In the writing world, we often use folklore and legends. But Druids are not part of the usual characters in novels. Their secrecy might be to blame.

Why Did I Fall Into The Rabbit Hole Of Druidism

Upon research as a medievalist enthusiast, looking for various types of witches, the word Druid popped into my head. Many associate druids with fantasy or games such as Magic The Gathering or Dungeons & Dragons. But there is much more to them.

Druids are not as known as other Celtic folkloric people, such as Leprechauns, Faeries, Elves, and Trolls, to only name a few. The influence of the Celtic culture in fantasy literature is significant and provides solid roots. But druids are different.

Knowledge of a Time Long Gone

The druids represented higher knowledge to the Celtic people. They were a representation of high society and inspired many. They possessed abilities that were maybe too many for their excellence.

We know Druids for their involvement in their religion. They were at the head of their beliefs. They were also the legal authorities of their civilization and adjudicators, and it wasn’t rare to see them politically involved. 

However, their knowledge didn’t stop there; they were also part of the medical council. But what surprised me while doing my research was that no records are written by their own hands. 

One would think the druids, as highly educated as they were with so much influence, would have writings to back their story. None. Their doctrine was supposedly against the idea of keeping written records of their knowledge and existence.

What Their Legacy Is Without Any Writing

No one today would’ve known of the druids’ existence without a few conquerors despite their influence within the Celtic civilization.

In the year fifty BCE, before the current era, it was written by Julius Caesar. The detailed references to the druids resulted from the Roman invasion of Gaul. 

During the first century, the Druid’s orders became irrelevant and disappeared entirely after the coming of the second century.

The druids were even mentioned in Christian texts in the Middle Ages. Those depicted them as sorcerers and against the teaching of Christianism. It might explain their association with supernatural abilities and how we came to see them in modern times.

Despite attempts at staying secretive in the history of humankind, the druids might not have failed in that mission as their descendants tried to revive their existence between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

The groups of followers were known as neo-druidism, but their teachings were not as accurate as once thought when historians found many manuscripts relating to the druids. Those teachings might have been based on the wrong information.

The Rebirth Of A Lost Art And Knowledge

Despite the word meaning ‘sorcerer’ in old Irish, ‘druí,’ in an older European language, it means “oak-knower.” The ancient Greek language also supports the latter. But druidism is of Celtic origin, pointing directly toward Ireland.

Of course, due to the lack of writing, the druids’ history and knowledge about their true meaning and existence are complicated to understand. We must base our understanding on the view of other people who encountered and, most likely, conquered them.

With the Middle Ages, we have come to know that druids were considered nobles in their pagan Celtic society. They were exempt from paying taxes and performing military duties. In charge of maintaining Paganism, they ensured the belief remained according to their calendar.

Some other historical record shows that their status was so highly respected that if their presence occurred between two armies, they had the necessary knowledge and ability to stop the war.

The gathering of the Druids often took place in hidden and secluded locations. Their area of excellence were caves and the middle of a forest. Their knowledge is not to be shared with ‘outsiders.’ They left no stone unturned regarding their meetings or secret council.

The Druids Were Meticulously Sly

Through transcripts throughout history, Julius Caesar mentioned that druids were taught orally. He noticed that their studies would take up to twenty years. Everything had to be learned by heart, especially with novices.

All the druids’ oral literature and ancient verses lost through time are quite unfortunate. However, Julius Caesar remarked that the Gaul had a written language for the Druid, which consisted of Greek characters. 

However, by the time Julius Caesar received the translation of the manuscripts, those were in Latin. So, the Druids’ secrets were passed on to them. Again, another mystery lost to time.

But are those stories real human sacrifices?

What is surprising to me is that the Iron Age Celts did practice human sacrifice. Most of the sacrifices that were performed were with criminals. In a ration, innocents would be utilized as sacrifices for the druids to see the future.

The most common way of sacrifice was by drowning, burning, or hanging. However, some believe that the infamous Wicker Man was one of their ways to sacrifice humans as well.

It did surprise me as I thought Celts did not practice human sacrifice at all. It is mainly related to southern aboriginal cultures. However, I was wrong, and it makes me wonder how often they practiced this horrifying punishment to “see the future.”

