Holy Well
Brigid’s Well, Tully, County Kildare, Ireland
This page features photos of Brigid’s Well in County Kildare, Ireland. This well is a lovely example of the ongoing practice of water veneration in the Celtic world. Many wells and springs are dedicated to Brigid in Ireland; this one is especially lovely because of its location, within walking distance of the town of Kildare (”the church of the oak”) where priestesses of Brigid, and later nuns, kept a sacred flame burning until the sixteenth century (and where, even today, Brigidine sisters keep a perpetual fire lit in honor of Brigid).
The well is located just off a country road, on a small parcel of land in the midst of pastures where cows and sheep graze. The well produces so much water that the rushing sound of the flowing stream creates a meditative ambience where it is easy to enter a contemplative state of consciousness. Leading up to the well is a row of five small standing stones, which according to local tradition represent virtues of Brigid: meditation, hospitality, charity, peacemaking, and reverence for nature. At the head of the stream, a small stone arch has been built, above the concrete “shoes” through which the water flows in two streams. Some observers have suggested that the “shoes” actually look more like breasts, the water flowing through them like milk through a mother’s breasts.
The well itself is surrounded by a short round wall, emphasizing its feminine symbolism. Next to it is a clootie (prayer rag) tree, where supplicants offer coins and strips of cloth, tied to the tree as “time-capsule” prayers. The entire site has a feeling of deep holiness that transcends the religious differences of Pagan and Christian; this is a site of universal peace and love.
Here are some pictures taken at Brigid’s Well in the summer of 2002.
This handpainted sign is as fancy as it gets.
The emphasis here is on spirituality, not “polish.”
In this picture you see the well in the background,
the five standing stones,
and the stone arch where the stream begins.
This photo was taken with my back to the well,
looking toward the carpark. Notice the Brigid’s Cross
on the arch, and the “shoes” beneath it.
A better look at the five stones.
They stand for five qualities associated with Brigid:
meditation, hospitality, charity,
peacemaking, and reverence for nature.
A closer look at the arch and the “shoes” beneath it.
This picture (taken at a different holy well)
shows how the water flows through the “shoes”
in a way that has made some observers suggest
that they represent breasts: the breasts of the
Divine Feminine, nurturing us with her healing waters?
Two photos of the holy well itself.
Notice how someone has superimposed a
Brigid’s Cross on top of the Christian cross.
Traditional customs do not die easily in the Celtic world.
The clootie, or prayer-rag tree,
located next to the well (which
is seen in the foreground of this picture).
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October 2, 2007 at 5:43 am
Marvellous. I feel the same way about the Chalice Well in Glastonbury - also a place where differences between Pagan and Christian are transcended.
October 2, 2007 at 6:24 am
I love the Chalice Well! And what lovely gardens. I’ve only been there twice, but both times I felt so close to heaven. Truly a thin place.
October 4, 2007 at 11:33 pm
From whence cometh the design for the brigid cross?
October 5, 2007 at 5:13 am
It’s woven from rushes. Possibly pre-Christian in origin, some folklorists speculate it may have been a solar symbol, similar to the pre-Nazi swastika. Irish folklore today attributes the cross to St. Brigid herself, however; stories vary but one version has her preaching to her druid father as he lays dying; needing a visual aid to her pitch she grabs the rushes and makes the cross. Dad repents before dying so all ends well (gotta love those deathbed conversions). The crosses are typically made on St. Brigid’s Day, February 1, which incidentally corresponds with the old pagan festival of Imbolc, sacred to the goddess Brigit. When hung (typically over doorways) they are said to provide protection: kind of like the Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs.
October 6, 2007 at 9:28 pm
Dear Mr. McColmanm ,
St. Brigid is my patron saint. I LOVE this beautiful page you made. I love the photo showing the Brigid’s cross. I haven’t been to Ireland, but plan to one of these days. Someone from my church who did go there brought back a jar of water from the well for me, so I have a wee bit of Brigid’s Well at my home. Thank you for sharing the photos and the information. I just ordered one of your books from Amazon.com.
October 9, 2007 at 1:20 am
Thanks. Your compelling photographs and stories feed my longing to visit Ireland and experience the magic and mystery for myself.
November 19, 2007 at 8:03 pm
Thanks for this website and for posting on livejournal, where I initially found you. I have been browsing through your site for hours and finding much to contemplate.
The photos of this well are lovely. Everything is so startlingly green to these Australian eyes.
Blessings,
Sr Meg
January 8, 2008 at 1:54 pm
These are magnificent pictures of the Holy Well. It is the holiest place I know of, and on the occasions I’ve gone to see the Well, it brings a fulfilling serenity to my spirit. Your pictures communicate very well what it is like to stand within in various spots. Did you get to meet the kind and welcoming Brigidine sisters while you were in Kildare?
One of my favourite things about the Well enclosure is seeing the two horses in the surrounding yard…sometimes they put their heads over the fence to get at some of the grass or rushes near the Well! Do you have any pictures of them? ;>
January 8, 2008 at 2:05 pm
I did go to Solas Bhríde and meet the sisters, but I’m afraid I haven’t any pictures of the horses.
March 25, 2008 at 7:47 am
When I was in Ireland driving through Co. Kildare we searched for this well, following the signs and never could find it. It wasn’t the first time signs in Ireland led me astray, but it was one of the more disappointing times! This happened after being locked in the grounds of Briget’s Abbey by the grounds keeper who didn’t realize we were there and thought, the weather what it was, he may as well lock up and go to the pub. And by the way, there is no way to get out of that Abbey when the gate is locked! Luckily, after calling to a man exiting the pub (which is just a short walk from the gate) he went in and retrieved the groundskeeper.
Anyway, thanks for the photos, it’s good to see what I missed, it looks so peaceful and mystical.
March 25, 2008 at 9:49 am
Next time you’re in Kildare, be sure to visit the sisters at Solas Bhride. They can give you good directions. It’s only about a mile from the town center — a nice walk, actually. If you found Brigid’s wayside well (what the locals call “the pagan well”
which is located adjacent to the car park at the National Stud, you were practically within shouting distance. When I was in Kildare for the Festival of Brigid on 31 January 2005, we began with a bonfire at the National Stud Car Park and processed past the pagan well to the Christian well — where an even larger bonfire was lit.
March 30, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Thanks for the information, I’m going to save that for future reference! I didn’t even realize that was so close to the National Stud. You mentioned visiting the sisters at Solas Bhride, is that a convent? They aren’t bothered by people stopping by? Being a non-Catholic myself, I wouldn’t have known that visiting a convent was OK, I would have felt like it was an intrusion. Is it open to the public?
March 30, 2008 at 7:27 pm
Here is the Solas Bhride website: http://solasbhride.ie
It is a “convent” in the sense that nuns live there, but it’s really an ordinary house in Kildare which they use as a center for their ministry, which includes putting on a festival every January/February to coincide with Imbolc/the Festival of Brigid, as well as other events throughout the year. Visiting them is like visiting any other private home: a phone call or a letter in advance is the polite thing to do. But I’ve found that they are very kind and have gracious hospitality and are truly delighted to share the wisdom and spirituality of Brigid (and of the Celtic saints and wisdomkeepers in general) with anyone who happens by. They are Catholic, but truly have a sense of the universality of Brigid.
April 30, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Thanks for the information, I’ll be sure to stop there next time I’m in Kildare, which hopefully will not be too far off in the future.