Irish Ghost Tales

by Tony Locke

  It was believed that cats could see spirits and ghosts.

  A black cat crossing one’s path by moonlight means death in an epidemic.

  Some believed that black cats carried demons.

  If a funeral procession encountered a black cat, people believed that another member of the family would soon die.

  Druids thought black cats were people who had committed indiscretions in a previous life.

  Some believe black cats are witches in disguise; others that black cats are witches’ familiars.

  It is believed also that if a black cat is killed and a bean placed in its heart, the beans that grow from the soil were the cat is buried will confer extraordinary power; if a man places one in his mouth, he will become invisible.

  The Druidical or royal cat, the chief monarch of all the cats in Ireland, was endowed with human speech and faculties. It was said to possess great and singular privileges. It is described as ‘a slender black cat, wearing a chain of silver’.

  The fear of cats, especially black cats, started in Europe during the Middle Ages – England, in particular. It was the cat’s independence, wilfulness, stealth and the eyes that shone in the dark that put people on edge. With the explosion of rats at this time came an increase in the cat population. These cats were often fed by poor, lonely old women who were then accused of witchcraft. The cats were considered their familiars.

  Some people believed that the cat had supernatural powers and could hypnotise you.

  To kill a cat brings seventeen years of bad luck.

  In England and mainland Europe there was a superstition that if a cat was built into a house wall it would protect the house from rats and evil influences.

  The cat represents guardianship, detachment and sensuality. The goddess Brigid had a cat as a companion. Because the cat was associated with the goddess and the feminine, it was sometimes perceived as ‘unholy’. The cat’s ability to see and work in the spirit world makes it an ideal ally for a magician. The Church’s fear of such powers resulted in the torture and death of thousands of cats in Britain and France. It was when Pope Gregory IX announced a link between the cat and the devil in the tenth century that persecution of the cat became widespread. It has been suggested that this persecution actually contributed to the devastation of the Black Death (bubonic plague) in the twelfth century because of the huge increase in rats. In the thirteenth century Pope Innocent VIII ordered that every cat in Christendom be slaughtered because of their supposed supernatural powers. It has been suggested that this was because of their association with paganism. However, there are those who consider a black cat to be a symbol of good luck.

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  THE BLACK GOAT

  NATIONWIDE

  This horned, bearded, cloven-hoofed mammal (genus Capra) appears often in Celtic traditions, usually representing fertility.

  In Irish folklore, a bocánach is a goat-like supernatural being or demon that haunted the battlefield and shrieked over the warriors. It was often associated with the bánánach. Bocánachs shrieked in the air when Cú Chulainn fought Ferdia.

  THE GLAISTIG

  The glaistig is a water fairy and is part seductive woman, part goat. She tries to hide her goat-like attributes under a long, flowing green dress. She lures men to dance with her before she feeds, vampire-like, on their blood. Her nature is typically fairy-perverse for she can also be benign and sometimes cares for children or old people. She will occasionally herd cattle for farmers. The glaistig was a solitary supernatural being, known in both the Scottish Highlands and Ireland. Some believed she could also appear in human and animal form. Her skin was grey, and long golden hair fell about her body. Like many of the fairy races, she was often seen clothed in green.

  She frequented lonely loughs and rivers and is sometimes described as a half-earth, half-water sprite, although her name literally means ‘water imp’.

  In one aspect she even takes the role of the banshee, wailing at the death of important people. She was also thought of as a trickster, throwing stones and leading travellers astray. She was closely linked to cattle and in some forms is seen as a herder of domestic cattle and wild deer.

  Libations of milk were poured for her, especially on bullaun stones (often regarded as sacred in their own right). This veneration may be linked to older fertility customs. It is easy to speculate that the glaistig’s roots are as a goddess guardian of cattle and the fertility of the herd.

  PUCK FAIR, COUNTY KERRY

  Puck Fair can attribute its roots to Irish folklore and the story of King Puck. The story goes that many years ago Oliver Cromwell’s men were plundering the areas of Kilogonet and Shanara near the base of Kerry’s MacGillycuddy’s Reeks, when they came upon a herd of goats, which fled into the hills. The head male goat, ‘Puck’, went in a different direction to the herd, making his way instead towards the town of Killorglin. His distraught appearance in the town gave the residents warning of the coming danger, the people had time to protect themselves. They were so thankful to Puck for his help that they decided to honour him with a festival and so Puck Fair was born. It has been held every year since.

  This is just one of the origin stories of Puck Fair. In fact, there is no record that gives a precise date or reason for the fair’s beginnings. However, some evidence of a fair appears as far back as 1603, when King James I granted Killorglin the legal right to a fair. Whatever the true reason for Puck Fair, it can definitely be said that it has become Killorglin’s most anticipated yearly event.

  Lugh has given his name to the month of August in Irish – Lughnasadh (or, in modern Irish, Lúnasa), the month of Lugh, the time of the great pagan festivals in his honour. This is still recalled symbolically today in the festival of Puck Fair, when a buck goat, representing fertility, is raised aloft and kept there for the duration of the celebrations.

