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Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 1Brought to you
by the community of Druidic Dawn(www.druidicdawn.org)
Magick of Druidism
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 2
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Zaontachtcreating unity in community
Cover photo: Harmonyeris among the Circle of Fire Spirits © Don Searle
9 Con Connor from theDruidschool of Ireland
Feature Interview
17 Magick of Druidism
21 Nature Magick in the 21st Century
31 Three Magic Treasures of Ynys Pydrain
19 Contribution from theCanadian Celtic Gathering 2011
30 Rosemary and Thyme
27 Rivers28 The Waddies29 Samhain
35 The Path of Druidry36 Scottish Herbs and Fairy Lore37 Indo-European Poetry and Myth
3 Contributors Page
6 From The Desk.....
8 News from the Druidic Dawn Management Team
39 Community Calendar
42 What is in our next issue
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Contributorsaontachtcreating unity in community
Environmental BenefitsStatement
Aontacht magazine is onlyavailable online as a free .pdfdownload; thereby savingtrees, water, solid waste andgreenhouse gases. It is de-signed on an Energy Star ratedcomputer.
Aontacht is published four timesa year by Druidic Dawn, CIC.Aontacht, Volume 3, Issue 1 ©2010 Druidic Dawn, all rights re-served. All contained content iscopyright to its respective own-ers, including art and photos. Thecontents of this publication maynot be reproduced in whole or inpart without the consent of thecopyright owner.
EditorInterim Nigel Dailey
Co-EditorRichard Fox
Druidic Dawn Rep.Nigel Dailey
Graphic DesignerInterim Nigel Dailey
Feature Editor - FormularyFaye Boyd
Feature Editor - PoetrySarah WardPublisher
Druidic Dawn, CICOriginal Layout Design
Aestas Designs( aestas.dieromantic.com )
General InquiriesAll questions, comments and et-cetera can be sent to the follow-ing address:
AdvertisingAt the moment we are offering adspace. To the community ofDruidic Dawn. This is subject tochange.
Opinions and views expressedare not necessarily those of
the editors, publisher or staff.
Con Connor is an active Arch Druid of theDark Moon Grove, a member of the Trib-ann Council of Ord na Drui; and the HolyCouncil of Sages of Celtia. He is the mainteacher at the Druidschool of Ireland and amember of the World Druid Order.
Debra Lewis originally from Nova Scotia,Canada and has lived in the Northwest ofEngland since 2005. Currently studying theOvatic path of Druidry with the Order ofBards, Ovates and Druids, Deb also worksas a medical laboratory assistant with theNHS.
Richard Fox is an earth magickpractitioner, fire Druid and a warrior poetwho lived mostly outdoors in the forests ofthe U.S. for more than 18 years. During thattime he planted more than 700,000 treesand supervised the planting of more than26,000,000 additional trees. Today heworks with Native Americans from 14tribes on major renewable energy projects,including solar heating and electric andwind turbines with a base among theLakota on the Pine Ridge and Rosebudreservations in South Dakota.
Maya St. Clair resides in Kuwait, is an IrishPolytheist, and a mechanical engineer witha love of history, mythology and culture.She is editor of the Oran Mor, the officialnewsletter of the New Order of Druids. Shealso serves on their Council. Maya is anIrish Gaelic student and regularly writes awide variety of articles and book reviewson Celtic and religious topics.
Volume 4, Issue 2
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Editorial Notes
You do not have to be a mem-ber of the Druidic Dawn com-
munity to submit to themagazine.
Please submit contributionsdirectly to the editorial staff
via email to:[email protected]
Refer to the last page of thisissue for writer’s guidelinesand even more information,before you submit inquiries
or contributions.
Below are our upcomingissues. Be sure to specify towhich you are submitting.
Volume 4, Issue 3,“Storytelling”
Deadline Nov 15, 2011
The Art of Storytelling playsan important role for ancientand modern Celts or Druidsas a medium, which passeson knowledge and wisdomteachings to explore. Whatstories do you have and wishto share with Aontacht read-ers? What hidden knowl-edge do they contain?
Volume 4, Issue 4“Sacred Places ”
Deadline Feb 15, 2011
Tribal Celts and Druidshad their sacred placeswithin the local landscapeand further afield, whichheld specific meanings andspiritual significance. Howdoes those relate to con-temporary Celts and Dru-ids? Do they hold the sameessence as in times past?What makes a modern “sa-cred place”?
Caroline Queen of Celtica has a great love ofnature and meditation, and lives in Y Drenew-ydd in Cymru, in the beautiful Welsh moun-tains. Presently runs the record label GreatOak, with a mission to create a sustainablegreen Celtica, filled with Great Oaks and HighConsciousness.
Dafydd Monks lives in Gwynedd, North Wales.He is a student of Herbal Medicine and has astrong interest in the Welsh language, the Welshtradition of Druidry, and their place in the 21stcentury.
Contributors
Penny Billington is a Druid celebrant in the Or-der of Bards, Ovates and Druids, and edits theOrder magazine, Touchstone. Author of the‘Gwion Dubh, Druid detective’ series and hascontributed to Philip Carr Gomm’s ‘The Book ofEnglish Magic’ and to the Druid Grade Gwers.Her Druidic experience includes conducting andarranging a variety of events over the years.
Shaun William Hayes has been aware of hispath since the age of 18 and has studied healingand the Western mystery traditions off and onmost of his life. His qualifications are in counsel-ling and hypnotherapy and he has practised pastlife regression. For the past ten years he has beena member of OBOD and he is now studying inthe Druid grade. Phagos co-founded the SylvanGrove five years ago, and is one of four facilita-tors. They meet regularly in the New Forest nearthe historic village of Burley, UK.
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ContributorsProduction TeamPositions Available:
Editor
A vacancy is available for aVolunteer Editor to lead a verysuccessful team of dedicatedvolunteers which brings thismagazine to the wider com-munity. If one have the time tospare and wish to actively beof service to this and the great-er Celtic and Druid internetcommunity.
Graphic DesignerA vacancy is available for aVolunteer Graphic Designerto oversee the Layout andgraphic needs of the AontachtMagazine. If one have the timeto spare and wish to activelybe of service to this and thegreater Celtic and Druid inter-net community.
"Wild Earth"Feature Editor
The "Wild Earth" Feature Edi-tor will manage our newestforthcoming feature on "WildEarth". This position wouldentail writing a short, succinctand relevant piece on anynumber of topics related to theEarth for each issue. We arelooking for diversity of experi-ence and understanding, aswell as a clear writing stylethat is both intelligent andpractical. It is possible that ifthe individual is unable or un-comfortable with writing reg-ularly, instead he or she mayprocure an appropriate sub-mission on an eco-relatedtheme each issue. The Produc-tion Team is flexible and inter-ested in working with theFeature Editor in developingthe "Wild Earth" feature intosomething fresh and unique.For more details on the "WildEarth" Feature Editor positionand what it involves, pleasecontact us at the email below.
Nigel Dailey resides in North Wales andhas a variety of interests ranging from Ar-chaeology, Anthropology, Archaeoastron-omy, Astrology, Druidry, History,Mythology and Smallholding. All has beengained while travelling through the jour-ney human beings call "life."
Faye Boyd has been interested in Natureand all things Celtic for many a year. She isa member of OBOD, Druidic Dawn, OrdBrighideach International, Celtic Reiki Mas-ter, Hot Stone Therapist, Guided Medita-tions and is a spoken word artist. Faeresides in Canada.
r
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We know now that Druidry can survive. Thequestion is whether it will choose to flourish. Wecan look to the Christian model and choose to splitinto more factions, argue among ourselves anddiffuse our power. Or we can admit the limita-tions of our knowledge and promote a wider fellow-ship and in doing so accept a wider spectrum ofbeliefs and embrace that we are all seekers of truthand explorers on the path of life.
Druidry requires that we adapt, that we seekknowledge in many forms and in many places.We are guided by what we know of our ancestorsand the customs, practices and rituals of the past.Yet, we must forge our path into the future builton a ongoing living and respectful relationshipwith this planet and a caring for all life.
The opportunities for Druidry - for all earth basedspiritual based paths - have never been greater.People are pouring away from traditional reli-gions that are based on fear and dominion overother life forms. They are tired of being told theirGod is willing to damn them for all eternity forinfractions of rules that were made by men andenforced by a priesthood that is rotting from with-in.
People seek the embrace of their Mother and herunconditional love. They seek a way back home toour rightful birthright that we earned as a speciesthat evolved on this planet over millions of years.More and more people seek a new way to honour
the old ways and a better understanding of theirplace in the universe.
But they need help.
Many of them have grown used to having anintermediary between them and the One Source.They have been told even exploring other spiritualpaths is a sin and they need the help of a fellowtravellers to tell them that the path is clear, thatthere is no hell to fear and nothing will jump outof the bushes at them.
Druidry is a personal path chosen by individualsthrough the journey of life, and given the essenceof what Druidry is, the written word is unable tofully encompass the experience and insight thatpracticing Druidry provides. We who alreadywalk our path are not superior to others just start-ing, but are fellow travellers on a remarkably longtrail in an impossibly infinite universe. We canencourage others, show them places to stop andlearn along the way. We can offer them spiritualfood and drink that nourishes them instead ofpoisoning their minds and crushing their spirits asthey have found on other paths.
At the Druidic Dawn, we try our best every day toserve the needs of the global Druid community.Our web site continues to expand, we experimentwith new activities as our reach extends furtherand our magazine Aontacht has become one of thepremiere Druid publications in the world.
News from the AontachtProduction Team
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The Druidic Dawn mission is to foster understand-ing, through shared knowledge, of the variousstrands that make up the fabric of what we nowknow as Druidry.
We are a social enterprise celebrating Druidic di-versity, at the same time honoring the differentestablished Druidic paths, which we highlightthrough our community portal, our projects andour activities.
Back not too long ago, we polled our membersfrom many different organizations and grovesfrom all other the world and determined some ofthe pillars of Druidic Values. Simply put, they are:
RespectLife, yourself, others, nature that surrounds us,
the universe that encompasses us,the ancient ways, and our ancestors.
ProtectNature, others, the balance of life,
and the ancient ways.
RealizationNature that surrounds us,
the universe that encompasses us,and the other which is beyond description
UnderstandingLearn from others and our experiences,
pass on what we know,and build upon the knowledge of our ancestors
Regarding this last one - Understanding - many ofyou have benefitted from books written by someof our members and many others, or have beeninspired by a poem from a bygone age or attendeda recent workshop, ceremony or celebration of theTurning of the Wheel.
They are all a part of the great passing on that is anessential part of what we are.
I ask each of you, what is it that you have... or willpass on? What is it that you can and will contribute
to the greater good and to the knowledge of theancestors?
You have many resources and skills that were builtupon the foundation of caring and sharing of thosethat came before you. And there are many waysyou can help at this critically important and pow-erful time and I hope you will do so, as we greatlyneed your service and contributions.
Right now for instance, we are recruiting for ourcore Druidic Dawn Management Team whichguides our many interests and paths of service.
We realize that to continue to grow, we must con-tinue to adapt and change and bring in new peoplewith different skills and interests. We also haveseveral spots open on our magazine Aontacht in-cluding the main Editor position.
We hope that every one of you will stand up foryour beliefs. Stand up for what is right and justand make a difference with your lives. We hopethat you will serve the greater Druidic communitywherever you are located and that some of you willjoin us at the Druidic Dawn in our global adven-ture. We need your support - your contribution ofvolunteer hours and your donations in our effortto unite Druids, and provide resources to thosewho walk the path of respect for all life.
If you are interested in knowing more about theDruidic Dawn Management Team or the openingsat our magazine Aontacht, please contact us [email protected]. And remember, as wesow, so shall we harvest....and the more you give,the more you have to give.
Blessings upon each of you and I look forward tohearing from you!
Co-Editor
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Welcome to Autumn & Spring of 2011!
