Druidismo Britanico-PAUL DAVIES

5/28/2018 Druidismo Britanico-PAUL DAVIES

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http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/http://htt//etheses.dur.ac.uk/policies/http://%20http//etheses.dur.ac.uk/4038/http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/4038/http://www.dur.ac.uk/


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The Ritual Pl ay of Power: Pilgri mage and Protest Amongst Cont empora ry English Drui ds.

Paul Davi es, Maste r of Ar ts by thesis,Department of Anthropology,Universityof Durham.

August 2003.

The cop yrig ht o f this thesis rests w i t h the author.No quotation f r o m i t should be publis hed with outhis prior written consent and in for mat io n derivedf r o m it shoul d be a cknowl edge d.

O T


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Contents.

Statement ofCopyright. Page 3.

Abstract. Between idea and expression. Page 4.

Preface. Sketcl ies of self. Page 5.

Introduction. TheDruids: from past to present. Page 10.

Chapter 1. Re-interpreting the past: the ritual text. Page 15.

Chapter 2. Performingritual. Page 23.

Chapter 3. Re-claiming the land: local pilgrimage/silent protest. Page 31.

Chapter4. Pilgrimage as protest: K i n g Arthur Pend ragon . Page 39.

Chapter 5. Seahenge: a theat re of protest. Page 56.

Chapter 6. Pilgri mage to the Whit e Horse : the denia l of self. Page 61.

Chapter 7. Pilgrimage to lona: contesting Christianity. Page 73.

Conclusion. Page 89.

Bibliography. Page 92.

Appendi ces and Images. Page 98.1.Representative groups o f the open schools o fDruidry. Page98.2.Ethnographic studies completed 1998-2000. Page 100.3. The ritualstructure of aWiccanceremony. Page 1014.9* July 2000. Telephone interview w i t h Sarah Rooke. Page 103.5a. and 5b. Stonehenge images. Page 105.6.Seahengeimage. Page107.7a. to 7f lona images. Page 108.8. The Salmon o fWisdom. Pagell2.


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Statement of Copyright.

The copyri ght of thisthesisrests w i t h the author. No quotation from it should be published wi tho uttheir priorwrittenconsent and information derived from it should be acknowledged.


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Abstract: Between idea and expression.

Once shrouded inmyth and ritual secrecy, mod em Dru ids have stepped intomore public arenas and aremore accessible than they have ever been. Introducing three o f the largest D r u i d groups in Englandtoday, this ethnographic study w i l l explore the various ways in which Druidry is constructed, andthrough the act ofpilgrimage, r i t u a l l y performed. Projectingfolk-lore, myth and hist ory upon placessuch as Stonehenge, Glastonbury and lona, this thesis w i l l demonstrate how Druids compete w i t hheritage bodies, archaeologists, and Christianpilgrims, creating a sense of culture through ritual actsthat emerge f r o m the spacebetween idea and expression.

W i t h thanks to Simon,Peterand Marion.


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Preface. Sketches of self.

I n 1989,1 travelled f r o m my home in County Durham to a New Age fairin London where I picked-up a leaflet int roducing members o f the publ ic to the recently re-formed Order o f Bards Ovates andDruids.Back in my miner's cottage amid the pit villages and r o l l i n g val leys of Durham, I began tostudy and work w i t h the Order's postal course - theDruidic Gwers (Wel sh fo r lessons).

Attending the first pilgrimage of the Order to the island of lona in May 1989, I per formed, w i t htwelve other init iates, ceremonies laced w i t h references to Celt ic saints, arch-angels andmiscellaneous New-AgePagan sentiment. While the group of companions invokedthese deities inthe ceremonial circle, I underwent a group i n i t i a t i o n into the Order, although the main purpose o fthe retreat, the group agreed, served as an opportunity to per for m ritual and meet w i t h othermembers of the Order.

O n this first OBOD pilgrimage I met B i l l and Chris Worthington, and although they l i v e d close toPendle H i l l in Lancashire and I in Du rham, we agreed to meet for a ceremony later in the year. ASpring ritual of the new moon took place the f o l l o w i n g month in B i l l s home-made stone circle.Seeking a group name that would focus our own identity as Druids and the landscape inwhich weperformed r i t u a l , Chris and B i l l named the group the Northern Grove. Simultaneously, a groupbased in East Sussex also constructed a similar circl e (o f wood) in then- garden to accommodatemembers o f theirnewly-formed Southern Grove. Expressed through monumental ity, and seeminglyechoing Druidic associations among the Neolithic circles of Stonehenge, Woodhenge and Avebur y,w e f e l t synchronicitybinding us together as one Order. After two years of celebrating the eightPagan festiva ls, the Grove had attracted to it around fifty members. Thesegroup meetings helped toforge, from the ideasreferred to in the Gwersu, a sense that we were a group w i t h our own uniquePagan identity.

T w o years later, I l e f t the Northern Grove, moved from Durham to N o r f o l k where I met H o l l y ,another initiate ofOBOD, and together, we forme d the N o r f o l k Grove. Feeling the need to make aritual connection w i t h the ancestors of the area. H o l ly and I began to consider, w i t h i n ourceremonies, the Romano-Brit ish fribes people o fEast Anglia. We decided tocall ourselves the IceniGrove in their honour, and w i t h i n a year had five regular members f ro m H o l t , Norwich and onedetermined youngster who travelled regularly f r o m Peterborough, along w i t h a number o f interestedpeople who would v i s i t our ceremonies as they pleased. At one point, h a l fof the Norwich Moot (alocal Pagan group) were regularly attending ceremonies. As a functioning Grove, we performedtw o initiations and celebrated the eight festivals suggested in the OBOD 's Gwers, adjusting eachceremony to include the Iceni ancestors. Looking at a map o f the region, I drew imaginaryboundaries definingthe l i m i t sof our 'territory' - King's L y n n to Ely to Felixstowe - althoughtheseboundaries often shif ted as we welcomed the occasional visitor further afield - for example,Cambridge or Durham.


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Feeling comfortable w i t h the idea ofworking w i t h the ancestors of N o r f o l k , H o l l y and I never f u l l ydiscussed why we thought it important to do so. Maybe we were attempting the impossible - tobring the past back to l i f e - or maybe we were re-interpreting the past insome other intuitive way.Perhaps our new-found inspiration, drawn from b r i e f narratives in the Gwers refer ring to Boudiccaand her battle against the Roman legions in A D . 61 , and the senseo f expressing alternative ideaso freligion, was more important than the logic required to j u s t i f y our ritual activities. During ourceremonies, we would read out a role-call of the past Iceni kings from Sommerset-Fry's history o fthe Iceni (1982).Working ritual w i t h these warr ior spirits (their Drui ds and Kings ) created for us alla strong feel ing of belonging and our ownindividual identityw i t h i n the OBOD.

O n several occasions. Holly's favouri te archaeological monument, the Bronze Age site o f WarhamCamp, became our ritual arena,the place where our ceremonies were performed amid the ancesfralspirits of the Iceni. Henceforth our relationship w i t h N o r f o l k reached beyond the time of Rome'soccupation and Boudicca's revolt. H o l l y also introduced the group to his favourite woodlandclearingnearGorleston - a gentle h i l l surrounded by birchtreesover-looking the N o r f o l k Broads - agood site as it remained sheltered from the wmd and the publ ic for our private ceremonies. (As agroup , we were never interested in performin g ceremony in publ ic places such as Stonehenge orAvebury - we only wished to make ritual w i t h Pagans who were interested in our work as Druids.)While H o l l y took the group into the countryside, I took care of organising the city-basedceremonies, securing an old 17th century church, and later, an old wine cellar, as secluded places toperform our private rites. Through ritual and pilgrimage to sites deemed to be blessed by thepresence o f the ancestors, I sensed that the c i t y ofNorwich, and the woodlands and monuments ofN o r f o l k were our own ceremonial playground.

recall w r i t i n g a letter to Chris and B i l l in Lancashire informing them of the Grove's progress, ando f my idea ofworking ceremony to accommodate the spirits of Celtic Iceni. Chris replied, statingthat around the same time as our Grove took the name Iceni, the Northern Grove had begun toincorporate into rituals their own Celtic ancestors, calling themselves the Brigante Grove after theRomano-British fribes-people o f the North. Again, we fe h a synchron ici ty at wor k, a phenomenonwe atfr ibuted to the spirit of Druidry. Following this trend, several newly emerging Groves of theOrder also began to r i t u a l l y work w i t h the warr ior spirits of the Celti c people, naming their Grovesafter these tribal ancestors. Men made shields, carried swords; women draped themselves incolourful ceremonial robes reflect ing the styles o f the era, while others preferred the white Druid icrobes described by Pliny and Caesar. Hence, a number o f men and women at fracted to OB OD had,or soon developed, an interest in batt le re-enactment groups. The dress, the robes, and the ritualtools, allseemed to fit together ve ry nicely as ideasof identity were c o l o u r f i i l l y performed in r i t u a l .Back in Lancashire, beneath the shadows of Pendle H i l l , the Grove o f the Brigante went fromstrength to sfrength as their numbers continued to gro w u n t i l B i l l and Chris relocated furtherNorthwards, and the Brigante ceased tomeet,only to re-form at a laterdate (chapter 3).


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A s 1haveshown above, a popular Druidicpast-time involves initiates moving into a local landscapein order to make ceremony. Rather than invoking the spirit of a place w i t h i n a r t i f i c i a l l y createdcircles (St. Columba on lona, Boudicca in N o r f o l k , or the Brigantian Warriors in Lancashire),journeys madeto h i l l tops, woodland groves or h i l l for ts, are all perceived as a responseto the spirito f the place - the land as deity calling her priests to respond to Her, rather than Druids simplyinvoking her presence in a ritual circle. Five years after the first pilgrims were 'called' to lona,Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm responded to a fee lingw i t h i n the Order that a retreat should beheld away f r o m a hote l - an idea I remember being aired at the first retreats held on lona. In 1994,ten days of camping were held in an initiate's field in the Vale of the Whi te Horse, Oxfordshire(complete w i t h hippies, tipis and Volkswagen campers). Fiveyears after attending these U f f i n g t o nretreats I returned to Durham (and the same miner's cottage) to l i v e and to study, more c r i t i c a l l y ,the ritual journeys of this D r u i d group. In May 1999 I returned for a t h i r d v i s i t to lona, as anacademic.

