Ireland Cailleach and Four Knocks

Since I have some time on my hands thought I would catch up with some really old (half a year) posts. This one is from memory i’m afraid and although vivid, might contain the odd in-accuracy.

Who can tell though, right? Since it concerns my adventures and recollections.

Gwas and I were in the midst of our trip to Ireland (May 2010) and we had just got the keys to access Four Knocks mound.

It was a bit of a drizzly morning as we pulled on the roadside next to the gate that was a short path away from the mound called FourKnocks.

Whilst Gwas was inside making some preparations for a meditation, I dowsed to find that my work would be done outside. So I dowsed to a location that would be suited and stood (the grass was wet) awaiting some inspiration (or at a push intuition).

There were a couple of horses in the field next to the mound and they came over to the fence to keep me company in my vigil. Nothing happened for a while and then my attention was caught by the cry of some nearby crows.

Have you ever noticed that crows seem to call in bunches of three squawks?

This crow was cawing in groups of four and had me listening to it intently as my mind wandered and was transported to another place. As, almost premonitioned the evening before I was standing with a figure who I knew to be Cailleach. You just know her without knowing her, if that makes sense?

Although the exact wording of the conversation escapes me, I know that she asked me whether I would like to be her student. She promised that I would learn many things and though she was a hard teacher, there was none better.

I asked her whether I had time to think about this exotic proposal and she said I had all the time I had at four knocks to make my decision.

What a request! To be a student of Cailleach offered so much and yet I had reservations. To be quite honest I was afraid, of commitment, of the dangers, of losing myself to something else.

Also I already had a wonderful teacher in the Ancient Yew.

With these reservations and fears. I rejoined (stop asking me how) Cailleach’s world and politely declined. She wasn’t wrathful, phew. But she did say we wouldn’t be meeting again.

At the conclusion of this little two day encounter (see this post) I felt both good and sad. Good that I was able to refuse such a request and sad that perhaps I had lost something special and unique.

Kal Malik – not a student of Cailleach