What is Druidry - an article by Robin Herne
Druidry is a term used to describe the religious practices of two
main groups of people, one historical and one modern.
The original Druids were the priestly and intellectual caste of the
pre-Christian tribes of Britain, Ireland and Gaul (modern France) ~
the Druids may also have been part of tribes from a wider area of
what are now loosely described as culturally Celtic peoples, but the
evidence is currently too ambiguous to say for certain.
Modern Druid groups around the world are a very varied bunch. Some
strive to maintain a strong continuity of belief and practice with
the original Druids, whilst others engage in practices that are as
much inspired by concepts from Hinduism, Wicca, Buddhism,
Christianity etc as they are by any Insular Celtic ideas. For some
people the term Druid is used more to convey a suggestion of "nature
priest(ess)" than it is to imply a specific link to ancient practice.
Druids work to build harmonious relationships with deities,
ancestors, spirits of the land, animals, trees, rocks, rivers and
humanity, both through ritual activity and through their everyday
actions. Some modern Druids perceive these spirit beings as real,
whilst others regard them as more metaphorical or archetypal. For the
sake of brevity, this article will focus on those who see them as
real (polytheist Druids), with subsequent articles on those
approaching Druidry from either a monotheist or archetypal angle.
Sources
There are literary sources that give us small snippets as to how
Druidry was practised before the coming of Christianity, and during
the early years of that faith within these lands. The main such
sources include the medieval records of myths and legends as recorded
(in altered form) by monks, legal texts, and the commentaries of
ancient Roman and Greek travellers. None of these sources are known
to have been recorded by Druids speaking of their own beliefs and
activities ~ though some of the early monks may have been recent
converts, or have come from families in which a relative was a Druid.
The Welsh tales were recorded many generations after those tribes
ceased to be Pagan, so the monks may not necessarily have realised
that these old stories related to deities (indeed, as recorded, they
do not describe their protagonists as gods buts as kings, queens,
wizards etc.)
Many Irish tales were recorded at an earlier date, when Paganism
coexisted with Christianity. Changes there may have been made for
reasons of politics (advancing one tribal power-base over another.)
Some myths strongly echo biblical tales, possibly because of
universality of theme, or because the monks could find no surviving
old tales to express a particular point, and so created tales of
their own based on biblical stories and given an "old world Irish"
feel. Archaeological evidence continues to be discovered which
supports this picture of tribal religion amongst the Celtic-speaking
peoples conveyed by classical and medieval literature. Alongside
these historical sources, modern Druids experience their own,
personal, understanding of their religion as lived today, and their
own relationship with their gods.
Priests and Laity
In ancient times the Druids were a high-ranking caste who performed a
number of functions including: judges, political advisers,
physicians, astronomers, priests, lore keepers, teachers and
magicians. The old Druid was a highly trained and respected member of
society who engaged in both religious and intellectual specialities.
In modern times some of these functions have fallen by the wayside ~
the political influence of modern Druids is limited, to say the
least. The modern Pagan movement in general places little distinction
between clergy and congregation, so modern Druids do not have quite
the same status or function that the ancient ones did. Therefore some
of the people who identify themselves as Druids today may carry out
few, if any, of the social duties and specialist skills attributed to
the ancient Druids.
Gods and other beings
Druidry, like all ancient European pagan religions, was polytheistic
and recognised a large number of gods and other spiritual entities.
For a section of modern Druidry, these views remain in place.
Accounts of the native Gods are shadowy. The myths that have survived
were written down some time after the spread of Christianity, and
were recorded in a manner approved of by the early Church authorities
~ how closely they compare to the tales as originally told by Pagans
is hard to judge.
With the growing influence of the Mediterranean cultures, it became
more common for the native tribes to inscribe the names of their gods
and goddesses on altar stones. For a number of deities, the name is
all that remains ~ no accompanying stories or commentary to suggest
how they were viewed. However, polytheists acknowledge that the Gods
remain even if their cult dwindles ~ so the deity can be contacted
via meditation etc and reveal themselves to the devotee. All is far
from lost!
