Druidic
Schools, Techniques and Mindsets Thu Oct 09 01:06:03
1997 *** Now talking in #Oghamclass #3 shimmer: Hi Rori * Rori smilin' Rori: hey searles hunny In some ways, the story of the invention of the Ogham
alphabet is much like the story of creation. The Ogham
was said to have been invented by the god of eloquence,
who is known by many names. In the tales, he is called
"Cermait" (honeymouth) for his eloquence.
Another of his names is Grianech, which means
"Sunfaced" But the name by which he is best
known is "Oghma" It is from this name that the
Ogham derive their name. "Tagh seileach nan allr, Tagh calltainnnan creag,
"Eochra Eócsi" (the keys of wisdom) What this means is that an Ogham and its associated basic meanings served as a "pointer" into the memory grove of a Druid. This function is very similar to the ways in which our present day computers access memory from the hard drive. As you might imagine, memorizing huge amounts of information is not an easy task. This is why most of the sacred knowledge and "coimgne" was chanted. It is much easier to remember a song, then it is to remember a series of words. I think most of you will agree with me on that. <G>\ In addition to the Ogham, the beginning druidic students studied the tales, the traditions and the genealogies of the tribe. All of this information was keyed to the Ogham as well. lessons would be chanted by the teachers to the students and then repeated by the students until they were perfected. At the end of the day, student retired to a separate sleeping compartment where they were expected to further memorize their lesson. This was accomplished through meditation while laying on a bed with a stone upon one's chest. Such a stone was used as a focal point for the meditation. The next day, the student was expected to be able to recite the previous day's lesson "exactly". Beyond the basics of the early years of learning, Druids studied natural philosophy, poetry, philosophy of the mind, techniques in divination, and Draíocht, they were also expected to have a memory of the law. This law was known as the Brehon law. Every tale that was memorized had many underlying meanings and levels of knowledge. This is why a study of the tales today is the basis for our derivation of the Druidic techniques of divination. In our Ogham divinations, we will make use of the many fold meanings associated with each Ogham. I will endeavor to show how every tree and every Ogham has a correspondence to the cardinal directions, the varieties of knowledge, the three worlds, and the nine dúile (which describe everything in the cosmos). All this knowledge came together in a symbiotic symphony of sound and knowledge. At the end of about 7 years of such study, the mind and spirit of a druid were prepared to receive the techniques of Imbas. These three inspirations were known as Dichetal Do Chenaibh, Tenm Laegda, Imbas Forosnai. Each of these three illuminations makes use of knowledge that is revealed through the use of the Eochra Eocsi. Searles: The Ogham can also be used to construct chants and to link words. They can be used to form mantras based upon their correspondences to the directions and the du/ile. They can also be used to relate the gods to the stars and the planets. It is my contention that he or she is no Druid who does not use the Ogham. This use of the Ogham is why the Fili (Vision Poets) nicknamed themselves as carpenters. I will post the correspondences of each Ogham to musical and harp notation in the reading material associated with this class. The way that such correspondences would be used is to take the tone for a word from the first Ogham used in it for the line. Each line might have two or three tones in it depending on the meter (which is something that I'm still working out). The first of the three illuminations that I'm going to
discuss is Imbas Forosnai. This is because I believe it
to be fundamental source of illumination for all of the
three Imbas. Imbas Forosnai means "Sudden
Illumination" It is the Fire in the Head that has
been described in shamanic writings. This is much the
same as when we have a really great idea that seemed to
come out of "nowhere" I'm sure that we've all
had such inspirations. The Druids, being keen observers
of truth and reality, went in search of the source of
this information. Where does one "go" to find
knowledge that comes out of nowhere? Where indeed! You
must go "nowhere"! Readers of the Mabinogian
will recall that Arthur and his company had to go to just
such a no-place to rescue Mabon. In the Welsh traditions,
this noplace is called Annwn. It's pronounced Ann-noon In
Irish tradition, this no-place might be called "The
Depths" or "Domnu" This is also the name
of the mother goddess of the Fomorii, who are themselves
the gods of primal knowledge. One place where such
knowledge was sought was called The Bed of the Poets.
