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The Lodge of Herne:Calendar of Events
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Rituals and Celebrations
January:The Crane Bag-
"Crane Bag: The only mythological reference to this ritual object that this author knows of is the Crane bag that belonged to Cumhall, father of Fionn Mac Cumhall, which Fionn had to recover when it was stolen. It contained many treasures from such deities as Manannan and Giobhniu, and would be full at high tide and empty at low tide. Its function appears to be similar to that filled by the medicine bundle of native north Americans. The poet W.B. Yeats mentions a "bag of dreams" in his poem "Fergus and the Druid". (1)
" . . . another acquisition of Finn's . . . [is the] *Corrbolg*. In 'Macgn?artha Find' we read: 'The Keeper of the *corrbolg* of his own jewels wounded (*or* slew) Cumall in the battle [of Cnucha]. Cumall was slain by Goll mac Morna in the battle'.? [snip]
. . Finn goes in pursuit of a big hideous warrior? by name Liath Luachra, who is in possession of the *corrbolg*, and who had been the first to wound Cumall in the battle; and Finn slays him and carries off the *corrbolg*. Gilla in Choimed alludes to this latter episode when he ways that Finn took thirty jewels out of the jaws of the *corrbolg*? after the slaying of Liath Luachra. An unfinished poem in ‘Duanaire Finn?professes to tell the history of Cumall's *corbolg*; it was made by Manann? from the skin of a certain heron (*corr*), and in it were kept many previous things such as Goibniu's belt and Manann? tunic and knife; later it came into the possession of Lug L?fhota.?
“Gilla in Choimded and the compiler of ‘Macgn?artha Find?understood the *corrbolg* to be some kind of bag (*bolg*) containing jewels?or precious articles of workmanship; according to the latter text the bag and its contents belonged to Cumall, father of Finn. Later tradition, apart from the poem mentioned above, knows nothing of the *corrbolg*. In our principal source, ‘Macgn?artha Find? the allusions to the *corrbolg* are more or less meaningless as they stand, and they serve no apparent purpose in the tale. It is clear that in what we are told concerning the *corrbolg* we have the remnants of a dying tradition, which in the twelfth century was no longer understood. The analogy of the *caladbolg* and *gal Bulga* places the real meaning of *corrbolg* beyond doubt.?
Thomas F. O'Rahilly, 'Early Irish History & Mythology', (Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, 1946) pages 72-74.
(1)http://www.geocities.com/rainforest/canopy/2178/celtic3.html
http://members.fortunecity.com/ton_cher/crbag.html
http://www.msen.com/~robh/slg/cranebox.html
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Building the Wicker/Green Man
http://www.earthspirit.org/fireheart/fhwkman.html
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