'Look, sir, Druids!'

[bain-druie]

Obviously I really stink at coming up with subject lines. In this case, that one got into my head and wouldn't go away because someone put that as a caption under a pic of a Storm Trooper from SWI. 'Druids' instead of 'Droids'. Get it?

OK, anyway. I was very kindly invited by Quaxotic when I joined the forum to create a thread explaining Druidry (at least, as far as I understand and apply it). I think it might be helpful for me, if no one else, in articulating things I usually take for granted. So thanks in advance to anyone who reads it, whether you make a comment or not.

It is tempting to start out with a list of what Druidry is not, because misunderstandings in our society are so prevalent, and some of them so outrageous, that I sometimes find myself on the defensive before anyone even attacks. However, I am instead going to focus on what it IS; and then at least some of what it is NOT should be obvious by default. I hope.

In some of what I say, I am not speaking for any Druids but myself; a lot of what I believe is in line with my Order, but by no means all. The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids is eclectic; druidry can be divorced from religion altogether, so we have everyone from Atheist Druids to Christian Druids. If you'd like to learn more about the Order, you're more than welcome to go to www.druidry.org and explore the website.

I am a traditional type of Druid; my family is steeped in Celtic pagan Druidry on my mother's side. My gran came over from Wales as a war bride.

As a Druid, I do believe in a Creator who is the Source; the All in all. Whether that Source is knowable by humans is, to me, doubtful. What the nature of the Source is, I have no certainty about. I believe something close to what Deepak Chopra described in his book 'the Path to Love', where the Creator is divided into two basic energies: Shiva and Shakhti. Male and Female divinity, whose union produces creation. I also see the Creator in a way akin to the Native American concepts of Mother Earth and Father Sky; when I speak to them, which is rare, I call them Danu and Belenos, who are Celtic deities.

None of this is provable, of course, although I believe it makes sense. I do not believe it is meant to be provable. I think the kind of proof or evidence we do get for our faith is most often experiential, so that it means nothing to anyone but ourselves. This can be good or bad; but it *certainly* rules out proselytization as a waste of time and a gigantic piece of arrogance.

I have a career in health care, so am in the applied medical sciences. I respect science profoundly, and if the scientific method disproves something I previously believed, I will adapt to what science tells me is true. I believe in reason, observation, measurement, and facts; but in a very different way, I believe also in mysticism, spirituality, dreams, and the Numinous.

I do not believe in the Supernatural per se; I believe that everything in the Universe is natural, or it would not exist. Physics tells us that the Universe is made up of matter and energy, which can be neither created nor destroyed. Atomic theory reveals that matter itself is another form of energy; there is more empty space in the densest lead than there is actual mass. In that sense I find proof for my long-held belief that this realm we live in is in a very 'real' sense, illusory.

That said, I believe in the existence of things long thought of as products of superstition and fairy tale, and myth. I interact with beings on different levels of existence, especially in meditation.

I believe in the power of the Elements, and that there are ways we can learn to cooperate with their force in order to accomplish ends compatible with Nature. I believe in the chakras, which is not Celtic, though the Celts had similar concepts. I have a few times healed myself using chakra meditation, and so avoided expensive trips to the hospital. However, I have been unable to heal myself in other ways, and NOT avoided other trips to the hospital. Wherein lies the disparity, I have no idea.

I believe in reincarnation, though not in the Eastern sense. I believe this realm is a teaching place. It is harsh, frightening, and cruel at times; it is also achingly beautiful, gentle, and nurturing at times. We are journeying here, and hopefully learning. We pay for our wrongs, and hopefully learn and grow.

For me, right and wrong are very simple. An ancient sycamore told me this: 'We have no law save this: fear births evil; love births good.' I have learned as I meditate on this and apply it that it is as profound as it is simple; and I have not yet learned it to be false.

I will end for now, because this post is already insanely long, and I figure if people want to know things, they'll ask. Also, some things will be evident from other posts. Input, thoughts, questions, all welcome. :rainbow1:

 

[Willamena]

Obviously I really stink at coming up with subject lines.

I liked it.

An ancient sycamore told me this: 'We have no law save this: fear births evil; love births good.'

Pretty smart, those sycamore.

