Macali^tek — The History and Antiquities of Inis Ccaltra. 135 



confidence, as the scene of his austerities. The story of Anmchad, which we 

 have already related, further associates the discipline of inclusion with the 

 monastery of Inis Cealtra ; but an even more remarkable link is afforded us 

 bv the Life of Mac Creiche, to which allusion was made near the beginning- of 

 our study of the history of this island. 



Whoever Mac Creiche may have been originally, we have seen that there 

 was a tradition that he was the first hermit of the island of Inis Cealtra. 

 Now the very first words of the Brussels Life of ilac Creiche are as 

 follows : — 



" Incipunt pauca de mirabilibus Mheic Creche .i. Mac Creche m«c Pesslaiu' 

 mcic Erce o Cliorcumraadh Ninois a chenel ; naoi fichit hliadJw.n a aes o 

 laitlie a ghene co laithe a ecca. Ba he tosach a ratha condeachaidh in ditreibh 

 fil etfr Formaoil 7 an Eidhneach ; Cluain hi ain7?i in bhaile iraibesiumh ace 

 tathuighi a evnaiffhte. Is i mett in indelbh ceiteora cloch, .i. cloch rena 

 dhruim, cloch cechto-r a dha taobh, 7 cloch ar a aghaidh. Is an'/isin do 

 thionTisccaiw Mac Creiche in covgus do dhenam ar uanihan 7 ar eccla 

 ifrinw; 7 ni rucc leis isin ditreibh do bhiadh acht madh aen bhairghen na 

 ma, 7 ceithre gassa bioruir, 7 ni thoimhledh nach ui diobh ac/ii Dia Tlomhiiaigh 

 na ma, 7 ar tta^rccsin an charguis leis nir chaith do biadh acht aran 7 

 anghlas Domhnach Cascc." 



" Incipiunt pauca de mirabilibus of Mac Creiche, that is Mac Creiche son 

 of Pesslau (?) son of Erca of Corcomruadh Ninois was his lineage ; nine score 

 years his life from the day of his birth to the day of his death. It was 

 the beginning of his grace that he came into a wilderness that is between 

 Formael and the (river) Eidhneach ; Cluain I is the name of the place where 

 he was practising his devotion. This was the extent of the erection,' four stones, 

 viz., a stone at his back, a stone at each of his sides, and a stone at his face. 

 There Mae Creiche began to keep Lent, for fear and terror of hell. And he 

 brought no food with him into the wilderness save one loaf and four stalks of 

 watercress, and he ate naught of them save on Sunday only; and after 

 Lent %vas passed he ate no food save bread and milk-and-water on Easter 

 Sunday.'" 



We may, I think, infer that Coscrach, if he were really the occupant of 

 this cell, set himself to emulate the austerities thus ascribed to Mac Creiche, 

 the reputed foimder of the monastic life of Inis Cealtra; for traditions like 



^ That is the best 1 can make of this name from the small photograph of the MS. at 

 my disposal : it does not look right. However, in the present context, the matter is not 

 of much importance. 



= Indelb, according to Cormac, means a [heathen] altar. 



'Compare the penance of St Patrick (Tripartite Life, ed. Stokes, p. ■474_. 



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