Aengus believes he is the son of Midir, his foster father, but gets a rude awakening when a jealous Fir Bolg youth tells him otherwise. On finding out his father is actually The Dagda, the King in the Sidhe, he sets out to meet him and claim a Sidhe of his own. There's one slight problem though; Someone already occupies the mound The Dagda had in mind for his son. That someone is the husband of Aengus's mother, the one The Dagda had already duped when he had an affair with Boann. 

A cautionary tale on why you should read the fine print of any contract. 

credits

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All sounds cc licence from freesound.org

The Dagda has got his groove back, but though his power is restored, he longs for Boann, goddess and wife of his steward, Elcmar. He makes use of his control of the Sun and time to not only make a tryst possible, but to hide the conception and birth of a son.

Despite the title, Étain doesn’t appear in today’s story as she isn’t introduced until later in the Saga.

credits

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All sounds cc licence from freesound.org

The Dagda has had enough of Bres's demands of his labour and Cridenbel's demands of his hospitality. Now, with the help of a magical child and a satirist, The Dagda Strikes Back.

A cautionary tale outlining why you should always give your guests something decent with their cuppa.

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All sounds cc licence from freesound.org (except Door - Stone - Large - by DWO Boyle attribution licence at freesound)

Marcas and Stephie talk about the various tales from Irish Mythology that reference Samhain and the ghastly cast of ghoulish entities associated with them. We also talk folklore, customs, games, robbing pallets for the bonfire and dressing up in bin bags to go out and scare your neighbours. 

No main story this week but we do have one on our patreon, info below. 

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All sounds cc licence from freesound.org

Dian Cecht receives Ogma’s message and sets out to find a way of fighting back against Bres’s tyranny. He recruits the blacksmith Gobniu and the silversmith Credne to help him create a new arm for the former High Chief of the Gods, Nuada.

credits

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All sounds cc licence from freesound.org

Ogma suffers under the reign of Bres, but from this suffering comes a great revelation.  We talk about Ogma, ogham script, attitudes to work in myth, and the Irish language.

We ask:

What was Ogma's role in myth and in the old pagan religion?

What is Ogma's relationship to other deities?

What was the Ogham system of writing?

What attitudes to work in medieval Ireland are represented in this story?

Are metaphors about the origins of language encoded in tales from mythology?

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All sounds cc licence from freesound.org

Full show notes available at irishmythologypodcast.ie

Have you heard about the Druid, Mog Ruith and his most famous deed? 

I thought not. It’s not the sort of tale you would hear from a teacher or a priest.

In this episode we hear about the druid Mog Ruith and his daughter Tlachtga travelling from County Kerry to the Middle East to study the magic of Simon Magus, and how on the way, Mog Ruith becomes the executioner of John the Baptist. We ask:

Who was Mog Ruith?

Why did he and his daughter, Tlachtga travel to the Middle East? 

Does this story have a hidden meaning that points to the early Irish Church’s struggles with both imported heresy and native paganism?

Why aren’t Mog Ruith and Tlachtga as well known as some other Irish Mythological figures?

Why did Mog Ruith behead John the Baptist?

Why were he and Tlachtga associated with Simon Magus?

We also talk about heresy, Roman influences in Iron Age Ireland, the oared wheel, and Kerry UFO sightings . 

credits

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

Air traffic control audio courtesy of www.liveatc.net

Full show notes on http://irishmythologypodcast.ie

The Culmination of a saga. A bloody battle that will decide the future of Ireland. Can the mighty Fir Bolg repel the almighty power of the gods?

Written, presented and produced by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Celltic Warrior (Theme) by Damiano Baldoni (Attribution 4 Licence)

Full Credits in show note at: http://irishmythologypodcast.ie