The Highland monthly - National Library of Scotland

Gaelic Incantations. 3^1
GAELIC INCANTATIONS, CHARMS, AND
BLESSINGS OF THE HEBRIDES.
I
By WILLIAM MACKENZIE
WILL next briefly refer to the charm called
FATH FITHE.
In Vol. VIII., p. 127, there is a brief description of the
Fath Fithe. As the text will show, this charm is somewhat
comprehensive in its character :
P^a' fithe cuiream ort
Bho chu, bho chat,
Bho bho, bho each,
Bho dhuine, bho bhean,
Bho ghille, bho nighean,
'S bho leanabh beag,
Gus an tig mise rithisd .
An ainm an Athar, a' Mhic, 's an Spioraid Naoimh.
Translated
—
A magic cloud I put on thee,
From dog, from cat,
From cow, from horse,
From man, from woman.
From young man, from maiden,
And from little child.
Till I again return.
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
The Fath Fithe, according to tradition, was a favourite
charm with hunters, for it enabled them to make physical
objects invisible to the ordinary eye. They could come
from the forest laden with the spoils of the chase, but their
enemies would see them not. In more recent times it was
believed that the smugglers protected themselves in this
way from the most vigilant of Excise officers. It is to be
feared, however, that the art has been lost ! The expres-
—