The arenas of major pilgrimage seemed not to have changed ( w i t h the notable addition ofGlastonbury),although the structure o f ceremony had. The hotel room where I received i n i t i a t i o n in1989 remained consistent, yet the ceremonies had lost their references to Celti c Christ ianit y,adoptingin their place Paganreferencesto animal spirits. Here, I met nine initiates, allunfamiliartome, two o f who m 1 later visited fo r ceremony (i n their garden's stone circle). The Order has nowmoved beyond the rituals ofPaganised Chris tiani ty, and the popular destination o f OB ODpilgrimsis no longer the long, and expensive, journey to a hotel on lona, but a camping site in the Englishcountryside.

Again, I visited, as an academic, the hippies and tipis at U f f i n g t o n in the Vale of the White Horse,n ow the most popular of the OBOD 's retreats, where 1 met again several initiates I had firstencountered during a retreat 1 attended in Glastonbury, in February 1998 as an undergraduate. Here

also met for the first time a D r u i d named Idris from Yorkshir e, along w i t h Theresa fromLancashire. Unbeknown to me, they had decided to re-start the Brigante Grove.After an invitationto travel Northwards for their first ceremony, I attended, in the f o l l o w i n g December, their firstWinter solstice ritualof this re-formed Grove.

M y l i f e seemed to have come f u l l circle. L i v i n g , as I had twelve years ago, in Durham, I foundmyself travelling south for similar solstice ceremonies w i t h a very different Brigante Grove (seechapter 3). But things also seemed to haveshifted on an inner-level as w e l l . In my time away fromthe Order, I had found higher education and a questioning mind. This served me w e l l duringinterviews and ceremonies, and allowed me to think more clearly about the political nature of theritualjourneys that 1was now making .

1 f e l t I had, insome way, returned to the politicalradicalism of myteenageyouth for, as a religionw i t h its focus and reverence w i t h i n nature, it was this concern for the plight o f the Earth that first


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drewme toward Paganism. Duringmy exploration ofDruidic ceremony, I f e l tas though ecologicalpolitics had been acknowledged, yet also compromised and reduced to i m p l i c i t symbolisms w i t h mceremony. For example, political action against pollution had been replaced w i t h visualising awhite healing l i g h t around the planet, and campaigns against deforestation by forging relationshipsw i t h frees and imaginary animal spirits. Hence, throughout my fieldwork, I searched for thepolitical experience o f pilg rimage to prove an academic thesis - that Druidic pilgrimage is thepolitical assertion, and the empowering, of ones own self, representing a sense that, for D r u i dpilgrims, culture emerges through the phenomenon of r i t u a l l y journeying into landscapes thatcontain the nartatives o f text such as the Gwers. On a more personal level, I wanted to prove tomyself that the political denials o f many Druids (a common topic of conversat ion among manyinitiates) are denials o f their own socio-re ligious power. I n short, pilgr image can become as dis-empowering through its denial of self as much as it reinforces a sense of culture. Hence myresearch, qualified through my privileged positi on as both academic and D r u i d , reveal the waysthroughwhich politicalparadigms may complement theritual processeso fDruidry.

B y engaging in ethnographic research, as insider D r u i d w i t h ritual history and as anthropologist, Ifind myself perpetually balancing the literary scales between representing Druids as subjects, andmyselfas the focus ofresearch. Hence the balance o f judgement, and the insights permitted throughsuch a viewpoint, reach beyond paradigms o f emic and etic perspectives, serving asautobiographical signatures at the end o f each paragraph. Rather than a narrative authoritativelydraped in objectivity, this discourse is reflexive, forwithout the selfin text, the ethnography wouldbe a falsehood (Geertz 1988: 1-24). Rather than deny and bury the experience, and any anxietydeveloping as a result of such study, it should be realised and f u l l y revealed as somehowmeaningfulto author and the anthropologi cal record - as both p i l g r i m and cultural cartographer (seechapter 6: 72 of this thesis).' Rather than search for the pilgrim's un-articulated (and oftenindefinable)understanding o fspiritual belief and the ritual self (Stringer 1990), the construction o fidentity and its ritual components are, through the experience o f the ethnographic self in itslocation, reflexively known ( i b i d : 85-87). For Georges Gusdorf, the process of ethnography is amatter of searching beyond empiri cal evidence toward a total (and arti stic) understanding o f meta-narratives.

Recourse to history and anthropology allows one to locate autobiography in its culturalmoment... the total portrait is to be found on the horizon of all the di ffe rent visages, o f which[ i t s totality] wouldbe, in asense, the common denominator' (Gusdorf 1980: 35).

Gusdorfs common denominator is the author, who through descriptive, interpretative, andtheoretical understandings o f subject, offer meanings that are inclusive of the self. The

Ethicalconsiderations concerning the presentation of subjects and associated subject material preventedme from documenting all aspects of my ethnography. Apartfrom Chiefs, and other leadingDruids,allnames of my informants have been changed.


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anthropologist not only designs and paints a portrai t, they are also an integral part o f the frame.Hence, the social context o f this thesis, written by an author w i t h a history of involvement inDruidry, is auto-anthropology (Jackson 1987: 17, Has trup 1995: 152), and supports the work ofother academics seeking to understand, more f u l l y , thei r social/academic/Pagan selves, and the irsubjects o f study - the newly emerging neo-Pagan communities in B r i t ai n today (Wallis 2000: 252-56 on auto-archaeology, and Wallisand Blane 2000: 395 on thePagan self w i t h i n ethnography).

During the courseof myresearch 1 requested, and received, permission to attend the meetings o f theCouncil of B r i t i s h D r u i d Orders, thus permit ting a comparative study o f the ritual processes o fCOBDO and OBOD. First I w i l l introduce the readerto, and explore in more detail , the beginningso f modem Druidry and the political identities ofthese D r u i d groups prior to the formatio n o f theOBOD in 1964.


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Introducti on. Th e Druid s: from past to present.

Recounting periods of partic ipant observation at D r u i d pilgrimages, along w i t h meetings w i t hdifferent individual s and groups around the country (appendices 1 and 2), this thesis w i l l examineand discuss the ritual processes of D r u i d Orders such as the OBOD, the B r i t i s h D r u i d Order, andthe Council of B r i t i s h D r u i d Orders - their use of myth, text and the processual development ofthese groups toward pilgrimage as a tool ofself-defmition. 1 w i l l show how the development ofpilgrimage, as a political agenda rooted w i t h i n textual forms, serves to challenge the socialmainstream, assisting more f i j l l y in the emergence of English Druidry from its linguisticallyexclusive past. D r u i d pilgrims have recently become very visible in the social landscape of B r i t a i n(Stonehenge and Seahenge), as ritual journeys into these 'sacred realms' become the ultimateexpression o f an alternative belief system to Christianity and the interpretations o f landscapes byheritage bodies presiding overthese places.

Today, modem Druids comprise three distmct groups. The first two groups belong to a system ofthought and activity 1 have named the 'closed school of Druidry' due to rules goveming theadmittance o f individuals seeking i n i t i a t i o n . The t h i r d group (the focus of my research), I havecalledthe 'open school'. Discussing the growth ofDmidry from its fratemal/linguistic beginnings, Iw i l l first examine the closed school ofDmidry,and the roots from which the open schools grew.

I n he Book o Druidry (1992: 114-118), RossNicholsdescribes several D r u i d groups having, astheir focus, ritual sentiments that can be thought of as local or nationalist. They include the WelshGorsedd ( formed in 1792) and the Comish-based Bards of Cemow (founded 1928). Seeking topromote a senseo f independence from mainstream government, thesegroups understand individualidentity and thei r collective culture to reside in their local landscapes and languages as 'traditionsthat have always existed '. Expressions of autonomy are perhaps most noticeable through thepromotion of their own, non-Engl ish languages. In Listening People, Speaking Earth (1997)Graham Harvey notices a similar pattern ofself-assertiveness among French Orders attempting toretain asenseo findividuality amidpolitical collectivisation:

Druids remained powerfully emot ive figures f or cul tur al and linguistic fraditions,especially those threatened by dominant and hostile forei gn powers. They were recruitedinto movements aimed at strengthening cultural and national identities, particularly inBrittany and Wales... For some, D mids inspired revolutionary zeal against Engl ish orFrench cultural,adminisfrative and religiousconfrol ( i b i d : 18).

Throughout the annually held Welsh Gorsedd's Eisteddfod, Welsh speakers compete for poetic,artistic and literary prizes. Such expressions o f self-determinism compare w e l l w i t h the ceremonialpractices o f the Bards o f Cemow. Rituals using the Cornish language, r evived in 1928 (Nichols1992), are held in Comish churches or other secretive locations. A number of years ago, while

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attending a Bardic church service near Penzance,a Cornish Bard in formed me that close links w i t hthe Welsh Gorsedd were maintained. She refeired to a D r u i d prayer written by the scholarly l o l oMorganwg, an active force in Welsh nationalism in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. TheCornish language is, the Bard in formed me, a cross between the Breton and Welsh dialects.Strangely, this Comish ceremony was advertised in a localtourist column, yet attending this serviceseemed to me an expression o f local identity forlocal Comishmen and women rather than a churchservice available f or tourists. I couldn 't understand a word, but quickly understood the symbolismo f the performance. Harvey comments upon the connections between Druidry, the poetics o f thenationally loyalBard and the church:

Welsh, Comish, Breton and other Celtic cultural Druidries could stress the Bardic artswithout compromising the predominant Christianity o f their members. Mo st [modem]Druids u n t i l recently have in factbeen good Catholics, Anglicans, Methodists or whateverf o r m o f Christ iani ty was most culturally vibrant in any particular area. In some areastoday,Druidry is largely cultural and not religious , let alone Pagan ( i b i d ) .

