Druidism is the religion of which nation in ancient times? What are the characteristics?

Druidism is understood as two parts: the first half is largely related to the Greek word "Druze", which means oak tree; The second half is similar to the suffix "-wid" of Indo-European language family, which means understanding. Druids take acorns as sacred fruit, which proves that the ancient meaning of their names is people who are familiar with oak trees.

Reverend Druid is a very advanced Celtic priest, mage or prophet. The Celts were barbarians scattered in Gaul, Britain, Ireland, Asia Minor and the Balkans from the 5th century BC to the 1 century AD.

Druidic rituals and teachings are very secretive, and they are only taught orally according to convention. Therefore, although it has been studied and explored through the ages, it is still poorly understood. Most of the information about them comes from ancient Greek and Roman literature. In addition, archaeologists can only occasionally find some tiny clues from the remains of forests, shrines and temples, such as pictures and marks. The earliest record of the druid order in history books is mainly found in the works of Julia Caesar and Tacitus, the greatest historians in ancient Rome. In these works, most of them describe the cruelty and terror of druidism! Caesar reported to the Senate during his expedition to Gaul: "Druid priests have important positions and powers such as arbitration and chief priests in the local area, and are proficient in physics and chemistry; Live in the Woods, cut sacred acorns with golden sickles, and even sacrifice the living! " But in most cases, druids are recognized as guardians of ancient wisdom, with lofty moral cultivation and profound attainments in natural science and theology.

Druid priests are proficient in divination, meticulous in rituals, and good at calendars, medicine, astronomy and literature ... At the same time, they are also synonymous with law enforcers, bards and explorers. Both men and women can become druid priests and enjoy a high status in society. Some historians equate druid priests with Brahmins, Magi, priests and shamans in India.

During the festival, the priest druid harvested acorns on the sixth day of the full moon, but in the process, acorns could not fall to the ground and were wrapped in pure white cloth. Then sacrifice two white bulls and hold a banquet. They will also sacrifice the living. Usually, these animals are prisoners, but if not, they will choose among civilians. The victim was either burned alive in a wooden cage, pierced by a stake, stabbed to death by a sharp weapon, or shot to death by a random arrow ... or executed the most sacred "triple death" (only those who were elected as the Druid Prince can accept this ceremony, and the deceased usually accepted it voluntarily). The victim was first stunned with an axe, then quickly strangled with a rope made of three animal muscles, and his throat was cut at the same time. Finally, the victim was put face down into the water four feet deep, which indicated that he was finally drowned. The last food the victim ate before he died was baked barley cake sprinkled with acorns ... It was these cruel human sacrifices that angered the Roman regime and accelerated their demise. Moreover, some scholars later excused the Druid priest, but as a senior priest, it seems difficult to get away with it. ...

In the process of prophecy, priests druids often use birds and animals such as crows and eagles to predict good or bad luck. Sometimes, predictions are made by observing the throat and internal organs of animals. When the festival comes, the druid priest will hold a ceremony to hypnotize people, then exchange souls, and then predict the future with dreams.

History books also record the magic used by some Druid priests, such as casting illusions and amulets with herbs and acorns; Magic eggs soaked in the saliva of angry snakes can control others, and so on ...

Druids also believe in the eternity of the soul, which is a bit like reincarnation. They will burn all the belongings of the deceased after the death of their loved ones, and even jump into the fire to hug their loved ones' bodies and share their family happiness with their loved ones ... They will also write letters to the deceased and even raise the payment amount so that the other party can repay them after death. ...

Around 1 century, the Roman Empire was afraid that the Celts would be strong and made a massive crusade. Tacitus once recorded that in the battle, the druids dressed in black jumped in the Celtic army, growled the names of the gods and cursed the Roman Empire severely. After the victory of Rome, not only all the Celtic soldiers were slaughtered, but also the druids were bloodbath, and their priests' bodies were abandoned in the druid sacred forest ... This battle made the druids fall apart in the following centuries, and in the following generations, their strength and status were no different from those of ordinary wizards ... Until 16 and 17 centuries, druidism was still just.

/kloc-in the 7th century, the British archaeologist John Oberly pointed out that the druidism in Roman times may contain some older beliefs. According to legend, they built the famous Stonehenge (huge prehistoric stone pillars on the Salisbury Plain in England, just like those on the Act 1 Zhongshichang) to worship the sun god! Although his statement was wrong, the revival movement of Druids finally began in the18th century.

In A.D. 17 17, William Stockley and john toland, known as priests of Druidism, rebuilt Druidism, and Henry Holly later restored its ancient dogma, making it a charity similar to * * * Aid Society.

Interestingly, the druid order in the United States was established for a completely different purpose. 1963, the North American Innovative Druid Order was established, but it was only because a group of college students in carleton college, Northfield, Minnesota opposed the school's forcing students to participate in religious services. Later, the organization developed into a Druid cult advocating new pagan beliefs, which has developed to this day.