by Steve Lally
Then the feast was spread again, and Niall told the story of his adventures; and when the Prince of the Sunny Valley asked for the hand of Rosaleen, Niall told his lovely sister to speak for herself. With downcast eyes and smiling lips she said, ‘yes,’ and that very day was the gayest and brightest wedding that ever took place, and Rosaleen became the prince’s bride.
In her happiness she did not forget the little robin, who was her friend in sorrow. She took him home with her to Sunny Valleys, and every day she fed him with her own hands, and every day he sang for her the sweetest songs that were ever heard in lady’s bower.
This is a photograph of Steve’s late father ‘Pat Lally’ visiting the grave of W.B Yeats. It was taken in January 1973 when Pat was working as a representative for the pharmaceutical company ‘Wellcome’ in Co. Sligo. Pat died on the 13th, which is also Yeats’ birthday. He passed away in 1993, so this year 2018 is his 25th Anniversary. Photograph courtesey of Wellcome Trust.
HOW TO KEEP ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE SIDHE
If you find yourself lost in a fairy fort, ring or field, do not panic. Take your right shoe off and put it on your left foot, and vice versa, then take your coat off and put it on inside out, then turn around three times and you will find your way out. The fairy folk fear madness, hence it is wise to act a little unwise in their presence, and they will leave you well alone!
Another way to find yourself out of a fairy field is if you spot a hare – make sure to chase it as they will be heading for any available exits.
Never interfere with, damage or destroy any fairy property. This includes fairy trees, bushes, forts, mounts, paths or anything else associated with the fairy folk. For if you do you will bring a fairy curse upon yourself and your loved ones.
If you are building a house or any other structure, it is vital to make sure you are not building on a fairy path or fairy pass. For if you do, the fairies will do everything in their power to make you leave or remove the structure. In order to avoid their wrath, it is strongly advisable to place four ash rods in the corners of the foundations. Leave them overnight or for a couple of days and if the rods are damaged or removed then you know to build elsewhere.
Fairies have been known to steal children and leave one of their own in their place. These creatures are called changelings. If you have a baby or a small child make sure to place iron tongs, a crucifix or a Bible over their cradle or cot, for the fairies fear Iron and God. The iron apparently counteracts magic, and they have a grievance with God because he would not allow them into Heaven.
If you hang an iron horseshoe above your front door the fairies will never enter. (This belief may be due to the idea that fairies were driven out of their homes by the Celts, specifically in the Iron Age, hence the fear of iron and iron weapons.)
If you find a comb outside (especially a silver one) that does not belong to you, never pick it up for it may belong to the banshee – and it is inevitable that she will come looking for it.
If and when you meet the fairies, answer their questions with another question, for they enjoy trickery and they don’t like it if you simply say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as they see this as being lazy and no craic.
If you find yourself in the presence of the fairy folk, under no circumstances except any food or drink from them; if you do, you will never return to your own world again. If the fairies are adamant and unyielding (as they often are when offering you refreshments) ask them for salt and they will leave you be. This is because, like iron, salt counteracts their magic.
It is bad luck to paint a house or shed green as it offends the fairies. This is because green is ‘their’ colour and belongs to the land.
Smaladh or smooring is a good practice when dealing with the fairies. It is a process by which the fire is dampened down by covering the embers with ash. This means the fire is kept smouldering during the night for the fairies, if they happen to pay a visit. The only night the fire should be extinguished is on Bealtana on the 1st of May and Halloween on the 31st of October, for that is when the ethereal wall between the human world and the fairy world is at its thinnest, and you don’t want an army of fairy folk visiting your house!
A black-hafted (handled) knife is a good thing to have on your person when you are going to where more malevolent fairies may roam. This will protect you from both physical attack and magical powers.
If and when you encounter a Sí Gaoithe (fairy wind) it is advised to kick dust from the ground into the wind and it will send it away. Also, if someone has been carried away by a Sí Gaoithe, throw some dust at the fairy wind and it will release the person.
