Celtic mythology crosses in and out of Celtic history. The Irish Monks recorded history in writing, passing (and often embellishing) information from generation to generation. Thus we have a deep and rich reservoir of power, romance and insight into the hopes and eternal dreams of a rather primitive tribal people who lived in a mountainous and forbidding world.

For 800 years, the British Crown has tried to conquer and stifle this power. Although many, like the Vikings, left indelible scars, Ireland has never been conquered and Irish mythological tradition is as vibrant and alive as ever. This, to me, represents a kind of immortality…the very thing the Celts hoped for.

The famed warrior Finn goes on a quest into Tir n'Og (pronounced tear-ah-naug), the Celtic land of eternal youth and happiness. At the end of his stay, he persuades an enchanted bagpiper to leave paradise and journey with him back to the world to join the Fianna (military elite of ancient Ireland) as their piper. His enchanted pipes stir the troops and summon their spirits to the task, defending the Celtic realm from any and all enemies. The piper travels with Finn for a time, but grows restless, tells Finn that the Fianna does not need him to play in order to fight and that his ability is needed elsewhere. Finn releases him, and for the next 300 years he roams the Celtic lands, his music awakening people to seek out the beauty and grace which lives within them.

The immortal Piper of Tir n’Og played the strains of music a fallen warrior would hear on his journey to the afterlife. Historically, pipers would play from strategically located mountain tops to communicate with distant castles, warning them of invading Vikings. The piper is still revered in Irish culture and lore. - DM