For an historical exploration of love, marriage and sexuality in the Celtic world that looks at Druidic, Witchcraft and Christian influences, see Peter Cherici, Celtic Sexuality – Power Paradigms and Passions.
For a discussion on Sacred Sexuality in the Druid Tradition, see Maya Sutton and Nicholas Mann, Druid Magic.
For an excellent experiential guide to Alchemy and a glimpse into the relationship between the approaches of Sacred Sexuality in East and West through Tantra and Alchemy, see Jay Ramsay, Alchemy - The Art of Transformation.
For a guide to Sacred Sexuality whose practices can easily be adapted for use within a Druidcraft context, see Margot Anand, The Art of Sexual Ecstasy - The Path of Sacred Sexuality for Western Lovers.
CHAPTER 4
The Bard's tale was developed from accounts of Brighid in Peter Beresford-Ellis, The Druids.
Most introductory books on Wicca and Druidry discuss the seasonal ceremonies, and if you are interested in the history and folklore of the festivals, read The Stations of the Sun by Ronald Hutton.
The distance-learning course of The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids teaches you how to work with the seasonal rites by sending you The Book of Ritual that explains how to enact the ceremonies, and the significance of each part of them. Before each festival time you are sent teaching material that gives information on the history, folklore and spiritual significance of the approaching time, and it then offers a solo ritual and a group ritual which you can use or adapt to celebrate in your own way.
CHAPTER 5
The Bard's Tale was developed from an account of the tale in A Druid's Herbal for the Sacred Earth Year by Ellen Evert Hopman.
The prayer to the Goddess from the English Herbal is in the British Library - BMs.MS.Harley, 1585 ff12v-l3r.
Healing retreats and a distance-learning course in healing within a Druidic context are available through The Druid College of Healing of The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids. Visualization exercises, Mud baths and sweathouse ceremonies are also held at Druid camps. (See http://druidry.org for details.)
Healing Threads - Traditional Medicines of the Highlands and Islands by Mary Beith is an excellent book that offers both a history of early healing practices and a directory of remedies and cures. It is based on research into medieval Gaelic medical manuscripts and the papers of medical societies.
Very little has been published on the use of Celtic sweathouses, but an interesting article that refers to this, and to the healing use of dreams, is 'Auguries, Dreams and Incubatory Sleep' by John Matthews, in Psychology & the Spiritual Traditions, RJ. Stewart (ed).
See also Dr Andrew Allen's and Ellen Evert Hopman's books already mentioned, Anam Cara Spiritual Wisdom from the Celtic World by John O'Donohue and the section on healing in The Druid Renaissance edited by Philip Carr-Gomm.
CHAPTER 6
The Bard's tale was developed from an account in The Metrical Dindschenchas, a medieval work that recounts the ancient lore associated with features of the Irish landscape.
The quotation from Charles Mackay's work on Druidic chants comes from 'Druidical Chants Preserved in the Choruses of Popular Songs in England, Scotland, Ireland and France', Charles Mackay, in The Celtic Magazine, reproduced in The Druid Source Book, John Matthews (ed).
In the section on Questing Magic, divination with totem animals and Ogham is mentioned. Animal and Ogham lore is taught in the Ovate Grade distance-learning course of The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, and various oracular systems have been developed – The Druid Animal Oracle by Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm; an Ogham oracle with cards is available as The Celtic Tree Oracle by Liz and Colin Murray, or with wooden Ogham sticks as Celtic Wisdom Sticks by Caitlin Matthews.
Most books on Wicca deal with the subject of spells and magic, and a section on Druidic spells can be found in Lewis Spence, The History and Origins of Druidism. For examples of many types of spells, see Robin Skelton, Spellcraft, and Witch Bree, Witch's Brew Good Spellsfor Healing.
CHAPTER 7
The poem, 'A Human Situation' by Ross Nichols appears in Prophet Priest and King - The Poetry of Philip Ross Nichols, edited by Jay Ramsay.
There are now many Druid and Wiccan groups around the world, as any web search will reveal.
