Basic Study of Druidry

Introduction

This class will explore the world of the druid by examining what we know of the ancient druids and the culture of druidry today. It is important to note that the organizations of druids are generally not as organized in terms of creeds and beliefs as other pagan and neo-pagan traditions such as Wicca. The information presented here may not represent the beliefs of all individuals who title themselves as druids. Instead, we aim to learn of the generalities, not the specifics. There is no single source of information such as the Christian Bible nor are there central creeds expressed specifically such as Wicca’s Charge of the God and Goddess. Instead there are fragments of epic poems recorded by Christian monks who were trying to conquer the Druidic culture. The contempt these sources had for the druids make their accounts suspect by default. A few other scattered samples of observations about the Druidic culture as it stood in the Celtic nations of old.

Today’s druidry is much the same. There are not central doctrines. There are general themes but even these may vary from group to group and organization to organization. There are several modern druidic organizations. These can be best explained by labeling them as denominations of druidry. These denominations make reference to various sources of ancient druidry and often interpret the information gathered there very differently. This will be discussed later in the class.

For now, understand that there is little that is known of the ancient druids that is historically accurate. Anyone claiming to have a direct lineage to the original ancient druids that walked the earth shortly after the erection of Stonehenge is probably yanking your chain.

Also, it should be noted that the vast majority of this document is text directly borrowed from the books, websites and articles listed in the Sources section of this handout.

 

 

Topics Covered

• Celtic Society & Druids
• The Original Druids
• Druids in Celtic Mythology
• Druids as Teachers and Diviners
• Druids as Healers
• Druids as Counselors
• Druids as Mediators
• Druids as Magicians
• Druids Today
• Druid Cosmology
• The Three Realms
• Pillars of Druidry
• The Celtic Nations
• Celtic Society
• History of the Celts
• Sources of Druidic Information
• Human Sacrifice
• Druidic Misconceptions
• Druidic Symbols
• Druidic Ritual Tools
• Druidic Gods and Goddesses
• Holidays and Festivals
• A little History of Ogham
• Sacred Animals
• Witchcraft & Wicca
• Arthurian Druidsm
• Celtic Christianity
• Romantic Druidism
• Song of Amergin
• Awen – the Holy Spirit of Druidry
• Interview with a Yew Tree
• Other Resources
• Recommended Reading