#folklorethursday

#FolkloreThursday #Celtic: `When St. Patrick introduced Christianity to Ireland, some of the old magical rituals of the past were abandoned. This angered the Tuatha Dé Danann, who were masters of magic. In protest, they used their magic powers to turn themselves into horses and galloped to Kilcornan, where they hid for centuries in the Kilcornan caves. Time passed, until one day seven foals emerged from the caves. They were frightened by the bright daylight and bolted, galloping along the edge of the cliff. The spot where they met their awful fate is now known as Aillenasharragh, or 'Leap of the Foals'. Source: Leap of the Foals at Cliffs of Moher visitor centre

#FolkloreThursday #Celtic: Tadg and his men set out over the stormy, heavy flood, till at last they saw no land before them or behind them, but only the hillsides of the great sea. And farther on again they heard the singing of a great flock of unknown birds; and pleasant white-bellied salmon were leaping about the curragh on every side, and seals, very big and dark, were coming after them, breaking through the shining wash of the oars; and great whales after them again, so that the young men liked to be looking at them, for they were not used to see the like before. Source: Gods and Fighting Men by Lady Gregory - Project Gutenberg eBook

#FolkloreThursday #Celtic: `They went all through the island, but they found no living thing on it, man or beast, but only flocks of sheep. And the size of the sheep was past all telling, as big as horses they were, and the whole island was filled with their wool. And there was one great flock beyond all the others, all of very big rams, and one of them was biggest of all, nine horns he had, and he charged on Tadg's chief men, attacking them and butting at them. There was vexation on them then, and they attacked him again, and there was a struggle between them. And at the first the ram broke through five of their shields. But Tadg took his spear that there was no escape from, and made a lucky cast at the ram and killed him. And they brought the ram to the curragh and made it ready for the young men to eat, and they stopped three nights on the island, and every night it was a sheep they had for their food. And they gathered a good share of the wool and put it in the curragh because of the wonder and the beauty of it. And they found the bones of very big men on the island, but whether they died of sickness or were killed by the rams they did not know. Source: Gods and Fighting Men by Lady Gregory

#FolkloreThursday #Celtic: Loughanleagh is a land steeped in ancient folklore, where mythical creatures and legendary figures from Ireland’s past continue to stir the imagination. Local folklore has many stories loaded with ancient mythology. One such example is the ‘One-eyed Hare of Loughanleagh’. It is said that a gamekeeper lived on the mountain and had been told that a fine hare had been seen beside the “Lake of the Cure”, so he concealed himself nearby to kill it. One day, just as the sun was sinking beneath the horizon a hare came abounding to him. But what he saw astounded him and he could not move. The hare was no ordinary hare – it had a great big red eye in the centre of its forehead and dived right down into the lake to the ‘#Otherworld’ where it belonged. Source: https://www.loughanleagh.com/folklore/

#FolkloreThursday #Celtic: Mongán's wife Findtigernd asks him to recount his journey to the #Otherworld. When they are at the hill of Uisnech, a supernatural hailstorm comes on. When it ends Mongán, his wife, his poet, and seven companions, find a hall ringed by trees. They enter, are greeted by the inhabitants, and Mongán is given to drink, after which he recounts his journey. Although it seems as though they are in the house for only a short time, when they leave a year has passed, and they are now at Rath Mor, Mongán's home near modern Larne, 150 miles away. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mong%C3%A1n_mac_F%C3%ADachnai

#FolkloreThursday #Celtic: The bull-hide from a horn-less brown bull belonging to Mogh Roith (https://hear-me.social/@NeuKelte/115843699184283488) was now brought to him, along with his speckled bird-mask with its billowing wings, and the rest of his druidic gear. He proceeded to fly up into the sky and the firmament, along with the fire, and he continued to turn and beat the fire towards the north as he chanted the rhetoric: "I fashion druids' arrows..." Mogh Roith thus continued to beat the fire northwards, while Cith Rua in the same way tried to turn it southwards. In spite of this, however, Mogh Roith succeeded in turning the fires in the direction of the north to Cormac's camp. Once he had succeeded in doing this, Mogh Roith did not permit the fires to move away from there. It was here that Cith Rua suffered defeat, along with the company of druids and his slua sí. Source: https://iso.ucc.ie/Forbuis-droma/Forbuis-droma-text.html Here’s the backstory: https://hear-me.social/@NeuKelte/116850993765760185

Water spirits can compel their intended victims to come closer to their lake so that they can kill them more easily. #FolkloreThursday https://wiki.sunkencastles.com/wiki/Nixie_in_the_Lake_near_Wanzka

The Devil is said to dwell within a pond near Osterode. #FolkloreThursday https://wiki.sunkencastles.com/wiki/The_Devil%27s_Bath_near_Osterode

There is a rather dodgy crayfish living in the Schöpfs river. #FolkloreThursday https://wiki.sunkencastles.com/wiki/The_Uncanny_Crayfish_at_Quitzdorf

Strange horses appear near the waters of the Kaliningrad region. #FolkloreThursday https://wiki.sunkencastles.com/wiki/The_Wish_Horse