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Pagan Portals: The Crane Bag

A Druid's Guide to Ritual Tools and Practices

John Hunt Publishing Ltd.

What is the Crane Bag?

Three rejoicings followed by sorrow: a wooer's, a thief's, a talebearer's.

Irish triad

The Story of How the Crane Bag Came to Be

Aoife, daughter of Dealbhaoth, was one of the most beautiful young ladies in the land. She had hair that shone like pure gold in the sun, eyes as blue as the sea and skin as pale as fresh milk. Upon her face there was no blemish, and upon her lips no unkind word was ever spoken. She was tall and strong, graceful and generous.

Iuchra, daughter of Abhartach, was also very beautiful. She had long dark hair like a raven's wing, and lips as red as cherries. Her eyes were the green of leaves in the flush of first spring, her form willowy and light, and her laughter was like a stream tumbling over water. But her laughter grew less and less, as she came to know Aoife, and a jealousy grew in her heart. Lovely though Iuchra was, she thought that she was lessened when compared to Aoife's beauty. And so a dark seed was born within her heart.

One day, as the young women went down to the meadows to collect herbs and flowers, they came across a young man upon a red roan mare who had lost his way. His name was Ilbhreac, and his dark hair curled about his forehead, his smile lit up the sky. As he approached the two women, they both could not help but fall in love with his beauty. His voice was as sweet as honey, and his face bore no ill will or deceit. He shone with a radiance of pure honesty.

'Tell me, fair maidens, the name of the nearest village? I fear that I have lost my way,' he said.

'You are very near to Maith Geal,' said Iuchra, looking at him from beneath her long lashes. "Tis but half a mile to the south,' she said, extending her arm in the direction of the village. She smiled her best smile at him. 'You're most welcome to come by for refreshment,' she said, in the hopes that she herself could bear him a cup of their sweetest mead.

But Ilbhreac had only eyes for Aoife, who smiled and patted the neck of his horse as the mare nuzzled against her shoulder. 'And are you both from that village?' Ilbhreac asked Aoife.

'Yes,' Aoife replied. 'You look like you have travelled a long way, and we can also provide refreshment for your horse.'

'Thank you, that would be most kind,' the young man said. 'I am with the Fianna, and have been sent out to get to know the lay of the land, having recently joined their band of warriors and protectors.' At the mention of the famed band of heroes that kept the land free from raiders, the eyes of both maidens widened. Here was a man of courage and daring. Ilbhreac smiled at them once again, and disembarked from his mount, walking on foot with the two women back towards the village.

He was received with the traditional hospitality, and spent the night within the village rath. Songs and stories were told around the fire, and Iuchra managed to sit at Ilbhreac's right hand, to fill his cup with mead and hopefully garner his affection. Still Ilbhreac only had eyes for Aoife, however, and when she was asked to sing his heart was lost completely. Iuchra saw this, and a hatred for the fair maiden grew within her breast until it flamed upon her cheeks and set her eyes alight. She knew what she would do.

The next day, as Ilbhreac left them, promising to return within the fortnight, Iuchra turned to Aoife. 'Let us go down to the waters,' she smiled sweetly, her honeyed words hiding the bitterness inside. 'It is warm enough to bathe by the lake today,' she said.

'Oh, yes, let's do that!' Aoife said, clapping her hands together and smiling her beautiful smile. She hugged Iuchra and grabbed her hand, running with her down to the shore of the lake. 'Last one in has to milk the kicking cow!' she said, laughing as she stripped off her clothes and dived into the lake.

Iuchra watched as Aoife dove beneath the water, and then she raised her hands above her head. 'By the power of sun and moon, by the power of water and wave, by the power of blood and bone, by the power of wind and rain, may Aoife be turned into a crane!'

Aoife surfaced from the water, and looked questioningly towards the shore. 'Why are you not coming into the water?' she asked Iuchra.

Iuchra stood in her place and finished her chant. 'By the power of stone and sea, by the power of lightning and storm, by the power of these things I name, may Aoife be turned into a crane!'

Suddenly the clouds darkened overhead, and lightning flashed into the distance. 'Iuchra,' said Aoife softly. 'What have you done?'

But Iuchra did not answer. Instead, a flash of lightning hit the water where Aoife stood, half immersed in the cool, clear lake. Iuchra shielded her eyes from the blast, and when she turned back to see what had happened, a crane stood where Aoife had once stood, its long legs in the water, its pale wings flapping in surprise.

'Iuchra,' said the crane, its voice slowly changing from the melodious tone of Aoife to the harsh chittering and croak of the bird, 'how long must I remain in this form?'

'Two hundred years must you remain in bird form,' Iuchra shouted out her rage, 'and on to the lands of Manannan must you dwell, never to return here again!'