A lot has been happening at Druidic Dawn, andwe like to keep our readers updated on what’sbeen going on.
Druidic Dawn working in the Community
The 2nd Celtic Gathering was held in July 2011 atthe beautiful Mansfield Outdoor Centre, North ofToronto, Canada. A select group of participantsfrom Canada, USA and Wales, enjoyed a relaxedand informative weekend. The Highlights weretalks on the Thirteen Treasures of Britain, the Loreof the Celtic Goddess and a workshop being anadventure which covered various aspects of theelements and spirit. The final group working wasa gentle, blissful meditative journey, held on agrassy hillock with shady trees, which embracedthe love and life of Mother Earth and the Spirit ofPlace.
Plans for the 3rd Celtic Gathering are underway;to be held in Early Autumn 2013. So make a notein your diaries and keep a look out for furtherdetails on the Celtic Gathering Website.
Druidic Dawn behind the Scenes
The Management Team which facilitates DruidicDawn web site and associated projects on behalf ofthe community is presently being restructured. Ifyou are a member of its community and interestedin volunteering your services, to guiding this com-munity into the future, [email protected] like to hear from you.
In a similar situation Aontacht has three vacanciesat present for an Editor, a Graphic Designer, andWild Earth Feature Editor. Details of which can befound in the past columns on the contributor page.If you are a member of the Druidic Dawn commu-nity and have time available to volunteer yourservices to the magazine. The Aontacht productionteam [email protected] would like tohear from you.
On Behalf of the Management Team
Aontacht DD Representative
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Druidic DawnFeature Interview
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Con Connor is the main teacher at the Druidschool in Ireland. Working with Niamh, Red John,Clive and others, Con provides a wide spectrum of ceremonies, healing and counseling, as well asdiverse onsite and online training courses. Con is the Ard Draoi leis an Doire Geallach Doracha(Arch Druid with the Dark Moon Grove), a member of the Tribann Council of Ord na Drui, and amember of the Holy Council of Sages of Celtia. He is also a member of 'Ga agus Claoimh' - an Irishand Viking age re-enactment group and a member of The Irish Society of Diviners.
Con and his exceptional associates are building a new Druid center of power - one where peoplelearn to restructure their lives through hands-on activities, service and study.
DD: Thank you for agreeing to this interview with theDruidic Dawn (DD). We appreciate your time andwillingness to share your work and beliefs. Can youtell our readers when you first became interested inDruidry? Was there an event, or set of circumstancesthat first led you to this path?
Con: I reckon I first felt the stirrings of spirit when Iwas about 7 years old. I can remember hearing myhigher self, as if a wise older version of me was givingguidance to the young me. I was looking out mybedroom window to a low flat hill that I now know tobe Tallaght hill. It has a complex of ancient monu-ments that are part of the oldest landscape templecalendar in Ireland. I have re-discovered many lostmonuments on that hill and these have been added tothe list of National Monuments Records. I have livedon 4 sides of that hill and it has taught me much, whenI was able to listen... I never thought of it as Druidryat the time - I just saw it as waking up to and connect-ing to my Spirit.
DD: When was the Druidschool in Ireland createdand what was its original mission? Has that missionchanged much over time and if so, how?
Con: As an idea it began for me in 1993, but I calledit HAG (Heritage Awareness Group). I now have,with my partner Niamh, secured a small farm in thewest of Ireland where we host ceremonies, healingand counseling and our many training courses. Myoriginal mission was about helping others to re-con-nect to their ancestral awareness and I like to thinkthat I’m still doing that.
DD: How many Druid teachers are active and whatsubjects are available at the school to study?
Con: I like to think that everyone and every experi-ence can be our teacher if we but have the wit tolisten... I’m the main teacher, but Niamh, Red Johnand Clive also play important roles. We have special-ists in Bushcraft, Native Woodlands and NaturalHealing who also do workshops for and with us. Therange of subjects is wide but they all combine toempower students in awareness of the self and ourconnection to Nature and to the Gods. We call thisprocess ‘Spiritual Alchemy’, the high magic of self-transformation when you nurture the spark of soulwithin you to be a shining Light.
DD: Can you expand on the activities of the DarkMoon Grove? Is the grove interlinked to the Druid-school or are their activities separate?
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Con: An Doire Geallach Doracha is the name of ourgrove. In English this means the ‘dark shining oakcircle’ or simply put - the dark moon grove. There is astage in the cycle of the Moon when no waxing orwaning crescent is visible and this is when the Sun andMoon and the Earth are in alignment with the Moon inthe middle and when this is exact we get a dark mooneclipse with the Moon between the Sun and the Earth.The other type of eclipse is a full moon eclipse whichhas the Earth in the middle. The start of the Celtic NewYear is when this Dark Moon alignment is nearest to10* of Scorpio as this connects to the star Antares, oneof the four bright stars that make an equal arm crosswithin the belt of stars that make up the Zodiac. Thatmeans there is an alignment from Antares, Sun, Moonto the east of Ireland near Dublin, where this Sunrisesover an extinct volcano before it connects to Cairn‘L’ at Sliabh na Callighe with its passage and chamberand its unique man sized quartz free standing stoneinside. A fantastic alignment to start the Celtic NewYear, sacred to the Goddess Tlachtga.
We meet as a grove and hold public ceremony tohonour the Full Moon, the Gods and to call a healingcircle and to ask for continued connection to our teach-ers, guides and ancestors. But only grove members canjoin us for our gathering / ceremony on the DarkMoon. Our grove is separate to the school. Manyfriends have stood with our grove at the full moonwithout being members of the school. Since the SpringEquinox 2003 I have facilitated at over 100 full moonceremonies on Tara where we have been honoured tohave had many experienced Lightworkers and manyseekers join us. Red John now facilitates the ceremonyon Tara for the full moon and Niamh and I host a fullmoon ceremony here in our purpose built ceremonialenclosure - the Torc.
DD: What does being an Arch Druid in Ireland meanto you?
Con: Ard Drui in our language is slightly different toArch Druid... If you understand that the word Druidwas never used in the past in Ireland to describe thegroup that included those who held higher awareness,the intelligentsia, the astrologers, the healers, the al-chemists, the law keepers, the engineers etc... in asense you have to abandon the word Druid. Instead wehad the words - Drui, Draoi, Draoithe and so on andthis is usually interpreted (by catholick scribes) aswizard, magician, spell caster and as anyone whodispleased or did not obey the dictates of the church.For me today in Ireland being an Ard Drui means thatI seek the ways of understanding that our ancestorsused, their ways of comprehending and connecting toNature, the methods that support harmonic balance inpeople and with the land and in so doing that I canpresent as teacher, healer and guide to those who wantto walk a Celtic Path to the Light. It also means that Ias an Ard Drui try to look after the Dark Moon Groveas a sort of parent / guardian and in that it may be verysimilar to the responsibility of an Arch Druid with hisor her grove. But maybe the most important responsi-bility of an Ard Drui in Ireland today is to recover theindigenous knowledge traditions of this beautifulcountry and to share them to seekers.
DD: Why did you decide to join the World DruidOrder?
Con: The World Druid Order asked me to join as anArd Drui. I read their “Charter of the World DruidOrder” and “Universal Primordial Tradition” andknew that they are holding a true connection to theprimordial tradition and that their intentions are for thehighest good for all, so I felt honoured to have beenasked and accepted their request with pleasure.
DD: How has attendance changed, if any, in the lastfew years at the Druidschool and the events you puton? Do you see any increase in the movement awayfrom other religions and coming to the earth basedways?
Con: Yes, Ireland’s Druidschool has quite a presenceon the internet and it brings many people to study withus from all over the world - Australia, Alaska, Brazil,England, France etc as well as from Ireland. This
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reflects the reality that we are not just an online pres-ence but actually have a university with a campus andaccommodation in a quiet remote farm west of theShannon. We have just expanded our range of coursesand as various projects get completed we will offermore courses and increase accommodation from 4beds to 8 beds. We share the Celtic Path with ourstudents, this is our understanding of the indigenoustradition of this land from the Stone Age right up to thepresent. We respect Wica, Masonry and other forms ofCabbala (having many friends who practice and walkthese paths) and we find that some people on thesepaths are seeking a ‘Celtic’ spiritual understandinginstead of variations on a foreign magical discipline.Ours is a practical hands on approach, not just philo-sophical conjecture - that is to say we chop wood,carry water, plant trees, grow fruit and veg, clean holywells, host medieval camps, clean sacred sites, proteston the ground against wanton temple destruction andcorruption etc - we get our hands dirty...
When people are in a religion it’s because it serves aneed they have. We do not promote a religion, weshare techniques and guidance for seekers to find theirown connection to source and then self transformthrough choices into the best expression of their higherself. Sometimes this disappoints people because theyare seeking a Celtic religion - but that’s not what weteach or do.
DD: Can you explain the concept of the Three Caul-drons - Warming, Vocation and Knowledge?
Con: Yes I can and do, but please understand that thisis part of the oral teaching that makes learning with usspecial. To write it down would limit it to the writtenword but to speak and share it in the best way at anappointed time and in a sacred space is what gives thelistener great value. Simply put - see the Cauldron ofWarming as the belly area, Vocation as the chest andKnowledge as the head - but that does not tell youmuch, does it? Each of us has our own 3 cauldrons soany single description or use of excessive complicatedvocabulary would be counter-productive.
DD: Can you give more details about students partak-ing in the Three Celtic Dream Journeys - Imramma,Eachtra and Imbass and how they are connected to themagic of the Three Realms?
“As above, so below” is a well known phrase in mod-ern magical practice, but maybe for us the new phrasecould be “as within, so without”... The Aislings (guid-ed dreaming / vision questing) of Imramma, Eachtraand Imbass are connected to the 3 Realms without andto the 3 Cauldrons within. The “Three Celtic Dreams”can be seen as shamanic journeys to gather personalunderstanding and experience of non-ordinary reality -this is when you get your own personal message atthree levels. This often done in the Torc, our purposebuilt ceremonial enclosure, or sometimes it’s in theHemp Hall in the main building. Each journey allowsmany experiences but the focus is to collect an Oghansymbol (ancient Irish type of Runic scripting), eachsymbol from each journey is interpreted in relation toits realm / cauldron. This is the unique 3 part messagefor each seeker, later on this may be carved on a staffto remind one of the experience but I (being a leathercraftworker) will carve / emboss the 3 Ogham symbolsonto a vege tan leather key fob as a permanent remind-er.
DD: Can you tell us about divining the subtle energycurrents with brass rods and how this relates to thedesign and layout of the ancient temples of Ireland?
Con: The subtle energy of mother Earth can be foundby many types of diving techniques. I start students onthis part of their studies with brass ‘L’ shaped rods andthen move up to pendulums. Advanced students learnhow to interact with subtle energy currents using justtheir awareness. The ancient temples are located overnodes of this apparently hidden energy. Churches, upto the 1800’s were often built on top of ancient templesto utilise this fact. Each student of this skill first needsto learn diverted thinking and then to progress on to notthinking at all - to divine is to seek the Source and weneed to get our thinking minds out of the way to do this.Just like we have veins of blood carrying life forcethrough our bodies and trees have sap doing the samejob, mother Earth has underground streams of watercarrying life force through her body too. Our ancestorsknew this and built temples over nodes (crossing pointsof two or more streams) to enhance the potential so wecould benefit and this is why we have the idea of sacredspace.
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DD: Tara was the royal city and ancient capital ofIreland and served as the residence of supreme kingsfrom ancient times. Your work to understand andprotect Tara from development has inspired manyaround the world. Can you tell us about that struggleand specifically the role of the fundamentalist sect,Opus Dei and their activities in the sacred site ofLismullin?
