Anam Cara and the Essence of True Friendship: Poet and Philosopher John O’Donohue on the Beautiful Ancient Celtic Notion of Soul-Friend

A true partner or friend is one who encourages you to look deep inside yourself for the beauty and love you’ve been seeking.

There is such poignance in the description of their journey in the wilderness as animal shapes imbued with human presence.

In the world of soul, the more you have, the more everyone has. The rhythm of soul is the surprise of endless enrichment.

Anam is the Gaelic word for soul; ċara means soul cara is the word for friend. So anam ċara friend. The anam ċara was a person to whom you could reveal the hidden intimacies of your life. This friendship was an act of recognition and belonging. When you had an anam ċara, your friendship cut across all convention and category. You were joined in an

a true friend is more than just someone with whom we share common values and who accepts us for what we are. Such a friend is someone whom we can trust to refine our understanding of what it means to live, who can guide us when we’re lost and help us find the way along a path, who can assuage our anguish through the reassurance of his or her presen