A m y Hale agrees and, by emphasising the distinctions between the esoteric neo-Pagan movementand the Comish Gorseth, clearlydemonstrates the complexities that exist today among groups w i t ha penchant fo r Bardism.

'The Comish Gorseth is not'. Hale sfresses, 'a Neo-Pagan organisa tion. It never has been. Infact,the ceremony is, inessence, quite Christian (Hale 2000: 182) ... They have differentritualf o c i (one religious and one, in theory, secular), and for the most part different constituencies.The uncomfortable coexistence o f the two groups indicates a great deal about the multi -face tednature ofCelticity' ( I b i d : 197).

Many Druids of the open school claim that the closed schools o f English Druidry comprisefraternally focused groups, w i t h an open attitude to Christ iani ty. M y own (brief) ceremonialencounters w i t h two groups o f the closed school, at publ ic meetings held at Primrose H i l l inLondon, certainly bear testimony to this claim o f a male bias. Ross Nichols (1992) b r i e f l ydocuments some o fthese, including the Ancient D r u i d Order formed in 1717 by John Toland (theseed group of modem D r u i d r y ) , and the splinter group, the Mos t Ancient Order ofDruids,formedi n 1781 to promote God, Queen, and the mysteries o f the Druidic oak. In 1833 The UnitedAncientOrder of Druids separated from the Ancient Order o f Druids, operating as a charitable fraternityw i t h lodges in Ausf ral ia and America ( i b i d : 103). The Welsh, Comish and Breton groups v e i l theirinner-ceremonies i n linguistic exclusivi ty,while the closed schools o f the English exclude throughritual secrecy. Yet the English groups seem to focus their activities through maintaining a ritual

Thereare numerous other groups.Although Welsh andCornish groups perform rituals in public places, initiation into one unnamed)

EnglishOrderof the closed school requires the initiate to swearritualvows of secrecy, and analysis and a

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relationship w i t h an imagined Druidicpast, w i t h i n which English society has its roots firmly set. Itisthese sameidentities from which the Welsh and Cornish seek independence.

Apart from fragments o f AD O rituals taken by Nicho ls and placed into the OBO D ceremonies, orthe occasional prayer written by l o l o Mo rga nwyg, only exclusivi ty unites these disparate groups, asi n i t i a t i o n into them is largely dependent upon a command o f the appropriat e language, or in thecase of the English groups, requires initiates to be male. Hence fo r most people in England andWales, and all women in England, these groups remain closed and inaccessible. * Access to thesegroups is d i f f i c u l t , and when access is granted, ritual vows of secrecy ensure that knowledge iscontained w i t h i n the membership, although it is true to state that these groups serve both a socialand esoteric purpose. Socially, individua lsassisteachother in obtaining employment, or promotingideas that support a social hierarchy. Individuals from these groups therefore reflecttheseconcernsand the groups may, fo r example, attend war memor ial services, or local street parades. Memberstend to be older than the modem New Age Pagan individual s o f the open school who, privately,prefer to have their social visions f i x e d w i th i n political alternatives to war or Christianity.Thesegroup members therefore tend to be younger, more dissident or generally disillusioned w i t hmainstream society. The 1960s symbolised a per iod when social movements and alternative ideals,developing amid the music, fashion and psychadelia o f the time, encouraged new ways o f thinkingat both social and spiritual levels. Itwas at this time that the OBO D emerged as an alternative to theclosed schools. In 1964, the Ancient D r u i d Order experienced internal anxieties dur ing the electiono f a new Chief D r u i d , and after narrowly losing a vote to become the next Chosen Chief, RossNichols formed the separatist Order o f Bards Ovatesand Druids. A marked shift in modem Druidrythen occurred as nature replaced nationalism as the focus forritual activity.Nichols took notes andteachings written by past Chief Dmi ds of the A D O, appropriatingthese pastleaders as the OB OD 'sancestral leaders (Nichols 1992: 99).

Today, initiates of the OBOD credit Nichols for being the catalyst for re-introducing the f u l l cycleo f eight seasonal ceremonies into mode m Paganism, as w e l l as l i f t i n g the veils o f secrecysurrounding modem Dmidry. But it was OBOD 's present Chief D r u i d Philip Carr-Gomm who,after the death o f Ni chols in 1975, collected together papers belongi ng to Nichol s in order topresentDruidry as amail order catalogue.

As a result o f this action, individua ls interested in Druidry were no longer required to becollectively present at a meeting, as the focus for ritual activity switched from gatherings inMasonic-style arenas held in church halls toward a more private f o r m of contemplat ion at home, orritual expression in the countryside. These Gwersu take the f o r m o f a postal course permitting

discussion of this group remains difficult. However, one may snatch fragments from Druidictexts,and byalso speaking with long-established members.

There are occasional exceptions, such as the fraternal Orders ofEngland giving the occasional Grove towomen only.

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thousands more people access to the esoteric teachings o f three grades of Bard, Ovate and D r u i d .Encouraging ritual journeys into the inner (visualised) realities, and physical pilgrimages intonature (considered a deity), Druidry today reaches out for people as its members reach out fo rlandscapes. Thus the split from the Ancient D r u i d Order served as a catalyst fo r a seismicchangeinritual processes and gender politics, allowing the Druidry o fOBOD to move away from its oncefraternal f o r m ,towar d paradigms basedupon the idea of a maternal deity morePagan in nature thanhad been previous ly expressed w i t h i n the Christian/Pagan groups.

The sudden availability ofDruidry in a textual f o r m encourage men and women to per form self-initiations and consider a political empathy w i t h groups championing the ecological protection o fthe D rui d's Goddess. L i n k i n g politicso f the Green L e f t w i t h esoteric r i t u a l ,Druidrybecame criticalo f society' s freatment o f nature through its association w i t h the radical activists o f popular eco-groups. Gwers 11 gives the postal addresses of Friends o f the Earth and Greenpeace. However,political sentiment remains mostly symbolic as the individuals' performance of the Gwersu servethe required purpose o f the OBOD 's Druidry - the re-discovery of the inner-spiritua lself throughmeditation, and the unity of this self w i t h an external deity located in nature. The OBOD has notdeveloped a serious radical base from which mainstream society is challenged, as any socio-religious sentiment/dissidence is lost w i t h i n ceremonial activity. Hence, any political resonancew i t h i n the social mainsfream remains general and i m p l i c i t . It is therefore true to state that thestructure of the OBOD simply encourages initiates to consider nature, and does not promote socialdissent.

W i t h the death ofRoss Nichols and the re-emergence o f the OBOD under the leadership of PhilipCarr-Gomm, other D r u i d groups formed to expresstheir owndefinitive ideasofDruidry. 1979 sawthe formation of the B r i t i s h D r u i d Order by Philip Shallcrass - a group expressing a nature-basedPaganism alternative to the OBO D's mixture of Paganised Christianity.* In 1993, Dylan ap Thuinnbrought into the Druidic f o l d a group of people he had met while running a tattoo shop inPortsmouth - brightly tattooed individuals - naming the group the Insular Order o f Druids. RoloMaughfling led the Glastonbury Order of Druids and, alongside Dylan and leaders of variousgroups, worked w i t h i n the collective of the Council of B r i t i sh D r u i d Orders, promotingDruidry andthe interests o f Druids at Stonehenge (also chapter five). In 1998 in Kingston, London, JohnTimothy Rothwell was crowned K i n g Arthur Pendragon, co-o rdinating a political campaign ofritual protest on behalf of D r u i d groups and the planet Earth. Arthur's D r u i d group, the LoyalArthurian War Band, physical ly contested the activi ties o f land developers including, among thetargets o f thei r non-violent protests, the authori ty o f Heritage bodies i n guardianship of pre-historicsites such as Stonehenge and Seahenge (see later chapters). Arthurwent on to chair the Council ofB r i t i s h D r u i d Orders.

Throughout the 1960s until 1990, O O D ceremonies invokedChristianarchangels and saints. Under theleadership ofPhilipCarr-Gomm,this group has recently broken away from theirChristianbias, perhapsthe last remnants of the closed, fraternal schools.

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Dmidry has now, w i t h i n 30 years, diversified from its fratemal/linguistic/Christian beginningstoward a Goddess-focused Paganism culminating in the ritual-radicalism of K i n g ArthurPendragon. M y involvement w i t h D mi dr y over the last ten years has revealed many smaller groupsloosely bound together by general beli efs that are passionately promoted and imagi nativelyperformed through ritual joumeys expressive of a culturalneed. Through pilgrimage, an imaginedpast is brought into the present, projected upon landscapes, and used to effect social change,whether the political intent of pilgrimage is implied in text and ceremony, or forcefullyasserted asritual protest. Hence, the growth o f modem D mi dr y can be mapped as a processual developmentfrom the secretive beginnings o f the AD O in 1717 through to the political visionary, ArthurPendragon. Below, I w i l l explore in more detail the historical and mythic roots that today inspireDmids tomake pilgrimage into landscapes they consider to be sacred.

Chapter 1. Re-interpreting the past: the ritualtext.

'[Druids] have images of immense size, the limbs, interwoven w i t htwigs, they il l w i t h l i v i n g men,and the same being set on fire, the men, surrounded by the flames, are put to death' Caesar on the

sacrifice to the Wicker Man (Matthews 1997: 16).

'Clad in a white robe, the priestascends the free and cuts the mistletoe w i t h a golden sickle, and it isreceived byothersin a white cloak' Pliny on the Druidicritualo f the oak and mistletoe ( i b i d : 21).

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Druidry exists w i t h i n the space between text and expression. New Age publications provide text forthe reader, and pilgrimagebecomes the ultimate expression o fthese ideas creating, for the D r u i d , atrue sense of culture. The ritual performance, that is the pilgrims use of Welsh and I r i s h Gaelic,ritual song, invocat ions and other ceremonial forms at placesmadeor considered sacred (chapter 6),can be understood to express theologies that are drawn and developed from textual myth andhistory.

