It’s likely that many of us would have heard tales of a rider in the dark that has no head. A headless horseman that scours the countryside bringing death and darkness to all those it comes across stories of headless horsemen were told in several European countries as well as in many more from all around the world but today’s video will focus mainly on the dullahan a spirit that appears in the Irish folklore which also means it can be classified as a fairy but we’re certainly not talking about Tinker Bell nor the type of fairy they each stick on top of your Christmas tree now in this case the term fairy simply refers to spirits and supernatural entities found within European folklore as with many aspects of Irish folklore the Dullahan does have Celtic influences stemming from the worship of chrome Diouf a Celtic deity whose name meant to the Dark One and who himself was thought to have an African origin the worship of chrome dev is often associated of human sacrifice and perhaps that is why the Dullahan is seen as a spirit that comes to claim one soul it’s usually depicted as a headless rider dressed in black riding a black horse though at times it can be seen riding a carriage drawn by six black horses which is usually referred to as the silent coach or the death coach this idea of the dullahan as the coachman to the afterlife is an interesting idea and one that we will discuss later in some more detail now back to the rider iteration of the Dullahan despite being what many considered to be the Headless Horseman the Dullahan wasn’t always seen as a man as many believes they could also appear as a female but there’s no discernible differences between the male and female version they both still rode a black horse and carried their head around with them little harness most commonly depicted as a male figure the head of the Dullahan may not be attached to its shoulders but that doesn’t mean that it’s not of any use the head itself is described as having an ever-present sinister grin with eyes that constantly move from left and whose glare can be seen in the darkest of night.
Dullahan – The Headless Rider From Irish Mythology
There were stories that saved the head of the horsemen has been imbued with supernatural sight that allows the horsemen to see great distances by lifting his head up high above where his head should have been the doula harkens count the land before setting out on his right so one exactly does the dullahan do other than roam the countryside looking menacing we mentioned earlier that those who come across the dullahan rarely lived to tell the tale but some do survive it said that if you are not who the horseman seeks but are still unlucky enough to cross his path he may spare you but this still comes at a price and that price is your sight anyone who looks directly at the Dullahan will immediately be blinded and even if you divert your gaze the horseman will ensure that you never see again by either throwing a bucket of blood into your eyes or lashing him with a whip made from a human spine neither of which sound particularly fun now for those of you thinking well that’s fine I’ll just shut my eyes draw the curtains and bolt the door so the Dullahan can never get to me sadly that wouldn’t really work has all manner of locks gates and windows fly open when the horseman is near even if you happen to be the greatest hide-and-seek player of all time the Dullahan simply only has to say your name and you’ll drop dead essentially what I’m saying is if the Dullahan is after you you may as well say goodbye to your loved ones because you can’t hide and you certainly can’t run but the horseman does have one weakness an aversion to gold so carrying around a piece of gold such as a coin may buy you some time but it certainly won’t deter him forever as we mentioned earlier.
There are tales of the dullahan riding through the countryside in a horse-drawn carriage even being referred to as the coachman to the afterlife listen it’s off is quite interesting because it’s a recurring theme that we’ve seen other cultures across the world Greek mythology has its boatman and Hermes Egypt has its guide an abyss Japan has the Shinigami and in more modern times we will know of the Grim Reaper the de’lon essentially performs the same role except in his carriage that travels so fast it would set fire to nearby bushes and grass the carriages arrival signaled the death of a family member but unlike the Banshee that was seen primarily as a warning wherever the silent coach went and death shortly followed I guess the one question that most of you have been waiting to be answered this entire video is whether there’s any significance behind the dullahan being headless now this could definitely just be to make the Dullahan appear more terrifying but I did come across some stories where the Celtic people believed the head was where the soul was located when an enemy was defeated in battle their head would be taken as a trophy because it was seen as a great source of spiritual power and protection from one’s enemies and the supernatural there have been quite a few modern interpretations of the Dullahan and the legend of the Headless Horseman but one of the most famous being Washington Irvine’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow which was later adapted into a film in 1999 it plays one of the idea that the horseman can be enchanted and manipulated into doing someone’s bidding killing people on their behalf it’s definitely an interesting read or watch if the Headless Horseman is something that does interest you there are so many stories of the Headless Horseman from all around the world.
