Druids

Druids An exalted caste of Celtic priests. Little is known about the Druids. Reconstructions of their tradition form a central part of Paganism.

The Celts were a tribal people who spread throughout Gaul, Britain, Ireland, Europe, Asia Minor and the Balkans by the fifth century b.C.e. In the first century C.E., the Romans launched a series of suppressions of the Celts, and their religion eventually was replaced by Christianity.

The rituals and teachings of the Druids were highly secret and passed on orally. Most of what is known comes from a few writings of Greeks and Romans between the second century b.C.e. and the fourth century C.E., archaeological evidence found in graves, shrines and temples, and iconography.

History

The exact role of the Druids in Celtic society is open to interpretation and varies according to geography. In the third century C.E., Diogenes Laertius said that the Druids were an ancient institution in the fourth century b.C.e., during the time of Aristotle. Julius Caesar said the Gaul- ish Druids were one of the two highest castes, along with the knights, and were organized under a single titular head. In Ireland, the Druids were the second highest of three castes, below the nobility and above the plebes, or landless ones.

By most accounts, the Druids were the keepers of traditional wisdom who were concerned with moral philosophy, natural phenomena and theology. They included both men and women, for women had a place of importance in Celtic society. The Druids influenced both the sacred and secular lives of the Celts. They conducted religious ceremonies, served as mediators between the people and gods, exercised influence over the moral, ethical and spiritual fabric of Celtic society through their teachings and divination and made political and judicial decisions. Their teachings included moral philosophy, ethics, astronomy, the law of nature, the power of the gods and the concept of immortality.

Druids were skilled in the interpretation of omens, the correct rituals of sacrifice, the construction of a calendar, the medicine of herbs, the science of astronomy and the composition of poems. Ammianus, quoting Timagenes, said Druids “are uplifted by searchings into things most secret and sublime.” Gaulish Druids were said to administer law and justice, though it is unknown how they did so in relation to tribal chiefs. Irish Druids were described as men of learning and art, who included seers, wise men, bards and jurists. The Druids of Gaul and Britain were said to be separate from others in the priesthood, including diviners, bards and seers. There seemed to be overlap, as Druids were said to read omens and prophesy the future. In the first century C.E., Dio Chrysostom equated the Druids with Hindu brahmins, Persian magi and Egyptian priests. More recently, Druids have been described as shamanic, based on their customs of night fires, drumming, chanting and ecstatic dancing.

Certain trees, plants and animals were believed to be endowed with sacred and curative powers, and the Druids used them in religious ceremonies and for remedial pur- poses. The mistletoe, believed to be a sign from heaven, was used as a remedy against poisons and infertility, even for animals. The robur oak tree was thought to have come from the sacred forest, and its foliage was used in ceremonies. Druid means “knowing the oak tree” in Gaelic. Religious ceremonies were conducted in sacred woods or oak groves that served as temples. These sacred en- closures were also assembly sites where the Druids made decisions and administered justice in civil and criminal disputes. Other meetings took place at river sources and lakes because the Celts worshiped water gods and believed water to be sacred.

Ceremonies included prayers, libations and human and animal sacrifices. Victims were burned alive in wickerwork cages, stabbed, impaled on stakes and shot with ar- rows. The sacrifice of humans outraged the Romans, who outlawed it as barbaric by senatorial decree in 97 b.C.e. Later writers tried to excuse the Druids from participation in sacrifices, saying they did not do the actual killing. This is highly unlikely, given their roles as priests.

The only extant detailed account of a Druid ceremony comes from Pliny and concerns the harvesting of mistletoe. On the sixth day of the Moon, a Druid garbed in a white robe climbed an oak tree and, with his left hand, cut the mistletoe with a gold sickle (or, more likely, a gild- ed bronze sickle, since gold is too soft to cut mistletoe). The mistletoe, not supposed to fall to the ground, was caught in a white cloth. Two white bulls were sacrificed, and a feast held.

In interpreting omens, the Druids observed the hare or such birds as the crow and eagle to foretell events. They practiced divination by observing the death throes and entrails of their sacrificial victims. During religious festivals, the Druids divined by dreams. A man would be put to sleep with Druids chanting over his body. Upon awakening, the man would describe his dream and the Druids would interpret it.

Classical writings make some references to Magic, including charms with herbs and mistletoe, and belief in a magical egg made from the spittle of angry snakes that would ensure success in court and guarantee favours from princes.

The Druids’ belief in the immortality of the soul and life after death have been equated with Pythagoras’ belief in metempsychosis. The dead were cremated with all their possessions. Sometimes relatives committed suicide by jumping into the fire and holding the corpses so as to be with them in the next world. The Celts wrote letters to the dead and advanced loans that would be repayable after death. Julius Caesar said that this belief in immortality sustained the legendary Celtic courage in battle.

The Romans feared and were repulsed by the Celts, and in 43 C.E., the emperor Claudius banned Druidism throughout the empire. In 60 or 61, the Romans sacked and destroyed their holy stronghold on the island of Mona (also called Mon and Anglesey). According to Tacitus, black-clad Druidesses leaped among the Celtic warriors, howling to the gods and screaming Curses at the Romans. The Romans were victorious and killed the warriors and the Druids and laid waste to the sacred groves. The loss sent Druidism into permanent decline; within several generations, the venerated and powerful priest- hood was on a par with common sorcerers.