As an ini tiat e, I was inspi red to explore further the Celti c w o r l d through the art o f George Ba in(1973), and the I r i s h Book of Kells (9 * century), although the use o f Welsh and I r i s h Gaelic inD r u i d ceremony also assists in the re-construc tion o f a Celtic identity (see below). A variety o fwell-known wr it ings on an indigenous Cel tic past (Green 1993, 1996), the contemporary Celt(Bowman 1995) and the modem myths of Paganism (H ut ton 1991, 1996) permi t the neo-Ceh to reconsider and formulate identity in the present.D raw ing upon ideas of cultures preceding the ancientCelts - the Neoli th ic temple builders or proto-Celts (Philip Carr-Gomm pers comm., ArthurPendragon Chapter 4) - the past is imaginatively emplaced w i t h i n a contemporary frame andceremonies are perfo rmed inplaces oftenassociated w i t h the prehistoric. Here the eight festivals o fthe year, promoted by Ross Nicho ls (1992) o f the OB OD are performe d, creating a senseof newlyemerging communities that are i m p l i c i t , negotiated, meaningflil and embedded in the present

This chapter w i l l examine how initiates draw upon these mythic-histories that serve to sustain thegrowth o f D r u i d groups, and how a sense o f culture emerges, through expression, from identitiesthat are rooted w i t h i n text.

The space between literature and expression al lows the imagination to invent ideas that support acultural ideal. Hobsbawm and Ranger named the process o f the imaginuig self 'the invention o ffradition' (1984), and throughout their volume the readersenses that the reality of culture is evokedby confributing academic authors, only to dismiss the beliefs of thousands of people asuntrue/contrived/fal se. Connerton' s (1989) understanding of culture was, perhaps, more empathic;for the sanct ioning o f the cultural self, suggests Connerton, is a process oflegitimising history as asocial memory that is known w i t h i n the body and mind o f the person. The space betwixt andbetween Dr uidic text, and the expression o f cultu re, is both invent ion and legitimisa tion - yet muchmore - for this space is the place where ident ity is imaginatively brought into being as his tory andmyth are re-interpreted to suit the ideological needs o f the initiate/group. The process may becompared to the metamorphosis o f an idea into a crystall ine sfructure, reflect ing a political need andoffering a political solution to these social requirements. The 'social memor y' o f the D r u i d istherefore meaningful,present, and a potentially pow er ful force in the landscape of social politics.Rather than deny the existence o f ident ity and culture as false, 1 wish to sfrive , w i t h i n this essay,toward an academic empathy i n rela tion to Druidry.

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For Dmids, re-interpreting the past involves understanding places as containers that literature canbe projected into. Emplacing historic and mythic literature w i t h i n landscapes, and makingpilgrimage into theseplaces, i denf ifi es a site as sacred and, w i t h i n the context of this phenomenon,Druidic. Governed by textual forms, the journeys o f modem-day Dmids draw upon the Romannarratives ofCaesar and Pliny, Celtic folklore, and other literature available at the Pagan end of theNew Age market. Discovering a sense of sel f alongside an inspired sense o fone's own potential,these texts prove to be fertile soils from which culture imaginatively flourishes w i t h i n the spacebetween word and action. Despite the selective, general, and approximate nature of myth andhistory, these themes allow b r i e f glimpses into a past that is so easily imagined. Mythic-hi stor ies,through their nebulous nature, evade critical corroboration yet provide malleable substance fromwhichidentity is manipulated to the required specifications.

D m i d and other Pagan groups today also compete for ownership of an imagined past. Concemedw i t h the spaces between texts that deal w i t h a Celt ic and a pre-Romano-Chri stian era, modem-daywitchcraft groups seeking self-definition also draw upon more classical texts. Tanya Luhrmann 'sPersuasions of the Witch s Craft (1992) discusses this process of imagining as an experienceconvincinginitiate witches o ftheir own cultural reality:

The magician needs to make sense of [spfritual experiences] in her understanding o fherself. It would not be surpris ing i f the experience were interpreted through, orunderstood w i t h i n the context of, magica l theory. That mak ing sense is l i k e l y to beanchored in the net o f magical theory, and as these new experiences sink into thebackground o f the magician's l i f e to f o r m the basisof this ftiture action, they may take thetheory w i t h them. The process of coming to terms w i t h the v i v i d experience o f magicalpractice may help to make magical ideas seem natural, unsurprising, unquestionable ( i b i d :201).

The same is certainly tme for Dmids attempting to place themselves in the w o r l d . W r i t i n g in 1905,Squire promotes characters w i t h i n Welsh folklore, 'The Mabinogi and the I r i s h 'Tuatha de Danu',as members o f the Gaelic Pantheon (1975: v - v i i ) . I n 1946, Graves says ofthese folk-tales, they are'the lost mdiment s o f poefi c magic' (1988: 17), 'a set ofcharmsof varying antiquity' ( i b i d : 25), orelse a 'poetic nightmare' ( i b i d : 26). Lending authenticity to this work. Graves goes on to drawendless comparisons between Cel ticcharacterscontained w i t h i n folk-t ales and the deities o f ancientGreece and Rome.

Hebridean myths refe rring to the arrival o f Christianity, St. Columba to the island of lona, or elsethe arrival of H o l y Grail in Glastonbury, are claimed as having Druidic associations containedw i t h i n them. These themes, popular w i t h i n the OBOD's Gwersu, f o r m the basis of the OBOD 'smove away from Celti c Christ ian histories toward the idea of a Celt ic D m i d culture. The rituals ofthe Gwersu and subsequent ritual expressions of the ini tiate are understood by Drui ds to work

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through such myth. Ritual myth and ritual history therefore support and legitimise culture as aspiritually focused reality, and Druidic culture exists through the knowledge, belief and theexpression of their artistic forms. Introducing the initiate to leading characters from the Arthurianstories, several Gwers of the Dru id grade allow the initiate to contemplate and then performmeditative acts that support ideas of a Celtic-Druid ideal. Among these characters, we findGuinevere, and the Lady of the Lake, while theritualscript for May's ceremony of Beltainefocusesupon Glastonbury as the arenawhere thesemythic-narratives are emplaced. Hence, for the initiate,the landscapeof the Vale ofAvalonsignifies thepastin thepresent,whilealsoreferring to cyclictime. As a container of Druidic identity, the expression of the D ru i d self is f i i l l y made throughpilgrimage intolandscapesembodyingideasofidentity.

The sameis true of the Bardicgrade'sGwers. The focus oftheseGwersu is upon re-interpreting apre-historie pastin thepresent, namely: Newgrange and Tara in Eire;Scara Brae and other stone-age monuments in the Orkney Islands, or the Arthurian associations of Breton w i t h Druidry.Folklorists and New Age writers lay down the foundations for Druidic appropriation of text,encouraging Druids today to understand stories such the H o l y Grail w i th in a Druidic paradigm. InCeltic Myth andLegend (Squire 1975), we read:

The H o l y Grailis a Christian relic of marvellous potency. It had held thePascallambeatenat the last supper,and after the deathof Christ,Josephof Arimathea had filled itw i t h theSaviour's blood. But before it had received this colourmg, it hadbeen the magic cauldronof a l lthe Celtic mythologies - theDagda's Undry ... Bran's cauldron of Renovation... thecauldron of Ogyrvran the Giant, from which the Muses ascended... and the cauldroncaptured by Arthur from the Chief ofHades ( ib id :366).

Following writers such as Squire and Graves, authors sympathetic to Druidrytakethe elaborationso ffolklore,themselves finding aspaceamid the text to re-interpret and promote the idea ofDruidicidentity. Matthews begins Elements of the Grail Tradition (1990) by muroring Squire, using achapter to drag the symbolism of the H o l y Grail back in time, l i nk ing it w i t h , among others, theWelsh Ceredwen's Cauldron, Bran's cauldron of rebirth and the Ir ish Dagda'scauldron of plenty.In thesameseriesofElement Books, Philip Carr-Gommdescribesthe grailmyths as a metaphor ofthe f a l lofAtlantis(1991: 7), as w e l l as the cauldron being the origin of thegrailsymbol ( i b id : 63,112).Today, the landscape surrounding Glastonbury, the Vale ofAvalon, is aplacewhere touristsand pilgrims f i l l the New Age shops in the high street. For Glastonbury is a tovm w i t h thereputation of being the first placein England tohavea church bu i l t ,as w e l l as being w e l l known forhousing the resting place of the first Christian K i n g - Arthur.Hence the myths associated w i thGlastonbury and the town's physicalspacehave been daunedas pre-Christian through aprocessofliteraryelaboration. A similar tale can be to ldof St. Columba and his journey to lona.

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In the OBOD's Gwers 10, the initiate is informed of Celtic (or pre-Catholic) Christianity's closerelationship w i th nature. The syncretic seeds planted w i th in the minds of the reader are laternurtured through poetry inGwers 29: 'Whatpleasureto be enclosed on an island, high upon a rock,where I may reflect on the sea in all of itsmoods (unknown 12th Century). Christianity, we read,has its roots contained w i th in a veryPagan method ofthinking and l i v ing . InGwers posted to theinitiate, the connections between self,placeand spirituality of the Scottish Hebrides are more f u l l yexplored. The supplement concerning lona echoes an imagined relationship between Druids,Colomban history, the sea and landscape of lona as a mirror of Christ that is responded to byColumba as w e l l as byPagan Dru id priests. There is evidence to show that lona was one of theholyplacesofDruidic tradition, and that the two bishops, whom Columba found established there,were half-Christianised Druids (Supplementary Gwers of the Ovate grade). These processesof'invention' are importantexamples o fthe ways through which we allcreateour ownsenseof self inthe w o r ld , a phenomenon Remensnydernamesimaginative memory (Remensnyder 1995). Seekingcultural memories hidden w i th in literature, thereader explores the value and the emotional meaningthat lie beyond the text. For Druids, mythic-historiesbecome gatewaysinto an ever-presentrealitywhere the spirits ofDruidryexist and are always accessible.

