Immram
Encyclopedia
An immram (ˈɪmrəm; plural immrama; , ˈʊmˠɾˠəw, voyage) is a class of Old Irish tales concerning a hero's sea journey to the Otherworld
(see Tír na nÓg
and Mag Mell
). Written in the Christian era
and essentially Christian in aspect, they preserve elements of Irish mythology
.
The immrama are identifiable by their focus on the exploits of the heroes during their search for the Otherworld, located in these cases in the islands far to the west of Ireland
. The hero sets out on his voyage for the sake of adventure or to fulfill his destiny, and generally stops on other fantastic islands before reaching his destination. He may or may not be able to return home again.
argues that the immrama include more Christian thinking than the more pagan genre of echtrae and that, whereas the purpose of the echtrai is to enhance understanding of the old gods and the land in which they live, in an immram these pagan elements occur as a challenge to the hero’s faith. In an echtrae the protagonist only ever goes to one location and may arrive in the otherworld with no explanation of the journey, whereas in an immram the hero always has multiple adventure on several islands.
Voyage of St. Brendan
also contains a voyage across the sea to various otherworldy islands.
The Otherworld in The Voyage of Bran is a distinctly Celtic feature but this is easily overlooked because the concept of the Christian paradise
and the Celtic otherworld are closely related. This difference is highlighted in the difference between sinless and sexless in the Celtic and Christian mindset. In the existing translation where an author may have turned the "Isle of Woman" into a chaste society, with some difficulty. Such an example was with a passage that described a man and woman playing under a bush without sin or blame. This passage in light of several others emphasizes a Christian effort to create a sinless and sexless Otherworld.
Immrama may have borrowed heavily from preexisting Christian genres, such as the sanctae vitae
(saints' lives), the peregrinatio
(pilgrimage stories), and the vision tales. As early as the 5th century Irish monks would go on a pilgrimage, a peregrination, sailing from island to island seeking isolation where they would meditate and purge themselves of their sins. The source of inspiration behind the Immram may also be the Christian punishment of sending people adrift for their crimes to be judged by God. Perhaps the largest piece of evidence that immram are Christian works is that the characters in the story are generally wandering priests, monks, and nuns, or at least related to them.
One of the first Celticists, Heinrich Zimmerman, attempted to link the immram with the Aeneid
and the Odyssey
. Some of the parallels they make are between the immortal women in the tales who bestow immortality on their lovers for the time they remain with them and the giant sheep on islands in both stories. These parallels have since been debunked by William Flint Thrall.
On top of their literary and mythological precedents, some scholars have argued that the immrama may be exaggerated retelling of historical voyages. The early Irish, particularly monk
s (see papar
), were certainly far traveled, reaching the Orkney, Shetland
, Faroe Islands
at an early date and perhaps even reaching Iceland
. Some places and things referenced in the immrama and the Brendan tale have been associated with real islands and real things, for instance Brendan's crystal pillar has been suggested to refer to an iceberg
.
's The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
is sometimes described as a modern immram. However, unlike such voyages, the Dawn Treader
travels East, rather than West. The popularity of The Voyage of St. Brendan inspired Tim Severin
to undertake a voyage using 5th century technology to demonstrate that the early Irish could have made it as far as North America
.
Otherworld
Otherworld, or the Celtic Otherworld, is a concept in Celtic mythology that refers to the home of the deities or spirits, or a realm of the dead.Otherworld may also refer to:In film and television:...
(see Tír na nÓg
Tír na nÓg
Tír na nÓg is the most popular of the Otherworlds in Irish mythology. It is perhaps best known from the story of Oisín, one of the few mortals who lived there, who was said to have been brought there by Niamh of the Golden Hair. It was where the Tuatha Dé Danann settled when they left Ireland's...
and Mag Mell
Mag Mell
In Irish mythology, Mag Mell was a mythical realm achievable through death and/or glory...
). Written in the Christian era
History of Ireland
The first known settlement in Ireland began around 8000 BC, when hunter-gatherers arrived from continental Europe, probably via a land bridge. Few archaeological traces remain of this group, but their descendants and later Neolithic arrivals, particularly from the Iberian Peninsula, were...
and essentially Christian in aspect, they preserve elements of Irish mythology
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
.
The immrama are identifiable by their focus on the exploits of the heroes during their search for the Otherworld, located in these cases in the islands far to the west of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The hero sets out on his voyage for the sake of adventure or to fulfill his destiny, and generally stops on other fantastic islands before reaching his destination. He may or may not be able to return home again.
Definition
The immrama are generally confused with a similar Irish genre, the echtrae or "adventure". Both types of story involve a hero’s journey to an "otherworld", whether a Christian paradise, a fairyland, the land of the gods or a utopia. They are distinguished by date; echtrai are older, dating from the 7th century, while the earliest immram dates only to the 8th century. David DumvilleDavid Dumville
Professor David Norman Dumville is a British medievalist and Celtic scholar. He was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, Ludwig-Maximilian Universität, Munich, and received his PhD. at the University of Edinburgh in 1976. In 1974, he married Sally Lois Hannay, with whom he had one son...
argues that the immrama include more Christian thinking than the more pagan genre of echtrae and that, whereas the purpose of the echtrai is to enhance understanding of the old gods and the land in which they live, in an immram these pagan elements occur as a challenge to the hero’s faith. In an echtrae the protagonist only ever goes to one location and may arrive in the otherworld with no explanation of the journey, whereas in an immram the hero always has multiple adventure on several islands.
