AN CORRMHÍOL: RÉAMHRÁ
le Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh
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3. SCOTIA SCOILTE:
John Scottus Eriugena
agus John Duns Scotus
Is cosúil gur throideadh na cathanna a scrios intinn Suibhne i rith an naoú haois, le linn don Nua-Phlatónach Iohannes Scottus Eriugena a bheith beo (c.800-877). Bhí Iohannes i líne intleachtúil Oraigéin agus Greagóir Nyassa:
“Glactar leis go raibh sé ag teagasc na n-ealaíon liobralach i scoil an Rí, Séarlas Maol, i gceantar Laon, gar do Pharás, sa tréimhse 840-850 [...] Ba chuid de scéim oideachais Mhartianus [Capella] agus Iohannes araon é léann na Gréige a athbheochan.[...] Bhí Iohannes ar a chompord le fealsúnacht Mhartianus, Nua-Phlatónachas na linne. [...] Samhlaíonn Greagóir [Nyassa (c.335-c.395)] íomhá Dé mar fhórsa a thagann ón mbarr anuas. Téann sé i bhfeidhm ar an intinn, agus téann an intinn i bhfeidhm ar an domhan. Ach tá fórsa eile ag obair ina choinne – caithfidh a bheith, i gcruinne na Nua-Phlatónach. Sin é “an t-ábhar” (xulé), rud a fhéachtar air mar fhórsa ainrialach atá i gcónaí ag iarraidh brúchtadh aníos in intinn an duine, sa tslí is go gcailleann rudaí a gcruth agus nach féidir leis an intinn an domhan ábhartha a “rialú agus a dhaingniú” mar ba cheart. Chun é seo a sheachaint, caithfidh an intinn a bheith i dteagmháil leis an diacht agus leis an domhan araon.”
(‘Iohannes Ó Éirinn agus Máistrí na Gréige: Léamh ar Shaothar Iohannes Scottus Eriugena’ le hEoghan Mac Aogáin, Coiscéim, 2009, ll 1,4,49,50)
“In the nineteenth century, Hegel and his followers, interested in the history of philosophy from a systematic point of view, read Eriugena rather uncritically as an absolute idealist and as the father of German idealism. [...] Eriugena is an original philosopher who articulates the relation between God and creation in a manner which preserves both divine transcendence and omnipresence. His theory of human nature is rationalist and intellectualist. His theory of place and time as defining structures of the mind anticipates Kant, his dialectical reasoning prefigures Hegel. But above all, Eriugena is a mystic who emphasizes the unity of human nature with God.”
(Dermot Moran, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy 20o4, revised 2019)
Bhí dhá fhealsamh ann ag an raibh ainmneacha an-chosúil lena chéile. Go nádúrtha tá seo ag cur mearbhall ar dhaoine. Is Éireannach é an chéad duine seo thuas, John Scottus Eriugena (c.800-877). Is Albanach é am fealsamh eile, John Duns Scotus (1265/66-1308). Ach cad, mar sin, is bun leis an ainm “Scot(t)us”?:
“Tugadh Scotti ar mhuintir na hÉireann i scríbhinní Laidine chomh fada siar le 369 AD. ‘Clann mhac na Scot (Scotbhéarla = an Ghaeilge) agus clann iníonacha na ríthe’ a thugann Pádraig Naofa ar phobal na tíre seo san Fhaoistin a scríobh sé san aois dár gcionn. Agus Imperator Scottorum a thug Brian Bóramha air féin nuair a bhain sé an t-ardríochas amach. Faightear na focail ‘Éire’ agus ‘Scottus’ i dteannta a chéile in ainm Eoin Scottus Eriugena (c.800-877). ‘Eoin an tÉireannach a rugadh (gineadh) in Éirinn’ is ciall leis an ainm a thugtaí air. (Um an dtaca sin bhí Scotti eile ann, Gaeil Alban.) Deirtear gurbh é Eoin an scoláire ba mhó agus ba bhunúsaí dár bhronn Éire ar an mhór-roinn sna meánaoiseanna. [...] Bhí greann agus gastacht intinne aige chomh maith. Lá, agus é féin agus an t-impire [Séarlas Maol] ina suí chun boird ag ól, d’fhiafraigh Séarlas de, ‘quid distat inter sottum et Scottum?’ (cad é an difríocht idir meisceoir (sottus) agus Éireannach (Scottus). Fuair sé freagra prap. ‘Tabula tantum’ (oiread an bhoird), arsa Eoin.”
(‘Ciste Cúrsaí Reatha’ le Jim O’Donnell agus Seán de Fréine, An Foras Riaracháin, 1992, lgh. 96,97)
“However, there is also the possible early medieval meaning of ‘Scot(t)us’ which we find in ‘Johannes Scottus Eriugena’. In those centuries, or at any rate before about 1000, ‘Scotus’ could refer both to a Scot(sman) and to an Irishman, as ‘Eriugena’ itself explicitly indicates: born in Ireland (Eriu). However, in thirteenth- and fourteenth- century Latin ‘Scotus’ only means Scottish.[...] John Duns, born in Scotland [...] became the showpiece of Augustinian thought, the mainstream of Western theology and philosophy, within a few years through the quality of his thought as master of theology at the University of Paris. [...] Duns Scotus summarizes and remolds the creative contributions of the thirteenth century and the upshot of this development is the hidden fact that Scotus is still a big power in seventeenth-century philosophy.”
(The Philosophy of John Duns Scotus, Antonie Vos, Edinburgh University Press, 2006, pp 22, 1, 613)
Is cosúil go raibh an-tionchar ag oidhreacht smaointe John Duns Scotus ar Fhorógra Obair Bhrothaig (1320). “Forógra Saoirse” na hAlban a bhí seo:
“The Declaration of Arbroath...repeats the message that a king does not rule except by the consent of those who are ruled, for it states that Robert [The Bruce] was made prince and king ‘by the due consent and assent of us all’ [...] My conclusion is that while Wallace was fighting for Scottish independence, Scotus was developing precisely the intellectual framework that the Scots within a few years would deploy in the chief documents that defined that independence.”
