Druidry and Shamanism
Working with animal powers is a central feature of shamanism, and we can
find many shamanic elements woven into the philosophy and practice of Druidry.
Michael Harner, a world authority on shamanism, speaks of the shamanic way
as one which is best defined as a method to open a door and enter a different
reality. Much Druid ceremony and meditation has as its goal journeying into
other realities, and the word 'Druid' is related to words meaning both 'oak'
and 'door' - with the symbol of the door or gateway being central in Druidic
teaching. Joseph Campbell, the great mythographer, has shown that there
are a number of key features which distinguish a shaman's art. These include:
ritual dance, the possession of a wand or staff, ecstatic trance, the wearing
of animal costume, identification with a bird, stag, or bull, becoming master
of game animals and initiations, and the control of a magical animal or
familiar. Traces of possible ritual dances exist in the old folk dances,
and there are numerous references to Druid wands and staffs and ecstatic
or altered states in the literature of Druidry.
The remaining features listed by Campbell all relate to animals, and are
all known to exist within the Druid tradition. We have already discussed
the wearing of animal costume, as stag or bird. Druids were often identified
as animals: they were called adders or piglets, they were said to possess
"crane, raven, or bird knowledge" or were given such names as
Mathgen, meaning Bear-Born. Stags and bulls are particularly important in
Druidry - the stag is a messenger from the Otherworld ridden by the sage
Merlin, and the bull is sacred to the god Taranis, beneficent sky god of
thunder and lightning and the oak tree. The bull figures prominently in
the sacred music of Druidry - bronze rattles shaped like bull's testes were
used ritualistically, as were the bronze horns that have been found throughout
Britain and Ireland and which often look like bull's horns. When played
with the circular breathing method used by didgeridoo players they sound
like the roaring of bulls.
We find the image of the "master of game animals" in Celtic iconography
and literature. Images of Cernunnos or of Lords of the Hunt can be seen
in both Britain and France, and the striking image of the master of all
animals appears in the Welsh Mabinogion. Finally, control of a magical animal
or familiar is commonly related as an attribute of the witch in British
folklore, with the hare, toad, and cat being cited as the most common familiars.
In summary, we can say that some elements of Druidry are certainly shamanic,
but Druidry is not exclusively so - it has alchemical, magical, and philosophical
dimensions too.
Check out The Druid Animal Oracle
for more on the sacred animals of the Druid tradition.
The Druid Path