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Leabhar Beith

It was the time of primal random spontaneity; a time when the Earth was new and undefined. Arid deserts and dark bubbling volcanoes, covered by swirling clouds of gases, marked the desolate visage of the developing world. It was the time of the great void.
Then into that shapelessness, from distant Magh Mohr, there grew a trickle of water. First there was one drop, then another and another, until finally there rushed a mighty torrent down upon the Earth. The divine waters from Magh Mohr flooded downwards and soaked the arid dirt, cooled the lava which turned into grey, granite mountains, and life began to spring forth across the Earth. The umber skies grew light and blue.
From this rich soil there grew a tree, tall and strong. Danu, in the form of divine waters from heaven, nurtured and cherished this great tree which became the sacred oak named Bi'le. From the bonding of Danu and Bi'le there dropped two acorns. The first acorn was male and it grew to be Ruadh Rofessa who is called The Daghda, 'The Good God.' The second seed was female, and from it grew Brigantu, or Brigid, 'The Exalted One'. The Daghda and Brigid gazed upon one another in approval for it was within their authority and ability to apply order to the primal variations called ‘En Ceili’ and to people the Earth with the children of Danu, the Mother Goddess, whose divine waters had given life to them.
So there, near the divine waters of Danu, where those waters rose and flooded through the now fertile green valleys of the Earth, eastwards towards a distant sea, The Daghda and Brigid settled. And they called the great course of eastward rushing water after the Mother Goddess, ‘Danuvius’. Her children also know it as the mighty Danube. And four great, bright cities they built there on its broad banks in which the Children of Danu would live and thrive.
The four cities are Falias, Gorias, Finias and Murias. The Daghda became their father, thus his kindred call him 'Father of the Gods.' And Brigid became the wise-one, exalted in learning and much did she imbibe from the mighty Danu and from Bi’le, the sacred oak. She is hailed as the mother of healing, of craftsmanship and of poetry; indeed; she excels in all knowledge. She showed her children that true wisdom is only to be garnered from the feet of Danu, the Mother Goddess, and so only to be found at the water's edge. Those who gather such knowledge also pay homage to Bi’le, the sacred oak. Because they are not allowed to speak his holy name without sanctification, they call the oak ‘draoi’ and those learned in such knowledge are said to possess oak (dru) knowledge (vid) and thus are to be known as Druid.
The knowledge of the Children of Danu grew and each of their four great cities prospered. In Falias they held a sacred stone called the Lia Fail or Stone of Destiny, which, when a righteous ruler sets foot upon it, will shout with joy; in Gorias, where Urias of the noble nature dwells, they held a mighty sword called the 'Retaliator', fashioned before the time of the Gods themselves, and which Urias presented to Lugh Lamhfada, who became the greatest warrior of the Gods; in Finias, they held a magic spear, called 'The Red Javelin', which once thrown, will find its enemy no matter where he hides; and in Murias they held the 'Cauldron of Plenty' from which The Daghda can feed entire nations and it still would not be emptied.
For many eons, the Children of Danu grew and prospered in their beautiful cities. Then, one day, The Daghda, Father of the Gods, and Brigid, the Exalted One, called their children to them. 'You have lingered here long enough. The Earth needs to be peopled by Danu’s Children and needs your wisdom to advise and direct them so that they may live lives of virtue and merit. Our Mother, Danu, has directed you to move towards the place where the bright Sun vanishes in the evening.' 'Why should we go there?' demanded Nuada, the favorite son of the Daghda. 'Because it is your destiny', replied Brigid. 'And you, Nuada shall be a leader to your brothers and sisters, and their children, and the land that you shall come to will be called Inisfail, the Island of Destiny. There you shall abide until your destiny is fulfilled.'
'If it is our destiny,' said another of the Daghda's sons, named Ogma, ' then we shall accept it.' Ogma is the most handsome of the Children of Danu. From his long curly hair, the rays of the sun shine and he is called ‘Ogma grien-aineacg’, of the Sunny Countenance. To him fell the gift of eloquent words, of poetry and languages, and he, it was, who devised how man could write in the sacred imagery of concepts which is named after him as ‘Ogham’.
