Tara

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Tara, Temair, Teamhair, Temuir; the anglicized Tara derives from the genitive form Teamhrach [Ir. Temair, dark one (?); spectacle (?); elevated place (?); assembly hall (?); free-standing eminence of wide prospect; the Lebor Gabála contrives the etymology téa múr, Téa's wall]. Hill (507 feet) in Co. Meath, 6 miles SE of Navan, where the Irish ard rí [high king] is said to have had his seat. One of the most famous sites in the Celtic world, partially because of well-meaning but romantic misreadings of evidence by 19th-century poets and fiction-writers, Tara is unspectacular to visit, yet excavations there have yielded abundant and interesting information. According to the pseudo-history Lebor Gabála [Book of Invasions], the mortal Milesians named the site Temair after Éremón's queen, Téa, displacing the earlier name, Druim Caín. Other names applied to Tara are: Cathair Crofhind, Druim Léith, and Fordruim. Forms of the name Temair survive elsewhere, e.g. Tara hill (831 feet), 4 miles NE of Gorey, Co. Wexford.

From the earliest Irish history Tara was an important centre of religious ceremony, sacred to Medb, then considered a goddess, or to her double, Medb Lethderg [red side]. It had been a burial site as early as the second millennium BC. Tara was the seat of kings who were also over-kings of the region and heads of the Uí Néill federation, and thus the most powerful leaders in all Ireland. Central to each kingship was the ritual mating with the local earth-goddess in a ritual banquet, the feis temrach [feast of Tara] at Samain time; see also KINGSHIP; BANAIS RÍGHE. The Uí Néill were named for Niall Noígiallach [of the Nine Hostages], who had supposedly seized Tara from the Leinstermen in the 5th century, before Christianization. As the Irish rule of descent (see DERBFHINE) did not foster an orderly distribution of property, Niall's many sons carved up what had been his hegemony. Later ‘king of Tara’ was only an honorary title for a ruler whose seat was often far distant. Beginning with Sláinge, said to have reigned in the 20th century BC, the Annals list many monarchs of Tara, both pagan and Christian. The advance of Christianity may have led to the suppression of the highly pagan feis temrach; Diarmait mac Cerbaill was the last to celebrate it. Later ecclesiastical writers invented the story of St Rúadán's curse upon Diarmait in a Church/State dispute. Testimony in the Annals implies that Tara was by no means abandoned even two centuries later. The Uí Néill continued to refer to their leaders as ‘kings of Tara’, although the site itself became overgrown. In time the hill also attracted one of the largest of the medieval fairs [OIr. óenach; ModIr. aonach], held triennially at Samain, and comparable to those held at Tailtiu, Tlachtga, and Uisnech; the legendary king Ollam Fódla is thought to have begun the fair.

Much of the action of early Irish literature either takes place at Tara or touches upon it, but always from a distant narrative point of view, i.e. on the assumption that events portrayed had taken place in the past. The stories of Conaire Mór depict a magical kingdom at Tara. The most important mythical king of Tara is Cormac mac Airt, whose court may have been derived from Uí Néill ambitions or aspirations. The young Fionn mac Cumhaill earns his first heroic distinction by slaying the ‘burner’, Aillén mac Midgna, who comes to prey upon the ‘palace’ each year. Lóegaire mac Néill is the king of Tara who meets St Patrick.

Many features of the Tara site bear English names of modern provenance, some from an imaginative reading of the Dindshenchas; their long-term popularity makes them irresistible, even when there is scant evidence to shore up their purported associations. These include:

Adamnán's Cross. Upright stone attributed to St Adamnán, St Colum Cille's biographer, containing vague outlines of a female figure, possible a Sheela-na-gig.

The ‘Banqueting Hall’ [Ir. tech midchuarta, teach miodhchuarta]. Rectangular earthwork, 750 by 90 feet, which does not match the descriptions of the five-sided banqueting hall in medieval literature. Recent scholarship favours an entrance-way for horses and chariots.

Cormac's House [Ir. teach Cormaic]. Small earthwork enclosed by the Fort/Rath of Kings (see below) at whose centre stands the Lia Fáil (see below). Named for the mythical king of Tara, Cormac mac Airt.

