Tree Poet Reading Book Figurine Scotiana.com

Back to Doon Hill again and to Reverend Kirk. His strange story is leading us further than we had thought first. Not that I want to write a thesis about it, I’m not qualified to do so in any case, but we can try to make things a little clearer, on a bibliographical level at least. I wonder what our friend Sherlock Holmes would have thought of such a case …  Conan Doyle, who happened to be very keen about occultism, would certainly have had something to say about all this.  Indeed, didn’t he write something about fairies? We’ll do some research about that. Last time, I mentioned that I had received two editions of The Secret Commonwealth and that I was about to read one of them. Of course I had chosen the modern version of the text, in the beautiful 2007 New York edition.  Since then, however,  I’ve received two other books which made me change my mind. It could be helpful to compare different versions and interpretations of the book. Remember we’re not reading fiction… it’s something very special…

Dover Edition 2008

Dover Edition 2008

One of the two books I’ve just received is the Dover edition. A Bibliographical Note reads : “This Dover edition, first published in 2008, is an unabridged, slightly altered version of the work published by Eneas Mackay, Stirling, Scotland, in 1933. The punctuation and spelling in Robert Kirk’s text have been modernized for ease of reading. The Introduction by R. B. Cunninghame Graham and Comment by Andrew Lang (introduction to the 1893 edition) are unaltered. Six black-and-white illustrations by H. J. Ford have been added.”

2008 Dover edition H.J. Ford Illustration

I was very tempted to begin my reading with this book, first because it contains a modernized version of Reverend Kirk’s essay and secondly because I already have, in my library, in the Dover edition, most of Andrew Lang’s fairy books which include H. J. Ford beautiful illustrations. These marvellous books have enchanted generations of readers of all ages and I do like them very much.

R.J. Stewart Edition 2007

R.J. Stewart Edition 2007

But finally I’ve chosen Robert Kirk, Walker Between the Worlds,  R.J. Stewart’s edition (2007) and I don’t regret it. Here’s the right man to write about such a book. I don’t know where Robert Kirk happens to be presently, if he be anywhere, but would have he some choice to do for that matter I don’t doubt it would have been this book.  The Secret Commonwealth is a little book but it’s not easy task to read it. The subject is rather puzzling in itself and it must be replaced in its social, religious and historical background which R.J. Stewart does extremely well. We had fallen on the first edition of his book in 2004 when visiting Balquhidder church. Since then the author has founded his own publishing house and published a new edition of the book.

R.J. Stewart - www.dreampower.com

Let me introduce R.J. Stewart, if you don’t know him already, though his picture speaks by itself. What a charismatic look !

Robert John (R J) Stewart was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. His father came from a Gaelic speaking family originally from the Western Highlands. His mother was Welsh, from a Welsh speaking family from the Gower Peninsula in South Wales, with a tradition of singing and playing the Welsh triple-harp. He is known today as a composer, author, and teacher, with 40 books in publication, translated into many languages worldwide. He is widely experienced in theater, film, and television, and is a skilled performer and presenter.

In 1996 R. J. was admitted to the USA as “resident alien of extraordinary ability”, a category awarded only to immigrants of outstanding achievement in the arts or sciences. He now lives in Northern California and in Maryland.

Early career

From the late 1960′s to the 1980′s (as Bob Stewart) he worked with traditional British folk music, medieval music, and his own compositions, playing guitar, cittern, and the unique 70- stringed psaltery. During this period he made several albums of Celtic and original music, and wrote music for theater and media. In 1974 he wrote and recorded theme music for The Hobbit (Decca Records) read by Nicol Williamson.