YetDruidsseemto be acutelyawareof the malleable natureof their newly-foundselves, searchingfor alternative literature to inspire and under-pin their Druidry. During an interview inSeptember1999 at the home ofPhilipShallcrass,ChiefDru idof the Bri t ish Druid Order, Philip informed methat understanding his own l i f e processes is enabled through studying the Welsh stories ofCeredwen, Taliesin and the Rhiannon. I enquired which texts had inspired Philip to makepilgrimage. They included; The White Goddess by Robert Graves, A Guide to Prehistoric andRoman Monuments inEngland and Wales byJaquettaHawkes, and Prehistoric Avebury by AubreyBur l .

Philipalso made inner-journeys into visualised landscapes,the inspiration for which includedlessacademicworks such as the hippy alternative 77magazinesof the late 1960s, J. R. Tolkein's Lordof the Rings, Jack Kerouac's On the Road, Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels, CarlosCastenada's The Teachings of Don Juan, and so on. Philipalso drew inspiration from MirceaEliade's Shamanism the natureof his Druidryinvolving work w i th animal spirits. 'It's all aboutnature' Philip explained. ' It 's about animals, plants,trees,rocks, sea, air. It 's all of that brought intowhat you do w i th in Druidry. All of that - the w o r ld becomesyour cauldron of inspiration'.Theseinner-journeys seem to mark an ini t ia l experience (or a first intimate contact), serving as animaginative exploration of thespacethat lies between text and act. The pilgrimage is the thi rdstagepermitting the total experience. The whole process is one of cultural self-definition, and self-assertion insharedlandscapesexpressedthrough belief 'One of [the effects ofpilgrimage]is to putthe Dru id in intimate contact w i th the flow of the seasons,the intimacy of the Earth, the plant andanimal families, theelementsof creation'(Shallcrassperscomm.).

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Folklore, along w i th the academic disciplines, provides rudimentary information that isincorporated into Philip's Druidry through ritual expression. Philip's journeys therefore contain asyncretic mix of archaeology, sociology, theology, as w e l l as mythic-history. Re-inventing thepastin the present involves bringing the landscape to l i f e , animating it w i th its own personality (orspirit),or gendering the inanimate placeas a l iv ingdeity (usually female).

A t Stonehenge, some Druids I have spoken w i t h understand this site as a temple associated w i thK i n gArthur of Camelot, although it was Geoffrey of Monmouth who, inTheHistory of the Kingsof Briton, famouslyassociatedtheStonesw i t h the Welsh Dru id M e r l i n and thesiteas a memorial tothe Germanic Chieftain, Hengist (Piggott 1977: 136, Nichols 1992: 157-158). Today, Stonehengeremainsasite s t i l l associated w i th Druids, w i th initiates invoking the spirit of both Arthur and theWelsh M e r l i n . The nearby Avebury stone circle, and the surrounding complex of prehistoricmonuments, are considered feminine in opposition to the masculinity ofStonehenge.Philipt o l d meof achambered Barrownamedafter the Nordic God Woden or Odin, although monumentsand theplanet Earth are generally considered feminine; Ceredwen, Bride, Anu, the exceptions beingCernunnos or the Green Man - stag God of the forest. Literature therefore supportsideasof thesacred, and Druids (and I stronglysuspect all initiates of the open school)emplace selected textsupon localities, moving toward and throughtheseplacesin pilgrimage. In text,ideasare stated,andinvisualisation ideasarecreated.Theritualperformance isdependentupon both, and singular ritualacts such as indoor circle casting, meditation, praying, working w i t h animal spirits and theelements,visualising, or invoking the Goddess inone's l i v ing room, allservetocreateasenseofidentity. Only in pilgrimage are these ritual parts made whole through their projection uponlandscapes.Only in pilgrimage is Druidic culture fiilly realised by the initiate.

On the lona pilgrimage. May 1999, I met a BardnamedSvanr (the appropriated nameo f a V i k i n gwarriorChief) who joined OBOD after surfing the web and reading TheBook of Druidry (Nichols1992). During a Dru id Autumn pilgrimage to the Vale of the White Horse in Oxfordshire in thesameyear,a D ru i d namedDan informed me of the inspiration he received from a book called MaleMysteries (Stewart 1991). Dan used the book to assist him w i th a pilgrimage concluding w i t h aninitiation into the mysteries of manhood. 'Reaching my destination, we then performed avisualisation of awakening ak ing ,representedtheheart'. Rebeccajoined the Order after contactingJohnMatthews, the author of a book on Druidry she had enjoyed reading. Workingw i t h the Gwers,Rebecca later moved to Glastonbury. 'After finishing the Bardic Grade' explained Rebecca, 'itseemed l ike all myexperienceswere l ike thelessonscoming to l i f e .So I had to l i ve through them. Ididn'thaveto consciously makethathappen,it was part o fthe magic ofi t- just tiedtogether'.

Onthe lona pilgrimage, the only book Ieversaw the Chief of the OBOD w i th was Rilke s Book ofHours: Love Poem to God (Barrows and Macy 1996). An appropriate text, given the consideredpresence of Christ by many visitors to this place, and the encouragementgiven to initiates through

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the Gwersu to f i ndinspiration through poetry.Perhapsthebestexample Ihaveexperienced of theappropriation ofhistoricaltext performed in a contemporaryarenais that of the Wicker Man.

Famously noted byCaesar as the most barbaric of ceremonies, the Wicker Man re-surfaced at theOBOD's U f f i n g ton pilgrimage as a 25-foot-highe f f i g y . The figure was surrounded by 100 robedinitiates who set the figure alight in aritualhonouring of the spiritof the Harvest (chapter 6). It isclear that Druids are re-thinking the pastin thepresent. While historians attempt to construct thepast from writtennarratives, or in thecaseof archaeology, re-construct lifestyles from shardso f pot,or forgotten cultures from monuments in the landscape, Druids are also in the business ofmanipulating these same artefacts and sites to suit their own ideas of culture. However, whilearchaeologists deal solelyw i th re-constructing an imaginedpast,Druids focus upon creating culturein thepresentusing thesameselective points of reference. In the sameway, society todayusesthepast to legitimise and empower its own sense of self; Connerton's social memory consisting ofmythand monumentality emplaced w i t h in ameaningfiillandscape(Connerton 1989).

Journeys intotheselandscapesare so important for Druids, as they become the mostuseftil f o rm ofself-empowerment, and one of the few corridors of communications w i th society through whichtheirpresence, beliefs and ideologies can be asserted. The opening statement of this chapter, that'Druidry exists in the spacebetween text and expression' may now be re-considered as thespacefrom which allpolitical needs f l o w fo r th .The Druid's w i l l toward a po l i t i ca l ly relevant existencemay be understood and classified as three inter-relatedstages:

Stage1) A narrative bearingsomerelation to a required identity is entered into by thereader.Manypeople from aD ru i dgroup may study similar texts as authors gain reputations for being authoritieson their chosen subjects. Hence f ami l i a r i ty w i th literature can be an individual or collectiveexperience. Amongthese authors are PhilipCarr-Gomm, Ronald Hutton, Liz and Co l in Murray,Emma Restall Orr, Marion Green. In the l ightof socio-religious uncertainty, hermeneutic enquirybecomes a quest for socio-political identity. The individual is empowered as an emotionalattachment ismadeto text as idea (thatDruidic fradition andone'sidentity is somehow preserved innarratives), creating asensethat the Druidic self is extant and relevant today. A prime example ofthis is the Druid's belief that the landscape is a l i v ing deity and, empowered by this belief thatDruidsare guardians o fthisGoddessand therefore sociallyuseftil.

Stage2)Stage1 permits thespacebetween the text and idea, and the expression of thisspace,to beexplored. This can be a swi f tinterpretation of literature, or a prolonged consideration - either way,this is an imaginativeprocess.Many Druids understand, and explore through meditation, thisspaceas a reality that lies beyond script - as a real place where the spiritual deities andancestorsreside. Instage2, concepts such as theology ormythare then projected (emplaced) upon naturallandscapes.

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Thespacebetween text and expression, onceneutral, is now considered as a possible remedy to selfuncertainty - the words on the page an inspiration and vision. This space between text andexpression is now transformed into a place from wheresocio-political w i l l is invoked in the guise ofGods and Goddesses.At Glastonbury, Ihavewimessed, w i th in a recently constructed stonecircle,the invocation to the ancestors of the Palaeolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age, followed by anhonouring to the characters of the Arthurian myths. On lona, the animal spirits of the cardinaldirections and theirassociated elemental spirits were invoked in a ceremonial circle. Ihave alsoexperienced, as an initiate, similarphenomenain Druidic circles created w i th in l iv ing rooms, oldchurch halls or gardens. In stage 2, the location is not important - only the consideration of thespacebetween text and expression. The location may be rural,urban, indoors or out. Thisstageoftheprocessis more arehearsalthan a proper cultural expression.

Stage3) The distinction between the consideration and rehearsaldetailed above, andstage3 as theperformativeexpression of self is important.Individually, or collectively, ideasof culture that aredrawn from the cauldron of possibilities are emplaced in landscapes and then physically andcollectively expressed through r i tua l , song, poetry, the syncretic use of Gaelic and so on. Theultimate expression of Druidic culture (drawn from texts whose authors have surely manipulatedthe literature theyhavestudied), is through pilgrimage into selected landscapessuch asStonehenge,Uffmgtonor lona. This act of pilgrimage is, then, a claim upon places that are afreadyused andconfrolled by society - tourist sites, archaeological monuments and so on. Hence, pilgrimagebecomesapolitical responseto the Druid's ownsenseof social uncertainty in the f o rm ofculturalre-birth.

