Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
The Irish ordeals, Cormac's adventure in the Land of Promise, and the decision as to Cormac's sword (Author: Unknown)

section 53

‘Take thy family then,’ says the warrior, ‘and take the Cup that thou mayst have it for discerning between truth and falsehood. And thou shalt have the Branch for music and delight. And on the day that thou shalt die they all will be taken from thee. I am Manannan son of Ler’, says he, ‘king of the Land of Promise; and to see the Land of Promise was the reason I brought (thee) hither. The host of horsemen which thou beheldest thatching the house are the men of art in Ireland, collecting cattle and wealth which passes away into nothing. The man whom thou sawest kindling the fire is a young lord, and out of his housekeeping he pays for everything he consumes. The fountain which thou sawest, with the five streams out of it, is the Fountain of Knowledge, and the streams are the five senses through the which knowledge is obtained (?). And no one will have knowledge who drinketh not a draught out of the fountain itself and out of the streams. The folk of many arts are those who drink of them both.’