The Prophecies of the Brahan Seer

by Alexander Mackenzie, Elizabeth Sutherland, Kenneth Mackenzie

A revised edition of Mackenzie's original publication of 1877, which now includes a commentary and conclusion by Elizabeth Sutherland. Coinneach Odhar, the Brahan Seer, was a seventeenth century prophet of the Highlands of Scotland.

Genres: Scotland, Paganism

156 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1877

About the author

Alexander Mackenzie (1838 - 1898) was a Scottish writer, historian, politician and magazine editor.

In 1861 Mackenzie became apprenticed in the clothes trade selling Scottish cloth in Colchester. In 1869 he settled in Inverness, where he and his brother set up a clothes shop in Clach na Cudainn House. From his business premises he derived his nickname 'Clach na Cudainn' or simply 'Clach'. He later became an editor and publisher of the Celtic Magazine, and the Scottish Highlander. Mackenzie wrote numerous clan histories. He was a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and a founder member of the Gaelic Society of Inverness,

Librarian note: There are more authors with this name. Go to Alexander Mackenzie (1764 - 1820) for the Scottish explorer.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a fascinating subject but the book is very laboured and difficult to follow. Really could do with a better layout and update.

[Mark Rice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is loaded with insights into the predictions of Scotland's most (in)famous prophet (with the exception of Tam the Bammus in my story Revelation Was Wrong), the Brahan Seer. The level of detail - particularly with regards to the minutiae of his prophecies - is astonishing. The book fails, however, to illuminate the elusive seer's identity. I grew up hearing my father's stories of Coinneach Odhar from Uig on the Scottish Isle of Lewis, seventh son of a seventh son, and gifted with second sight that allowed him to see the future more clearly than most people could see the present. This Coinneach Odhar became known to Lewismen as the 'Brahan Seer'. My father spent his childhood in Lewis, where these anecdotal tales were part of the oral tradition, passed down through generations, ostensibly unaltered. I had hoped Mackenzie's book would shine a light on this Coinneach Odhar, bringing him into clear focus. Rather, it did the opposite. Mackenzie proposes several Brahan Seer candidates, ranging across centuries and locations, giving murky descriptions of each (but offering outrageously specific details of alleged prophecies), even entertaining the possibility that the 'Brahan Seer' of folk infamy might be a mixture of various prophets who lived in different parts of Scotland across a wide time range: a hybrid of several real humans mythologised into one 'superseer'. (Sort of like the film Highlander but with prophets: "There can be only one!")

If you want a book to crystallise your ideas of who the Brahan Seer was, give this a wide berth. It'll only scramble your mind. If, on the other hand, you're more concerned with the contents of his prophecies, delve in. Some of them are so wired-to-the-moon mental that you'll think, "He was off his trolley. How could that prediction ever come to pass?" Then you'll read on and discover that it did come to pass. There are many such revelations along the way. The book's written in a stiff, information-delivering style that lacks humour and readability, but there's humour in a few of the prophecies (although most are dark and doom-laden). If you're interested in the subject matter you might make it all the way through the book, but only as a result of dogged determination. The prose doesn't exactly entertain.

[ashtyn]

it’s hard to give this one a rating but i find kenneth mackenzie’s prophecies to be insane !!! they were so good they got him killed like talk about icon status 🤞🏻

[Deborah-Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little book details what a famous seer taught about what would happen to Inverness and surrounding areas. He was known as the "Prophet Isaiah" of his day and many of the things he said would take place actually did. Regardless of whether you believe he had supernatural/spiritual powers or not, it is still a good read if you just want to get a bit more of a feel for the history of the Highlands. I learned a lot about what life was like in the early days.