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The Voyage of Saint Brendan: Journey to the Promised Land
A translation from the Latin of one of the most famous and enduring stories of western Christendom, the Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis, written in Ireland perhaps as early as the year 800. While the routes of St. Brendan's journeys remain a subject of controversy, the tale itself is of great interest—a strongly integrated text which derives from several centuries of Irish literary tradition.
"A worthwhile book in every respect." - Choice.
"A fascinating book." - The Irish Times.
"A worthwhile book in every respect." - Choice.
"A fascinating book." - The Irish Times.
93 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 800
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 98 reviews
April 28, 2023
Călătoria abatelui Brendan și a fraților lui (14 la început) durează 7 ani. Ea pare a fi în cerc, după sărbătorile liturgice ale anului religios. Călugării serbează Nașterea Domnului pe o insulă, Învierea pe alta, Cincizecimea pe alta etc.
Nava plutește de la un ostrov la altul, e urmărită de monștri amfibieni, dă ocol insulei infernului, un „barbar” aruncă spre ea o piatră de foc și apa mării începe să fiarbă (p.147). Navigatorii ajung pe insule plutitoare, aprind focul pe spinarea unui pește uriaș, numit Iasconius, beau din izvoare cu apă soporifică (unii dintre călători dorm neîntrerupt 3 zile și 3 nopți), întîlnesc insule aromate, acoperite de pietre prețioase și de pomi exuberanți cu fructe exotice, ascultă uimiți păsări care spun versete din psalmi. Călătoria este, desigur, un șir de întîmplări extraordinare.
Se înțelege, sfîntul Brendan este un bărbat infailibil, postește cu ușurință, știe totul dinainte, e vegetarian prin definiție, face preziceri, îi îndrumă părintește pe toți („tu rămîi aici, tu vei merge în iad...”), ajunge la un moment dat să discute cu Iuda (chiar el) și îl apără de demoni (pp.151-155).
Abia în al șaptelea an, abatele Brendan și monahii lui pot păși pe Tărîmul făgăduinței (acoperit de geme strălucitoare și tăiat pe la mijloc de un rîu de netrecut), stau intervalul canonic de 40 de zile, apoi se întorc acasă. Tărîmul e strălucitor, dar nu se sustrage trecerii timpului. Nu peste mult, sfîntul Brendan moare.
Navigatio sancti Brendani abbatis nu este cea mai teribilă dintre povestiri: mult mai frumoasă mi s-a părut aceea care narează „peripețiile / immrama lui Bra(i)n, fiul lui Febail”, cu care a fost adesea comparată...
Nava plutește de la un ostrov la altul, e urmărită de monștri amfibieni, dă ocol insulei infernului, un „barbar” aruncă spre ea o piatră de foc și apa mării începe să fiarbă (p.147). Navigatorii ajung pe insule plutitoare, aprind focul pe spinarea unui pește uriaș, numit Iasconius, beau din izvoare cu apă soporifică (unii dintre călători dorm neîntrerupt 3 zile și 3 nopți), întîlnesc insule aromate, acoperite de pietre prețioase și de pomi exuberanți cu fructe exotice, ascultă uimiți păsări care spun versete din psalmi. Călătoria este, desigur, un șir de întîmplări extraordinare.
Se înțelege, sfîntul Brendan este un bărbat infailibil, postește cu ușurință, știe totul dinainte, e vegetarian prin definiție, face preziceri, îi îndrumă părintește pe toți („tu rămîi aici, tu vei merge în iad...”), ajunge la un moment dat să discute cu Iuda (chiar el) și îl apără de demoni (pp.151-155).
Abia în al șaptelea an, abatele Brendan și monahii lui pot păși pe Tărîmul făgăduinței (acoperit de geme strălucitoare și tăiat pe la mijloc de un rîu de netrecut), stau intervalul canonic de 40 de zile, apoi se întorc acasă. Tărîmul e strălucitor, dar nu se sustrage trecerii timpului. Nu peste mult, sfîntul Brendan moare.
Navigatio sancti Brendani abbatis nu este cea mai teribilă dintre povestiri: mult mai frumoasă mi s-a părut aceea care narează „peripețiile / immrama lui Bra(i)n, fiul lui Febail”, cu care a fost adesea comparată...
