Imbolc. Art credit Daniela Simina on combo.art
February 1st is only days ahead. It is the day when, for many years now, I do acknowledge Brigit, and that shift in energy, that little nudging that speaks of spring being somewhere around the corner. The liminal powers, the fairy gods, have the center stage in my practice, but Brigit has also been a companion for a while. Truth being said, the situation now is quite different from the time when she first came on my path. Today I found myself pondering over the question: how does Brigit, zâne, and Na Daoine Maithe fit together in general, but also particularly on February 1st?
Is Brigit, the Irish goddess, part of fairies, as fairies are understood in Ireland?
If we look at the the body of lore surrounding Brigit, the answer would be no. There is no mention in the lore of Brigit being connected to fairies. She does not appear to be a liminal goddess that takes on the role of fairy queen, a quality not at all uncommon in Irish lore.
However, in the original corpus of material[1] Brigit is clearly known as one of the Tuath Dé Danann [2]. Also, looking up the origin of fairies in Ireland, we find out that the Tuatha De Dannan become fairies themselves after the Milesian conquest.
Aside from being part of the Tuath Dé Danann, who went to live into the fairy mounds and who became the Aos Sí[3]. Brigit is also the daughter of the Dagda, known to be the king of fairies in Ireland [4]. And speaking of family ties, Finnbheara who belonged to the Tuatha Dé Danann but is now mostly known as a fairy king, is a son of the Dagda too.
As daughter of a fairy king, sister of another fairy king, and a member of the tuath that became the Fair Folk or fairies in Ireland, doesn’t Brigit herself have a place among fairies then?
I want to say that she does, or that she could be considered one of Na Daoine Maithe based on her genealogy. But again, no text mentions Brigit as a fairy, or as a liminal power holding roles as both goddess and fairy queen. And I can’t stop wondering why? Could it be that Brigit has the saint aspect so strongly connected to her and maybe, just maybe, for the church and many people the saint and fairy are mutually exclusive?
So…
I bet I am not the only one who tries to reconcile a fairy-based spiritual path with inclusion of deities or beings who are not traditionally associated with fairies, implicitly at least. In my case, this deity is Brigit.
I make my own case the case study here, not because it is the most relevant, but because it is the one that I can understand best, and because I feel at ease revealing as much detail as I need to without infringing on anyone else’s privacy.
I have been in a relationship with Brigit for a while. She has been one of my spiritual guides, and actually, she is the one who opened the door to usher in the Dagda. It is because of her that I ended up writing – poetry, mind you, and teaching Reiki, the last thing I thought I would ever be teaching. Our relationship does occasionally get a little cold, but it has been a lasting one.
But my own path is a fairy-led one.
Some time ago I began questioning whether I have reached a fork in the road: one branch bearing a sign that reads “Brigit”, and the other a sign reading “Fairies”. It is an either-or type of situation which I have to sit and ponder seriously about. I had in the past the experience of a goddess who, after years of partnership, let go of me. I considered the possibility that after few years of Brigit’s mentorship, including two years in her service as flame keeper, she’d feel that our journey together has reached its conclusion. Maybe.
The other image that pops into my mind is that of two roads running parallel to each other: the “Fairy” road, and the “Brigit” road. Walking both while having one foot on each becomes painfully difficult because in so doing the much-desired cohesiveness of my practice shatters. Nope, this doesn’t feel right either.
From the experiences that I’ve had with the Aos Sí over the years, I gather that they either demand exclusivity, or expect me to find some smart way around whenever I considered entering different partnerships. I was never offered the option of a clear duality, this and that. I’m not saying that they don’t offer it to other people, it is just not the type of agreement they made with me. Which leaves me wondering, how do I reconcile my relationship with goddess Brigit with the wild fairy path that I’m on?
Honestly, I don’t have a clear answer. Some musings, but nothing more. As the daughter of An Dagda, as one of the Tuatha De Danann and therefore one of the Aos Sí, I could connect Brigit to the Fair Folk implicitly even if the lore does not make such connection explicitly. I’m aware that like with all things related to fairies and Irish mythology, this situation is as clear as mud.
I shall go on from here, and prepare to celebrate Brigit on February 1st, alongside honoring the Fairy Queens that I personally associate to the energy of this time of the year. Honoring Brigit on Imbolc not as part of fairies, but alongside the Liminal Powers of Fairy. It is a subtle nuance that I am fully aware not everyone will connect with, nor agree upon. I’ll be sensing, feeling my way through, and being open to follow whatever course my relationship with Brigit is going to take.
Until next time,
Happy Imbolc, and bright Fairy blessings,
Daniela
[1] Cath Maige Tuired https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T300011.html
[2] A mythical race of people with extraordinary powers and levels of knowledge who inhabited Ireland before the Milesian invasion. The Milesians, or Gaels, are considered the ancestors of the Irish people.
[3]https://www.connollycove.com/tuatha-de-danann/
[4] The Dream of Oengus, http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/oengus.html
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