Druidism

There are a million ways to define what a Druid practices and how to follow the path, but here are three very good points to start with:

 

Primarily, emotionally, and spiritually, Druids are drawn by a sense of awe, wonder, and the romance of nature. It fires the imagination, deepening their experience of life, so they pursue experiences that remind them or make them aware of it. They see the natural world as a book that can unlock spiritual truths.

Secondly, Druids know that they are in the right place: in the here and now; the world of our five senses. Druidry is not about escaping the realities of life: sorting out material concerns and living as a responsible person is part of the spiritual commitment. Underlying all is a deep-down gut feeling that celebrating every aspect of life is right. Working to earn a living, doing the chores, or making time to engage with nature, magic, and transformation can all bring us in touch with the spiritual reality that is behind the apparent world.

Druids are not driven by what comes next, or what is other, and far away. ‘God’, ‘Great Spirit’, or other terms for the creative principle of the universe is not somewhere else, somewhere ‘up there’, and we have no wish or urge to elevate ourselves above everyday life. Druids are of the earth, earthy. But they also, of course, have their heads in the stars. It’s the integration of these aspects that makes the magic.

Thirdly, Druids believe that everything is imbued with part of the spiritual or creative impetus that formed the natural world, making relationships possible with all beings, not only other humans. And it brings another realization; that of our own proper place.  The natural world can, simply by being itself, enchant, nurture or kill us. Ours is the responsibility for the relationships we make and for their outcomes. You can engage with nature by honouring your garden or dying in the mountains: it is your responsibility.

Druidry is a spiritual movement that allows immense freedom to its practitioners. But for most Druids, our shared understanding is that there is a spiritual component to our lives and that nature reveals this to us most clearly. Therefore, acknowledging our intuitive connection to the natural world is good for our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual selves. Modern Druids do not try to recreate the dim past but craft an individual spiritual approach that is relevant to the modern world, and supportive of our everyday challenges.

Key tenets of  Druidry are:

·       Respect for nature and all living beings

·       The sentience and spiritual nature of all life forms

·       Respect for the ancestors and the wisdom of the past

·       An understanding of all humans as creative beings

·       Being of service

There are few texts about Druids, and these come from Latin and Greek commentators and from early Welsh texts, some of doubtful provenance. From these, we learn about the ancient Druids:

·       were masters of natural science, understanding the earth and the heavens

·       were respected internationally as arbiters of justice

·       were a coherent link in society made up of small, autonomous tribes

·       had a privileged position as the holders of tribal law, memory & storytelling

·       used story as a way of reinforcing right behavior and justice

·       conducted rituals in forests and always with a symbol of oak on their altars

·       had roles as diviners and healers

So how does this inform our modern Druidry? We follow their example in learning about the natural world in which we live. Justice and personal integrity are important to today’s Druids, as is respect for the wisdom contained in ancient stories and songs. Many are drawn to the creative and healing arts and divination. As they were of service to their communities we try to be, making our spiritual understanding useful and relevant. We try to live by the phrase used by DOSG Druids: ‘For the good of all beings.’

There are various Druid Orders worldwide, usually following the model of training people as Bards, Ovates, and Druids. The current consensus is that Bards are focused on the creativity aspect – traditionally poetry and music, but with a much wider application these days. Ovates find their natural home in the forest, working with herbs, trees, and their ancestors; Druids in most systems have studied the other two grades and find their natural home in teaching and philosophy.

Most ceremonies and rituals are held in a set form of words. In DOSG, all ceremonies are prefixed by a call for peace and then, within a cast circle, the elements of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water are invited in at the North, East, South, and West respectively. Other Orders might use the holding structure of Earth, Sea, and Sky.

Within this pattern, rituals might be held to celebrate the season, for the moon phases, for healing, for life events – birth, marriage, death – and for a myriad of other reasons. The only restriction is the creativity and imagination of the Druid. Druid ritual does not follow any template slavishly: the impetus is always to be relevant to Time, Place and People.

The underpinning reason for ritual and ceremony – even the simplest celebration - is to bring the spiritual and physical into alignment. That is, to make us aware of being spiritual beings in physical bodies, and of our ability to share and communicate with all living beings and with the greater energies that inform the world. The idea is to hold rituals outside, though, with a remit for inclusivity as part of Druidry’s core values, Groves and individuals often adapt ceremonies and places to include all who wish to come.