In a simple sense,
this is the faith followed by the Celts at around the time the Romans invaded
Gaul (which is more or less modern day
France) and Britain. As reported by their conquerors, which means one must
be careful because the victor tends to write history as the victor wishes it to
be seen, the Druids use sacred groves for their rituals (the Roman Pliny the Elder wrote a description of an “oak and
mistletoe” ritual), believed in reincarnation, had a verbally based system
of teaching, had a respected place in Celtic society, and were (in my words) administrators of the law.
The Romans outlawed Druidry, and did their utmost to stamp it out – if I recall
correctly, because it was associated with resistance to their invasion.
There has been some
controversy over head hunting by the Celts – which seems to be supported by
archaeological evidence, and whether or not this was connected to Druidry. In
short, there are massive gaps about what is academically definitively known,
and what is academically considered conjecture.
Despite the academic
controversies (which include the usual
“this is Neo-Druidry!” rubbish), over the last few centuries there has been
a revival of a Druid tradition, generally based on:
·
veneration of nature;
·
an acceptance of reincarnation; and
·
respect for ancestors.
There are variation
in modern Druid beliefs, and I recommend anyone who is interested in this path
visit websites such as that of the order of Bards,
Ovates and Druids, http://www.druidry.org/,
or blogs such as the Druid Journal.
As of the time this
definition was written, I’ve touched on this topic in the following posts:
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