The Druids: Magicians of the West

by Ward Rutherford

Book by Rutherford, Ward

Genres: History

176 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Larissa Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved it

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sensible introduction to the subject, although possibly a little dated. In seeking the roots of druidism, it makes a lot of interesting connections. Well worth the read.

[Mary-Jean Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, and although it was a "scholarly" book, it was not difficult to read, and was written beautifully. The book covers the Druids in Gaul and Britain, mostly before Roman occupation, but there are some things about the later Druids and their legacy to the present day. I loved how connections were made across different philosophical/religious groups that may have been connected to the Druids, or more likely, originated from the same source, such as the Brahmins and Persian Magi. The author talks about the possibility of there having exited a group of "super-shamans" originating somewhere in central Asia (Mongolia-ish region) who were skilled in magic, astronomy, and mathematics, and whose knowledge spread to various advanced groups throughout the world, which I found really interesting. The book also explores how the general mindset of the Celtic people differs to ours today, and how this could justify things like human sacrifices, and their mythologies being "real" to them.
Details about ancient Celtic society and their ideas were explored in good detail, as well as their mythology, which formed the basis of their belief systems.
So I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the Druids and magic, because although this book is historical, it goes beyond just historical facts down to a lot of interesting ideas of the Druids and other groups.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

An informative rundown of what the Druids actually were versus todays venerated and sometimes demonized view of them. The most interesting was Ward Rutherford's suggestion how dominant religions shape cultural shifts and vice versa (eg. Catholicism with Feudalism, Reformation with Enlightenment, Revivalism with the Industrial Age, etc.) and how that played into the death and current rebirth of paganism.