Kris Hughes is a teacher, singer, harp player and writer.
A priest of the land, the ancestors and dead, he is the welsh head of the
Anglesey Druid Order, and teaches at camps and workshops across the islands.
Kris developed his own form of Druidry over 15 years and is now dedicated
to the path of the Awenyddion, the inspired ones. He is also welsh co-ordinator
for The Druid Network. You can find out more about Kris on The Druid Network
profile
pages.
The Interview
What are your earliest memories of paganism?
I was fortunate to have been educated in a predominantly Welsh Primary school
in the seventies, when the curriculum was quite differrent from today! We
were introduced to the native tales at a very early age. I fell in love with
the Mabinogi at five years old, at eight I even rewrote them with illustrations!!
Somehow through the mists of time they went astray, I'm gutted! Although as
a child I was surrounded by images of Paganism, it was obviously a subject
I was alien to until my teens. However, my awareness of other energies and
truths lying just beneath our senses was awakened in me as a child, especially
by through the fourth branch of the Mabinogi, Math Fab Mathonwy.
Did you ever have any sort of moment of 'realisation'?
I believe I did, although it's easy to put reason and meaning to something
in hindsight. I was 11 years old, playing in the woods behind my Grandma's
house, alone. I had a favourite tree who I always considered a friend. We
had been taught about the trees that week in school, and I was horrified that
no-one, including the teachers, had no awareness of the life and entity of
the trees. I felt alone and slightly odd that Ishould perceive the trees as
people. However a few days later I came to the conclusion that the relationship
I had with the woodland was special and unique, and knew from that point on
that I was different.
How difficult was it as a younger pagan, to practice your beliefs etc?
To be honest I didn't identify myself as a Pagan until I was nearly 19 (during
my time in Bible school!). I knew I was different from other kids, but couldn't
identify it with a particular identity.
How did you find Druidry, what made you pursue it?
The essence of Druidry has always been an expression of my people, even as
kids we were partakers of the Eisteddfod and its Druids. It was never something
particularly fringe or peculiar, it was just "Druidry". I never
actually pursued it, I simply began to explore the cultural spirituality of
my ancestors, a bit of which is captured (albeit Christian) within the Eisteddfod.
Even now I do not consider myself a Druid, I am an Awenydd, a priest of Awen.
It is Awen that I see as the spiritual essence of British spirituality, and
as it happens that is embraced and encapsulated within modern Druidry. There
never was a transition to the identity of Druid, I just discovered a community
in love with Awen that I am now a part of. They just happen to call it "Druidry".
To me we are still the Awenyddion, the inspired ones. Obviously I will always
react, respond and utilise
the Welsh words and descriptive terminology that modern Druidry invokes, however
the meaning is slightly different and I am more comfortable with some terms
than others, hence I do not call myself a Druid (apart to Muggles who do not
know better!).
As a young pagan, did frustration or difficulty ever make you want
to give up?
I consider myself fortunate to have had to explore Paganism without any company,
completely alone for almost five years. I created my own tradition from the
cultural threads of my people, I was and am comfortable with it. I cannot
percieve of giving up, how could I give up on the essence of life which I
see within the rays of Awen?
Looking back now, what would you say about your
young pagan days, how have your experiences shaped your own vision now?
My young Pagan days were filled with awe and wonder and I consider myself
privileged to be awe filled today, thanks to my childhood experiences. Our
younger days are vital for shaping our paths through Druidry and developing
early relationships with the land, deity etc. I continue to visit the magical
places I wandered through as a child to inspire my adulthood. I was lucky
to be brought up in the wilderness of Snowdonia and the forests of my land,
they continue to inspire me to this day.
What would you say to any young pagan/Druid who came to you asking
for advice on 'where to go' and 'what to do'?
Talk to as many folk on the path as you can, read as much as
you can to be inspired by the words of others. And above all listen to the
land of your locality. It is there that truth and connection lies.
