An Cailleach: the Queen of Winter
by Keziah
An Cailleach — hag, crone, ancestral goddess, mentor, divine mother; all these things and then some, the figure an Cailleach has been venerated (and by many feared) throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man (where she’s known as Caillagh ny Groamagh) for ages and is still worshipped and revered today within those lands and by practitioners of Gaelic paganism all around the world.
She is called an Cailleach, which is a title rather than name. The word ‘cailleach’ is found in Irish and Scots Gaelic and means ‘hag’ or ‘old woman’ but can also be translated to mean ‘witch’. That fact alone leaves no surprise at all that an Cailleach has been taken on as a mentor in magic by countless practitioners.
Who is an Cailleach?
First and foremost, who is this mysterious figure? For those of you who haven’t heard of her before, allow me to make your introduction.
An Cailleach (sometimes called Beara or Boí) is an ancient giantess, often described as an elderly woman with blue or gray skin and white hair, who brings winter in her wake. She has only one eye, and her eyesight is so sharp that she can see twenty miles away as clearly as we can see that which stands just before us. Though she is old, she is incredibly and inhumanly strong.
[Illustration of an Cailleach by John Duncan in Wonder Tales from Scottish Myth and Legend (1917).]
Some worship an Cailleach as a goddess, while others see her strictly as a spirit and not a goddess. Others still yet view an Cailleach as a personification of the winter season or, more specifically, the embodiment of the land during winter. In Scotland, she is often described as being one side of a coin, the other side being the goddess Brìghde (Brigid or Bríg). Still some understand her as being all of these things in one.
CREATOR & EARTH GODDESS
An Cailleach has a strong link to the earth, particularly hills and mountains. In Scottish and Irish lore, it is said that an Cailleach herself crafted the mountains and hillsides of the land and both countries have a number of locations that are said to be (or to once have been) her stomping grounds. Some lore depicts the creation of these features as accidental.
An Irish variation of the tale tells of an Cailleach shaping the hillsides and mountains as she crossed the land, unknowingly dropping giant rocks from the pockets of her frock or apron as she went along. Those rocks formed the great mountains or forged the slopes of the hills of Ireland. In some Scottish versions of this same tale, the stones fall from an Cailleach’s whicker basket and not from her pockets. Another version of the accidental creation of the landscape by an Cailleach tells that she was hurling rocks at an enemy, and the rocks that landed upon the earth created valleys or became mountains.
An Cailleach is also attributed with the creation of islands off the coast of Munster. She is said to have been carting land across the sea, but the rope that she was towing it with snapped and the land was stranded in the water, and she was unable to bring it ashore. Thus, forming the islands of Scariff and Deenish.
The other narrative is that an Cailleach very deliberately crafted the landscape, using a hammer she carries with her to carve out valleys and shape hills. It's said in this version that she built the mountains to be her steppingstones.
[Ben Cruacha by Graham Lewis, home of the 'Cailleach nan Cruachan.']
There are many locations throughout Ireland and Scotland linked with an Cailleach:
The whirlpool in the Gulf of Corryvreckan (between the islands of Jura and Scarba off the west coast of mainland Scotland).
Gleann Cailliche and Allt Cailliche in Glen Lyon, Perthshire, Scotland.
Ben Nevis at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in Lochaber, Scotland. Ben Nevis is also referred to as an Cailleach’s mountain throne.
Ben Cruachan in Argyll and Bute, Scotland (the tallest mountain in the region). In some stories, an Cailleach is given the name Cailleach nan Cruachan — ‘the Witch of Ben Cruachan’.
Loch Awe or Loch Obha in Argyll and Bute, Scotland.
Beinn na Caillich (a pair of mountains) on the Isle of Skye.
Sliabh na Calliagh — ‘the Cailleach’s Mountain’ — are a range of hills in County Meath, Ireland.
Loughcrew (an historically significant area within Sliabh na Calliagh in which ancient tombs rest) near Oldcastle in County Meath, Ireland.
Hag’s Head (the southernmost point of the Cliffs of Moher) in County Clare, Ireland is a rock formation resembling an old woman’s head or face as she looks out over the sea.
Calliagh Beara’s House (a passage tomb at the summit of Slieve Gullion) in County Armagh, Ireland.
Carrowmore (megalithic monuments and passage tombs on the Cúil Iorra Peninsula) west of Sligo, Ireland. One of these passage tombs is called the Cailleach a Bhéara’s House.
MOTHER
An Cailleach is revered as a divine mother figure, not only in connection to her creation of the landscape and guardianship of the earth (making her an earth mother) but also as an ancestor from whom many Gaelic tribes and clans descend. So, too, is it said that she's the mother of all gods and goddesses. Though she is often seen as a goddess of death, an Cailleach in her role as mother is said to hold the power to bestow life and fertility upon those who seek it.
