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Some strands of modern "Druidism" (also known among some groups as "Modern Druidry"), such as the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD), are a continuation of the 18th-century revival and thus are built largely around writings produced in the 18th century and after. Some are monotheistic. Members of other Neo-druid groups may be Neopagan, occultist, Reconstructionist or non-specifically spiritual.
[edit] Questions of magic
The etymology of druid suggests, especially in early Irish historical sources, a context of magicians or enchanters. Tacitus views the ways of the druid and their lifestyle to have an aspect of magic: Tacitus' Annals shows druids as "pouring forth dreadful imprecations." Much of the evidence that links druids to magic comes from ancient Celtic songs that were sung in order to invoke certain deities in Celtic Polytheism. Such songs as sung by Aengus[40] show of certain hyponotic states that druids appear to be in, more than likely due to plant or drug induced trances, similar to the oracles of Delphi in Ancient Greece.
Modern day Medieval and Roman historians suggest that the issue of "magic" breaks down to the practise of alchemy and astrology. It would appear that historical sources assert that there was magic occurring, while Roman and medieval historians feel that this issue of "magic" is religious or pagan practices. However, the druids left no written accounts of their own practices, so much of this hypothesis is complete speculation, as is most of the above article.
[edit] References
- , Diogenes Laertius, Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers Introduction, Chapters [1] & 5 (Book A 1 & 6 in the Greek text).
- , Mac Mathúna, Liam (1999) "Irish Perceptions of the Cosmos" Celtica vol. 23 (1999), pp.174-187
- , Natural History of Pliny the Elder discusses druidical gathering of mistletoe (Pliny NH xvi.95)
- , Gruesome rites were noted by Lucan, Pharsalia 1.450-58; Caesar Gallic Wars, 6.16, 17.3-5; Suetonius Life of Claudius 25; Pomponius Mela 3.2.18-19; Cicero, Pro Fonteio. 31 and De Repubblica 9.15. Of these writers only Julius Caesar had direct contact with Celts in Gaul; the others had more immediate rhetorical concerns and were reflecting educated public opinion at Rome.
- , ????d??
- , The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition, 2000 Indo-European Roots: deru-
- , The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition, 2000 Indo-European Roots: weid-
- , Twenty references were presented in tabular form by Jane Webster, "At the End of the World: Druidic and Other Revitalization Movements in Post-Conquest Gaul and Britain" Britannia 30 (1999:1-20):2-4; they ran from the lost Magikos of Sotion of Alexandria, cited as by Aristotle (died 332 BCE) in Diogenes Laertius' vita, to Ausonius in the fourth century CE.
- , Stuart Piggott, examining the folklore connection of "The Druids and Stonehenge" in The South African Archaeological Bulletin 9 No. 36 (December 1954:138-140) saw the Greek viewpoint "rather as a colonial administrator sixty or seventy years ago might have recorded a few of the more startling facts about the witch-doctors or medicine men he had heard of or encountered on Africa or the Orient." (p. 138).
- , Norman J. DeWitt, "The Druids and Romanization" Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 69 (1938:319-332): "Few historians now believe that that the Druids, as a corporation, constituted an effective anti-Roman element during the period of Caesar's conquests and in the period of early Roman Gaul;" his inspection of the seemingly contradictory literary sources reinforced the stated conclusion.
- , The ethnographic account in a continuation of Polybius' history of Rome written by the Stoic scholar Posidonius, on which Caesar and other writers seem to have depended, is lost; see Daphne Nash, "Reconstructing Poseidonios' Celtic Ethnography: Some Considerations", Britannia 1976:111-26. Posidonius' consideration of Gaulish society was presented in book xxiii of his History, as the backdrop for the First Transalpinre War, against the Celtic Ligurians of the Maritime Alps, 125-21 BCE.
- , Not even Diviacus is mentioned by Caesar as a druid.
- , A point made, in noting the discrepency, by Norman J. DeWitt, "The Druids and Romanization" Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 69 (1938:322f).
- , Caesar, Gallic Wars vi.24.2.
- , Gallic Wars vi.14.3.
- , Diodorius Siculus v.28.6; Hippolytus Philosophumena i.25.
- , Donald A.Mackenzie, Buddhism in pre-Christian Britain (1928:21).
- , Isaac Bonewits, Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism, Citadel, 2006.
- , See, e.g. Jane Webster 1999:6-8 "Caesar's Druids: an anachronism?"
- , DeWitt 1938:324f.
- , Creighton, "Visions of power: imagery and symbols in Late Iron Age Britain" Britannia 26 (1995:285-301) especially p 296f.
- , e.g. Jane Webster, in "At the End of the World: Druidic and Other Revitalization Movements in Post-Conquest Gaul and Britain" Britannia 30 (1999:1-20 and full bibliography).
- , Dewitt, Norman The Druids and Romanization pg 323
- , Pomponius Mela iii.2.18-19.
- , Gruesome reports of druidic practices appear in Latin histories and poetry: Lucan, Pharsalia i.450-58; Caesar, Gallic Wars vi.16, 17.3-5; Suetonius, Claudius 25; Cicero, Pro Font. 31; Cicero, De Rep. 9 (15); noted by Norman J. DeWitt, "The Druids and Romanization" Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 69 (1938:319-332) p 321 note 4.
- , Cicero, De Divinatione 1.41
- , Pliny's Natural History xxx.4.
- , Rutherford, Ward The Druids and their Heritage pg 78
- , Rutherford, Ward The Druids and their Heritage' pg 45
- , Anne Ross, "Lindow Man and the Celtic tradition", in I.M. Stead, J.B. Bourke and D. Brothwell, Lindow Man; The Body in the Bog, 1986:162-69; Anne Ross and Don Robins, The Life and Death of a Druid Prince 1989.
- , Webster 1999:6.
- , Fitzpatrick, "Night and Day: the symbolism of astral signs on Late Iron Age anthropomorphic short swords", Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, 62 pp 373-98.1996:
- , Freeman, Philip The Philosopher and the Druids p. 161 2006 Simon and Schuster
- , Hagiography.
- , Augustinus Hibernicus. "De Mirabilibus Sacrae Scripturae". King of Mysteries: Early Irish Religious Writings edited by John Carey. Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2000.
- , The modern career of this imagined connection of druids and Stonehenge was traced and dispelled in T.D. Kendrick, The Druids: A Study in Keltic Prehistory (London: Methuen) 1927.
- , T.D. Kendrick, The Druids: A Study in Keltic Prehistory (London: Methuen) 1927.
- , Kendrick 1927:viii
- , Explore/. The British Museum. Retrieved on 2007-12-02.
- , Rutherford, Ward The Druids and their Heritage pg 84
[edit] Further reading
- Aldhouse-Green, Miranda J., Exploring the World of the Druids (London: Thames and Hudson, 1997)
- Ellis, Peter, B., "The Druids" (William B. Eerdmans, 1994)
- Fitzpatrick, A. P,. Who were the Druids? (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1997)
- Hutton, Ronald, The Druids (London: Hambledon Continuum, 2007)
- Piggott, Stuart, The Druids (London: Thames and Hudson, 1975)
[edit] External links
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