Flowering Dusk - A Treasure of Irish Magic

Flowering Dusk by Ella Young

I recently had the privilege of addressing the Æ Russell Society in Dublin as part of the Æ Summer School. My subject was Ella Young's spirituality, which I described as The Path of Friendship with Nature, and how it is a perfect counterpart to Æ's work. I mentioned that Ella's captivating memoir Flowering Dusk is essential reading for anyone interested in first-hand accounts of Irish Magic, especially those who wish to experience it for themselves.

It is almost exactly one year since A History of Irish Magic was published. One of the highs of a challenging year has been our reissue of Flowering Dusk for the first time since its publication during World War II. Ella Young was a poet, mythologist, and writer of fairy stories, as well as a seer. As such she exemplifies the rich context of the 20th century revival of Irish Magic. When Sally and I began the research for our book over 10 years ago, my initial intention was to focus on the esoteric practices of Yeats, Æ and their esoteric circle, with reference to Druid and fairy lore. Sally quite rightly pointed out that to give this context, a comprehensive history of Irish Magic was needed, and since nothing of this sort had ever been written, we ended up having to write one ourselves.

Our book contains enough information that anyone interested in the practice of Irish Magic can follow up the methods contained in several of the authors we discuss. However there is a great difference between a theoretical description of magical methods and spiritual practices, and a vivid account of what it is like to live and experience Irish Magic as a committed practitioner. The best known work by an Irish seer for a general readership is undoubtedly Æ's The Candle of Vision. Yet Æ's work is in some respects unrevealing. Although he avoids occult jargon, he is quite careful to draw a veil over the relationship between his outer life and his visionary experiences and one often has a sense that Æ's Ireland is the ancient and mythical landscape of the Tuatha de Danaan.

By contrast, Flowering Dusk is steeped in the magic of the Irish countryside, first hand descriptions of Ella's seership and that of her many mostly female psychic friends, including accounts of a familiar spirit she could sense and her friend could see, her hearing of fairy music and experiences of many spirits in the landscape, and her remarkable dreams and visions. For Ella, this was inseparable from the beauty of the landscape, her concern for the survival of Irish language and culture, and her participation in the political struggle against British rule.

I will be writing and presenting on contemporary approaches to Irish Magic in the coming year. There will be information on the internet, and practical, experiential workshops. But in the meantime, my advice to anyone called to the Irish Otherworld and who feel inspired to live a life of committed creativity that recognises the spirit of the land would be the same as the conclusion of my talk to the Æ Society. Read Flowering Dusk!

James North July 2025

https://www.aegeorgerussell.ie/