A number of names crop up on a good many altars, suggesting a
widespread popularity to some deities whilst others may have had a
relatively small following. Examples of widespread names include
Lugos (associated with light), Brigantia (a regal goddess of
agricultural and domestic concerns), Nemetona (a goddess who protects
sacred places), and Epona (a goddess tied to horses.) Some names may
actually be variant titles for the same deity.
In addition to gods, Druids recognise and relate to a wide variety of
entities who concern themselves with the home, with forests, fields,
mountains etc and various non-human animal species. There are also
spirits closely associated with "inanimate" objects, such as those
that were regarded as dwelling within swords. Some of this multitude
of beings are friendly to humanity, some utterly indifferent, and
some downright hostile (often with good reason.)
Another feature of Druid practice is the respect given to ancestors
in general. These may be a person's literal forebears, or may be
people now dead who have inspired them in some way ~ perhaps sharing
a common interest in music, gardening, medicine etc.
Structure
There are no central authorities throughout the whole of Druidry and
no single organisation to which all Druids belong, though there are
national and international Orders and organisations created to
facilitate networking and study between Druids.
Many Druids belong to small groups made up of friends and family
members who share their views. These groups are sometimes
called 'clans' or 'groves' and meet for religious rituals in members'
homes or in outdoor spaces. Some groups have recognised leaders, who
may or may not have titles to signify their status. Others are
largely egalitarian, and may alternate administrative functions
between members. Some of the Orders are very large, with many
hundreds or even thousands of members. Such groups are often headed
by a leader known as an Arch-Druid (a title first mentioned in
accounts of ancient Gaul) or Chosen Chief.
Festivals, rites and celebrations
The main rites celebrated in Druidry are called gwyliau (Welsh), or
feillean (Irish), or a comparable word in whichever Celtic language
is favoured within the group (or referred to simply as festivals, for
those favouring modern English!). Druids hold feasts and celebrations
at rites of passage (such as weddings or funerals), seasonal
holidays, rites in honour of a particular deity, etc.
The primary seasonal festivals are Samhain (Calan Gaeaf), Imbolc
(Gwyl y Forwyn), Beltane (Calan Mai) and Lughnasadh (Calan Awst).
Samhain is the principle time for honouring the dead and the start of
winter, often in the person of An Cailleach the Old Woman of Winter;
Imbolc is focussed upon the fiery goddess Brigit or Bride; Beltane
marks the start of summer and the old campaigning season; Lughnasadh
coincides with the harvest, and re-enacts the funeral rite of the
goddess Tailtiu who died after preparing the land for agriculture ~
the feast takes its name from her foster-son Lugh, who instituted the
day in her honour. The Brythonic (Welsh/Cornish) understanding of
these festivals is slightly different. Quite a few modern Druids also
celebrate the solstices and/or equinoxes. The evidence for how the
early tribes saw these events is scant indeed, so some groups turn to
more recent conceptions (eg Wiccan ideas), devote them to a favourite
deity who inspires them as to how to celebrate, or ignore them
entirely.
A variety of activities may be incorporated into a Druid festival,
but often include toasts to gods, ancestors and local land spirits;
the making of gifts to the spirits; poetry and storytelling;
celebrations of the beauty of Nature; offerings of food and drink,
etc.
Awen
The Welsh concept of Awen stems primarily from a medieval text
detailing the story of a witch, Ceridwen, who brews a magical potion
to give her ugly son mystical powers to compensate for his
appearance. The potion is accidentally drunk by a servant, who
undergoes many amazing transformations. Words of equivalent meaning
("poetic inspiration") from Gaelic are imbas or aì. Many modern
Druids tend to focus on Awen not only as a form of poetic
inspiration, but as a sort of divine flash of understanding. Rather
than trying to brew up the magical potion, they normally chant the
word as a mantra. It is unclear how far back this word goes, so it
cannot be said with certainty that ancient druids held to such a
notion, though linguists regard the word as of very early origin and
not a medieval invention.
Shapeshifting
The servant boy who imbibed the Awen potion acquired the power to
shapeshift. There are many Celtic tales in which Druids, warriors and
other people assume animal and other shapes. Such tales are echoed in
countless cultures round the world. One understanding of this is that
the shifter gains insights into the world from the perspective of
another creature ~ that whilst the myths tend to emphasise the
adventurous aspects of the situation, the Druid practitioners
themselves would have entered into trance in order to have visionary
experiences of life as a dog, hawk, eagle, mouse etc.