  Superstition regards the goat with some caution, partly because of the ancient worship of the god Pan, who was half goat and half man, and partly because one of the tricks attributed to the devil is the ability to turn himself into a goat.

  Since ancient times the devil has appeared as a goat with horns and cloven hooves. In England and Scotland it is said that goats will never be seen for twenty-four consecutive hours because once a day they visit Satan to have their beards combed.

  Not all goat folklore is negative and in some cases goats are regarded as beneficial or even lucky. A widespread belief among European farmers was that keeping goats among a herd of cattle would prevent contagious abortion, which they attributed to the protective nature of the goat’s strong smell. Goats were also kept with horses to keep them content. A tame goat was used to lead troublesome horses onto ships. Similarly, trained ‘Judas’ goats were often used in abattoirs to lead livestock to slaughter.

  Goats have also been regarded as guardians of treasure. Meeting a black goat on a lonely bridle path meant that treasure was hidden nearby. It was considered good luck to meet a goat when setting out on an important journey or meeting and in Wales a bride would be granted good luck if the first thing she saw upon emerging from the church after her wedding was a tethered goat.

  Goat milk has long been valued for its excellent medicinal and skin-enhancing qualities. Irish folklore holds that goat milk enhances beauty. It also offered some resistance to tuberculosis and was thought to be a cure for eczema.

  A goat’s foot or some hairs from his beard are believed to be talismans for driving off evil spirits.

  In Ireland it was believed that goats could see the wind and knew when bad weather was coming.

  A cure for baldness was to fill a goat’s bladder with human urine, dry it out over a fire, then grind it down and rub it into the scalp with raw onions.

  The Talmud explains that the biblical description of a land ‘flowing with milk and honey’ actually refers to goats foraging in fig trees. The figs were so ripe that sweet juice (called fruit honey) dripped everywhere and the goats were so well-nourished their udders overflowed with milk
. The milk and honey literally spilled across the land.

  The Old French word for slaughtering and cutting up meat is boucheron, from the term for a he-goat, bouc. It is also the root of the English words ‘butcher’, ‘buck’ (a male goat) and perhaps the slang term ‘butch’.

  Goats metabolise and process the yellow-and-orange carotenes found in plants much more efficiently than cows, which is the reason the milk is white, not cream-colored and the fat is colourless (a drawback for butter).

  In Ireland, one of our oldest traditional instruments, the bodhrán (bow-rawn), is made from goatskin. This ancient frame drum is traditionally made with a wooden body and a goatskin head.

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  THE POOKA

  NATIONWIDE

  In Irish folklore the pooka often appeared as a horse that galloped across the countryside, knocking down fences and gates and destroying crops. It was said that while in this form the pooka liked to take its rider, usually a drunk, on a wild ride all night then throw them to the ground in the early morning. This person, already heavily inebriated, was said to be under the spell of the pooka and would have no recollection of what happened. This might account for some people who, having got very drunk, report that they have no idea what happened the previous night.

  The only one to ever ride a pooka successfully was Brian Boru, the High King of Ireland. He gained control over the creature through the use of magic. He used a special bridle, which contained three hairs from the pooka’s tail. This, together with his physical strength, meant that he was able to stay on its back until the exhausted pooka surrendered. He then forced it to make two promises: first, that it would no longer torment Christian people and destroy their property and, second, that it would never again attack an Irish man or woman except if the person was drunk or had evil in his or her heart. The pooka agreed but over the course of time it reverted to its old ways. After all, the pooka’s master was the Prince of Lies, commonly called the devil.

  Here in Ireland the pooka is believed to be an animal spirit and it has been suggested that the name originated from poc, which means he-goat in Irish. Another suggestion is that the name may come from the Scandinavian pook or puke, meaning ‘nature spirit’. Whatever its origin, there is no question that the pooka is a changeling that can take many different forms, human or animal, horse, donkey, goat, dog, cat or bull. Sometimes it has been described as a handsome young man or a beautiful young woman. When in animal form the pooka is usually jet black with fiery red or yellow eyes.

  The pooka is said to live in the hills and mountains. It can be helpful or menacing. It has been known to help farmers or cause havoc, depending on its mood at the time. It is cunning and deceitful, which is why it has also been called the trickster. Due to its power to create or destroy, it has also been looked upon as a fertility god and, due to its use of human speech, a prophesier.

  The form in which it most often appears is that of a black horse with red eyes. It roams the countryside at night, tearing down fences, trampling crops and scattering livestock.

  In County Down it assumes the shape of a small, deformed goblin who demands a share of the crop at the end of the harvest and it is for this reason that some people place a corn dolly in the field after the crop has been harvested. This is known locally as the Pooka’s Share. In County Laois it takes the shape of a huge, hairy bogeyman who terrifies those abroad at night. In counties Waterford and Wexford, it is said to appear as an eagle with a gigantic wingspan while in County Roscommon it is a large black goat with curling horns. In County Mayo the sight of the pooka can stop hens laying or cows giving milk.