This is the same place where the memory work was done.
The work of memory and inspiration require attainment of
a meditative state. This state of meditation was, in my
opinion, the result of aligning the three cauldrons of
Vocation, Warming and Knowledge. A technique that I have
used myself is provided in the reading material. Using
the three cauldron mediation, one can attain the state of
nothingness or no-place. It is within this primordial
blackness... that the barriers between the world of limit
and form can be penetrated by the light of sudden
inspiration or Imbas Forosnai. I'm not saying that tone
must always meditate within a secure space such as a
private room or a bed. The Ban Faith, Fedelm, was able to
prophesy to Medb while standing in a chariot in the midst
of a battlefield. Once the pathways are open, it becomes
much easier to follow the trail. Imbas Forosnai is a
technique that can be used to search the hallways of
knowledge. It is a sensitizing of the spirit to the song
of creation. It can be used in psychometry and is very
akin to esp. It is the basis of the three inspirations.
Another technique for achieving illumination was known as
Tenm Laegda. This means "Illumination Through
Song" Such a technique was accomplished through
repetitive chanting. This is very similar to the use of
mantras and yantras among the Vedic seers. It is my
opinion that Tenm Laegda would have been used to do
specific pathworkings to receive knowledge about a
particular subject. Such repetitive chanting was probably
used in The Spell of Truth that sustained the dream of
the Bull Dreamer in the ritual known as the Tarbh Feis.
This repetitive chant kept the spirit of the Dreamer
focused upon the object of the working which was to
determine by prophetic vision who would be the next king.
Such a repetitive use of sound was also the basis of
divinatory techniques associated with sleeping by rivers,
waterfalls, under trees, and within ritual. The
illumination through song can best be accomplished using
basic chants which repeat over and over again in much the
same way as round singing. The use of repetitive chanting
was, for the druids, the same as repetitive for shaman.
The third illumination is Dichetal Do Chenaibh. This can
be translated in a variety of ways, but the way that I
think best illustrates its use is "cracking the
nuts" It is also said to mean something like "chewing
the pith" both of these meanings are associated with
techniques of Imbas used by Finn. When Fin wanted to
access his own Imbas, he would bite upon his thumb (this
was the same thumb said to have been blistered while
cooking the salmon of knowledge). Some people say that
the pain of such biting triggered his Imbas. But I think
this is not so. The actual technique of Dichetal Do
Chenaibh involves looking at the various components of a
situation and determining the inner meaning of each. When
each component is fully revealed through such
"cracking", then the inner meaning of the
situation is revealed. We can reassemble this secret
meanings of the components into the greater meaning that
is hidden within. Though all three forms of inspiration
can and will be used during Ogham divination, it is
Dichetal Do Chenaibh that is the heart of the use of
Ogham in Divination. In this it's very like the
formulation of a natal chart in astrology from the
relationships of the stars, planets, and constellations
for a given situation. When we cast our Ogham upon the
cloth, we are placing the secret meanings of our dúile
upon the dúile of the cosmos. Their interactions and
relationships are what will reveal to us the meanings of
the divination. Such a technique can also be used with
hidden meanings within stories and names and symbolic
devices, but it is their use in cracking the nuts of
wisdom that are most important to us in Ogham divination.
Any questions so far? Anybody still there? Years of Study Searles: ok... I think that we can all see that
a tremendous amount of study, meditation, and practice is
required in order to easily use the Ogham in divination.
This is why I have listed many tales to be studied along
with each Ogham. It is my recommendation that each of the
students in this course should pathwork and meditate upon
each Ogham in separate sessions. This practical work
should be done after reading the tales and it should be
accomplished following a meditative exercise such as the
three cauldron meditation. What I think that you will
discover, is that the symbols have a life of their own,
which will grow within your mind in much the same way
that the seeds of each tree grow within the earth. It is
this growth and interconnection that will allow you to
access much greater knowledge within your own spirit. The
accumulation of that knowledge and wisdom was the work of
many lifetimes. Does everyone have access to an Ogham
set? |