DRUIDISM

I would first like to thank Amy for all her hard work. I really enjoyed this course. This course brought a lot of insight to me. I never learned much about the Druids, but I have had knowledge of some Celtic history. I liked the history of the Druids.

This course started with the history of the Druids. The first accounts or known records of the Druid Society came about in the time of ancient Rome around 400’s BCE. This was near the Black Sea. The accounts by Roman historian’s show that Druids were not true a religion, but rather a Society of people in the midst of pre-Christianity. They were a professional culture located in various sections of the Celtic Nations of Western Europe and the British Isles.

Among the tribes there were three classes of men or women held in special honor: 1. The bardoi (bards) who were the singers and poets. 2. The ovateis (ovate) who were the interpreters and seers of sacrifice and natural philosophy. 3. The druidai (druidic) who, in addition to the science of nature, also studied moral philosophy.

The Druids followed much of the Celtic cultures and ways of life, by their Celtic Wheel of the Year, or Sabbats and their Religious faith. From the Celtic Tree of Life they found their knowledge for everything continued in a circle, and everyone within the cycle had a connection. Animals, plants, water, sky; it all joined together to create a rhythm and harmony that still exists in the Druids Society today.

There are people, still today, that believe that Christianity or other religions are not for them, but they want religion in their lives. They believe Celtic spirituality is a viable and healthy alternative for them.

I enjoyed learning about the traditional areas of the Druidic practice. There is no initiation into any of these groups. I didn’t find any part of this course that I disliked. I must talk a little about the groups in the Society, because it was so fascinating.

The Bards were musicians, and poets who sang or told the history, laws and heroic tales. They were seers, diviners, dream-weavers and word magicians. Bards were “the keepers” of tradition, of the memory of the tribe. They were the custodians of the sacredness of the Word. They were educated for many years, some 12 to 20 years.

The Ovate conducts prophecy and divination, the healing arts and awareness of the Otherworld. They learned the power of seeing and envisioning. They seeked understanding through the study of herbs, plants and the physical healing energies of the earth. They worked with the processes of death and regeneration. They specialized in divination, conversing with the ancestors, and prophesying with the future.

The Druids were the leaders of the society. They were admired for their long education. Some training took 20 years. The Druids are teachers, modern day priests, ambassadors, astronomers, genealogists, philosophers, musicians, theologians, scientists, poets and judges. They also lead all public rituals.

The Celtic’s had over 56 major Gods and Goddesses. They were very interesting. I would like to have known how to pronounce some of their names.

One other area of interest was their Celtic Tree Calendar. It was based on the moon. The Druids revered all things in nature, so to know your moons, your trees and alphabet helped you in harvesting and celebrating good times to marry.

This course has so much information, everyone will enjoy taking it. It is a must course to take.

Blessings to you all,

Rev. Nancy Rutledge

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The Universal Life Church is a comprehensive online seminary where we have classes in Christianity, Wicca, Paganism, two courses in Metaphysics and much more. I have been a proud member of the ULC for many years and the Seminary since its inception.