 

[Scarlett Wampus]

Hi bain-druie. Good post and I'm glad to see in you a marriage of myth & science such that the value & usefulness of neither is lost.

Do you live with or close to other Druids, either in your family or as friends? Is where you live quite rural?

If its possible to be a Christian Druid or an Atheist Druid, could you give some examples of what it is not possible to be and also a Druid?

 

[The Neo Nerd]

Heya Bain,

Thanks for posting this.

Are there other gods within that pantheon, like demi gods or such thing?

There seems to be a fascination with the number three in religion. The holy trinity, three wise men, the triskelle, maiden/mother/crone etc, Are there any trinities with druidry?

 

[Mister Emu]

Are you reconstruction or do you have a line of Druidic teaching tracing back to ancient times?

 

[Noaidi]

The number 3 does feature in Druidry. They use a symbol (the Awen) which represents earth, sea and land / love, wisdom and truth / mind, body and spirit. Other interpretations of the number exist.



Awen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[bain-druie]

Hi bain-druie. Good post and I'm glad to see in you a marriage of myth & science such that the value & usefulness of neither is lost.

Do you live with or close to other Druids, either in your family or as friends? Is where you live quite rural?

If its possible to be a Christian Druid or an Atheist Druid, could you give some examples of what it is not possible to be and also a Druid?

Well-met, Scarlett Wampus, and thank you. :curtsy:

I am the only Druid in the house; everyone else is either atheist or Christian, with a little mysticism thrown in here and there. So I'm stuck in the middle! But it actually works out much more harmoniously than I might have expected. )(My seed-group meets about 2 hours south of me, and we have a larger grove camp at least once a year; I go for all the festivals and camps, and I do consider many of the other members dear friends or even family, but I usually hold my own meditations and such solitary. This is good for me, since I need a blending of social and solitary time to maintain good mental health, LOL.

I live on a farm in a rural area, but my seedgroup meets in the suburb of a large city; the grove camps are deep in the woods.

It's hard to answer for Druids as a group, since it's difficult for me to understand why people want to blend their christianity with druidry, or buddhism with druidry, or whatever with druidry. I guess I'm a purist. But if anything is truly incompatible, I would say it's impossible to have a fundamentalist from the Abrahamic type faith blend that with Druidry. (...but then, I would certainly not want them to, so it's just as well...)

 

[bain-druie]

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I liked it.


Pretty smart, those sycamore.

Thank you, and they certainly are.

 

[bain-druie]

Heya Bain,

Thanks for posting this.

Are there other gods within that pantheon, like demi gods or such thing?

There seems to be a fascination with the number three in religion. The holy trinity, three wise men, the triskelle, maiden/mother/crone etc, Are there any trinities with druidry?

Hi Quaxotic - yes, I suppose you'd say there are demi-gods of a sort. The mythology of the war between the Tuatha de Danann vs the Fomorians is an example; CuChulainn would be considered on a par with the Greek Hercules, as another example. I don't pay that much attention, I talk to them as I feel inspired to, regardless of their official 'title', LOL.

Three is the sacred number in Druidry, yes. Much of the wisdom that was preserved from the time of the Roman Empire were the Triads in Welsh and Irish tradition. Here's one bardic triad off the top of my head:

'Three followers of wisdom: imagination, purpose, and endeavor.'

The ancient oath Druids swore was by 'land, sea, and sky', as Noaidi said. And so on. The most sacred of all numbers in Druidry, however, is nine: because it is three times three.

We do have trinities; some of our gods and goddesses are triple-aspected. Morrighan is an example: Badb, Macha, and the other one whose name I don't remember now....good grief. I usually don't relate to her that way, or any of them. The trinity concept is not one I find helpful with the gods, except to illustrate or make metaphors.

Thank you again for your interest!

 

[bain-druie]

Are you reconstruction or do you have a line of Druidic teaching tracing back to ancient times?

No, I don't really agree with reconstructionism per se. My gran's influence did that - she said that Druidry was ancient, and the old ways should be remembered, respected, and sometimes kept; but only sometimes. Druidry is ancient, but also still alive; and like any ancient living thing, it has no problem changing and adapting as the environment does.

