The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #6543   Message #1110015
Posted By: GUEST,Philippa
05-Feb-04 - 11:50 AM
Thread Name: Info: Pretty Maid (Girl) Milking a Cow
Subject: RE: Info: Pretty Maid (Girl) Milking a Cow
this info is copied from An Púca writing at a thread about Irish songs about priests,

see the Irish language lyrics from Brian (this thread, 12 Oct 02,the ones I said were a sort of aisling about an evil temptress and were difficult to translate) and the comments by Fiolar on 10 Sep 00.

"Cailín Deas Crúite na Bóó is about a woman seen by a priest when called to administer the last sacrament to a dying man. The woman is understood to be a devil who appears in the form of a beautiful woman to tempt priests. In this case, the priest is said to have realised the situation before his vows of celibacy were compromised but she is said to have delayed him long enough that the dying man passed away before receiving final unction.   The song was one of the "amhrán choiscthe" which people did not really sing. It has seemingly been 'revived' without the context. I know of situations where even playing the melody of the song by a musician as a slow-air was frowned upon in a Gaeltacht area.

"BTW, this particular devil is called the cuaifearnach. "