¹ Once Carpre Crom, son of Criomthan, came to Dún Tulcha Aird, that is, to the house of Fínán, king of Fir Maighe, to seek in marriage his mother’s daughter, Cranat, daughter of Buicin son of Can Mór. And Fínán was well pleased at that; and he sent two lads from him to Dísert Cranatan in the middle of Dubh-fedha — Cuainir and his brother; and they told her to come to speak with Fínán. She came with them from the place, and the errand was made known to her, and she asked what they had against her. And one of the men said: “It will be long before you know it of me.” “There is no one of your seed who asks tidings”, said she. That angered him, and he went far ahead of them. And the other man, Cuanir, told her the tidings; and she came along the way westward; and she believed in God fervently, and resolved in her mind that she would not go to a husband, and that she would not mar her virginity, and she knew that they would not let her follow her own counsel. And she plucked her two eyes out of her head and gave them into the hand of the two nuns who were with her, Mael Bracha and Laithche. And Mael Bracha put the eye that was given her into her shift, and Laithche put the other eye upon a tree, with a little moss upon it.

² And the lad went before them, and told the tidings to Fínán; and Fínán rises up lightly, and leaves the chessboard that was being played on the ground, and comes to meet the nun. And when the women saw Fínán, Cranat said:

³ “O Fínán, though it be sorely,” etc.

⁴ And Fínán turned back, and told the tidings to Cairpre; and Cairpre was

⁵ exceeding angry thereat, and said that he would take his kingship from Fínán that day. And he departed to Bithlainn, which is called Tulach Cuilennáin today, and demanded and asked food of Culchán, the saint of the church; and Culchán said, making an offer to him:

⁶ “O king of Cashel, is it well with you
from Culchán — what have you seen?
A tip of berries, will you take the meal?
And the soft bread of Bithlainn.”

⁷ Cairpre refused it, and fasted; and Culchán said that it should be a perpetual fast; and Cairpre said that your church should be a perpetual wilderness, and that none should come to it. And Cairpre died that night through the word of Culchán and of Cranat; and he was brought to Cill Cromglaisi in the morning; and a certain man there said:

⁸ “Dear little corpse that is borne from us eastward,
the little corpse of Cairpre son of Criomthan,
a little corpse that was under beauty,
is borne to Coill Chrom-ghlaisi.”

⁹ Now Fínán gave to Cranat his seed to serve her, and his fortress with its land, from Dobernaitt on the north, and from Ard Ratha to Nem lind-maighrigh, which is called Abhann Mór. And she left great powers to him, though kingship had been taken from him: the fortune of champion and cleric, and colours upon clothing, and the fortune of valour and of land, and his own seed to consume it. And she came on before him as far as the Scath Derc [the Red Shade].

¹⁰ “Is it here”, said they, “that your eye was taken out of your head?” “We shall find use for it now”, said Cranat. “There remains with me your one eye”, said Máel Bracha. “Give it for my head”, said Cránat, “that the wounds may be the lighter for me.” She gave it at once, and it healed after the fashion in which it was best before; and she saw a thing at once, and said: “It is a red shade that I see.” Therefore it is called the Scath Derc [Red Shade]. And she asked the other eye of Laithche, and she said: “I put it into that tree.” And it was taken out then, and it was set into Cranat’s head. And the bark of the tree grew over it, so that that eye was ever crooked. And she said to Laithche that under bark and under leafage her dwelling should ever be; and she said to Máel Bracha that they should be together in heaven and on earth. And they went onward to Dísert Cranatan; and she made this lay:

¹¹ “My little red one, though red its colour,
great is its anger and its trembling;
the man to whom its torment came
was not at ease upon the world.

¹² I have left my eyes here
for the sake of the King of the secrets there;
his house will be known soon,
though one say I am blind.

¹³ Of my own will I have been put out
by the point of my finger in its course —
it is then I should find my torment,
if I were at ease upon the world.

¹⁴ The world has troubled the seed of Adam
with its tremblings and its music;
let him not take the two senses,
whichever be he that takes them not.

¹⁵ Woe to the blind who eats his portion
according to ignorance gloriously;
woe to him who sees not the day of the rain,
woe to him who is in life without his torment.

¹⁶ It is no torment to my mind tonight
to be without the folk of the household under my rule;
I give thanks to Him who has made
even as my body is under rule.

¹⁷ A martyr, dear is the deed,
for the sake of the King of the prison beloved;
a long exile from the Son of Mary —
happy the man who gives it.

¹⁸ Whoever remains not in life, though he be
for God’s sake, let him not blame every day;
trouble that brings to his side,
the King of pure light will not grant.

¹⁹ A submission of guilt to each
that is pure — and the judgement is not foolish;
seek pardon early,
that my red little eye be not a black crooked…
My…

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