I would like to ask one of the most noble Ollamh's about the mysterious 'treochair metre' in traditional Irish poetry. So far I have only been privy to snatches of information and whispers of form, some say it is the Druidic equivelant of a haiku... and to date I have only been able to find one single example by a scholar called Mr. A.S. Kline. Whether this is a translation of an actual original verse I do not know, or one of his own compositions, perhaps...;

Cen Áinius ( From the 9th Century Irish - treochair metre)


Cen áinius
in caingen do-rigénus;
nech ro-charus ro-cráidius.

(No joy for us,
In that deep vow I made for us,
Cruel to what was precious.

Graciously,
Except god came between us then,
I'd given what he asked of me.

Unseeingly,
He takes the road, away from me,
Pain now, but then eternity…)

By A.S. Kline:

http://www.tonykline.co.uk/PITBR/ASKpoetry/orighome.htm

...Yes, a strange form indeed; three stanza's, of 4-8-8 syllables. In the Gaelic example there is alliteration occurring in each line. The subject matter is most intriguing... it seems to begin with a statement of observation or a question, the 2nd line a retort and then a resolution in the last line;


(X x x a)
x X x x x x x a
x x x x x x X a

Any comments on this one? Could we incorporate it into the College curriculum?

Bright blessings

Draoi.