In considering the boar as a totem animal I shall also be looking at the symbolism of the pig, which is closely linked to that of the boar. The strong, wild boar is one of the most important totem animals of the Gaelic Celts. Many bronze statues of boars have been discovered and there are numerous references to be found in the legends that bear testimony to the importance of this fierce, untamed beast. The boar is also the totem animal of the kingdom of Dalriada. There is a carving of a boar on a rock at the fort of Dunadd, in Argyll, the ancient inauguration site of the High Kings of Dalriada.
In the ancient Celtic system the boar is associated with the South and the element of Fire. It is connected with the life giving power of the sun. At the festival of Beltaine pigs bladders used to be carried by the Fool. To our ancestors the wild boar was highly prized in the hunt and this importance applies on all three levels. On the physical level the hunt, if successful, provided nourishment for the clan. The Celts were particularly fond of pork, and valued it above all other flesh. The communal feast was an important occasion for social bonding, at which the 'Champion's Portion', the biggest and choicest cut, was always reserved for the bravest warrior. On the mental level, the importance of the hunt is shown by the courage and bravery of the hunter, who in seeking the wild boar must face the fiercest and most dangerous beast of all. On a spiritual level the boar acts as a guide that leads the warrior-hunter on a quest to the Otherworld. In the voyage of Maeldun, found in 'The Book of the Dun Cow', the tenth otherworld island the voyagers reach is described as 'The Island of the Fiery Swine', inhabited by red pigs that feed on apples (a very Otherworldly food source). The boar is also the traditional food of the Samhain feast, a time when the two worlds meet.
There are many other links between pigs and the Otherworld. The magical pigs of Manannan were killed and cooked each day for the Feast of Age, the Otherworldly feast which the gods partake of. These same pigs were found alive and whole again the next day, symbolising their spiritual nourishment and life-renewing powers. Whosoever ate at this feast would gain the gift of immortality. Manannan's pigs were also known as the 'pigs of Assal', which the sons of Tuirenn had to fetch for Lugh from the King of the Golden Pillars. Another treasure that they were obliged to procure in order to fulfill their eric-fine was the pig skin of Tuis. This pig skin had magical properties; it could turn water into wine for nine days, and it could also cure wounds and restore the sick to health. Here we find another reference to the life giving properties of the pig.
The legend of king Cormac's visit to Manannan's land illustrates further important principles of the pig as a totem animal. King Cormac was welcomed as a guest in the house of Manannan. A fire was kindled and a pig was placed in the cauldron to boil. Manannan told Cormac that he possessed seven pigs, with which he could feed the whole world. These seven pigs represent the seven planes of creation; to the Celts the pig is a symbol of nourishment not only on a physical level, but on all the levels of being. Manannan also explained that the pig would not boil in the cauldron until a truth was spoken for every quarter of it. This is a very important Celtic philosophy worthy of explanation. Truth is a principle held in high esteem through-out all the levels or planes of existence in the Universe. The pig being cooked signifies the receiving of nourishment on all levels. What the legend shows us is that those who speak falsely under oath are not fit to receive the gifts of spiritual nourishment on any level.
In addition to Manannan, several other deities kept pigs. In Celtic times a swineherd held a very elevated social status. At Brugh na Boyne the Dagda kept one pig always alive and one always roasted, ready to eat. Angus Og kept a herd of enchanted pigs, and Bodb Dearg had a swineherd that could provoke bloodshed at whichever feast his pigs went to. This is very interesting for one of the well known shapes that the ancient Goddess of Ireland, Scotland and Wales takes is that of a sow. In this shape she is the hag and also the devourer. Scathach, the Shadowy One, took this shape upon herself when she appeared to Fionn MacCumhal. This does not contradict the totemic significance of the pig as a life giving provider of nourishment, both physical and spiritual, for She who gives life also claims it back at the point of death.
A well known legend that concerns the boar as a personal totem animal is the story of Diarmaid and the Earless Green Boar of Ben Gulbain, which is obviously an Otherworld boar. (This tale is also found in Argyll). Diarmaid had possessed a link since childhood with this boar, which had been charged to one day bring him to his death. When Diarmaid set out to hunt this boar, Fionn told him that he was under geiss (sacred prohibition) not to hunt pigs. Diarmaid then knew that in breaking his geiss he would meet his end soon afterwards. Diarmaid succeeded in killing the boar, but Fionn then ordered him to measure out the length of its skin with his paces. In carrying out this task Diarmaid pierced his heel (his weak point) with one of the bristles, inflicting a fatal poisonous wound.