Con: Thank you for your kind words. Tara is special,very special. We are blessed in Ireland even with1,500 monuments being destroyed every year we stillhave hundreds of thousands of ancient temples andfortifications left. On my website under the Tara na Riand Fascism tabs I tell many stories and share manyimages of what has happened recently at Tara. Themedia, politicians and judiciary are guilty of a mostserious crime against our glorious heritage and cul-ture. Opus Dei means the ‘work of god’ but I do notbelieve it is the work of any god to destroy the indig-enous beautiful tradition of the native first peoples ofthis land - it is the work of men, greedy men who seekto control and limit our freedom of spiritual expres-sion subverting Article 44.2 of our constitution. OpusDei has built an E10m (cost in 2000ce) complex in asacred site called Lismullin in the very heart of Tara.This is a huge story and I hope someday to work witha film producer and crew to expose what really hap-pened so the repair work can begin. The forced trollroad now encloses in a culvert, the stream that was thelife blood of Tara, today this stream is called Gabhra.This is a bad catholick joke as this translates to Goatwhich is their Devil.
In the past this stream may have been called afterEdain Eachraidhe aka Etain of the White Mare - theGoddess symbol of the Iron Age in Ireland, Rhiannonin Wales, Epona in France. The previous age had theWhite Cow as Goddess - Boann aka the Boyne andTara’s little river joins the Boyne exactly where theyplaced the un-needed troll road bridge. Opus Deiprotected the graves of the Black Friars (1200ce) fromthe line of the forced troll road and in so doing causedthe forced troll road to move east cutting into RathLugh and causing the discovery of the wood henge.Incredible though it may seem - this discovery of ahuge post circle with its high status female burial withattendant horse and dog did not stop the frenzy ofdestruction because there was no political, judicial ormedia will to protect it. If they had protected it - thiswould have long term effects on the invisibility ofOpus Dei at Tara because their building complex isabout 250 yards from the wood henge. Such is thepower of the fascist regime and its church in Ireland.
It is probable that a Queen or High Druidess at Tarafrom the time of the wood henge was buried there dueto her importance and connection to place. She, herhorse and dog are currently in plastic bags in a storageunit in Drogheda (15 miles away). Opus Dei saynothing at all about all of this as they quietly continueto promote their extreme fundamentalist one godorder. Theirs is the only part of the catholick churchin Ireland to have new priests in training. Their coveris as a cooking school with dormitories but they have2 underground halls and an upstairs church laid out intrue Masonic style, while the ground floor windowsall have steel bars to protect the activities within. Butthey foolishly believe that they will stay invisible andsurvive. There are 4 other churches in the Pagan City
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of Tara named after Patrick and Columba and they areall roofless, abandoned and in ruins. This happenedbecause the regime that supported them faded and cuttheir money supply - Opus Dei’s money supply comesfrom the stud farm owners who do not pay tax, thecorrupt politicos, the fascist judges and the owner ofthe written media monopoly. But, crazy as it may seemwe have to thank Opus Dei because what they havedone has caused a generation to become aware of theGoddess and inspired many to stand up and say NO.
DD: You have stated that an increasing number ofpeople are becoming no longer dependent on interme-diaries and are increasingly making a direct connec-tion to nature. Do you see this happening as part of aglobal spiritual transitioning?
Con: I hope so. People who need religions can findthem easily - various new religions come with manycomforts. But for many seekers no religion can fulfilltheir needs. Spirituality is very different when its outin Nature as opposed to inside a church with their lies,rules, tithes, punishments and so on. As an Astrologerfor 35 years I see group incarnational patterns empow-ering more and more people with the potential to wakeup to their divine nature. The greatest example of thishas to be the flower power generation - putting flowersinto the rifles of the army ... no way... but they did andit changed everything. There are so many movementsworldwide seeking truth and honesty, so many peopleopting to be ecological environmentalists, so manybooks, teachers etc that have similar hopes and dreamsthat we are clearly past the beginning and currentlymoving to the stage when the reins of power shift to anew grouping giving bright hope for us all. I alwayssmile when I recall the famous phrase - ‘you don’tneed to follow anybody, you’re all individuals’ but itreally only works when the individuals are awake.There is a critical mass equation that suggests apercentage of a population holding a similar con-sciousness causes a shift in the entire group. We arethere, almost.
DD: You are now 53 years old. How has the agingprocess changed you as a spiritual person?
Con: Ha, I’ve become more cynical, but I’ve learnedto let things (such as anger, expectations of people,etc) go, I like to think I can see the bigger picture moreclearly, I reckon I am very aware of some of my past
lives as reasons for what I do now. I love my life andNiamh, my beautiful woman. Every morning I givethanks to the Gods for a new day and every day I tryto be more complete that I was the day before.
DD: Can you tell us your thoughts on cleansing andenergizing a sacred site or the charkas or the Aura andthe methods you use to remove blocks and facilitaterenewed healthy energy flows?
Con: It’s all about the blockages and finding what’sneeded to move those blockages, it’s about finding thenatural harmonic again. You start off by recognizingwhat’s causing the problem, disharmonics etc. thenyou take a good hard look at the effect. In betweencause and effect is the energy field of place or personwhere this is manifest and then you work with thestrong points with an intention of clearing and restor-ing balance. Various technical supports are usedthroughout but they all have a common factor in thatthey all facilitate the moving of energy. A simpleexample, a woman who cannot express herself i.e. herpower - she may have a compromised throat area, partof the treatment for this would be the wearing of a bluescarf and beginning to sing quietly and practicing headexercises to strengthen neck muscles. Each person willhave his or her thing to let go of and new thing to bringin and I do my best to help interpret this and work withthe person or sacred site to clear blockages and to letthe light flow again. We are Light beings and we glowat sacred sites when those sacred sites are working.
DD: There are those who want to restore the ancientoak groves and other natural sacred sites. Do youbelieve that these powerful locations hold the memoryand power of the old times and ways and they can beaccessed by true seekers today?
Con: All powerful locations hold memory - perhapsthat's why they are power full. A message I often shareabout the Druid’s Path - it does not go anywhere butyou have to walk it all the time. It’s the experience ofthe Pilgrimage that often gives the lesson and thelocation is sometimes not up to the same standard as inthe dream... Restoring the great forests and our con-nection to them is of great importance to survival ofhumanity. They are the great terra formers generatinga place in the multiverse where we can sustain ourselves. Trees have their branches in the sky, their trunkis solid as the land and their roots lift and hold the
Volume 4, Issue 2
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water table - we live under the protection of the trees.Children should be involved in tree planting as muchas possible. Even without land, everyone can find treeseed and plant it anywhere and everywhere - a type ofeco gorilla planter strategy.
DD: You have been an astrologer for more than 30years. Can you explain how people can utilize astrol-ogy to realize their incarnational potential? How is itthat we can work with challenges and consciouslywork to transmute/transform them into gifts?
Con: Imagine a tarot reading as a conceptual poster foryour very own movie, now think of your movie trailershowing the main events, leading lady / man etc - thisis your astrological transits looking a various chapters.The plot is the classic of the prince / princess who haslost connection to the title and just lives happily. Oneday... a desire to wake up and reclaim divinity becomesan all encompassing need. The lucky ones connectwith a kind Astrologer who may be able to explain theplot of the movie to the newly awakened... One of theideas that the Astrologer might share is about theperson standing on a beach with his back to the hugeincoming wave. The wave will pick up the person andbring him where ever the wave wishes, dumping thetossed person in the most unpleasant situations... Butthe lucky one who listened to the clever Astrologer hasa surf board of attitude and is there waiting for thewave with a mad glint in the eyes, willing to surf lifeand go with the flow and when he’s ready - climbdown and take it easy for a while... It’s all aboutchoices, informed choices are best and it is alwaysgood advice to find out about what's going on so youcan have a better chance of making the best choice foryou. You can re-write the next part of your moviescript any time - best to do this before the wave hits....
Con: DD: Each card of the Tarot portrays a differentaspect of the Universe. How can the Tarot be utilizedto understand the complex forces at play at any mo-ment and guide us to a higher awareness of ourselves,our work and our place in the Universe.
See answer above.
DD: As a Diviner, you have worked with energy linesand underground streams at different locations. Canyou give a sense of that feeling of communion andwhat is required to alter those streams to transform theunbalanced energies into harmonious balance.
Con: Everyone can have their own totally uniquepersonal ‘feeling of communion’ with the energies ofthe invisible worlds. I reckon that the quality and levelof your hydration with living water may be a seriousdetermining factor, this, along with the ability of ‘notthinking’ or at the very least the practice of ‘divertedthinking’ facilitates progressively stronger connection.Familiarity with and access to sacred sites can boostyour Lightbody by harmonic resonance - this is theplace where you feel best, you’ll know. A place thatfeels bad is bad and not every sacred site is in harmonicsympathy with human needs for balanced lifeforce
Part of the training we offer is ‘Lightworker as TempleBuilder’ and on these 4 weekend workshops we givetheory and practice to students to empower them toerect new sacred sites that work with and enhance theinvisible life force energy. Turn the Lights on, nowturn them up a bit and may the force be with you....
DD: In your work as a healer, you use physical andspiritual approaches to clear internal blockages in theetheric bodies of men and women. Can you tell ussome about the nature of those blockages, how they areattached to the person and what is required for them tobe unattached?
Con: So many stories to tell to answer that questionfully! Firstly listen carefully and make no judgments.Take multiple viewpoints of the problem, see thewhole person and find the cause and see the potentialeffect of the balancing. Get the person to see the causeand to want the effect of changing things. I may usemany techniques here, including but not limited to -body language, personal hygiene / demeanor, eye con-tact / speaking clarity analysis etc, but I will often use
Volume 4, Issue 2
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Next upcoming
Interview
Pamela Meekings-S
tewart
Grove of the
Summer Stars
New Zealand
Tarot and or Astrology to help determine the negativecycle (cause) and ways to escape it to proper balance(a new effect). Every client is totally different so thisis rewarding work and experience. I have in the pastrefused to continue to work with certain individualswho would not change but wanted stress relief instead- I tell them why I’m saying NO and then they makeanother choice - “stay stuck or escape and go live freeon an island” are the options. I can only help when theperson is ready to grow.
DD: What are your future plans, both personally andprofessionally for the Druidschool?
Con: We have a small farm in the west of Ireland nearthe source of the River Suck. The buildings are over200 years old. The property was derelict for nearly 20years when we put our deposit down. My plans are todo as much construction as I can with the resourcesand volunteer and student support we get each year forup to 5 more years. There are so many parts to list thatthis becomes a job in its self so I focus on short,medium and long term plans all at the same time. Wealready provide a range of services to Pagans such asfacilitators for handfastings and baby namings a serv-ice that we would like to develop is facilitating passingover ceremonies, we have dedicated a one acre field‘The Urn Field’ for this use. We are almost finishedre-roofing the 200 year old cow barn that will be ourTeampaill na Tri Coire (Temple to The Three Caul-drons). We intend that ours becomes a place wheremore and more people from all over the world come tolearn about our Celtic Spirituality.
DD: Of all the books you have read, can you recom-mend five to our readers?Con: The Celtic Gods: Comets in Irish Mythology(Paperback). Mike Baillie and Patrick McCafferty.The Serpent and the Goddess, a study on women,
religion and power in Celtic Ireland, by Mary Condren.Books by and about Bill Mollison, Victor Schauberg-er, Wilheim Reich: masters of the 3 realms.
DD: Do you have a website, blog etc for those whowant to know more about you and the work of theDruidschool and the Dark Moon Grove?
Con: The main online presence is ourdruidschool.com website of over 550 pages and 500+graphics with our free monthly newsletter. This issupported by our Irelands Druidschool Facebook pageand our Roscommon Sword Facebook page whichshow photos of my medieval leather footwear etc.
DD: Do you have any closing comments that youwould like to leave with our readers?
Con: Watch all the Monty Python and Terry Pratchettmovies that you can get, watch them many times. Sellyour TV. Drink the best water you can get, eat freshorganic produce and help to plant trees. Even if youonly have a one room flat with one window that takesthe Sunshine - grow an herb box. Shine brightly andalways remember that the last laugh is on you!