Fort/Rath of the Kings [Ir. ráth na ríogh]. Also known as the Royal Enclosure. Large, oval hill-fort, 950 by 800 feet, which nearly encircles three other earthworks (Cormac's House, the Mound of Hostages, the Royal Seat) and the Lia Fáil.

Fort/Rath of the Synods. Trivallate earth-work once thought to have been the site of a meeting between St Patrick and St Brendan as well as other non-contemporaries. In the late 19th century British Israelites mutilated portions of the earthworks looking for the Ark of the Covenant. Later excavations showed timber palisades from the 1st and 3rd centuries AD.

Lia Fáil [stone of destiny]. Twelve-foot erect pillar-stone, 6 feet above ground, made of granular limestone, not quarried in the district, raised to honour the dead of the 1798 revolution. Found lying horizontally near the Mound of Hostages, it was moved to the centre of Cormac's House and is now marked with the letters ‘R.I.P.’ Assertions that it is identical with the ancient Lia Fáil or mythical Fál are less than convincing.

Mound of the Hostages [Ir. dumha na ngiall]. Small earthworks at the north end of the Fort/ Rath of the Kings. Records indicate that the ‘Lia Fáil’ now standing at Cormac's House (see above) should have been here before 1798.

Ráth Gráinne [Gráinne's fort, Gráinne's enclosure]. A burial-mound between the Banqueting Hall and the Sloping Trenches, fancifully thought to be the place whence Gráinne eloped with Diarmait while betrothed to Fionn mac Cumhaill.

Ráth Lóegaire, Ráth Laoghaire [Laoghaire's fort, Leary's fort]. Large, univallate ring-fort associated with Lóegaire mac Néill, the king of Tara at the time of St Patrick.

Ráth Meidbe, Rath Maeve [Ir., Maeve's fort]. A univallate hill-fort, 750 feet in diameter, half a mile S of the centre of Tara. Although queen of Connacht, Medb is cited at Tara in Fled Bricrenn [Briccriu's Feast] and elsewhere.

Royal Seat [Ir. Forradh]. Small earthworks adjacent to Cormac's House (see above).

Sloping Trenches [Ir. Claoin-fhearta]. Two unusual ring-earthworks in the far north-west of the site.

Bibliography

See George Petrie , History and Antiquities of Tara Hill (Dublin, 1839);
Josef Baudiš , ‘On the Antiquity of the Kingship at Tara’, Ériu, 8 (1916), 101–7;
R. A. S. Macalister , Tara: A Pagan Sanctuary of Ancient Ireland (London, 1931);
Seán P. Ó Ríordáin , Tara: The Monuments on the Hill (Dundalk, 1954, 1971);
‘Tara’, in G. E. Daniel (ed.), Myth of Legend (London, 1954), 49–59;
D. A. Binchy , ‘The Fair of Tailtiu and the Feast of Tara’, Ériu, 18 (1958), 113–38;
E. Estyn Evans , Prehistoric and Early Christian Ireland, a Guide (London, 1966);
Francis J. Byrne , Irish Kings and High-Kings (London, 1973);
Michael Herity and and George Eogan , Ireland in Prehistory (London, 1977).

Tara, a prehistoric complex associated with the high kingship of Ireland. The Hill of Tara is a lowlying ridge situated midway between Navan and Dunshaughlin in Co. Meath. The principal monuments consist of a neolithic passage tomb, a cursus or linear earthwork, a hillfort, a stone pillar reputed to be the inauguration stone known as the Lia Fáil, numerous barrows, and other enclosures of uncertain date. Limited archaeological excavations were conducted in the 1950s and in 1997. The original meaning of the Irish name Temair is obscure. It has been explained as meaning ‘a height with a view’, ‘a sacred space’, or ‘the gates to the otherworld’.