The invocation to characters contained w i th in meaningful text may be made in any location(indoors or out), and this is demonstrated above instage 2. But the act of pilgrimage to selectedrural locations where the deities of Druidry reside physicallyplaces the Dru id priest w i thm thethree-dimensional arenaof their text - for example, Glastonbury. Thisprocessof pilgrimage t ru lydistinguishes Druidry from other, similar, forms of Paganism such aswitchcraft(areligion dealingwith Classical, as we l l as Celtic myth, and the manipulation of natural forces to create magicalspells), or Heathenism (wi th its mythic-histories rooted in the V i k i n g Sagas). The wholeprocessservesto define, for the Dru id , appropriate landscapesas sacred, enabling the initiate or group toclaimthesespacesasDruidic.

Thisexpression of self by the closed schools of EnglishDruidry,and groups such as the OBOD (orthe Bri t ish Druid Order), tend toward the po l i t i ca l ly symbolic - although theirritualactivities maybe considered socio-religious alternatives by many initiates, they are not radical, and are oftenverbally denied as po l i t i ca l .This denial of the political selfassistsin maintaining, forthesegroups,an identity and relationship w i th in a perceived l imina l i ty from which these initiates consider thetrue essence of Druidic inspiration to f l o w . The denial of political meaning ensures the flow ofinspirationis not hampered by matters unrelated to the spirit.

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Alternatively,the ceremonial performances of the Council of Bri t ish Druid Orders remain exp l i c i t lypoliticalas theycontestlandscapesthrough non-violent directactivity.Thepresenceof the media atsites of contention certainly assists Druids in their battle for recognition. The uncompromisingmethods of ritual-negotiation used by these groups w i th the police, heritage bodies, andarchaeologists (see later chapters) all contribute toward asense ofself-assurance as the pilgrimsaspire toward the certainty of their Druidry as a newly emerging culture. Druids want to be heard,and pilgrimageservesas a vehicle for Druids to communicate their intent.

Thus, using the symbolisms of pilgrimage, Druidryfacesthe challenge of having to communicatebeliefs to the non-initiated who are unable (and maybe u n w i l l i n g )to decipher the seemingly surrealbeliefs oflandscapeas deity, orstoneas bone, ancestor as tree, chambered barrow as a gateway tothe Otherworld, or any other number of projected beliefs inspired by text. While pilgrimagebecomes the vehicle for Druids to communicate w i th each other, and to define their beliefs to theun-initiated w o r ld around them, ritual journeys may be considered ritual theatre w i t h individualsperforming their ideas of theology and self in arenas that we may consider to be sacred stages.Below I w i l l explore, more fiilly, the ways that 1) performance theory underpins the Druid'spilgrimage as a ritual act, and 2) the Druid's ritual journey serves as a vehicle for politicalexpression. Finally, I w i l l demonsfrate the role of landscape as an organising scheme containingthesephenomena.

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Chapter 2 Performing r i t u a l .

Authors of religious studies, along w i th theologians, consider the cognitiveprocessesthrough whichpilgrims find inspiration for their ritual journeys, and these processes assist us in understanding thediverse ways in which Druids today find inspiration in today's landscape. Peter Harbison explainspilgrimage as a 'performance' inspired by 'a combination of factors including belief, f a i th , hope,inquisitiveness and the searchfor forgiveness or a cure' (1992: 23-27). TheDruidicbelief in the l iv ingpresenceof anature-baseddeity certainly permits thelandscapeto be understood as anintelligentforcecapable of granting the wishes of the individual. ManyPaganshaveinformedme how they understandGlastonbury's holy spring, the Chalice W e l l , as a place where healing can be sought. Two Dru idprotesters whomadearitualjourney toNorth N o r f o l k (see chapter 5) to ldme how the oakstimbersfrom the Bronze Age Seahenge monument in N o r f o l k are considered special. Mud gathered frombeneath the timbers of the Seahengemonument, they believed, is capable of transforming the lives ofpeople using it,informingthe individualof the spirit and w i l l of the Goddess, and therefore has thecapacity to drastically alter the perceptions o fthe person using the mud.

InRobert Ousterhot's TheBlessings of Pilgrimage (1990), Sabrine MacCormack ( ib id : 7-40) followsOusterhot's discussions of the pilgrims' responses to architecture - in the caseof the Druids,placeswith in the landscape are perceived as architectural monuments created by the ancestors for r i tual .Chambered bartows suddenly become bridges between this reality and the mystical Otherworld {Gwersof the Bardic grade) - reliquaries i fyou l ike for the spirits of the ancestors,orplacesto journey towardfor in i t iat ion into the ancestral f ami l y of Paganism. During a pilgrimage to the West Kennet LongBarrowas an initiate in 1995, I recall four Druids alljoining hands,touching the sidesof the mner-chamber of the barrow, and meditating upon the place as a bridge between theseenandun-seenrealms.These imaginativeprocess, embodied through emotion,represent,for the p i l g r im , the core and veryessenceofDruidic belief

Grace Davie's sociological study of the way Christians today believe without belonging (1996)suggeststo me asenseofbeliefwithoutthe trappings of theritualchurch performance. Reducingritualbelief to its very foundations, Davie's thesis focusesupon imagination as the sustenanceof religiousidentity. In order to understand, more fiilly, the movements of Druids towardplaces imagined to besacred, we need to fu-st consider disciplinary theories that inform us of the social consequencesofpilgrimage as performance. Victor and Edith Turners' studies of ritual and pilgrimage as a socialtheatre are detailed below.

Conducting fieldwork under the guidance and inspiration of Max Gluckman's Manchester school ofanthropology,VictorTurner first identifiedritualtheafre as ameanso f dealingw i t h social anxieties. InTurner's ethnography of l i fe in an A f r i c an Ndembu village (1957), cultural performance isidentifiedasa structural part of everyday l i f e .VictorandEdithTurner worked together ondefiningpilgrimage as asocial theatre, serving as a culturalpressurevalve, and thereby permit a'senseofplay'to enter into the

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formalities of the ordinary (Turner and Turner 1979). Considering the narratives of theatre moremeaningfiil than 'dry' academic text ( ib id : 89-93), Victor Turner experimented w i t h the Ndembuvillager's ritual-theatre as an essential element ofundergraduate tui t ion in New Y o r k .Drawing uponhis own childhoodexperiences(and reflecting anthropologicaltrendsin reflexive study current aroundthe end of the 1970s and beginning of the 1980s), Turner worked to improve the intimacy of tui t ion,through hisreflexivetheatre studies(1982).

Despitetheseshifts towards post-modernism, the Turners remain renowned for their structural theorieso f the sacred, and throughout their literary productions the social theatre of pilgrimage has predominated as a theme. Tumerian thought concentrates upon the unifyingpower of the l imina l (van-Gennep 1977), along w i th performances located externally toplacesof worship - the l im ino id zone.W it h in Tumerianstudiesof the limenare studiesof the intra-personal community, although this idea ofcommunitas is i tse lf fraught w i th confradiction, requiring clarification. On one hand 'spontaneouscommunitas is free from ideological consfraint as it exists beyond society in astateof anti-structure(although anti-structure is i tse lf dependent upon the r ig idi ty of social sfructure). Alternatively,'ideological communitas is a blueprint for social reform. It is po l i t i ca l ly meaningfiil and thereforeextendsthe experience of the collective group beyond spontaneousplay. Aside from the Turners b r i e facknowledgements of thepolitical intent of pilgrimages in Mexico and England's Walsingham ( ib id:30),other writings mostlynegate socio-political symbolisms, concentrating instead upon the metaphoro f anti-structure, acts w i th in the pilgrim's theafre, and the maintenance of a sense of 'serious play'(1982). Thus political meaning is acknowledged and permitted w i th in Tumerian thought, chieflythrough ideologicalcommunitas (Turner and Turner 1979: 252).

Michael Sallnow's study of pilgrimage in the Andes (1987) placed l imino id activity w i th in re-definedlandscapes that are multi-layered and expressive of various social phenomena. In such landscapes,religious meanings merge w i th mainsfream concems and are asserted on various levels of socialthought and activity.In 1991 Sallnow (also a student of Max Gluckman) joined forces w i th John Eade,invokingthe idea of the sacredin order tosuggestprofanity,promoting pilgrimage as anactivitythat isas po l i t i ca l ly contentious as Tumer considered it harmonious. Accepting that landscapeand pilgrimagehavea multitude of meanings, Eadeand Sallnow go onto define the pilgrim'slandscapeas anarenaofseparation and socialdivision.ForEadeand Sallnow, the communal meaning of pilgrimage isnegatedby its own goals where contesting groups use movement through historically-mappedlandscapesas anact of self-assertion and socialexclusivity.In the words of Coleman and Eisner (1995):

[Eade and Sallnow] invoked the notion of the sacred, only to reveal it - at least in itsmanifestation in pilgrimage - as a fragmented, ambitious, ideological battleground ( ib id :199)... the implications of Eade and Sallnow's position go much ftirther, since they areprepared to actually contemplate abandoning the idea that pilgrimage, as a socially discretephenomenon, even exists (200).

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It is clear thatDruidrycertainly invokes the idea of the sacred,and thattheseinvocations to thesacred,inthe fo rm of pilgrimage and ceremonial prayer, havemeanings that reach beyondthosesought by theinitiatesthemselves. Catherine Bell 'sRitual Theory, Ritual Practice (1992)alsoacknowledges ( b r i e f ly)the many ways inwhich ritual can be understood as historicallymeaningfiiland socially integrative,conclusively fixmg herritualagendaw i th in areflexiveparadigm.