In theater R J wrote music and songs for several major productions in England, and co-founded a theater company, The Avon Touring Co. During the late 1970′s and early 1980′s he composed and recorded original music for film and television, including working on major feature films, Joseph Andrews directed by Tony Richardson, and The Dark Crystal, directed by Jim Henson. He also composed and recorded original music for a number of BBC radio dramas, and for documentary feature films for the BBC and for ITV. Through these films his music has been heard all over the world, and various artists have recorded his original instrumental pieces and songs. Between 1975 and 1983 R J worked with several well known Irish musicians, making an album of original music with Finbar Furey, and working with Van Morrison, writing and producing Van’s recording of the ancient Irish epic, the Cuchullainn saga. The basis for this production was one of R J’s books on Irish mythology, Cuchullainn, published by Firebird book.

Read more…

I didn’t know this author before reading his edition of The Secret Commonwealth but I now feel like discovering his other books, especially his last one about Merlin. I’ve already read the introduction and the first chapters of The Secret Commonwealth. R.J. Stewart has written commentaries for each of them and they are quite helpful to progress in this cryptic text. This reading is worth the effort. Not that I’m inclined to jump into unknown territories, still less to follow men like Reverend Kirk into the arcanes of mysterious and invisible worlds, but I’m not hostile and I’m even curious about things that can’t be explained today.  More than ever I remain quite open-minded to all uncanny things we may happen to encounter on our path as we already had in our Scottish Quest…

A bientôt !

Aberfoyle old Kirkton Church & Cemetery Scotiana.com 2004

Broceliande forest The golden tree Source : Wikipedia

Changing times also, it seems ! Imagine my surprise when, on turning on the radio, I heard that the first “Dragon Week” has opened this week-end in Ploermel. Where is that, you may ask yourself. Not at all in China as you might have thought first considering that the Chinese already have the Dragon Year in their calendar.

Ploermel coat of arms - Source : Wikipedia

No, Ploermel is a French commune which is situated in Bretagne, in the Morbihan department. It is set just on the edge of mythical Broceliande, the enchanted forest which the Arthurian legend proclaims to be home of Merlin the Magician  ! For having been there once I can tell you, this forest is really enchanting !

Broceliande forest Merlin's grave - Source : Wikipedia

Anyway, what a good introduction to my coffee-reading ! I had come with Reverend Kirk’s book The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns and Fairies and I was now invited to “l’antre du dragon”. Well, folk-tales, myths and legends are gaining popularity these days and dragons seem to have the wind in their sails…

Doon Hill Scotiana.com 2004

But now back from Broceliande to Doon Hill which, if we believe Reverend Kirk who used to haunt its wooded slopes a long time ago, is sheltering a community of fairies. Had the very adventurous Reverend really found the hidden gate to their realm ? I wonder… anyway I’m going to read what he says about the question in his book and what eminent writers or critics think about his strange experience.  I’ve just received two beautiful editions of The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies.  One of them contains the original text as it had been written in the 1691 original manuscript and the other one a modern version of it. Guess which one I’m going to read !

Reverend Kirk The Secret Commonwealth Facsimile I.H.O. Books 2005

The Secret Commonwealth Reverend Kirk Facsimile I.H.O. Books 2005

This edition of The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies by Robert Kirk appears to contain a facsimile of Andrew Lang’s 1893 edition.  It was published in 2005 by I. H. O. Books. I’ve noticed that the publishers’ logo, a red cross on a white background, is  the symbol of the Templar Knights. After searching the web I’ve found that this publisher specializes in esoterism. Quite appropriate ! On the endpaper of this edition there is a reproduction of an old watercolour drawing by Sir D.H. Cameron R. A.  entitled  “The Hill of Fairies at Aberfoyle”,  but I’ve found no information about this artist nor about the beautiful illustrations which ornate the front and back covers of the book. I wonder if these illustrations did appear in Lang’s edition. We can see a reverend clothed in his black robe commanding to creatures hardly visible amidst foliage. Reminds me of the green men sculptures we tried to find in the magnificent stone lace decor of the famous Rosslyn chapel, south of Edinburgh. Below is an interesting Amazon description of the book but I fear this edition is now out of stock.

