In Ireland the 29th of September is known as Michaelmas and is a notable holiday in the Christian calendar. This religious holiday celebrates St. Michael.
The story behind this is that the 29th of September is the day on which the archangel Michael fought Lucifer before casting him out of heaven causing Lucifer to fall to Earth.
Accordingly to this tale when Lucifer fell to Earth he landed upon a Blackberry Bush. Injured not only by his fall but also cut by the thorns of the brambles the Devil cursed the Bush and breathed fire upon the fruit. It is said that each year on the anniversary of his fall, the Devil returns to exact his revenge on the blackberries that act as a painful reminder of his fall from grace. It is said he purposely destroys the plant and it's fruit out of spite. Whether it be by stamping, urinating, defecating, spitting and/or other unmentionable acts upon the blackberry bushes the Devil makes the berries unfit for consumption. This is thought to happen every year on the 29th of September as a part of Lucifer's eternal grudge against St. Michael and the blackberry bush.
In Ireland however, the idea of the blackberry bush being spoiled has origins rooted in Celtic culture going back to pagan times. Originally this tradition was celebrated on what is now called Old Michaelmas Day on the 10th of October and was traditionally seen as the last days to harvest the berries before they spoiled. In Irish tradition however it was believed that the Pooka (also known as Púca/Puck) not the devil was the one who would make the berries inedible.
It was believed that during the night under the cover of darkness the Pooka would travel all over the country leaving an invisible slime across the fruit. Anyone who picked and ate the berries thereafter would result in them becoming violently ill.
The Pooka is a famous fairy spirit in Pagan Celtic culture. They are a shapeshifting spirit not specifically evil or good but more of a benign but chaotic mischievous spirit. Pookas can often play a protective guardian role or they can play the role of mischievous spirit getting people into trouble and causing chaos. While the pooka is known to be a shape shifter who can take on the form of any creature there are several forms it is often most associated with; these are usually a hare, horse or even a cat. Whichever form it takes in it is usually known to have dark fur with golden eyes and has been described that even in animal form they appear to have human-like expressions on their face.
To this day Michaelmas marks the end of the harvest and fishing seasons as well as the beginning of the hunting season. It is celebrated by many different local traditions throughout the country.
Here in Co. Waterford in the seaside town of Tramore - an area which was historically dependent on the tourist and fishing trade, there has been a long tradition of the parade of the Micilín. Local women would create an effigy of St. Michael from seaweed. After parading the Micilín through the streets they would carry it out towards the shore and cast it out to sea as an act symbolising the end of the town's income for the winter.
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