Dreaming the Ancestors
An intimate journey of remembering and reclaiming ancestral stories, feminine wisdom, and earth magic. Throughout the series, I talk with guests from Ireland & the British Isles about ancestral dreaming and remembering as a pathway back to reverent ways of living in the modern world. Through stories, teachings, and personal sharing we’ll discover the greater possibility of who we can be in this time of planetary change.
Dreaming the Ancestors
Keening, the Cailleach, and Harnessing the Medicine of Grief ~ Sionnáin (Michelle Shannon)
In this episode, Sionnáin shares wisdom about the Irish caoine (keen), which is an old grief ritual performed at funerals by rural Irish women called the Mná Chaointe. This tradition reminds us that grief is a sacred, somatic, and communal experience that belongs to everyone. Although the tradition has largely died out in Ireland, it’s being remembered and revived by women like Sionnáin to help us move through personal and collective grief, so we can harness the medicine of grief in these times.
Sionnáin also shares wisdom about the Cailleach, who’s an ancient crone Goddess from Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. The Cailleach holds the wisdom of both life and death, creation and destruction. She often initiates us through loss and grief—but when we’re brave enough to surrender into her embrace, she offers precious gifts and blessings. Although the Cailleach can be fierce, Sionnáin also talks about her softness, honoring her as the loving grandmother we all need.