Irish Triads

 

The triad is common to many languages. They are particularly popular among the Irish people, being featured prominently in the native oral traditions of Ireland.

 

It is natural and convenient to group things in threes. The third item is either a climax or anticlimax. For example: “There are three kinds of men who fail to understand women: young me, old men and middle-aged men.” In Ireland, relationships between men and women and mothers-in-law have been common targets of the triad. For example: “The three sharpest things in the world: the eye of a cat after a mouse, the eye of a mason after a stone, the eye of a mother-in-law after her daughter-in-law.”

 

Often the triad presents a paradox: “Three wealths in barren places: a well in a mountain, fire out of a stone, wealth in the possession of a mean man.” A well in a mountain and a fire in a stone are as beneficial as a mean man in possession of wealth.

 

I hope you find this selection of Irish triads entertaining, fun and thought-provoking.

                                                                                                               

                                                                                                                                                                Jon Crane

 

Three things that are best in the world:

the hand of a good carpenter,

the hand of a skilled woman,

the hand of a good smith.

 

Three rejoicings followed by a sorrow:

a wooer’s

a thief’s

a tale-bearer’s.

 

Three rejoicings that are worse than sorrow:

the joy of a man who has defrauded another,

the joy of a man who has perjured himself,

the joy of a man who has slain his brother in contesting his land.

 

Three unfortunate things for a householder:

proposing to a bad woman,

serving a bad chief,

exchanging for bad land.

 

Three excellent things for a householder:

proposing to a good woman,

serving a good chief,

exchanging for good land.

 

Three things which justice demands:

judgement,

measure,

conscience.

 

Three things which judgement demands:

wisdom,

penetration,

knowledge.

 

Three things for which an enemy is loved:

wealth,

beauty,

worth.

 

Three things for which a friend is hated:

trespassing,

keeping aloof,

fecklessness.

 

Three rude ones of the world:

a youngster mocking an old man,

a healthy person mocking an invalid,

a wise man mocking a fool.

 

Three sparks that kindle love:

a face,

demeanor,

speech.

 

Three deposits with usufruct:

depositing a woman,

a horse,

salt.

 

Three glories of the gathering:

a beautiful wife,

a good horse,

a swift hound.

 

Three ungentlemanly things:

interrupting stories,

a mischievous game,

jesting so as to raise a blush.

 

Three smiles that are worse than sorrow:

the smile of the snow as it melts,

the smile of your wife on you after another man has been with her,

the grin of a hound ready to leap at you.

 

Three fewnesses that are better than plenty:

a fewness of fine words,

a fewness of cows in grass,

a fewness of friends around ale.

 

Three laughing-stocks of the world:

an angry man,

a jealous man,

a miserly man.

 

Three preparations of a good man’s house:

ale,

a bath,

a large fire.

 

Three characteristics of obstinacy:

long visits,

staring,

constant questioning.

 

Three maidens that bring love to good fortune:

silence,

diligence,

sincerity.

 

Three maidens that bring hatred upon misfortune:

talking,

laziness,

insincerity.

 

The three chief sins:

avarice,

gluttony,

lust.

 

Three drops of a wedded woman:

a drop of blood,

a tear-drop,

a drop of sweat.

 

Three false sisters:

‘perhaps’,

‘maybe’,

‘I dare say’.

 

Three things that characterize every patient person:

repose,

silence,

blushing.

 

Three signs of folly:

contention,

wrangling,

attachment to everybody.

 

Three candles that illumine every darkness:

truth,

nature,

knowledge.

 

Three things that make a fool wise:

learning,

steadiness,

docility.

 

Three things that make a wise man foolish:

quarrelling,

anger,

drunkenness.

 

Three things that show every good man:

a special gift,

valor,

piety.

 

Three things that show a bad man:

bitterness,

hatred,

cowardice.

 

Three inheritances that are divided in the presence of heirs:

the inheritance of a jester,

of a madman,

and of an old man.

 

Three youthful sisters:

desire,

beauty,

generosity.

 

Three great rushes:

The rush of water,

The rush of fire,

The rush of falsehood.

 

Three woman days:

Monday,

Tuesday,

Wednesday.

 

Three man days:

Thursday,

Friday,

Saturday.

 

Three prohibitions of food:

to eat it without giving thanks,

to eat it before its proper time,

to eat it after a guest.

 

Three things that are best for a chief:

justice,

peace,

an army.

 

Three things that are worst for a chief:

sloth,

treachery,

evil counsel.

 

Three indications of dignity in a person:

a fine figure,

a fine bearing,

eloquence.

 

Three disagreeable things at home:

a scolding wife,

a squalling child,

a smokey chimney.