May the Road Rise Up to Meet You

“May the road rise up to meet you . . .” –Traditional Irish blessing (see more below)

I ran across this Irish blessing (see below) and YouTube video (see above–it’s a very cool video 4:35 minutes long and nice piano music starts at 2:01) this morning, and I thought I would post both here on my “journey” blog. Here’s a little background information on the blessing:

This traditional Irish blessing is an ancient Celtic prayer. Celtic literature is famed for using images of nature and everyday life to speak of how God interacts with with His people.

“May the road rise up to meet you” is about God’s blessing for your journey–may your walk be an easy one–with no huge mountains to climb or obstacles to overcome. It alludes to three images from nature – the wind, sun and rain – as pictures of God’s care and provision. The “wind” can be likened to the Spirit of God, who came as a “mighty wind” at Pentecost.  The sun’s warmth in the prayer reminds us of the tender mercies of God, “by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven” (Luke 1:78, NIV), whilst the soft falling rain speaks of God’s provision and sustenance. Finally, we are reminded that we are held safe in God’s loving hands as we travel on our journey through life. (Quote source here.)

Here is that Irish blessing:

May the Road
Rise Up to Meet You

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back. 
May the sun shine warm upon your face; 
the rains fall soft upon your fields 
and until we meet again, 
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.
(Quote source here.)

There are four Irish blessings on the website where I found this copy of the Irish blessing above. Here is some additional information on Irish blessings taken from that website titled Lords-prayer-words.com:

One of the main characteristics of Celtic Christianity (approximately from the fourth to the seventh century A.D.) is that of a strong connection between the spiritual (what is godly and heavenly) and the earthly (nature and living). In Ireland, St Patrick established monasteries that were hubs of community life, were both monks and married people lived and worked together. The “cities” (as St. Patrick liked to call them) also often produced beautiful art and craft. The prayer life of the early Celts reflects these aspects of life together and closeness to nature, and is some of the most inspirational church liturgy in existence.

In recent times, Celtic spirituality has witnessed something of a revival in the modern day church. There are now thriving celtic communities (such as the Northumberland Community) and hymns such as “Be Thou My Vision” and other, more modern songs based on celtic writing have become popular in contemporary worship. (Quote source here.)

Lords-prayer-words.com includes an extensive resource of traditional and contemporary Christian prayers. As noted on the website:

Central to this site is ‘The Lord’s Prayer,’ as this is where Jesus, the great master and Lord of all, teaches us how to pray. Here you can discover many versions and translations of this famous prayer, as well as commentaries and interpretations on the ‘Our Father’ by several classic biblical scholars and theologians. The site is also packed with other free resources on prayer – with videos to meditate on and several hundred prayers on topics such as healing, strength, prayers for children and for various times and occasions. (Quote source here.)

I’ll end this post with the last few words from the Irish blessing posted above . . .

And until we meet again . . .

May God hold you . . .

In the palm of His hand . . . .

YouTube Video: “May the Road Rise Up to Meet You” by Celtic Thunder Inspirational:

Photo #1 credit (YouTube Video at the top) here
Photo #2 credit here

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