The history and mystery of cures

Going for a cure has been an important part of Ireland’s heritage for centuries, with many people putting them on par with modern medicine when it comes to recovering from ailments.

Cecily Galligan, a primary school teacher from Sligo decided to document the history of cures in her new book ‘Cures of Ireland: A Treasure of Irish Folk Remedies’.

She will appear in Cavan County Museum on November 2 at 7 pm to discuss it, alongside Virginia born actor and director Alan Bradley who will be screening his film ‘My Cure and Me’.

“I don’t have any cures myself but I received cures as a child, such as a herbal cure for jaundice and also received one from a local seventh son for ringworm,” said Cecily. “I researched traditional cures for years, interviewing over 90 people from all over Ireland looking at faith and herbal cure, but also documented holy wells and holy clays such as St Mogue’s Clay in Cavan. They are part of our heritage and tradition and are hundreds if not thousands of years old.”

While Cecily says that some cures are being lost to time, they remain important today.

“Cures are still meeting a need today. They are old traditions but still well respected. I always ask what the source of them is and invariably the holders will say, God. They say, ‘I don’t heal people, God does’.

“Eighty per cent of them are faith cures while 20% are herbal. In the past, there was a lot of herbal lore in Ireland, but some of it has been lost over the last 50 years. Today there is a very well-known cure for shingles in North Leitrim, where a woman collects herbs from hedgerows, mixes them with unsalted butter, and makes up a cream, and it’s given to people.”

Some cures are more popular than others, as Cecily explains.

“Some may give cures a few times a year and others may give it a few times daily. For example bleeding cure, one of the men may get ten a day, because are people very concerned about bleeding whether it’s a person or animal, it’s a simple one to give, a phonecall is made and prayers are said. The cure for sprains is also very popular, it could be a simple prayer or a visit to the person who lays their hands on the person looking to be cured and they say a few prayers, or they give you a straining thread which is a piece of cotton you wear, and once it falls off the sprain is cured.

“In Cavan, I interviewed a woman who has a cure for calving paralysis, where a cow can’t stand back up after calving. She travels all over the area. It involves walking around the cow saying prayers, laying her hands on the cow, and touching it.

“It’s a cure she inherited from her father, which is common as a lot of cures are passed on within families, often switching gender with each passing.”

While they are often ancient rituals, cures have also adapted for modern life.

“There can be different variations for each cure, with each cure having its own rituals, but nobody questions it,” Cecily explains. “People accept the cure as part of their life.”

Although a gift is usually given in return for a cure, it varies a lot from person to person.

“People may give cake, flowers, whiskey or even mobile phone credit for a cure”, Cecily explains. “Some people won’t touch money, some will take it and give it to charity while others will take a payment for a herbal preparation. I never came across someone doing it for profit. They can be very kind giving up their time, talking to strangers and inviting them into their homes. One woman travels all over Cavan and won’t even take petrol money, she even has to bring all of her kids in the car with her.”

Cures are often shrouded in mystique, with the holders keen to protect them according to Cecily.

“A man with the cure for hiatus hernia only does it in summer months using an ash tree, but he wouldn’t tell me how they did it”, she explains. People looking for it went to his house in the evening and he brought them to the tree to perform it. They had to bring a hand-made hay rope with them to receive this cure. A lot of people wouldn’t know how to make them but when they were faced with it, they find a way to do it.”

Cecily believes that cures can co-exist happily with modern medicine.

“People use cures for a variety of reasons. They could be a last resort, or because it’s something they’ve used in the past or if they have them handily available in the area. But the people with the cure are very respectful of modern medicine. They will often tell people to visit their doctor if they’re not happy. It’s healthy to see a good balance between the two.”

To book please call 049 854 4070 or email info@cavanmuseum.ie