By emphasising the political meanings present w i th in numerous textualdiscourses. B e l l shows how'Ritualisation is a strategic play of power, of domination and resistance, w i th in the areaof the socialbody' (Be l l 1992: 204). Echoing Pierre Bourdieu's sociological ideas of linguisfic, symbolic andpractised forms of structured behaviour - habitus (see Bourdieu 1990, 1997) - B e l l defines ritual as asocial manipulation and a negotiated confrol of power w i t h in the body; a power thatdefines/empowers/dominates a pre-constructed self The negotiating body feedsinto the pilgrimages ofthe Druids. Rather than adhermg to a pre-ordained prototype (initiateshave no memorable history todraw upon -hence their own self-constructions), Druids use the ritual body, that is the p i lg r im, as aform of impl ic i t or explicit negotiation w i th in social landscapes and the society that controls thesespaces. These negotiations are seen at prehistoric archaeological sites such as the UffmgtonWhiteHorse in Oxfordshire, as the OBOD, through pilgrimage, re-define this site as sacredandDruidic.Atprehistoric circles such as Stonehenge, Avebury and Seahenge, sites are exp l i c i t ly contested as theEnglish Heritage, archaeologists and the police are confronted in the pilgrimages of protest o f theCouncil ofBri t ish Druid Orders (see later chapters). The roots of modernDruidry, itseems,lie not inthe idea of an Avalonian ideal, but in a social ideology. (See alsoDurkheim's (1971) general critiqueso fritualandreligionas aresponseto a social, rather than an esoteric need.)

In How Societies Remember (1989), Paul Connerton demonsfrates how r i tua l , performance andknowledge are embodied w i th in the self (or symbolised w i t hm architecture) - Connerton's socialmemory. In the preface to this book, echoing perhaps Bourdieu's ideas of habitual manipulation,Connerton states that 'Imagesof the past and recollected knowledge are conveyed and sustained byritual performances, and that performative memory is bodily. B od i l y social memory is an essentialaspectof social memory' ( ib id) .For Connerton, knowledge is power, and the control of knowledge andthe places where it is embedded is a matter ofpolitics. For Druidicpilgrims, ritual is a bodily actcommemorating systemsof belief, yet also a negotiative act w i t h a dominant socio-religious force -mainsfream society. Through application of the ritual text, Druidic knowledge is expressed in formsfamiliarto the ceremonial forms of pilgrimage - ceremonial robesmirrorand reflect the Druid'sbeliefinself, and the bodilyhabits of ceremony reflect andexpressthis knowledge. Invocations and prayersare then considered as manipulations of the hidden forces that exist beyond the mundanity of the socialrealm. For Druids,these processesof habit remember aspectsthe self and are negated by mainstreamsociety and religion. Reproducing ritual ( ib id : 22) is therefore a performative acknowledgement ofone's place in society, and a negotiation w i t h one'sgiven culture. In this way, pilgrimagebecomesapoliticaldrama - aliteral'play of power'.

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Encouraging the expression ofbelief though commemorative ritual acts, the Gwersu infroduces theneophyte to deities of the inner-Order available w i th in the ceremonial circle, or simply as spirits to beconsidered throughout the day. Various Druids interviewed at the 1998 Glastonbury retreat statedhow,in quite meditation, they would contemplate Druidry and its deities when walking pet dogs in thecountryside, or by simply being cenfred w i th in Druidry as a system ofbelief Rather than informallyexpressDruidry in the mundane, Robert, a professor ofhistory,statedhow heexpressed his 'everydayw or ld inDruidry'. Moreelaborate Dru id ceremonies (or festivals)servetoformallycelebratethe Earthand all of nature as animate. Quiet thoughts, ritual acts,and detailed ceremony are therefore allactsofsocio-religious dissatisfaction, and it is tempting to interpret ritual forms such as pilgrimage ascompensating for the failures of mainsfream society. Speaking w i th numerous Druids of the OBOD,Ihaveoftensensed(that is, instinctivelyf e l t )a latent political radicalism ready to burst fo r th - only forthis to be subdued w i th in a ceremonial actswhich serve to channel the desiresof social dissent intopassive religious symbolism. For example, Druids feel exfremely concerned about social issuessurroundingpollution,animal testing, genetic fanning, greed and warfare generally (and other negativeforms numerous initiates identify w i th capitalism). Many speak passionately and become angry, yetturn to the ancestorsand the Goddess in ceremony or prayer. Collective melancholiareplacesradicalanger,and in turn, this is fransformed from a feeling ofpowerlessness into the beautiful expression ofthree-dimensional ritual-poetics. Ritual therefore empowers the artist, and disempowers the social self

Here, I do not wish tostatethat all Druids of groups such as the OBOD and the Bri t ish Druid Order arepol i t i ca l ly impotent.WhilesomeDruids remain active only as Druids,others w i l l give a small portiono f their mundane time to actively supporting political alternatives. During an interview PhilipShallcrass, ChiefDru id of the BDO, happily referred to himself as an anarchist;

woulddescribe myself as an anarchist andhave beensince I was a small ch i ld ,but I don't seeany point of being antagonistic just for thesakeof it .It was one of the great th r i l l sof my l i fe ,discovering anarchy in the dictionary and finding out what it meant. It meant there was adefinitionfor what I believed - not havingleaders(perscomm. 1998).

In a private interview with Philip and StephanieCarr-Gomm, Stephanie, Scribe to the OBOD,spokepassionately to me of the ways inwhich Druidryconteststhe moral values of Western society:

[The Order] allows people to know their inner-moralify.Peoplecanhave thereownsenseofmorality,and that is what gives me the collectivemindofDruidry.As Druids we can say 'no-we don't want genetically engineered food or mega-ton bombs'... Institutions are tellingyouare not capableof making your own values and that theyhaveto do it for you(perscomm..1998).

On lona in 1999,PhilipCarr-Gommspokeof how he supported localresidentschainingthemselvestomature trees in order to prevent their f e l l i ng .Afteraseriesof telephone calls, and w i th in a few hours.

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free preservation orders had beenplaced upon all of the local oaks. Thefreesremain.JamesPerfect'sthesis for the University of Wales, Lampeter (1999), acknowledges the polidcal beliefs of manypilgrimsat the OBOD's Uffmgtonretreat: [ W i t h in ]insular circles of the Paganmovement [ecologists]are listened to as they areseenas the pioneers (64)... Essentially, the view of Dmids is that technologyhas accelerated beyond humanity's ab i l i ty toconfrol,and beyond humanity'sneed' ( ib id :77).

The dichotomyarisesas the OBOD (and Isuspectthe BDO) promote and perform their rituals that areveiled in imp l ic i t political meanings, while at the same time denying their political power. Suchfundamentalism is careftilly avoided in order to,perhaps, maintain a distinction between the sacredl im ina l ,and the secularw o r ld ofpolitical thought and activity.However, manyChiefDmids,and mostinitiates I have met, all admire the radicalism of K i n g Arthur Pendragon, while rejecting theconfrontational ways inwhich such radicalism occurs. Itseemsto me that the rituals of the OBOD andBDO focus upon the sacredas a healing force that iscapableofunitinggroups of people, rather thanbattling for a cause through protestant activity. This leadsmany Druids (of the OBOD certainly) todeny the spiritual relevance of the Council ofBr i t ish Dm id Orders as properlyDmidic.JamesPerfectarticulates this dismissive attitude. Placing COBDO at theheadof pan-Draidic hierarchy. Perfect thennegates the Council,wr i t ing 'the Councilseemsto do very l i t t l e (Perfect 1999: 33). Perfect has beenmisinformed,as K i n g Arthur and other Councilmemberspromote modem Dmidry,alongside workingto securefreeaccesstoStonehengew i t h numerous other D m i dgroups. Their approach is radical in itsuncompromising style of negotiation - non-violent protest. Yet Perfect's statements concemingCOBDO mirror quite correctly sentiments of many pilgrims attending numerous OBOD refreats.Finally,Perfectdismissesthe Council as a non-Druidicminorityon the periphery ofEnglish Paganism.

f we f o l l ow Perfect'sthesis, and my ownresearch supports Perfect, thereare two schools of thoughtwi t h inthe OBOD - the first claiming admiration for Arthur, the second disassociating themselves w i thhis group. Pilgrimagebecomes,as Eade and Sallnowsuggest,ameanso farticulatingdivisions w i th inand between groups.

M y own research at U f f i n g ton (and other pilgrimages), revealed inter-group tensions that mirroredthose suggested by Perfect. Questioning the political radicalism of Arthur's L A W B (and thereforeCOBDO, a group chaired by Arthur Pendragon), the group listened sceptically to a lecture given byArthur calling for initiates to campaign for freeaccessatStonehenge.Outside of the meeting, I leamtthat several OBOD pilgrims were alsoinitiates of Arthur's L A W B . Conflicts conceming ritualformstherefore arise between Dmids who consider political activityas non-Druidic (a reminder perhapsofthe socio-political focus of the closed schools of D ru i d ry ) , and initiates who maintain that politicalactivity is indeed relevant as a ceremonial expression ofbelief, this expression being pilgrimage as ameansof contestation.

Pilgrimage into landscapes draw the initiate into a three-dimensional expression of ideology, theresonanceo fwhichdependsupon thepolitical w i l lof the group performing the act. InRitual Criticism(1990) Ronald Grimes noticed:

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A source of controversyduring the [Canadian] festival was a splitbetween performers whosaw theirwork as cultural.and those who saw it as po l i t i ca l . 'Culturalists' emphasised f o rmand techniques,while'the engaged' emphasised social content andpolitical relevance. Severaldefinitionsof the situation emerged. Some viewedit as ritual or communal celebration; somethoughtof it as informaleducation. Some held that it was a way of preserving culture; others,a wayo ftransformingit (Grimes 1990: 8).

Later in this study. Grimes avoidspolitical paradigms, 'thus, we are enabled to explore all kinds ofcomposite, boundary-line, or anomalous activities such as ritual drama, c ivi l ceremony, mi l i ta ryparades, and museum openings' ( ib id : 15). In 1977, Richard Schechner presented performance as thebasis for ritual and conflict resolution in every-day l i f e . Some 13 years later in By Means ofPerformance (1991) Schechner's statement that; 'cultures are most fiilly expressed and made consciousof themselves in their ritual and theatrical performances' ( ib id : 1-8) continued to mirtorTumerianthought.The monograph is dedicated toVictorTurner, w i th one chapter of this compendiumgiventoVictor'sstudies of the l imina l zone (8-18),and a second toEdith Turner'sself-reflexiveaccount of aYaquiDeer Dance (82-95).