Thank you for your obviously applied study and qual-ity questions.
Grá, Solas agus Gaire (Love, Light and Laughter)
ConFeature Interview Images
All Rights ReservedDruidschool.com
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 17
The magick of Druidism lies in it's uniqueness foreach individual. It's a unique spirituality in that itdoesn't expect you to take other's truths as yourown. But that's a superficial thing really.
For me the real magick is The Quest. For each andevery aspect of druidry you have a Quest to com-plete before you have understanding of it. If youwant to learn about faeries, you actually go outlooking for them - ask the faeries themselves aboutthemselves. Don't just read about it in some eldermember's works, however accurate they may be.Again, with the Gods, if you want to learn aboutOdin, or Brighid, or any number of the myriad ofdeities that exist from all cultures in the world, it isencouraged that you seek out the informationyourself. Seek a relationship with the deity your-self and even develop your own rituals to honourthat god. Don't read about them in some ancientmanuscript or poem or try to copy someone else'sritual. This will usually feel alien and, well, notyours.
Another quality to Druidry's magick is in thepatterns. Sometimes they're more obvious such asthe wheel of the year, and the wheel of life. Atother times they seem innocuous and incrediblysubtle.
Last year I was due to go on a long flight home toCanada. Before the journey I kept having visionsof apple trees and apple dryads when I was inmeditation. So I studied up on the tree a little biton the internet and stumbled upon a little knownGerman/Dutch Goddess called Nehalenia. The
actual flight is over a rather large body of water,the Atlantic Ocean, and for reasons unknown, thisparticular time I was nervous about flying over it.I did it regardless. When we were in Nova Scotia,we went on a little excursion to a very well knownpaganism/witchcraft shop in the city of Halifaxcalled Little Mysteries. There I found a pendantdedicated to the goddess Nehalenia. Of course, Ibought it. Finding the pendant, led me to re-search her further and I found, ironically enough,that she is a Goddess that merchant shippers inancient times would pray to, and offer barrels ofapples to, in order to ensure safe passage over thewater.
Where did these seemingly random occurrencescome from? Is it the fact that they all happened ina short space of time that makes them seem moremystical? Were they coincidence? Or perhapsone of life's many patterns? In my mind Nehale-nia has made herself known to me and she hasbecome one of the deities in my pantheon. I havemade a point of eating apples even though I don'tactually like them very much because it's a bit of anod to Her. And when I make offerings, an appleis part of the sacrifice. Every time.
Another pattern that's emerged, however, is overa much longer time span. It cover's my friend'sentire life. She is not a Druid, but a Buddhist. Shehas had a life of pain and anguish, starting at avery young age in foster care. She over came itand challenged people in Court so that they couldnot cause pain to others. She protected her sib-lings when they were in harms way. She helped
MagickOf Druidism
By Debra Lewis
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 18
ease the passing of another sibling into the Sum-merlands when no other family member would orcould. She has overcome the suffering of a mar-riage to an abusive drug addict and is now a singlemother of three vivacious children. Now she has"suddenly" decided to make her refuge vows inBuddhism. Suddenly to others perhaps, but it's anobvious choice to me. She is dedicating her life toovercoming the suffering of herself and others.
In my druidic view,she is simply followingthe pattern of her life.It seems natural to mefor her to become aBuddhist. It makesperfect sense. To me,her whole life is onemassively spiritualevent.
As someone raised athiest and a student of thesciences in university, I am drawn to question allof this. All of it is quite suspect of being anexperience that has happened only in my mind.It is possible that these events are actually trulyrandom sequences of events, but because the hu-man brain is designed to recognize patterns welink the events together.
Yet. The human mind has evolved to recognizepatterns. Why? Survival? Probably. It's clearly ofsome use to us. That is how omens have come tobe, both accurate ones and not. Ever hear thesaying "drop a fork and someone's coming tovisit"? Ever try it? It's funny. I've dropped lots offorks and not thought twice about them, but sureas I start to pay attention to my fork droppings Ican link them to an event. Is it simply because I'mthinking about it?
Even this whole series of questioning is part of themagick of druidry. It is a constantly evolvingquest for knowledge; to understand the humanspiritual psyche; to understand my own link in thegreat pattern of life.
Yet another part of my questioning (questing?) isput rather succinctly by JK Rowling's characterAlbus Dumbledore "Of course it is happening inyour head, Harry, but why on earth should thatmean that it is not real?" (From Harry Potter andthe Deathly Hallows, 2007.)
The beauty of druidry; the magick of druidry inthis space and time is that a person can be asskeptical as they like and it's still a beautiful andmystical event.
Debra Lewis
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The Messenger Speaks
I am a memory of a Cornish sea cliff,And a time of a high Avalon wind,I am the vision of Tibetan mountains,Spiralling me down to an underworld cool,I am a memory of a Canadian child,Who collected the sounds of the Raven,The sacred tor too, brought them calling,Till the power of a birds took me circling,Like the blossom that dances away from the cherry tree.
The Alchemist Sees
Imagine being the spirit of wolf,Within the circle of all wolves,All creating the power to manifest the emotions, A collective,How do you get things apart?Is it simple? It is, and why? Because you can,So how deep is the root of a mountain?See it, with the root of a mountain,And know then where you are. Welcome home.
The Wild EarthStories of our World
Shared collective workings
from the attendees of the Canadian
Celtic Gathering 2011
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The Dreamer Experiences
How cold and lonely can an ocean bed be?Not like the lake with the water snake,Can you dream like a child, which swings bird like,Into a silvery splash, or the magical movements of a seal at play,Would you chase through the bulrushes after the jumping frog,Or face the upstream challenges of a salmon,Lake, ocean, river and pond, their depths are your future.
The Magicians Touch
Walk with the magicians to a sacred grove,A woodland, glen, a forest of giants and silver ladies,Follow them over the stone walls and across the rivers:Knowing they are walking to the world of wonders,The scent of earth is all around as the sun sprinkles down through the branches,The magicians are now seated upon moss covered logs,Their feet are dirty like the roots they rest on, all is peaceful,Through the trees the creatures come to greet the magicians’ of the land,Fox, Snake,Wolf, the mountain Goat and the grizzly Bear,While the sentinel Raven watches from above,Look at the magicians carefully,A ball of light; a coil of Snake, a flash of white Wolf,The Magicians’ walk the land.
Spirit Listens
Like the blossom that dances away from the cherry tree,Know then where you are,The depths of your future are in,The Magicians that walk the land.
Volume 4, Issue 2
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I love science. It provides us with so many incred-ible insights and opportunities and great inven-tions, medicines and toys.
I also love Magick. Because it helps me to commu-nicate directly with this planet and all its naturalforces and that helps me to better understandmyself and my place and role in the universe.
There is though some significant differences be-tween the two approaches to understanding andusing the forces of Nature.
Science deals with the physical characteristics - thequalities and properties of minerals, chemicalsand a myriad of different objects in the universe.
For instance gas will instantly ignite every time itcomes in contact with a flame. It's characteristicsguarantee that interaction every time. Water willrespond to gravity and flow downhill. These phys-ical characteristics acting out in reality provides anabsolute certainness that science used as it hasevolved. It became the platform on which thefoundation of science was built. All science isbased on a relationship built on this guaranteedrepeatability that then creates corresponding pre-dictability and therefore gives humans an ability topredict the behaviour of natural forces - so we cancreate electricity, keep food safe, make medicinesand everything else that science has produced.
Science has brought us an amazing cornucopia ofknowledge about how the world, and to a lesserdegree, how the universe, operates.
But science by its very choice to build on the twinpillars of repeatability and predictability, has largelyavoided looking into large and significant otheraspects of nature that are not structured that way.
And therein lies the Realm of Magick.
Magick is certainly a deep and broad topic, withmany schools of thought and directions. For thepurpose of this discussion, let me mostly confinemyself to the arena I know best - Nature Magick.
I was fortunate to live outdoors in the great west-ern forests of the United States for most of 18years. I was a social activist from the 1960's whowas part of building a forest based cooperativemovement that tended to the forest includingplanting more than 27 million trees in 17 states.Truth is I would have agreed to be an indenturedservant for the opportunity to live out in remoteforests for all that time. It was a time of great workefforts often conducted under very harsh anddifficult conditions. Beyond the work aspectthough, it provided an incredible Earth Magicktraining ground where much teaching, trainingand experimenting took place.
Nature Magick in the 21st Century
The Difference Between Magick and Science
Volume 4, Issue 2
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I learned that within nature, every object is imbuedwith a life force and each of these living entities isimbued with varying amounts of intelligence.
All objects in all their myriad forms are ultimatelybuilt from the primordial matter that makes up theuniverse and many would say - the multiverse ofall possibilities. While its origins are still a mys-tery, all matter also comes with a small amount ofPrimal Intelligence that was either there as part ofthe creation of the multiverse or has evolved overtime...perhaps as a result of matter movingthrough vast lengths of time and space.
In any case, the very matter... the material used tocreate a hill... comes with some small amount ofinherent intelligence. Individual rocks and treeshave a relatively limited amount of intelligence...an amount generally equal to that which is neces-sary to perform its ecological function.
Moving upward from individual objects of nature,concentrations of natural properties increase thatintelligence making every place in nature, evermeadow and grove and pond a unique living enti-ty created by the mingling of the intelligencesinherent in the elements that make up their biolog-ical composition.
As natural systems become more complex, moreintelligence is created and the entity has more ofan ability to sort through higher amounts of infor-mation.
It is also important to understand that as intelli-gence increases, more information can be pro-cessed and the intelligence becomes moreorganized. As some point in this intelligencebuilding and organizing process, the beginningsof volition is achieved . This is where the intelli-gence develops a will that counsels the process ofperforming more complex natural functions. Sim-
ply put, the coalescing entity begins to have theability to make choices.
Many small creeks become a lake and the lakegenerates a higher level of intelligence - somewhatseparated from the intelligence of the creeks... butyet inter-connected with those intelligences. In thisway, segments of nature coalesce and become in-dividualized even while still being directly con-nected into the overall Earth network of life.
And this interconnectedness with the componentintelligences continues along as nature systemsbecome more complex and they develop into agreater network of ever-increasing intelligenceand life forms.
As the ability to make choices continues to grow,there is a corresponding growth in self conscious-ness. It is here where humans first evolved whatis called Nature Magick.
In the old times, people sometimes formed rela-tionships with a creek or pond they used often, orwith stands of forests. They gave offerings andregularly petitioned for positive desired outcomes.Humans sometimes found special places, wherethe intelligence had gathered more strongly and astronger connection could be made with the lifeforce there.
Over time, these places became known as oursacred places. For the Druids they were the agedsacred oak groves. There are other locations, like
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hot mineral springs, where the concentrated na-ture energy could be directly absorbed into thehuman body and thus have an healing experiencewhich is another form and example of having arelationship with nature that results in a positivedesired outcome.
Sometimes we can see this higher intelligence inaction in nature. We see it in the behaviours ofbees, ants and birds, where the "group mind" ismore intelligent than any individual ant, bee orbird.
And this same "gathering of intelligence" frommany individual entities carries on upward intonature, forming higher levels of intelligence, someof which can be observed or communicated withby humans.
So a creek is alive and has intelligence. All thecreeks and rivers in a watershed are each individ-ually intelligent... but together they generate ahigher intelligence with more ability to interfacewith the world, including humans. Beyond any
single watershed, all the water in a geographicmass like North America has a higher level oforganized intelligence and somewhere along theline the Lords of Water are formed. Similar buildingalso takes places in the other natural realms -air,earth and fire.
Living entities... beings with intelligence and bothwill and volition.
And even among them the level of intelligence andindividualization and the ability to make choicesvaries greatly. This is not a linear or strictly hier-archal situation, but more of a layers and levelssituation where the separateness of consciousnesshappens, yet the entity is still functioning as partof the whole Gaia complex. Some of this is mir-rored by humans in that some humans are moreintelligent than others and some are just morewilling and able to communicate than others.
