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Romantic Inishowen: Customs and Superstitions
Harry Percival Swan
Hodges Figgis & Co, 1947
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SUPERSTITIONS AND OLD CUSTOMS IN INISHOWEN
A HIGHLY FASCINATING STUDY IS THAT OF SUPERSTITIONS AND STRANGE
beliefs. Throughout the world the lore exists in plentiful supply. But
our own land is particularly rich in it – myths, spells,
pishogues, lucky and unlucky charms, superstitions and odd customs in
great variety. Most of these have reached us by tradition, relics of
the pagan creeds of long ago – the sun worship, nature worship
and Druidism of our Celtic ancestors. It is surprising to what an
extent they have refused to be blotted out and forgotten amidst the
mutations of a changing and matter-of-fact world, where education and
science are even on the onward march. These lingering old customs and
beliefs are not only interesting in themselves, but when studied and
rationalised are found to contain many beautiful and arresting meanings.
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TOUCH WOOD
“Touch Wood”, you exclaim when you have just congratulated
yourself on an escape from some undesirable consequence. Why should you
touch wood? To primeval man a tree was a god; it had life; it was a
symbol of knowledge. When you touch wood you resurrect a belief that
was current 5,000 years ago. In days gone by it is said there was
growing near St. Patrick’s Well at the Grianan of Aileach a tree
which was stuck over with rusty pins placed there by pilgrims. What was
behind this practice?
HORSE-SHOES
It involved not only tree worship, but metal dread, and was first
instituted by a non-metal using people to ward off the magic of
newcomers who knew the mystery of bronze and its power in warfare. The
same idea is at the bottom of belief in the iron horse-shoe as a
luck-bringer – one of the most common superstitions in Inishowen,
as elsewhere. By the way, where horse-shoes are fixed (as to a door or
a cart) the ends are pointed upwards and not down. Evil was supposed to
travel in circles, and when it reached the ends of the upturned
horse-shoe it was frustrated; but if the ends pointed downwards, it
could drop to the earth and find a victim.
BLACK CATS
And why is a black cat lucky? The belief goes back to ancient Egypt
when the cat was worshipped as the goddess Bast or Bubastis. A cat can
see in the dark and, if black, cannot itself be seen, hence creating a
ghostly illusion.
WHITE HEATHER
White heather, found on many of the Inishowen hillsides, is also
considered lucky for its wearer and is much sought after. The belief
grew up because white is a token of goodness and purity of life. For
instance, we read that the Druids performed their rites standing under
an oak tree, clothed always in a pure white robe, symbolical of
perfection.
WELL WORSHIP
Another rite practised by the Druids was the worship of water as
represented in wells. It is mentioned in the Book of Armagh that the
heathen worshipped water as a god. Indeed at one time well worship
prevailed all over Europe. This may help to explain the old
superstition that if you “muddy” the well at the top of
Slieve Snaght you will break the weather, and be overtaken by fog or
rain on your way home. And, by the way, those who climb Slieve Snaght
are supposed to carry a piece of bread in their pocket. Otherwise it is
said that if they happen to tread on “Hungry grass” they
will faint by the way. Hungry grass or Feur Gorta is a white coarse
grass like Keab (ciob).
STANDING STONES
Stone objects also were venerated in pagan Ireland. It is considered
highly unlucky to interfere with a standing stone, cromlech, dolmen, or
megalithic monument of any sort. This is a very fortunate superstition
indeed, as it has prevented many a farmer from removing suchlike from
his land. In the map of Borlase’s Dolmens of Ireland, 85
megalithic monuments are shown as still extant in County Donegal. Most
of them, doubtless, owe their preservation to superstitious fear of the
consequences of their removal.
LUCKY PEBBLES
Speaking of lithic objects reminds me of the custom for passers-by to
add a small stone or pebble to the cairn beside the ancient well in
Mamore Gap. This is believed to bring luck to the wayfarer and to
prevent tiredness. It is likewise thought to be lucky to place a pebbe
on the top of Cooley Cross when you visit it. This is a very old
custom, the underlying idea, doubtless, is that your act is a sacred
acknowledgement or votive offering.
BONFIRE NIGHT
Another old custom, that of kindling large fires on the evening of the
24th June is believed to be a survival of Baal worship or sun worship.
Beltine, .i.e. lucky fire (bonfire) consisted of two fires which used
to be kindled on a hilltop by the pagan lawgivers, accompanied with
great ceremony and incantations. The people used to drive their cattle
between these fires to guard them against disease. This practice is
forbidden in a verse of Leviticus: “Thou shalt not pass thy seed
(children) through the fire to Moloch.” Sir William Wilde in his
book, Popular Superstitions, suggests that the lighting of these fires
carried out in pagan times on the 1st of May was transferred by St.
Patrick to St. John’s eve in honour of St. John the Baptist. You
may still see these fires in many of the villages in Inishowen on that
night – “Bonfire night”, as it is called. It is
considered lucky for young men to carry away burning brands from the
fire when they leave for home, and such brands are sometimes thrown
into the fields to bring luck to the crops.