Antiquarian Druidic Revival

In the 16th and 17th centuries, interest in the Druids revived. Translators of the classical texts romanticized them and turned them into characters of folklore. John Aubrey, a leading British antiquarian of the 17th century, suggested the Druids had constructed Stonehenge, which has since been refuted. But the association of Druids with Stonehenge continued well into modern times.

Aubrey’s views were endorsed in the 18th century by William Stukeley, who became known as the “Arch Druid” and the founder of modern Druidism. A meeting of “British Druids” is said to have taken place in 1717, organized by John Tolan and led by Stukeley. In 1781, the Ancient Order of Druids was founded by Henry Hurle, a carpenter. This order was inspired by Freemasonry and also was a benefit society. The issue of charity split the organization in 1833. The United Ancient Order of Druids continued purely as a benefit society, while the Ancient Order of Druids retained its mystical underpinnings.

Modern Druid Revivals

By the early 20th century, there were at least five modern Druidic organizations, including the Druidic Hermetists and the British Circle of the Universal Bond, but most did not survive more than a few decades. In 1964, the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, led by Ross Nichols, split away from the Ancient Order of Druids, drawing members from that group and the British Circle of the Universal Bond.

In 1979, the British Druid Order (BDO) was founded in England by Phillip Shallcrass. A Council of British Druid Orders was formed in England in 1989. Around 2006, the BDO went into a state of “transition” and was largely inactive, but still in existence.

In the United States, a modern Druidic movement with no connection to the ancient Druids or the modern Druids in England was formed in 1963. The Reformed Druids of North America (RDNA) initially was conceived as a hoax by a group of students at Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, who were protesting a school requirement that students attend religious services. The requirement was dropped in 1963-64, but the Reformed Druids decided to take themselves seriously and continue as an organization of autonomous “groves.” Rituals were reconstructed from anthropological material and included non-bloody sacrifices. The founders of RDNA did not intend for it to become a religion, but rather viewed it as a philosophy. Some groves split off to form a separate branch, the New Reformed Druids of North America, which emphasized Paganism. Among these groves was the Berkeley grove, which was led by Archdruid P. E. I. (Isaac) Bonewits in the mid-1970s. Bonewits left the organization about 1978- 79. In 1983, he formed his own Druidic organization, Ar nDraiochj Fein (“Our own Druidism”).

The Reformed Druids of North America ceased activity, though individual groves remained scattered around the country. Ar nDraiocht Fein grew to become the largest Pagan Druidic organization in the world.

Carr-Gomm, Philip (ed.). The Druid Renaissance. London: Thorsons, 1996– Druidcraft: The Magic of Wicca and Druidry. London: Thorsons, 2002.
Hutton, Ronald. The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles: Their Nature and Legacy. London: Basil Blackwell Publishers, 1991.
Piggott, Stuart. The Druids. London: Thames and Hudson, 1975.
Shallcrass, Philip. Druidry. London: Piatkus Books, 2000.

