The Cailleach is a heavenly hag and ancestor who is connected to the formation of the landscape and the weather, particularly storms and winter, in Gaelic mythology, which is spoken in Irish, Scottish, and Manx. The name literally means Old Lady, or Hag and is used to refer to a variety of mythological and folkloric entities in Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. It also has similar meaning in modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic. She is also referred to as The Hag of Beara in contemporary Irish folklore research and Beira, Queen of Winter in Scottish tradition. She is credited with creating several mountains and significant hills in Scotland, where she is also renowned as Beira, Queen of Winter. It is stated that when she was marching across the landscape, she unintentionally spilled pebbles from her creel or wicker basket. In other instances, it is claimed that she purposefully constructed the mountains as her stepping stones. She is believed to be the Mother of all Goddesses and Gods and carries a hammer for sculpting the hills and valleys. Beira was a Giantess with one eye, white hair, dark blue skin and rust-colored fangs, according to Mackenzie. The Cailleach exhibits a number of characteristics appropriate for the personification of winter, like herding deer, battling spring and freezing the earth with her staff. The Cailleach is regarded as a periodic divinity or entity who works in tandem with the Goddess Brìghde. Brìghde governs the summer between Bealltainn and Samhainn and the Cailleach rules the winter between Samhainn and Bealltainn. According to certain explanations, the Cailleach and Brghde are two manifestations of the same Goddess, whereas according to other accounts, the Cailleach turns to stone on Bealltainn before resuming her human figure on Samhainn to rule the winter season. [Information and Image Credit : Cailleach, Wikipedia] [Illustration of Cailleach by John Duncan in Wonder Tales from Scottish Myth and Legend (1917)] [The Image was originally posted to Flickr by Internet Archive Book Images. It was reviewed on 3 October 2015 by FlickreviewR and was confirmed to be licensed under the terms of the No known copyright restrictions] [Source Image URL : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wonder_tales_from_Scottish_myth_and_legend_(1917)_(14566397697).jpg ] #Mythology
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