wild hunt

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Winter Solstice and Ancestral Voices in the Wind

P1010980The Wild Hunt has been riding most evenings here around my home by the North Sea. The wind whips around the house and the rain pelts against the window panes. One night it comes from the north, the next from the south, then the east followed by the west. Each wind brings different scents and different temperatures but all are certainly wild at this time of year. You don’t want to go out in it, that’s for sure.

It’s at this time of year that I feel closest to my ancestors, my blood ancestors from Western Europe and Scandinavia. Their voices and stories are whispered in the dark mornings and early evenings, sometimes howled down my chimney in the evenings and every morning as I sit by my hearth altar, lighting a candle and praying to the gods, the land spirits and the ancestors. They call me to honour them, to know them once again, to say their names. And so each year I do, though this year feels different.

Winter 2This winter I feel called to explore the spiritual traditions of my ancestors in greater depth. Though I’ve lived here in Britain for twenty years, all of my blood relatives come from Western Europe and Scandinavia. DNA testing has revealed some fascinating stories, and the picture is growing of my blood ancestors, changing as more information and DNA is submitted. I’m finding family from all walks of life, from all over Europe, gradually adding to my own family tree as records become electronically available and I am able to fill in the gaps where personal records have gone missing. It’s been a great exploration this year and looks to continue for many years to come.

So for these winter months I shall be exploring fully the pre-Christian religious and spiritual traditions of my ancestors. These are Germanic, Danish, Frisian, Belgian, Norwegian and more, which fall under the modern category of “Heathenry”.  I’ve studied Heathenry for many years, but never developed a full practice; it’s always been more of an academic exercise. And so, this winter I shall bring it to life within my life, honouring the land wights and house wights, the ancestors, the gods and the goddesses. I’ve always had a special place in my heart for the goddess Frigge, the lady of right order, whose nature I feel is close to my own. As well, Skadhi and Ullr I have honoured many times while out snowshoeing and skiing in Canada and Norway. Tyr’s justice and compassion hold great meaning for me, and Freya’s seidr magic speaks of mystery, beckoning me further. It is with these gods that I shall be working over the winter, as well as the tomte and nisse of the household, and the land wights of the heathland and forest where I live. (I have already, obviously, done so in a Druid sense, so I will see if this changes slightly).

Already, I have found many similarities between Druidry and Heathenry. They almost seem to be talking and doing the same thing, just in different languages. The groves they worshipped in, the poetry and art, the warrior and the wise cunning folk, all of these seem to have resonance with each other, but expressed slightly differently. As well, much of the magical lore and tradition found in East Anglia I have found stems from Northern European magic, such as seidr.

It will be exciting to explore these traditions and heritage in practice. It will be interesting to connect to my blood ancestors more fully, exploring and expanding upon my family tree and widening my practice even more. And so, here on the coast of the North Sea, I will call to my ancestors, to the gods and goddesses of the North, to the land wights and house wights and see who answers.

I wish you all a very blessed Yuletide! May the longest night bring you peace, may you find strength and courage in the darkness, and hope in the growing light of the sun.

Winter 1

 

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Recent media highlights

My Pagan Portals introductory book, The Crane Bag: A Druid’s Guide to Ritual Tools and Practices was recently reviewed on Estoeric Moment: you can watch the video review here:

 

Robin Herne and I were approached by The Wild Hunt for our thoughts regarding the new television series, Britannia. While I have not watched the show, I gave some thoughts regarding storytelling at the end of the article, while Robin, who has watched the show, gave his point of view. You can read the article HERE.

Things are really busy here, so no new and thoughtful blog post this week – I hope to have more time next week! x

 

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The Druid Network and IFN!

A momentous occasion! The Druid Network, as well as The Pagan Federation, have been accepted as full members of the Inter Faith Network! It’s been a long few years with some very dedicated people continuing to craft honourable relationship with the organisation and members of any and all faiths, and now The Druid Network and The Pagan Federation have had their religion recognised by the IFN in acceptance to the organisation. This means that there is even stronger legal footing for both organisations, as well as a broader acceptance of Druidry and Paganism (and other minority religions) into the whole. Well done!

The Wild Hunt published an article yesterday, read it in full by clicking HERE.

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wild-hunt-ifn-article-photo“The Druid Network (TDN) is ending 2016 on a high note after being accepted as a full member by The Inter Faith Network for the UK (IFN). Established in 2003 by prominent Druid Emma Restall Orr, TDN has gone from being a primarily web-based interface to establishing the Honouring the Ancient Dead (HAD) project, which aims to restore dignity to the human remains of those likely to be British Pagans, including those whose remains predate Christianity. TDN evolved further, becaming a charity and, most recently, the organization was granted full membership in the IFN, alongside the Pagan Federation.

TDN Media co-coordinator Joanna van der Hoeven says, “TDN now has an even greater legal standing, which others can follow, in having both legal and religious influence in the UK. There will also be greater communication between Druids and members of other religions, which is a wonderful thing to happen.”

The Druid Network was originally launched to bring together Druids from around the world, as well as others from similar Pagan/natural philosophy-based paths. The intention of the network was to allow people to exchange ideas and beliefs and, to this end, TDN has no hierarchical structure, other than what is needed for administration purposes.

TDN spans the continents of Europe, North America, South America and Oceania, and in 2010 was approved by the Charity Commission to apply for Religious Charity status. This was a major step toward Druidry becoming a recognised religion in the UK. Once TDN was approved by the Charity Commission, many members began discussing an application to the Inter Faith Network.

The Inter Faith Network for the United Kingdom (IFN) is itself a charity that was set up in 1987, the first of its kind in the world, as a way of promoting understanding and knowledge of different traditions in the UK. The organization’s aims are to highlight common ground, as well as educating the public about the distinguishing features of each tradition. Sixty different faith-based organizations were included in its initial set-up and over the years; this has expanded. In the 2013 report, almost 200 organizations were members.

IFN has worked tirelessly for over 25 years to promote its message and to advocate for understanding and education between communities. In an increasingly globalised world, IFN has also worked hard to support interfaith dialogue and good interfaith relations. However, the IFN had traditionally only represented people of majority religions. Those of minority practices, such as Druidry and Paganism, had found it difficult to become members of the IFN due to the previous membership criteria.

Phil Ryder, a member of The Druid Network, who has been spearheading the current IFN campaign, explains, “In the light of acceptance by the Charities Commission of Druidry as a valid religious practice, the thoughts were that it would be hard for IFN to reject (our) application.”

The first application, however, was rejected. “The reason given being that they only accepted the ‘big faiths’ as laid down in their constitution,” says Ryder.

TDN was wary of causing bad feeling with the IFN, as they did not want to jeopardise the solid links that had already been established. Ryder explains, “We clearly stated we would not be involved in any legal challenge, but put the case to IFN that their current membership policy was not acceptable in our pluralistic society and advised against allowing this to go to court.”

However, TDN’s ability to make its case for membership was also important. Ryder goes on to say, “We offered open and honest dialogue to argue our case and that of other minority groups currently excluded. This was the start of a lengthy journey of over two years with exchange of emails, phone calls and a face to face meeting that also involved the Pagan Federation…”

Continued HERE.