Stories
Originally there were seven officially recognized Immram listed in a list of ancient texts. Of those seven only three, the The Voyage of Mael Dúin, The Voyage of the Uí Chorra, and The Voyage of Snedgus and Mac Riagla survive. The Voyage of Bran is classified in these same lists as an echtrae, though it also contains the essential elements of the immrama. The later LatinLatin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
Voyage of St. Brendan
Brendan
Saint Brendan of Clonfert or Bréanainn of Clonfert called "the Navigator", "the Voyager", or "the Bold" is one of the early Irish monastic saints. He is chiefly renowned for his legendary quest to the "Isle of the Blessed," also called St. Brendan's Island. The Voyage of St...
also contains a voyage across the sea to various otherworldy islands.
Origins
Immram were first recorded as early as the 7th century by monks and scholars who fled Continental Europe before the barbarian invaders of the fifth century. These monks carried the learning of Western Europe and became the vanguard of the Christianizing of Europe. On this account it is expected that Immram have their origins in pre-existing Christian voyage literature, pre-existing Celtic legends, or classical stories the monks would have known. The origins of these stories are attributed to three sources of preexisting stories: Celtic myths, Christian genres, and Classic Stories.The Otherworld in The Voyage of Bran is a distinctly Celtic feature but this is easily overlooked because the concept of the Christian paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
and the Celtic otherworld are closely related. This difference is highlighted in the difference between sinless and sexless in the Celtic and Christian mindset. In the existing translation where an author may have turned the "Isle of Woman" into a chaste society, with some difficulty. Such an example was with a passage that described a man and woman playing under a bush without sin or blame. This passage in light of several others emphasizes a Christian effort to create a sinless and sexless Otherworld.
Immrama may have borrowed heavily from preexisting Christian genres, such as the sanctae vitae
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
(saints' lives), the peregrinatio
Peregrinatio
Peregrinatio may refer to:*a crusade*the Peregrinatio Sancti Petri, a papal institution for assistance to pilgrims to Rome and certain other pious sites and eventsIt occurs as or in the title of several notable texts:...
(pilgrimage stories), and the vision tales. As early as the 5th century Irish monks would go on a pilgrimage, a peregrination, sailing from island to island seeking isolation where they would meditate and purge themselves of their sins. The source of inspiration behind the Immram may also be the Christian punishment of sending people adrift for their crimes to be judged by God. Perhaps the largest piece of evidence that immram are Christian works is that the characters in the story are generally wandering priests, monks, and nuns, or at least related to them.
One of the first Celticists, Heinrich Zimmerman, attempted to link the immram with the Aeneid
Aeneid
The Aeneid is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. It is composed of roughly 10,000 lines in dactylic hexameter...
and the Odyssey
Odyssey
The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of Western literature...
. Some of the parallels they make are between the immortal women in the tales who bestow immortality on their lovers for the time they remain with them and the giant sheep on islands in both stories. These parallels have since been debunked by William Flint Thrall.
On top of their literary and mythological precedents, some scholars have argued that the immrama may be exaggerated retelling of historical voyages. The early Irish, particularly monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s (see papar
Papar
The Papar were, according to early Icelandic historical sources, a group of Irish or Scottish monks resident in parts of Iceland at the time of the arrival of the Norsemen...
), were certainly far traveled, reaching the Orkney, Shetland
Shetland Islands
Shetland is a subarctic archipelago of Scotland that lies north and east of mainland Great Britain. The islands lie some to the northeast of Orkney and southeast of the Faroe Islands and form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. The total...
, Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
at an early date and perhaps even reaching Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
. Some places and things referenced in the immrama and the Brendan tale have been associated with real islands and real things, for instance Brendan's crystal pillar has been suggested to refer to an iceberg
Iceberg
An iceberg is a large piece of ice from freshwater that has broken off from a snow-formed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into pack ice...
.
Influence
Irish author C. S. LewisC. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
's The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis. Written in 1950, it was published in 1952 as the third book of The Chronicles of Narnia...
is sometimes described as a modern immram. However, unlike such voyages, the Dawn Treader
Dawn Treader
The Dawn Treader was a Narnian ship in the fictional world of The Chronicles of Narnia. It was built by King Caspian X and is featured primarily in the book The Voyage of the Dawn Treader...
travels East, rather than West. The popularity of The Voyage of St. Brendan inspired Tim Severin
Tim Severin
Tim Severin is a British explorer, historian and writer. Severin is noted for his work in retracing the legendary journeys of historical figures. Severin was awarded both the Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society and the Livingstone Medal of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society...
to undertake a voyage using 5th century technology to demonstrate that the early Irish could have made it as far as North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.