It is, therefore, not uncommon for an Cailleach to be taken on as a figurative mother or foster-mother by devotees or practitioners who seek her guidance in the craft.
HEALER
Tying into her roles as creator and mother, an Cailleach is also seen as a healer. The lore tells us that she roams the earth, living through and thriving in even the harshest of winters and storms. This is in part due to her understanding of the land and how to best live within it. An Cailleach is often credited as being a skilled herbalist and is therefore taken on as a mentor in the craft by those whose practice is built around or relies heavily upon herbalism.
Along with the physical aspect of healing, an Cailleach is said to provide guidance and aid to those who are in the midst of a transitional period, to those who are undergoing anything emotionally or mentally trying, and to those who feel they are without ally or comfort. As the mother and healer, it's said that an Cailleach has reached out to such persons and offered her wisdom to help them along. It's also believed that she has the gift of second sight and can travel through the realms of spirits, which is why an Cailleach’s wisdom runs so deeply and can therefore be of great assistance to us.
Another aspect of healing is that which is related to the earth and the world around us. An Cailleach works to heal the earth in her role as a guardian and protector of the land, particularly of the wildwood and its many creatures. She was said to punish hunters if they killed pregnant animals by choking them to death with her hair. She would also aid hunters during the winter in telling them how to properly bless their kill and give thanks for it, lest the fairies take the meat away before the hunters and their families could partake of it.
WITCH
An Cailleach is said to be a practitioner of magic, and she is, perhaps, best known for (aside from being the bringer of winter) being able to control the weather and summon up great tempests. As she tows in the winter season, it comes as no surprise that she is also tied to death, darkness, the unknown, and regeneration and renewal. Most deities and spirits associated with winter share similar correspondences, as do a fair few deities and spirits associated with magic and witchcraft.
Among her powers, she is said to have the ability to change her shape and is believed to often appear in the form of an owl, a hare, a deer, and other woodland creatures, as well as presenting herself sometimes as a young maiden. Some lore describes an Cailleach as having self-renewing power, in that she could reverse her age and grow young again or, as boasted in the Old Irish poem ‘Lament of the Hag of Beare’, reinstate her own virginity.
Some lore calls an Cailleach a witch and a sorceress, while other lore describes her as a bean fheasa, a cunning woman, or sometimes a charmer. Many would argue that this is not the same thing as a witch. I will say that while there are some very clear distinctions between the historical use of the word witch and witchcraft versus cunning man/woman and charmer, all are practitioners of a magical craft and therefore, for nothing other than the sake of clarity, I have chosen to use the term witch, as our modern use and understanding of this word tends to be very different from the historical use.
GODDESS OF WINTER
It is said that an Cailleach rules the winter season. She carries a magic staff or walking stick which has the power to freeze anything it touches. With it, she brings winter upon the lands. She also controls the winter weather as she sees fit. Some lore states that she uses sortilege via sticks to forecast how pleasant or unruly the winter would be.
Along with bringing in the winter season, an Cailleach is associated with other winter skills and pastimes, such as harvesting firewood, herding deer, winter hunting, and fending off the spring season, or the light half of the year.
Scottish lore tells us that on Samhuinn night the goddess Brìghde ‘goes to sleep’ or her powers become dormant as an Cailleach awakens and her powers strengthen. From Samhuinn to Bealltainn, an Cailleach is said to reign, while Brìghde takes over from Bealltainn to Samhuinn. Nowadays, people in the northern hemisphere commonly think of Là Fhèill Brìghde or St. Brighid’s Day on the 01st of February as the day of transition of power from an Cailleach to Brìghde, and some believe that when winter will meet its end depends on what the weather is like on the 01st of February. If the day is clear and sunny, that means an Cailleach can work at gathering more firewood to keep warm for a longer winter season; while a foul winter’s day means that an Cailleach fell asleep and forgot to change the weather to suit her needs. Therefore, she’ll run out of firewood before long and winter is nearly over.
As for what comes of an Cailleach at winter's end, it's said by some that she's transformed into a stone.
DEATH DEITY
As she is winter, an Cailleach is also seen as being closely related to death and the unknown. Winter is heavily associated with death. It’s a time of year in which spirit activity is believed to increase, a time in which the last harvest is behind us now and the world goes to sleep, a time in which our ancestors very much did face death if preparations for winter did not go as they needed to. Because of her being a deity of winter, we can only expect that she would also be a deity of death, and the many burial grounds and tombs associated with her only give more weight to the depiction of an Cailleach as a death deity.