Tara has been regarded traditionally as the seat of the high kings of Ireland. A recurring theme in early Irish mythology is that of the exalted status of the kingship of Tara. The god Lug, the most potent god in the Irish pantheon, becomes the king of Tara in the tale Cath Maige Tuired (The Battle of Moytura). The goddesses Medb and Eithne, renowned goddesses of fertility and sovereignty, represent the female aspect of the kingship of Tara. The universal principles of kings ruling justly, peacefully, prosperously, and truthfully, summed up in the phrase fír flathemon (‘the justice of a ruler’), govern the actions of heroic kings of Tara such as Conaire Mór mac Etarscéla and Cormac mac Airt. The king of Tara was bound by taboos, some of which are literary fictions, but others of which are probably genuine axioms devised to safeguard this concept of fír flathemon.

In political terms, it is unlikely that any king had sufficient authority to dominate the whole of Ireland prior to the 9th century. However, the title rí Temro or rex Temro (‘king of Tara’) was always accorded a special status. Early historical references to Tara, in documents dated primarily to the 7th and 8th centuries but which reflect vaguely events of earlier centuries, describe contention for the kingship between rival dynasties from the Laigin, the Ulaid and the Uí Néill. The latter attempted to dominate Tara, both politically and conceptually, from the 7th century to the 11th century. When the high kingship of Ireland became a more realistic institution in the early 11th century, control of Dublin and other coastal towns, such as Limerick or Waterford, was more important to an aspiring high king than dominance over Tara. The old capital retained its symbolic significance, however, by continuing to evoke associations of strength, nobility, and legitimacy of power.

Of the many popular tales associated with Tara, the most renowned tale is the dramatic account of St Patrick lighting the Paschal fire on the Hill of Slane and of his confrontation with Lóegaire, king of Tara, and his druids at Tara. It is contained in a biography of Patrick written in the 7th century by Muirchú moccu Machtheni. Tara, according to legend, was abandoned when St Rúadán of Lorrha cursed it and its king, Diarmait mac Cerbaill (d. c.565), the last king of Tara to celebrate the old fertility rite Feis Temro. While this tale was probably composed to explain the official adoption of Christianity by the kings of Tara, archaeological evidence suggests that Tara's monuments are prehistoric in date, predominantly late neolithic and Bronze Age, with little indication of activity taking place into the historic period.

Tara's potency as a site of symbolic importance persisted into the modern period, mainly reflected in the custom of gathering there as part of military or political campaigns. The hill was the focus of activity during the rising of 1641 and of a skirmish during the 1798 insurrection. It was also the scene of one of Daniel O'Connell's ‘monster meetings’ held on 15 August 1843, a meeting reputedly attended by 1 million people.

Bibliography

Bhreathnach, E. , Tara: A Select Bibliography (1995)
Macalister, R. A. S. , Tara: A Pagan Sanctuary of Ancient Ireland (1931)
Newman, C. , Tara: An Archaeological Survey (1997)
Petrie, G. , ‘On the History and Antiquities of Tara Hill’, Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, 18 (1839)

Edel Bhreathnach

Tārā. An important female deity in Tibetan Buddhism. Tārā is a Sanskrit word the precise meaning of which is uncertain (perhaps ‘star’), but is understood by Tibetans to mean ‘saviouress’. She is regarded with great affection and devotion by Tibetans, and her cult occupies a status similar to that of the Virgin Mary in Christianity. She is closely associated with Avalokiteśvara (Tib., Chenrezi), the Bodhisattva of compassion (karuṇā), of whom she is said to be an emanation. According to one account, she sprang from the tears of Chenrezi as he was about to enter final nirvāṇa. When he looked back and saw the suffering beings who still remained to be saved he wept and decided to remain until all beings had reached salvation. Tārā embodies and expresses the compassionate nature of this Bodhisattva. Many sources regard her as a Buddha and speak of her as the ‘mother of all the Buddhas’. The cult of Tārā became widespread in Tibet with the arrival of Atiśa in 1042, who was a lifelong devotee. In iconography, Tārās of various colours are encountered, the two most common being white and green. The former was the earlier and the latter has a closer association with tantric sources. In all, 21 Tārās are recognized in Tibetan Buddhism. These are referred to in the main liturgical text associated with her cult, Homage to the Twenty-One Tārās, brought from India by Dharmadra in the 11th century. Each Tārā has a different function (curing illnesses, averting disasters, etc.) and each has its own distinct iconographical gestures (mudrās), and sacred syllables (mantras). The main Tibetan schools revere different forms of Tārā, but her mantra om tāre tuttāre ture svāhā (meaning roughly ‘Praise to Tārā, Hail!) is one of the most popular invocations for all Tibetans.