Originally written in 1691 this is a truly remarkable text. It describes a parallel world to ours which interpenetrates ours at certain places. The denizens, the faeries, elves and faunes “are of a Middle Nature betwixt Man and Angel” with “Bodies of congealled Air” There relationship with humanity is complicated, whilst they have their own agendas they also reflect mundane human life with banquets, marriages, births and so forth, though the author notes these may be for “.. Mock-show, or to prognosticate some such Things amongst us”. The mirroring of human life can extend to there being “a Double Man”, or “Reflex-man or Co-walker”, in the land of Faery for a living man. The writer of this text was a Scottish minister. It is said that in 1692 he set off in his nightshirt to Doon Hill a nearby faery mound. He was found dead. After his funeral Kirk appeared in a dream to a relative to say the body was not his but his Reflex-man, and that he was trapped in the world of Faery. But his wife was pregnant and he would appear at his sons Christening, if an iron knife was thrown over his head the human Reverend Kirk would be released. Sure enough his ghost appeared at the service but congregation were too shocked to follow his instructions and he was left forever. Occult tradition has it that the Reverend Kirk now acts as a guide between our world, the “midle-earth” and that of “the Subterraneans”. This edition reproduces the Comment by folklorist Andrew Lang from the 1893 edition, plus an Introduction by R.B. Cunninghame Graham. There is also a new Prolegomenon by Alan Richardson, author of the Magical Life of Dion Fortune and other works, which places the text in the context of modern occultism. A facsimile of the 1933 edition of “The Secret Commonwealth”.

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies by Robert Kirk1893 edition

The following 2007 New York Review Book edition of The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies by Robert Kirk which lies open on my desk is a beautiful little hardback edition too. The ivory acid free paper used for the pages as well as for the cover gives it a pleasant hand-crafted touch. I’ve found it quite interesting to learn that the back cover illustrations have been reproduced from Robert Kirk’s student notebook. A multi-talented man, this reverend !  Maybe one day we’ll have the opportunity to go and see the original manuscripts in the archives of the Scottish libraries.

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies by Robert Kirk NY Edition

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies by Robert Kirk NY Edition 2007

First published in 1815 by Sir Walter Scott, then re-edited in 1893 by Andrew Lang, with a dedication to Robert Louis Stevenson, The Secret Commonwealth has long been difficult to obtain—available, if at all, only in scholarly editions. This new edition modernizes the spelling and punctuation of Kirk’s little book and features a wide-ranging and illuminating introduction by the critic and historian Marina Warner, who brings out the originality of Kirk’s contribution and reflects on the ongoing life of fairies in the modern mind.

“A slim quarto-size book (like a paperback novel in boards) and less than a hundred pages of text, this New York Review of Books edition is the first in more than a century and contains a well-written introduction and end notes by Marina Warner. Also included is Kirk’s own glossary of “difficult words,” in which we learn the 17th-century meanings of adscititious, defaecat, lychnobious and noctambulo.” –The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Kirk is a magnificent dish to set before any student of either folk-lore or folk-psychology”–The Times Literary Supplement

“The importance of Robert Kirk’s manuscript for a deeper understanding of late seventeenth-century Scottish beliefs about fairies and second sight is hard to exaggerate. There is simply no other source with such fulsome detail about the Guid Neighbours…”–Folklore

“Kirk’s ‘Secret Commonwealth’ is one of those books which are well known but hard to come by…His little treatise is a most careful and thorough piece of work, made the more so by the spirit in which it was written…The result is one of the completest descriptions extant of that special phase of popular belief.”–The Times Literary Supplement

“[F]illed with delightful maunderings on seers and second-sighters and ‘glimpses of the moon’…”–The Critic

“[A] cult classic.”–The Glasgow Herald

ROBERT KIRK was born in Scotland and studied at Edinburgh University and at St. Andrews. Ordained as a minister, he was the first author to produce a complete translation of the Scottish metrical Psalms into Gaelic, translated many other religious works into the Scots Highland dialect, and was the editor of a new Irish edition of the bible. He served at the parish of Aberfoyle until his early death in 1692. Legend says he collapsed on “fairy hill” south of the village, where today his spirit is entombed in a tree, known as “The Minister’s Pine.”

