Táin Bó Cuailnge
Bhí Eochaidh ina rí ar Éirinn. B’iníon dó Méabh agus, tar éis an tír a roinnt dó, thug sé Méabh le pósadh do Thinne, an rí a bhí ar Chonnachtaigh. Rinne a hathair áras breá dhi ag Ráth Chruachan (sa chontae Ros Comáin anois) is anseo a bhí sí ina cónaí. Cailleadh Tinne tamall ina dhiaidh sin, agus ansin d’fhan Méabh deich mbliana eile ina banríon ar Chúige Chonnacht agus í ina baintreach. Phós sí arís flaith Laighneach, fear darbh ainm Ailill Mór, agus bhí seachtar mac aici leisean.
Eochaidh was king over Ireland. Méabh was his daughter and, after he divided the land, he gave Méabh to Tinne to marry, the king that was over the people of Connacht. Her father made a fine residence for her at Ráth Chruachan (in the county of Roscommon now) and it was here that she lived. Tinne died a while after that, and then Méabh remained another ten years as queen of the province of Connacht as a widow. She married again, a prince of Leinster, a man named Ailill Mór, and she had seven sons with him.
Thosaigh Ailill agus í féin ag caint, lá, ar a raibh de mhaoin ag gach aon duine acu, Méabh ag rá gur mó a bhí aici-se, agus Ailill ag rá gur mó a bhí aigesean. D’éirigh an chaint chomh dána sin eadarthu faoi dheireadh, nárbh fhéidir an scéal a réiteach gan cuid gach éinne a chur i gcomórtas le cuid an duine eile. Tugadh amach ansin gach a raibh ag Méabh, idir ór agus airgead, seoid agus péarlaí, síoda agus sról, beathaíoch ceithre gcos agus gach aon ní eile a raibh aici, agus cuireadh trí chéile iad.
Ailill and herself began talking one day, about that which each one of them had of possessions, Méabh saying it was more that she had, and Ailill saying that it was more that he had. The conversation became so audacious between them in the end, that the story couldn’t be settled without each person’s share to put in competition with the other person’s share. Everything that Méabh had, between gold and silver, jewels and pearls, silk and satin, four-footed beast and anything else that she had, was brought out then and tossed together.
Rinneadh an cleas céanna le maoin Ailealla, agus ‘sé an oiread céanna a bhí ag duine agus bhí ag an duine eile, cé is moite do tharbh breá a bhí ag Ailill thar mar a bhí ag Méabh. Chuir sin fearg uirthi agus chuir sí teachtaireacht amach ag cuardú tairbh a bheadh chomh breá le ceann a fir. Bhí an teachtaire ag imeacht nó go bhfuair sé scéala go raibh tarbh ag Dáire, taoiseach a bhí ina chónaí i gCuaille, níos breátha ná tarbh Ailealla.
The same thing was done with Ailill’s possessions, and it is the same amount one person had that the other person had, except for a fine bull that Ailill had over that which Méabh had. That made her angry and she sent a messenger out seeking a bull that would be as fine as her husband’s one. The messenger was out until he got word that Dáire, a chieftain that lived in Cuaille, had a bull finer than Ailill’s bull.
Tháinig an teachtaire ar ais go Cruachan agus d’inis sé an scéal do Mhéabh. Chuir sí teachtairí eile amach ag iarraidh cúnta ó rí na Mumhan agus ó rí Laighean agus réitigh í féin amach le dul chun troda le Dáire, le go mbainfeadh sí an tarbh de dá ainneoin. Tháinig sin chuici cúnamh ón dá chúige, agus míle go leith d’fhir Uladh leo. Bhuail siad soir trasna na Sionainne.
The messenger came back to Cruachan and he told the news to Méabh. She sent another messenger out requesting help from the king of Munster and from the king of Leinster and she outfitted herself to go to battle with Dáire, so that she might get the bull from him in spite of him. Then help from the two provinces came to her, and a thousand and a half [1500] of the men of Ulster with them. They struck east across the River Shannon.
Ní raibh aon arm le feiceáil ag teacht ina n-aghaidh, ach an chéad oíche a chaith siad ann mharaigh Cú Chulainn, príomhlaoch na nUltach, triúr acu. Ní raibh laoch beo chomh tréan le Cú Chulainn an uair sin. Chuir sé a gcloigne ar bhior, agus sháigh sé an bior ar bhruach átha. An oíche dár gcionn sin mharaigh sé céad fear d’arm Mhéibhe agus ar feadh i bhfad ina dhiaidh sin níor lig sé oíche thairis gan céad laoch a mharú uirthi. An ceathrú lá, d’éirigh Cú Chulainn agus d’ionsaigh sé an t-arm ar fad agus ar feadh an lae sin rinne sé an-ár, ag dul timpeall an airm ina charbad agus á leagan. Nuair a bhí an lá sin istigh aige, throid sé ina nduine is ina nduine iad, go dtí gur chuir Méabh Ferdia, cara do Chú Chulainn féin, ina choinne. Chaith an bheirt trí lá ag troid. Throid siad ar an talamh agus ina gcarbaid; rinneadar ciseach den talamh agus loit siad a chéile, ionas go raibh gach aon fhear acu loite gonta, ó mhullach a chinn go trácht a choise. An ceathrú lá ghabh Cú Chulainn an Ga Bolga chuige, agus is leisean a mharaigh sé Ferdia i ndeireadh na dála.
