An Interview with Maureen Concannon
AN INTERVIEW WITH MAUREEN CONCANNON
Below are excerpts from an interview with Maureen Concannon, who will be running three different workshops and leading a discussion at Jung in Ireland's "Sacred Landscape: a Study/Tour in Celtic Mythology" in the Spring of 2008. Maureen is a psychologist educated both in the US and in Dublin, where she has lived for over fifty years. She is a member of the Psychological Association of Ireland and the American Psychological Association. Maureen is an expert on the fascinating subject of the Sheela na gigs. Her publications include two histories of Irish clans, a book entitled "Sheela na Gig: The Sacred Whore," and "Sheela Cards: A Tool for Transformation."
 So, tell me, what exactly are the Sheela na gigs?
Sheela na gigs are ancient stone carvings which were religious symbols of the Divine Feminine. They are vestiges of a pre-historic era in Ireland, when the deity was worshipped in feminine form. The word Sheela comes from two Sanskrit root sounds that mean 'Peace of the Earth'. The Sheela was Maiden, Mother and Crone—she was Creator, Transformer and Death Dealer. The land and the people were hers. Today over a hundred Sheelas can be found on the ruins of ancient churches, castles, towers and town walls in Ireland, Scotland and England.
How did the Sheela na gigs survive all this time, especially after the arrival of Christianity?
Even when Christianity came to Ireland around 350 A.D., the Sheela continued to be an integral part of worship. Carvings of the Divine Feminine were placed on ancient churches and brought by Irish missionaries to Scotland, England and the European Continent during the Dark Ages. She was known then as the Divine Hag. Even when the Roman Church condemned this practice, the carvings continued to appear down to the 13th century, and when they were removed from the churches they were placed on the castles of the nobility. They are the only evidence of a tradition that survived 1500 years of Roman Christianity.
How did you become interested in the Sheela na gig?
My friend worked in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin and told me about the Sheelas. She was upset because the museum didn't honor them; instead, they kept them in storage in the basement. I went into the museum's basement and saw them, and that was the beginning of many, many years of research. I've also gone out in the fields of Ireland, Scotland and England, and in October I discovered one at Carcassonne in France—none of which have been documented before.
How do Jung's ideas apply to the Sheela?
It was Carl Jung who inspired me in the pursuit of the Sheela! He had stressed the importance of seeking out not only classical mythology, but probing also into the myths in one’s own roots and culture. Like the alchemists, he stressed the importance of the sacred inner marriage leading to integration—balance between the masculine/feminine. For the priests of early Irish Christianity, the Divine Hag was the balance to the Masculine Trinity. Jung had the courage to include the spiritual dimension in his psychology and the importance of not repressing the feminine.
 What does the Sheela have to teach us about society today?
The druid priests of the early Irish church knew that aspects of the Divine Nature can be denied and ignored only at peril. Patriarchal religions and societies have been ignoring the feminine aspects of creativity, nurture, compromise and balance, in favor of the masculine conquest and authoritarian control to the point dangerously near no return.
Synchronistically, just when she is most needed, Sheelas have been reappearing to remind us that as the Goddess of the Land and of Sovereignty, she has the power to divorce the unjust king and when she does, famine and pestilence follow. Somewhat like the apparitions of the Virgin Mary during the last 150 years around the world, her message is one of peace. Inner peace, through inner balance.
How can the Sheela help people in their own lives?
I think Sheela represents different things at different times to different people. An artist and I worked together to make a set of cards with a different Sheela represented on each. Each of these Sheelas represents a different characteristic, like patience or creativity. I feel synchronicity operates in the cards a person chooses. It helps people delve inside themselves and deal with the issues they need to focus on. We see what we need to see in each card.
How can the Sheela help with those in mid-life?
Whatever you need to attend to you see! When I first saw the Sheela, I saw the aging process. This is just what I needed to see at that time in my life. Examining that issue freed me and allowed me to move more easily into the next stage of my life. A friend saw the freedom in Sheela that she needed to express in her life and her art. Sheelas can help those in mid-life individuate and transform themselves in many positive ways.
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