.
Now he stands guard: gruff, glorious, and (mostly) redeemed.

✨ “Not all gifts are given by hand. Some are remembered by the land itself.” Cnú Deróil, Finn McCool’s fav bard harper.

💫 🎶 Cnu the Bard’s Take on the Cosmos

The universe is the stage … and the cosmos is the story it tells.

The universe? That’s the stage, the props, the costumes, the whole theatre.
The cosmos? That’s when the play comes together:
every actor in the right spot, every line in harmony,
the story making sense like the stars knew it all along.

We’ve got Finn, Brigid, the Fianna & the beings and creatures all in the right spot, every line spoke to make sense of what our ancestors knew all along ...

Cnu sparkles like he’s on sparkle steroids: this song is half a pub-song, half a fireside tale, with just enough mead in the mix to make it roll off the tongue

🎶 More on Cnu the Bard’s Map of Cosmic Destiny

“Now listen, lads and lassies,
the universe’s the stage.
Every prop, every costume, every poor fecker who has to stand there waitin’ for their cue.

But the cosmos … ah, the cosmos is when the play comes alive.
The story, the rhythm, the way every word falls just right,
like the stars themselves whispered the script to us long before the curtain rose.

And here we are, my frens and me, Finn, Brigid, the Fianna,
WolfDogs prowlin’, creatures from the deep peekin’ in:
all of us standin’ in our spots,
speakin’ our lines in the very moment they’re meant to be spoken.

That, my friends… is the cosmos.”

“Yes, the universe is the stage. The cosmos is when the play comes alive, and every line is spoken just as was intended.” – Cnu Deroil, after two meads and some piotsa.

Coming Soon: Angelica Ottewill Interview on our YouTube channel!

Wait till you hear what a real-life harper has to say about the music of the gods … 🎵 coming soon! After spending the week with our tiniest bard, I had the joy of speaking with a real modern harper, the divine Angelica Ottewill, whose music feels like it has come straight from the Otherworld …

Launching on Friday!

Why I’m Always Talking About the Cosmos 🌟

People sometimes ask why I go on (and on) about the cosmos… and our Map of Cosmic Destiny. Guess it’s because it’s all been sorting out through my writing and thoughts and words over the past two decades!

The universe is the stage, every prop, and all the actors.
The cosmos is how the play (my writing) comes together:
the story, the rhythm, the sense that it all belongs.

And on my stage?
Finn, Brigid, the Fianna, WolfDogs, sea creatures, and me,
all in the right spot, every line spoken as the stars knew all along.

That’s why I keep looking up.
Because I feel my script’s already written in light. Feels good. 🌌

“Wait till you hear what a real-life harper had to say about the music of the gods… 🎵 coming soon!”