In this legend we are shown an important shamanistic ritual, undertaken by shamans all over the world in different forms, but retaining the same core element. In shamanism you are required to overcome and 'kill' your totem animal in order to gain its spirit as an ally. However, the spirit of the totem animal will maim, dismember and finally devour you before the link can be forged. This represents a ritual death and rebirth that the shaman must undergo in the Otherworld, but which also includes self inflicted wounding in this world, too. The Tuatha De Danaans were adept at 'shape shifting', a shamanistic practise that consists of the ability to transform into the spirit shape of a totem animal at will. One story that illustrates this concerns a chase between the enchanted pigs of Angus Og and the hounds of Fionn MacCumhal. Angus was holding a feast for the Fianna, and during this time he boasted that the best hunting hounds of the Fianna could not kill even one of his pigs. The Fianna, who could never resist a challenge, assembled their hounds together. They saw coming towards them across the plain a terrible herd of pigs, the size of deer, their leader as black as coal. The hounds killed many pigs and wounded others, but many of the hounds and the Fianna went missing. Fionn realised that they were enchanted pigs. He said they could not leave the corpses of the pigs for they would come to life again the next day. They then tried to burn the pigs but were unable to. Eventually Bran, the Otherworld hound of Fionn, fetched three logs of wood (three types of wood that could combat enchantments) and the pigs were burned on the fire from these logs. Then there was a great sorrow on Angus, for the pigs had been his people, one of them his own son.
Another legend that shows a connection between pigs and the deity Angus Og concerns the foster children of a woman named Derbrenn, who were put under enchantment into the shape of pigs and were sought after for their tasty flesh. They went to Brugh na Boyne, the fairy palace of Angus, to seek his assistance. However, Angus told them that he could not help them until they had: "shaken the Tree of Tarbga and eaten of the salmon of Inver Umaill", meaning that they first had to become like the Tuatha De Danaans, by seeking in the correct manner the magical knowledge that the Tuatha de Danaans had gained. This story indicates that magical knowledge, when used for the wrong reasons, can have damaging results. Equally, the advice of Angus was that we should seek knowledge for ourselves, which we can then use for our own protection, rather than rely on others to come to our aid. It also shows that the learning of knowledge always requires certain challenges and tests to be undertaken.
The connection of the boar with the solar cycle, and the sow with the Goddess and the lunar cycle, has already been noted. One legend that demonstrates this well is known as 'Fionn and the Red Woman'. The Fianna were out hunting on Gleann na Smol one misty morning - mist represents the veil between the worlds and immediately tells us that they are about to embark on an Otherworld journey. On the edge of a wood the Fianna saw a strange beast; it had the head of a boar and the body of a deer. A red woman was following behind the beast and there was a shining crescent moon on each of its sides. Both these factors show its connection with the Goddess.
The Fianna followed after the beast during the day, and during the night, the realm of the Goddess, the moons on its sides shone brightly. At dawn (a magical in-between time, neither day nor night) the beast went into a sidhe mound, Cnoc na Righ (the hill of the king). They saw the red woman again, who struck the hill with her druid rod and a door opened. On entering they found themselves in a great hall "where there was the brightness of the sun and of the moon on every side." In a golden chair sat a king, dressed in gold and green, with a great feast before him. The beast then came in and stood before the king, saying: "I am going on towards my own country now...and the sea is the same to me as the land." This statement brings to mind the magical horse of Manannan that could travel equally on land or sea.
The beast was gone in that instant, and the Fianna made haste after it. At midday, (the mid point of the sun) the beast began to weaken, until finally with the setting of the sun it fell down dead. This clearly shows the boar's connection with the solar cycle, and also with ancient kingship. The red woman told the Fianna that the beast was the king of the Firbolgs (a pre-Gaelic race of aboriginal people who are native to Ireland). The boar and the sow are therefore very ancient totem animals that pre-date the arrival of the Gaels into Ireland. When the first Gaels, the sons of Mil, came close to landing in Ireland, it is said that all they could see of the land was something in the shape of a pig.
It can clearly be seen, then, that the pig and its wild relative, the boar, are probably the most important totem animals of the Gaelic Celts, particularly in terms of their connections with the Otherworld, as providers of spiritual nourishment. When we consider that the Celtic / Gaelic system is in fact two systems, incorporating the 'realms of the moon' and the 'realms of the sun', that have over time merged into one system, we begin to realise why the boar and the sow have become the totem animals par excellence of the Gaelic Celts. They represent the twin forces of masculinity and femininity - the wild, untamed boar, the warrior's challenge, and the sow as the giver of Life and Death.
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©all original material copyright: Freya Owlsdottir, 1986-1998