His Three Calls to Cormac

His Three Calls to Cormac, or "Cormac's Adventure in the Land of Promise", is a tale found in Irish mythology; the title being from Gods and Fighting Men – The Story of the Tuatha De Danaan and of the Fianna of Ireland, which is a collection of tales collated and translated by Lady Augusta Gregory. This particular tale features the Irish sea deity Manannán mac Lir and High King Cormac mac Airt.

The story begins on an early May morning when King Cormac, standing upon Tara's ramparts, "saw an armed man coming towards him, quiet, with high looks, and having grey hair; a shirt ribbed with gold thread next his skin, broad shoes of white bronze between his feet and the ground, a shining branch having nine apples of red gold." Such peace and beauty emanated from this man that the King flung open his gates and welcomed him to his court, speaking with him for many long hours. During this time the warrior told the King of his homeland. "I come," he said, "from a country where there is nothing but truth, and where there is neither age nor withering away, nor heaviness, nor sadness, nor jealousy, nor envy, nor pride."

Cormac delighted in this and the two avowed friendship, but not before the King asked for the warrior's silver branch as a token of the bond between them. The man accepted and gave the branch to the King, but on the condition that he in turn must be granted three wishes – a bargain that Cormac is quick to accept. That being done, the mysterious warrior left Tara as quickly and as quietly as he had come. As to the silver branch, "'delight and amusement to the full was it to listen to the music of that branch, for men sore wounded, or women in child-bed, or folk in sickness, would fall asleep at the melody when that branch was shaken.'" In short, it's music – haunting and beautiful – provided sleep and healing and the King used it for both healing and entertaining his court.

A year passed before the mysterious warrior returned quite suddenly and with no forward warning. "I have come so that you may grant me my first wish," he said in grave and ominous tones. The King, though nervous, promised to grant it. "Give me your daughter!" the warrior demanded, and as Cormac handed Aille, his bright and only daughter, to him, they both vanished in a swirl of mist. "So he brought away the girl with him, and the women of Ireland gave three loud cries after the king's daughter. But Cormac shook the branch at them, until it put away sorrow from them, and put them all into their sleep."

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