June 14, 2025
dit las heel vlot (er stond een hertaling naast) & was nog wel entertaining
May 23, 2011
The story of St Brendan’s journey to the Promised Land is one of the Middle Age’s great tales of heroic voyaging. The Irish abbot and his brethren launch their little leather boat into the North Atlantic, hoping to bump into an earthly paradise somewhere to the west. In the course of their seven-year pilgrimage, they discover enchanted islands, celebrate Easter on the back of a sea beast, sail around a crystal pillar that ascends almost to heaven, barely escape the reek of Hell and its fire-chucking inhabitants, and finally arrive at the isle of the blessed Saints. Wondrous miracles attend them along the way, and everyone comes home with his tunic smelling just like heaven.
The Voyage of Saint Brendan takes plenty of cues from its classical predecessors the Odyssey and the Aeneid, but hints of the pagan world are heavily overlaid by the stern ideals of medieval Irish monasticism: unflinching obedience, devotion to the Divine Office, fasting, prostrations, and great physical endurance. There’s a pretty strong scent of Christian allegory here, too (though it will take a nose finer than mine to follow it to anything fruitful).
Brendan’s adventures, which found their way into most western European languages, were enormously popular during the Middle Ages. John J. O’Meara’s translation of the Latin version, Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis (AD 850), will entertain modern readers as well. And if, in your bibliographic wanderings, you are fortunate to find the hardback limited edition, you’re in for a treat. This is a precious book, printed in three colours on grey-green laid paper, its text set in Eric Gill’s Pilgrim and Viktor Hammer’s Uncial, and nicely illustrated with woodcut reproductions from Sankt Brandans Seefahrt (1476 Augsburg). It’s an elegant, quick read.
The Voyage of Saint Brendan takes plenty of cues from its classical predecessors the Odyssey and the Aeneid, but hints of the pagan world are heavily overlaid by the stern ideals of medieval Irish monasticism: unflinching obedience, devotion to the Divine Office, fasting, prostrations, and great physical endurance. There’s a pretty strong scent of Christian allegory here, too (though it will take a nose finer than mine to follow it to anything fruitful).
Brendan’s adventures, which found their way into most western European languages, were enormously popular during the Middle Ages. John J. O’Meara’s translation of the Latin version, Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis (AD 850), will entertain modern readers as well. And if, in your bibliographic wanderings, you are fortunate to find the hardback limited edition, you’re in for a treat. This is a precious book, printed in three colours on grey-green laid paper, its text set in Eric Gill’s Pilgrim and Viktor Hammer’s Uncial, and nicely illustrated with woodcut reproductions from Sankt Brandans Seefahrt (1476 Augsburg). It’s an elegant, quick read.
April 9, 2020
Een sprekend hoofd zonder lichaam, vuurspuwende duivels, grote vissen, en harige monsters: nog best wel goed entertainment.
November 23, 2021
(My review is of the Latin original, which is not listed on Goodreads, not of this translation.)
The Navagatio Sancti Brendani, or Navigation of Saint Brendan is an account, probably written around 900 AD, of a seven-year voyage of the fifth-century Irish Saint Brendan to find the Land of Promise to the Saints (terra repromissionis sanctorum). It is known from about 140 manuscripts, which all differ slightly in details; the version I read, downloaded from the Bibliotheca Augustana website, is a transcription of the Alençon MS from the eleventh century and titled in that manuscript Vita sanctissimi confessoris Christi Brendani. For those who haven't discovered it, the Bibliotheca Augustana is a great free site for classical, mediaeval and renaissance texts (and some later works in the common domain) in the original languages, but it consists of continuous html pages so it is difficult to get a real page count. The work is 18 pages of ordinary 8 1/2 x 11 paper, but would probably be somewhat longer if an actual printed book. The Latin is not particularly difficult, except for a handful of mediaeval words that I didn't know and were not in my Latin dictionary (based on the classical language.)
The story begins with Saint Brendan in his monastery, who is visited by his nephew, Barinthus. Barinthus tells him about his visit to his son (in Christ?) Mernocatus, who has established his own monastery on the Delicious Island; Barinthus and Mernocatus then travel in three days to the nearby Land of Promise. After Barinthus leaves for his own monastery, St. Brendan decides to find the island himself, together with fourteen volunteers from his monastery. They set sail, but it takes them seven years of sailing around in circles before they are allowed to reach the island they are seeking. Although some Irish (or Irish-American) chauvinists use this and similar stories to claim that the Irish discovered North America a half-millennium before Leif Ericson, the text is obviously not the account of a real voyage and they never reach any mainland, let alone the coast of America. What they find are miraculous islands peopled by angels in the form of talking birds and other fabulous places; they travel around in circles celebrating Christmas and Easter at the same places each year (including on the back of a giant whale.)
