Hello everyone - I'm wondering if anyone could advise please on whether we have an old Irish word similar to the concept of mindfulness, encompassing a kind of holistic life.

I am also hoping someone could confirm if there is similarly an old Irish word to describe a bereaved parent (similar to the Japanese word Mizuko, a parent whose only child has died).

I was looking at iarmhar but not sure I have understood it correctly and think it is a general word for grief - perhaps there's a better way to describe the relationship loss?

Many thanks for any contributions, as I study old historical texts I am falling in love with Irish.... wish that had been the case when I was in school!

In most cases, I always refer to the Foclóir for vocabulary examples as it gives the clearest and most recent items. From there you can also check with the other dictionaries, although in the case of mindfulness, only the Foclóir offers what you may want: aireachas

https://www.focloir.ie/en/dictionary/ei/mindfulness

The other two dictionaries only show entries for "mindful".

https://www.teanglann.ie/en/eid/mindful

https://www.teanglann.ie/en/fgb/mindful

As for a person grieving, like Japanese "mizuko", I don't know if there is a word for that though there may be. Not being terribly familiar with Old Irish or even Middle Irish, I wouldn't be able to tell you although I can search around for a few minutes.

Following shows entries for "grief" in modern Irish and many possible permutations of expression. There may be dozens more.

https://www.focloir.ie/en/dictionary/ei/grief

https://www.teanglann.ie/en/eid/grief

https://www.teanglann.ie/en/fgb/grief

Yes I had checked the dictionary but they seem to be 'direct' translations and I am searching for those older Irish words that might be more 'encompassing', you know like the way meitheal means more than just a work group. Thanks for your reply, appreciate you taking the time to check.

I haven't found a noun meaning "mindfulness", besides the modern term I posted above, but the following link shows some of the possibilities of the adjective "mindful". http://www.dil.ie/advanced_search?q=min ... ch_results

For "a grieving person" or some such possible word, I couldn't find anything but you could consider what is posted at the bottom of this message from this link: http://www.dil.ie/search?q=grief

I bolded the phrase "grief-stricken man" which is the closest thing I can find to what you are looking for.
The Old Irish for that is in the genitive so you'd want to put it in the nominative. It appears the word for "man" in the nominative is "fir" and then "grief-stricken" is aithmélach > fir aithmélach - "a grief-stricken man". There are variations in spelling of the adjective as you can see below while I've seen "fir" spelled "fer" and also the word "duini" or "duine" used which means "man" in the general sense of "person" or "people".

Sorry I can't help you more. There are some people who post here sometimes that know a lot more thN I do about the older language. I don't know their posting habits unfortunately. But you can search around yourself and maybe find something I missed. Good luck with that.

Cheers,
Tim

aithmélach
Cite this: eDIL s.v. aithmélach or dil.ie/2746

Forms: aithméilech

adj o, ā (aithméla). Also aithméilech.

(a) a ngēirsgiūrsadh go himnáir aithmēlach seachnōin na srāide ignominiously , Fl. Earls 64.10 .

(b) remorseful, contrite, grief-stricken: as aithrech aithmelach lem a ndernus I am sorry for what I have done, BNnÉ 237 § 162 . ba haithmhēlach imnāir lé a ndorōine, Fl. Earls 34.19 . aithmhéileach dhúin a ndéanmais, TD 3.6 . caoi ḟir aithmhéalaigh the cry of a grief-stricken man, Aithd. D. 78.18 . Adv. docuaidh dha íarraid co himnideach aithmhelach `in anxiety and contrition' (of a priest who had lost the consecrated Host), Ériu ii 82.23 . rugatar as an adaig sin go haitmélach, gan ol gan aibhnes despondently, Celt. Rev. iv 10.1 .