Kerry, just in time for Lunghnasa, one of the four fire festivals of the Celtic year. ‘Journeying with a fire is like journeying with an ancient teacher,’ Darragh says, believing the dedication to care for the fire through endless trials has grounded him - giving him the skills and wisdom necessary to complete his mission.ĭarragh prepares a feast at Valentia island.Īfter nine months at sea he brought the sacred flame to ground on Valentia Island, Co. Self-isolating in the North Sea, Darragh watched RTÉ news on-line: eternal bulletins presenting hard-science dictating the need for facemasks, sterilisation, and disconnection, and the true purpose of his absurd calling made sense - to help restore hope through community and connection. Halfway home in late March, Darragh observed as Covid 19 and the subsequent lockdown, strangled Ireland and the entire world. His winter voyage of 1,500 nautical miles includes all the trademarks of timeless legend: brutal storms shipwrecks assistance from mysterious strangers and all the while keeping the fire burning. He had only basic sailing experience but believed if he protected the sacred flame it would keep him safe. ![]() On November 15th 2019, in a leaky, traditional Norwegian sailboat usually manned by three, Darragh cast off alone to face the North Sea. ‘This year Ireland will need all the light she can get,’ Darragh says. This ancient pagan religious holiday also marks the beginning of winter – the dark half of the year. His new ceremonial date for extinguishing the fire at Uisneach is October 31st, Samhain – Ireland’s traditional fire festival celebrating the end of the harvest season. Instead, he will mark the equinox with a banquet for the homeless in Limerick city.Īt Kell's Bay, Darragh assembled a crew of chefs to join him for the second leg of his quest - transporting the flame by horse and trap to Uisneach This means the journey is taking longer than expected. However, Darragh and his small band of chefs and fire-keepers, follow no set route to Uisneach, leaving it to generosity of the locals along the way – in return for a field to pitch their tents they’ll cook up a feast. ![]() He planned to hold that ceremony on the autumnal equinox, falling on September 22nd this year, when day and night are in near perfect balance. ‘The spirit of the fire – a spirit of balance in an eco-system, and within life itself – can be carried and transplanted to a place of need,’ Darragh’s vision revealed.Ĭonfident most modern problems, including the Covid pandemic, stem from our disharmony with nature, Darragh believes when he finally completes his quest by extinguishing the fire using water from holy Irish wells, the alchemy of uniting these sacred elements will spark nature’s abundant healing power into the heart of the land and its people. ![]() Westmeath, a Neolithic ceremonial and burial site considered the mythological and sacred heart of Ireland. Meditating one night at the Norse pagan site, Darragh, a Dublin native, received a vision which was later interpreted to mission by a Viking druid: to rebalance Ireland’s natural energy by carrying a fire of abundant life from Norway to the Hill of Uisneach in Co. Darragh sailed 1500 nautical miles in this traditional Norwegian sailboat.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |