DASG Blog

Lusan a' Bhoglaich

I have just returned from an exceptional course on the Isle of Skye. It was our intention on this course to find out about the environment and heritage of the Gael. We were in many kinds of places but my favourite had to be the bog. Therefore, I will write a little this week about the plants to be found there and how they might be used.
 
We were fortunate to see the lus trì-bhileach, the mart trì foil, or bog bean. This was taken as a tonic for constipation and it was said of any foul taste, ‘as bitter as bog bean juice.’ Do explore the Fieldwork Archive, for medicinal uses of rusg bhuidhe nan creag, and cuach Phàraig.
 
You might put the roid, or bog myrtle, to use in keeping midges away. It has also been used in place of hops, when making beer. From a rhyme in Aithris is Oideas: Traditional Gaelic Rhymes and Games:
 
I am harvesting you, polished reddish bog myrtle,
In the name of the splendid Father, and in the name of the Son, my beloved,
In the name of the everlasting Spirit of God.
 
For all the fineness of a good man,
For all the fun of a good chase,
For all the fineness of a good wife, for all the virtue of a good life.
And the advantage of a good step.
 
For the triumph of a great love, and a great leap,
For the sake of a good cause, for the sake of a great world.
Without peril or rough blow.
 
It is said that the mòthan, braonan as they say in Mull, or butterwort, has special powers. Pluck it with your left hand in the sleeve of your right arm; weave together the nine roots in the shape of a cup; put it under your tongue and kiss the girl or boy for whom you have a notion. They will be forever faithful to you! The butterwort is good for people and cattle and it was forever a symbol if love and goodness. From the Carmina Gadelica, Vol 2:
 
‘I’ll pull the bog violet, the herb blessed by the Church. As long as I preserved the bog violet, nobody lives on earth who will take my cow’s milk from me’.
 
Bear in mind, when you go out to cast enchantments, that plants and magic items are always gathered in their nines and threes. I found a fascinating and humorous enchantment in a collection of songs by Duncan Bàn MacIntyre:
 
“…Collect nine stalks of bracken, cut with an axe, And three bones of an old man Pulled from a grave…”
 
You will find this enchantment on the Corpus, as well as a wealth of information about the butterwort. Good luck with your enchantments!
 
Listen here to the DASG team, and how they recited these above rhymes.
Click on the link to find out more about the Gaelic in the Landscape course in Staffin. Remember to get in touch on Facebook, Twitter, or to the links below.