Celtic Spirituality
Spirituality is about the inner self, human nature and personal well-being. It is the personal realisation of our inner self and how we feel we relate to the rest of existence. Many religions include spirituality but true spirituality is finding our own personal path to a higher existence, rather than following what other people say. Throughout history there have been periods of strong desire to deepen or renew our spirituality. There are many studies of spirituality including types of religions to meditation to the supernatural. In this section we would like to introduce you to the world of Celtic Spirituality and what it meant to our ancestors and to us today.
The Celts were mixed tribes of Celtic speaking people originally coming from all over Europe and eventually settling mainly in Ireland. The early Celtic culture was illiterate. It was passed down orally from one generation to another by our Celtic ancestors and ‘Bards’ (story tellers).
Celtic Beliefs:
Recognition of the interconnection between people and the land.
Recognition of the inter-dependence of human and animal.
Acknowledgement and honouring the underlying unity of all creation.
The importance of remembering ancestors.
The importance of trees, in particular the Oak was thought to be highly sacred.
The importance of the Sun (as can be seen at New Grange in Co Meath, Ireland).
The importance of nature and being at one with the land.
The worship of the Gods (sea, sun etc)
Spirits of Place – certain sites and places were regarded sacred.
Spirits of Occasions – certain times and events were sacred, for example, midnight, the harvest, the solstices, death and birth.
In the first period of Celtic Spirituality (up to 450 AD) Celtic beliefs, rituals and laws were in the hands of the Pagan Druids (the all powerful , wise priestly leaders who were the advisors of the kings, the news tellers, the poets, the guardians of clan history, the bringers of religion, the judges and law givers, the intermediaries between mortals and the Gods). This was known as the Druidic period.
The second period of Celtic Spirituality, emerging in Ireland from around 450 AD – 750 AD was the Celtic Christianity period. This was amazingly a relatively easy changeover from Druidism with no known conflict by the Pagan people. Within a remarkably short period of time, Celtic society went from being totally Pagan to being totally Christian. It is now believed that the early Christian preachers decided to bring Christianity to Pagan places of worship to make the transition as simplistic and easy as possible.
This integration of Pagan and Christian Spirituality can be seen clearly in the Celtic Cross which originates from the druidic symbol for life – a ‘plus sign’ (+) enclosed by a cirle % This symbol stood for for the four elements of life – earth, water, firs and air surrounded by the eternal circle of life. The ‘arms’ of the plus sign were simply extended to make it look more like a conventional Christian cross!
This period mixed Pagan and Christian beliefs by retaining the awareness of the spirit world and the importance and power of nature and added it to the teaching of Jesus and the apostles. The belief for finding spiritual truth was to reject material wealth and Celtic monks (dressed similar to Druids) spent long periods of time in the wilderness worshipping in a similar way to the early Druids.
The third period of Celtic Spirituality (750 AD – 1250 AD) sees a greater influence and power from Rome and some of the traditional ways were pushed aside to favour the Roman teachings. However, even today, the early Celtic Druidic influences still remain in the practices of the current established churches, for example, Harvest Thanksgiving, Old Souls Day and the honouring of holy wells and springs.
Today, it is thought that it is this mixture of Paganism and Christianity that makes Celtic Spirituality so interesting and accessible. Many people are becoming bored and disgruntled with established staunch churches and feel it is easier to find spiritual truth in nature and its sacred ancient sites than in a half empty musty old building.
Celtic Spirituality is not a religion. It is a collection of beliefs and practices that help you to become aware of your inner self and your place within the spiritual world surrounding you. It does not matter if you find this state of awareness though Christianity or any other religion or worship. The most important thing is that your life is enriched with the peace and awareness of the wonders and magic of the world we all live in together.