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In this episode we’ll discuss a story from the “Arabian Nights” collection. It is entitled “Delila the Wily.” This is a long story, so long in fact, that we’ve covered it in two previous episodes. (Please listen to those episodes if you wish to hear the actual story. Here I will only share a summary.) Delila is a trickster figure who brings chaos wherever she goes. But she is much more than that. Her acts of cunning cause the listener to reflect on justice, law, morality and the ability of women to be the author of their own lives. In Delila’s world actions are not black or white, but a multitude of shades of gray. In this episode, we’ll discuss her world and why tricksters are needed now more than ever.

Story: "The Wiley Dalilah and Her Daughter Zaynab," in Arabian Nights: Volume I, trans. Jack Zipes (New York: Penguin Books, 1991).
Illustration: Edmund Dulac, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. National Library NZ on The Commons, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

This podcast is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/. Sound effects from my finch "Tweedles."
Copyright 2026 Kathy Shimpock.

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For more crone tales, visit the "Wise Crone Cottage in the Woods" (http://www.wisecronecottage.com).

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In this episode, the storyteller, Kathy Shimpock, shares a Scottish story about the changing seasons. It comes as we reach winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere. This is a story of the Cailleach Beira, the Queen of Winter. She may be frightening but she has much to tell us about our role as elders and how we should best approach the winter season. She’s a very wise crone indeed!

Story: Donald Alexander MacKenzie, "Beira, Queen of Winter," in Wonder Tales from Scottish Myth and Legend (London, Blackie & Son, 1917).
Illustration: "Beira" from a drawing by John Duncan (from book).

Sound effects from my finch "Tweedles."

This podcast is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.
Copyright 2025 Kathy Shimpock.

Support the show

For more crone tales, visit the "Wise Crone Cottage in the Woods" (http://www.wisecronecottage.com).

Send us a text

In this episode the storyteller, Kathy Shimpock, will continue reading from the Arabian Nights collection, “Delila the Crafty/Wily.” Delila is a trickster figure who brings chaos wherever she goes. In this episode, we'll discover how this wise old woman's story ends. Is she punished or rewarded for her acts? Her acts of cunning cause the listener to reflect on justice, law, morality and the ability of women to be the author of their own lives. In Delila’s world actions are not black or white but a multitude of shades of gray. Be ready to enter that world as you hear the story.

Story: "The Wiley Dalilah and Her Daughter Zaynab," in Arabian Nights: Volume I, trans. Jack Zipes (New York: Penguin Books, 1991).
Illustration: Edmund Dulac, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

This podcast is licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/. Sound effects from my finch "Tweedles."
Copyright 2025 Kathy Shimpock.

Support the show

For more crone tales, visit the "Wise Crone Cottage in the Woods" (http://www.wisecronecottage.com).