S3E3: Bonfires & Butter

S3E4: At the Threshold of Desire

From the sovereignty goddess tradition of the early Irish, through the May Day customs, this episode traces where the traditions of Beltane originated. Most of what people associate with the festival today was invented surprisingly recently, but underneath the layers, there's something older and more interesting worth finding. For more Celtic-inspired stories, check out Wild Kin Studio on Substack [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/] Further Reading: Sanas Chormaic: Cormac's Glossary [https://www.notion.so/2dc758b05a268033b5d0e633fa1fdd06?pvs=21] Dúchas: The Schools' Collection [https://www.notion.so/17b758b05a2681e4a2d6e7987e492210?pvs=21] Táin Bó Cúailnge: Recension I [https://www.notion.so/UCC-Application-321758b05a2680a0912cc190d0290b9a?pvs=21] Lebor Gabála Érenn [https://www.notion.so/UCC-Application-321758b05a2680a0912cc190d0290b9a?pvs=21] (Book of Invasions) [https://www.notion.so/UCC-Application-321758b05a2680a0912cc190d0290b9a?pvs=21] Foras Feasa ar Éirinn [https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T100054/] by Geoffrey Keating "Manifestations of Sovereignty in Medieval Ireland" [https://www.asnc.cam.ac.uk/publications/Chadwick/HMC%20Vol%2029%202018%20Toner.pdf] The Golden Bough [https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/3623] by **Sir James George Frazer, 1890 The Anatomie of Abuses [https://www.notion.so/17b758b05a2681e4a2d6e7987e492210?pvs=21] by Philip Stubbes, 1583 Get full access to Wild Kin at wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

S3E3: Bonfires & Butter

The Celtic festival of Beltane was never just about the fires. Behind the bonfires of May Eve lay something deeper — a three-thousand-year reverence for cattle, milk, and butter, and a persistent fear of the forces that might steal them away. Further Reading Sanas Cormaic (Cormac’s Glossary) [https://archive.org/details/cu31924071173474] The Schools’ Collection, 1937–1939 [https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes] “The Needfire Ritual” [https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/abs/needfire-ritual/4944E4D16BCF71227B16F664AD19E34F.] Examples of the Survival in Scotland of Superstitions Relating to Fire” [https://journals.socantscot.org/index.php/psas/issue/view/153] “Four Millennia of Dairy Surplus and Deposition Revealed through Compound-Specific Stable Isotope Analysis and Radiocarbon Dating of Irish Bog Butters” [https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-40975-y.] Exploring the Food-Related Intangible Cultural Heritage of Bealtaine (May Day) within the Irish Folklore Commission’s Schools’ Collection Digital Archive [https://journals.openedition.org/etudesirlandaises/12548]” Wild Kin is a podcast and publication reconnecting to Celtic history, mythology, and spiritual tradition. Subscribe on Substack [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/] for more essays, seasonal guides to find your way home to your heritage. Get full access to Wild Kin at wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

S3E2: Spring Sacrifice

As the first of May approaches, the ancient Celtic festival of Beltane marks a turning point as a threshold between seasons. In this episode, we explore how communities may have prepared for the coming summer with rituals that hint at something darker. From the preserved body of Lindow Man, to 18th century Beltane customs recorded by John Ramsay, to the later May Day figure of Jack in the Green, a pattern begins to emerge. While separated by centuries, these traditions reflect a shared human response to uncertainty, and the question of what must be given in return. For more Celtic-inspired stories, check out Wild Kin Studio on Substack [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/] Resources - Julius Caesar’s Account of the Gallic Wars [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Caes.+Gal.+6.16] - The British Museum’s Archive on The Lindow Man [https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/H_1984-1002-1] - James Frazer’s recordings from John Ramsay in The Golden Bough [https://www.gutenberg.org/files/3623/3623-h/3623-h.htm] - Library of Congress Folklore Blog on Jack in the Green [https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2023/10/green-man-connections-jack-in-the-green-and-more/] Get full access to Wild Kin at wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

S3E1: The Bull, the Queen, and the Balance of Power

What does it mean to hold power, and what does it take to claim it? In this episode of Wild Kin, we step into the world of early Ireland through the story of Medb, a queen remembered for her ambition, her strategy, and the war she waged to secure her place as an equal ruler. But beneath the drama of cattle raids and battlefield tactics lies something deeper. Medb’s story opens a window into a society where wealth, land, and authority were closely intertwined- and where power within marriage, leadership, and even the land itself followed a very different logic than what we know today. From early Irish law to sovereignty traditions and later reinterpretations, we explore how Medb’s story has endured, evolved, and continues to resonate. If you'd like more Celtic stories & resources, check out Wild Kin Studio on Substack [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/] Resources: Primary texts are drawn from the CELT (Corpus of Electronic Texts) archive at University College Cork. Táin Bó Cúailnge (The Cattle Raid of Cooley) [https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T301035.html] via CELT Cáin Lánamna (Brehon Law Text) [https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T102030/] Medb of Connaught [https://heritageireland.ie/2024/11/] Mention of Medb’s Tomb in the Metrical Dindschenchas [https://celt.ucc.ie/published/T106500D/] Get full access to Wild Kin at wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

S2E4: The Wild Winter Mare

As the year draws to a close, there is a stretch of winter when time feels suspended. The space after holiday celebrations have ended, but before the light truly begins to return. In this episode of Wild Kin, we step into that liminal time, when spirits were once believed to roam freely, and the wild came knocking at the door. Resources: *National Museum Wales: Christmas Traditions: The Mari Lwyd [https://museum.wales/articles/1187/Christmas-Traditions-The-Mari-Lwyd/] *English Heritage: Uffington White Horse [https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/uffington-castle-white-horse-and-dragon-hill/the-uffington-white-horse-project/] *Journal of the Royal Anthropoligical Institute: Rethinking ritual: how rituals made our world and how they could save it [https://rai.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-9655.14048] For more Celtic stories and traditions, check out Wild Kin Studio [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/]on Substack. Get full access to Wild Kin at wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe [https://wildkinstudio.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]