OUR STORY

Just in time for Bealtaine, the Irish festival of fertility and new life, we explore the erotic energy at the heart of all creation, specifically in the context of Celtic mythology.

We open with a brief retelling of the story of the woman made of flowers Blodeuwedd, which appears in the fourth branch of the Welsh mythological epic, the Mabinogi. You’ll hear an excerpt of Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill’s Irish language poem, “Blodeuwedd,” and the translation by John Montague.

OUR GUEST

Robert brings two decades of experience in diverse industries, including spirituality/well-being, international development, leadership development, finance and education. He is passionate about service and deeply curious about how people can facilitate sustainable transformation to enable more peace, justice, and freedom in our world. Robert’s career has enabled him to cross the private and public sectors multiple times working at and with organizations such as Concern Worldwide, The Gates Foundation, PricewaterhouseCoopers, The Crossland Group, and Kripalu. Originally from Ireland, Robert has been certified as a CPA, Irish and Celtic Shamanic practitioner, Yoga teacher, Reiki healer, Meditation teacher, and in the Enneagram.

Find him on Instagram @wicklowcelt and at www.robertmulhall.com

IN THIS EPISODE

• Though Irish culture may not necessarily be directly associated with “the erotic,” the springtime festival of Bealtaine is alive erotic energy. When you look closely enough, you’ll find it is woven through Irish tradition
• The snake as through-line: Patrick's banishment of the snakes, Kundalini, and the connection between Eros, creativity, rage, and fire as expressions of the same primal force
• Manchán Magan's work recovering old Irish words for the erotic and the inseparability of desire and the natural world. See Thirty-Two Words for Field.
• The sovereignty rites at Tara and Uisneach: what it actually meant for a king to marry and consummate a relationship with the land and the goddess of sovereignty
• What gets dampened when we separate Eros from everything else. The great question: what if it's all Eros?
• Robert's poem "I Fell in Love with the Trees" and the invitation to experience nature not as backdrop but as lover, teacher, and kin
• Forgiving the body as preparation for welcoming Eros
• Fire as alchemical medicine: Robert's fire ceremony and the difference between external preparation for difficult times and internal readiness

Music at the start of the show is by Beth Sweeney and Billy Hardy: billyandbeth.com

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