Everything's Coming Up Irish

In light of Rebecca's continuing theme of all things Irish, here is a little piece of Irish legend.

Ireland’s literary history is filled with stories and legends. One of the most beloved characters is Cú Chulainn, who was from a breed of fearless warriors. This is how he came to be born.

The king of Ulster, Conchobar, was having a banquet for his sister Dechtire, who was about to be married to a prince named Sualtam. During the course of the banquet, as she was drinking wine, a mayfly flew into her cup. She swallowed it with the wine. Later on, as she and her maids were sleeping, she was met in a dream by the god of light, Lugh. She and her maids were transformed into a flock of birds and spirited away to Brug na Bóinne, a fairy dwelling.

About a year later, Conchobar and the men of Ulster were feasting once again. As they feasted, they looked out the window and saw that a flock of birds was devouring their crops, leaving not so much as a single blade of grass behind. The men of Ulster went out to chase off the birds, and at the order of Conchobar, pursued them. As they pursued them, they could not help but admire the beauty of the birds, nine flocks of them, linked in pairs by chains of silver. They pursued them all the way to Brug na Bóinne.

It became dark and the birds disappeared from the sky. They needed to have shelter for the night, so Conchobar sent Bricriu away to find lodging. Bricriu found only a mean-looking house, occupied by an elderly couple. The couple invited them to lodge there, but Bricriu was skeptical because it didn't seem to offer any provisions. When he returned to Conchobar and told him what he found, Conchobar decided that they would go anyway. When they returned to the house, they discovered that it was not in fact a mean-looking house at all, but rather a well-appointed, luxurious home. They were met at the door not by an elderly couple, but a young man.

The young man led them to a table filled with food and drink. After feasting, Conchobar asked after the mistress of the house. He was told that he would not be able to meet the mistress of the house because she was at that moment in the process of giving birth. Sure enough, in the middle of the night, the cries of the newly born infant could be heard.

The next morning, Conchobar went in search of his host. He could not find him, but he did hear the cries of the infant. Following their sound, he was led to a room where the mother and child were. To his great surprise and joy, the mother was his sister Dechtire, who told him all that had happened to her. Conchobar was overjoyed, and soon the news was heard all over Ulster about the birth of Decthire’s child. His name was Cú Chulainn, meaning Hound of Culann. It was determined that the child would spend his infancy with his mother and father, and then would be put into the care of Conchobar, under whose tutelage he would become a mighty warrior.

(The source for this post comes from the book Irish Legends, by Iain Zaczek)