Druidism

by DragonHeart



Druidism

      Druids, who or what were they? Were they a race of people, or a religious cult, or just a myth? The following are just a few facts and my personal ideas on druidism. This is a path which I have chosen, rather than one conformed to under pressure.

     Comprehended under the one term DRUID, there were, in reality, three distinct sects comprised within the order. Also, within ancient Druidism, there were three specialties. "A general categorization of the three different grades accords the arts to the bards, the skills of prophecy and divination to the Ovates and philosophical, teaching, counseling and judicial tasks to the Druid."

     First, the Druids; or Derwydd, properly so called. These were the intellectual philosophers who directed the machineries of the state and the priesthood, and presided over the dark mysteries of the consecrated groves. Their name was derived from derw (pronounced derroo) Celtic for oak, and ydd, a common termination of nouns in that language, equivalent to the or/er in governor, reader, in ours.

     The Bards; or Bardd from Bar; a branch, or the top. It was their province to sing the praises of horses in the warrior's feasts, to chant the sacred hymns like the musician's among the Levites, and to register genealogies and historical events.

     The Ovades or Ovydd, (derived from ov, raw, pure, and ydd, above explained) were the noviciates, who, under the supervision of the Druids, studied the properties of nature, and offered up the sacrifices upon the altar.

Thus it appears that Derwydd, Bardd, and Ovydd, were emblematical names of the three orders of Druidism.

     Although the term Druid is local, their religion was of deep root, and a distant origin. It was of equal antiquity with those of the Persian Magi, the Chaldees of Assyria, and the Brachmans of Hindostan.

It resembled them so closely in its sublime precepts, in its consoling promises, as to leave no doubt that these nations, living so widely apart, were all of the same stock and the same religion-that of Noah, and the children of men before the flood. They worshipped but one God, and erected to him altars of earth, or unhewn stone, and prayed to him in the open air; and believed in a heaven, in a hell, and in the immortality of the soul. And, like the others, the Druids worshipped the heavenly bodies, and also trees, and water, and mountains, and the signs of the serpent, the bull and the cross.

     Druidry is not a religion per say, but more of a belief or philosophy in the earth and the power it provides us. In a sense, some believe it to be a religion and one of the oldest religions; even pre-dating the early Celtic religions. The druids are the professional working people between mother-earth, the heavens above, and the spirits below. They were the advisors to the ruling factions in our early history. The Druids established themselves as a spiritual class of healers, teachers, and rulers. They were a group that observed and worshipped the patterns and elements of nature around them, viewing these patterns as reflections of themselves and Man's world. Ritual practices and beliefs were constructed that sought to bring Man into a closer harmony with nature, and build a relationship that assisted Him in living daily life, with everything from herbalist and holistic medicine, to rites that celebrated birth, death, and marital unions.

     One doesn't have to be a druid to follow in its beliefs. You could be a Catholic, Buddhist, Wicca; worship a god or a goddess, it really doesn't matter. Since druidism was never really documented and is more of a spoken religion, there are many different views and rituals. There is little first hand knowledge of the Druids or of their religion. The chief reason for this is that they taught their acolytes secret druidical knowledge by word of mouth. None of this trusted knowledge was committed to writing; it was all learned through mnemonics. Some present-day Druids attempt to reconstruct of the beliefs and practices of ancient Druidism. Other modern-day followers of Druidism work directly with the spirits of place, of the gods, and of their ancestors to create a new Druidism.

     Consider that from 200 BC until circa 1200 AD most people knew nothing outside of their village and at most maybe up to five miles away. Some villagers never saw anyone other than the people who were born and raised in that very same village. So traditions and beliefs varied. You have druids in Greece, Africa, Britain, Ireland, Italy, Scandinavia, Scotland and the list goes on.

     I'm personally a solitary druid following my own path. I found myself questioning traditional established religions that tell us what to believe. The druid path appears to have been lost but in actuality it has only disappeared from the historian's view. It has never been lost only hidden from public view.

     The Catholic Church decided in 998c.e. Too include many of what they considered pagan sacrilege into there own beliefs to entice many druids into the church where they could be converted and saved. The followers of druidism that took up with the church soon had been practicing these beliefs since about 2300 BC discovered that they were not being lead down the right path and quickly returned the druid teachings. The funny thing is those "Pagan" beliefs remain to this day as part of the establish beliefs of all religions. (The Wreath, The Christmas Tree, Halloween, All Hollows Eve) The following is an example.

Absolutely Halloween - Samhain      Samhain was known in Ireland as the "Lord of Darkness". The Druid religion was practiced by ancient Celtic tribes that populated Ireland and parts of Europe. This religion worshipped Samhain, the Lord of Darkness. Some writings also speak of Samhain as the "Lord of the Dead". But, scholars suggest that this is incorrect.

     The Druid New Year began on November 1st. It is also known as the "Feast of Samhain". The Celts only recognized summer and winter seasons. Literally translated, Samhain means "Summer's End". At this time, the hours of nighttime were growing significantly over the hours of sunlight. Hence, Lord Samhain reigned over the long winter months as the influence of the Sun god and the summer season (Beltaine or Beltane) preceded. Samhain's influence grows with the increase in the hours of darkness, as he can only roam the earth during hours of darkness.

     The Druids believed that on their New Year's Eve, all of the people who died in the past year would rise up and search for the passageway to the netherworld. On this night the passageway or "veil" between both worlds was it's thinnest. Lord Samhain would roam the earth in search of these souls to capture them and take them to his world of darkness. To this day, people put lights in their windows to help the dead find their way and keep Lord Samhain away.