For a good guide to Wiccan and other Pagan groups see The Circle Guide, available from Circle Sanctuary, PO Box 219, Mt. Horeb, WI 53572 USA, http://www.circlsanctuary.org
For a good guide to Druid groups see A Druid Directory by Philip Shallcrass and Emma Restall Orr, available from The British Druid Order, PO Box 1217, Devizes, Wiltshire SN10 4XA, http://druidorder.demon.co.uk. The British Druid Order also publishes books and periodicals and organises workshops and events.
The Order of Bards Ovates and Druids offers a distance-learning programme in Druidry and Druidcraft together with a Sacred Grove planting programme and campaign for Ecological Responsibility. For full details, contact the Order at:
The Order of Bards Ovates and Druids
PO Box 1333
Lewes
East Sussex BN7 1DX
UK
Tel/fax: 44 (0)1273 419129
email: [email protected]
Website: http://druidry.org
Margot Adler, Drawing Down the Moon, Beacon Press, 1986
Dr Andrew Allen, A Dictionary of Sussex Folk Medicine, Countryside Books,1995
Margot Anand, The Art of Sexual Ecstasy - The Path of Sacred Sexuality for Western Lovers, Thorsons, 1989
Mary Beith, Healing Threads - Traditional Medicines of the Highlands and Islands, Polygon, Edinburgh, 1995
Peter Beresford~Ellis, The Druids, Eerdmans, 1995
Witch Bree, Witch's Brew Good Spells for Healing, Chronicle Books, 2001
Alexander Carmichael, Carmina Gadelica - Hymns and Incantations, Floris Books, 1992
Edward Carpenter, Civilisation, its Cause and Cure, 1889
Philip Carr~Gomm (ed), The Druid Renaissance, Thorsons, 1996
Philip Carr-Gomm, The Druid Way, Element Books 1993
Philip Carr-Gomm, In the Grove of the Druids - The Druid Teachings of Ross Nichols (ed), Watkins, 2002
Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm, The Druid Animal Oracle, Fireside Books, USA, 1994; Connections, UK, 1996
Peter Cherici, Celtic Sexuality – Power, Paradigms and Passions, Duckworth, 1995
Tom Cowan, Fire in the Head - Shamanism and the Celtic Spirit, HarperSanFrancisco, 1993
Vivianne Crowley, Wicca, Thorsons, 2000
Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Women Who Run with the Wolves, Rider, 2001
Janet and Stewart Farrar, Witches' Bible, Robert Hale, 1998
Jeffrey Gantz (transled), Early Irish Myths and Sagas, Penguin, 1981
Gerald Gardner, The Meaning of Witchcraft, IHO Books, 1999
Gerald Gardner, Witchcraft Today, Rider, 1954
E. Gwynn (trans/ed), The Metrical Dindshenchas, Dublin 1903-35
Ellen Evert Hopman, A Druid's Herbal for the Sacred Earth Year, Destiny Books, 1995
Ronald Hutton, The Stations of the Sun, Oxford University Press, 1996
Ronald Hutton, The Triumph of The Moon, Oxford University Press, 2000
Caitlin Matthews, Celtic Wisdom Sticks, Connections, 2001
John Matthews (ed), The Druid Source Book, Blandford, 1996
Marian McNeill (ed), The Silver Bough, William MacLellan, 1959
Liz and Colin Murray, The Celtic Tree Oracle, Connections, 1996
Ross Nichols, The Book of Druidry, Thorsons, 1992
John O'Donohue, Anam Cara Spiritual Wisdom from the Celtic World, Bantam, 1999
Jay Ramsay, Alchemy - The Art of Transformation, Thorsons, 1997
Jay Ramsay (ed), Prophet Priest and King - The Poetry of Philip Ross Nichols, Oak Tree Press, 2001
Emma Restall Orr, Druidry, Thorsons, 2001
Emma Restall Orr, Thorsons Principles of Druidry, Thorsons, 1998
T.W. Rolleston, Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race, Constable, 1985
; Philip Shallcrass, Druidry, Piatkus, 2000
Robin Skelton, Spellcraft, Phoenix, 1978
Lewis Spence, The History and Origins of Druidism, Aquarian Press, 1971
R.J. Stewart (ed), Psychology and the Spiritual Traditions, Element Books.1990
Maya Sutton and Nicholas Mann, Druid Magic, Llewellyn Books, 2000
David Thomson, The People of the Sea, John Day, 1955
Doreen Valiente, The Rebirth of Witchcraft, Phoenix, 1989
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