Parallels.—A similar but not identical miracle is attributed to Saint Patrick (VTP, 228; LL, 565). Here the saint resuscitates horses with holy water; but in this case the saint's own curse had originally caused the horses' deaths, because they grazed in his churchyard. Saint Lasrian also restored a horse to life (CS, 796).
Tir na Gabrai ("the land of the horse") is unknown, though it presumably was near Raith Cremthainn. The story was probably told to account for the name of the field. It has been noticed that the Latin Lives are less rich in details as to names of places and people than the Irish Life. This is an indication of a later tradition, when the recollection of names had become vague, or, rather, when names which had been of interest to their contemporaries had ceased to rouse such feelings.
IV. HOW CIARAN TURNED WATER INTO HONEY (LA, LB, LC, VG)
One of the numerous imitations of the story of the Miracle of Cana. Compare incident XLIV. An identical story is told of Saint Patrick (LL, 108). Note the variety of reasons given for sending the honey to Iustus.
V. HOW CIARAN WAS DELIVERED FROM A HOUND (LA, LB, LC, VG)
Parallels.—The same story is told of Saint Patrick, in Colgan's Tertia Vita, cap. xxxi, Septima Vita, I, cap. xlvii. Patrick likewise quoted the verse Ne tradas bestiis animus confitentes tibi (Ps. lxiv, [Vulgate lxiii] 19).
The Fate of the Hound.—This varies in the different versions. In the Patrick story just quoted it was struck immovable, as a stone. In LA it thrusts its head in circo uituli, which I have rendered conjecturally as the context seems to require, but I can find no information as to the exact nature of this adjunct to the cattle-stall. Du Cange gives arcus sellae equestris as one of the meanings of circus.
LB and LC, which have many points of affinity, are in this incident almost word for word identical. They agree in saying that the men setting on the hound were spurred (uexati) by an evil spirit. The misplacing of this incident in LB is probably due to a transposition of the leaves of the exemplar from which it was copied.
VI. HOW CIARAN AND HIS INSTRUCTOR CONVERSED, THOUGH DISTANT FROM ONE ANOTHER (LA, VG)
Topography of the Story.—Assuming that Raith Cremthainn was somewhere near Rathcroghan, the distance between this and Fuerty would be about fourteen miles. There is no indication on the Ordnance map of any rock that can be identified with the cross-bearing stone on which Ciaran used to sit, though it clearly was a landmark well known to the author of LA. (Pacé LA, Rathcroghan is north of Fuerty.)