re
mike

Wed Feb 21 17:13:10 2001
i once fell into the concept that the druids are extinct. as of the last few years, the more i learn about druidry, the more i see it as alive. one major tenant that i have been taught about the irish belief system is: evolution. the irish never really had a creation myth (per se), they just believed that the world has always existed, and the plan is to evolve and progress. so, why is this not the case with druidry?*p*i do not want to sound pretentious or like i am following topaz owl in this. but, i come from a family who kept alive a druidic tradition. but this i did not discover until 1997...and i moved out of the area my cousin lived in (she is the most recent vessel of our family's wisdoms). so, i have not had a chance to learn any 'real' druidic practices. but, i have learned that the ways i have always done things fit in with things i later learn about in books or from people i talk to. i am under the impression that everything i do in this incarnation is an extension of what i have done in the 'past' as well as an inheirant means to do and keep alive the things my ancestors did, as well as fitting into it...myself.*p*i am currently delving deeply into the ogham (the tree ogham specifically). the information out there is sometimes conflicting, and there are only a certain number of authors puting out works about the oghams. i have been told that one of them has inaccurate translations, another cannot be trusted, and another that i use for my information is just plain full of it. this author is stephen blamires- yes he adds stuff in when the manuscripts and legends are incomplete (tho he usually says so when he does it). he is also disliked because when he comes across a textual reference that seems too arcane, he says that the original meaning must have at one point had meaning to the celts, but that it is not important to us.*p*well, in keeping with the concept of an evolving system, i just study that further and figure out what it means to me. in this way, the ogham are a constantly evolving and changing system, fitting itslef not only with the individual but also with the times.*p*not that i am saying ot follow aleister crowley, but he speaks of the changing of aeons, that the magic theories and formulas must change with the changing of the aeons.. to remain functional and usable, the thoeries and formulas must change to fit the new aeon. *p*and i think this concept of crowley's fits in druidry and the practices of the druids.*p*blessings*br*mike