Legends in the Landscape
Legends in the Landscape, Aisling Arann.
By Dara O Maoildhia,
Available from Aisling Arann, Inis Mór, Co Galway, Ireland.
`Baile átha an rí a bhí; Gaillimh atá; agus Arainn a bheas.'
(Athenry was; Galway is; and Aran will be.)
Dara O Maoildhia is a priest in the Celtic tradition. In 1985 ,he
travelled from the east coast of Ireland to Inis Mór, the largest of
the three Aran Islands, to make a home for himself and fellow Celtic
travellers, on this Atlantic shore.
He was drawn to Arainn (the correct name for Inis Mór) by a sense of
belonging to a place that has a magical heritage, for the same
reasons it attracted monks from the Celtic church 1,500 years ago and
has attracted travellers and tourists ever since.
When O Maoildhia moved to Arainn 14 years ago, tourists numbered
around 10,000. The islands now attract a quarter of a million
tourists and the numbers are increasing.
This book, however, was not written for the tourist. It has been
written for ``the questor, the searcher, the pilgrim, the spiritually
hungry and those on a journey''. It is O Maoildhia's ``fervent'' hope
that this book will ``touch and nourish'' the soul.
Essentially though, this is a tourist guide to Arainn - albeit a
guide that resonates with a spiritual quality much deeper than the
words which describe the myths, legends, folklore and history of the
island. O Maoildhia has added to Artainn's rich written heritage with
a fine snapshot.
Legends in the Landscape may look like a 96-page pocket-sized
booklet. It is more than that. It is a passport to a world we are
leaving behind. If you go to Arainn this summer, make sure you have a
copy for the journey across Galway Bay.
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