Céad míle fáilte agus Beannachtaí! A hundred thousand welcomes and blessings!
This course is strictly informational and designed to answer the following questions to the best of our ability… Who were the Druids? What were their possible practices and beliefs? How might they have used folk medicine? What was the culture like at the time of their existence? What was their relationship with the land? How did their role change and transform through time?
We have also included various folktales here in the spirit of the Druids being required to memorize over a hundred stories. This course is designed to be worked through independently at your own pace. It is a collaborative effort combining over 20 years of collective studies based on evidence, with citations, combined with a deep love of mythology, folklore and living traditions. Some articles are free while others are paid. Please note that this course is very much still in progress and not complete.
Pledges are split evenly between the main contributors on a monthly basis and considered donations as we are a religious non-profit.
Subscribe to get access – $5 a month
Introduction to Modern Druidry and Folk Belief
“Let me blow the dust off you, resurrect your breath.”…
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Sources and Resource Recommendations
“There are some who say that the study of philosophy…
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Making Meaning With the Past and Connecting Cultural Threads
“History’s lessons, if you’ll read ‘em, Will impart this truth…
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The Flow of Daily Living
“A vigorous tribe lives here, proud, spirited, energetic, skillful. On…
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Working With a Class and Law System
“I am a freeman of a free state.” Dumnorix, Gaulish…
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Reciprocity with the Sovereign and Liminal Landscape
“The common people believe these obelisks to be men, transformed…
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The Realities of Warfare, the Head Cult and Sacrifice
“For the sake of honor, a virtuous man will stand…
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Cross Cultural Significance of the Druids
“The appointed Druids, who likewise were versed in the art…
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Druid Role and Function in Society
“I must confess that the blaze of Bardic light which…
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Druid Survival Through an Irish ‘Celtic’ Christianity
“Let the light of knowledge guide you through the darkness…
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Imbolc and the Exalted One: Our Lady Brigid
“This day was called oimelc, imolg, or imbulc: the first…
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Bealtaine and Bel: A Festival for Luck and Purification
“They fed the fire from great bundles of sacred wood…
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Lughnasa and Lugh: The Harvest Festival
“Three abundances in Ireland: an abundance of ears of corn,…
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Samhain: Festival Of the Otherworld and Prophecy
“The world rests in the night. Trees, mountains, fields, and…
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Celebration, Hospitality and Music Were Significant
“But my body was like a harp and her words…
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Likeable Traits Were Valued and Proliferated
“I am not young enough to know everything.” Oscar Wilde,…
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The Cailleach: Goddess of the Land, Sovereignty, Winter and Transformation
“From Samhain’s dusk to Imbolc’s dawn, the Cailleach’s reign is…
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The Bean Sí: Familial Guardian
“At Lord O’Neil’s residence, Shane’s Castle, there is a room…
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Síle na Gig: Mothers and Midwives of Life and Death
“Dance me through to the stillnessto the point where the…
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Cernunnos: The Horned God and Druid Consort
“I have had as many names as there are years…
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‘Moon of My Life’: Lunar Worship in Folk Tradition
“Hail to thee, thou new moon, Guiding jewel of gentleness!…
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The Hare: Divine Shapeshifter
“Witches were also considered frequently to change themselves into hares,…
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The Swan: Symbols of Love, Loyalty and the Soul
“Thou art the door of the chief of hospitality, Thou…
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Reframing Our Relationship With Animals and Related Divination Practices
“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s…
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The Raven and Crow: The Seer’s Consort
“Crows devour the eyes of the dead, when the dead…
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Achieving Spiritual Union
“Mindfulness means being awake. It means knowing what you are…
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Sacred Space Cont. Regarding Meditation
“Meditation is not evasion; it is a serene encounter with…
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Sacred Space Cont. and the Edge of Consciousness
“The quieter you become, the more you are able to…
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The Magical Idea of Tree Toning
“He who plants a tree plants a hope.” Rabindranath Tagore…
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Spokes in the Wheel: Helping One Another Reach Higher Levels of Spiritual Attainment
“We are all part of a greater whole, connected by…
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The Art of Memory Continued
“Woods and groves are the sacred repositories; and the spot…
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The Mystical Female Druid
“For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.” Virginia Woolf…
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The Power of Our Visions and Divination
All art by John Collier We are inevitably drawn to…
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The Main Educational Steps to Becoming an Irish Poet of Old
In the first year of study, a fledgling Filidh (known…
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Masters of Wisdom: More on Ogham
The Ogham were also used for grave marker inscriptions, property…
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Bri, Bua and Blood: Forms of Power
Once, the wood has been received, then the process of…
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The Battle of the Trees and Choosing ‘Your’ Tree
No book about Ogham and trees would be complete without…
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The Sacredness of Wood Continued
“Three landmarks of Erin, thou seest, are shorn of their…
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Nine Hazels of Wisdom Continued
One possible arrangement of these qualities and associated worlds-gods-strains is…
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Ogham and the Knowledge of the Trees
“The father of Ogham is Ogma, the mother of Ogham…
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The Power of the Sacred Center in Ritual
“Ogma Sun-Face raised four pillars of equal length” The Book…
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The Division of the World
“There are four directions: North, South, East, and West. We…