This volition is critically important to NatureMagick. Ultimately, this is the fundamental differ-ence between Science and Nature Magick. Science
On completing his assessment of the course, Professor Ronald Hutton said:"I am now convinced of the conclusion which I was already reaching
tentatively when I sent my interim congratulations, that it isthe most intelligent and erudite sequential introduction
to modern Druidry available."
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 24
depends on utilizing the physical characteristicsof objects in nature and its ultimate predictabili-ty.In Magick though, there is an additional ingredi-ent that alters the outcome of the experimentand does not work within the parameters ofpredictability. And that is the capability andwillingness of intelligent life forms to communi-cate with humans and then its capability andwillingness to utilize its power of volition toaffect a desired outcome. Ultimately, NatureMagick depends on having a positive, live, co-herent and ongoing relationship with Natureintelligence through its various levels and formsof entities.
Magick depends on contacting and communi-cating with nature entities, and then having thatentity agree to do what is requested or desired.That is why it works.. and also why it is notalways as repeatable and predictable as science,as living forces of nature must agree to cooperatewith you. And that is just not always possiblefor a host of reasons, including the practitionernot having the right understanding, not enoughpersonal power or more likely that the natureentities involved just choose not to connect or toparticipate. It is what provides the variability ofMagick and why it is not repeatable upon de-mand.
Historically Nature Magick has played a power-ful part in older Druid and Earth based religions.Much can be said, but very little known about thisearly Earth Magick, as almost nothing was writ-ten down about it. Perhaps this was intentionaland a way to remind us that it was about rela-tionships with nature, not written words thatmake magick happen. A reminder indeed thatceremony is a way to focus the mind and set thestage, but ultimately it takes a genuine commu-nion with Nature for magick to occur.
There was no set path... no consistent chemicalreactions to depend on... no sure way to accom-plish Nature Magick. It depended instead onunderstanding, respecting, communicating andworking directly with the forces of Nature.
Today, much of humankind believe they haveleft the natural world. That they have evolvedfrom the mammal chain of life, but somehowsevered their ties with Gaia. But it is not so. Weare still connected in a variety of ways. We thinkwe are the rulers of our bodies and minds, but inactuality we are a part - a very key part indeed,but just a part in the ongoing decision makingprocess that determines what we experienceeach day.
In my understanding of the mechanics of the uni-verse, there are four primary influences that de-termine what a human will experience at anyparticular moment.
There is certainly the first party actor ME - theme that is this incarnation, this version of me inthe multiverse. The ME that is cognizant...isutilizing my intelligence and emotions etc tomake decisions every moment of every day.
There is also the influence of GAIA that has aninfluence and impact on every decision we make.Our bodies come from this planet, where theintelligence that built up over many millions ofyears of evolution and experimenting, has hard-wired herself into our brains and bodies andutilizes this connection to have an impact on ourdecisions and perception of reality. As an exam-ple, think of the "autonomous" aspects of ourbody's functioning - the digesting, the hormonaland chemical balancing, the disease fighting,even the breathing we do that is ongoing everysecond, but requires almost no direction or deci-sion making by ME or US. It just "happens" andwe very rarely ever question it or how and why
Volume 4, Issue 2
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it happens. This GAIA influence has other abilitiesthat often sit in the background while ME appearsto be the decision maker, but at times GAIA caneffectively take over the decision making power.This is most easiest seen in her role in promotingsome of her fundamental agendas - species evolu-tion and propagation.
There is also the influence of KARMA. The karmathat travels with us over time... lessons learned,past relationships, our teachings and lessons weneed to learn along the Path of Life. This influenceon our decision making is always present, alwaysmanifesting its influence into what we experienceand what comes our way. KARMA is often playedout by a life-long series of seemingly random,unpredictable events in our lives that often deeplyimpact our lives.
Finally there is the influence of the UNIVERSE onus. Theory has it that all energy and matter mani-fested at the time of the Big Bang. Ultimately thismeans every living somewhat intelligent atom inour body has always been present and has a longhistory that far exceeds its miniscule role as ME orUS. The UNIVERSE is hard wired into our psycheand has an influence on our decision making also.Our sense of our place in the universe... our role inthe universe helps guide our decisions and as ourperception of our role changes, so does our under-standing and perception of reality. The primalintelligence that has grown up over the entireevolvement of reality may well have levels of in-fluence on us that we cannot fathom as we walkthe earth, on a small planet that is part of a incom-prehendably vast, diverse and complex multiverse.
Ultimately, these four influences can be seen as aconduit between us and other parts of our connect-ed reality. A conduit that can also be used in bothdirections, giving us a way to understand the in-formation being processed and shared and allow-ing us the possibility of having an impact on eachof them as well.
People have forgotten the old ways, the old con-nections from our species history. Pathways andprocesses that put us in touch with Nature and ourgreater self. Most people have forgotten the cere-monies that connected us with the gods and god-desses of nature and allowed us to tap into vastamounts of energy and information about theworld.
But these pathways are still there. We don't have tolearn the old ways. We need to make new ways thathonour the old ways. Ceremonies that make sensefor us - here and now. Admittedly, some schoolsof Magick have largely been forgotten... the path-ways even to get there obscured over time andeven the sought after outcomes forgotten... butthey can be remembered or revived and broughtback into the world. For the earth remembers andall the natural processes are still there waiting tobe tapped into and the living entities of nature stillare capable of communicating with us. Andyes...even the old gods and goddesses are stillthere - forgotten by most, but still expressions ofnature and natural processes worthy of our re-spect and honouring and well within our magickalreach.
Our sacred places are still full of power and ener-gy. We have just forgotten how to reach them anduse them. The pathways to them are now over-grown and few walk those rough trails, except fora few Druids and earth friendly priests and priest-esses who do not fear experimenting and treadingwhere few have traveled for so long.
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Those who embrace their natural heritage realizethere is nothing to fear. Those who understandthat they are a small immortal mote of the PrimalIntelligence, know they have nothing that cantruly be taken away from them or lost. Andthrough their efforts they work to reconnect hu-mankind with their birthright as a very complexand intelligent creation of Nature.
Indeed, reading and studying and doing cere-monies are very important to understand ourrole in the universe. But they too often havebecome an end in themselves, not the preparationfor the Great Work of actually being in commu-nion with Nature and being an active part of theglobal Gaia Network.
In conclusion, reality is affected and can be al-tered by different combinations of scientificpractices... but this can also happen throughNature Magick.
Chefs use scientific formulas (aka recipes) to cre-ate masterpieces of food made from individualingredients. Magick utilize recipes also. We findways to focus our minds on a desired outcome,and then we open a communion with Naturethat could favourably impact the sought afteroutcome. We use scents and sacred objects tofocus the mind. We use ceremonies to build thestage and mindset and to invite the ancient play-ers and to open the doors to the selected intelli-gent, volitional, nature entities. And in doing so,we create masterpieces of Magick made from allthese individual ingredients.
As we advance in Magick, just like in humansocial settings, we gain access to nature spiritswith greater intelligence and higher capability toimpact the physical world. We literally becomeon a first name basis with them and developbonds and active relationships with them and asa result our recipes become more complex andpowerful.
Eventually practitioners can truly arrive at therealm of Nature Magick. It ‘s borders are vagueand undefined, but it is as real as Bardsey Island(aka the Island of Avalon) and still well hidden bythe Mists and treacherous currents. Sometimesthe crossing is intentional... other times not, butit is always an adventure.
The further on you travel or are pulled into thatrealm of magick... the more profound the experi-ence.
And more than ever the Earth is calling forth thenew orders of Druids and other earth basedapproaches that are built on respect and love forthis planet. And Gaia offers, as she always has,her unconditional love...a love that has grownfrom being our Mother for millions of years ofevolution. She offers no condemnation, no eter-nal Hell or need for fear and domination...onlyher constant love and her willingness to shareher resources.
Working with HER has never been easier...normore important... for all of us who walk a path ofrespect and love for all life, but also for everymember of our species. Many of our specieshave wandered far and found the new religionsand ways of life a bitter experience. Best that wetake up the old ways and find our way homeonce again.
Renard
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hBardic WhispersExpressions from the Soul
RiverLeanin gainst a tree,
river brings the joy of a child.
Oh how the reach of the green,
brings the view of the wild.
Dear flow, from the source,
from a many mile before,
Grace, many tears soothe,
the flower blossom to the heart.
Sweet breath of the peace,
moments of life nurtured true,
By the haven of the crystal waters,
wonders of life bring smiles for you.
Volume 4, Issue 2
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The Waddies
Exuberant luxury in the quivering waves of sand.
Thrown from the horizon, rise those stark mountains,draped in the robes of jungle’s splendour,dripping, thick, green life,held by the deep, cavernous waters below,filled by the gushing, sudden rain.
A cave so high, once the sabre tooth lived there,crawl up those dusty rocks, hot,from the easing river below,to a blistering, swaying sun, dripping wet, to peak.
Desert, as far as the eye can see.
Photo CreditDarko Tepert 2005A view from over Wadi al-Qelt
Volume 4, Issue 2
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Samhain
Samhain swirling round my soulOld Lady in her jet black stole
Magic, Magic all aroundSilently creeping, without a sound
A blessing to all from both sides of the veil
Ancestors remembered as we drink from the grail
Gwyn Ap Nudd, the escort of the dead
Is out with the Wild Hunt, so best keep to your bed
Cernunnos and Herne also follow the hounds track
But all bow their heads low to the one called Callieach
So eat, drink and play with season’s merriment
But never forget those whose lives have been spent
Their lives and their stories confirm who we are
They come to us now, by the light of the star
Shaun William Hayes Oct 2008
Photo Credit: John Parker: Cae Mabon 2007
Volume 4, Issue 2
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Rosemary and Thyme
I am sitting here at my desk, wondering how wewent from 30º C to 10 º C in just over 36 hours.This triggered thoughts of winter, cold and fluseason. So I thought that perhaps in this issue ofAonatcht I would cover two of my favourite es-sential oils. We all know that these two herbs arevery tasty indeed, over the years it has beenused in a variety of cooking.
I thought today we could take a look at thesetwo in a different way.
Historically, Rosemary has been used by the an-cient Egyptians in the wrapping of mummies asa preservative. The ancient Greeks claimed thatit stimulated the mind. The Romans used it tostimulate the heart and circulation.
Rosemary has scientifically been proven to haveanti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties.Thyme historically was used by the Romans asan infusion to apply to the forehead to relieveheadaches.Thyme has also been scientifically proven to beanti-fungal and anti-bacterial.Now to some exciting uses for these two magnif-icent oils:
Room Freshener: (I use a diffuser)
Use 4 drops of each and diffuse into your hometo reduce infectious air born micro-organism,great in cold season.
Inhalation: (bowl of hot water and a towel arerequired)3 drops of each oil will aid in bronchial infec-tions as well as sinus congestion.
For cleaning your floors:Putting no more than 7 drops of each oil in abucket of hot water to clean your floors willleave your home smelling nice, and disinfect thefloor as well. You could also use distilled waterin a spray bottle with the added oils and sprayyour carpets lightly.
Thyme
On its own is a great remedy for athlete’s foot.Mix 2-3 drops with a teaspoon of vegetable oiland rub into the affected area.
In and Out these two herbs areamazing.
The
Recipes from the Community
Formulary
Photo CreditRainer Zenz 2006Thyme, oregano and rosemary.
