Ep 29 ~ The Magic in Geraldine Moorkens Byrne (Draoí, poet and author)

Thoroughly enjoyed chatting to Frances Billinghurst, author and Antipodean witch, for her series "The Magic in You" on her YouTube channel. Go follow for this and lots more great content and interviews. 

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Draíocht Ceoil, Wards and Conflict #draíochtceoil #irishwitchcraft

This Blog post is an expansion of the TikTok Video on Draíocht Ceoil. Like and follow for more content.

 Confrontation is hard.

Especially if you're sensitive to tone, inflexion and nuance. Like being in a too noisy room, it can prompt a flight/fight reflex. If you have Misophonia it can be painful, physically and emotionally and not necessarily just shouting. Insulting tones, sneering, a condescending inflexion, can be more than enough to grate on your nerves. Sensitivity to sound energy makes such altercations more intense, on deeper levels. If you wonder why you can't shrug off snide comments, or seem to identify the undercurrent more clearly than others, you may fall into this category.

Online is no exception. Have you ever posted something, especially in support of what is clearly basic decency and human rights, only to have a bigot or far right hate goblin attack you? Do you dread opening your socials, when you see angry notifications? feel as if they can reach through the screen - feel as bad as if you were in the room with them? while sound energy is not directly at play here, a sensitivity to words, their meanings, their weight, can lend extra import to these exchanges.

And sensitive people are often sensitive to injustice, and put themselves in the front line, but the backlash takes a huge toll on their emotions and mental health. This is unfortunate, and yet, still no excuse not to do the work.

Confrontation is sometimes necessary.

Situations fester if not resolved. We try to avoid upsetting people, because we're normal decent humans, but often the tactics involved make the situation worse. In suppressing our own emotions or allowing others to break our boundaries we risk turning a small problem into a series of problems into a big issue.

You also have to stand up for what's right. You will attract hateful people whose emotions are invested in bigotry and cruelty, but that's nothing compared to the dangers faced by those directly affected. It can be tempting to use our dislike of confrontation as an excuse, but the work demands that we hold firm. So, in attempting to use our words, our music, our energy for good - we accept that there is a price to pay.

Wards

But we don't have to enter the fray unarmed. Sound energy can be used in so many ways, none more useful than the creation of wards. You can use a physical object, or use an aural trigger, or combine both to great effect.

In my upcoming book Draíocht Ceoil, The Sound of Magic in Irish Traditions (Moon Books, 2026) I go into detail on these subject but this is a little handy guide, and you might want to check out my youtube video with Lora O'Brien of the Irish Pagan School, or my class on Warding and Hexing at the same. All links below :)

A physical ward

Take a small object, something you can keep on your person, and especially one you'll have handy whether walking around or checking social media.

Find a piece of music, of any type of genre, that represents calm, courage and protection to you. It doesn't need to make sense to anyone else. It just needs to invoke those emotions in you.

Place the object near or on top of speakers, and blast that music at it. Let it absorb the sound, the rhythm, the waves of energy. Let it "soak" in it. This is your touchstone, your rock. When you are in a confrontation, hold it in your hand. The more tactile the object the better, it should engage your senses on as many levels as possible.

Its purpose is both to help you remain detached and objective, and to erect a barrier around you.

An Auditory Ward

Alternatively you can simply use the piece of music, of sound energy, by itself. The key to this is meditation, and visualization. You need to build an association of instant calm, of objectivity and distance, with that music. It's like creating muscle memory - you should be able to think of the music, hum it, or play it in the confines of your own head, and instantly feel the calming energy.

Combined Wards

Ideally you can combine both approaches. The stronger your association with the piece of music, the more you attach it to your physical ward, the more effective it becomes as protection. The physical ward is deeply rooted in Irish folklore, in the carrying of rowan berries and other lucky items to protect. The auditory ward is rooted in our ancient past, in the work of the filí and the traditions of poetic and musical magic.

Add words, that have meaning to you or words that mean Peace, Calm, Protection. If you like, using Irish (Gaeilge) words are the ideal. Síochán, (peace) Smacht (control) Cosaint (protection)

And keep fighting the good fight

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Joy and Folkmagic - the missing ingredient

 

Further to some great discussions recently about folk magic traditions and their role in community building (both historically and in this fractured present) I wanted to share a few thoughts on joy and humour in folk magic. And in spirituality, in our relationship with our inner sacred landscapes and our deities.

For many people, trying to reconnect to their indigenous folk traditions, or trying to connect to those of their ancestors/those that call to them from another culture, can be a long and difficult path. If undertaken with respect and commitment this is necessary. Learning history, lore, traditions takes time and study. Without this you're just dressing up UPG in the trappings of a culture.

But it's also important to remember that the real daily practice of these traditions wasn't some dry, academic pursuit. In fact if we examine the many examples of folk magic in Irish folk lore, they often centre on particular liminal days especially the festivals inherited from our pre-Christian and early medieval past. Imbolc, Bealtaine, Lughnasadh and Samhain all have some common traditions and some unique to each, but part of the commonality is the way that magical practices were framed in the context of "play." They are often communal (e.g. building bonfires, telling fortunes by the fireside, Funerary games) and they involve teasing, humour, fun, laughter and joy. They are designed to invoke pleasurably mixed feelings of excitement, embarrassment, happiness. 

With funerary traditions, they were noticeable for bringing laughter into that most serious of events, Death. This was not some kind of disrespect towards the dead but rather a kindness towards the living. It distracted from grief, and at the same time, shielded the private grief of the family under a mask of public raucousness. It was often misunderstood by authorities both clerical and political, and the Irish wake was castigated for its lack of decorum, yet it remains one of the best psychological blueprints for healthy grieving. 

Whether seeking connection to deity, the Ancestors or the archetypes in the Otherworld, it is important to retain a sense of warmth and joy. Our gods, and our ancestors are not dry and intellectual concepts, but full of nuance. Their accessibility to us is something to treasure. They too demonstrate humour, and from the literature we know they took joy in ordinary life, in connections, in love and alleviated times of pain with music and joy.

In Draíocht Ceoil, the very nature of the tradition with its emphasis on music, singing and performance lends itself to joyous practice. Not only that but the legacy of the Filí (poets) with their elaborate word play and use of rich poetic forms for magical and mundane uses is impossible to separate from a joyful, vibrant sense of the power of sound energy. One of the three strains of magical music is Geantraí, the music of joy. 

All the careful study of musicology, of sound, of the affect of music on the brain or of the Old Irish poetic forms becomes mere ashes unless fueled and tempered by a love of music and words, by joy in their power. No great musical talent is necessary - we need to overcome self consciousness and raise our voices with pleasure. We need to let words resonate, roll them off our tongues, savour them. We need to invite joy into our practice.

It's the missing ingredient, and it's pure magic. 

Draíocht Ceoil, The Sound of Magic in Irish Traditions will be published by MOON books, date to be announced.

 TikTok channel 

Irish Pagan School Class on Draíocht Ceoil

Irish Pagan School Class on The Rosc

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