We have a line of Druidic teaching that does extend to at least 2000 BCE; however, it is not an unbroken line. There are significant gaps, due to various invasions and takeovers and so forth. What we end up with (as I see it) is areas in history that are fairly well understood as far as the Druids, and then spaces of pretty much nothing for a time. So I am very wary of anything that claims to be some kind of amazing new discovery in the way of recorded Druid wisdom. It has to be tested! and if it's worthwhile, I may keep it.

 

[bain-druie]

The number 3 does feature in Druidry. They use a symbol (the Awen) which represents earth, sea and land / love, wisdom and truth / mind, body and spirit. Other interpretations of the number exist.



Awen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Yep, that's our symbol, thank you Noaidi. Main concepts in Druidry are Awen, divine illumination/inspiration, and Nwyfre, the breath of life.

 

[Herr Heinrich]

This thread is awesome. Also I was wondering how you communicate with the trees. Is it similar to shamanic journeying? I read a book by Ross Heaven called The Sin Eater's Last Confessions and now I am reading another book by him called Plant Spirit Wisdom, have you ever heard of these nooks or of Sin Eating?

 

[Scarlett Wampus]

This thread is awesome. Also I was wondering how you communicate with the trees. Is it similar to shamanic journeying? I read a book by Ross Heaven called The Sin Eater's Last Confessions and now I am reading another book by him called Plant Spirit Wisdom, have you ever heard of these nooks or of Sin Eating?

Would love to see the answers to these questions too.

Did you go through a training course via the Order?

Oh, and have you ever read John Micheal Greer's blog? I follow it. He's a great writer & thinker. The first time I came across it I thought, "This guy is an Arch-Druid? Huh. I could imagine getting into this."

 

[bain-druie]

This thread is awesome. Also I was wondering how you communicate with the trees. Is it similar to shamanic journeying? I read a book by Ross Heaven called The Sin Eater's Last Confessions and now I am reading another book by him called Plant Spirit Wisdom, have you ever heard of these nooks or of Sin Eating?

I'm so glad you're enjoying it - so am I

Trees: this is more difficult to explain from my perspective than I expected it to be! :faint:However, I will do my best: I believe in dryads, who are the spirits of trees. I believe each individual has its own, but there is a collective spirit in a grove, glade, or forest as well. There are also sort of guardian trees, usually the eldest in a grove or glade.

Species of trees have family resemblances in their attitudes as well as their physical attributes.

When I approach a tree, I always acknowledge it in some way, even if I'm rushing to class with my pens falling out of my bag and my coat buttoned wrong. They recognize an attitude of respect, so I always offer it. When I have more time to spend with a tree, and I would like to approach it with that purpose, I take my time. I ask permission, and usually it's granted. Not always, but usually. Very often there is a sense of surprise that the request was made, although some trees recognize my energy the same way I recognize theirs, eliminating the need for a lot of formalities.

If I plan to meditate, which is how I converse with a dryad, I start with a tree meditation, envisioning my own roots spreading into the earth Mother, touching those of the tree perhaps, then drinking up the nourishment when I inhale. When exhaling, I envision branches reaching out to the sun Father, and taking in his heat and the nutrients of the air. It is VERY relaxing.

It comes naturally to a point that a conversation with the dryad (or with my Jungian archetype of a tree, as many would say, and I have no problem with that!) will begin. They do not use words; their language is rich, complex, many-layered and textured. Which is what makes it hard to condense into words. There are some dryads who know how to translate themselves so that my mind hears what they are saying more clearly.

The trees do not mince words; when you come to them troubled, they know why and they will tell you exactly how you are a part of the problem and how to stop it. They never sugar-coat things, but you always feel comforted. For instance, once during the winter (I HATE winter) I went to an old white pine, very emotionally in tumult over some idiotic man, probably.

I hardly started to pour out my troubles when he said very clearly to my mind, 'Don't lean.' I was startled, probably oozing giant question marks. So he said, 'Only what is dead or unhealthy leans for support against another of its kind. Intertwine your roots and branches with those of others, but don't lean.' And WHAM! I instantly applied it and have never had the level of insecurity issues I did before that.

I always thank a dryad and offer the blessings of the Druids as well as sometimes a few acorns or an apple for the woodland creatures after I finish a meditation session with a tree.

