Sitting with the Mothers: Macha, The Mighty Mother [Part 2]
Entry #8: Macha's Wisdom Share with an excerpt from 'Stars, Stones, and Shadows: A Heroine's Tale'
An audio recording is included as an invitation to experience the sacredness held within the voice (and tradition) of oral storytelling. If it resonates, please enjoy at your leisure - maybe curled up with a warm cuppa tea or held within the wild embrace of the magical natural world that surrounds you.
Mo ghrá go léir / All my love,
Erica
Through the Sitting with the Mothers series, I enjoy offering the stories and information I gather as creative context for the tales that move through me; rooted within the land, folklore, mythology, and spirit of Ireland.
Shared through voice and body. Shared through stories and song.
At the same time, I feel I’m tenderly welcoming pieces of myself back home. Gently, allowing myself to illuminate all of who I am from within - midwifed by the sturdy, compassionate guidance of the sacredly held Otherworld.
The stories that emerge from within my being are often woven by threads that carry cellular memories of diasporic longing, diasporic grief, alongside ancient sacred wisdoms. Being of Irish ancestry while living upon Turtle Island soil, it has been a complex and unwinding journey in coming home to the matriarchal wisdom that flows within my blood and bones.
Then believing I was worthy of it.
Then believing I was safe enough to share and speak it.
Speaking Stars, Stones, and Shadows: A Heroine’s Tale into being was one of the first stepping stones upon this deeply initiatory journey. As a storyteller. As an artist. And, maybe most importantly, as a woman wholeheartedly welcoming herself into her dán.
After sharing Sitting with the Mothers: Getting to Know Macha, I posed a question: was there interested in hearing Macha’s wisdom share offered through this tale?
I was honoured to receive your responses as a resounding ‘Yes’!
Míle buíochas / A thousand thanks for the opportunity to share, weave, and immerse myself (once more), within the sacred wisdom of Macha, The Mighty Mother.
Before we begin, I would love offer some context of this sacred story.
In summary: Stars, Stones, and Shadows: A Heroine’s Tale
“I wanted to hear [Joseph] Campbell's views. I was surprised when he responded that women don't need to make the journey. 'In the whole of mythological tradition the woman is there. All she has to do is to realize that she’s the place that people are trying to get to.' ”
Maureen Murdock. The Heroine’s Journey: Woman’s Quest for Wholeness (p.2).
Premiering at the 2023 Ottawa Fringe Festival, Stars, Stones, and Shadows: A Heroine’s Tale was Into the Circle Theatre’s inaugural performance.
Inspired by Irish mythology and the work of Maureen Murdock, Stars, Stones, and Shadow enchanted audiences’ hearts and souls as they dance between realms.
Echoed amongst the rugged western coast of Ireland, journey with Saoirse as she navigates the landscapes of her inner world; for it’s here, under the sturdy guidance of Ireland’s most ancient and prolific goddesses, that she recalls the wisdom of her body, the power of her voice, and the magic of her spirit.
Joseph Campbell got it wrong;
When the Divine Feminine Rises,
She has a journey to
Remember and Reclaim
All Her Own.
And now, without further ado.
Let’s take a journey together.
[Experience the excerpt of this tale by joining the audio at minutes 3:54]
Being of Irish and French ancestry, I continue to be reverently grateful to the traditional spirits and keepers of the land [past, present, and forth-coming] of the unceded and unsurrendered territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg People; where I was born and currently reside.
Culture, language, and stories run within the rivers and are held within the stones of landscapes. Míle buíochas, a thousand thanks, for the opportunity to live, create, share stories, and walk alongside you.
Interested in more information on 1:1 supportive offerings or my approach to sacred storytelling?
Please visit my website at Into the Circle with Erica O’Reilly for more information.
I would love for Weavings of the Wise & Embodied to be an opportunity for us to connect in shared stories. A homecoming of souls around the hearth, held within this sacred liminal space.
Please feel welcome to contribute or share by leaving a comment below. It would be wonderful to hear from you.
Until we meet in circle again, may grace and ease continue to find you.
Le dea ghuí / With good wishes,
Erica
If this is your first experience held within our corner of the Substack realm, I would love for you to continue the journey with us.
If the W&E experience resonated with you, invite a friend to journey along with us!