Religion was a pre-eminent force in the Celtic culture. There was a religion codified in dogma and administered by a priestly caste, the Druids (Indo-European: drú = strong, wyd=knowledge). They served as the means of communication between commoners and the pantheon of gods for there was no direct interaction. All religious services and rites were exclusively performed by Druids.
The Celts were extremely
superstitious, and regarded it as the worst punishment to be excommunicated. Caesar wrote
an account of the Druids:
"They are said to get by heart a great number of verses; some continue twenty years in their education; neither is it held lawful to commit these things [Druidic doctrines] to writing, though in almost all public transactions and private accounts they use the Greek characters. The immense power of the Druids was the weakness of the Celtic polity. No nation that is ruled by priests drawing their authority from supernatural sanctions is capable of true progress. The Celts fanatic adherence to their religion inevitably helped bring down their empire.
They who are thus interdicted are reckoned in the number of the vile and wicked; all persons avoid and fly their company and discourse, lest they should receive any infection by contagion; they are not permitted to commence a suit; neither is any post entrusted to them...
The Druids are generally freed from military service, nor do they pay taxes with the rest... Encouraged by such rewards, many of their own accord come to their schools, and are sent by their friends and relations." (Julius Caesar)
It is likely that Druids were originally the priests of the megalithic pre-Celtic peoples of Western Europe. During the Celtic expansion the Druids were adopted by the highly religious Celts and the numerous Celtic deities and beliefs were adopted by the Druids.
Who were those mystic beings called druids? The following will give an insight as to their origins, duties, and history, as well as their contributions to science, religion, and philosophy.
An old druid proverb says:
"An ni nach
cluinn cluas
cha ghluais
cridhe!"
-- What the ear
does not hear
will not move
the heart!
While religion was a major element in the social and political structure of the Celts it constituted only one aspect of the pan-Celtic association known as the "priesthood of the druids". This society succeeded in uniting many scattered Celtic tribes into a cohesive people through similarity of beliefs and laws. The Druids formed a large clergy which had many diverse and specialized functions. Most of our understanding of druidism today can be attributed to the works of numerous Greek and Latin historians and writers, to include Caesar, Diodoros, Strabo, Marcellinus, Poseidonios, Timagenes et al.
A great number of epic and legal texts speak of the druids regarding their functions and powers of the “Fili”, or Filidh (poets and men of letters), who formed a corporation parallel and to some extent rivaling that of the druids. The two bodies, however, lived side by side, were complementary to each other and, in earlier times, were associated in their organizations and privileges. Even so, Christianity spared the Fili but wrought total havoc with the druids.
There is historical evidence of druids in Ireland, Britain, and Gaul. Although we have no direct confirmation of druids in the Celtic settlements of Spain, Italy, Galatia, and the Danube valley, there seems no reason for denying that they existed among those branches of the race.
The travels and meetings of the druids cemented the union of the Celtic peoples and encouraged a sense of kinship which might have given birth to unity.
Some students believe that druidism had its origin west of the Celtic counties. These scholars have said that druidism is not Celtic at all but originated with those peoples whom the Celts found established in the west of Europe, the builders of the megalithic monuments. Caesar tells us that druidism first started in Britain, and that the druids of Gaul used to go to Britain to visit famous schools and sanctuaries. British druidism had an equally high reputation in Ireland, and the Irish druids went to Britain to complete their education. The Gauls of Italy had among them persons described as "Vates" (a word borrowed from the Celtic), who were similar to the druids and organized like them. A comparative study of the druidic institution shows that it was indeed pan-Celtic and an essential part of the organization of Celtic society.
History shows clearly enough that druidism emerged as an element of resistance to the Romans in Gaul and Britain and to Christianity in Ireland. It was assailed as an enemy with attacks taking the form of persecution in Gaul (as evidenced by the campaigns of the Roman generals against sanctuaries in Britain ) and by a kind of degradation in Ireland. It becomes apparent, then, that druidism was an element of resistance because it was an element of cohesion. This fact lends further credence to the notion that druidism transcended both geographic boundaries and clan or tribal delineation.
I have found this following book to be very helpful and insightful during my persuit of knowledge about the Druids. It is written by Miranda Green and is entitled "The World of the Druids."
You can buy this book online here
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