The Salmon in the Spring Review | Jenn MacCormack

The Salmon in the Spring: The Ecology of Celtic Spirituality
Book Review by Jenn MacCormack
Originally published in Aontacht Vol. 2 Issue 3, 2009.

Newly released at Samhain 2009, Jason Kirkey has published a seminal work on Soul and Nature through Celtic eyes that is sure to be a classic for years to come. This book approaches our modern ecological and psychological crises, eloquently illustrated through Irish myth and Jason’s wide background in the fields of Eco-psychology, Buddhist philosophy and poetry.

The thesis of The Salmon in the Spring is stated on the back cover — “Soul and nature–the inner and outer landscape–are one: they are the wildness of the world and the wildness of the self. To alienate ourselves from one is to alienate ourselves from the Other.” Each of the 11 chapters (plus coda) is very focused, on-topic and powerfully resolved to present a clear picture of the present Earth and human communities’ troubles and how exactly we can begin, today, to personally contribute to the Great Work of re-storying (restoring) our world from consuming to communing.

For the more conservative amongst us, Jason shows admirable ethics in his writing. He carefully delineates between his own thoughts and that of Irish tradition. There are no blurry edges or fuzzy logic. Although he does draw from some Buddhist concepts and ideas, he never tries to pass them off as “Celtic”, and he presents all sides of the issues at hand. Even when dealing with modern Celtic spirituality, he remains objective, blunt but inspiring. He continually invites you to make your own decisions and draw your own conclusions. This is not a preachy book nor an author trying to convert or belittle others. He is conservative in all the right places but liberal in all the other right places too.

The book opens first with a Foreword by his personal friend Frank MacEowen, who has himself written books on the subject of Celtic Spirituality. Frank places before the reader the imperative of our global situation, and exactly how The Salmon in the Spring is so relevant for our times. He sums up admirably: “This book is also an invitation to face, front and center, once and for all, the stark truth that the ecological crisis is not a crisis of the Earth at all, but rather a human self-esteem problem–one that ultimately stems from a tragic state of forgetfulness. As the late, great postmodern philosopher Alan Watts once said, ‘You did not come into this world. You came out of it, like a wave out of the ocean. You are not a stranger here.’ If the human species truly believed this it would completely transform our world. It would translate into who we are and how we are.” Essentially, this is one of the main agendas of The Salmon in the Spring – to help us fall in love with the Earth again, and to act on that love.

The Introduction is a vital part of the book as a whole. In it, Jason puts his book into context–not just in context of the Celtic traditions or even the Earth community, but with the Cosmos itself. He lays before us the hard facts of our physical existence, from the beginnings of cosmogenesis right down to our present day self-destruction. He also sets forth exactly why he wrote The Salmon in the Spring and how he reached that point in his journey. There is no sense of spiritual superiority or self-obsession which characterize so many modern “spiritual” writers today. In explaining briefly his own position, Jason makes sure you are not left wondering about his intentions or aims. A good start to the book and I heavily suggest that anyone reading the book read the Introduction.

The book is divided into two halves: Part One: The Ecology of Perception, and Part Two: The Well and the Branch. The first part is where Jason lays all the groundwork, working through each of his points so that you are not left behind in a flurry of academic words. The second part is then built upon the first, putting the earlier half’s important ideas together to reveal a fuller, more integrated vision of our selves and our world.

Chapter One, “Place and Story” deals specifically with the relevance of myth and story in connection to landscape and identity. As the first chapter, Jason discerningly puts forward his own definitions of “Celtic”, “Druidic” and other often “loaded” terms that can cause misunderstanding. He is clear on his way of meaning so that there can be no possible confusion. He also examines the “mytho-ecology” of exile, something thousands of readers from all over the world will relate to. He presents the Celts as living peoples and cultures, within context of both their history and modernity. Chapter One also sets forth the main Irish myth that his book is based on and returns to again and again — The Second Battle of Maigh Tuireadh.

Chapter Two, “Wild Earth, Wild Mind” explores the human-nature relationship and all its conflicts. Jason navigates his way through the difficult terrain of what it means to be human and exactly what is nature, providing new insights into our longings and desires as a species. He also is careful to distinguish between differentiation from the wild and disassociation (this disassociation being at the heart of our modern industrial problems). This is an important concept that he returns to later in the book.

Chapter Three, “The Fomorian Eye” is a difficult chapter, but difficult in the sense that it deals with the things about ourselves we don’t like or fear. In that sense, this is possibly one of the most important chapters of the book as he shows how destruction of the wild is directly related to soul suppression. He also deals with the oft-misunderstood subject of the Ego, both in psychological and Eastern senses of the word. Jason distinguishes between the functional and representational ego and discusses the role of dualistic thinking and our cultural and personal shadows in keeping us cut off from fully expressing our truest selves.

