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There is a lot of discussion online these days about how one can learn about the historical knowledge and practices of the past, in order to create a strong foundation based on the wisdom of the Celtic ancestors. It is well documented that the long-standing and time tested wisdom and rituals of indigenous cultures are enduring and powerful because they are supported by, and in some cases perceived to have been directly given by, the gods and spirits.  Some of these indigenous cultures have managed to preserve this ancient and sacred knowledge over centuries or even millennia. Others however, like Celtic traditions, have lost pieces of their religion and are working to put back together a fragmented knowledge of what was once a life-sustaining and deeply effective religion.

For many years, I have been working to learn, research, restore and transmit authentic historical Celtic practices and wisdom. That quest has taken me into the halls of academia, as well as onto the land to connect with Celtic language speaking tradition bearers. I did not realize it at the time, but the gods and spirits were clearly supporting certain activities, while putting up obstacles to prevent me from others... including not immersing myself fully in modern NeoPagan or New Age practices and beliefs. After 30 years of questing, and 25 years of teaching, I have found that when I stay in alignment with what the gods and spirits support, energy flows and synchronicities abound. 

This blog has taken many hours - and no small measure of courage - to write, and is written from the heart. It discusses some potentially uncomfortable aspects of modern Celtic Paganism. I encourage you to read and contemplate. Note: Flaming will be deleted, and protection is already set in place, as well as spirit assistance to return anything harmful to sender. The ultimate message here is awareness and respect. If that doesn’t resonate for you, please pass on by. 

Welcome to the third free tutorial in Old Irish!

In this posting we will learn how to pronounce some mythic and religious terminology that you may have encountered in your reading and exploration (including place-names and animals), as well as some information about grammar, and the use of Old Irish in ritual. 

Welcome to the second tutorial in Old Irish, in service to the Celtic Pagan / Druidic community!

In these tutorials, we are going to learn how to pronounce words in Old Irish. This is a form of Irish / Gaelic which is seen in the earliest manuscripts (c. 600-900 CE / AD). 

Blessings of the New Moon to all!  I wanted to share with you some thoughts and information pertaining to an excellent discussion topic that arose on the private Túatha Imbais group.

One member suggested that we explore “The changes myth and oral literature would have undergone in literary redaction, and what and how we can learn about early pagan worldview from literary redactions."

In Western culture, we have often been taught that darkness is bad and light is good, and that life energies begin at the point at which light is perceived.  However, if we look at other cultures, particularly traditional cultures, they are not as influenced by Judeo-Christian traditions as is our modern culture. Light and dark can be understood as important parts of a holistic existence.

Our culture is also very lacking in a healthy understanding of and relationship to death. We don’t speak about it, we don’t learn about it, and it is to be avoided at all cost.