     The Druids themselves were priests and priestesses of their religion, dating back to about 200BC. These magicians (or soothsayers or wizards) filled the most important roles in Celtic culture. At the time the Celtic tribes were close to nature. As a result, they worshipped many things in nature as their gods. But no Druid god was more powerful nor feared than Lord Samhain.

     Some of the roots of Halloween are traced back to the Druid religion and Lord Samhain. Certainly, Halloween took aspects of darkness, black color, evil spirits, and people rising from the dead and roaming the earth on this night. These themes of Halloween are all common with this religion.

     Pope Gregory II moved the Christian holiday of "all Hollows Eve" from May 13 to November 1st to coincide with the Feast of Samhain. This was an effort by the Catholic Church to downplay the pagan festival. Hopefully, they reasoned it would replace Samhain and the pagan celebration would fade away. The pagan festival continued to be celebrated and Halloween evolved largely from it. Today the Catholic Church tolerates the Halloween, recognizing it is a fun holiday and not intended to hold religious or other supernatural beliefs or religion. Or so they thought. What about the celebrations of “The day of the dead” in Mexico by the faithful Catholic’s?

Seasonal Days of Celebration:     Druids, past and present, celebrate a series of fire-festivals, on the first of each of four months. Each would start at sunset and last for three days. Great bonfires would be built on the hilltops. Cattle would be driven between two bonfires to assure their fertility; couples would jump over a bonfire or run between two bonfires as well.

The festivals are:

• Samhain (or Samhuinn) Literally the "end of warm season". November 1 marked the combined Feast of the Dead and New Year's Day for the Celtic calendar. It is a time when the veil between our reality and that of the Otherworld is most easily penetrated. This fire festival was later adopted by the Christians as All Soul's Eve, and later became the secular holiday Halloween.
  
  
• Imbolc (or Brighid) Literally "in the belly". February 1 marked The Return of Light. This is the date when the first stirrings of life were noticeable and when the land might first be plowable. This has been secularized as Groundhog Day.
  
  
• Beltaine (or Bealteinne)May 1 was the celebration of The Fires of Bell. This was the peak of blossom season, when domesticated animals bear their young. This is still celebrated today as May Day. Youths dance around the May pole in what is obviously a reconstruction of an earlier fertility ritual.
  
  
• Lughnasad (or Lughnasadh, Lammas)August 1 was The Feast of Lugh, named after the God of Light, a time for celebration and the harvest.

FREEMASONS      Imagine my shock and disbelief when I stumbled on to the fact that Freemasonry adores and worships the Serpent just as completely as do most pagan groups of the past 5,000 years. As I continued to research Masonic symbols, I found that serpent worship is rampant within Masonry. This serpent worship absolutely proves Freemasonry is Satan worship. But, Masons also consider the Serpent to be the Savior of the World!

     "The serpent entwined around the egg, was a symbol common to the Indians, the Egyptians, and the Druids. It referred to the creation of the Universe." [Teaching of the 25 Degree, Knight of the Brazen Serpent ]

     I have found that Freemasonry does NOT believe that the Universe was created by God of the Holy Bible, as recorded in Genesis. This statement really supports that concept, as it dogmatically states that the serpent entwined around the egg is a symbol of the creation of the universe! Further, I find it highly damning that Freemasonry idolizes the Druids. Not only are the Druids in the statement above, but other Masonic authors are far more bold and forthright in their admission that Freemasonry venerates them because their Mysteries' Religion is identical to the Druids.

"... Our mode of teaching the principles of our profession [Masonry] is derived from the Druids". Masons are "our present Druids".

Other Masonic passages also noted Freemasonry's connection with the Druids.

"The Druids had a high veneration for the Serpent. Their great god, Hu, was typified by that reptile; and he is represented by the Bards as 'the wonderful chief Dragon, the sovereign of heaven'." [George Oliver, Signs and Symbols ]

At least, this Satanic view of the serpent and the dragon being identical beings is consistent with the Bible, as the Scripture says they both are symbols of Satan [Revelation 12:9]
     The Mason’s believe their religion comes from the Druid religion, this admission is extremely damning. Of course, "the Druids were occultic priests, practiced astrology, and offered human sacrifices."

The Python's Egg     The 'Druid's egg' or 'serpent's egg' or 'snake stone', was an object which had magic properties. The tales about it resemble those of the Philosopher's Stone sought by the alchemists; and the Grail sought by the chivalric knights. It may also remind Greek scholars of the Zeus egg (a meteoritic stone) which was kept at Delphi. The possessor of the druid's egg was said to gain immense magical power, and the powers named were those of the high bard or chief druid or high wizard.

     The druid's egg could be found on St Johns Eve (an important night on the goddess lunar calendar), when snakes were supposed to gather in a ball and create a 'glain', another name for this magic egg. Many species of snake do in fact gather and form such a ball in the cold months, but the few species of snake native to Britain are not egg-layers, having live young. A snake, which does lay eggs, is the python, not found in Britain, but which was kept in the goddess temples of the Aegean, and this appears to be further evidence of an association between the Druids and the Mediterranean temples. While we are in this speculative mood, we might consider that actual pythons were taken from the Mediterranean to Ireland, and that the conversion of the Druids by St Patrick accounts for the story of his having driven the snakes out of Ireland, for the geological record shows that there were no snakes native to Ireland in Patrick's day, or for that matter, in recent geological times.