Underlying this there can be discerned a metaphysical goal to attain
spiritual growth by experiencing the diversity of the universe, by
becoming countless different creatures. Whether this is viewed as an
issue of reincarnation, or psychic transformation within the
lifetime, or a fusion of both, is a personal matter.
Ethics
No moral coda has survived from the ancient Druids (assuming they
ever had such a thing in the first place) . Modern Druids will tend
to express their ethical stance in a variety of different ways.
Perhaps one of the more popular ways is to quote the Motto of the
Fianna (an Irish warrior band), one translation of which runs
~ "Strength in our hands; Truth in our hearts; Fulfilment on our
lips". This is subject to interpretation, but many would see the
strength as a reference to courage, to facing up to ones fears,
living honourably, using ones personal strength (be that muscular,
intellectual, or whatever) to help those weaker, living life
passionately to the full; Truth is also praised in many Welsh and
Irish triads, here the Fianna were exhorted to speak honestly (though
not necessarily without tact or diplomacy, qualities that Druids were
famed for), most especially to know the truth of ones own nature ~
the Truth within the Heart ~ and shun self-delusion; fulfilment on
the lips can be taken as the power to speak with eloquence ~ it
refers not so much to using fancy words but as to being prepared to
speak out rather than hide timidly in the corner, to speak in praise
of that which is good and honourable, and to condemn that which is
wicked and false.
Other major values of the old tribes (and their modern emulators)
included hospitality towards friends, family and strangers, and also
generosity with ones wealth (be that financial, intellectual,
emotional etc.)
After death
The Irish envisioned the dead journeying to Tech Donn, which they saw
as across the sea to the west (there is an actual island of this
name.) The Otherworld had many of the same features as this one, and
included many of the same favoured activities ~ hunting, feasting,
fighting, game playing, romancing etc.
Classical commentators, such as Diodorus, described the old Druids as
having held to notions of reincarnation, though with a waiting period
between lives (where it was spent was not recorded.) Many, though by
no means all, modern Druids also hold to such ideas. Quite a few feel
that this includes the possibility of return in a non-human guise
(though this is rarely seen as a demotion or regression for supposed
spiritual short-comings, rather as simply a chance to view the world
from a different angle.)
Druidry and other spiritualities
Druidry is a living religion based on literary and archaeological
sources for the religious practices of a particular pre-Christian
culture and extended by the relationships of modern Druids with their
gods. The historical record seems to suggest that the early Druids
were very tolerant of incoming religions (such as the Christian one)
~ though this does not mean that the change was an entirely peaceful
one in either direction. Modern Druids likewise tend to be mostly
tolerant of other religions, even if not always liking everything
that some of them get up to.
There is no presumption that "our" Gods are the only ones in
existence, or that other people cannot live perfectly decent lives in
relationship to other deities or no deities at all. There is no
investment in proselytising, and indeed no reason why a Druid could
not also attend rituals to honour Greek, Egyptian, Heathen or
whatever other deities they feel comfortable with.
Suggested reading
THE MABINOGION Translation by Gwyn & Thomas Jones
Everyman Press (collection of Welsh myths). ISBN: 0460872974
THE APPLE BRANCH by Alexei Kondratiev
(a well researched fusion of Druid and Wiccan practices) The Collins
Press, 1998, ISBN: 189825642X
DICTIONARY OF CELTIC MYTHOLOGY by James MacKillop
Oxford University Press,1998, ISBN: 0198691572
CELTIC HERITAGE by Alwyn & Brinley Rees
Thames & Hudson Books 1961, ISBN: 0500270392
THE TAIN, translated by Thomas Kinsella (major Irish myth)
Oxford Paperbacks 1969, ISBN: 0192810901
CATTLE LORDS & CLANSMEN, by Nerys Patterson
University of Notre Dame, 1994 ISBN: 0268008000
THE SACRED ISLE by Daithi O Hogain
Boydell Press 1999, ISBN: 0851158560
What is Druidry
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