Druids: A Very Short Introduction

Author: Barry Cunliffe
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191613789
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 160

Book Description
Who were the Druids? What do we know about them? Do they still exist today? The Druids first came into focus in Western Europe - Gaul, Britain, and Ireland - in the second century BC. They are a popular subject; they have been known and discussed for over 2,000 years and few figures flit so elusively through history. They are enigmatic and puzzling, partly because of the lack of knowledge about them has resulted in a wide spectrum of interpretations. Barry Cunliffe takes the reader through the evidence relating to the Druids, trying to decide what can be said and what can't be said about them. He examines why the nature of the druid caste changed quite dramatically over time, and how successive generations have interpreted the phenomenon in very different ways. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

The Druids

Author: Ronald Hutton
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Celts
Languages : en
Pages : 290

Book Description
Serves as a study of what people have thought about the ancient Druids and why. This work looks at the many ways in which Druids have been imagined in Britain since 1500, and what this tells us about modern and early modern society. It also offers insights into the development of British national identities, literary culture and protest movements.

The Celtic Druids

Author: Godfrey Higgins
Publisher: Cosimo, Inc.
ISBN: 1602066701
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 533

Book Description
Or, An Attempt to show, that The Druids were the Priests of Oriental Colonies Who Emigrated from India; and were the Introducers of the First or Cadmean System of Letters, and the Builders of Stonehenge, of Carnac, and of Other Cyclopean Works, in Asia and Europe. Complete with many informative prints and maps. Partial Contents: Necessity of Etymology; Alphabets; Changes in Language; Druids acquainted with Letters; Irish, Greek, and Hebrew Letters the same; Hieroglyphics; Ciphering invented before Letters; Virgil a Druid; Genesis; Persia, India, and China, the Depositaries, not the Inventors of Science; Who the Celtf were; Affinity between the Latin, Sanscrit, and Celtic; Term Barbarian; Arrival of Phoenician Colonies in Ireland; Origin of Irish Fables; Derivation of the word Britain; Hero Gods; Derivation of the words: Albion, Druid, Vates and Bards; Britain known to Aristotle; Road to Britain lost, like that to America and Australia; magnetic Needle; Ancient Oracles founded by Celtf; Druids probably Pythagoreans; Cross common to Greeks, Egyptians, and Indians; Monograms of Christ; Druids admitted the Creation of Matter; Festivals removed by the precession of the Equinoxes; Druid Festival of Christmas; Mother of the Gods; Baal; Gods of India and Ireland the same; Chaldees of the Jews; St. Patrick; A single Plain Stone the Origin of Idolatry; Rocking-Stones or Logan Stones; Circular Temples, Stonehenge and Abury; Stonehenge not a Roman, Saxon, or Danish Work; Ancient Superstitions respecting Numbers; Observations on Hebrew Chronology; Hierarchy of the Druids; Druids Assertors of their Country's Liberty; Immortality of the Soul and Metempsychosis; Druids had an excellent System ofMorals; Mistletoe and other Sacred Plants; Institution of Priesthoods an Evil.

Celtic Lore

Author: Ward Rutherford
Publisher: Thorsons Publishers
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 232

Book Description
This book shows readers how the Celts view on consultative democracy, environmental issues and women's rights are echoed in contemporary policies, and how they are continuing to shape political and religious ideas.

The Druids and King Arthur

Author: Robin Melrose
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 0786460059
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 221

Book Description
An exploration into the beliefs and origins of the Druids, this book examines the role the Druids may have played in the story of King Arthur and the founding of Britain. It explains how the Druids originated in eastern Europe around 850 B.C., bringing to early Britain a cult of an underworld deity, a belief in reincarnation, and a keen interest in astronomy. The work concludes that Arthur was originally a Druid cult figure and that the descendants of the Druids may have founded the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex. The research draws upon a number of sources, including medieval Welsh tales, the archaeology of Stonehenge's Salisbury Plain, the legends surrounding the founding of Britain, the cult of the Thracian Horseman, the oracle of Dodona, popular Arthurian mythology, and the basic principles of prehistoric astronomy.

Rethinking the Ancient Druids

Author: Miranda Aldhouse-Green
Publisher: University of Wales Press
ISBN: 1786837986
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 210

Book Description
Ancient Classical authors have painted the Druids in a bad light, defining them as a barbaric priesthood, who 2,000 years ago perpetrated savage and blood rites in ancient Britain and Gaul in the name of their gods. Archaeology tells a different and more complicated story of this enigmatic priesthood, a theocracy with immense political and sacred power. This book explores the tangible ‘footprint’ the Druids have left behind: in sacred spaces, art, ritual equipment, images of the gods, strange burial rites and human sacrifice. Their material culture indicates how close was the relationship between Druids and the spirit-world, which evidence suggests they accessed through drug-induced trance.

The Druids

Author: Paul Lonigan
Publisher: Praeger
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 168

Book Description
This comprehensive study of the Druids offers a fresh look at the enigmatic and often controversial question of the role of these priests in Celtic society. The religion of Druidism is examined as an inheritance of Indo-European tradition, with intriguing analogies made between Irish and Roman cultic practices. The author identifies the functions of the ancient priests, providing an inventory of their duties and services. Druids are also defined in terms of their connections with other branches of Eurasian mysticism. This study will be of particular interest to scholars of Irish culture, Celtic culture, and comparative religion.

Druids

Author: Anne Ross
Publisher: The History Press
ISBN: 0750952482
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 213

Book Description
Druidism was the religion of the Celts. The richest source of information about the druids is the vernacular material from Ireland and Wales. The author's familiarity with the gaelic texts strips away modern myths about the Druids.

Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism

Author: Isaac Bonewits
Publisher: Citadel Press
ISBN: 9780806527109
Category : Druids and druidism
Languages : en
Pages : 356

Book Description
The most renowned Druid priest in North America, Isaac Bonewits has spent the last four decades devoted to Druidic study. Now he imparts his wisdom through this elegant and thoughtful tour of ancient and modern Druidism. With impeccable scholarship, Bonewits explores the Druids' archeology and mythology, and helps to demystify their rituals and prayers.

A Complete History of the Druids

Author: T. G. Lomax
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781978366343
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 74

Book Description
This special edition of 'A Complete History of the Druids' was written by T.G. Lomax, and first published in 1810, making it over two centuries old. The Druids are notoriously difficult to research due to their own supposed doctrine prohibiting them from keeping written records or accounts of themselves. Indeed, none exist, and they are known only through the writings of others, like the Romans, wrote of them extensively. Although this old book is a short, quick read, the history of the Druids is fairly comprehensive and the writer is extremely knowledgeable of his subject. The book is split into three main sections - an Introduction, History of the Druids, and Description of the Druidic Temples. IMPORTANT NOTE - Please read BEFORE buying! THIS BOOK IS A REPRINT. IT IS NOT AN ORIGINAL COPY. This book is a reprint edition and is a perfect facsimile of the original book. It is not set in a modern typeface and has not been digitally enhanced. As a result, some characters and images might suffer from slight imperfections, blurring, or minor shadows in the page background. This book appears exactly as it did when it was first printed. - DISCLAIMER: Due to the age of this book, some methods or practices may have been deemed unsafe or unacceptable in the interim years. If purchasing a book more than 50 years old, please use due diligence before putting the information into practice. In utilizing the information herein, you do so at your own risk. We republish antiquarian books without judgment, solely for their historical and cultural importance, and for educational purposes.