Tārā (Skt. ‘Star’, Tib. sgrol.ma or drolma ‘She who saves’; possibly from Skt., tārayati, ‘crossing, transcending’). Tibet's most important deity. She is a bodhisattva who for many Tibetans has already become a Buddha, having vowed—on being advised of the spiritual advantages of male rebirth—never to relinquish her female form. Tārā has the epithet ‘mother of all the Buddhas’, and is viewed with great affection by Tibetans. Originally she was a Tantric deity, prominent in 7th-cent. tantras. By the 8th cent. her cult was established at Borobodur in Java, in itself showing the early extent of Tantric influence. Although her appearance in Tibet has been noted as 8th cent., it was not until the arrival of Atiśa in 1042 that worship of Tārā became widespread.

Tibetan Buddhism recognizes twenty-one Tārās, according to the definitive text on her worship, Homages to the Twenty One Tārās, brought from India by Darmadra in the 11th cent. Each Tārā has a different function (averting disasters, wish-fulfilling, increasing wisdom, healing, etc.), each has a particular colour, mudrā, and mantra, and each emanates from Green Tārā as source. After the mantra of Chenrezi (om maṇi padme hum), the mantra of Tārā (om tāre tuttāre ture svāhā) is the most commonly heard on the lips of the Tibetan people.

Tara The ancient coronation and assembly place of the High Kings of IRELAND, in County Meath. Remains dating back to about 2000 BC have been found there and there is evidence of a network of halls, enclosures, and fortresses. The pillar stone may have been the inauguration stone of the kings of Tara. In the 4th century there were five tribal kingdoms: Ulster, Meath, Leinster, Munster, and Connaught, which nominally acknowledged the overlordship of the High King (the ruler of Tara). Conn was reputedly the first High King (“Ard Ri”). Niall of the Nine Hostages, possibly the son of a British prince, ruled there in about 400 and his son Leary received St Patrick there in 432. Tara appears to have been abandoned in the 6th century.

Tara , village, Co. Meath, E Republic of Ireland. The Hill of Tara (507 ft/155 m high) was the seat of the high kings of Ireland from ancient times until the 6th cent. and may have been the site of religious ceremonies in prehistoric times. A statue of St. Patrick, who preached there, is supposed to mark the location of the Lia Fail, the Coronation Stone of the ancient high kings (see under coronation ). There are six raths (earthwork enclosures), the largest of which is 850 ft (259 m) in diameter. The hill was the scene of the defeat of the Danes in 980 and, some believe, the Irish insurgents in 1798, and of a mass meeting in 1843 addressed by Daniel O'Connell; hence its importance as a symbol of Irish nationalism.

Tara ♀ From the name of a place in Meath, seat of the high kings of Ireland, named with Gaelic teamhair ‘hill’. It has been used as a girl's name in America since the 1940s, probably as a result of the success of the film Gone with the Wind (1939), in which the estate of this name has great emotional significance. In Britain it was not much used before the late 1960s. Its popularity then was influenced by the character Tara King in the television series The Avengers.

Variant: Tarra.

Tara ♀ Sanskrit: ‘star’ or ‘asterism’, a byname of Durga, especially in her meditative and magical guise; also the name of the wife of Brhaspati, preceptor of the gods, and mother of Budha (the Indian equivalent of the god Mercury); in Mahayana Buddhism, the name of the wife of Buddha, and of a Buddhist goddess; in Jain texts, the name of a female deity.

Tara a hill in County Meath in the Republic of Ireland, site in early times of the residence of the high kings of Ireland and still marked by ancient earthworks.

Tara ♂ Sanskrit:
1. Probably meaning ‘carrying’ or ‘saviour’, an epithet of Rudra, and of Vishnu.

2. ‘Shining’.

Tara (Teamhair) Meath. ‘Conspicuous place’.

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