The sketch for “Fáed Fíada” or “The Hart’s Cry.” Once when St Patrick and his Christian followers were journeying across Ireland, they were attacked by druids seeking their blood. St Patrick said the following prayer, and he and his followers were turned into deer and thus escaped the druids:
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.I arise today
Through the strength of Christ’s birth and His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom…I arise today
Through the strength of heaven:
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.I summon today all these powers between me and evil,
Against every cruel merciless power that opposes my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of women and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul.
Christ shield me today…
(Read the entire prayer here.)
The Lorica will probably sound familiar to anyone who has read Madeleine L’Engle’s book A Swiftly Tilting Planet, because she used it as inspiration for the “rune” recited against the forces of evil:
At Tara in this fateful hour,
I place all Heaven with its power,
And the sun with its brightness,
And the snow with its whiteness…
All these I place
By God’s almighty help and grace
Between myself and the powers of darkness.
PS. Thank goodness Wikipedia’s not blacked out anymore.