If you want to take a walk through the woods, it is advised to carry a walking stick made of ash or rowan wood.
St John’s Wort is said to provide strong protection from fairy magic and mischief.
Carrying a four-leafed clover will allow you to see the fairies – but only once.
Hang garlands of marsh marigolds over barn doors to protect the horses from being ridden to exhaustion by fairies in the night.
Spread flowers (especially primroses) on windowsills or hang them above the door-posts of your home for safety.
Red berries are believed to keep fairies at bay, especially if they are from rowan trees, ash or holly.
Daisies are often tucked into children’s pockets or braided into chains to wear around their necks to prevent them from being taken away by the fairies.
When you are making a hot beverage, especially tea (a favourite of the fairies), make sure to pour a little outside your front door for them to enjoy. This is known as ‘the Fairies’ Share’.
If you have made fresh butter, bread or a nice cake, leave a piece outside your back door for the fairies. In return they will make sure that everything that you make will taste lovely. If you don’t, be prepared for sour butter, hard bread and burnt cake.
If you cut a footing of turf in the bog, leave a few pieces in a small pile for the fairy folk.
IF YOU WANT TO KEEP FAIRIES AWAY FROM YOUR HOME
If you have fairies in your house and you don’t have any of the required paraphernalia to send them on their way, just shout, ‘The fairy fort is on fire!’ and they will quickly depart.
Leave anything made of iron out in plain view (scissors, pins, knives, etc.) as this will frighten them away.
Fairies hate clutter, so this is a good reason not to tidy too much!
Fairies fear cats and bells, so put a bell on your cat.
If you meet a fairy, look them in the eye. It is said that you can gain control over them (especially a leprechaun) if you look him/her straight in the eye and hold their gaze. Cats also hate us staring at them straight in the eyes, so maybe they too are fairies? Cat Sidhe is a fairy creature from Celtic mythology.
Always remember to speak well of the fairies by referring to them as the ‘good folk’ or the ‘gentle people’, for they are always listening!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to thank the following people who have helped us in various ways, from providing us with research material to sharing their stories:
Graham Langley, Marie McCartan, Eugene McCann, Aideen McBride, Jack Lynch, Madeline McCully, Domhnal McGinley (fiddle player with the Pox Men), Stephen McCollum (Bill Hazzard), Carol Brennan, Doreen McBride, Ronan Kelly, Lucan Library, DKIT Library, Críostóir Mac Cárthaigh (UCD National Folklore Collection), Pat Noone, Maureen O’Donoghue, Seamus Cullen, Réamonn Ó Ciaráin, Micky McGuigan, Br Charlie Conor, Frank Burgan, Ronan Kealy (Junior Brother), Charles and Andrew Hendy, Kevin Woods, Simon Young from www.fairyist.com, Francis McCurran, Holly Peel (Wellcome Trust), Nicola Guy, Ronan Colgan and Ele Craker (The History Press), Michael Fortune (michaelfortune.ie) Eamonn Keenan, Kerry McLean (BBC Radio Ulster), William Anderson, Eddie Lenehan, Máire Ní Dhuibh, Peadar Mac Eoin, Reggie Chamberlain-King, Sean Flynn.
We would like to especially thank Liz Weir for writing the foreword and for being a constant support to both of us.
Thanks to James
Patrick Ryan for his never-ending patience and for sharing his advice and talent so willingly.
Finally, to Woody and Isabella – a constant reminder that magic still exists.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BOOKS
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Briggs, Katherine, The Fairies in Tradition and Literature, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, Henley and Boston, 1967.
Bourke, Angela, The Burning of Bridget Cleary: A True Story, Pimlico, London, 1999.
Carleton, William, Traits and Stories of the Irish Peasantry, Vol. 1, Barnes & Noble, 1990. Originally published in 1830.
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Crawford, Michael George, Legendary Stories of the Carlingford Lough District, V.G. Havern, Warrenpoint, 1911.
