Ban
Sidhe or Banshee (băn'shē)
derived from the Old Irish
ben síde,
modern Irish
bean sídhe
or bean sí,
"Fairy
Woman"
(bean,
woman, and sidhe,
being the tuiseal ginideach
or possessive case of "fairy").
According
to some legends the Ban Sidhe can be heard wailing in the hours of
darkness warning that a family member is close to death.
She can take the form of a bent over tortured hag wrapped in rags or
that of a beautiful young woman but the cry and the long flowing hair
are the same.
She was not, however, always a portent of doom (at least to those who saw
her). The Celtic hero
Oisín
loved the ban-sidhe Niamh
and lived on the island of Tír na nÓg with her
for what he perceived to be a
year. Time however passed at a different rate to time on
earth.
Hence when Oisín returned to his homeland to visit his
family and friends he
discovered that they were all long dead and three hundred years had
passed by.
Ban Sidhe
The Front Yard
Ban Sidhe is the home of the Bardic Grove of Caer Brigid and of RedWolf Productions. It is situated on 15 acres of hillside scrubland in Williamstown SA.
:UNDER CONSTRUCTION:
Kenelm & Riognach's Final Handfasting
Yule 2000 - Mount Donna Buang, Victoria.
Ban Sidhe had its beginnings in the Grove of Caer Brigid, which was founded by Ken and Riognach Howard at Imbolc (by Southern Hemisphere reckoning) 2000, as a learning group in the Bardic/Druidic tradition. The Grove was originally based in Yarra Junction in Victoria, Australia.
The purpose of Caer Brigid is still to provide a meeting place for individuals interested in pursuing a Bardic/Druidic style of Celtic reconstructionist neo-paganism. This includes Learning, the pursuit of the Arts and Sciences, and ritual work on the eight major festival days of the year. We have compiled an on-line library of important and rare documents related to Bardism and Druidism (and lately, material related to just about everything else pagan), including what we believe is, the only complete version of the Barddas to be made available on-line. Our library, and some examples of rituals may be found below.
From the inception of the Grove we have regularly put on a traditional Mummer's play at the Summer and Winter Solstices.
This is an example: Midsummer Play
This library contains over 5GB of items relating to almost all aspects of paganism (don't even think about downloading the lot!). These items are provided out of historical interest, and for research and reference purposes only. Some items have been collected from various internet websites, some are our own material, or scans of documents in our posession. They are believed to be in the public domain, and are provided here on that basis. Commercial use of this material is specifically strongly discouraged. Ban Sidhe does not endorse any of this content in terms of accuracy, suitability for any purpose, or safety. You use it entirely at your own risk.
Ban Sidhe Pagan Archive
Magickal Products List
Woodhenge
The British Druid Order
Ár Draíocht Féin (ADF)
The Order of Bards Ovates and Druids
Imbas
Rowanhold Bardic Circle
The Tain
The Mabinogeon
Mail us at Ban Sidhe
Our Sound, Lighting and Multimedia Production Capability
Some Real Magic? click this link and be amazed (maybe!)