Brigid was pleased with her stewards of Danu’s heritage.
'I am offer a warning: When you reach Inisfail you will find another people who will claim the Island of Destiny as their own. This people are the Children of Domnu, who is the embodiment of En Ceili. But beware, for Domnu is not as Danu. For each of us is the inverse of the other, as winter is to summer.'
Then, Nuada said, 'should we not take something with which to defend ourselves when the Children of Domnu fight for the possession of Inisfail, as they surely will?' The Daghda gazed at them kindly and replied: 'You may take the four great treasures of the cities of Falias, Gorias, Finias and Murias.' Then the Children of Danu took the treasures and they went to the crag overlooking the headwaters of the Danuvius, the divine waters from Magh Mohr, and ascended in a great cloud which bore them westwards to Inisfail, the Island of Destiny.
Among them were three beautiful sisters who had bonded with the sons of Ogma. Their names were Banba, Fotla and Eire and each sister nurtured an ambition that this land of Inisfail would one day be named after her.
I am Iolair. I am legend and reality. Mine is the voice that speaks this part of the story. It should be told thusly by one such as I, for it is my kind who have locked the words of the secret hoard within my soul and mind.
Sailing the winds above the purple mountains of Inisfail, and beyond through the cold air and warm air that rise and blow among the hills of the Island of Destiny, was a great fleet. Shrouded by a moist mystic veil, borne on sacred winds, the Tuatha de' Danann came in their great spiritual ships animal-adorned sails at billowed fully. The truth is well known that they were of both Magh Mohr and of the Bith, children of the Divine. I, Iolair, alone am fully knowledgeable of their arrival. On my wings I fly with the enchanted vessels and I sing my song of welcome.
Invoke the name of Nemed, Tir ng Fail, our God the Sun, I, Iolair, welcome you. Welcome to the lush hills, the dancing shadows of the woods, the rippling silver streams, the life-abundant lakes. This is your land and it awaits you. Not pride, nor fear, pulsed through my veins keeping time with the drumbeat of the oars, but wonder of the coming of Gods. Many hues and woven banners as the flowers of the glen flew from their perches high above their decks.
I saw the coming of these long ships of the Tuatha de Danann towards the beaches of Inisfail. Each one was adorned with noble shields and their hulls were carved with Ogham. The Sun, hidden from the Fir Bolg, rose high to touch the flesh of these painted Gods with light and warmth. The full-sailed ships did not come from the land of men but were pushed by the power of wizened skill beyond that of Formorian or Fir Bolg, the like of whom have not been seen in the Tir ng Fail before or since.
A thousand heroic Gods and their people came with that fleet to Inisfail. At the lead was a warrior-poet, a fiery-haired Godling who stood with the Sun at his side, his red, woven brat billowed in the sea’s breeze. He was Nuada. I, Iolair, an eagle and keeper of tales, flew with Nuada and his long ships above the hills of Inisfail and eventually came to commune with them through their priests called the Druid.
Nuada, who lead the Tuatha de Danann, turned his eyes towards the green valleys of his new home and offered thanks to our mutual God, the Sun. To men he was a giant, to immortals he was a hero. He stood with the rising sun and his red hair was streaked with white under the sacred battle-crown of the Tuatha de Danann. He wore a tunic woven with reds, ochre and dun. His red brat whipped with the spirit of the wind. This is how Nuada and De Danann came with the grace of the Sun while secreted by a veil of twain. Nuada led the children of Danu to the land of their descendants, the land of destiny, bringing with them the sacred treasures of Magh Mohr. They held sacred wisdom and skill: the Sun, the Plough and the Coll Tree. With them they also brought to Inisfail the most holy and ancient magical artifacts: The Cauldron of the Daghda, Lia Fail: The Stone of Destiny, .Claimh Solais, The Sword of Light and Slea Bua, the Spear of Victory.

Leabhar Beith