Croker, Thomas Crofton, Fairy Legends and Traditions of the South of Ireland, first published in Great Britain by John Murray in 1825. This edition by the Collins Press, 1998.
Danaher, Kevin, Folktales from the Irish Countryside, Mercier Press, Colorado, 1967.
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de Valera, Sinéad, Irish Fairy Tales, Macmillan Children’s Books; 1st edition, 1973.
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Graves, Alfred Perceval, The Irish Fairy Book, A & C Black Ltd, 1909. This edition published by Senate, London, 1994.
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Jacobs, Joseph, Celtic Fairy Tales, David Nutt, London, 1892.
Jacobs, Joseph, More Celtic Fairy Tales, David Nutt, London, 1894.
Kelly, Eamon, Ireland’s Master Storyteller: The Collected Stories of Eamon Kelly, Marino Books/Mercier Press, Ireland, 1998.
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Lally, Steve, Down Folk Tales, The History Press Ireland, 2013.
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Lally, Steve, Monaghan Folk Tales, The History Press Ireland, 2017.
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Lenihan, Edmund, Long Ago by Shannon Side, Mercier Press, 1982.
MacManus, Dermot, The Middle Kingdom: The Faerie World of Ireland, Colin Smythe Ltd, Buckinghamshire, 1959. This edition published 1974.
MacManus, Seamus, Heavy Hangs the Golden Grain, Macmillan Company, New York, 1950.
MacManus, Seamus, Donegal Fairy Stories, Dover Publications, Inc. New York, 1968.
McBride, Doreen, Fermanagh Folk Tales, The History Press Ireland, 2015.
McBride, Doreen, Tyrone Folk Tales, The History Press Ireland, 2016.
McGarry, Mary, Great Folk Tales and Fairy Tales of Ireland. First published by Muller Books, 1979. This edition published by Leopard Books. 1986.
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Murphy, Michael J., At Slieve Gullion’s Foot, W. Tempest Dundalgan Press, Dundalk, 1942.
Ó hEochaidh, Seán, Fairy Legends of Donegal, translated by Máire Mac Neill, Comhairle Bhealoideas Eireann, UCD, Dublin, 1977.
O’Cahill, Donal, Legends of Killarney, self-published, Kerry, 1956. This edition published by Mac Publications, Killarney Printing Works, 1999.
O’Faoláin, Eileen, Irish Sagas and Folk Tales, Oxford University Press, 1954. Reprint edition 1960.
O’Sullivan, Sean, Folk Tales of Ireland, Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd, 1966.
Patterson, T.G.F., Country Cracks: Old Tales from The County Armagh, W. Tempest Dundalgan Press, Dundalk, 1939.
Rackham, Arthur, Fairy Tales from Many Lands. First published as The Allies’ Fairy Book with an Introduction by Edmund Gosse, 1916. This edition published by Pan Books, 1978.
Reader’s Digest Illustrated Guide to Ireland, The Reader’s Digest Association Limited, London, 1992.
Rolleston, T.W., Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race, Constable, London, 1911. Reprint edition 1985.
Stephens, James, Irish Fairy Tales, Gill & Macmillan, 1st Facsimile Edition, 1924. This edition published in Ireland by Gill & Macmillan, 1979.
Woods, Kevin J., The Last Leprechauns of Ireland, Original Writing Ltd, Dublin, 2011.
Yeats, W.B., The Book of Fairy and Folk Tales of Ireland. Originally published by John Murray Publishers, London, in two volumes: Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry (1888) and Irish Fairy Tales (1892). This edition published by Bounty Books, London, 2004.
JOURNAL
Young, Simon, ‘True Fairy Stories? Nineteenth-Century Irish Fairylore’, Tradition Today. 7 (2018), 1–19.
WEBSITES
www.aliisaacstoryteller.com
www.fairyist.com
www.fairyist.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/The-Fairy-Census-2014-2017-1.pdf
www.ringofgullion.org
