Review: Bard’s Book of Pagan Songs

Title: A Bard’s Book of Pagan Songs – Stories & Music from the Celtic World
Author: Hugin the Bard
Publisher: Llewellyn Publications
Pages: 259 + CD
ISBN-10: 1-56718-658-0
Release: Third Printing, 2000
Currently out of print?

What a refreshing, amusing and wonderful book!

Yes, this one I love. In fact, I’ve played the accompanying CD so much I know all of the words, and my daughter is still convinced he wrote the songs for her (her name is Rhiannon after all…).

The first thing a customer will notice when they open the pages of this book, is that it looks handwritten. This is not type face font! This is something that looks like it took a long time of careful, painstaking printing.

Lyrics, stories and music – definitely the work of a skilled bard. Hugin has a way of weaving the story with so much more skill than most story tellers, and his music is easy to learn, and the editor’s are right – you’ll be playing along in no time, even if you aren’t musically inclined.

I will quote my youngest daughter’s favorite song, set to the tune of “Farmer in the Dell” –

The Cauldron and the Goat

“The cauldron and the goat
The castle and the moat
Fooled by Blodeuwedd
Wearin’ no coat.

You know she had your ear
The spear took a year
Made on the Full Moon
Don’t you feel queer?

He waited for your bath
And hid up the path
The only time the magick failed
Do you feel wrath?

He got you in sight
And slew you so bright
And you were no more a man
An eagle took flight.

‘Til Daddy came along
And sang you a song
And now that story told
End of this song.”

Even now, while typing this, I am grinning from ear to ear. I can hear the music from the CD and the way the song is presented therein… you really must get this if you don’t already have it!

5 of 5 Broomsticks

Jodi Lee, aka ierne Morrighan Corvidae, is a 20+ year veteran of pagan paths. A full-time freelance editor, she is the owner/publisher of Belfire Press.

Friday Tarot: Ace of Swords

Starting what I hope will become a regular thing, I’ll be posting a new one-card tarot reading every Friday.

Today, I pulled the Ace of Swords.

Symbolizes: honesty, justice, integrity, fortitude, intellect

A clear understanding of the past, present and future has taken root in your life, but you may not know it yet. It shows a beginning of possibility in so many ways – justice, truth, clarity, intelligence. The outcome can materialize in any form, from a great idea, to financial security through an important decision, to a breakthrough in relationships around you.

However, sooner or later life throws a curve-ball that you’ll either catch, or miss. The Ace of Swords is a reminder to meet these issues with an honest resolve, standing strong, keeping to your ethics.

The Ace of Swords encourages you to look to your current situation, and how a focused mind and energy could work towards your personal goals. If you maintain personal honesty, integrity and insight, this card will help you focus on achieving your desires.

Yule-Creating New Pagan Family Traditions

The girls and I have been working on the former chapbook project off and on for some time now. In the last week, we’ve polished up the Yule selection, and it’s now available through Kindle and in multi-format ebook through Smashwords.

ierne (Morrighan Corvidae) of Glas Celli presents a short handbook to introduce traditional pagan information, ritual, meal plan and activities for new pagan families.

Yule, also known as Saturnalia, Alban Huan, Sol, and Midwinter, is celebrated at the winter solstice, on or around December 21st.

It is the time of darkness, and yet a returning of the light. The night of the solstice is the longest period of darkness each year; with the breaking of dawn, the light returns a little more each day, until the summer solstice in June. It is now that the Oak King returns to defeat the Holly King, symbolically replacing the aging deity with a younger, stronger self. The son replacing the father to become the son once more, the circle of life – the wheel of the year – facilitated by the Great Mother. She has given us her greatest gift, and in exchange, we honor both herself, and her son.

I honestly can’t say when the next one will be available, but when I get a few moments of spare time, I’ll probably try and re-format the Litha chapbook for official publication as well. Should all go well, I hope to have the next one done and ready for Beltaine (which would be the Beltaine collection…)

This is also a bit of an experiment for my formatting skills… I’ve never included images in the ebooks for Belfire or myself, and Yule has an abundance of them. I’m hoping to get some constructive feedback through reviews etc.

I have to admit to having some fun tracking down open source, easy to customize coloring pages!