Carlin of the Dark. The Carlin is a nickname of the Cailleach – Mother Creation, Mother Earth – manifest as time. The Carlin of the Dark presides over the dreaming time, the going within, storytelling time. In the Gaelic world we measure the year in two halves – the dark half and the light half. This teaching informs us of the correct behaviour for the doorway. The dark half begins with Samhain, the ancestor festival, when the veils between the worlds are at the thinnest. The Carlin of the Dark roams the land seeding the new dreams, taking care of life and watching over her wild animals. She is the mistress of dreams and desires and of the deep inner growth that must happen before life can evolve into the light.