The Latin & Irish Lives of Ciaran by Anonymous (recommended reading txt) 📖

was delivered from
robbers 7 - 6 10
XI. How Ciaran gave a gift of cattle 8 - - -
XII. How Ciaran gave a gift of a
plough-coulter 9 - - - XIII. How Ciaran gave a gift of an ox 10 - - -
XIV. How Ciaran gave the king's cauldron
to beggars and was enslaved 11 - 7 11
XV. How Ciaran reproved his mother 13 - 9 -
XVI. The breaking of the carriage-axle 14 - 10 -


The boyhood legend probably consisted originally of the five incidents common to all, II-V, IX. It is noteworthy, however, that LB transfers V, IX, to a position after the second phase of the Life. This is possibly due to a misplaced leaf in the exemplar from which our copies of LB are derived. X-XIII, variants on the theme of XIV, are probably interpolations in LA, and VIII, a valuable fragment of folk-lore, is an interpolation in VG. VI and VII are conflations of two varieties of one incident, as is pointed out in the Annotations. These observations will show how complex is the criticism of the Ciaran tradition.

B. The second phase of the life is the Schooling of Ciaran at Clonard; perhaps about 530-535, still using round numbers. This part of the life is most fully told in VG; it is very fragmentary in all the Latin Lives. There are thirteen incidents-

LA LB LC VG
XVII. How Ciaran went with his cow to
the school of Findian 15 4 11 12
XVIII. The angels grind for Ciaran 16 - 12 13
XIX. Ciaran and the king's daughter 17 - - 14
XX. How Ciaran healed the lepers - - - 15
XXI. Ciaran and the stag - - - 16
XXII. The story of Ciaran's gospel 18 - - 17
XXIII. The blessing of Ciaran's food 19 - 8 -
XXIV. The story of the mill and the
bailiff's daughter - 6 - 18
XXV. The story of Cluain - - - 19
XXVI. How Ciaran freed a woman from
servitude 20 5 - 21
XXVII. How Ciaran freed another woman
from servitude 21 - - 22 XXVIII. Anecdotes of Clonard - - - 20
XXIX. The parting of Ciaran and Findian - - - 23

C. The third phase may be called the Wanderings of Ciaran. From Clonard he made his way to the monastery of Ninnedh on the island in Loch Erne now called Inismacsaint (it is to be noted that VG knows nothing of this visit). From Loch Erne he went to Aran, thence (after a visit to Saint Senan on Scattery Island) to his brother's monastery at Isel, a place not certainly identified. After this he removes to Inis Aingin, now Hare Island in Loch Ree, which is his last halting-place before reaching his goal at Clonmacnois. There are twelve incidents. The first forms incident 13 of LC, which then breaks off; this text therefore no longer requires a special column. The wander-years end with 548, the year of the saint's arrival at Clonmacnois.

LA LB VG
XXX. The adventure of the robbers of Loch
Erne - 7 -
XXXI. How Ciaran floated a firebrand on the
lake - 10 -
XXXII. Ciaran in Aran 22 11 24
XXXIII. How a prophecy was fulfilled 12 - 25
XXXIV. How Ciaran visited Senan 23 12 26
XXXV. Ciaran in Isel 24 13 28
XXXVI. The removal of the lake 25 14 29
XXXVII. Ciaran departs from Isel 26 - 30 XXXVIII. Ciaran in Inis Aingin 27 15 31
XXXIX. The coming of Oenna 28 16 32
XL. How Ciaran recovered his gospel 29 - 33
XLI. How Ciaran went from Inis Aingin
to Clonmacnois 30 17 34

The difference of opinion as to the setting of incident XXXIII is to be noted. Also noteworthy is the absence of any reference to a second visit to Senan, though such is postulated in the lives of the latter saint.

D. The fourth phase covers the time-according to all our texts a few months, according to other authorities some years-intervening between the foundation of Clonmacnois and the death of Ciaran. The traditions of LA and VG here run along the same lines; LB is curiously diverse. There are in all twelve incidents, namely-

LA LB VG
XLII. The foundation of the church 31 - 35
XLIII. How Ciaran sent a cloak to Senan 32 - 27
XLIV. Ciaran and the wine 34 18 36
XLV. The story of Crithir