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The Sovereignty of the Mound and the Center
“Each place is the right place–the place where I now…
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Groundwork and More on the Four Cities
“The truth is not known, beneath the sky of stars,Whether…
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The Four (Five) Directions and Qualities
“The four directions were oriented around a sacred center, not…
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Cleavers: The Other Stickybud
“To expel poison or eruptive diseases from the blood… Take…
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Burdock: The Foolish Wooer
“(As a remedy for psoriasis, pityriasis or leprosy) Take the…
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Fly Agaric: The Most Magical of Mushrooms
“Their food is specified in Welsh folk-lore as fairy butter…
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Hawthorn: Magical Tree of the Fairies
“Their (the good people) voices were heard in the mountain…
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Ground Ivy: The Bitter Ale Companion
“And where beech trees had mixed a pale green light,…
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Nettle: Three Nettles in May Keeps All Diseases Away
“To this day it (nettle) is boiled in the Highlands…
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Belladonna: The Beautiful Yet Deadly Nightshade
“Belladonna… Extract of: This preparation is made strictly according to…
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Lemon Balm: A Beekeeper’s Dream
“And balm-breathing, faint mignonett, Oh! the cool-flowing, gentle Blackwater, And…
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Comfrey: The Bone Knitting Herb
“The great Comfrey or consound, though it was official with…
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The Strawberry Tree: The Tuatha Dé Danann Apples
“When eaten in quantities this fruit is said to be…
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Meadowsweet: The Belt of Cù Chulainn
Meadowsweet or Filipendula ulmaria is also called queen of the…
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Fennel: Herb of the ‘Good Witches’
“Above the lower plants, it towers, The Fennel with its…
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Watermint: Medicine of the Sacred Waters
“When Summer strews its cloak of hues, Then the dells,…
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Cowslip: Harbinger of the Light
“The bright morning star, day’s harbinger, Comes dancing from the…
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Fern: Come Away Human Child
“Where the wandering water gushes, From the hills above Glen-Car,…
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The Rose: An Enduring Symbol of Love
“But he who dares not grasp the thorns should never…
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The Divine Messenger: Angelica
“…The stalks or roots candied and eaten fasting, are good…
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The Apple: Fruit of the Otherworld
“Seven deer by Slieve Bloom was Finn’s first chase,—a brave…
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Uisge Beatha, Life Water: The Birch
“O birch, smooth and blessed, thou melodious, proud one, delightful…
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A Few Tales Relating to the Kelpie or Each-Uisce
The water kelpie was a creature that lived in the…
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The Horror Romance of Mis and Dubh Ruis
“I would rather spend one lifetime with you, than face…
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The Headless Horseman and Related Folklore
“…this sequestered glen has long been known by name of…
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The Jack-o’-Lantern, Will-o’-the-Wisp and Ghosts
“They saw a divine virtue in the healing properties of…
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King of the Birds
“Come to the Greenwood, Golden-haired maiden! Where the bird-minstrels Carol…
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Feast of Bricriu: The Irish Version of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Ulster Cycle, Lebor na hUidre, Book of the Dun Cow,…
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Immram Brain: The Voyage of Bran
“A journey to the Otherworld is always a journey into…
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The Fire Breathing Aillén Mac Midgna
“All desires save one are fleeting, but that one lasts…
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Echtrae Nerai: Adventure of Nera
“On Samain Eve, the night before the 1st of November,…
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The Hwch Ddu Gwta: The Tailless Black Sow
“The figure of Hwch Ddu Gwta, the tailless black sow,…
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Tarasque de Noves and The Dragons of Gaul
Lagadigadèu, The tarasque, The tarasqueLagadigadèu, The tarasque of the ChateauLet…
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Dunluce Castle and The McQuillan Bean Sídhe That Haunts It
“Dunluce castle is situated about two miles from Bushmills… but…
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Chambered Cairn: Maeshowe
“Maeshowe stands as a monument to the Neolithic people’s understanding…
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A Druid’s Pilgrimage to Brittany continued: Honouring the Path at Kergadiou’s Menhirs
“The standing stones of the past are like a language…
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A Druid’s Pilgrimage to Brittany continued: Honouring the path at the Buried Dolmen of Saint Gonvel
“The dolmens are not merely monuments; they are symbols, markers…
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A Druid’s Pilgrimage to Brittany continued: Honouring the Path at the Alignment of Saint-Denec
“Brittany, a land both wild and enchanting, where the echoes…
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A Druid’s Pilgrimage to Brittany continued: Honouring the Path at the Menhir of Kerloas
“The megalithic monuments of Brittany are like an open book,…
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A Druid’s Pilgrimage to Brittany: Honouring the Path at the Menhirs of Traonigou
“Megaliths are the silent witnesses to the first expressions of…
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Abernethy Round Tower & Symbol Stone
“May Brigid bless the house wherein you dwell. Bless every…
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How Old are the Stone Circles?
“The landscape itself is important. This is a liminal zone,…
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The Stones Speak: The Brugh na Bóinne
“…Greater Mysteries drew to its hallowed shrines neophytes from the…
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Samhain Reflections at Labbacallee
“Long ago, four men went digging one night for gold…
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The Helix: Home of the Kelpies
“No mortal ear could have heard the kelpie passing through…
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The Initiation Well at Sintra: Ascend or Descend?
“One can ascend to a higher development only by bringing…
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Tumulus of Bougon, Deux-Sèvres, France
“On a midsummer night, on a night that was eerie…
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Ben McBrady – Tracing the Last Druid’s Footsteps
“Where do you hide a pebble but on the beach.”…
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