NUMBERS AND WEDDINGS
There is said to be luck in odd numbers, and the mystic number seven is
regarded as being particularly lucky. Many reasons suggest themselves:
the seven days of Genesis, the seven days of the week, the seven metals
known in the ancient world, and the seven golden candlesticks of the
Apocalypse.
Again, a very common superstition tells us that it is unlucky to sit
down to a meal with thirteen at the table. If you do, the consequence
is that one of the party will die before that day twelve-month. This
belief arises from memories of Judas and a tragic supper table. Of
somewhat similar origin is the superstition that Friday – the day
of the Crucifixion – is by sailors regarded as an unlucky day
whereon to begin a voyage. Householders dislike removing on a Saturday
– “Saturday flit, short sit”, also Saturday is for a
wedding “no day at all.” Mention of a wedding brings to
mind another custom, namely, for brides to wear for luck
“something old, something new, something borrowed and something
blue”, and for them to send their friends a piece of wedding cake
“to dream on”. Again an old shoe is frequently thrown after
newly-married couples for “happy travelling” on the
honeymoon.
OTHER OLD CUSTOMS
Wells or springs that had been formerly pagan were often blessed by the
saints. Perhaps that is the origin of the old custom, that diseased
cattle were plunged into the deep part of the river near Culdaff, and
the aid of St. Buadan invoked in curing them. On June 9th, St.
Columba’s day, it was the custom to swim cattle where St.
Columba’s Well flows into the sea in order to protect them from
disease. At Clonmany on the right side of the road leading from the
chapel to the church, if a circuit is made round a little hillock
there, earth taken from it will cure disease. The circuit must,
however, be made in sunwise direction (or “tempadeasil”,
not anti-sunwise (or “widdershins”). Similarly, whenever
you visit a circular monument such as the Grianan or Aileach, the Walls
of Derry or Bocan stone circle, you do so sunwise. It is supposed to be
lucky to walk round sunwise, i.e. in the direction of the hands of a
clock. When visiting a farmhouse where the churning of milk is in
process you should bless the work and take a spell at the churning
yourself. If you fail to “take a brash” the butter, so it
is said, will be slow in coming or else be poor in quality. |
You,
my reader, may claim that you, being a wise and practical person, are
not superstitious, but you will doubtless prefer to be at any rate on
the safe side, like the young ladies in the following story:-
LADIES BEWARE
The members of a learned society were on one occasion visiting
Ballyiffin and were taken to see the “Cathair-an-Tholais”
(locally pronounced kiro-tallas) or “Chair of Leisure”.
They were told the legend associated with this natural stone chair,
which is to the effect that any unmarried lady who sits in it will
never be wedded. Amongst the party were a large number of educated and
sophisticated young ladies, many of whom were graduates of
Universities. These young women doubtless would scorn being labelled
superstitious. But when the leader of the party called for volunteers
to sit in the chair, would they? Not one of them. On no, thank you
– they were taking no risks – there might be something in
this old legend after all!
S. H. SANDELFORD
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Cathair-an-Tholais
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HEATHERBERRY SUNDAY
One of the old customs of Inishowen consisted in all, or nearly all,
the grown-up boys and girls of the six surrounding parishes meeting on
Heatherberry Sunday at the spring-well called Suil-a’-Tobair near
the top of Slieve Snaght (the highest mountain in the peninsula).
Heatherberry Sunday was the Sunday before the “Gooseberry”
fair day of Buncrana (26th July). Met ostensibly for the purpose of
gathering heather-berries, the boys and girls when they came together
on the mountain, turned the event into a social occasion. They danced,
frolicked, sported and generally enjoyed themselves. Amongst the games
played were Leap-frog and Rounders, but “Duck” was the most
popular game. As a sequel to these chance meetings and mountaintop
flirtations many weddings resulted. The period of courtship usually
continued from Heatherberry Sunday till “Runaway Sunday” or
“Galloping Tuesday” as the Sunday before Lent and Shrove
Tuesday were popularly called. A country wedding was then generally a
big event. It ended with feasting and merrymaking and a
“Ceilidhe” lasting into the small hours of the morning. The
origin of Heathberry Sunday (which was not confined to Inishowen) is
lost in the mists of antiquity. But fashions have changed, and this old
custom has in recent years almost entirely died out. I myself was for
many years a regular attendant until the year 1909.
JAMES E. O’DONNELL
GLOONAN STONES
Beside St. Columba’s Well at Slavery, near Buncrana, there is to
be seen an interesting example of a shallow double bullaun or basin
stone. Double cavity stones of this type are commonly called Gloonan
Stones (from the Irish word “glun” meaning a knee).
Tradition tells us that they were used by the saints to kneel on. Local
examples are rare, but a somewhat similar stone is to be seen outside
Long Tower Church, Derry. It too is associated with St. Columba, and is
called St. Columba’s Font. Dr. Macalister thinks it probable that
such double basin stones were used primarily to hold water to be
consecrated for curative purposes, and later they were adapted as
“kneelers”.
