What is Druidry?
As mentioned before, Druidry is a spiritual path. This path is derived from the Old Ways and the ancient Druids, who were guardians of tradition before Christianity. Druids were judges, shamans, teachers, priests, and philosophers. They were trusted members of tribes who held knowledge and guidance.
The primary philosophical belief of Druidry is loving and respecting all of life, including human beings, animals, and all of Nature. Druids often call this "reverence," to expand upon the respect aspect to include admiration and sacred awareness. Many Druids practice the idea of non-violence and pacifism, abstaining from harming others and focusing instead on the idea of peace.
Druids also believe that we are all connected in a great web of life, including all living creatures and all of Nature.
Druids often experience this belief in their bodies and hearts rather than simply in their minds. They find themselves feeling increasingly at home in the world – and when they walk out on to the land and look up at the moon or stars, or smell the coming rain on the wind they feel in the fabric of their beings that they are a part of the family of life, that they are 'home,' and that they are not alone.
— The Web of Life and the Illusion of Separateness, druidry.org
This belief is compounded into the idea of cause and effect; meaning that whatever we do in the world will create an effect that will affect us as well. These beliefs of being interconnected and harvesting the consequences of our actions come easy to Druids; these are ideas that have evolved through observation of the natural world.
In modern Druidry, and especially within OBOD, there are three levels: Bards, Ovates, and, ultimately, Druids. Each of these three levels focus on a subset of Druidry practices in order to foster an overall understanding of all the gifts that Druidry can open our eyes to.
The Seven Gifts
While this path might have originated in antiquity, Druidry fits alongside our lifestyles in a modern world. In fact, there are seven gifts that Druidry brings:
- Philosophy that emphasizes the sacredness of all life, and our part in the great web of creation
- Puts us in touch with nature through practices that help us feel one again with Nature, our ancestors, our own bodies, and sense of spirit, with eight seasonal celebrations
- Healing with a set of practices that promote rejuvenation and healing using physical and spiritual methods
- Affirms our life as a journey with rites of passage when it is helpful to ritually and symbolically mark passage from one state to another
- Opens us to other Realities by exploring states of consciousness, other realities, the Otherworld
- Develops our Potential in a path of self-exploration and self-development, fostering our intellectual and spiritual growth
- Magic in bringing ideas into manifestation, the art of discovering and nurturing, the journey of wisdom and healing, and learning how to use the power of Imbas, of Awen (spirit of creativity and inspiration, the human expression of the One Life)
Druidry is intensely practical, centered around the idea of living more fully in this life now rather than wanting to escape this life.
Goals of the Druid
Druids, above all else, seek the cultivation of wisdom, creativity, and love. These three goals are intrinsic to who we are both as humans and Druids.
Wisdom
There's two old stories in particular that Druids point to as a way to teach us how to achieve wisdom. In both stories, wisdom is sought by an older person and a young helper ends up on the receiving end of the wisdom instead, exposing the jealousy of the older person from attaining the status they sought after.
In my view, the status of wisdom can be alluring to those who do not understand the value of it: to be helpful, to be truthful, to understand. The world we exist within seems to be more harmonious when we build upon the foundation of knowledge that has been laid before us by our ancestors, by the Druids of antiquity, by our relationship with Nature mended.
Creativity
In all, Druids believe we are meant to express and share our creativity as much as we can in this life on Earth. This creativity can be tied to the history of Druidry through Bards. You might think of Bards much like in stories of medieval folklore, media, and fantasy, and you wouldn't be far off; they are actually tied to the history of Druidry as participants throughout history. Bards actually were able to sing songs of Druid wisdom and tell stories of Druid memories, and this is one of the ways that ancient Druidry was able to live on, through these passed-down stories and songs.
Cultivating an appreciation of culture and the arts is important to Druids. Self-expression and self-awareness are deeply important to growing individually, and being able to do this through art is a common Druid practice.
Love
Loving widely and deeply is core to who Druids are by loving the land, the Earth, the stars, and the wild. Druids, traditionally peacemakers and judges within societies, still uphold love and peace through prayers, offerings, and rituals. In this path, there is encouragement in storytelling and a love of myths, restorative justice, history, beauty, and of course, the natural world.
All of the Earth is sacred to Druids, and the love for the world we exist in all directions is shared among all Druids. This is partially why we tend to value peace and restorative justice above all alternatives.
Rituals and Practices
The practice of Druidry can be interpreted in many different ways, depending on the Druid. It really is up to the individual in how they want to express themselves and their spirituality. There are shared, seasonal rituals that Druids tend to practice, especially around the passage of time.
Nature is, of course, at the center of most, if not all, rituals Druids practice. Sacred groves, especially with great Oaks, are strongly associated with Druids, who use them for meditation and rituals either with other Druids or alone. Planting trees, studying treelore, and protecting forests are a few ways that trees play into the practice of Druidry. Building stone circles, working with crystals, and collecting stones are also ways to bring the natural world into rituals.
Our rituals tend to take place outdoors. Circles, symbolizing the world and our shared humanity, see repeated use within Druidry. The four directions around us, the earth below us, and the sky above us are honored. There are Rites of Passage, prayers, chants, and meditation practices that establish and maintain spiritual bonding to the Earth and to our communities.
Seasonal rituals take place marked by the Wheel of the Year, which is ultimately the amalgamation of a variety of pagans' seasonal festivals from across ancient Europe. Many pagan religions and ancient belief systems share rituals and practices with Druidry, and this might be because of how Druidry ended up spreading throughout Europe.
Next: The History of Druidry