The Fruit of the Otherworld

The Fruit of the Otherworld

"Every high and lonely thought that thrills my spirit through
Is but a shining berry dropped down through the purple air,
And from the magic tree of life the fruit falls everywhere."
    ___A. E. (George Russell) "Connla's Well"

   Over Connla's Well grow the nine hazelnut trees of wisdom that drop their nuts into th water. The salmon of knowledge eats of the nuts and is found by Fionn mac Cunhail
(FNN mak KOOL), who, like Taliesin (Tal-eeEssom), becomes omniscient. This experience changes the very nature of perception, retuning the ordinary senses to perceive in more subtle ways.
   This story, in its various permutations, stands as an explanation of how the fruit of the otherworld comes to ripen in our world. The fall of the hazelnuts into the waters of Connla's Well is an image of the abundant generosity of the otherworld to our world. The ideas that come to us in moments of inspiration arrive in our heads so instantaneously that we may be tempted to give credit for their arrival to ourselves. The generosity of inspiration is frequently seen percolating throughout the world. When the nuts of the nine hazel fall into our world, they fall in many places simultaneously, ensuring that the fruiting wisdom will germinate in at least one location in our world. This explains the seemingly coincidental discovery of inventions or the realization of ideas in several places at the same time: the same idea is in the air, ready to be pulled out of the ether. Only the most promising, dedicated, and attentive become the stock upon which the otherworldly fruit is grafted, for the benefit of all.

"Give thanks for the fruits of the otherworld that you have received and help ripen. Be aware where the nuts of wisdom are falling into your lap; run with the inspiration!"
[From: "The Celtic Spirit" by Caitlin Matthews]