“There are four directions: North, South, East, and West. We are going in the fifth direction, which is the direction of stories.”
Sean Taylor
Cover art by Piotr Stachiewicz
In the tale, the “Settling of the Manor of Tara,” Fintan, the oldest living Seanchai, divided the Land of Ireland into five parts (East, West, North, South and Center). The navel of Ireland was placed at Uisneach as marked by the Stone of Divisions. This marked the center of the plane of the surface. Trefuilingidh Tre-eochair (the Magical being who came from out of the West, seeking the Sun’s rising) further defined these divisions into a series of qualities associated with each province and direction. The Great Plane of the Sky, Magh Mor and the Islands of the Otherworldly Sea, Tir Andomain, can also have their surfaces defined in a corresponding manner. These divisions allow us to define their centers so that we can understand their interconnection with the Bile or World/ sacred Tree. The Celts and Neolithic peoples defined a circle (as well as a world) by using an equal armed cross. This symbol evolved into the “Celtic Cross.” The Sunwheel is a symbol of Lugh as well as the cross (being a symbol of Brighid as well). This act of crossing is exactly what a Celt does to determine his “center” at sunrise of each day as he/she welcomes the first rays of the morning sun.
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Searles O'Dubhain
Searles O’Dubhain is an American Celtic scholar, writer and story teller who has been practicing Druidry for over 30 years. Searles created ‘The Summerlands’, one of the very first beloved online Celtic pagan communities in the early 90’s. He additionally published ‘Ogham Divination’, that lays a detailed and creative pathway of recreating and discovering the ancient ways of the Druids. This and much more available on his website.
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