Holding the Past: St Fillan, His Healing Stones, and the Sacred Energy of Killin

Tucked away in the heart of the Scottish Highlands, in the village of Killin, lies a place where ancient power still pulses through stone and story. The Old Mill, cradles relics that shine with spiritual legacy—the Healing Stones of St Fillan, a revered saint whose memory and miracles echo through centuries.

The Old Mill in Killin

Who Was St Fillan?

St Fillan, a Christian missionary of the 8th century, is remembered not just for his devotion to faith but for his deep connection to healing, nature, and the mystical. After his death in 777 AD, legends grew around the relics he left behind—relics believed to hold a piece of his divine essence. For many, St Fillan wasn’t just a saint; he was a guardian of the land, a bringer of peace, and a healer of the body and spirit.

And perhaps most intriguingly, he was said to have had a wolf as a companion—an unusual friend for a saint, and a powerful symbol. The wolf, so often misunderstood or feared, was a creature of loyalty, insight, and strength. To some, this connection underscored Fillan’s role as a bridge between the wild and the divine, between beast and blessing.

St Fillan's Healing Stones

The Healing Stones: Ancient Energy in Your Hands

Inside the Old Mill, you can actually hold the Healing Stones. These are no replicas. These are the genuine stones given to the people of Killin by St Fillan himself, embedded in local tradition and ceremony. It’s said they were once part of a millstone—perhaps a horizontal grinding mill used centuries ago—but over time, they became objects of healing and meditation.

The sensation of holding one is hard to describe. You don’t just feel weight—you feel age, a kind of ancient hum, like the stone is whispering through your skin. Some say each stone corresponds to different parts of the body, and people have come from across the world to lay their burdens, both physical and emotional, on these smooth, dark relics. The tradition continues each Christmas Eve when the stones are ceremonially washed and rebedded with wrack from the River Dochart.

River Dochart

St Fillan’s Bell: Echoes of Miracles

Beside the stones, you’ll find a replica of another remarkable relic: St Fillan’s Bell. This object once played a powerful role in community life, believed to fly through the air on its own when summoned to heal or protect. In older times, it was used to swear oaths, recover stolen goods, and even cure headaches by simply placing it near the afflicted.

The bell, like the stones, was more than a physical item—it was a vessel for power. Its presence was enough to command truth, to protect cattle, to crown kings. Today, the original resides in a museum, but the replica allows you to stand before it and imagine that world where the line between object and spirit was blurred.

So much of modern life is about speed, noise, and detachment. But in the quiet of the Old Mill, holding stones that have healed for over a thousand years, you are reminded of the slower, deeper currents beneath the surface. You are reminded that some stories don’t fade—they deepen.

If you ever find yourself in Killin, I urge you: arrange to hold the stones. Feel their energy. Listen for the wolf.

St Fillan's Wolf with my dogs