Transcript

Bhí Mac Dé agus Muire Bhantiarna[1] insa tír seo agus bhí siad ag imeacht thart ag cruinniú a gcoda. Bhí an oíche ag teacht orthu agus fuaigh siad... fuaigh Muire Bhantiarna suas chuig an toigh agus bhuail sí ag an doras. Tháinig bean an toighe amach. "Goidé atá uaid?" a deir sí.

"Tá an[2] oíche lóistín uaim."

"Ó, cha dtig liom duine ar bith a choinneált. Chan fhuil (farsainneach)[3] agam," a deir sí.

Tháinig a fear amach. "Ó, coinnigh an bean bhocht agus ná lig í féin agus a páiste amach insa (dorcha). Dhéanfaidh[4] mise leabaidh daoi' den caladh atá amuigh insa scioból."

Agus fuaigh sé amach agus thug sé an caladh isteach a bhí insa scioból agus rinn sé leabaidh don bhean bhocht insa choirnéal. Insa... Tuairim is an dá bhuille dhéag mhúscail suas an fear an toighe agus bhí pian mór ina bholg. Agus tháinig an bean aníos 'un na cistiní.

"Goidé atá contráilte?" arsa bea-... arsa Muire Bhantiarna.

"Ó, tá go leor," a deir sí, "tá mo... mo fhear iontach olc." Agus adeir sí leise[5] Mac Dé, "Goidé an leigheas a bhéarfas tú dó?"

Tabhair sláma den chaladh agus cumail dá bholg é agus beidh sé slán."

Sin an scéal.

Translation

Translation in hand. Aistriúchán go Béarla idir lámha.

Footnotes

Commentary

Charms, particularly those involved in a ritual of healing, are commonplace in Irish tradition. A great many involve invoking religious figures and saints. They often employ obscure or archaic language, or reference some legend or tale that provides context or precedent for the healing the charm is supposed to effect. The current example is an extremely common religious legend in Irish tradition, whereby a context story is given for a charm that is said to cure a stitch or pain in the stomach. It usually involves Jesus and Mary, and the charm itself concludes the story. It is of considerable antiquity, and was told in western, southern and central Europe in the middle ages. It can ultimately be traced back to ancient Egyptian tradition, whereby the religious characters involved were Isis and Osiris, rather than the Christian holy family. See Tekla Domotor, 'A type of Hungarian faith-healing charm and its background', Arv 28 (1972), 21-35.

This story is transcribed also in Heinrich Wagner and Colm Ó Baoill, Linguistic atlas and survey of Irish dialects (4 vols, Dublin, 1958-69), vol. 4, 299. The Doegen collection contains another rendition of the tale by Eoin Ó Cianáin of county Tyrone.