Volume 4, Issue 2
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Thlws ar Ddeg Ynys Brydain - The Thirteen Treasuresof Britain has been duly recorded in manuscripts foraround about seven hundred years. While in in recenttimes Welsh Historians have expressed an interestconcerning the treasures. The publication of TerioeddYnys Prydein – Triads of the Isle of Britian, by Dr. R.Bronwich in 1961, brought to light the work of Row-land Lewis o Fallwyd in the 17th Century. The Thir-teen Treasures of Britain were previously known asthe ‘Thirteen Rarities of the Royal Regalia’ in theBardic Museum published in 1802, and written byEdward Jones. Who collated two manuscripts togeth-er; one belonging to the antiquarian Edward Llwyd,the other is not named. There are indeed similaritiesbetween Edward Jones and Rowland Lewis versions.
Researching on the internet for additional informationabout these treasures can be helpful. Indeed there isabundant information available, most of which list thetreasures. The lists, albeit on the internet or in pub-lished form vary; as treasured items become swappedover or two items become a single trio. What appearsto be wanting is an elaboration on their magical aspect,and information about their owners were lacking insome cases. Taking a multidisciplinary approach andusing Dr. R. Bronwich English translation of RowlandLewis o Fallwyd recording. There are up to fifteentreasures, but as we journey, I’ll explore only the firstthree.
Dyrnwyn, gleddyf Rhydderch Hael: White-Hilt, theSword of Rhydderch the Generous is the first onelisted. Being described as;if a well-born man drew ithimself, it burst into flame from its hilt to its tip. Andeveryone who used to ask for it would receive; butbecause of this peculiarity everyone used to reject it.And therefore he was called Rhydderch the Generous.
Where can a sword named White Hilt be found.Perhaps from a blacksmith in earlier times, when theyheld prestige as being magical people? Is White Hilt
pulled from a stone having been filled with liquefiedalchemical metal mix? White Hilt could be similarto King Arthur's Sword Excalibur which was pulledfrom the stone or taken from the hand on the lake.Both magically materialises from the gods and god-desses of the land.
Rhydderch the Generous, we know from the sourcesas Rhydderch Hael or Rhydderch Hen the Old. Themonk Goeffry of Monmouth wrote the History ofKings of England in the mid 1100’s AD. Here it’sindicated that Rhydderch is the king of Britain relatedto the 2 BC, he too is the 21st generation of kings afterthe accession of Beli Mawr, being an ancestor and aform of an ancestor God. Geoffrey writings may notbe taken seriously today yet in any exploration, oneneeds a starting point. In the Early Welsh GenealogyTract and the Brut y Brenhinedd the name of Rhyd-derch is recorded but no other information is availa-ble. So one has to dig deep and explore wide to findthe information ones seek.
Rhydderch Heal seat was at Alt Clut in modern dayDumbarton – “Fortress of the Britons” This is a tworock pointed outcrop where one side has a longrecord of inhabitation. Rhydderch is an interestingcharacter associate to history and legend. He has beenreferred to as a champion of early Christianity, havingbeen baptised by St. Patrick according to Irish sources.Rhydderech also granted land to St. Kentigern inGlasglow and was a patron to this Celtic Saint andearly Christian church.
Additional associations relate to battling with theearly Anglo Saxon invades on the Northeast Coast ofBritain in present day Northumberland, an areaknown as Bernicia. This is referred to as the Battle ofMorcant Bulc where an alliance of tribal leadersparticipated. This alliance included Urien of Rhegedwhere he lost his life through treachery and assigna-tion.
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North of Dumbaton during the early Irish colonisa-tion of modern day Scotland was an area known asDal Riata, Rhydderch battled with Aedin mac Gabr·inone of the early rulers of that area. Rhydderch has alsobeen suggested to have participated in the Battle ofArfderydd, where Rhydderch gave battle against hiskinsmen Gwenddolau ap Ceidio, who held the lord-ship at Elmet. This battle is associated with a northernconflict over a larks nest in the literature. Gwenddolaufalls in this battle his war band fights on earningimmortality in the traids. As they become the mostloyal and faithful war bands of Ynys Prydain. Howeverwithin the Genealogies the name of Mryddin pops upas the Bard Tulu of Gwenddolau ap Ceidio war bandfrom Elmet. Who would have been present to sing ofthe bands exploits. However legend informs he wasaffected by the loss and in time became temporarilymentally deranged in the forest.
Disregarding the sword Excalibur from the Arthuriantradition, the owner of a sword holds authority andpower. Interestingly it would appear, a sword handeddown from a common ancestor or god or materialisedfrom the spirits of the land held some form of powerassociated with it.
Hamper - Mwys Gwyddno Garanir: The Hamper ofGwyddno Long-Shank: food for one man would beput in it, and when it was opened, food for a hundredmen would be found in it.
Gwyddno Garanir is a legendary person or an histori-cal figure in the genealogies it appears to be eitherGwyddno ap Clydno or Gwyddno ap Cawrdaf.
Taking the legendary point of view Gwyddno Garaniris from way back in time and space. He is a sovereignleader who ruled over an area known as the "BottomHundred" or Cantre'r Gwaelod. The Bottom Hun-dred is a submerged kingdom which is first men-tioned in the Black Book of Carmarthen dating to the13th century. Within it a conversation between Gw-yddno Garanir occurs with Gwyn ap Nudd in poeticform, which hints at why the kingdom became lost tohim, with only a quarter remaining having been in abattle. Even this quarter or the whole lower hundredwas to become lost after a feast of some kind wherea maid named Mererid or Margaret described as aFountain cup bearer released the sea from behind theflood gates which flooded the remaining lower hun-dred.
It’s been suggested Margret was a keeper of a coverto a magic well, located in the lower hundred. Thecover was not place over the well correctly as theuncontrolled water gushed when being in the powerof the gods. In relation to the Lower Hundred thisbecame the case which submerged the land. Thissuggestion is rather modern and came about in thelast 110 years through the studies of Sir John Rhys, aCeltic scholar. Comparisons with other stories ofsubmerged land being the result of a well cover notreplaced properly. It might be interesting St Colum-bia of Iona in his travels in Scotland when convertingthe Picts, not only informs us about the Loch nessmonster, but also speaks of its formation occurringbecause a well cover was not replaced.
Nonetheless, legends or stories of submerged landexist all around the coast of Wales, Ellis Gruffudd andLewis Morris in the North at Conwy this was thelocation for the lower hundred. Additional researchhas revealed this was Llys Helig; the court of Helig apGlanog which became submerged due to his not sopleasant antics of Helig being a unpleasant ruler.
In the south IoIo Morganwy located a submerged landas being off the coast of Dfyd, modern day Pembroke-shire. The ruler of this kingdom IoIo names Seithen-inin.
Additionally in the west lands associated to Gwyddnois cited in various locations in Wales between Aberd-fri and Aberystwyth which relates back to a bardicpoem written by Phylip Brydydd in the mid 1200', ormid-13th century. At specific annual low tides today,at either the north or in the west cited locations. In
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one case petrified stumps’ from long submerged for-ests is also evident. But also the remains of low stonewalls with a scattering of stones can be seen. These areperhaps quite different in size today when viewedcompared with the detail recorded by Lewis Morris inthe early navigation sea charts which he produced. Avery strong case exists for either the west or the northWales location via the place names, although popularculture prefers the western site in Cardigan Bay.
If we pause and turn towards archaeology and oceanicstudies of raising sea levels, present empirical evidencefor core samples indicate sea levels began to rise circa8,000BC. It is after land became lost, England andScotland becomes detached from present day Europe,Ireland becomes detached from the Great Britain landmass. Dry land, forests, sacred places such as Treehendge on the east coast of England became lost.Indeed along most coasts which surround Great Brit-ain?
Even in the case of IoIo Morganwy which some mightconsider the land he mentions as being a figment of hisimagination, or the results of his laudanum addiction?The submerged land mass has to some extent beenverified through published scholarly research. Where30,000 years ago the cave which held the incorrectlynamed Red Lady was on high ground, which was andI still believe the earliest available archaeological evi-dence in the UK of ritual being undertaken in respectsof a deceased ancestor, but I have digress.
Returning to the treasure of this magical hamper, atthis point there is a need to introduce the Story ofTaliesin. We may recall the battle with Ceridwyn, andthe final form taken by Taliesin was that of a grain ofcorn which Ceridwyn swallowed when in the form ofa hen. The corn grew inside Ceridwens female formto produce a male child which she casts out to drift onthe sea in a woven basket. We also have Prince Elffinap Gwyddno who came to fish for salmon at hisfathers weir. Here Elfin retrieves the basket and thechild who we know became Bard known as Taliesin,the radiant brow.
Let us hold this information and all the associatedconnections in our minds about this second treasure.Specifically as we move Gwyddno Garanir from alegendary aspect into a historical view. Two candi-dates have previously been mentioned being Gw-yddno ap Clydno and Gwyddno ap Cawrdaf. Thecorrect title is Gwyddno ap Clydno. The "ap" is a later
from of "mab" being similar to mab in the Gaelictradition to indicate "son of" subsequently we arriveat Gwyddno ap (son of) Clydno ap (son of) GwirwFarfdrwch dating to the 560 of the 6th century. If wework with the genealogy tracthe was the Prince ofMierionydd and Farther to the historical Idris associ-ated with the Giant and the mountain named CadrIdris. The association appears to be faulty eventhough it’s in the area near to the west coast of Walesassociated to the Lower Hundred. This associationevolved from early antiquarians in the 17th and 18thcenturies. The other historical candidate is Gwyddnoap Cawrdaf, if one recalls from earlier mentions of the13 Treasures derive from the North. Gwyddno apCawrdaf is associated through the genealogies withthe Northern Britain and also of being an owner of awier/port named Cored Wyddno. Addition versionsof the name Elffin as the son of Gwyddno ap Cawrdafappear in the northern genealogies. If we then takethe historical view from the surviving written evi-dence, everyone here has to decide whether this is theowner of Cener'r Gwaelod.
To understand the historicity of Gwyddno from thenorth, with scant information available we have tothink about the movement of tribal people whichoccurred in post Roman Britain from the North topresent day Wales in relation to the recorded regionalfounders. This could explain why there is this associ-ation with the historical figure together with that ofhis son Elffin. What about Cantre'r Gwaelod, theBottom Hundred; or the hundred Vils which madeup a Cantref under Gwyddno ruler-ship. The cantref,is a medieval term from the 11th century onwardsrelating to land measurement. At this moment intime it suggests there has been a fusion of Northgenealogies with local oral knowledge and the sub-merged land could be in the North or in Wales.
But who is Gwyn ap Nab, and how does he fit intothis. As we may recall he is a figure associated withthe underworld of Annwn, the children of Annwn,the hounds of Annwn and the Fairy folk. The battlerelating to this specific treasure one might conclude itrefers to one where the sea is controlled by a deityfrom the underworld. The outcome of this fightleaves a third of the land to the sovereign owner.Later version of the loss in poetic form, removesGwyn ap Nab and replaces his name with the Chris-tian God as the old perspective of viewing the worldbecomes blended and altered as the new ways takingprecedence.
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Looking at the Magical Hamper with the food itproduced would be magical indeed. Another explana-tion may lie in the cultural memory of the fertility andagricultural productiveness of the land lost. It couldalso relate to the produce of planting a single seed. Theabundance of produce would be enough to feed many.Additionally an alternative interpretation from theealey 1800's suggested, the hamper could have been afish basket, which became baited and placed in theweir. The single piece of bait it would catch andproduce enough fish for a hundred people.
Horn - Korn Bran Galed o'r Gogledd : The Horn ofBran the Niggard from the North: whatever drinkmight be wished for was found in it.
Similar to the Hamper which magically multiplies thequantity of food place in it, there is now a horn whichwill give any drink required by its owner. Very littlecan be learnt about this treasure, there is small refer-ence which associates the horn to the Greek Herculesand Centaur which he slayed. The horn of Bran theNiggard becoming associated with the horn cut off thecentaurs head. This in itself could be disregarded.However there could be an association with a magicalhorn from the Gaelic folklore tradition from Ireland,where there is a magic bull horn which can supplyboth food and drink mentioned in folklore.
