This type of mythology is based on the legends of Celtic religion, which was in force in the Iron Age. However, it did not happen after the Roman Empire, due to the transformation to Christianity and its loss of the original language. Despite this, some Celtic communities maintained their beliefs, such as the Scotch tribes and the Breton peoples of the British Isles. Like other mythologies, this one talks of spirits and events, join us to discover 2 of the most surprising myths.
Fairies and spirits on All Saints’ Day, it is told that there was a young man named Hugh King, who one day on the All Saints’ eve, while fishing, imagined fantastic beings. Suddenly, he returns to reality when listening to people having fun, the young man approached the crowd and asked: What was the reason for the celebration?, they answered: “Let’s go to the fair”, and another one invited him to go. King cheered up and followed them to the forest; they decorated the atmosphere with drinks, music and food. The young man, amazed, left on the floor a basket he was carrying, and he was surprised to see that an elf came out of the basket, who thanked him for transporting him and awarded him with gold guineas.
Hugh had so much fun until he got tired, so he laid down on a tree, suddenly a gentleman woke him up and asked him if he knew who those people were. The young man analyzes and realizes that he knew many of them, who had died a long time ago. Horrified, he tried to escape, however, he was caught in the middle of them, who made nasty noises to the ears, that were so loud that he fainted. When he woke up, he was lying on the ground. Already on the way back to his home, he analyzed that he was among fairies and spirits of All Saints, and understood that he should have stayed at home and not been a hindrance to their celebration. Hence the belief that no one should leave home on All Saints’ Day.
The fisherman and the seal, the inhabitants of the Scottish Shetland and the Orkney Islands tell, that seals get out of the sea, left their skin and began to play in the sand in the shape of humans. This legend tells that there was a fisherman who once found two beautiful women who were having fun. The man realized that there were two seal skins nearby, and when he got close to observe these skins, the women took them quickly, put them on and then threw them into the sea.
The man was dazzled by one of them so when he could he asked her to marry him. Years later the marriage between the fisherman and the seal developed positively, and they became the parents of two children. Then the woman began to behave in a strange way, she used to go out alone late at night, in one of them the fisherman followed her and discovered that his wife was with another male seal and together they went to the sea.
Celtic myths are strange, but they assure that fantastic beings and extraordinary things do exist, they are not just stories.
ALFA