大象传媒

Bha mi ag innse dhuibh mu Thaigh nam Bodach 鈥� no Taigh na Cailliche 鈥� ann an Gleann Cailliche ann an Siorrachd Pheairt. Tha iomadh ciall air an fhacal cailleach. Seo na tha aig Dwelly: old woman, nun agus supernatural or malign influence dwelling in dark caves, woods and corries. Tha iomadh st貌iridh againn mu na cailleachan a bha a鈥� fuireach anns na beanntan. Lorg mi c貌rr is ceud ainm-脿ite ann an Alba anns a bheil am facal 鈥榗ailleach鈥�.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Chruinnich an t-e貌laiche Anna Ros beul-aithris mun Chaillich. Tha i ag r脿dh gur e seann chleachdadh a tha ann. Sgr矛obh i mu 鈥榯he genuine antiquity of the cult鈥�. Bha muinntir an 脿ite a鈥� coimhead air a鈥� Chaillich mar spiorad coibhneil.

Seo an st貌iridh a fhuair Anna Ros 脿 beul-aithris: Air droch latha geamhraidh o chionn fhada, bha cur-is-cathadh ann. Th脿inig fear agus bean s矛os far beinn anns a鈥� ghleann. Bha iad anabarrach m貌r.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Dh鈥檌arr iad fasgadh is aoigheachd bho mhuinntir an 脿ite. Fhuair iad sin. Bha na daoine coibhneil dhaibh. Thog iad taigh-tughaidh dhaibh. Thug sin toileachas don fhear is bean.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Bha am boireannach trom le leanabh. Rugadh nighean dhi. Bha an aimsir an-c貌mhnaidh f脿bharach nuair a bha an teaghlach a鈥� fuireach anns a鈥� ghleann. Bha an spr猫idh fallain. Bha am b脿rr math.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Ach th脿inig latha nuair a bha aig an teaghlach ri falbh. Thug iad gealltanas seachad. Thuirt iad, nam biodh an taigh aca air a chumail an 貌rdugh, agus nam biodh muinntir an 脿ite gan cumail an cuimhne, gum biodh na geamhraidhean ci霉in agus na samhraidhean bl脿th.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Mar chuimhneachan air a h-uile c脿il a thachair, chaidh 鈥榯aigh鈥� beag a thogail. Tha e ann an cruth an taigh-tughaidh a bha aig an teaghlach. Aig a鈥� Bhealltainn a h-uile bliadhna, bha na tr矛 clachan, a bha a鈥� riochdachadh nan tr矛 鈥渄iathan鈥� 鈥� a鈥� Chailleach, am Bodach agus an Nighean 鈥� air an toirt a-mach.

I was telling you about Taigh nam Bodach 鈥� or Taigh na Cailliche 鈥� in Gleann Cailliche in Perthshire. The word cailleach can mean many things. Here鈥檚 what Dwelly has: old woman, nun and supernatural or malign influence dwelling in dark caves, woods and corries. We have many stories about the cailleachs who were living in the mountains. I [have] found more than a hundred place names in Scotland in which聽 there is the word 鈥榗ailleach鈥�.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The scholar Anne Ross collected oral tradition about the Cailleach. She says it was an old practice. She wrote about 鈥榯he genuine antiquity of the cult鈥�. The local people were looking upon the Cailleach as a kindly spirit.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Here is the story Anne Ross got from oral tradition: One terrible winter鈥檚 day a long time ago, there was snow and blizzards. A man and woman came down from a mountain in the glen. They were incredibly large.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 They asked the local people for shelter and hospitality. They got that. The people were kind to them. They built them a thatched house. The man and woman were pleased.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The woman was expecting a child. She gave birth to a daughter. The weather was always favourable when the family were living in the glen. The livestock were healthy. The crops were good.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 But a day came when the family had to leave. They made a promise. They said, if their house were kept in order, and if the local people kept them in [their] memory, that the winters would be calm and the summers warm.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 In memory of everything that happened a small 鈥榟ouse鈥� was built. It was in the shape of the thatched house the family had had. At Beltane every year, the three stones, that were representing the three 鈥榞ods鈥� 鈥� the Cailleach, Bodach and Nighean 鈥� were brought out..