AsBourdieu, Eade, Sallnow, and B e l l draw thereader'sattention to the political paradigms ofritualand performance. Grimes and Schechner withdrew from political critique as a focus for theory,reducingritualonce more to aculturaltheafre. It is this idea ofculturethat is.used by groups such asthe BDO (and theOBOD)to understandtheirjourneys intolandscapesand the andritualperformancesused toexpresstheir ideas.

Felicia Hughes-Freeland's symposium (1998) also transformsritual performance as a communicativeact, transcending the constraints off i x e d structures toward more flexible boundaries. From the sacredevents in Walsingham ( ib id : 46-65), to the Welsh Eisteddfod and its construction of a local identity(141-159),and the ballerina'smuUiplerelationshipsw i th self, character and audience(29-45),theritualact is re-considered as areflexivetool for negotiating claims in dominant societies. (See page82 ofthisthesis). As we shall see in later chapters, Druids, l ike Coleman and Eisner's Walsmghampilgrims(1998),contest archaeological interpretations of sites, as w e l l as constructing Hastrup's complex andself-reflexiveformsw i th in therite.

Hastrup's ritual-theatre blurs the lines between Van Gennep's sacred and profane realms of the limen.Asthe ballerinadancesher character intobeing, the performance transforms as i f it were a sacred act.Working through the inspired presence of the on-looking audience, the dancer allows her evokedcharacter to take over her body as she removes her self from the act watching her character at play. Asthe character takes over the bodily performance, the relationships between stage and audiencedramaticallychange. The audience, captivated by the unusual posture of the dancing figure (see alsoBarba andSavarese 1991), enjoy thesenseof otherness, applaudthesestrange bodily changes, w i l l i n gthe artist tothinkand actdifferently.The evoked character controls the movements of theballerina,the

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audience reacts, and through the reaction of the audience, the performance is complete. Obedient andresponsive to the w i l l o fthecollective,the performer passively watches thedance from inside herself

Emerging f rom the tensions between the performer's idea of herself, and the actual performance of thedance, her experience becomesreflexive- a relationship between selfand evoked selfas the characteremerges from the tension of the moment. Here, Hasfrupprogressesto Shakespeare,and I to Druidry.For w i th in theafres of Druidry performed infront of an un-initiated audience, the same multiplerelationships can be seen as Druids perform their ritual-roles.During thesepublic ceremonies, othersobserve the rite and the Druid'scultural selfemerges from the tension that exist between theologicalidea and the social need toassert theseideasin anarenashared w i th the non-initiated.The ballerina'sstagebecomesthepilgrim'ssacred landscape - thestageof ideas. The director ofperformancebecomesthe Chief Dru id leading and watching over the ritualproceedings of the players.Finally, thedancer'scharacter transforms into the Druid's invoked deity - Hastrup's double agency. Bom from the tensionto assert and resolve asenseof self, those multiple relationships created through double agency arejustified through ceremony. As the Dru id moves into a landscape to perform this self, thisstageis,imp l ic i t l y , claimed as Druidic, and the theological ideas emplaced w i t h in it permit the D ru i d anintimateand privileged relationshipw i t h this place. I believe that, emerging as culturallyrelevant, theimaginativeperformance of idea, and the invocation to deitybecomesapoliticalplay of power - theappropriationof landscape and thesubsequentlegitimisation o ftheself

PhilipShallcrass, Chief Dru id of the BDO explained to me, in an interview,held in his home in 1999,how the resolution ofconflictis a theme that runs throughsomeof the ritualperformances o fthe BDO.Through ritualjourneys made intolandscapesconsidered sacred, Philip legitimises his ownD ru i d selfby performingthe role of ritual-peace-maker. Theseactsofpilgrimageservetoexpressthe deeply heldviews o f many initiates 1 have spoken w i t h , that the landscape needs to be championed, therebyimplyingownershipo ftheseplaces:

The point of the pilgrimage [is] to try and end a conflict. The conflict was representedbeautifully in the landscape because on one side was this Anglo-Saxonbu i l t wa l l - one ofthose great Earthen banks - Wandsdyke that was bu i l t to separateRomano-Celtic Bri tain onthe north, and the Saxons in the south. So, the modemconflictthat we wereworking w i th wasreflectedin this ancientconflictand the barrier ( ib id) .

Later in the same interview, Philip informed me of how,while attending road by-passprotests withgroups of environmentalist protesters, the rituals of the BDO are designed to diffuse any potentialconfrontationw i t h thethosepolicingthe site:

Evenwhen we've doneritualon protest sites, we've asked i fwe can be there. We get invited,usually by the protesters. We w i l l then make a point of asking the police, and asking thebuildersand anyone elsei f it's allright w i th them.Only i f it is w i l l we goaheadand do what

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we want to do, and explain to them as much as they l ike what it is we are going to do - thatwe're going to work w i th the spirit of theplaceandmakeritual- that we're not going to turnup armed to the teeth, so we do it in a non-confrontational way. What we do is not aboutconfrontation, it's just about the opposite... It's abouthealing conflict. We've beenworkingwi t h the authorities at Stonehenge foryears to do the samething, to resolve conflict and tomakeritualthere ( ib id) .

In more publicarenas(such as Stonehengeor Avebury), initiates watcheachother as culture iscreatedin ceremony. In turn, Dmids are watched by a non-initiated audience outside of their ritual circle.Rather than the experiences of tourist/practitioner emerging (or diverging) through the experienceofvoyeurism (Morinis 1992: 47-61), the experience is determined and confrolled through exclusiveaccess into the pilgrim'sarena that separates an audienceunfamiliar and unconcerned w i th a D m i drenaissance. (For Hastmp, all that is required of the audience is their presence and interest in theproceedings.)In the publicceremoniesof the Dmids the audiencedoesnot participate and, unlike theinitiate,doesnot assistin the processof rebirth nor the contestation of the pilgrimage site. Indeed, theuninitiated audience seem to view the Dmid's ceremony as a part o f their tourist experience, andDmidic pilgrimage serves to contend such matters of aesthetics. The uninitiated audienceserves tosimplyhighlight the dividebetweenthose w i t h knowledge, and those ignorant of the Dmid's cognitiveprocesses.However, the contestation ofsitessuch as Stonehengedoes not require an audience to bephysicallypresent,as the very act of pilgrimage i tse lfserves to fransform the site from archaeologicalmonument into anarenaclaimed, through the ritual, into asacredspace(Appendix-5).

To conclude, thesacredlandscapesofDmidryare containersfor a multitude ofphenomenaprovided intext, understood through contemplation, and expressedthrough ritual journeys to archaeological sites,or group refreats into areas that are considered sacred. Beyond ideas formulated through text, theindividual seeks to imaginatively express identity. Between text and expression lies a tension ofneeding toexpressidentity inplaceswhere Paganism has noplace w i th in the mainstream social fabricof l i f e . Through the Dmid's inventiveresponsesto this anxiety of needing toexpress onessenseof self(occasionally voiced, and always imp l ic i t l y present),emergespilgrimage as a vehicle for the Dmid'sculturalexpression.The constmction of the journeybegins in the idea of self that is supported bytextspertaining to history and myth that are emplaced w i th in landscapes. These spaces are properlyappropriated by the Dru id physically moving into theseplaces. The whole process of the inventivejourney secures, w i th in the mind of the initiate, the idea that Dmidic culture t m l y exists. AmyRemensnydernamesthisprocessof invention 'imaginative' (Remensnyder 1995), and the focus of theDmid's imagination is the mythical landscape as an organising principle into which flows everythingthat the initiateconsidersas culturally applicable to self Hence,the imaginativeprocessthrough whichDmidscreatetheir ownsenseof self is aprocessmaintained by embedding ideasof culturedeep w i th inthe landscape. Located w i th in soil and stone, ideas pertaining to Druidic culture are always present,always available, and are imaginativelyrememberedandexpressedthrough pilgrimage.

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Chapter 3. Re-claiming the land:localpilgrimage/silent protest.

In chapter 2, ritual performances are defined as events occurring at places such as Stonehenge,Uff i n g tonor lona.Below I w i l l show howplacesofDruidicpilgrimage, rather than occurring atsitesfar from the pilgrim's place of residence, may be considered by Druids as anyrural place the initiatehas accessto - for the Druid's deities reside in both the garden or localcountryside. (TheGoddessofthe Dru id is considered a deity of nature, and pilgrimages made in Her honour are generally located inthe countryside rather than urban settings.) The construction of the ritualcircle and the invocation tothe Goddess deepen the experience of a locality. These local places are concerns of the individualDruidworkingas a solitary practitioner, but also ofDru idgroups localto a place.

This chapter acknowledges, and reveals more f u l l y , the tacitpolitical processes of two groups; aninvestigation of two local Groves of the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids is followed by anexaminationoftw o interviewsw i th theChief Dru idof the Bri t ish Druid Order.Thesegroup studies areimportantas theyofferpartial insightsintotwoDru id groups w i th thegreatestnumber ofmitiates.TheOBOD's cenfraloffice inSussex claim at least 10,000 Bardic initiates,while the Chief Dru id of theBD O claims 2000 initiates and an additional 1500associatemembers (un-initiatedcompanions).A l lofthese group members are spread th in ly around England and comprise a mixture of people such asacademics, teachers, artists, New Age healers, shop workers, farmers, the unemployed and so on.W it h in theOBOD,Grove members often focus theirritualactivitiesw i th in privateresidencesin urbanareas,or accept invitationsof group members w i th suitablespacesin morerurallocations.

The Brigante.

A f u l l y fianctioning OBOD Grove w i l l have two leading figures sharing responsibility for organisingand directingtheritualperformance: theChief Dru id (usually a man), and a Grove Mother. The Scribecompletes the Druidic friad, and the youngest or most recent member o f the group is named theMabinog (Welsh forwise-child). The other ritual players take roles dependent upon the ritualscript,although one member stands at each of the four quarters of the ritual cfrcle representing the fourelements o f earth, air, fire and water. The circle is thencast,often by theChief Dru id ,andpurifiedbytw o companions w i t h the blessed elements of fi

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Druidismo Britanico-PAUL DAVIES