Storytime: The Irish Myth of Sadhbh

Sometimes a travel destination can be understood through its heroes (or sheroes), myths or legends.  Ireland's pre-Christian history survived as myths. Gods and Goddesses become heroes and warriors become the subject of songs that the bards wrote poems and sang songs about.  These myths are connected to the land and to place, bridging the past to the present.  One such tale is that of Sadhbh...

Gather round the turf fire all cozy like; for the Seanchaí has arrived. 

Gathering Around The Seanchai

What is a Seanchaí?  Well in English the word is pronounced like "Shawn-na-key," and in Old Irish, it is  Seanchaidhean, which means "bearer of old lore."  In the Celtic tradition, history and myth were not written down. Instead, history was memoried in a series of long lyric poems.  In the time of the Clans, the Seanchaí had a place of honour keeping track of valuable information for their Chieftan.  As the power of the Clans dwindled, the Seanchaí set out travelling the countryside with their select repertoire of legends, myths and stories and would be invited into homes to recount their sagas in exchange for room and short-term board.

So then, pour the Seanchaí a wee glass of poitín and listen to the tale of Sadhbh...

Sadhbh by Arthur Rackham 1910

Sadhbh (pronounced S-eye-v and rhymes with hive) was the daughter of the High King of the Síd of Munster.  The Síd (pronounced Shee) were a race of indigenous people that disappeared from history, and Irish myth has them as what we would call the Faerie People.  Sadhbh was a beautiful young girl and had gained the attention of a mighty Druid named Fer Doirich, The Dark Druid of the Tuatha Dé Danann.  The Tuatha Dé Danann (or the people of the Goddess Danu) are the pantheon of Celtic Gods and Goddesses of the pre-Christian era in Ireland, sort of like the Olympians in Greek mythology.  Fer Doirich wanted Sadhbh as his bride, but she was still a maiden and refused his advances. This refusal enraged The Dark Sorcerer who cursed Sadhbh, turning her into a doe leaving her to the wild to be hunted by wolves and ripped apart!

Poor young Sadhbh ran terrified, into the forest.  There, she survived for three years in the form of a deer until she came upon the lands of the mythical warrior king of the Fianna; Fionn mac Cumhaill (or Finn MacCool in English).

Tuiren With Bran And Sceolan

Now, Fionn mac Cumhaill was out hunting on his lands with his men and his two enchanted Celtic Hounds Bran and Sceolan (pronounced Shkih-oh-lawn).  These giant Celtic Hounds were similar to Irish Wolfhounds but bigger. These two dogs had a human mother; Tuiren who happened to be Fionn's Aunt who had been turned into a hound by a jealous Síd woman.  Tuiren was pregnant at the time of her enchantment, and she gave birth to the twin hounds Bran and Sceolan. Fionn vowed to take care of his canine cousins, and the twin brother and sister became his loyal companions that never left his side.  

Ring Fort at Cahersiveen

When Bran and Sceolan came across Sadhbh in the form a doe, they could recognize that she was a human caught in animal form.  Instead of trapping or killing her, the great dogs lay down beside her and protected her from the Fianna hunters.  When Fionn saw this, he knew there was something special about this little doe, so he softly spoke to the deer, telling her he was taking her back to his Fort called Almhuin (pronounced AL-whin) for protection.  To Fionn's surprise, the deer got up and followed him all the way back to the ring fort!  
That night Fionn and the rest of the Fianna arrived back at Almhuin.  As soon Sadhbh entered the fort she shed her deerskin and stood up tall and once again assumed her human form as a beautiful young woman!



Fionn mac Cumhaill fell immediately in love with the gentle Sadhbh, for "Sadhbh" means "sweet and lovely" in Irish.  For months Fionn and Sadhbh were in the throughs of passion and Fionn gave up hunting, sport and all other pleasures; rarely did the couple stray far from the bedchamber.  Sadhbh became pregnant and refused to leave the walls of the fort, fearing the Dark Druids magic would find her.  For close to one year, Fionn and Sadhbh lived in a bubble of love and bliss revelling in each other's company.

And they lived happily ever after?  Not a chance lads and lasses!

