Celtic Mythology and Religion: With Chapters Upon Druid Circles

281 Pages·2016·3.63 MB·English

by  Alexander Macbain

C
O N T E N T S
.
P
AG E
U
I
NTR OD CTI ON
,
C C M Y Y R
E LTI TH O LO G AN D E L I G I ON
,
C h t fM th
arac er o y
,
C fM th
ause o y
,
S read fM th
p o y
,
Th A N tio
e ryan a n
,
A M h
t
ryan y s
,
R e ults fth G er l Pri ci l s
s o e en a n p e
,
So r e fI nform tio
u c s o a n
,
Th Celts
e
,
C elti Ch r teri ti
c a ac s cs
,
Th G ulish R eli io
e a g n
,
m
D r idis
u
,
C lti R eli io in B rit i d I rel d
e c g n a n an an
,
r ti e i ion
B i h R l
s g
,
Th G a li G od i H istor
e e c s n y
,
G od fth G a ls
s o e e
,
Th C lti E l ium
e e c ys
,
W
l h d G eli E l sium
e s an a c y
,
W
C elti or hip d R it
c s an es
,
C elti B uri l R it
c a es
,
T D U C RC S
H E R I D I LE
,
C C B UR A
E LTI I L
,
L I S T O F I L L U S T R A T I O N S .
P
F
ACI NG AG E
D M B ai d hi Stude ts F rontispiec
r ac n an s n e
. ,
D ruid Temple from th N orth
e
,
Clav C ir s round la
a a n g p n
, ,
N orth d South
an
,
Clav N orthern Cair
a n
, ,
C i i h Circle d C irn
ra n s an a
,
Sto h e rou d pla
n e en g g n n
.
,
R ude Ston M o um nts in I dia
e n e n
,

I N TR OD U CTI ON
.
"
M
ALE AN DER B generally and rightly regarded
AC AI N
,
the greatest of our S cotti h Celtic scholars was
as
s
,
born in G l f hi in B adenoch on d July 8
en es e 2 2n 1 55
, , , ,
and died on d April at Sti ling The
3r 1 907 r an
, , .
M
t o f his father Joh B i were reputed
ces ors n ac a n
, ,
t o hail from Lochaber His mother was Margaret
.
M
M
ackintosh whose p eople were of the ackintoshes
,
of Ti i i i Glen Tilt descendants or connections
r n e n
,
of the an ient T ‘i h of that ilk I n M B i '
c o seac ac a n s
.
boyhood his district thoroughly Gaelic
w as so
speaking that at the age of eight or nine he knew
no E nglish while at fifteen his E nglish was still
,
hesitating an d though he was qui k t o observe the
c
,
e rors of other he himself ould not avoid imil ar
r s c s
,
mistake of ammar and idiom He was bred in a
s gr
.
G aelic atmosphere and in a distri t which in Virtue
c
of its central position full o f the clan spi it and
w as r
clan traditions an environment whi h influen ed
c c
,
m
hi strongly th oughout his life I n hi early years
r s
. ,
he had his full share o f the j oys and the hardships
of the H ighland l d of humble station and more
a
,
than hi share o f the perfervid energ and deter
s y
mination which have raised many su h lads t o
so c
honour and fame Some day the full story o f
.
M B i ’ early career may be given more ompletely
ac a n s c
related by himself in his J l a document of
as ourn a
,
N C N
i I D I
v
TRO U T O
.
great interest and value I n the I ntro duction
,
h
he says I give all my early life up to t time I
e
,
8
commenced keeping a Journal or the year 1 70
,
,
when the proper commences and moreo ver
j l
ourn a
, ,
I a lso give an account o f my ancestors in the said
I ntroduction Here only a short sketch of these
.
early days can be given He entered I nsh School
.
on h N ovember 86 and left it o n 8th Aug t
25t 1 3 us
, , ,
8 From December of 8 till mid April 8
1 70 1 70 1 71
-
. ,
m
he taught quite alone the school of D lli
un u e
, , ,
Bo at of Garten which under him rose fro m t wenty
,
three to fift seven pupils His salary c onsisted of
y
-
.
the fees After this experience and some months o f
.
att endance at B ld S hool where he began Greek
a ow c
, ,
he got work o n the Ordnanc e Survey fi st in Scot
r
,
land then in Wales H e had however no int ention
.
, , ,
m
o f remaining permanently in the Survey his i
; a
all along was somehow or other to work his way
, ,
to the U niversity H is craving for kno wledge o f
.
every kind was intense his m ans o f grat ifying it
; e
were slender but he never lost an o pportunity
;
.
B efore leaving Badenoch he had made good progr ess
in E nglish History Latin and M athematics and had
, ,
,
contr ived by dint of p rchase and borro wi g to
u
n
,
,
read a great deal o f sound but exceedingly mis
ll literature He had tried his hand at
ce an eous
.
poetry and had given it up H e had read astro nomy
.
and done some architectural drawing stirred thereto
,
by seeing the plans of some new
buildings on t he
M ack intosh estate He had even tried p i ting
H
a n
e
.
.
N C N
I DU I vii
TRO T O
.
m m
h ad the habit o f t aking stock fro ti e to time o f
hi att ainments hi p er onal belongings bo oks etc
s s s
, , , . ,
and hi physical development and appe rance He
s a
.
m
looked upon his little World with the s a e appraising
,
critical but ki dl H e kep t a full and c areful
n y‘ eye
.
note o f hi correspondence with his father who had
s
,
gone t o better hi fortune in America and was
s
,
deeply solicitous f his son ’s welfare On the
or
.
Ordnance S urvey he added materially to his stock
of knowledge and bec ame expert in the operations
of surveying but in far as his main purpose was
so
,
oncerned the service was a failure for he left it
c
, ,
in 8 as p oor as when he entered it H e now
1 73
.
m
studied for a short ti e at B ld School and
a ow
,
succeeded in obtaining one o f the Grammar S hoo l
c
Bursaries provided under the scheme o f the Reverend
Dr Calder Macphail With this assistan e in
J c
. . . ,
m
autumn of 8 he entered the Gra mar S chool o f
1 74
Old Aberdeen famous then under the Rectorship
, ,
of D William Dey as a preparato ry school for
r
. ,
Aberdeen U niversity Two years later he entere d
.
King ’s College as s cond Bursar and could at last
e
,
look forward ith confidence t o some realisation
w
m
of hi ambition Here he is said to have i presse d
s
.
his fellow students as the ablest man of his year
,
a ear which included James Adam afterwards o f
y
,
mm nuel C llege Cambridge foremost Platoni t
E
a o s
, ,
of time Tho gh a good classic al scholar
hi
u
s
. ,
M read for honour in philosophy a subj ec t
B i
s
ac a n
,
m
hich in after life b reckon d one of the st b re
e e o ar n
w