Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race - Knowledge Rush

266 Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race[310]of Maeldūn,” a most curious and brilliant piece of invention,which is found in the manuscript entitled the “Book of the DunCow” (about 1100) and other early sources, and edited, witha translation (to which I owe the following extracts), by Dr.Whitley Stokes in the “Revue Celtique” for 1888 and 1889. It isonly one of a number of such wonder-voyages found in ancientIrish literature, but it is believed to have been the earliest of themall and model for the rest, and it has had the distinction, in theabridged and modified form given by Joyce in his “Old CelticRomances,” of having furnished the theme for the “Voyage ofMaeldune” to Tennyson, who made it into a wonderful creationof rhythm and colour, embodying a kind of allegory of Irishhistory. It will be noticed at the end that we are in the unusualposition of knowing the name of the author of this piece ofprimitive literature, though he does not claim to have composed,but only to have “put in order,” the incidents of the “Voyage.”Unfortunately we cannot tell when he lived, but the tale as wehave it probably dates from the ninth century. Its atmosphere isentirely Christian, and it has no mythological significance exceptin so far as it teaches the lesson that the oracular injunctionsof wizards should be obeyed. No adventure, or even detail, ofimportance is omitted in the following summary of the story,which is given thus fully because the reader may take it asrepresenting a large and important section of Irish legendaryromance. Apart from the source to which I am indebted, the“Revue Celtique,” I know no other faithful reproduction inEnglish of this wonderful tale.The “Voyage of Maeldūn” begins, as Irish tales often do, bytelling us of the conception of its hero.There was a famous man of the sept of the Owens of Aran,named Ailill Edge-of-Battle, who went with his king on a forayinto another territory. They encamped one night near a churchand convent of nuns. At midnight Ailill, who was near thechurch, saw a certain nun come out to strike the bell for nocturns,