Druids An exalted caste of priests of the Celts, renowned, according to the Romans, for their powerful Magic. Druid means “knowing the oak tree” in Gaelic. The Celts were a barbaric, tribal people who spread through Gaul, Britain, Ireland, Europe, Asia Minor, and the Balkans by the fifth century b.c.e. In the first century c.e., the Romans launched a series of suppressions of the Celts, and their religion eventually was replaced by Christianity. The rituals and teachings of the Druids were highly secret and passed on in an oral tradition. Little actually is known about the Druids, though much has been speculated about them since antiquarian times. Most of what is known comes from the writings of Greeks and Romans, the latter of whom, as the conquerors, must be viewed with some skepticism; and from archaeological evidence obtained from graves, shrines and temples, and iconography. The few writings span the second century b.c.e. to the fourth century c.e. The exact role of the Druids in Celtic society has been described differently. Diogenes Laertius noted that the Druids were already an ancient institution in the fourth century b.c.e., during the time of Aristotle. Julius Caesar said the Gaulish Druids were one of the two highest castes, along with the knights, and were organized under a single titular head. In Ireland, the Druids were the second highest of three castes, below the nobility and above the plebes, or landless ones. By most accounts, the Druids were the keepers of traditional wisdom who were concerned with moral philosophy, natural phenomena, and theology. They were skilled in divination, the interpretation of omens, the rites of sacrif ice, the construction of a calendar, the magical medicine of herbs, the science of astronomy, and the composition of poems. They played a key role in the sacred and secular life of the Celts. They conducted religious ceremo- 82 Drawing Down the Moon nies; served as mediator between the people and the gods; exercised influence over the moral, ethical, and spiritual fabric of Celtic society; and made political and judicial decisions. Ammianus, quoting Timagenes, said that Druids “are uplifted by searchings into things most secret and sublime.” Gaulish Druids were said to administer law and justice, though it is unknown how they did so in consideration of tribal chiefs. Irish Druids were described as men of learning and art who included seers, wise men, bards, and jurists. The Druids of Gaul and Britain were said to be separate from others in the priesthood, including diviners, bards, and seers. There seemed to be overlap, as Druids were said to read omens and prophesy the future. Druids included both men and women, for women had a place of importance in Celtic society. In the first century c.e., Dio Chrysostom equated the Druids with Hindu brahmins, Persian magi, and Egyptian priests. In more recent times, they have been described as shamans because of their practices of night fires, drumming, chanting and, ecstatic dancing/possession. Certain t rees, plants, and animals were believed to be endowed with sacred and curative powers, and the Druids used them in religious ceremonies and for remedial purposes. The mist l et oe, believed to be a sign from heaven, was used as a remedy against poisons and infertility even for animals. The robur oak tree was thought to have come from the sacred forest, and its foliage was used in ceremonies. Ceremonies were conducted in sacred woods or oak groves which served as temples. These sacred enclosures were also assembly sites where the Druids made decisions and administered justice in civil and criminal disputes. Other meetings took place at river sources and lakes because the Celts worshiped water gods and believed water to be sacred. The Druids practiced both animal and human sacri- fi ces. Human victims were burned alive in wickerwork cages, stabbed, impaled on stakes, or shot with arrows. It was the sacrifice of humans that so outraged the Romans, who had outlawed it as barbaric by Senatorial decree in 97 b.c.e. The only extant detailed account of a Druid ceremony comes from Pliny and concerns the harvesting of mistletoe. On the sixth day of the moon, a Druid who was garbed in a white robe climbed an oak tree and, with the left hand, cut the mistletoe with a gold sickle (more likely it was a gilded bronze sickle since gold is too soft to cut mistletoe). The mistletoe, not supposed to fall to the ground, was caught in a white cloth. Two white bulls were sacrificed, and a feast held. In interpreting omens, the Druids observed the hare or such birds as the crow and the eagle to foretell events. They practiced divination by observing the death throes and entrails of their sacrifi cial victims. During religious festivals, the Druids divined by dreams. A man would be put to sleep with Druids chanting over his body. Awakening, the man would describe his dream, and the Druids would interpret it. Classical writings make references to magic, including charms with herbs and mistletoe, and to belief in a magical egg made from the spit t l e of angry snakes, which would ensure success in court and guarantee favours from princes. The Druids believed in the immortality of the soul and life after death, which some writers have equated with Pythagoras’s belief in metempsychosis. The dead were cremated with all their possessions. Sometimes relatives committed religious suicide by jumping into the fire and holding the corpses so as to be with them in the next world. The Celts wrote letters to the dead and advanced loans that would be repayable after death. Caesar said that this belief in immortality sustained the legendary Celtic courage in battle. The Romans feared and were repulsed by the Celts, and in 43 c.e., Claudius banned Druidism throughout the empire. In 60 or 61, the Romans sacked and destroyed their holy stronghold on the island of Mona (also called Mon, and Anglesey). According to Tacitus, black-clad Druidesses leaped among the Celtic warriors, howling to the gods and screaming curses at the Romans. The Romans were victorious. They slew the warriors and the Druids and laid waste to the sacred groves. The loss sent Druidism into permanent decline; within several generations, the venerated and powerful priesthood was on a par with common sorcerers. Druidic Revivals In the 16th and 17th centuries, interest in the Druids revived. Translators of the classical texts romanticized them and turned them into folklore characters. John Aubrey, British antiquarian of the 17th century, suggested that the Druids had constructed Stonehenge, a theory which has since been refuted as false. Aubrey’s views were endorsed in the 18th century, however, by William Stukeley, who became known as the “Arch Druid” and the founder of modern Druidism. A meeting of “British Druids” is said to have taken place in 1717, organized by John Tolan and led by Stukeley. In 1781 the Ancient Order of Druids was founded by Henry Hurle, a carpenter. This order was inspired by Freemasonry and also was a benefit society. The issue of charity split the organization in 1833. The United Ancient Order of Druids continued purely as a benefit society, while the Ancient Order of Druids retained its mystical underpinnings. By the early 20th century there were at least five modern Druidic organizations, including the Druidic Hermetists and the British Circle of the Universal Bond, but most did not survive more than a few decades. In 1963 the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids split away from the Ancient Order of Druids, drawing members away from that group and from the British Circle of the Universal Bond. Before 1915 Stonehenge was privately owned, but modern Druids were allowed to assemble there. In 1900 a stone was knocked over, and the owner fenced the henge and began to charge admission. At the next solstice cerDruids 83 emony, some of the Druids objected to the fee. The police were called, and the Druids were thrown out. They ritually cursed the owner. In 1915 Stonehenge was sold to Cecil Chubb, who turned it over to the government. The modern Druids were allowed to hold festivals at Stonehenge until 1985 when the monument was placed off limits to all such festivals, due to vandalism by the spectators who were attracted to the gatherings. Since then, small groups, including Druids, have been given permission to conduct ceremonies and rituals inside the henge. Druidism is the second-largest tradition within the Pagan movement. Followers reinterpret what is known about the Druids and construct a spiritual path of devotion, ritual, and magic.

History

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