Contemporary Druidry: A Historical and Ethnographic Study

Contemporary Druidry: A Historical and Ethnographic Study
Author: Michael T. Cooper
Publisher: Sacred Tribes Press
Total Pages: 203
Release: 2010-08-21
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1452471320

Contemporary Druidry is one of the fastest growing religions in Western society. This book addresses the attempt by practitioners to bring an ancient spirituality into the mainstream. It examines ancient Druid beliefs and critiques the contemporary expression by comparing the two. Relying on eight years of research and more than 200 interviews, the book provides an outsider's look at this faith

World Druidry

World Druidry
Author: Larisa A White
Publisher:
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2021-06-20
Genre:
ISBN: 9781736779200

What does it mean to be a Druid, circa 2020 c.e.? - What do modern-day Druids believe? - What are their religious practices? - How does Druidry vary with geography? - How has Druidry evolved over time? - What defines it as a religious tradition? In the past, the answers to these questions have, of necessity, taken the form of educated guesses based on limited data, often biased by ease-of-contact, or Druidry group affiliation. The World Druidry Survey of 2018-2020 was the first, large-scale global effort to collect, interpret, and learn from the stories of all the practicing Druids of the world. The questionnaire included 189 items, organized into 42 sets of questions, including 18 open-ended essay questions. It probed into details of modern Druids' physical, social, and cultural environments; their ethnicities; their theological beliefs, ritual practices, and celebrated holidays; and the factors that influenced their development as Druids. Completed surveys were returned by 725 Druids, in six languages, from 34 nations, representing 147 Druid groups from around the world, in addition to 131 unaffiliated, solitary practitioners. Their responses included thousands of pages of rich, narrative data, allowing for the use of robust, mixed-methods analytic tools to paint a vivid picture of the contemporary religious tradition that is World Druidry. Here are their stories.

The Book of Druidry

The Book of Druidry
Author: Ross Nichols
Publisher: Castle Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009-03-09
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 9780785824954

This is a comprehensive study of the Druids, from their earliest history to the present-day renaissance. Written by a former Chosen Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids, this is a definitive account of the history and practice of Druidry, their principal deities, their myths, their wisdom and their social organization.

The Mysteries of Druidry

The Mysteries of Druidry
Author: Brendan Cathbad Myers
Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser
Total Pages: 429
Release: 2006-04-07
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 1632658135

“A clear, accessible, and forthright exploration of Celtic tradition as the foundation of a personal path of mystical transformation.” —John Michael Greer, former Grand Archdruid, Ancient Order of Druids in America, and author of The Druidry Handbook The Druids were the mystics, philosophers, and magicians of the ancient Celtic world. Their spirituality was borne from their near-worship of poetry and music, their warrior prowess, and the world of nature. The Mysteries of Druidry reveals this mystical romanticism as it was in ancient times, and shows various ways to bring it to life today. It includes: A professionally researched survey of Druidic history, tradition, and customs Detailed descriptions of the mysteries of Celtic spirituality, including the Sacred Truth, the Great Marriage, the Hero’s Journey, and the Otherworld Practical guidance for meditation and ceremony, for individuals and for groups The Celtic story of the creation of the world, presented together with a plan for re-enacting the story in ritual “An exemplary look at one man’s approach to Druidism, with excellent food for thought and suggestions for group ritual and personal practice . . . His personal stories of working with and discovering the spirits of the land are inspiring and useful guides to the readers.” —Erynn Laurie, author of A Circle of Stones, cofounder of the Inis Glas Hedge School “With gentle clarity, [Myers] writes not only of myth, folklore, and Celtic history, but also of and for our Celtic present. With his words, he inspires, calling the reader to breathe in the songs of the ancestors, and so to sing those songs with both a celebratory pride and a profound relevance for today.” —Emma Restall Orr, Joint Chief of the British Druid Order; author of Kissing the Hag

The Druid Renaissance

The Druid Renaissance
Author: Philip Carr-Gomm
Publisher: HarperThorsons
Total Pages: 324
Release: 1996
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN:

The Druid tradition lies at the heart of Western spirituality and today it is experiencing a renaissance unprecedented in its long history. The Druids, like the Native Americans and Aborigines, revere and respect the earth. They see Nature as their teacher and mother. Today, Druidry offers a spiritual way that includes an understanding of healing, creativity and the need to place our love for the land at the centre of our lives. Drawn together in this collection are contributions from Druid Chiefs from Britain, France and America together with writers and mystics, healers and psychologists, professors and historians, which express the excitement and breadth of the modern Druid renaissance. This book is a celebration of the flowering of a tradition that is ancient yet ever-new.

