from tales, doubtless at first, and probably for a considerable time,
transmitted by oral tradition. It would be natural that there should
be much cross-borrowing, tales told about one saint being adapted to
others as well, until they became stock incidents. It would also be
nothing more than natural that many elements in the Lives should
be survivals from more ancient mythologies, having their roots in
pre-Christian beliefs. Nevertheless, none of these writings are devoid
of value as pictures of life and manners; and even in descriptions of
incredible and pointless miracles precious scraps of folk-lore are
often embedded. In most, if not in all, cases, the incidents recorded
in the Lives are to be criticised as genuine traditions, whatever
their literal historicity may be; few, if any, are conscious
inventions or impostures.[2]

In the Lives of Ciaran there are many conventional incidents of this
kind, which reappear in the lives of other saints. In the Annotations
in the present edition a few such parallels are quoted; though no
attempt is made to give an exhaustive list, the compilation of which
would occupy more time and space than its scientific value would
warrant. But there are certain other incidents of a more individual
type, and it is these which make the Lives of Ciaran especially
remarkable. They may well be genuine reminiscences of the real life,
or at least of the real character of the man himself. Thus, there are
a number of coincidences, clearly undesigned (noted below, p. 104)
consistently pointing to a pre-Celtic parentage for the saint. Again,
the saint's mother is represented as a strong personality, with a
decided strain of "thrawnness" in her composition; while the saint
himself is shown to us as distinguished by a beautiful unselfishness.
This, it must be confessed, is very far from being a common character
of the Irish saints, as they are represented to us by the native