Blúiríní Béaloidis 39 - Bees In Tradition (with Tiernan Gaffney)

Blúiríní Béaloidis 39 - Bees In Tradition (with Tiernan Gaffney)

Author: Blúiríní Béaloidis / Folklore Fragments May 9, 2023 Duration: 59:40
Bees have been cultivated in Ireland since early times. Of value for their wax and honey, there were also believed to be blessed creatures, as Dáithí Ó hÓgáin writes: "probably because of the use of their wax to make church candles, and one medieval legend describes a swarm of bees building a little container around a lost communion wafer to protect it. They were also thought to be possessed of special wisdom, and to take an acute interest in the affairs of their owners. If a bee entered the house it was regarded as a good omen, and the bees in their hive would be told in advance of projects that the family intended to undertake in the belief that they might effect a beneficial influence. When a member of the family died, it was customary to place a black piece of cloth on the hiveso that the bees could join in the mourning". For this episode of Blúiríní I was honoured to have been joined by my friend and colleague from the National Museum of Country Life in county Mayo, and alumnus of the taught MA in Irish Folklore at UCD, Tiernan Gaffney. Tiernan is an Assistant Keeper of the Irish Folklife Collection at the National Museum of Ireland, his folklore research often explores the creation and connection of communities within shared spaces. Join us for episode 39 of Blúiriní Béaloidis as we honour those blessed, wise and industrious little ones, and talk about an upcoming National Museum of Ireland exhibition, “Murmur of Bees”which will launch in the summer of 2023. To learn more about the National Museum of Ireland: Country Life, visit: https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/Museums/Country-Life

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 23 - Holy Wells In Folk Tradition [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:24
Lying in overgrown fields, by churches and next to roadsides all over Ireland, are hidden holy wells and sacred springs which have for countless generations been visited as sites of pilgrimage and devotion. These wells a…
Blúiríní Béaloidis - 22 Invisible Worlds (With Eddie Lenihan) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:54
Our lives are built on the stories we tell. At both an individual and a communal level, they orient and mould us, shaping our perspectives and outlining our reality. In an age where life can seem increasingly fettered by…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 19 - Sacred Trees In Folk Tradition [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:59
While rooted in the earth, trees ascend towards the firmament of the Heavens. They likewise renew themselves through the eternal rhythms that govern all living things (those cycles of growth, maturation, decay and rebirt…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 18 - Brigid In Folk Tradition [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:10
St. Brigid’s Day falls on the first of February, and is traditionally understood as marking the beginning of spring in Irish custom. Dedicated to the saint nicknamed Muire na nGael or the ‘Mary of the Irish’ (a designati…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 17 - Rumours Of War [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:48:07
From Jul 28, 1914 until Nov 11, 1918 the iron dice of war rolled across the fields of Europe with a ferocity and magnitude the likes of which the world had never seen. In the smoke filled trenches of Guillement, and on t…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 16 - Otherworld Islands In Folk Tradition [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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 ye…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 15 - The Salmon In Folk Tradition [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:36
Irish communities have been sustained for centuries by the fruits of our seas, rivers and lakes, from which both physical and economic subsistence was drawn. In this regard, this month’s Blúiríní Béaloidis episode sees J…
Blúiríní Béaloidis 14 - The Changeling In Folk Tradition [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:23
The birth of a child is among the most important moments in the life of the individual, and of the community of which they are a broader part. Small wonder then, that there should exist so large a body of folk belief and…