Aoife tried to call out to Iuchra, but her throat would no longer give her human voice, and she could do nothing but chitter and cackle like a crane. She spread her wings in great sorrow, and flew out towards the sea, banished from her home by the power of Iuchra's spell.

For two hundred years, Aoife circled the lands of the sea god, Manannan. She wept inwardly at her plight, and stood vigil every sunset in the hopes that the spell might be broken. She often kept Manannan company in her bird form as he came to watch the golden disc sink down into his kingdom beneath the waves. He grew fond of her company, and often would reach out and stroke the long, graceful neck of the bird.

For two hundred years they kept each other company each day as the sun set, casting its light upon the water. As the sun set beneath the waves and two hundred years had passed, Manannan reached out to stroke the gentle bird's neck like he always did. But his hand reached out only to empty air. He turned to look to see what had befallen his friend, and there upon the shore laid a young woman, the fairest maiden he had ever seen. Her long golden hair lay across the rocks like a last ray of sunlight, and her alabaster skin shone in the last of the setting sun. His heart broke for her, and even as he watched she turned into an old woman, and then died as the last ray of sunlight touched her face before it sank beneath the waves.

'A dreadful magic has been enacted here,' Manannan said, picking up the body of Aoife. 'But from this beautiful companion shall arise that which can contain all the treasures of these lands. Long she bore her fate, long was her enchantment. Large was her heart to endure, so large that it shall hereto be that which all the treasures of mine are bestowed and kept safe therein.' Saying that, he turned her body into a leather bag, and the image of a crane with knotwork encompassing it was carved into its surface with great skill. 'This is the crane bag, and within it I shall place everything that is precious to me,' said Manannan.

Into the bag he placed his shirt and his dagger, along with a girdle made by the great blacksmith god Goibhne. A hook from that same god was also placed into the bag, along with the King of Scotland's shears and the helmet from the King of Lochlainn. Into the bag also went the carved bones of Asal's swine, and a girdle made from the great whale.

Manannan kept the crane bag close to his heart, and hung it about his neck so that it lay against his breast. When the time for a great hero was at hand, Manannan would bring him the crane bag, bestowing this great gift that held various treasures from various times of the land throughout the ages. Manannan would give this gift freely, filled with treasures old and new, and take it back again when it was time for a new hero to be born. He knew that these treasures would be kept safe, as in the womb of a great goddess, for he trusted in his long-time friend, the crane, and knew that she would keep these safe for all eternity even as she bore out her fate until the end of her days.

And what happened to Iuchra and Ilbhreac? Well, that is a tale for another day.

The Crane Bag as Soul Map

As we have seen in the story above, the crane bag carries the treasures of the land. These treasures began with Manannan and were later gifted to various heroes in Irish legend in turn. The crane bag held all that was precious to Manannan, and we can use this concept to create our own crane bag. What we place into the crane bag is a representation of who we are, with gifts from loved ones, fetishes we may have found on our travels, power objects and more.

In the Druid tradition, the crane bag also carries the tools of the trade, so to speak. Though there isn't a designated list of tools, per se, that all Druids use, there are a few that many agree upon in modern Druidry as being part of the tradition. You don't need to have these tools to be a Druid. However, they can be an important part of your tradition and help you to locate your place in the world.

When we have physical representations of concepts and ideas, they can become more real to us in our daily lives. The crane bag can be used to create a physical soul map that we can look at, study and rearrange as needed. What we place into the crane bag is that which represents us at this point in time. When we draw an item forth from the bag in ritual, we are using something tangible to express the spiritual. We can carry these items with us wherever we go, dependent upon the size of the crane bag, or we can use it solely for ritual use.

The crane bag can be perceived in a shamanistic sense, containing that which the Druid uses to walk between the worlds in ritual. We can compare it to the Native American medicine bag that healers use in their work. The crane bag is also an expression of the soul of the Druid, where physical objects represent aspects of the Druid's journey. It has a very real, physical use as well as a spiritual use. Used in ritual, the crane bag connects the physical with the spiritual, allowing us walk between the worlds.

The Importance of Ritual

Meistr pob gwaith yw ymarfer. (The achievement of all work is practice.)

Welsh saying

What is Ritual?

Ritual consists of a prescribed set of words and actions within a particular context used to bring about a desired outcome. Druid ritual uses words and actions within the context of an earth-based tradition to connect with the landscape, the gods, the ancestors and so on. For the Druid, connection, relationship and integration with the landscape are at the heart of all that she does, whether in ritual or not. Ritual can be seen as a time set apart from daily life to reconnect the threads that bind us together with the land, with nature. We take a step back from what is perceived as the mundane and acknowledge the sacred. Ultimately, the Druid strives to perceive the sacred in everything, and ritual helps the Druid to achieve that vision.