Most death gods and goddesses are also gods of rebirth and renewal, and an Cailleach is no different, a truly befitting association for the bringer of winter.
CRONE
Crone seems, to me at least, to really encapsulate every aspect of an Cailleach — the creator and mother (crones often are seen as mother figures in that they hold great wisdom and can act as our guides, whether they themselves were ever literal mothers or not), the healer, the witch, the death goddess, the winter goddess, a goddess of rebirth and transformation and renewal, a goddess of endings and beginnings. It all feels like it wraps up nicely in her role as a crone goddess. After all, the crone has lived a long life. She has seen much, done much, and approaches the end. The end is, in and of itself, a beginning; and the cycle starts anew.
An Cailleach is depicted most often in her crone state — the great hag of winter, an ancestral grandmother. Most literature describing an Cailleach details the crone; and landscapes and formations that are connected to her, such as Hag’s Head, bear their affiliation with an Cailleach due to their resemblance to a crone. Even the title of an Cailleach, as mentioned before, is used to mean ‘old woman’ or ‘hag’ — crone.
While some lore dictates an Cailleach as having the ability to wind back her years and become young again, it is as the crone that an Cailleach chooses to live most of the time, and as the crone that she is most often represented in art and literature and upon shrines and altars around the world. Thus, an Cailleach has come to be seen as something of the world’s grandmother, the eternal crone.
HONORING AN CAILLEACH
There are many devotees to an Cailleach within the realm of Gaelic and Celtic pagan practices and Gaelic and Celtic folk practices, and there are those who turn to an Cailleach as a mentor in their magical craft. Having now explored the aspects of an Cailleach in this piece, it isn’t difficult to understand how her impact on the Gaelic pagan and magical communities is still very much felt and desired to this day. So how does one include an Cailleach in their work? How is best to honor this winter goddess? And how can you become a student of her ways?
Firstly, make your introductions.
Reaching out is always the first step. There are some who are called upon by the goddess, and some who do the calling themselves. Opening the door for an Cailleach to come into your life can be as simple as including her on your altar or workspace. Some place a piece of art depicting an Cailleach, while others place items or depictions of animals, weather, etcetera that are associated with her (deer, snow, owls). I’ve a friend who uses postcards of locations that are connected with an Cailleach, specifically he uses postcards of Glen Lyon and Ben Cruachan. Find something that speaks to you and reminds you of an Cailleach and place it on your altar or workspace, light a candle or some incense, and welcome the deity there.
Many practitioners and observers like to start things off with a gift. Sharing what you have with the gods and spirits you worship and/or work with is a fairly common custom, be that even just a cup of water or some fruit or a baked good. It doesn’t have to be grand, as it’s the act of giving that means something, not necessarily what is given. That being said, spirits and gods/goddesses have their preferences. Feel it out. You’ll be able to tell when an offering you made is something that particular deity really likes. They may make it known by simply giving you that little nudge, that compulsion to share it again.
When it comes specifically to an Cailleach, it’s not a bad idea to make offerings to her on the 01st of November (or the 20th or 21st of June if you reside in the southern hemisphere), welcoming her and the winter she brings. There are other days associated with her as well that you could honor her on —
St. Brigid’s Day (for those who observe the 01st of February as the end of an Cailleach’s winter reign),
Latha na Cailliche on the 25th of March,
the day or night before Bealltainn (for those who observe Bealltainn as the mark of transition of power from an Cailleach to Brìghde),
and at any point throughout winter.
If you observe Yule, you can include her in your Yule practices.
Honoring an Cailleach is the first part of becoming a student of her ways.
The second and most important part is to listen. As you get to know an Cailleach and understand the aspect of her that resonates most with you, it's said that she’ll guide you toward the path that your meant to be on — be that the herbalist’s path, the diviner’s, the crone’s, or some conglomeration of them all. If you’re willing to listen and put in the work, an Cailleach can be a great guardian, protector, and mentor. From her, one can learn much as a practitioner and as person on the long, winding journey of life.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING:
'Beside the Fire: A Collection of Irish Gaelic Folk Stories' - Hyde, Douglas; Nutt, Alfred Turner
'the Book of the Cailleach: Stories of the Wise-Woman Healer' - Ó Crualaoich, Gearóid
'the Earth Goddess: Celtic and Pagan Legacy of the Landscape' - Straffon, Cheryl
‘Encyclopedia of Celtic Mythology and Folklore’ -Monaghan, Patricia
'the Lament of the Old Woman of Beare'
‘More West Highland Tales’ -McKay, John G.
'The Red-Haired Girl from the Bog: The Landscape of Celtic Myth and Spirit' - Monaghan, Patricia