  Nowadays the pooka is mostly regarded as just another mythological creature, given new life as a cute little cuddly toy. This has been the fate of many of the powerful creatures of the fairy realm. However, it should be remembered that the pooka is an adroit shape-shifter and a master of disguise. Maybe this new life as a cute furry toy with glass eyes serves a purpose, for who knows when the pooka will fade into the darkness only to reappear again and strike terror into the hearts of lonely travellers?

  HOLE OF THE POOKA, COUNTY KILDARE

  Situated on the River Liffey, between counties Kildare and Wicklow, is the site of the hydro-electric power station. Here the river flows through a narrow gorge before plunging 150 feet in three stages. Under the second drop there is a pool, which is called the Hole of the Pooka. The pool gave rise to a story by an unknown Kildare man.

  In November 1813 the Kildare hunt, known as the Killing Kildares, was following the scent of a fox. The fox managed to evade the hunt until it was approaching Tipperkevin. It was there that the large fox was finally sighted by the hounds, who chased it towards the River Liffey. At the same time a large black horse also appeared. It had no rider and none of the members of the hunt recognised it. Some suggest it was the pooka.

  The ground on which the chase took place was difficult. The fox and the hounds ran so fast that only one member of the hunt managed to keep up with them, a man named Grennan. He was followed by the black horse. The river was in full flow, following very heavy rain, but the hounds were gaining on the fox and started to cross the river, picking their way across the rocks. Grennan realised the danger the hounds were in and tried to call them back but to no avail. The fox was headed for a narrow ledge but when it saw the pooka’s fiery red eyes it became so frightened that it attempted to jump the last few yards onto the ledge. It missed and fell into the rushing waters below. The pooka, however, jumped the gorge with ease and disappeared into the nearby wood. The pack of hounds, hard on the scent of the fox, fell headlong into the turbulent waters of the Liffey. Grennan watched as fox and hounds desperately tried to swim to safety. Some disappeared beneath the waters and some were dashed against the rocks and screamed in pain before dying. Grennan wept, but his sorrow gave way to terror when he heard a diabolical neighing, like an animal laughing, from the woods on the other side of the gorge. He knew then that it was the pooka.

  In 1930, the writer of the original story described how he stood above the valleys of the Liffey and the King’s River when a sudden sadness came over him and he wept at the site of the homes that would soon be submerged forever by the Blessington Lakes, which would supply water for the power station at Poulaphouca. Between 1938 and 1940, seventy-six houses were demolished and a series of bridges were blown up before the entire valley was flooded for the hydro-electric power station. The church of St Mark, which was built in 1682, was also submerged and to this day some people claim to hear bells tolling beneath the waters of the lakes.

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  THE POLTERGEIST

  OF COUNTY MAYO

  COUNTY MAYO

  Somewhere in County Mayo, truly terrifying events are taking place. The word ‘poltergeist’ has come to strike terror into the minds of those who have the misfortune of finding their home occupied by this evil entity. Thankfully they are few and far between.

  One of the worst hauntings I’ve heard of concerns a young family who live in a small cottage not far from Westport. I won’t mention their name or locality as this strange phenomenon is ongoing. The family consists of a husband, wife, two children and a pet dog.

  Strange and disturbing events began to occur shortly after they bought the cottage. It had been empty for a number of years and the man and wife were both surprised and delighted to discover how cheap it was. They made an offer, which was accepted, and moved in shortly afterwards. It was their first home and they were overjoyed. The cottage was on just under an acre of land, with a small orchard and an enclosed garden, perfect for their little dog to run around in, although the dog seemed reluctant to enter the cottage. In hindsight it would appear that the dog was sensitive to the ‘presence’.

  Before long they began to notice the usual signs of poltergeist activity: flying objects, lights going on and off, drawers opening and strange voices. However, what makes this case so terrifying are the ‘happenings’, as the family call them. The young couple woke up one morning to find t
heir youngest child’s teddy bear hanging from a noose in their bedroom. They swear it was not there when they went to bed the previous evening. ‘There’s no way the children could have placed the teddy there as the ceiling is too high and there is nothing to stand on,’ the father said.

  Other acts of violence have been played out using the children’s toys: dolls’ heads ripped off, a knife driven through a fluffy bunny rabbit, and messages appearing on their PlayStations. The father once gave his old mobile phone to the children to play with. It hadn’t worked for years and had no battery but even so messages began to appear on it. These were threatening and ordered the family to ‘Leave this house’ and ‘Go now, you are not welcome here’.

  On one occasion the young mother woke up screaming as she felt something attacking her in bed. Scratches appeared on her skin that resembled claw marks. The parents became so afraid that they eventually consulted their parish priest for advice. Although they were not regular churchgoers, the priest saw how distressed they were and agreed to visit the house and say a mass, he assumed their problems had a more rational explanation.

  The priest prepared the family for the service but before he had even finished putting the stole around his neck the air turned ice cold and a voice was heard to say ‘Get out’. The priest began, ‘In the name of the …’ But suddenly he was slapped across the face by some unknown, unseen force and the voice was heard once again. ‘Leave this house,’ it said. The priest quickly gathered his belongings and told the frightened family that he would return.