Bran Galed is prompted as being from the North, soperhaps he too is a historical person? Various attemptshave been made to link Bran to an individual linkedwith Rheged and in the court of Urien named Bran abYmellyrn. As the only reference which exists is a fewlines in poetic verse, in some cases he is considered tobe at present a legendary figure. Perhaps at this timeit’s interesting to note from the earliest recording ofthe 13 treasures by Gwlym Tew in the mid 1400's whooriginally listed the treasures by name only. Latereditions elaborate on this, and indeed as we havepossibly deduced names also become altered and evenchanged too. Subsequent scholars suggest this particu-lar treasure may be associated originally with Bran anold sea god related south of Gododdin in Northumbria.
Similar to the Merlin connection with Rhyddech andthe sword, Bran the Niggard appears to have a connec-tion with Merlin too. From a note on one of themanuscripts (pen.147) dating to c. 1566, a reference isrecorded relating to the Welsh Mryddin task of col-lecting all the treasures together. Once gathered theseare placed in a "glass house" for safe keeping. Bran horn
becomes the key to them all. All the treasure ownerswill only give theirs up if Bran the Niggard does,which of Mryddin achieves. Subsequently the treas-ures are placed in the Glasshouse for safe keeping oreternity.
It is historically from this one written comment theTradition and association to Bardsey Island appears toderive from. However the horn itself was not locatedin the North but linked to Caerllion in South Wales,again to understand why it was there, one has toreturn to the migrations of people from bothStrathclyde/Rhegad and Gododdin all Post Romanand early medieval areas associated with the bordersof Scotland and rightfully places the treasures in theNorth. For this connection to have been writtendown suggests two things. Firstly, it was only thewriter’s opinion which became recorded which isdoubtful as Lewis Morris is from the antiquarianschool of thought. Additionally being well travelledas already mentioned and illustrated to his cartogra-phy recordings along the coast. Secondly, it becomequestionable whether an oral tradition existed at thattime, which is difficult to substantiate. Thirdly, theoral tradition transferred with the people of the northto its new location.
An interesting parable is to compare the Horn of Branto those of the drinking horns associated with amedieval sovereign court in Wales specifically fromthe late 11th century onwards, which is where anincrease and proliferation of historical records such aslaw tracts become available. Each court had threedrinking horns. One of which is the banqueting hornused for court guests, which would be filled andsupply any drink requested. Maybe every rightfulruler was in the procession of a Horn belonging toBran the Niggard.
Having looked at three treasures in detail it mightsound like they have been thrown out with the bathwater! On the contrary, all appear to be associated tothe spiritual ancestors of the land of Ynys Pydrain;their memory becomes fused with objects holdingmagical power. What that power is or was, or evenwill become is all part of the Druidic journey ofdiscovery.
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The Path of Druidry;Walking the Ancient Green Way
by Penny Billington
ISBN-10: 0738723460ISBN-13: 978-0738723464
"Any book on Druidry faces the challenge of beingsimultaneously respectful to tradition and rele-vant to the present. Penny Billington's The Path ofDruidry responds brilliantly to this challenge . . .An engaging and readable introduction to Druid-ry for today."
John Michael Greer, Grand Archdruid of the An-cient Order of Druids in America and author ofThe Druidry Handbook
"Druidry root and branch offers the best kind ofguide to being a Druid today: it is wise, compas-sionate, friendly, amusing and ecologically sound.It is fully aware of the past (mythical and histori-cal) while dwelling in the present and looking tothe future of a world that is worthy of more re-spect and celebration than is common today. All ofthis is offered at the right time and in the rightblend. This is a powerful but easily digested po-tion that will lead to an increase of delight forthose who seek to be companions among thosewhose journey is taking them back to intimacywith the living world.”
Graham Harvey, Reader in Religious Studies forThe Open University and author of 'ListeningPeople, Speaking Earth: Contemporary Paganism'
At last - a really down to earth book about thepractice of Druidry from someone who not onlyknows the material well is actually a practicingDruid! Penny Billington leads seekers to the dru-idic groves where the spirits of the land, the ele-ments of nature and the compassion of the cosmoscan support their spiritual practice.
- Caitlín & John Matthews, authors of WalkersBetween the Worlds, Celtic Spirit and The DruidSource Book.
I loved this rich and intuitive approach to thestudy of modern druidry. Penny’s book is full ofwisdom and insight, the comprehensive courseaccompanied by beautiful visualisations and care-fully crafted inspirational exercises. There is much
Reviews
J
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 36
to think about and much to treasure here and I amsure I shall return to it again and again.
Barbara Erskine, best-selling author of Lady ofHay and Time’s Legacy
Penny guides the reader into the sublime world ofthe Druid with panache, elegance and deep soul-filled passion for the tradition. Combiningthought, theory and powerful practical exercisesin a highly accessible format; this book informs,instructs and entertains. Unequivocally the bestbook on Druidry written this century.
Kristoffer Hughes, Head: Anglesey Druid Order,Author of “Natural Druidry”.
Scottish Herbs and Fairy LoreEllen Evert Hopman
Reviewed by Dafydd Monks
After several attempts to read this book in a linearfashion for review, I must admit this is the kind ofbook I find myself dipping into during breaks andother opportune times. It is best referred to in my
opinion as a “treasury of Scottish herbs and fairylore” - a more accurate description of the nature ofthe work; it is a compendium of traditions prac-tised in Scotland and relevant information tiringit all together. It is Ellen's work bringing it into acohesive book that must be praised most of all; shealso makes the contents accessible to the reader.
The book really does feel like 3 volumes in one; thebook falls into three parts: Firstly there is an intro-duction to general Celtic traditions and origins.After this comes a section on elemental magickand the wheel of the festival year, and traditionsthat fit onto it. The section on Elemental magick isof note for being highly readable and interestingwhile bringing a fresh perspective to the familiar 4elements and wheel of 8 festivals. This section alsoincludes really good stuff on rites of passage, divi-nation, and begins to bring in healing practices
Then comes a section that is a herbal of plantsfound in Scotland, “A Highland Herbal” This isprefaced by an introduction and gathering tipsand is followed by a series of monographs of agood number of plants used in Scottish herbalmedicine and folklore/magickal practice. This sec-tion is well illustrated and with interesting infor-mation and is a perfect fit with Ellen's other books,'Druid's Herbal For The Sacred Earth Year', and'Druid's Herbal Of Sacred Tree Medicine'.
The book finishes with several chapters on tradi-tions of family and domestic matters, farming andfertility, Sacred birds and animals, and a greatsection on magical practices. I particularly lovedthe section on fishing magick, boats and lore of thesea – although a seagoing people, this aspect isoften left out of works on magick and the Celts –it's nice to see it given the space it deserves!
All in all, I'd say this book deserves an 8/10 forreadability – you will find your self coming backto it again and again!
Volume 4, Issue 2
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Indo-European Poetry and Myth
M. L. West
ISBN-10: 0199280754ISBN-13: 978-0199280759
Reviewed by Cuardai
The Introduction to this book was very organized. In itthe author gives you a timeline for the Indo-Europeanand places them, he also talks a little about all thepeople who made this possible. He talks about thesources he is going to use and the methodology he willemploy so by the end of the Introduction you have somebackground on the people he will be talking about,where he got his main sources from, and how he willarrive to where he wants to take you. I really liked theway he described his methodology. It helps to smoothout a lot of things that the “old comparative method”doesn’t. Though in a way this is comparative mythologytoo.
In Chapter One we learn about the author’s definitionof poetry, all about who the poet was in the Indo-European cultures, the structure of poetry and theoccasions and genres of poems in the Indo-Europeanworld. It was certainly an interesting chapter especiallywhen the author talked about the different types ofpoets and all the training they had to get through to bepoets, their relationship with their patrons, as well as allthe different occasions poems were recited.
Chapter Two talks about the phrases used and thefigures that can be seen in Indo-European poetry. To behonest this chapter was both interesting and a bit con-
fusing (not in a bad way) just that I had to unlearn a fewthings that I thought I learned correctly.
In Chapter Three we go into everything to do with thegods and goddesses. This includes what they were/are,how they were worshipped, the distinction betweenthem and mankind, characteristics of their divinity, theirnames and mythical themes associated with the. I foundthis chapter very informative and forms a great basis forfurther study of the gods both in the Indo-Europeansense and later if one is to go into in depth study of anyof the gods of the daughter Indo-European cultures.
The Sky and Earth are the subject matter of ChapterFour. In this chapter the author talks about the Sky godand Earth goddess, their divinity, their relationship toeach other and their children. I loved how the authorshowed that the gods may have started out as one thingand then evolved into another. Most of the time though,this other is a small part of the first association.
Chapter Five was about the Sun and his Daughter andDawn. There are quite a bit of motifs and associationsthat are put forward in this chapter. The whole chaptermade me think. I know a lot of people think thatMiranda Green saw the Solar God everywhere withassociation with the Celts and while the author does notagree with her excesses in that respect, he does showthat there is some evidence for a Sun God. Also he putsforward an interesting association of the Dawn goddesswith Brigit.
More on the Gods in Chapter Six on this time it is thegods of Storm and stream. I was really interested inreading about all the parallels and similarities betweenthese gods. Nymphs, gnomes, elves, dwarfs, and satyrsare just some of the deities and supernatural beingsdiscussed in Chapter Seven.
I loved reading this chapter; I always assumed that somethings were just unique to certain cultures but boy wasI wrong.
Chapter Eight talks about one of my favourite subjects,hymns and spells. I’ve always talked about how pagansshould go back to the fact that the paths of Paganism arereligions, and that part of that is worship and prayers.The chapter also talks about spells, magic and healing.
Cosmos and Canon is the title of Chapter Nine. In thechapter the author talks about cosmology, and the worldwide wed. I really can’t describe this chapter it needs tobe read to be believed.
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 38
Two components of Indo-European cultures are moral-ity and fame and they were the subjects covered inChapter Ten. This chapter explores the relationshipbetween death, life, names and reputation. It reallystruck me how some of the concepts discussed are sosimilar to Arab (mostly nomadic Arab) philosophies ofold.
Chapter Eleven speaks of King and Hero. The chapterlooks at the King and his relationship with his Queen,with the horse with the priest and many other con-cepts that go with Kingship. This chapter reminded mea lot of what I read in a book on Celtic views of Jus-tice. It explained a lot of where the concepts in thatbook came from.
The final chapter of the book has to do with battle.Chapter Twelve talks of arms and the warriors whowield them. This is a very interesting chapter to me
because a lot of what we know about that Celts weknow from that stand point. It is good to see wherethat originated. I really enjoyed reading this book. It isone of these expensive books that are really worth eve-ry penny. I always had problems with GeorgesDúmiezil’s methodology when it came to comparisonbut M.L. West smoothed out the rough edges for mewith his tweaking of it.
West’s writing style is so easy to read and it is neverdry. I keep getting the impression that I was listeningto a friend talking about everyday life rather than ascholarly work, but make no mistake this is definitely ascholarly book. The information is interesting and wellorganized. The book just flows beautifully. It took mea bit to read it mostly because I needed to digest it.Lots of information in there to process, and I knowthat this is one book that I will be referring to time andagain.
(ODCL)
Is an open resource which offers various sup-plementary courses which are related to con-temporary Druidic practices and studiesonline. The various authors of the coursespresented here are all Celtic and Druid relatedteachers working in their respective fields.
Do you have a course, would you like tocontribute and share it with Open DruidicCommunity Learning (ODCL), for the bene-fit of Druidry?
For courses presently available,
and further details: -
Volume 4, Issue 2
Aontacht • 39
Community Events CalendarListing your event is free and you can submit up to five entries at a time. Note: We reserve the right to editor omit entries. To submit, please send an e-mail to [email protected] with ‘DD Event Listing’ in thesubject line. Include the date, title of event, location (including country), a short description and any contactdetails.
Note: Inclusion of events here does not imply endorsement from Druidic Dawn, magazine or itseditors.
