Wars of the Irish Kings Read Online Free PDF Page B

their arrival in Tara. The doorkeeper asked, “Who is there?”
    “Lug Lonnansclech is here, the son of Cían son of Dían Cécht and of Ethne daughter of Balor. He is the foster son of Tailtiu the daughter of Magmór, the king of Spain, and of Eochaid Garb mac Dúach.”
    The doorkeeper then asked of Samildánach, “What art do you practice?For no one without an art enters Tara.”
    “Question me,” he said, “I am a builder.”
    The doorkeeper answered, “We do not need you. We have a builder already, Luchta mac Lúachada.”
    He said, “Question me, doorkeeper: I am a smith.”
    The doorkeeper answered him, “We have a smith already, Colum Cúaléinech of the three new techniques.”
    He said, “Question me: I am a champion.”
    The doorkeeper answered, “We do not need you. We have a champion already, Ogma mac Ethlend.”
    He said again, “Question me.” “I am a harper,” he said.

    Seating plan of the Banquet Hall of Tara, from
The Book of Leinster.
    “We do not need you. We have a harper already, Abcán mac Bicelmois, whom the men of the three gods chose in the
síd
-mounds.” He said, “Question me: I am a warrior.”
    The doorkeeper answered, “We do not need you. We have a warrior already, Bresal Etarlam mac Echdach Báethláim.”
    Then he said, “Question me, doorkeeper. I am a poet and a historian.”
    “We do not need you. We already have a poet and historian, En mac Ethamain.”
    He said, “Question me. I am a sorcerer.”
    “We do not need you. We have sorcerers already. Our druids and our people of power are numerous.”
    He said, “Question me. I am a physician.”
    “We do not need you. We have Dían Cécht as a physician.”
    “Question me,” he said. “I am a cupbearer.”
    “We do not need you. We have cupbearers already: Delt and Drúcht and Daithe, Tae and Talom and Trog, Glé and Glan and Glésse.”
    He said, “Question me: I am a good brazier.”
    “We do not need you. We have a brazier already, Crédne Cerd.”
    He said, “Ask the king whether he has one man who possesses all these arts: if he has I will not be able to enter Tara.”
    Then the doorkeeper went into the royal hall and told everything to the king. “A warrior has come before the court,” he said, “named Samildanach; and all the arts which help your people, he practices them all, so that he is the man of each and every art.”
    Then he said that they should bring him the
fidchell
[chess] boards of Tara, and he won all the stakes. (But if
fidchell
was invented at the time of the Trojan war, it had not reached Ireland yet, for the battle of Mag Tured and the destruction of Troy occurred at the same time.)
    Then that was related to Núadu. “Let him into the court,” said Núadu, “for a man like that has never before come into this fortress.”
    Then the doorkeeper let him past, and he went into the fortress, and he sat in the seat of the sage, because he was a sage in every art.
    Then Ogma threw the flagstone, which required fourscore yoke of oxen to move it, through the side of the hall so that it lay outside against Tara. That was to challenge Lug, who tossed the stone back so that it lay in the centre of the royal hall; and he threw the piece which it had carried away back into the side of the royal hall so that it was whole again.
    “Let a harp be played for us,” said the hosts. Then the warrior played sleep music for the hosts and for the king on the first night, putting them to sleep from that hour to the same time the next day. He played sorrowful music so that they were crying and lamenting. He played joyful musicso that they were merry and rejoicing.
    Then Núadu, when he had seen the warrior’s many powers, considered whether he could release them from the bondage they suffered at the hands of the Fomoire. So they held a council concerning the warrior, and the decision which Núadu reached was to exchange seats with the warrior. So Samildánach went to the king’s seat, and the king