'Finding my Feet in Modern Druidry'
by Wildfyre
One year ago, almost to the day, I made a quiet dedication to my gods.
“I’m going to learn about Druidry” I told them, and
myself, in a rather matter-of-fact way.
Sitting on a damp beam bridge, dangling my feet into the water, I felt
the bright breeze blow a flurry of blackthorn blossom into my hair.
Modern Druidry, to me, had been an enigma. Someone once told me that
it was ‘kinda like Witchcraft, but not’. What the hell did
that mean?
I’d never met a Druid before. I’d never found a website explaining
exactly what it was either. I felt a little seed of frustration growing
within me.
‘Where do you start learning about something you don’t know
anything about?’
Right here! ‘something’ said. You start right here, with your
muddy feet dangling into a stream…
You start with a set of numb toes, and blackthorn in your hair.
You start out here, in the wild.
Druidry begins in the wildness of our spirit; the spirit that takes you
outside in the fresh rain, sat under some hedge, whilst you listen to
the drip-drip of water from one leaf, to another, until you’re soaked
to the skin and giggling at how damn crazy you’re gonna look to
your parents when you get home.
It starts in the wild, where tiny animal eyes are watching, and secret
spirit creatures move and make shapes. In the rich dark mud of the earth…
Druidry starts out in the landscape, and in the changing flow of time
– of that which is buried deeper under the surface, sharing the
tales of our ancestors.
Druidry is listening to those tales, and to our ancestors who tell them.
Ancestors of land, ancestors of blood, ancestors of tradition; we sit
at their feet by some smoky fire and learn the wisdom of their age. In
turn, we’ll have our own stories to tell.
The word ‘Druid’ is thought to come from the word ‘Dru’:
Oak, and ‘Wid’, to Know. Oak Knowledge. The Oak tree is a
powerful symbol within the heritage of our land, and is said to have been
especially sacred to the ancient Druids who never did a ritual without
a bit of it around.
To modern Druids, it is also a powerful tree of our landscape and its
magic.
It is from the landscape, our ancestors, and the old gods, that we draw
our inspiration. And inspiration is another important concept in Druidry.
It’s something we stretch for, extending every limb of our body
to reach for. Expression. The Druids call it ‘Awen’. It means
‘flowing spirit’, and it represents the power of inspiration.
The Awen can be expressed through poetry, music, storytelling, art, or
just about any other creative outlet. In rituals we chant it: ‘ahhhhhhhoooooooowwwennnnnnnnnn’,
(which always makes me smile).
Many modern Druids gather in ‘Groves’, in a similar way that
Witches gather in covens. Some may hold big public rituals called gorsedds
(gor-seth), often in or around ancient sites at the time of the eight
seasonal festivals.
It is close to one of these festivals that I am writing this article.
Beltane; a celebration of rampant life, sexuality and wild spirit!
I write outdoors a lot… where the energy is clear and bright, feeding
my creativity. Writing this, I find myself sitting on that damp beam bridge
again, surrounded by the leafy foliage of the woods.
This has become my nemeton; my sacred space. And I realise that it’s
been a year, almost to the day that I made those quiet dedications here.
A dedication spoken to ourselves opens up new doors. A dedication spoken
to our gods opens up new worlds.
I feel my thoughts fall into the flowing stream and watch as they are
carried away, to the realms of the hidden woods- to beyond my sight, to
the wild men; the otherworldly guardians, and to realms of imagination.
I kick off my shoes and socks, and dip my wiggling toes into the bubbling,
gurgling, giggling cold water beneath me. Looking down, I play with my
feet against the smooth pebbles and mud, and I grin as they start to turn
numb.
When one is exploring the paths, they say they’re ‘finding
their feet’.
I think I’ve found mine.
