Blúiríní Béaloidis 16 - Otherworld Islands In Folk Tradition

Blúiríní Béaloidis 16 - Otherworld Islands In Folk Tradition

Author: Blúiríní Béaloidis / Folklore Fragments September 17, 2018 Duration: 1:12:59
Native European and Irish Tradition posits the existence of an Otherworld realm lying beyond the furthest reaches of the horizon; an island of plenty and abundance, where happiness lasts forever, and where one hundred years pass as one day. The Greek Elysium, King Arthur's Avalon, the Odainsakr of the Norse and the Irish Land of the Living all point to a long-held corpus of beliefs regarding a paradise across the ocean. For the 16th instalment of Blúiríní Béaloidis, hosts Jonny Dillon and Claire Doohan set forth upon the waves to Teach Duinn (The House of Donn), to which the souls of Ireland's heathen dead were said to travel with the setting of the sun. Continuing their voyage, Claire and Jonny venture onwards over the seas 'flowery plains' visiting 'thrice fifty islands' with the great Connle, Mael Dúin, Bran and St. Brendan as their companions. Our ships are coursing over the sea; strange panoramas and otherworld islands await: 'There is a distant isle, Around which sea-horses glisten: A fair course against the white-swelling surge, -Four feet uphold it. A beauty of a wondrous land, Whose aspects are lovely, Whose view is a fair country, Incomparable is its haze. Wealth, treasures of every hue, Are in Ciuin, a beauty of freshness, Listening to sweet music, Drinking the best of wine.’

Delve into the living tapestry of stories, customs, and beliefs carried through generations with Blúiríní Béaloidis Folklore Podcast. Emerging from the archives of The National Folklore Collection at University College Dublin, each episode is a carefully crafted fragment, a blúirín, of cultural memory. Host Jonny Dillon guides listeners along a fascinating furrow, unearthing everything from local Irish legends and seasonal rituals to broader European traditions that echo through time. This isn't merely a history lesson; it's an engagement with the voices, practices, and worldviews that shaped communities. You'll hear specific tales collected from the countryside, examine the logic behind old superstitions, and discover how everyday life was interwoven with the supernatural and the symbolic. The podcast serves as a bridge, connecting a deep, often overlooked past with contemporary curiosity, suggesting that these fragments of folklore hold a mirror to our shared human experience. Listening feels like having a thoughtful conversation with a knowledgeable guide, one who understands that these traditions are not static relics but vibrant threads in a larger cultural fabric. For anyone drawn to the roots of identity, storytelling, and the subtle wisdom embedded in custom, this series offers a rich and rewarding exploration, proving that the old ways still have much to say.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 45

Blúiríní Béaloidis Folklore Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Blúiríní Béaloidis 43 - Indexing Folklore (with Steve Roud) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:23
Steve Roud is a Librarian, folklore scholar and creator of the Roud Folk Song Index, which contains upwards of 750,000 entries to around 45,000 English language folk songs, as found in books, recordings, manuscripts and…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 42 - Passing the Time (with Henry Glassie) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:32:11
Video recording of this episode is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OcxwmDuUeU&ab_channel=UCD-UniversityCollegeDublin Henry Glassie is College Professor Emeritus at Indiana University, Bloomington, USA, a…
Bluiríní Béaloidis 40 - What Is A Folklore Archive [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:23
Hello a chairde, and welcome to episode 40 of Blúiríní Béaloidis, the podcast from the National Folklore Collection. It would be remiss of me not to commence this episode of the podcast with long, grovelling apologies co…