BLESSING THE BOATS
Local tradition has it that St. Buadan blessed the port of Bunagee at
the mouth of the Culdaff river, and it is said that a fishing boat
putting out from that port was never lost. So strong was this belief
that new boats used to be brought overland from Malin and other places
to be launched at Bunagee, so as to have the benefit of St.
Buadan’s blessing.
HENRY MORRIS
ST. COLUMBA
The practice of blessing the boats is not yet obsolete. Columba blessed the boats at the entrance of Lough Foyle.
Steersman: Let us bless our ship.
Crew: God the Father bless her.
Steersman: Let us bless our ship.
Crew: God the Son bless her.
Steersman: Let us bless our ship.
Crew: The Holy Ghost bless her.
Save us and shield us and sanctify us;
Be Thou, King of the Elements, seated at our helm,
Lead us in peace to the end of our journey,
With winds, mild, kindly, benign and pleasant;
Without swirl, without whirl, without eddy;
That would do no harmful deed to us.
We ask all things of Thee, O God,
According to Thy own will and word.
SAM HENRY
ST. BRIGID’S CROSSES
The making of St. Brigid’s Crosses on St. Brigid’s Eve
– the 31st of January – is one of the customs that have
been faithfully preserved in Inishowen. Perhaps in no district in
Ireland is this custom and the beliefs attached to it so well preserved
in town and country alike.
Green fresh rushes are carefully sought and selected. At night time the
women of the household peel, prepare and boil a pot of potatoes. The
water is then drained off, salt and butter are added, and each person
takes a turn at pounding the potatoes with a “pounder” or
“beetle”. The mashed potatoes are known as
“poundees”. The rushes are strewn on the table after the
manner of a table-cloth and each member partakes of the
“poundees”.
Now commences the work of making the crosses. This is a work of art, in
which old and young vie with each other in making the nicest and best.
Usually the older ones score, as the years have given them speed and
perfection in their craft. The cross, when completed, is of the
four-armed type – a tightly interwoven square with sides produced
in lateral order. When a sufficient number of these are completed, more
artistic ones still are made of oat straw and fir “spales”.
A cross is formed by the fir rods or “spales” and straw is
rolled round them bandage-fashion. In the centre and at the ends straws
are interwoven to form diamond-shaped figures. On the morrow –
St. Brigid’s Day – the 1st of February, one will be placed
above the entrance door of the dwelling-house and one over the entrance
door of each of the outhouses – and remain there until taken down
and replaced on next St. Brigid’s Day.
D. J. McCONIGLY
BOG-BUTTER
During turf-cutting operations on a bog at Drumley, Gleneely, Moville,
in June, 1943, Mr. George McLoughlin came upon a circular wickerwork
receptacle which fell to pieces when disturbed. It was found to
contain, in one solid mass, about 28lbs of the fatty substance known as
“Bog-butter”. The butter was yellow in colour but turned
pale after being exposed to the air for some time.
Hitherto, the finding of “Bog-butter” has been rare in the
north, and this was the first recorded instance of its discovery in
County Donegal. The custom of burying butter in bogs is of very great
interest, although the period of origin of the custom is unknown.
Various historians have put forward different theories to account for
the practice; some that it was buried for preservation until the annual
winter shortage; others that it was buried in order to acquire a
flavour in the absence of salt; and more that the custom had a
religious significance, being offered as a thanksgiving to the
water-gods, for cures to milch animals such as cows and goats. When we
remember that our bogs were originally lake-bottoms, and that the
“butter” has been found throughout Ireland in containers of
wood, bark, skin and cloth, as well as wicker, we are inclined to
believe the last-mentioned theory.
Mr. George McLoughlin very kindly presented his find of
“Inishowen Bog-Butter” to the National Museum, Dublin,
where it now is.
D. J. O’SULLIVAN
SWEAT HOUSES
West of Moville in the townland of Lecamy on Mr. Elkin’s lands
near the base of Crocknammerragh there is to be seen an example of an
ancient Sweat House. According to Joyce, Sweat Houses were used in
Ireland from the earliest times down to the early in the 19th century
for the cure of rheumatism. This one, called the Lisnalecky’s
Sweat House, is a roughly-built round structure beehive in shape, with
corbelled roof no longer complete. The building is 7 ½ feet in
height, with a circumference at the base of 40 inches, and there is a
low lintel-covered little door through which one must creep. According
to Joyce, Sweat Houses were used in this way: A great fire of turf was
kindled inside till the house became heated like an oven; after which
the embers and ashes were swept out. Then the person, wrapping himself
in a blanket, crept in and sat down on a bench of sods, after which the
door was closed up. He remained there an hour or so until he was ain a
proper perspiration; and then, creeping out, plunged right into cold
water, after emerging from which he was well rubbed till he became
warm. After several baths at intervals of some days he commonly got
cured. In Germany a Turkish bath is called an Irish bath, as the idea
is said to have come from Irish Sweat Houses. |
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