The Druidic College

We Druids are keenly aware of the Plant Allies of our tradition: our calendar is based on the trees, and the word “druid” itself is derived from the Indo-European root meaning Oak. From the Roman historian Pliny, we learn of the ancient Druidic ritual of the harvest of the mistletoe, and there are various magickal interpretations of this most holy rite. The importance of plant allies in the pagan path is undeniable.

Alban Elued, Fall Equinox, Mabon, Mea'n Fo'mhair, Higan-e, Winter Finding, Cornucopia: Call it what you will, the time of balance is upon us once again. The days are visibly shortening now, and all of Nature has begun to settle in for the approaching winter.

Hail fellows and well met!

As we approach the Autumn Equinox, Alban Elued, the Light of the Waters, we again think of balance, as we did at Alban Eiler. And when we contemplate balance we think of the scales, perhaps the scales of justice.

The Sky is infinite-never ending. It meets the earth upon which we stand. Wave your arms you are touching the Sky. The wind is the Sky in movement. You can feel it on your skin. Sometimes the Sky is cool and sometimes it is warm, quiet and light. When the Sky is balmy the Sun has warmed it. During the day the Sun is visible to us sighted ones. The Sun is a large ball of fire thousands of miles from the Earth out in the Sky. The Sun is fiery orange yellow. Orange Yellow can be described as hot, sizzling, or warm. The Sky is light.

Discordianism has been described as either an elaborate joke disguised as a religion, or a religion disguised as an elaborate joke. While Discordians are known for their humor and refusal to take themselves too seriously, there are certainly deep truths wrapped in the Zen-like riddles and literal contradictions contained in their primary text, The Principia Discordia (available at here).

We stand together, here on the shoreline, feeling the cool, moist sand crunch under our bare feet, comforted by one another’s presence; the restless sky above and the worried sea below. Feathery billows sail weightless and luminous as they scud along beneath a shadowy rough hewn stone ceiling. Darker, though not as dim as that which your eyes see. The clouds flare in occasional brilliant sunbursts, the kind that warm your face on the coldest of days and dazzle the seeing eye.

The sky is filled with life: swaying trees, a swirling dragon, an old maid’s face.

Hail and welcome to Lughnassadh, the “dog” days of summer. It is a time when we tend to sit back and rest on our laurels, musing on our first harvests and the good times yet to come.

This is all well and good, but while we rest our backs, we can continue to exercise our minds. Many a good thought was born resting in the cool shade of a leafy tree. Just ask Newton.

Numerous awe-inpspiring events transpire over a period of time, ranging from weeks to months. The gestation of a child takes nine months, birds a few weeks, other mammals a month to several months, herbs, vegetables and fruits are fully mature within a few weeks to several months. The crusaders understood this concept when they took to the road. They would fill a flask with St.

Summertime is a great time for fresh local fruits and vegetables. The farmers markets abound with fresh greens, peaches, berries, melons. Everything is so fresh and so good, and so inexpensive compared with wintertime. Now is the time to enjoy the wonderful flavor and nutrition of fresh northwest-grown produce. It's hard to decide what to eat first. Melons? Berries? Peaches, apricots? Cherries? They all taste wonderful!

The first of the local tomatoes have made their appearance, as have the first local peppers, fresh basil and zucchini. Hermiston watermelons are found in local stores, 59 cents per pound for organic seeded. Be sure to watch for the seeded melons - they have much more flavor than do the seedless watermelons.

There was a time when knowledge was unified. Mathematics, music, architecture, astrology, medicine, and numerous other areas of knowledge were united as one. Art and science were linked by magickal principles, and therefore fell within the realm of the shaman, priest, witch and druid. Knowledge today is more compartmentalized. We have learned much in the realm of physics, for example, but we have only just started incorporating those lessons of the physical world into the realms of the human psyche. We cannot rely on today’s intellectual establishment to do this for us.