There was no army to be seen coming against them, but the first night that they spent there Cú Chulainn, the primary hero of the Ulster people, killed three of them. There was not a living hero as strong as Cú Chulainn at that time. He put their heads on a spike, and he stuck the spike on the bank of a ford. The next night, he killed a hundred men of Méabh’s army and for a long time after that he didn’t let another night go by without killing a hundred warriors on her. The fourth day, Cú Chulainn arose and he attacked the entire army, and throughout that day he made great slaughter, going around the army in his chariot and felling them. When he had finished that day, he fought them one by one, until Méabh sent Ferdia, Cú Chulainn’s own friend, against him. The two spent three days fighting. They fought on the land and in their chariots; they trampled the ground and they wounded each other, so that each one of them were injured and hurt from the top of his head to the bottom of his foot. The fourth day, Cú Chulainn took up the Ga Bolga and it is with it that he killed Ferdia finally.
Tar éis an chatha seo thosaigh na hUltaigh ag cruinniú isteach. Bhí na hUltaigh bailithe faoi dheireadh agus sin é an t-am ar thosaigh an cogadh dáiríre. Bhí Conchobhar, fear millte clainne Uisnigh, ann, Cathbhadh a ard-dhraoi, Ferceirdne a ard-ollamh, Finnín a ard-lia, Conall Cearnach, agus na mílte eile de laochra láidre. Throid siad tamall, agus chomh fada is bhí siad ar siúl bhí tarbh Dháire agus leathchéad bodóg lena chois tugtha chun siúil ag ochtar de mhuintir Mhéibhe. Bhí Cú Chulainn ina luí ó mharaigh sé Ferdia go dtí anois; ach anois, nuair a chuala sé an ghárthach agus an screadach, bhíog sé agus siúd amach arís é ag troid. Tharraing arm Mhéibhe ar air anois, agus chuir sí féin impí ar Chú Chulainn éirí as an ár. D’éirigh, agus tharraing sise a cuid fear léi nó go dtáinig siad ar ais go Cruachan.
After this battle, the Ulstermen began gathering together. The Ulstermen were gathered finally and that is the time that the war started in earnest. Conchobhar, the man who destroyed the children of Uisneach, Cathbhadh his chief druid, Ferceirdne his chief learned man, Finnín his chief doctor, Conall Cearnach, and the other thousands of strong warriors were there. They fought a while, and as long as they were continuing the bull of Dáire and fifty heifers along with it were taken away by eight of Méabh’s people. Cú Chulainn had been resting, from when he killed Ferdia until now; but now, when he heard the shouting and the screaming, he jumped and he went out again fighting. The army of Méabh drew back now, and she herself pleaded with Cú Chulainn to give up the slaughter. He gave up, and she brought her men with her until they came back to Cruachan.
Ba hé deireadh an scéil gur thosaigh tarbh Dháire ag troid le Fionnbheannach, tarbh Ailealla, chomh luath agus chonaic sé é, agus gur chaith siad an oíche ag troid. Bhí mórchuid na hÉireann siúlta an oíche sin acu, agus ar maidin bhí Finnbheannach ina phíosaí ag an tarbh donn agus eisean ag imeacht le buaile ar ais go Cuaille. Ní raibh duine dár chas leis ar an mbealach nár mharaigh sé, agus nuair a tháinig sé go Cuaille chuir sé a chúl le cnoc agus thosaigh sé ag búireach agus ag gáir-ghéimneach nó gur bhris sé a chroí agus gur thit sé marbh i mbun a chos.
That was the end of the story until Dáire’s bull started fighting with Foinnbheannach, Ailill’s bull, as soon as he saw it, they spent the night fighting. They had walked most of Ireland that night, and by morning the brown bull had Fionnbheannach in pieces, and he [the white bull] was frantically heading back to Cuaille. There was no person that met him on the way that he didn’t kill, and when he came to Cuaille he put his back to the hill and he began bellowing and shout-lowing until he broke his heart and he collapsed dead.
Adapted from: Ó Neachtain, Eoghan. 1905. Stair-Cheachta. Connradh na Gaedhilge: Baile Átha Cliath.