MARINA WARNER is the author of a number of works of fiction and non-fiction. In 1994 she became only the second woman to deliver the BBC’s Reith Lectures, published as Managing Monsters: Six Myths of Our Time, and was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France) in 2000. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature since 1985, she lives in London.

Now time for me to disappear with Reverend Kirk into the strange world  “Of the subterranean inhabitants”. I hope to be back with you soon. Bonne lecture !

France Brittany Quiberon beach dragon sand sculpture, photo by Manu18e’s flickr

Doon Hill Fairies - Scotiana.com - 2004

Take a look at the photos we’ve taken on Doon Hill.  Aren’t they a most touching expression of folk beliefs in our very materialistic world?  The Scottish touch of magic!  Mind you, that does not mean that the Scots are not a rationalistic people ! Think about their scientific performances.

Doon Hill Fairies Fairies-Scotiana.com-2004

To the question “Do you believe in fairies?”, I would certainly have answered YES to save the life of Tinker Bell in the story of Peter Pan and I’m inclined to believe that there is more beyond appearances than what we generally believe …

Doon Hill mysterious woodland-Scotiana.com-2006

In Scotland the frontier between the visible and invisible worlds seems to be thinner than elsewhere.  I remember asking our way to Doon Hill to a young man working at the Tourist Office in Aberfoyle. “You’re not going there at night ?”, he asked us with some anxiety.

Doon-Hill Trail - Scotiana.com -2004

In 2004, we went to Doon Hill at about 5 p.m. and we met nobody on our way up the hill and when we climbed it up again, in 2006,  it was past 9 pm and we were alone or, at least,  we didn’t see anyone, which doesn’t mean that there was nobody around us in the woods. The wind played gracefully on the little bells hanging in the trees. The atmosphere was silent and quiet. Quite pleasant. We’ve made a little film there. It’s not a very good one but it gives an idea of the place. We’ll insert it soon in our blog.

Doon Hill Hanging Bells -Scotiana.com-2004

Now, if we want to understand better the local legend we must  go back to its source and that leads us to Reverend Kirk’s life and writings.  Not only does the Reverend seem to have been a very learned man (he is the first one to have translated the Psalms in Gaelic)  but he also appears to have been a very open-minded minister. The Reverend used to listen to and note down  all his parishioners’ accounts of their supernatural experiences. This must have not only aroused the Reverend’s curiosity but also confirmed what he had always believed about the Other World.  Reverend Robert Kirk spent more than 20 years in Balquhidder parish,  from 1664 (aged 20)  to 1685 (aged 41) before moving back to the family manse, in Aberfoyle, where he stayed until his death, seven years later.

Balquhidder New & Ancient Churches - Scotiana.com- 2004

We first went to Balquhidder in 2004. It’s a very picturesque place and rich in history too. A nice little church has been built near the ruins of the ancient one and you can walk among very old graves (some of them are very beautiful)  in a most romantic churchyard. Of course, the most famous grave is that of  Rob Roy, just in front of the ancient church. Inside the church, we found many old religious memorabilia and also a book entitled Robert Kirk, Walker Between Worlds edited by R. J. Stewart.

Walker Between Worlds-R J Stewart-Ed 1990-Scotiana.com-2004

After our first incursion “au pays des fées”, at Doon Hill (or Fairy Knowe as the place is more commonly known), we wanted to know more about Reverend Kirk  but we didn’t find his book The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns and  Faeries. The book had  not been published until 1815,  first by Sir Walter Scott and then by Andrew Lang. In Wigtown Byre Books shop we were said that the only book available there was a very expensive one. Of course, we didn’t buy it. Only recently did we search the web for the book and finally  found several interesting editions of The Secret Commonwealth.  Here are some of them.

