The Celtic Book of Days: A Daily Guide to Celtic Spirituality and Wisdom

by Caitlín Matthews

In Celtic tradition, spirituality is woven into and through the rhythms of daily life. Because the way we observe the unfolding year shapes the way we live, many have adopted the Celtic calendar--strongly linked to natural elements and the seasons--as a means of personal and spiritual discovery.

The diverse writings and vibrant illustrations in this book have been carefully chosen to inspire daily reflection. Each month opens with a full-page   the daily entries are drawn from Celtic myth, poetry, prayers, and customs.

Author Caitlin Matthews highlights the unique characteristics of each of the four Celtic festivals and the four magical gates of the Samhain (ancestral communion and introspection); Imbolc (beginnings and primal innocence); Beltane (creative and powerful expression); and Lughnasadh (maturity and consolidation).

Material from many eras of Celtic history is included to present both pagan and Christian streams of Celtic spirituality. The author has created new translations for many of the entries, including some material from rare and previously unpublished works. Throughout the book, full color art, ranging from illuminated pages from the Book of Kells to modern illustrations, highlight the text.
Â

Genres: Nonfiction, Mythology, Paganism, Spirituality, Ireland, Religion, Folklore

128 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Caitlín Matthews is a writer, singer and teacher whose ground-breaking work has introduced many to the riches of our western spiritual heritage.

She is acknowledged as a world authority on Celtic Wisdom, the Western Mysteries and the ancestral traditions of Britain and Europe. She is the author of over 50 books including Sophia: Goddess of Wisdom, a study of Divine Feminine in Gnostic, Jewish and Christian thought and King Arthur’s Raid on the Underworld, a new translation and study of the Welsh poet Taliesin’s extraordinary poem, itself a major cross-roads of British mythology.

Caitlín was trained in the esoteric mystery traditions through the schools founded by Dion Fortune, Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki and Gareth Knight. Her shamanic vocation emerged early in her ability to sing between the worlds and to embody spirits. She has worked in many of the western traditions with companions upon the path including R.J.Stewart. Like him, she teaches the many strands of the ancestral European traditions. She specializes in teaching traditional European spirit-consultation oracles where the diviner draws directly upon the spirits of nature for answers and in the use of the voice to sound the unseen. Caitlín has been instrumental in revealing the ancestral heritage of the Western traditions through practical exploration of the mysteries as well as through scholarly research. Her teachings are couched in a firm historical and linguistic framework, with respect to the original context of the teachings, but never loses sight of the living traditions of these teachings which can be explored through direct application to their spiritual sources.

Trained as an actress, Caitlín is in demand as a storyteller and singer. She appears frequently on international radio and television, and was the song-writer and Pictish language originator for the Jerry Bruckheimer film King Arthur. With John Matthews, her partner, who was historical consultant on the film, she shared in the 2004 BAFTA award given to Film Education for the best educational CD Rom: this project introduced school-children to the life and times of King Arthur. She and John are both concerned with the oral nature of storytelling and its ability to communicate the myth at a much deeper level than of the commercial booktrade. This is apparent in their forthcoming project, The Story Box. For Caitlín, her books are merely the tip of a much bigger oral iceberg which is her teaching.

With her partner, John Matthews, and with Felicity Wombwell , she is co-founder of The Foundation for Inspirational and Oracular Studies, which is dedicated to the sacred arts that are not written down. Their FíOS shamanic training programme teaches students the healing arts as well as hosting masterclasses with exemplars of living sacred traditions. Caitlín has a shamanic practice in Oxford dedicated to addressing soul sickness and ancestral fragmentation, as well as helping clients find vocational and spiritual direction. Her soul-singing and embodiment uniquely bring the ancient healing traditions to everyday life.

Caitlín’s other books include Singing the Soul Back Home, Mabon and the Guardians of Celtic Britain, The Psychic Protection Handbook, and Celtic Devotional. She is co-author, with John Matthews, of the Encyclopedia of Celtic Wisdom and Encyclopaedia of Celtic Myth and Legend. Her books have been translated into more than nineteen languages from Brazil to Japan.

The author lives in Oxford with her husband and son in a kind of book-cave or library, whichever you will. They share their home with a white cat and a black cat.

Reviews

[Bernie4444 · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book of Celtic Snippets.

Format: Hardcover
"The Celtic Book of Days" By Caitlin Matthews is more of a book of daily factoids than a spirituality and wisdom book. Once this fact is realized you can enjoy reading daily and seeing if you know that fact or not. If not then you have the fun of finding out more. Occasionally the snippet reads more like a Chinese fortune cookie.

Besides being split up into daily snippets there is an overall calendar to keep you informed of the seasons, a decent bibliography, and an index. This makes a great coffee table conversation book.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only real argument against is because of the shape of the book. It’s awkward to hold. A page-a-day calendar format would make more sense otherwise, I loved the Celtic stories and wish my Gaelic was further along for improved pronunciation.

[Juli Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

A scattered book with so many editorial errors as to be confusing.

[Rachel Humphrey · Rating 1 out of 5]

For a book claiming to be a guide to Celt spirituality, it falls rather flat. It's the Celtic calendar with some history around said calendar. Each day on the calendar has some tidbit of information or a poem or such. I was really hoping this book would be more informational. Some of the artwork is pretty but there's no cohesion in the information presented.

[Leslie Holm · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up when I was taking a class 'The Celtic World'. The class was fascinating; debunking many of the myths and long held beliefs about where the Celts came from and where they ended up. The professor's particular bugbear was the so-called ancient Celtic spiritual rituals - rituals which have been created and/or developed in the modern world by people searching for a spiritual connection to nature.
This book is subtitled 'A Guide to Celtic Spirituality and Wisdom'. It is very silly. There are tidbits of actual history and actual legend to be gleaned if you dig hard enough, but - the bibliography is minimal and consists mostly of New Age Hipsters blathering on about distorted legends. In fact, of the books listed, 9 are written by the author herself. To be fair, she has included one or two historical documents, like Monmouth's History, but if she did read them, she took them as gospel, rather than fairy tale or mythical legend.
Don't bother with this.

[Lilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the Matthews' better books.

Based around the four fire festivals of the ancient Celtic people and featuring magnificent artwork from various periods in Celtic history, Caitlín Matthews takes us on a visionary and spiritual journey through the shaping of the Celtic world we know today in the form of a sort-of daily devotional.

[Mark Woodland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth the couple of minutes each day. It gives historical & cultural snippets, some of which I'd never heard of before.

[Sheri Fresonke Harper · Rating 3 out of 5]

Handy book that allows you to learn tidbits about Celtic culture a day at a time. Includes poems, pictures, and associated lore.

[Kate Mcclure]

Lots of interesting tidbits in this book, from Pagan days to early Christianity, and some really lovely poetry. Really good for dipping your toe into the wonders of the Celtic world.

[A. J · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting well written book.

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of info on Celtic myth and lore, but I would have preferred it organized by topic instead of a day book. The illustrations were great. I was curious who drew/painted them.