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I feel that, in the instances above, there is a strong case for viewing the tales as examples of shamanic initiatory illness and spirit marriage. This is of course in addition to any other themes that may be present, and any other relevance they may have from different perspectives.
If we confirm the shamanic aspects of Celtic spirituality in comparison with that of other cultures, it may shed light on areas of Celtic myth and religion that are poorly, or partially, understood. These areas include the role of women in Celtic spiritual practices, and the nature of the Celtic gods, as well as the possibility of people acting as oracles for those gods. The story of Mis raises interesting questions in this area. Her tale seems to connect in some ways to King and Goddess tales,180 to folklore about the Banshee,181 to traditions about mourning women,182 and to the ritual role of women in warrior cultures.183 Besides the relevance of exploring these issues to Celtic studies, if we discover that we can include the Celts in our analysis of shamanic cultures, we then have a broader basis of comparison for shamanic practices in general.
Footnotes
180 Mac Cana, 1955-56, p. 78-79 |
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