Walking Between Worlds — Living Law Part XI
Part XI of the Living Law series, exploring ritual, skin, and the memory of land. There comes a point where separation no longer holds. Where the elements are no longerdistinct,…
The Law of Return — Living Law Part X
Part X of the Living Law series, exploring ritual, skin, and the memory of land. Nothing we take is without consequence. Not always immediately, but eventually.Everything returns: to soil, to…
Bark, Bite, and Brehon Law: Learn About The History of Dogs in Early Irish Society, Legend, and Law
Kill the wrong dog in early medieval Ireland and it could cost you ten cows and a replacement hound. Let your own dog foul a neighbour's land and you might…
Kinship & the Invisible Threads – Living Law Part IX
Part IX of the Living Law series, exploring ritual, skin, and the memory of land. Originally written for The Brehon Academy. Nothing exists alone. Not land, not body, not thought.…
INSIDE THE BREHON COURTS: JUSTICE, JUDGES AND SURETIES IN EARLY IRELAND
For over a thousand years, Ireland ran a legal system with no police force, no prisons, and no state courthouse, and it worked. Disputes were heard, judgements were handed down,…
Brehons, Brahmins, and an Irish Scholar who made an Incredible Connection
Myles Dillon spent fifty years arguing that early Ireland and ancient India shared more than a distant ancestor — this is his story, and his case
“King and Hermit”—A 10th-century poem translated by Kuno Meyer
What follows is a 10th-century poem describing events set in the seventh century. It records an imagined conversation between King Guaire (Guare) of Connacht and his brother Marvan (Marban), a…
Trial by Truth: The Twelve Ordeals of Brehon Law and the Testament of Morann
When people imagine early Irish law, they usually picture the brithem — the brehon — weighing evidence and handing down a careful judgement based on precedent. That's true enough for…
Ireland’s Oldest Rule for Kings: Tell the Truth, or Watch the Kingdom Die
Imagine a political idea so old and so serious that a king who told a lie could, in theory, cause the harvest to fail.
The Last Fili? Osborn Bergin: The Scholar Who Carried the Name of Legend
Osborn Joseph Bergin (1873–1950) was a towering figure in Celtic studies. Read on to learn more about this veritable master of the Irish language, in all its historical forms, a brilliant philologist, an exacting editor of manuscripts, and a dedicated teacher who helped shape the next generation of scholars, including Myles Dillon.
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