Fionn mac Cumhaill by Stephen Reid

But their bliss was not to last.  Vikings were raiding the Kerry coastline, and Fionn mac Cumhaill and the Fianna went to defend Ireland from the Northern invaders.  Fionn was saddened to leave Sadhbh knowing she carried his child, and he assured her that he would hurry back to Almhuin.  Sadhbh anxiously waited for Fionn, every day the expectant mother walked along the walls of the stone fort watching for Fionn to return from battle.  On the fourth night after Fionn had left for the coast,  Sadhbh was on top of the walls surrounding the fort when she saw the figure of Fionn approaching under the full moon.  Sadhbh was overjoyed to see her beloved returning to her, and heavy with child now, she ran out to greet Fionn mac Cumhaill and take him into her arms.  
But it was not Fionn.
It was the Dark Druid Fer Doirich cloaked in a magical glamour appearing to all as Fion mac Cumhaill.  The Dark One had learned of "the deer that turned into a maiden" and came to seek revenge on Sadhbh.  Pulling a hazel wand from beneath his cloak as Sadhbh approached, Fer Doirich touched her with his wand and Sadhbh immediately turned back into a doe.  The Sorcerer put a rope around Sadhbh's neck and led her off into the night. 

Fionn Searched For His Beloved

After seven days of battle with the Vikings, Fionn mac Cumhaill returned to Almhuin only to learn that his beloved Sadhbh was missing.   Fionn searched the grounds of the Fort and the surrounding settlement, but all he found was her night shift on the ground outside the stone walls of the dún or fort.  Fionn knew that Sadhbh's disappearance must have been the work of the Tuatha Dé Danann's dark magic and set off immediately with Bran and Sceolan and a handful of the best Fianna hunters to find his beloved mate.

For seven years Fionn mac Cumhaill roamed the countryside in search of his beloved, but every day ended in a fruitless search.  Fionn's heart became heavier and heavier with grief as each passing year went by, but Fionn refused to give up looking for Sadhbh.  

Sadhbh and Oisín

Then after seven years Fionn and his Fianna hunters came across a child in the nearby mountains.  Fionn's enchanted Celtic hounds Bran and Secolan approached the young boy and laid down at his feet, astonishing the group of hunters.  The boy did not know how to speak and was apparently a wildling living in the forest.  Upon closer inspection, Fionn saw that the boy had the same features as his lost love Sadhbh and he decided to take the boy back to Almhuin.





As the months passed the wild boy learned how to speak, and he told Fionn about how he was raised by a gentle deer in the forest.  Fionn realized this was his son named him Oisín (pronounced 0h-SHEEN) which means "young deer" in Irish, in honour of his mother Sadhbh who was never seen from again.  Oisín grew to become one of Irelands greatest poets and a fierce warrior of the Fianna.  Stories and myths of Oisín are still told in Ireland to this day, many of the poems are attributed to the writings of Oisín himself.

Legend has it the little town of Cahersiveen located on the Ring of Kerry is named after Sadhbh.  In Irish Cahersiveen is Cathair Saidhbhín; Cathair = stone ringfort and Saidhbhín = little Sadhbh.  In other words, Little Sadhbh's Ringfort.  This name captured my imagination, as there are two ancient stone ringforts on the outskirts of the town of Cahersiveen.  Were these ringforts part of Almhuin, legendary home of Fionn mac Cumhaill and the Fianna?  


I went to Leacainabuaile ringfort and its sister ringfort Cahergall on the Ring of Kerry, and the myth of Sadhbh came alive for me.   Standing on the ancient stone walls looking out towards the sea, I could almost FEEL the angst the pregnant Sadhbh endured while waiting for her beloved to return to her from battle.  The ringforts have a heavy and forlorn feeling to them that emotes heartache throughout the centuries; this feeling is echoed by the hauntingly beautiful landscape of Cahersiveen. 
In this place, Fionn and Sadhbh's love will live on forever.

Have you ever deepened your travel experience through a myth?  I would love to hear about it in the comments below...

Leacanabuaile Ring Fort Near Cahersiveen

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