“About their actual course of studies, the main object of all education is, in their opinion, to imbue their scholars with a firm belief in the indestructibility of the human soul, which, according to their belief, merely passes at death from one tenement to another; for by such doctrine alone, they say, which robs death of all its terrors, can the highest form of human courage be developed. Subsidiary to the teachings of this main principle, they hold various lectures and discussions on astronomy, on the extent and geographical distribution of the globe, on the different branches of natural philosophy, and many problems connected with religion.” 

Julius Caesar De Bello Gallico, Vl, 13

There Were Female Druids Called Druidesses

The presence of women in the druid profession was not rare in Irish culture. They had names such as ‘bandruí,’ translated to woman-druid and found in many tales of the time. They shared the same education and served the same duties as their male counterparts.

Tlachtga is probably among the most well-known among women druids, as she had a festival in her name in the Middle Ages. She was known as the Daughter of the Druid associated with the Hill of Ward.

Many are mentioned in Irish folktales and have had extraordinarily prominent roles in defeating evil and training war heroes. People believed them to be healthy, intelligent women with many great aptitudes.

Sadly, because the Druids prone their education to an oral one learned by heart, many Druidesses were most likely lost in time. That is due to the lack of a written history of their passage. Therefore, not much remains about them.

There is one tale regarding an island not far from Britain where only females were allowed. All men were, therefore, rejected. Perhaps it was an island of druidesses. Nobody knows.

One of the Druid’s teachings included natural witchcraft. They would perform said witchcraft to rule the seas. They would come to the mainland when prepared to meet a husband and perform their duties as druidesses.

The true purpose of the island and druids remains unknown.

Druids, Witchcraft And More Teachings

Druids had been counsellors to kings for a very long time before Christianity took over Europe. They would often be used as people to see the future or other matters.

When reading about Irish mythology, it is often described that druids were capable of witchcraft. They are linked to the Milesians who desired to overrun Tuatha Dé Danann and take possession of Ireland. 

However, little did the invaders know that the druids would not let it happen. Instead, they called upon a storm to sink their ships, provoking landfall. Some believe that the druids called upon Ireland’s spirit to defend its dwellers by a sung incantation that became The Song of Amergin.

Druids were also seen as sorcerers, as depicted in Irish folktales. Meanwhile, in Wales, they were seen as prophets and professors. However, the common ground seems to be that Druid’s knowledge had to remain secretive. It would be secretly performed and only known by those chosen to become druids. It adds to their mysterious way of living.

The Druids of Today With Knowledge Of The Old

Druidry or druidism is a new spiritual group of people who loosely follow the ancient ways of the druids and are close to the Iron Age Celts. Their beliefs are in nature, the environment, and the animal world. They often participate in environmental movements and try their best to protect wildlife.

They could be seen as part of the new Pagan movement as well. They believe in nature and its power. It began in Britain in the seventeenth century and is still strong today. 

They are known to be respectful of their ancestors and love their memories. They respect their beliefs and what they have shared. They are known to be naturalists, and their closeness to nature might have a few believe they might also be vegetarians or vegans.

The belief of druids, often based on Arthuriana, is one of the proofs of a modern Druidry group. They use an environmental symbol from the Arthurian tales.

The Festivities Of The Druids

Because their main passion is their love of nature, Druidry follows the same festivities as Pagans. Their most essential days are the equinoxes, solstices, and ancient dates. Each has a symbol and a reason to be. 

They celebrate holidays according to the Wheel of the Year. Mostly related to nature, trees, animals, and stars, the holidays have a meaning to druids. It reflects in their practices and involvement in nature, meditation at the heart of their practice.

The Druidic Inspiration

After all that research on the mysterious druids, I concluded that learning about them wouldn’t have been easier back then. They focused on keeping their knowledge to themselves, so they remained a mystery.

Only folktales and legends, records from those who conquered them, and archaeological remains of druidism. 

So much remains part of the imagination. Druids are still loved to this day despite their introversion. They have the regard of those who respect what they stood for throughout their lives.

Druids might have gone with their knowledge, but they won’t leave our imagination.

The OCD Vampire