A Place Apart

On my way from Ardfert to join the ‘Brendan Trail’ and find out what sent Kerry’s Saint Brendan on his seven-year legendary voyage across the Atlantic, I followed the suggestion of a local and called into Tobar na Molt or ‘Wethers Well‘ as he called it.  He said it would be a good starting point.

I am still trying to understand what I saw there.

There are many Holy Wells in Ireland and most have a pre-Christian past. Tobar na Mold is not an exception. Its name is ancient and the story of three rams (wethers) has been retold many times since in Christian versions.  

The place itself is magical. You follow a well-marked grassy pathway down a hillside to a circle of trees.    

Inside the circle is a small pond fed by a spring, A lonely stone hut stands beside it. The area around is full of pre-Christian and Christian survivors.

When I visited there in May a sudden thunder storm drove me into the hut. Sitting on a convenient stone ledge I explored the collection of objects around me. There were statues, pictures, prayer leaflets and memorial cards.

A laminated booklet hung from the ceiling which gave a history of the site.  I read it as the lightening flickered around me, a fitting atmosphere.     

The story was written for pilgrims: how Brendan was baptised there as a baby by Bishop Erc, his mentor in later years. It claimed that St Ita of Killeedy who fostered the young Brendan is buried nearby. An old altarpiece opposite the well has the figures of the three saints carved on it, their faces almost worn away from the touch of pilgrims.

The booklet describes the ritual to be followed for pilgrim ‘rounds’ and the dates of public celebrations. In the old days pilgrims would spend the night in the hut to be able to emerge at daybreak to immerse themselves in the water.

Most of the contents of the hut had a Christian character. The outside symbols were timeless: water, a sacred tree decked with rags and stones of unusual shape.

Whether Brendan was baptised there or whether he ever visited there can be debated (though local tradition has strong views on that) but it does give a picture into the world that shaped him.

There, people respected life in nature, the mysterious depth of wells and the healing power of water. People like Erc and Ita brought a new dimension to this appreciation that shaped Brendan and made him want to share with others.

Today Tobar na Molt still has the power to attract. It is a special place in which to pause and draw strength, to be in the presence of something beyond daily experience.