A Vision: An Explanation of Life Founded upon the Writings of Giraldus and upon Certain Doctrines Attributed to Kusta Ben Luka

Throughout A Vision, Yeats draws from diverse philosophical traditions, from the Eastern notion of the wheel of Samsara, emphasizing rebirth and cyclicality, to the Platonic year in Western thought, which underscores the universe’s cyclical return to a starting point. Hindu and Buddhist cycles of death and rebirth were particularly influential on the early 20th-century occult movements Yeats participated in, such as Theosophy, which influenced the beliefs that Yeats lays out in A Vision.

The motifs of cycles, gyres, and recurring patterns also connect deeply with Irish mythology. The Celtic calendar, with its wheel of the year, consists of festivals marking the changing seasons, each serving a dual purpose as celebrations of nature’s rhythm and reminders of the cyclical nature of life. For instance, the festival of Samhain, which marks the end of the harvest season, also serves as a reminder of the cyclical dance of life and death. Similarly, Beltane, taking place in early May, celebrates fertility and the blossoming of life, symbolizing another point in life’s eternal cycle.

Moreover, many Celtic myths are themselves cyclical. Stories of gods, goddesses, and heroes often involve themes of death and rebirth, of battles fought in repetitive patterns, and of prophecies that point to the recurring nature of events.