Walker Between the Worlds-Edition 2007

First a new edition (2007) of the book we had seen in Balquhidder church. On the cover there is the coat of arms which can be seen on Robert Kirk’s grave, in Aberfoyle cemetery. We’ll try to know more about it.

The Secret Commonwealth Reverend Kirk- Facsimile Edition 2005

The above facsimile edition of the book has become rare but some other ones are still available.

A New Edition of The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies

It’s not easy to make an idea about this Scottish legend though Janice has already said a lot of things about it in her last post. What we must try to keep in mind is that the facts date back to the 17 th century. That was a long long time ago and life must have been quite different from what we live today. The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns and Faeries is supposed to have been based on Reverend Kirk’s own experiences and observations. So, to begin let us read his book.

Bonne lecture ! A bientôt.

Doon Hill - Scotiana.com - 2006

Aberfoyle is only 30 miles away by road of Glasgow and as such, there is no reason one should not stop by to contemplate splendid views and discover the area that inspired Walter Scott ‘s Rob Roy novel.

But coming back to the 17th century and to Reverend Kirk, he was a firm believer of faeries. In 1681, to express his beliefs, he wrote a book : “The Secret Commonwealth Of Elves, Fauns and Faeries“, an essay on the nature of supernatural beings. This book was neither fiction and not for children.

Do you have this book Mairiuna? If not, we definitely need it  in Scotiana’s library.

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns & Fairies by Reverend Kirk, 1681

To give a brief overview of the life and work of Reverend Kirk, it was said that being born in 1644, the 7th son of a 7th son, it gave him psychic powers. He had the ability to call upon the supernatural beings at will.

Like his father, he became a minister, preaching at Balquhidder and then taking on the Aberfoyle ministry. His fascination for the magical world of Fairies is what he is remembered for even though he provided the first translation to Gaelic of the book of Psalms.

As per the legend, the inhabitants of the Secret Commonwealth, Fairies and others, were not happy about Reverend Kirk disclosure to their secrets and they planned revenge.

Each day, Reverend Kirk walked from the manse to Doon Hill and one day, in May 1692, very mysteriously, he did not return.

The story tells us that he was taken to the underground world of the Fairies through the pine tree that still exists at the summit of Doon Hill.

It is said that the tree contains his imprisoned spirit.

Doon Hill Pine Tree - Scotiana.com - 2004

The Reverend was out walking one day, upon the faerie knoll known as Doon Hill when he died. His family took his body and laid it to rest. However with the Reverend being so closely involved with the faeries people thought it was too much of a coincidence the location of where he died.

Instead they believed that the faeries had taken his body and left a changeling posing as Reverend Kirk.

It was said that Kirk appeared before his cousin and told him that at the Christening of his child, he would appear. This was the only chance for him to come back to our world. His cousin, Graham, had to throw an iron dagger over Kirk when he appeared.

However at the Christening, Graham was too scared at the sight of the ghostly Kirk and failed to keep his promise. It is now believed that the Reverend Kirk’s soul is still tormented within the Caledonian pine tree which stands on top of Doon Hill.

A place which people still visit to this day to make wishes and leave presents for the faeries.

Gifts to Fairies at the foot of the Pine tree - Scotiana.com - 2006

As well as many interesting and ancient graves (including Rev Kirk’s earthly grave) the local graveyard contains heavy iron coffin covers, a strange thing to find so far from a major city.

Aberfoyle Cemetary - Reverend Kirk Grave - Scotiana.com - 2004

To access the site, up manse road, watch for the signs for Fairy Hill after about 1/4 mile.

Doon Hill Fairy Trail, Aberfoyle - Scotiana.com - 2006

At the top of the hill amongst the trees you can see prayer ribbons that people still leave.

Doon Hill - Ribbons - Scotiana.com - 2004

Doon Hill - Ribbons - Scotiana.com - 2006

A very enchanting walk…by the way, do you believe in Fairies?

…