Now that I am retired I am planning to "fill in the gaps" of my reading in the classics, essentially in three simultaneous projects: one from the Odyssey to the ninth century, one from the tenth to the seventeenth century (beginning with this book), and one from the eighteenth century (starting with Blake) to the present. I'm not sure how far I will get on any of them.
The Navagatio Sancti Brendani, or Navigation of Saint Brendan is an account, probably written around 900 AD, of a seven-year voyage of the fifth-century Irish Saint Brendan to find the Land of Promise to the Saints (terra repromissionis sanctorum). It is known from about 140 manuscripts, which all differ slightly in details; the version I read, downloaded from the Bibliotheca Augustana website, is a transcription of the Alençon MS from the eleventh century and titled in that manuscript Vita sanctissimi confessoris Christi Brendani. For those who haven't discovered it, the Bibliotheca Augustana is a great free site for classical, mediaeval and renaissance texts (and some later works in the common domain) in the original languages, but it consists of continuous html pages so it is difficult to get a real page count. The work is 18 pages of ordinary 8 1/2 x 11 paper, but would probably be somewhat longer if an actual printed book. The Latin is not particularly difficult, except for a handful of mediaeval words that I didn't know and were not in my Latin dictionary (based on the classical language.)
The story begins with Saint Brendan in his monastery, who is visited by his nephew, Barinthus. Barinthus tells him about his visit to his son (in Christ?) Mernocatus, who has established his own monastery on the Delicious Island; Barinthus and Mernocatus then travel in three days to the nearby Land of Promise. After Barinthus leaves for his own monastery, St. Brendan decides to find the island himself, together with fourteen volunteers from his monastery. They set sail, but it takes them seven years of sailing around in circles before they are allowed to reach the island they are seeking. Although some Irish (or Irish-American) chauvinists use this and similar stories to claim that the Irish discovered North America a half-millennium before Leif Ericson, the text is obviously not the account of a real voyage and they never reach any mainland, let alone the coast of America. What they find are miraculous islands peopled by angels in the form of talking birds and other fabulous places; they travel around in circles celebrating Christmas and Easter at the same places each year (including on the back of a giant whale.)
Now that I am retired I am planning to "fill in the gaps" of my reading in the classics, essentially in three simultaneous projects: one from the Odyssey to the ninth century, one from the tenth to the seventeenth century (beginning with this book), and one from the eighteenth century (starting with Blake) to the present. I'm not sure how far I will get on any of them.
May 23, 2023
Dit is het voorlaatste Middelnederlandse verhaal dat ik moest lezen (zie bundel voorbeeldig en vermakelijk vertellen), dus bij deze een algemene review over deze vermakelijke vertelstof. Misschien een beetje raar om Middelnederlandse literatuur aan te raden, maar ik doe het toch. Ik was meermaals verbouwereerd over hoe welbespraakt de auteurs waren en over hoe fantasierijk, ingenieus en scherpzinnig deze werken in elkaar zitten. En ik denk dat ik op dit platform wel mag toegeven dat dat dat half-te-ontcijferen taaltje mij enorm kan plezieren. Neem hier bijvoorbeeld deze zin uit Reynaert de vos: "Oem, dat een kan ik niet verstaen, waer ghi dese tale keert". Lees: Oom, ik versta u niet. Tenslotte wil ik aan deze review toevoegen dat Reynaert, de Borchgravinne van Vergi en Beatrijs mijn favorieten zijn en dat deze Brandaan mij het minst bekoren kon. Brandaan is een zieke slijmbal en ondanks zijn odyssee gaat hij letterlijk elke uitdaging uit de weg door brood en vis te gaan eten op zijn schip en tot God te bidden dat hij pas bij zijn thuiskomst dient te sterven. Flauwerik. Morgen sluit ik deze Middelnederlandse serie af met Mariken Van Nieumeghen, spannend! Groetjes, a dutch speaking nerd.
September 10, 2023
Vet leuk dat Middeleeuwse Nederlands lezen maar het plot is nooit goed haha
February 26, 2025
This is about the midpoint between Bran and Maildun: medium amount repetitive, medium amount condensed, medium amount of likable characters. I think the promised land being an early variation on some kind of garden of Eden story is really interesting though.
December 19, 2017
Written in the ninth century, it's the story of a fourth century saint and his companions in search of the Promised Land of the Saints. Belonging to the genre of immram, the navigation tales of the Irish, this legend highlights the struggles of the company in the physical and spiritual level, and would likely respond to the medieval notions of life as pilgrimage. It's very interesting in the rediscovery of Irish literature I proposed myself to do this year, and I hope to read more like this soon.
