School: Rashina, Athlone

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1. Piseoga Connected with Death (continued)

   

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   last of the people leave in the morning others are beginning to come again to pay their respects and so the house is never left without sympathisers. As the time for the funeral draws near the relations begin to come.
   They are met by the people of the house to whom they offer sympathy. Then they visit the corpse and pray and partake of refreshment.
   The priest arrives at the time appointed for the funeral. Clay is blessed and put into the coffin with the corpse. Four people of the same name as the deseased raise the coffin and carry it out of the house.
   The coffin was carried to the graveyard on the shoulders of friends and relatives. A Crier was used when the journey was long. The women followed the corpse and raised the "csom" as soon as the funeral started. When tired they stopped and rested but raised the cry again from time to time.
   The greater the number of criers and the better they cried the greater the tribute to the deceased, consequently good criers were hired to cry and lead the cry. They could better do so after partaking of Uisce beatha. It was undreamt of taking a short cut with a corpse. The grave had usually to be made when funeral arrived in churchyard.

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Language

   English

   Informant

   Mrs Maria Kennedy

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Cloncraff or Bloomhill, Co. Offaly