The Druid Way: A Journey Through an Ancient Landscape [Paperback]

Philip Carr-Gomm (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1993

Takes you on a journey through the sacred landscape of Southern Britain where Druidry is a living tradition as relevant today as it was in the past.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Element Books Ltd; illustrated edition edition (April 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1852303654
• ISBN-13: 978-1852303655
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,212,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Philip always wanted to be a writer and wrote short stories when he was 11 and 12. But then he found the Buddha, the Druids, and Psychoanalysis, and this was all so interesting he forgot about writing until a publisher he met at a dinner party in London, when he was in his late thirties, invited him to write a book. The result, 'The Elements of the Druid Tradition', soon became one of the best sellers in the 'Elements Of' series, and he was asked to write a follow-up: 'the Druid Way'. Twenty years' later he's still writing, having broadened his scope from the topic of Druidry, with its contemporary environmental relevance, to include the history of magic in England in 'The Book of English Magic', the subject of sacred sites in the lavishly illustrated 'Sacred Places', and the subject of nudity in religion, politics and popular culture in 'A Brief History of Nakedness.' You can find his author website at http://philipcarrgomm.druidry.org and his blog at http://philipcarrgomm.wordpress.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great read., July 12, 2000

By 

Robert A. Hans "wyzardd" (Arvada, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Druid Way: A Journey Through an Ancient Landscape (Paperback)

Once again, Philip Carr-Gomm is NOT an anthropologist and hisbooks are NOT about the ancient druids. Druidry is a modern beliefwith only occasional ties to events/beliefs of 2000 years ago, just as modern Christianity is.

I finished this book with a feeling of peace, it was almost a meditation to read it. However, I got very little practical information out of it. I certainly don't feel that it is "a complete description of the Druid Way." The comments by the author are closer to the book than the "synopsis" is. Wonderfully written, this book brings together a stroll around the countryside with the grief of a loss of a friend to show a path to enlightenment through the power and beauty of the earth.

...if you want to know about ancient druids, check out "The Druids" by Stuart Piggot or "The Celts" by T. G. E. Powell. The fact of the matter is the historical druids committed very little to paper until after they were assimilated into the Culdee church. And that all had the taint of Christianity on it.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Modern Druid not Druidism, May 22, 2005

By 

Thomas Didymos (Emmaus, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Druid Way: A Journey Through an Ancient Landscape (Paperback)

The religion practiced by the ancient Celts and their priests the Druids, is and will always be a mystery. It is sad to see people wishing, hoping, and praying that they could defy logic and physics and go back in time figuratively or otherwise and follow "Druidism." The sad truth is they would probably tell the Druids they were not worshipping or performing their rites in a historically accurate way either! What these folks believe actually happened is just pure fantasy. They have no crystal ball into the past and are just as at a loss as the historians and archeologists investigating the ancient Celts using scientific means.

The fact is Druidry is a modern manifestation and at best based upon guesses at what the ancient Celtic religion was. Philip makes no bones about it. He is not saying in any of his texts that what he is presenting is the unchanged religion of the Celts. Would we or could we really follow the ancient religion in its entirety today? Do we have the same exact needs, hopes, or world-views? A great deal of history has happened since then.

What Philip does provide is another spiritual path or way for the modern individual; the Druid Way. The Druid Way is not an ancient religion brought out of context for a modern age but a modern look at an ancient religion which can be of use and import for us today.

I have researched the ancient Celts extensively and yet this book is one of my favourites! It is a very enjoyable read.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent insight into ancient and modern Druid thought ., January 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Druid Way: A Journey Through an Ancient Landscape (Paperback)

This is a carefully crafted and well presented summary of the Druid tradition that traces its' evolution from its' ancient origins to its' current somewhat eclectic modern day form. The book takes us on a remarkable journey through the sacred landscape of southern Britain led by a person who is uniquely aware of both its' recent and past history . The book is accurate, highly readable, and entertaining.