September 1, 2021
Abt Brendaan en zijn monniken maken een reis die meer dan zeven jaar duurt en komen onderweg de meest wonderlijke dieren en mannen, maar geen enkele vrouw tegen.
May 2, 2023
Sint Brandaan, hij was niet bang
Bad en bad een heel verhaal lang
Hij wisselde tussen hemel en hel
Maar deed dit niet denderend snel
Bad en bad een heel verhaal lang
Hij wisselde tussen hemel en hel
Maar deed dit niet denderend snel
February 23, 2024
Amen ig
March 18, 2025
O poveste
June 18, 2023
Sint brandaan, nadat hij negen jaar heeft gereisd en de bijbel opnieuw heeft geschreven, zodra hij thuiskomt: ☠️😹
March 5, 2025
Nee Siebe dit boek is niet ‘peak’
January 25, 2015
Es muy interesante ver cómo la historia de aventuras tal y cómo la conocemos ya existía en la Edad Media. El viaje de Brandan tiene dragones y seres fantásticos, el infierno y el paraíso, milagros y muertes en menos de 50 páginas. Todo contado en un lenguaje medieval muy ditecto pero agradable. Merece cada minuto de la media hora de tu vida que vas a tardar en leerlo.
October 19, 2023
nie tego spodziewałam się po kulturoznawstwie
September 8, 2025
Ik ben echt verliefd op mn studie maar dit boek en dit vak zijn wel gewoon die ene vervelende eigenschap van een liefde, we gaan eraan werken!!
March 14, 2024
It was a short and interesting read for sure. I had been told by several people I needed to read The Voyage of Saint Brendan because it it's proof Brendan sailed to the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland and even the Azores and possibly North America spreading the good word. And what a load of bullshit that was.
I was hoping for better descriptions of the islands and their environments and the sailing routes of the monks. We are provided with none of that. They just let God steer the boat to the many islands of the story who have simple, vague descriptions of them like "the island was round with a lake". One of the islands is not an island but a gigantic fish named Jasconius. The volcanic islands have no other similarities with Iceland besides the volcanic activity. It is obvious that Brendan has arrived at the gates of Hell and is being tested in his faith. There are giants, and demons that guard none other than Judas and the vague descriptions of the environment are more akin to Mordor than that of Iceland. The Island of Grapes that is supposed to be the Americas is the same, the only similarity is that there are grape trees on the island. The Island of Grapes is just a reward from God because the monks had been good lads that didn't break their fast, even when tempted. But what about the islands of birds and sheep, surely he must have made it to the Faroes or Shetland? The birds on the island of birds aren't birds but angels! So it really is the island og angels and doesn't resemble the Faroes at all
The Voyage of Saint Brendan is a christian adventure story about finding The Promised Land of Saints, a magical island resembling the Garden of Eden. The text is simply about the wonderful creations of God and trusting in God. If you have enough faith God will keep you safe from harm and provide you with food and shelter. It's incredibly repetitive, they see and do the same things a minimum of three times and it all has something to do with holy numbers I think. All the monks besides Brendan do in the story is fasting and sing hymns on the boat and it gets to be a very tedious read. There are some trippy elements to the story that are just very out there that I enjoyed.
If you are interested in medieval texts give this one a read but I'll rate this book (manuscript?) 1 star because even for a medieval text it was boring and the story kept repeating itself. It's lazy writing really. But of course, can you really rate medieval scripture using a star system?
I was hoping for better descriptions of the islands and their environments and the sailing routes of the monks. We are provided with none of that. They just let God steer the boat to the many islands of the story who have simple, vague descriptions of them like "the island was round with a lake". One of the islands is not an island but a gigantic fish named Jasconius. The volcanic islands have no other similarities with Iceland besides the volcanic activity. It is obvious that Brendan has arrived at the gates of Hell and is being tested in his faith. There are giants, and demons that guard none other than Judas and the vague descriptions of the environment are more akin to Mordor than that of Iceland. The Island of Grapes that is supposed to be the Americas is the same, the only similarity is that there are grape trees on the island. The Island of Grapes is just a reward from God because the monks had been good lads that didn't break their fast, even when tempted. But what about the islands of birds and sheep, surely he must have made it to the Faroes or Shetland? The birds on the island of birds aren't birds but angels! So it really is the island og angels and doesn't resemble the Faroes at all
The Voyage of Saint Brendan is a christian adventure story about finding The Promised Land of Saints, a magical island resembling the Garden of Eden. The text is simply about the wonderful creations of God and trusting in God. If you have enough faith God will keep you safe from harm and provide you with food and shelter. It's incredibly repetitive, they see and do the same things a minimum of three times and it all has something to do with holy numbers I think. All the monks besides Brendan do in the story is fasting and sing hymns on the boat and it gets to be a very tedious read. There are some trippy elements to the story that are just very out there that I enjoyed.