Pagan Portals - The Awen Alone

Pagan Portals - The Awen Alone
Author: Joanna van der Hoeven
Publisher: John Hunt Publishing
Total Pages: 109
Release: 2014-11-28
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1782795464

Druidry is a wonderful, spiritually fulfilling life path. Through the magic that is Druidry, we build deep and abiding relationships with the natural world around us, and through our connection to the natural environment we walk a path of truth, honour and service. We aim to immerse ourselves in the present moment, in the present environment, in order to share in the blessing that is the cycle of life. Throughout the ages, people have withdrawn from the world in order to connect more fully with it. This book is an introductory guide for those who wish to walk the Druid path alone, for however long a time. It is about exploration and connection with the natural world, and finding our place within it. It covers the basics of Druidry and how, when applied to the everyday life, enriches it with a sense of beauty, magic and mystery. This book is for those people who feel called to seek their own path, to use their wit and intelligence, compassion and honour to create their own tradition within Druidry.

Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism

Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism
Author: Isaac Bonewits
Publisher: Citadel Press
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2006
Genre: Druids and druidism
ISBN: 9780806527109

The most renowned Druid priest in North America, Isaac Bonewits has spent the last four decades devoted to Druidic study. Now he imparts his wisdom through this elegant and thoughtful tour of ancient and modern Druidism. With impeccable scholarship, Bonewits explores the Druids' archeology and mythology, and helps to demystify their rituals and prayers.

Contemplative Druidry

Contemplative Druidry
Author: James Nichol
Publisher:
Total Pages: 192
Release: 2014-10-09
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9781500807207

Contemplative Druidry is an evolving aspect of modern Druidry. Rather than talking in purely abstract terms, this book focuses first on the experience of people practicing contemplative Druidry now. Only then does it look at the bigger picture and draw conclusions for the developing spirituality of modern Druidry as a whole.'Contemplative Druidry' takes the five months of March-July 2014, and offers a snapshot of how 15 practitioners of Druidry in England today understand and practice contemplative Druidry, and why they value it. Responding to a set of questions either in live interviews or through written responses, they describe both what contemplative Druidry means to them personally, and how they see it fitting in to the context of Druidry as a modern pagan spirituality. In this way 'Contemplative Druidry' acts as a contemplative inquiry, with many voices offering perspectives on contemplative Druidry, its place within Druidry as a whole, and its wider contribution to the development of modern spirituality, particularly within pagan traditions. The contributors, in alphabetical order of first names, are: David Popely, Elaine Knight, Eve Adams, JJ Middleway, Joanna van der Hoeven, Julie Bond, Karen Webb, Katy Jordan, Mark Rosher, Nimue Brown, Penny Billington, Robert Kyle, Rosa Davis and Tom Brown. In his introduction, the author describes the experience which led him, already a practising Druid, onto a more contemplative path. He talks of how he turned outwards to his own community, as well as inwards to his personal practice, and brought together a group dedicated to developing a practice of contemplative Druidry in Gloucestershire, England. The book is in many respects a fruit of this work, and 11 of the 15 contributors are involved in the group. The other four are independently engaged with contemplative and meditative practice in Druidry, and agreed to be part of the book. The main section of the book is divided into three parts. The first is about the people involved - their childhood spirituality, their histories of questing for a spiritual practice and home that made sense, and their commitment to Druidry as an identity and set of values. The second is about practice - formal sitting meditations, ways of contemplative engagement with nature, forms of group practice, contemplative arts, and having a contemplative stance in every day life. The third is about potential - what the practice of contemplative Druidry can do for the individual and its benefits to the community as a whole. The book ends with a set of author's reflections and conclusions, including suggestions about how contemplative practices can become more widely adopted within the Druid community. There are eight appendices, which include models of group programmes and solo practices for contemplative Druidry, and also two threads from the Contemplative Druidry Facebook group, one about contemplation and mysticism and the other on pilgrimage. The book has a foreword by Philip Carr-Gomm, Chosen Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, a significant contribution in its own right under the title: 'Deep Peace of the Quiet Earth: the Nature Mysticism of Druidry'. The foreword endorses the view that contemplative Druidry is an idea whose time has come. 'Contemplative Druidry' is an introduction in that it raises awareness of contemplative practice in Druidry, and potentially in pagan spirituality more widely. It provides documentary recognition of the approach. And it sets a note of contemplative inquiry and exploration, rather than offering a fixed set of teachings that people are invited to assimilate in a top-down kind of way. The book is therefore of interest both to people with a personal interest in contemplative Druidry, and to those with a more general interest in the life and development of modern Druidry, pagan paths more widely, and evolutionary spirituality as a whole.

The Druid Way

The Druid Way
Author: Philip Carr-Gomm
Publisher:
Total Pages: 208
Release: 2006-01-01
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 9781870450621

Druidism, the ancient shamanic religion of Britain is experiencing a major revival there and in America. This book is both a complete description of the Druid Way as well as a fascinating tour of the major Druid sites, ruins, and "power places". Includes specific suggestions for bringing this ancient wisdom tradition into our own lives and activities.

The Handbook of Urban Druidry

The Handbook of Urban Druidry
Author: Brendan Howlin
Publisher: John Hunt Publishing
Total Pages: 71
Release: 2014-03-28
Genre: Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN: 1782793755

Druidry is currently exciting much interest but has an image that is not usually associated with urban life. In The Handbook of Urban Druidry, author Brendan Howlin presents Druidry in an easy-to-understand way, making the concepts open to everyone. ,