General on going events for 2010
Anam Cara - Weekly Meditation Group
'A Weekly Meditation Group to be held in Oswestry,(UK) to explore everything from the Breath technique;mantra/ chanting’ to hopefully movement and sha-manic journeying.' To participate and for furtherdetails, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/1070
NEW MOON MEDITATIONS every new moon, Den-mark; ring 004575757131 for next meditation:
We’ll make a circle and connect with the powers ofEarth and Sky, I will then play channelled harpmusic from a time past, and the participants will beguided into some deep mediation to the Holy Grailwithin our hearts. Go beyond time and space toprevious incidents/ present problems/ diseases. Seethem, solve them, let go. Afterwards we’ll discusswhat happened, and I will aid with my clairvoyance.To participate and for further details, seehttp://www.sosha.dk/kurserUK.html
NYMÅNEMEDITATIONER I BRYRUP: Ring fortilmelding og nærmere tidspunktVi vil danne en cirkel, forbinde os med Himlens ogJordens kræfter og jeg vil spille kanaliseret musik fraen svunden tid på min harpe, under det første num-mer vil mine hjælpere fortælle mig om den førstemeditation, derefter vil jeg videregive den til cirklensom en guidet meditation, med den forskel, at medi-tationen først påbegyndes når jeg atter begynder atspille på min harpe og undervejs vil mine hjælperefølge alle deltagerne og støtte dem. Jeg vil spille mensdeltagerne rejser til deres destination i den andenvirkelighed, derefter vil jeg bede deltagerne vende
tilbage samme vej som de kom fra, takke deres hjælp-ere og vende tilbage til cirklen. Her vil hver enkeltdeltager have mulighed for at fortælle om sine oplev-elser, hvis nødvendigt, vil jeg gå ind og hjælpe medmine clairvoyante evner. Dernæst holder vi en pause,hvor vi får noget te og noget godt at spise. Så fortsæt-ter vi med endnu en meditation.http://www.sosha.dk/kurser.html
Pathways
A named Pathways, in Ellesmere, Shropshire, on theWelsh borders. The time together will be used todiscuss anything that anyone wants to about spiritu-al pathways. All are invited, from those who have aclear idea about where they are going, to those whoare just curious, and all explorers in between. Cometo raise questions, talk about books you are reading,workshops you have attended, stuff that is comingup, etc. Self-advertising is allowed/encouraged, ifrelevant to the spiritual pathways subject. Meetingsare held on the third Thursday of each month in theFunction room of the Ellesmere Hotel. Parking isplentiful very nearby. Meet in the bar from 7.30pm;go to the room from 8pm. If you are late, come inanyway! There is no charge, and the drinks are cheap.
Ellesmere is part of what is locally known as theShropshire Lake District. The energy of the town isgiven by the fabulous Mere in the edge oftown. Future meetings might include a walk down tothe Mere and through the public gardens. This is thebeginning of something new, and the direction willevolve with time.
If you need any more details, you can contact Johnand Rachel on [email protected] see http://www.druidicdawn.org/node/1698
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September
22nd – 25th September: OBOD US East CoastGathering, Pennsylvania, USA. To participateand for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/172 orhttp://druidry.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=PagEd&file=index&topic_id=2&page_id=146 orhttp://eastcoastgathering.druidry.org/index.html
23rd September: Druidry & the Perennial Wis-dom Tradition, talk by Philip Carr-Gomm, Isle ofWright, UK. To participate and for further de-tails, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/1365 orhttp://www.philipcarrgomm.druidry.org/events.htm or http://www.aldermoor-farm.co.uk/Druid%20Wisdom.htm
23rd – 25th September: Alban Elfed (Fall Fest)with the Red Oak Grove ADF, PA, NJ & DE,USA. To participate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/185 orhttp://www.redoakgrove.org/upcoming/index.html
23rd - 24th September: New Fire Temple of Initi-ation and Illumination workshop Seattle, WA,USA with RJ Stewart. To participate and forfurther details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/197 orhttp://www.rjstewart.org/calendar.html
25th September: Equinox at the Druidschool, Ire-land. To participate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/112 orhttp://www.druidschool.com/site/1030100/page/3117458
25th September: Autumn Equinox with the Tu-atha de Bridget, Glasgow, Scotland, UK. To par-ticipate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/2118 orhttp://druidnetwork.org/en/events/index.html
25th September: Autumn Equinox Gatheringwith the Gorsedd of the Bards of Caer Abiri,Avebury, Wiltshire, UK. To participate and forfurther details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/2118 orhttp://druidnetwork.org/en/events/index.html
October
1st – 2nd October: Faery Ritual Workshop withRJ Stewart at the Living well retreat centre,Deadwood, OR., USA. To participate and forfurther details seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/197 orhttp://www.rjstewart.org/calendar.html
2nd – 5th October: Thresholds of Power andHealing, Somerton, Somerset, UK. Learn Sham-inc Healing ways with Caitlin Matthews. Formore information seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/211 orhttp://www.hallowquest.org.uk/index.html orhttp://www.hallowquest.org.uk/pdfs/Courses%20from%20Caitlin%20and%20John%20Matthews.pdf
6th – 10th October: OBOD Southern HemisphereAssembly, Port Lincoln, South Australia. To par-ticipate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/561 orhttp://serpentstar.wordpress.com7th – 13th October: Study and Live at the Druid-school, Ireland. To participate and for furtherdetails, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/112 orhttp://www.druidschool.com/site/1030100/page/3117458
8th – 9th October: Inner Mysteries of Avalonwith RJ Stewart, Dexter, Oregon, USA. To partic-ipate and for further details seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/197 orhttp://www.rjstewart.org/calendar.html
13th October: Walking the Dedicant Path DruidicStudy, Three Cranes Gove ADF. To participate
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and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/186 orhttp://www.threecranes.org/calendars/
15th October: Symposium 2011: After the Exhu-mation, Leeds City Museum, Leeds, UK. Forfurther details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/329 orhttp://www.honour.org.uk/?q=node/1
28th – 30th October: Calan Gaeaf with the RedOak Grove ADF, PA, NJ & DE, USA. Toparticipate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/185 orhttp://www.redoakgrove.org/upcoming/index.html
28th October -6th November: OBOD SamhainCamp, UK. To participate and for further details,see http://www.druidicdawn.org/node/172 orhttp://druidry.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=PagEd&file=index&topic_id=2&page_id=146
29th October: Samhain Ritual, with the DancingLights Grove, ADF, Ontario, Canada. Toparticipate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/52 orhttp://www.dancinglightsgrove.ca/calendar
30th October: Samhain with the Tuatha de Bridg-et, Glasgow, Scotland, UK. To participate and forfurther details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/2118 orhttp://druidnetwork.org/en/events/index.html
30th October: Samhain Rite, Three Cranes GroveOhio, USA. To participate and for further details,see http://www.druidicdawn.org/node/186 orhttp://www.threecranes.org/calendars/
30th October: Samhain Gathering with theGorsedd of the Bards of Caer Abiri, Avebury,Wiltshire, UK. To participate and for furtherdetails
http://www.druidicdawn.org/node/2118 orhttp://druidnetwork.org/en/events/index.html
November
Date TBA November: Inner Temple Traditions inIsrael. To participate and for further details seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/197 orhttp://www.rjstewart.org/calendar.html
3rd November: Samhain at the Druidschool, Ire-land. To participate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/112 orhttp://www.druidschool.com/site/1030100/page/3117458
December
9th – 11th December: Jesus and Myth: GnosticPilgrimage into Myth, Folk Belief andPaganism with John and Caitlin Matthews andspecial guest, Mark Townsend; StroudGloucestershire, UK. For more details seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/211 orhttp://www.hallowquest.org.uk/index.html orhttp://www.hallowquest.org.uk/pdfs/Courses%20from%20Caitlin%20and%20John%20Matthews.pdf
16th – 18th December: Alban Arthan with theRed Oak Grove ADF, PA, NJ & DE, USA. Toparticipate and for further details, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/185 orhttp://www.redoakgrove.org/upcoming/index.html
19th December: Yule (Winter Solstice), PublicRitual with the Charnwood Grove, Beacon Hill,Leicestershire, UK. To participate and for furtherdetails, seehttp://www.druidicdawn.org/node/174 orhttp://www.charnwoodgrove.org/events.html
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Aontacht – Winter / Summer Solstice 2011You do not have to be a member of
the Druidic Dawn community to sub-mit to the newsletter.
Please submit contributions directly tothe editorial staff via email to:
Refer to the writer’s guidelines, beforeyou submit contributions or inquiries.Below are our upcoming issues in caseyou'd like to get ahead on submissions.Be sure to specify which issue you aresubmitting to.
The Art of Storytelling plays an impor-tant role for ancient and modern Celtsor Druids as a medium, which passes onknowledge and wisdom teachings toexplore. What stories do you have andwish to share with Aontacht readers?What hidden knowledge do they con-tain?
Tribal Celts and Druids had their sacredplaces within the local landscape andfurther afield, which held specificmeanings and spiritual significance.How does those relate to contemporaryCelts and Druids? Do they hold thesame essence as in times past? Whatmakes a modern “sacred place”?
DRUIDIC DAWN CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
We hope will participate in the by being the next issue of ourmagazine. Send us your News, Events, Reviews, Editorials, Articles, Essays, Recipes, Devotion-al Pieces, Photos and other materials to us at:
We specifically want to be part of our upcoming interview with Pamela Meekings-Stewart. This is an incredible time to ask your and get a direct responsefrom one of Druidry's most active and creative souls.
Pamela has been a member of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD) since 1998 aftermeeting Chosen Chief, Philip Carr-Gomm. In 1999, Philip created the
(GOSS) at ‘The Woolshed’, Pamela’s beautiful farm near Wellington, Aotearoa NewZealand. ‘The Woolshed’ is 136 acres situated on the hills of Pukerua Bay looking out over thesea and Kapiti Island. The Grove holds 7 seasonal rituals at The Woolshed as well as theWinter Solstice at Stonehenge Aotearoa. Pamela is also a film and video producer and runs theextremely popular and at her farm. Pamelais also a registered marriage celebrant who is in demand to provide ‘druid-like’ marriageceremonies and civil unions.
So send in any questions you might want to ask her. Don't be bashful, we appreciate yourperspective and value every question we receive from our members and supporters! Take amoment and be an important part of the !
i Submit original work only. Essays & articles should be between 1,000-2,000 words(footnotes and bibliography included). There is not a word limit for poetry, however, pleasedo not submit epic verse.
ii You may submit multiple pieces. Only electronic submissions are accepted and should beeither compressed (.zip/.rar) and attached (preferred for photos & artwork), or pasted intothe email body. Document submissions should be in Plain Text (.txt) or Rich Text (.rtf)formats only; Photos/artwork as .jpg or .png.
Please cite your sources and clearly mark when using UPG [Unverified Personal Gnosis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unverified_Personal_Gnosis)iii Articles should be relevant to the Celtic/Druidic communities (refer to Subject Areas
below) and must match the theme of the issue (if the issue is themed).iv Run a grammar/spell check on your work before submittal.v Keep work in a friendly manner. No racism, bigotry, violence or hated.
· Pre-Christian: Discussion of history, anthropology, archeology and more, but also of thecurrent Reconstructionist or Traditional movements happening today.
· Modern Druidry: Discussion of Druidism within the last 300 years; includes Revivalist andNeo-Druid.
· Modern Celtic: Talk on surviving beliefs, folklore and superstitions still alive today on theCeltic isles, i.e., Fairy Faith.
· Celtic Christianity: Looks into this truly beautiful and unique branch of Christianity.· Inter-Faith: How people incorporate other cultures into their Celtic/Druidic practice, or
getting along with those of other faiths.
Submissions can be sent to [email protected]
: International copyright law will protect all materials published. However, submitting your workwill not guarantee its publication. Also note that as is a free publication, which generates noprofit, you will not be paid for your contributions.