(‘John Duns Scotus and the Idea of Independence’ le Alexander Broadie)Níl sanasaíocht an ainm “Scot” féin soiléir, áfach. Creideann daoine áirithe gur focal míleata ba bhun leis. Baint ag focal boghdóireachta leis, b’fhéidir (cf Béarla “shoot/ shot”). Bhí “nous” ag na Rómánaigh pé scéal é. Claíomh gearr Ceiltibéarach ba bhun le dearadh an gladius acu féin, is cosúil. Mar sin tá cuid den bharúil go bhfuil baint de chineál éigin ag an ainm Laidine “Scotti” le focal Ceilteach ar chlaíomh. Focal xiofoideach, mar sin. “Scotticism” tráth, b’fhéidir. Bhí na Rómánaigh oscailte leis ar aon nós. Murab ionann is mo mhúinteoir meánscoile cóir. Rinne sise déscaradh idir focal, nó briathar, (logos) agus ábhar (hulé) sa chás seo. Cineál dícheannadh cultúrtha, go pointe áirithe.
“And who ever heard
Such a sight unsung
As a severed head
With a grafted tongue?”
(John Montague, ‘The Rough Field’ [Garbh Faiche = Garvaghey] 1972. - Luaite san leabhar ‘Wars of Words: The Politics of Language in Ireland 1537-2004’ le Tony Crowley, Oxford University Press, 2005, lch. 209)
“Scotticism”. Tháinig an tuiscint chugam de réir a chéile. Bhí rún ag ár gcóras oideachais deireadh a chur le caint Albanach, agus Béarla a bhrú orainn ina áit. Sa bhaile bhí mé ag léamh Orwell:
“The purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits proper to the devotees of Ingsoc, but to make all other modes of thought impossible. It was intended that when Newspeak had been adopted once and for all and oldspeak forgotten, a heretical thought – that is, a thought diverging from the principles of Ingsoc - should be literally unthinkable, at least so far as thought is dependent on words.”
(George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Harmondsworth, 1968, pp. 241-2.)
Ó Acht oideachais 1872 ar aghaidh b’ionann “oideachas” agus “Béarla” in Albain. Ní raibh sa Ghàidhlig de réir dealraimh ach saghas caint Apáitseach (boghdóireacht?) dearmadta i measc chnoc i bhfad uainn agus i bhfad ó shin. Fáisceadh ár dteanga féin as ár gcuid scamhóg agus as ár n-anamacha. Cad ba bhrí leis an líne dhearg úd faoin fhocal Albannach im’ aiste scoile ach “unthinkable”, “doshamhlaithe”?
“The weakening of Gaelic was accelerated by the 1872 Education Act, as is described in the following account of Strathnairn:
‘Prior to 1872 there had been at least two Presbyterian church-run schools in Strathnairn. In common with other similar schools throughout the Highlands, the main language of education would have been Gaelic. However, following handover of these schools to the Government authorities, English now became established as the only language of education. The suppression of Gaelic that followed (even where spoken in the playground) was widespread throughout the Highlands and has been renowned for its harshness and brutality. Many are the reports of children suffering severe physical punishment for daring to speak their native language while at school. Gaelic now became stigmatised as an inferior language and was persecuted with such success that the language has been in massive decline in our Strath, and beyond, since the Act of 1872 was implemented.’ (strathnairnheritage.org.uk).In 1881, 79% of the population of Strathnairn still spoke Gaelic — 991 individuals within a population of 1,252 (Cumming 1980 p.529). The Strath’s last speaker of the local dialect died in 1984, although there are families and individuals living there today who still use Gaelic as their daily vernacular.”
(Roddy Maclean, ‘Place-Names of Inverness and Surrounding Area: Ainmean-àite ann an Sgìre prìomh bhaile na Gàidhealtachd, NatureScot/ Bòrd na Gàidhlig, 2021, p.13)
Dúirt George Steiner in “Language and Silence” gur mhill na Naitsithe an Ghearmáinis don fhilíocht, nach mór. Cé chomh fada, mar sin, atá ár gcuid smaointe ag brath ar ár stór pearsanta focail? Sin í an cheist faoi chaibidil im’ intinn óg ag Acadamh Mhagh Leamhna ag deireadh na seascaidí.
“Ní hionann mo chomhfhios agus mise, ní hionann mise agus mo chomhfhios.” (Liam Mac Cóil, ‘An Dochtúir Áthas’, Leabhar Breac, 1994, lch. 140)
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1. DÚCHAS SCOILTE:
2. INTINN SCOILTE:
3. SCOTIA SCOILTE:
John Scottus Eriugena agus John Duns Scotus
4. AN TSEAN-GHRÉIG SCOILTE:
5. HOLLYWOOD SCOILTE:
6. OLLSMACHTACHAS SCOILTE:
7. CRITICÍ SCOILTE:
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An Corrmhíol
Simon Ó Faoláin
(Réamhrá úr Gaeilge le Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh)
(Réamhrá úr Gaeilge le Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh)
Lth/Pgs 94
ISBN 6660012180325
COISCÉIM 2018
LITRÍOCHT €7.50
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Aistriúchán go Gaeilge den dán
A’ Mheanbhchuileag
le Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh (1980)
(Tá an leagan Gaeilge móide an leagan Gàidhlige sa leabhar seo)
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(Tá an leagan Gaeilge móide an leagan Gàidhlige sa leabhar seo)
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English online HERE
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