The Lady of Lawers (1)
Ben Lawers is above Loch Tay. It
is in Perthshire. The mountain is
very high. It’s covered with snow
in the winter. And it’s famous for
plants.
Lawers is also the name of a
small settlement and an area
adjacent to Loch Tay. Gaelic was
strong in that area at one time.
There was a famous woman once
living in Lawers. She had the
second-sight. As Coinneach Odhar
was famous in the north, this
woman was famous in the south.
She was predicting the future in
Gaelic. Indeed, I don’t know if she
spoke English. She was the Lady of
Lawers.
People think she grew up in
Appin in Argyll. They think that
she was a Stewart. She married a
landlord in Lawers. Or perhaps
she married a landlord’s brother.
People think she was alive in the
seventeenth century.
Here’s an example of her
prophesying. The landlord was
building a new church in Lawers.
The Lady was watching the matter. The builders were close to being finished. They took with them stones for the ridge of the church’s roof. They left the stones on the shore of the loch.
The Lady said that the ridge-stones were never going to go on the church’s roof. The workers were not happy. Next morning they were going to put the stones on the roof.
Well, that night, a storm arose. It was big and fearful. The stones were swept away. Next morning there was no sign of them. Thus, the Lady was correct.
She made another prophesy regarding that church. She planted a tree close to the church. She said that big things were going to happen when the tree was at different heights. For example, when it was at the height of the gables of the building, there was going to be disruption in the Church of Scotland. You’ll know that there was a big disruption in the Church in 1843. And, according to oral tradition, that was the year that the tree reached the height of the gables!
Ban-tighearna Labhair (1)
Tha Beinn Labhair os cionn Loch
Tatha. Tha i ann an Siorrachd Pheairt.
Tha a’ bheinn gu math àrd. Bidh i
còmhdaichte le sneachd anns a’
gheamhradh. Agus tha i ainmeil airson
lusan.
’S e Labhair cuideachd ainm
baile beag agus sgìre taobh Loch
Tatha. Bha a’ Ghàidhlig uaireigin
làidir anns an sgìre sin. Bha boireannach ainmeil uaireigin a’ fuireach ann
an Labhair. Bha an dà-shealladh aice.
Mar a bha Coinneach Odhar ainmeil
anns a’ cheann a tuath, bha am boireannach seo ainmeil anns a’ cheann a
deas. Bha i a’ dèanamh fiosachd ann
an Gàidhlig. Gu dearbh, chan eil fhios
a’m an robh Beurla aice. B’ ise Ban-tighearna Labhair, The Lady of
Lawers.
Tha daoine a’ smaoineachadh
gun do thogadh i anns an Apainn ann
an Earra-Ghàidheal. Tha iad a’
smaoineachadh gur e ban-Stiùbhartach a bha innte. Phòs i uachdaran ann
an Labhair. No ’s dòcha gun do phòs i
bràthair uachdarain. Tha daoine a’
smaoineachadh gun robh i beò anns an
t-seachdamh linn deug.
Seo eisimpleir dhen fhiosachd
aice. Bha an t-uachdaran a’ togail
eaglais ùr ann an Labhair. Bha a’ Bhan-tighearna a’ coimhead a’ ghnothaich. Bha an luchd-togail faisg air a bhith deiseil. Thug iad clachan leotha airson druim mullach na h-eaglaise. Dh’fhàg iad na clachan air cladach an locha.
Thuirt a’ Bhan-tighearna nach robh na clachan-droma a’ dol a dhol air mullach na h-eaglaise a-chaoidh. Cha robh an luchd-obrach toilichte. An ath mhadainn bha iad a’ dol a chur nan clachan air a’ mhullach.
Uill, air an oidhche sin, dh’èirich stoirm. Bha i mòr is eagallach. Chaidh na clachan a sguabadh air falbh. An ath mhadainn cha robh sgeul orra. Mar sin, bha a’ Bhan-tighearna ceart.
Bha fiosachd eile aice co-cheangailte ris an eaglais sin. Chuir i craobh faisg air an eaglais. Thuirt i gun robh rudan mòra a’ dol a thachairt nuair a bha a’ chraobh aig diofar àirdean. Mar eisimpleir, nuair a bha i aig àirde stuaghan an togalaich, bha sgaradh a’ dol a bhith ann ann an Eaglais na h-Alba. Bidh fios agaibh gun robh briseadh mòr anns an Eaglais ann an ochd ceud deug, ceathrad ’s a trì (1843). Agus, a rèir beul-aithris, b’ e sin a’ bhliadhna a ràinig a’ chraobh àirde nan stuaghan!
