Druidry Handbook: Spiritual Practice Rooted in the Living Earth

I honestly can't say enough good things about this book. First off, it is written in such a way that you can be virtually any religion and still take some knowledge and advice away from it. Second, it is extremely well-organized and is a massive amount of information to absorb and use. It gives priceless advice on meditation as well. One thing I was surprised to find was a little section on how to plant trees! That was a pleasant surprise to come across, and ties in cohesively with the section on the Earth Path. If you want to learn about modern Druidry, or know about it already and want to add to your library, I highly recommend reading this book!

This book serves as an overview and introduction to the history and beliefs of modern Druids and provides a year's worth of work - including meditations, festival rites and a an incredible amount of information on green living - to take the first steps down the path of Druidry. Frankly, I adored this book. From the succint, easy to read beginning chapters on the history of druidry, right to the Afterword, I couldn't put it down. I was up to 1.30am devouring this book. The thing that stood out most for me is the passion that John has for the environment and caring for our mother Earth. His passion was inspiring and his advice on green living was useful and also useable. It's the sort of advice I could go out and put into practice tomorrow. This section of the book was definitely my favourite. I did find his chapter on mediation a little preachy in retrospect but not so much that it became distracting from the concepts being explained. The chapter also helped me figure out what kind of meditation I'm most procifient at and it was nice seeing a walking meditation explored. I really enjoyed the chapter explaining the elements in a more traditionally Cetic sense (three realms actually being taked about, yay!). I also rally appreicated his talk on different energies such as nywfre and awen. Most Druidry books cover awen but very few also look at nywfre. I'd almost call the book worth it just for that chapter. I suppose the best thing about this book, for me, was the overall inspiring sense of "I can do this," it instilled in me. He never said being a Druid (as opposed to calling yourself one without actually doing a thing about it) be easy - he actually said the opposite - but you're never made to feel it's an insurmountable challenge. You're made to feel it's a challenge worth meeting. The only fault I could find was that people not as gung-ho about the environment and learning to do certain things "properly" may find it preachy. Passionate people do tend to sund preachy at times. :) Overall, this is an excellent book and my favourite out of all the Pagan boks I've read so far this year.

As noted by Mr. Greer, there is little we can know for certain about the original Druids of the Celtic world, outside of the anecdotes preserved about them by their Roman adversaries. However, as many continue to seek links with the past and with nature across time and space, the romance of what people imagine about the Druids continues to inspire and resonate with many seeking a spiritual path based on nature and the ancient past. Thus, the birth of modern Druidry. Mr. Greer's book is divided into three parts, (1) "The Druid Tradition in the Modern World" (the Druid Revival which began in the 1700s and its various descendants), (2) "The Three Triads of Druid Philosophy" (which includes such subjects as the three rays of light, circles of manifestation, the elements of nature (three in druid tradition, as opposed to the 4 or 5 of alchemical or neopagan traditions), solar and telluric currents. stations of the year, ogham, and the place of Taliesin, Arthur and Merlin in Druidry, and (3) "Initiation into the Druid Tradition", which includes three paths of practice which connects one to nature (both contemplation and action), to ritual and the annual cycle, and to one's self through various practices of meditation. This book also serves as a manual for the first stage of the study of Druidry according to the approach of the AODA (Ancient Order of Druids in America), which Mr. Greer heads as Grand Archdruid (http:www.aoda.org). Mr. Greer is to be commended on an honest, pragmatic and very readable approach to an earth-oriented spirituality to which many find themselves drawn.

As someone who is extremely intriqued by the Druids and considering the Path for myself, this book has been immensely helpful. It's straight-forward, informative, and sometimes even humorous. John Michael Greer explains everything very clearly. Other books on Druidry have put me to sleep, but this one I pick up in the middle of the night because my mind keeps going back to it and I have to keep reading. I just finished it tonight, and I'm already looking forward to reading it all over again.

Written by a student of occult traditions and nature spirituality of 25 years' experience, The Druidry Handbook: Spiritual Practice Rooted In The Living Earth is a straightforward manual of traditional British Druid practice. Chapters discuss druid traditions in the contemporary world, the three triads of druid philosophy, and the different paths of initiation into druid followings: the earth path, the sun path, and the moon path. From a practical outline to planting trees, to lists of druidic symbols with their pronunciations and definitions, to step-by-step instructions in druidic ceremonies, The Druidry Handbook is a solid reference for anyone seeking to practice or simply learn about this ancient spiritual tradition.