Chapter Four, “Tuatha De Danann Vision” presents a new interpretation of “ecological perception”. In this chapter, he deals with the numinous all around us and in connection to the earth itself. Jason talks about the Tuatha de Danann, both in literal polytheistic and animistic terms as well as in psychological, metaphorical terms.

Chapter Five, “Dreamtime Circle” is one of the best presentations of the Irish sacred year that I’ve read in a while. First he talks about the differences between developmental and mythic time, and their roles in oral societies as well as modern sensibilities. Then he works his way through each of the four “Celtic” festivals of Samhain, Imbolc, Bealtaine and Lughnasadh from both a traditional and psychological approach. I’m sure you will look at these ancient festivals in a new way.

Chapter Six, “The Birdreign” brings the first part to a close. It is in some ways a summary but also connects the Irish myths once more to our modern times. Using the story of Conaire as the perfect ruler-king, Jason suggests ways in which we ourselves can bring about our own time of peace and transformation in the present era, to create a “New Story” that speaks directly to our ecological and spiritual needs.

Chapter Seven, “The Soul’s Horizon” opens the second half of the book with a clear picture of exactly how land and soul can be interconnected in a sacred way, by using the Irish story of “The Settling of the Manor of Tara” as a basis. Jason works through Ireland and its five ancient provinces as a mandala, moving from East all the way around the four directions to North, with Tara and sovereignty in the center.

Chapter Eight, “Borderlands” is probably the most personal of all the chapters. It examines the longing for place and pilgrimage, while addressing the psychological journey from fragmentation to integration through a living landscape, using Jason’s first journey in Ireland as an example. This is a chapter that anyone not native to a Celtic country will relate to, especially if you too have felt the call of your ancestral lands.

Chapter Nine, “Connla’s Well” discusses the nature of the soul and Firinne or Truth in relation to the wider world and the “ecological perception” first introduced in Chapter Four. In this chapter, Jason explains the mythic image of the sacred Otherworld well and the “salmon in the spring” who feed off wisdom. Invaluable to the work as a whole, he also brings in his interpretation of “dan” or our soul gifts to the world. There is also an interesting section on the “Three Cauldrons” which are connected to health, wisdom and inspiration.

Chapter Ten, “Ecos and Psyche” uses Maeve and the Cailleach, both expressions of the “divine feminine”, to illustrate the core concepts of sovereignty, ecological geasa or taboo and initiation. There is also an excellent interpretation of the traditional Celtic theme of the marriage of the land goddess to the king, and the mytho-ecological implications.

Chapter Eleven, “Empty Mountains” is technically the closing chapter of the book. Jason brings all the ideas and premises presented in the previous chapters full circle, creating a stunning new way of viewing our world, something he calls “silver branch perception” (after the Irish philosopher John Moriarty). In this chapter, Jason goes beyond the duality of Self and Nature and merges them into a deeper unified vision of the cosmos.

The Coda, “The Man Who Had No Story” rounds off the book’s ending. In it, he encourages the reader to go out and find their own story, their own way of being fully alive and participatory with the universe as a living, evolving process–which is ultimately Jason’s obvious hope for the book.

Afterwards, there are a couple excellent resource sections at the end. There is a Glossary of Terms, which explains some of the more academic or personal terms he used in the book, and is a good way of getting an idea of the sort of things he talks about throughout the whole work. This is followed by an excellent Notes section, and a Bibliography which is a good place to start if you are interested in reading further. Jason also includes a Resources section, which has links to particularly relevant websites. The book in its first edition does not contain an index, which is a bit lamentable, but it is possible that in future editions, an index will appear.

In total, The Salmon in the Spring is 283 pages long. The cover is well designed, the typesetting easy to read, and I love how each chapter is divided into subsections which helps when browsing or scanning quickly, as well as to get a stronger impression of the chapter as a whole. You can purchase the book either directly from Jason’s website (http://www.jasonkirkey.com) or from Amazon, for $17.95. If you buy directly from his website, you can request the book be signed.

I was impressed with the depth and vision of Jason Kirkey’s book. He is a rare voice, both professional and personal, and I am excited to see what impact this book has on the Druidic and other such communities, and also what other works this author could go on to produce. I don’t think you will be disappointed, whether you approach The Salmon in the Spring from within an Irish or other Celtic spiritual tradition, or as a philosopher, ecologist or psychologist. It is fluent in many disciplines and therefore speaks with wider influence and understanding directly to our place as humans in the more-than-human world.

ISBN 978-0-9799246-6-8