![]() He made two grooves in one end of each stick and fitted them together so that they made a triangle in the centre, with the arms of the joists resting on the edge of the roof. The Gobán Saor helped a poor man who was trying to roof a circular building using only three joists, none of them long enough to span the whole breadth. The rest of their journey was long, and on their way they helped out anyone they could. The first: to always keep an old woman’s head by the range the second: to warm themselves on cold mornings with their work and the third: to take a sheep’s skin to market and come home again with the skin and it’s price. “But,” he said, “We must find out which is the better match for you.” So he called both daughters to him and gave them three pieces of advice, if they wanted to get a husband. The Gobán Saor saw that these girls were about the same age as his own son, and told his son he had a mind to ask for one of them for his wife. The first house they stayed in on their journey had two daughters living in it: one dark-haired and hardworking, who didn’t sit still all evening, and the other fair-haired and charming, who preferred to sit with her hands crossed, talking by the fire than to do any work at all. This time, when the Gobán Saor asked his son to “Shorten the road,” the son took his mother’s advice and told his father a story to entertain him, and make the road seem shorter! When he told her, she explained the riddle to him, and sent them on their way for the third time the next morning. The same thing happened on the second day, and the Gobán Saor’s wife took her son aside and asked him what was going on. They hadn’t been on the road long when he told his son to “Shorten the road for me.” Perplexed, the lad hadn’t a clue what his father was asking him, and so the two turned around and went home again. Knowing nothing of his treacherous intent, the Gobán Saor set out for England with his son. The King of England decided that the only way to make sure this didn’t happen was to wait till his castle was built, and then do away with the Gobán Saor. Now, the King of England decided that he wanted the Gobán Saor to build his castle for him, a bigger and a finer one than any other king had at that time, but he fretted that some other king could wait until his was built and then hire the Gobán Saor to build an even better one. ![]() His fame spread all over Ireland, and after a time, his reputation reached the ears of the King of England. In this way, he was able to get through the work of ten men in short order. ![]() When he wanted to hammer nails into a high beam, he would fling them into the air and throw his hammer after them, catching it as it came down after driving the nails into the beam. Though he was most famous for his skill as a builder, he could fashion a spear-shaft in the time it would take you to count to five, and make a spear-head with only three strokes of the hammer. He built mighty castles for all the lords, and for each of Ireland’s five kings. The Gobán Saor was the greatest craftsman and builder who ever lived in Ireland. Wave 10 – Columcille and the Celtic Christianity.Wave 4 – The One Jealousy of Emer: Cuchulain and Fand.Immersion 3 – Exile, Migration and Return: Voyages and Adventures.Wave 1 – Birth and Boyhood Deeds of Fionn MacCumhail.Immersion 2 – Nine Waves – Myths of the Chosen and Not Chosen People.Wave 8 – Conaire Mór: The Exemplary King.Wave 7 – Amhairghin and the Arrival of the Sons of Mil.Wave 5 – Cú Chulainn: Romantic Cultural Hero.Wave 4 – The Settling of the Manor of Tara.Immersion 1 – Nine Waves – Introduction to Irish Myth, The Cycles and Silver Branch Perception.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |