Visions of the Cailleach

I love the myths and legends that surround this powerful, wonderful goddess.  In their book, Visons of the Cailleach, d’Este and Rankine have scoured the countryside for myths, tales, poetry and legends that surround this strong and potent archetype.

The authors have linked as many tales as they can to this goddess, some with great success, and others less so.  Simply because a legend tells of an old woman figure in the mist does not necessarily make her an aspect of the Cailleach.  I found some of the allusions to be a little far flung, though for the most part it was easy to see how the hag goddess could be found in these myths and folklore. 

I was exceedingly disappointed in the alleged uncovering of ‘startling references which hint at a hidden priestess cult worshipping the Cailleach from ancient times into the twentieth century’ (taken from the back cover).   There were, in fact, very few references to this priesthood.  The authors cite the work of Mackay in their introduction as a possibility of a Cailleach priesthood in his work The Deer-Cult and the Deer-Goddess Cult of the Ancient Caledonians. They claim to have found literary references in records from the last two centuries which substantiate this claim, yet these references are nowhere to be found within this volume (which was the main reason I was interested in it).  The actual discussion of Mackay’s work is only a paragraph long on page 81, with one reference from the book regarding the priestess cult (which in an of itself does not prove any point).  Though the authors have not set out to prove a point per se, merely to show the possibilities, I found that I would have liked a little more depth to the research, with a goal in mind, rather than simply a collection of folklore. This book, I feel, could have been enhanced by mentioning these references and exploring them further.

With that being said, the book was wonderfully well-written.  The book has given me a greater understanding of the Cailleach through the myths and tales collected from all over Britain, and indeed throughout Europe.  This book is a good taster for those interested in this particular deity figure, and can then move on to explore and discover her aspects further through their own study.