If you are interested in medieval texts give this one a read but I'll rate this book (manuscript?) 1 star because even for a medieval text it was boring and the story kept repeating itself. It's lazy writing really. But of course, can you really rate medieval scripture using a star system?
December 26, 2025
Ein sånn klassikar som det er greitt å ha lese. Det er ei helgenskildring, poenget er å visa kor heilag Brendan er og kor sterk i trua. Forteljarteknisk framstår det litt som eit eventyr, men mindre samanhengande - sjølvmotseiingar i teksten og litt sånt. Sidan eg er historienørd blir det ein trear, men eg vil ikkje anbefala boka til folk som ikkje er spesielt interesserte.
Ein litt absurd ting, er at det finst folk som seriøst trur at dette skildrar ei reell reise, og prøver å spora reiseruta via Færøyane og Island til Nord-Amerika, og denslags. Då skal du _verkeleg_ vera selektiv i lesinga di, og leita med lys og lykter etter det du har lyst til å finna. I realiteten er det ingenting her som minner om reell geografi.
Ein litt absurd ting, er at det finst folk som seriøst trur at dette skildrar ei reell reise, og prøver å spora reiseruta via Færøyane og Island til Nord-Amerika, og denslags. Då skal du _verkeleg_ vera selektiv i lesinga di, og leita med lys og lykter etter det du har lyst til å finna. I realiteten er det ingenting her som minner om reell geografi.
January 27, 2019
This was better than I expected given its a travel narrative of a noble Irish monk in the 12th Century. A very insightful read on faith, heaven & hell, as well as right & wrong morals. Additionally, the supplementary information provided and the effort of its translation made for a comprehensible reading.
January 21, 2018
De inleiding was iets interessanter dan de tekst zelf, maar de vertaling las ook prettig en het was leuk die te vergelijken met de Middelnederlandse tekst. De kanttekeningen waren ook erg handig, want ondanks dat ik wel wat bijbelse elementen herkende had ik zonder die aantekeningen wel wat gemist.
February 11, 2018
Good translation of a Celtic epic poem, though some seemingly fantastical parts, modern archeology shows that this trip could have happened, making Saint Brendan and his crew some of the first Europeans to visit North America. Worth the time, check it out.
December 10, 2022
Cuento fantástico medieval relacionado con los immram irlandeses, que narran el viaje de un héroe a través de unas islas situadas al oeste de Irlanda hasta llegar al otro mundo (influenciados quizá por las islas Afortunadas, el Hades, de la cultura grecolatina). San Brendán guiará a unos monjes hasta el Paraíso a través de islas fabulosas, con fuerte influencia del bestiario medieval (el pez-isla, el monstruo ballena) y la fantasía grecolatina (las fuentes milagrosas, el periplo de la Historia verdadera de Luciano, etc.).
Aunque esta aventura de San Brendán llegó hasta los reinos de la península ibérica, no tuvo tanto éxito como en el norte de Europa. Sí es cierto que existe una versión hispana de esta leyenda, san Amaro, quien gozó de gran popularidad en el reino asturleonés, Galicia y Portugal, quizá por las fuertes raíces celtas que comparten estas regiones.
Aunque esta aventura de San Brendán llegó hasta los reinos de la península ibérica, no tuvo tanto éxito como en el norte de Europa. Sí es cierto que existe una versión hispana de esta leyenda, san Amaro, quien gozó de gran popularidad en el reino asturleonés, Galicia y Portugal, quizá por las fuertes raíces celtas que comparten estas regiones.
February 18, 2024
Like most old narratives, this is driven by motifs and tells of travels. It is for prayer and imagination, for asceticism and piety. I wonder if it could be the basis of something of wonder and worship too.
November 11, 2020
Saint Brendan rencondre Juda
January 13, 2023
Op zich best een episch verhaal, maar qua stijl past het natuurlijk compleet niet meer bij literatuur die we nu lezen. Voor mijn gevoel duurde dit verhaal eindeloos, en sprong het van hot naar her. De vertaling bleef heel trouw aan het origineel, wat goed is, maar daardoor las het wel moeilijk.
September 9, 2025
*Gaap*
January 2, 2020
Brill! Love it rly what an iconic medieval text. Love the bit about the monks and the sheep. Brendan is such a hilarious guy. Have written 3 essays about this now.
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