Our modern lives are so busy, with work, family, media, technology and more. Ritual helps us to step back from the busyness, into another way of being. It is a change of consciousness, where we can shift our perception away from a singular view to a more plural view, integrating with the land around us, realising that we are a part of an ecosystem. Ritual is the act in the material world that connects us with a wider reality. It is an experience, not just a thought.

Ritual is that which helps us ground and centre in the present moment. When we stop, when we take a break to perform a ritual, we become aware of who, where and what we are at a particular point in time. We are rooted in the here and now, awake and aware to all that is happening around us. When we are awake, we are able to find our place in harmony with nature, finding a deep peace both within and without. It gives us an intention, a focus with which to work in the Druid tradition, to reweave the threads of connection.

Ritual also helps us to find stability. When we create rituals to perform repeatedly, we bring that sacred perspective more and more into our everyday life. These rituals needn't be identical each and every time; what is important is that the ritual is actually done. It is the experience of ritual that helps us to self-locate. We cannot do that simply by thinking about it; we must act as well. When we have acted out our rituals with some regularity, we may find that our connection to the natural world deepens. The ancient philosopher Lao Tzu once said:

Watch your thoughts, they become words;
watch your words, they become actions;
watch your actions, they become habits;
watch your habits, they become character;
watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.

We as humans are creatures of habit, and indeed these habits define us as people. A repeated action or behaviour will certainly have an impact on who we are as an individual. By using ritual we can break off from bad habits and thought patterns, for example, and find the sacredness within and all around us. It requires practice, as in the Welsh saying at the beginning of this chapter. We cannot just think about ritual; we must do it. If we take the time to reconnect with our place in the natural world, over and over again, then we will maintain that connection more and more throughout our lives until they are an example of pure integration and harmony.

Druid ritual is also a celebration. The eight seasonal festivals of modern Druidry help us to remember what is going on in nature at the present moment. There are many books that cover the eight seasonal festivals, their origins, meanings and ways to celebrate, and so we will not cover that here (see bibliography and suggested reading for more). Rather, we will look at how Druid ritual is set up, from start to finish, using our tools from the crane bag to find our soul map in our own environment.

Ritual is also a tool for transformation. When we have worked with intention and grounded ourselves in the present moment, we are transformed as our perception shifts from one perceived reality to another. Through the experience of ritual, we understand that our point of view is not the only one, and that perception shifts with intention. When we broaden our horizons, we cannot help but be transformed.

Re-enchanting the Soul

Work and familial obligations can sometimes weigh us down in a sea of mundane jobs, tasks, and commitments. With Druid ritual, we can re-enchant the soul to bring the magic back into our everyday lives, as we perceive the sacredness of all things. Then, we realise that there is no such thing as the mundane, only the sacred. The division between the two is realised as an illusion, and we are thus able to 'travel between the worlds'.

The Druid is always questing for inspiration, or awen. Awen is a Welsh word, sometimes translated as 'flowing spirit' or 'flowing inspiration'. Creativity is such a large part of the Druid path, where we are inspired and then inspire others in return. This exchange of inspiration is at the heart of all that we do, in deep relationship with the world around us. When we touch each other soul to soul, where we find intention blending together to work in harmony, then we are inspired. The Druid looks to the natural world around her to gain that inspiration. She takes her cues from nature as to how to live in the present moment, utterly awake and aware. So inspired, she lives her life as best she can as part of that environment, in tune with all that shares the samespace. By doing so, she also inspires others in return.

Simply by getting outside and into 'nature', our awareness shifts. Though nature is something that we are a part of all the time, we often see it as something 'out there', as external to ourselves. When we realise that we are a part of nature, we shift from a self-centred perspective to an integrated one, thereby opening our eyes to the beauty and wonder that lies all around us each and every day. Taking a walk helps us to see the beauty of an oak tree in full leaf, to feel the warm caress of the summer wind, to feel the blessing of the rain or the exhilaration of a snowstorm. We awaken our senses to the world around us simply by being out in it, in nature, away from central heating and electricity, away from cars, phones and computers. Though all these things can be of great benefit, when we re-attune our senses to our 'natural' environment, we can also reawaken something that has long lain dormant within our souls. We can re-enchant our lives, re-wilding our souls. We can return to the very roots of our being. We can find the child-like wonder while looking at an ants' nest, or listening to the blackbird at dusk. We no longer become bored or jaded, but rather totally awake to the world around us. Our lives benefit from this re-enchantment on every level. This is the awen.

This is also the importance of ritual. When we take the time to re enchant our souls, we make our lives more magical, more meaningful and more present. We can step outside the realm of 9-5 living. We enter into a state of intention and enchantment, inspired and inspiring others in return. In this, we find true relationship.

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Excerpted from Pagan Portals: The Crane Bag by Joanna van der Hoeven. Copyright © 2016 Joanna van der Hoeven. Excerpted by permission of John Hunt Publishing Ltd..
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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