So yeah, I guess it has resemblances to shamanic journeying, although from a subjective viewpoint tree talk is introspecting very deeply, while shamanic journeys are very outward-bound.

Sorry I took so long to try to answer that; hope it makes at least some sense. Thank you for making me articulate it!

I have heard of the Sin-Eaters, but not of the books you mention.

 

[bain-druie]

Did you go through a training course via the Order?

Oh, and have you ever read John Micheal Greer's blog? I follow it. He's a great writer & thinker. The first time I came across it I thought, "This guy is an Arch-Druid? Huh. I could imagine getting into this."

Yep, there is a correspondence course available to anyone who feels it is appropriate for their path. It does cost money, but I don't mind that. I understand what they're doing with it, and the course to me is well worth it. We also believe in spirals, and so once a student completes all three grades of the course (Bard, Ovate, Druid), he or she starts over again. There's no pressure, you take your own time and have your own tutor and so forth. I love it.

Yes, John Michael Greer has a good relationship with OBOD. I put his blog on my Facebook page since you reminded me I wanted to do that! I also appreciate him greatly. :yes:

 

[Herr Heinrich]

I'm so glad you're enjoying it - so am I

Trees: this is more difficult to explain from my perspective than I expected it to be! :faint:However, I will do my best: I believe in dryads, who are the spirits of trees. I believe each individual has its own, but there is a collective spirit in a grove, glade, or forest as well. There are also sort of guardian trees, usually the eldest in a grove or glade....

That's really cool. I have done a very similar meditation before. It was a Qigong meditation that cycled the energy between you and the tree. It could be used with plants too and other natural things. Kenneth Cohen wrote the Qigong it was in. It also told one to approach with respect and thank the tree. I was once doing a Qigong exercise under a tree and its branches reached down and touched my hands when I lifted my hands. It wasn't windy and I couldn't reach them when I had started 10 minutes before. It was interesting. I will have to try your version and try conversing with the Spirit of the tree. I always talk to the trees at my college campus around our ponds. Oh and this may seem a little strange, but you inspired me to finally join the ADF. I have been thinking about doing so for over a year and have finally decided to. It will take a few weeks to receive their Dedicant Path materials and get started.

 

[bain-druie]

That's really cool. I have done a very similar meditation before. It was a Qigong meditation that cycled the energy between you and the tree. It could be used with plants too and other natural things. Kenneth Cohen wrote the Qigong it was in. It also told one to approach with respect and thank the tree. I was once doing a Qigong exercise under a tree and its branches reached down and touched my hands when I lifted my hands. It wasn't windy and I couldn't reach them when I had started 10 minutes before. It was interesting. I will have to try your version and try conversing with the Spirit of the tree. I always talk to the trees at my college campus around our ponds. Oh and this may seem a little strange, but you inspired me to finally join the ADF. I have been thinking about doing so for over a year and have finally decided to. It will take a few weeks to receive their Dedicant Path materials and get started.

The Qigong meditation sounds familiar, as in I know I've read something about it somewhere, but I don't recall anything useful!

Cool about the tree; remember what species it was?

We have some really nice trees on our campus as well.

And WOOT for joining ADF! :highfive: I really feel that whatever path you belong on, if you're drawn to Druidry, Druidry will enhance that path. :yes:

 

[Herr Heinrich]

The Qigong meditation sounds familiar, as in I know I've read something about it somewhere, but I don't recall anything useful!

Cool about the tree; remember what species it was?

We have some really nice trees on our campus as well.

And WOOT for joining ADF! :highfive: I really feel that whatever path you belong on, if you're drawn to Druidry, Druidry will enhance that path. :yes:

It was a Maple in front of my parents house. Not sure what kind of maple it was though.

 

[Master Vigil]

Do you ever have difficulty explaining to others how trees... ummm... "talk"? Trees are a MAJOR influence on my spirituality. And I have an 8 year old, of which I am trying to explain how trees talk to me. Or better yet... how I can listen. I think I'm making progress, but who knows what goes on in that little mind of his. HAHA! I was wondering if you have had any experience with this?

 

[Herr Heinrich]

Bump.