About GewessiMan

Why am I Gewessi?

Background

I was raised Church of England but the village culture was still agricultural based and so the highlights of my early childhood were based on the 8 fold year. By my teens our new local vicar could be seen to be a hypocrite and the court case to de-frock him almost bankrupt the Church of England. This has left me with a deep suspicion of organised religion - "power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely."

My grandfather was a Cornish Bard, he helped reconstruct Cornish and was familiar with the folklore. He was invited to join the Meso-Druidic Cornish bards. So I had a knowledge of the Christian based Meso Druidic orders. As a child we holidayed with my grandparents in Penzance where we were raised on the local myths and legends. This left me with a childhood love of myths & folklore which he and my mother used to tell us. By my late teens I had read, as stories, all the Classical, Norse & Celtic myths I could get my hands on. Following that I ignored my spirit in favour of career and hedonism. By my mid-twenties a few events caused me to re-evaluate my lifestyle patterns. By this time I was a committed cyclist. Riding my MTB is a weekend ritual, Gework or Karmic Yoga & I love my cycle commute to work in all weathers. However spiritually I was looking at eastern spirituality (Tao & Zen) but these never really spoke to my soul - intellectually they did but something deep inside did not resonate. Paganism did strike a chord but neither Wicca nor Asatru seemed 'right'. It was while talking about this that I heard of OBOD and after investigating their web site felt I had found a philosophical home but I also needed a spiritual home. Being a Druid would lead people to think I was working with Celtic Gods when I work with Germanic ones.

Why be a pagan?

I live in a largely secular world but my childhood in the countryside meant I grew up with a spiritual connection in nature, atheism wasn't an option but mainstream monotheism is rooted in authority and the trappings of power via religion. They seem out of place in this global technological world with instant communication. I rejected religion and didn't think I needed a replacement but I had become rootless and prey to my inner demons. So then I started to explore different philosophies which led to paganism. It matched my world view and gave me methods to balance myself and own my demons.

Additionally the needs of modern society differ from those in the pre-Xtian world. We have learnt much during the Xtian era but it seems we have forgotten much also. For me, living in this world-in-Technological Revolution, Xtianity or Authoritarian Monotheistic religions do not provide a beneficial way forward. I think the increase in neo-paganism is many peoples attempt to find this other way. It's a subject that I and I think many other pagans could probably devote pages to.

So why not just be a Druid?

I'm not sure what a 'Druid' is!  Understandably, there is too much reliance on the modern perception of a Druid being based upon historical perceptions of Druids. That would be fine if we knew more about them, but our picture is kaleidoscopic, which leaves a large margin for error.  In the neo-pagan sense I can see the Druid becoming another type of priest and Druidry becoming just another mainstream religion, as people fall back on classical perceptions of the priest.

What is an OBOD Druid's view of a Druid?

OBOD is a Meso-Druidic order and so they see being a Druid and the path of Druidry differently than other Druidic Orders, such as the Re-constructionist or more New-Agey ones. Certainly Druids filled a role within the Ancient Celtic community. Whether all Druids fulfilled, what us moderns would call, the priestly role is open to debate. Some seem to view the Bards/Ovates/Druids as a class, rather than a role. I suppose this would equate them more with the sort of Anglican Victorian Vicar whose job was more of a class role (i.e. the 2nd / 3rd son of the aristocracy would become a vicar) than a purely religious one. Others point to the early role of the Brahmins. Certainly the ADF, Re-constructionist order, seem to think that the role of a Druid is as a priest. As I am an OBOD Ovate I am not yet sure what OBOD's view of a Druid is!

Why not just follow an OBOD Druidic path?

The OBOD is a Meso-druidic organisation and after investigation and comparison I preferred it's philosophical approach. It's un-dogmatic and flexible view has produced a path I could follow. It's western mystical approach to mysticism fitted me historically and culturally in ways that Tao-ism, Buddhism, Sufi-ism, Qabal-ism or other paths could not. However, there is often an uncomfortable moment when discussion turns to the English, Celticism and Druidry. One of the issues I struggled with early on this path is, I perceive, as a result of our history - the English, due to their long history with the Celtic Nations, in the modern world feel (or are made to feel) a conflict between Celticism and Englishness. Celticism has an aura around it that is denied to the English, in many ways, whilst pursuing it may also be regarded as a denial of their own heritage which is under attack. One of the issues in England today is defining what it is to be English and being proud of our heritage without being overly nationalistic. Celtic culture, that was under such heavy attack upto the 20th century, has now returned on the crest of a wave of popularity. The modern Celtic nations seem to be proud of their culture in a way that the English are not, or are uncomfortable to display.

So why not just be a heathen?

I am a Heathen rather than Asatru because it seems that Loca/Loki has chosen me as a follower - respecting Loki is contrary to Asatru thought which is much more based around the Norse mythos where Loki is demonised. Being a Heathen means learning and understanding about the Norse-Germanic thread of the land's history. Linguistically this is from Beowulf to 'Gawain and the Green Knight' but also includes the Viking knowledge of the Icelandic Eddas, Faroe Islands and old Danish and German. The other thing that moved me away from being just a heathen was the number of bigoted people who used the symbols and groups for their own political agenda of hate. There is nothing within the Heathen history that supports this but because of the Nazi's I feel that the whole terminology is corrupted in the modern world. Some might try to re-claim the symbols but whilst there are people in the western world still using them to propose bigotry and hatred this is, in my view, impossible. Gewessi provides a way to still honour that strand of our history whilst separating it from the neo-nazis.

What deity (if any) are of particular importance to me?

Loca, Ingwine & Frige are primarily my deities. I believe in deities in two ways; firstly as human perceptions for explaining unknown synchronicity, science maybe able to explain a phenomena for coincidences at some point in the future but until then I am happy with the Gods; secondly they provide Jungian archetypal constructs for people in society. In this way they provide a way for people to learn about human nature and to understand their fit within society. The Celtic and German myths all contain pearls of wisdom for those who study them. The Hávamál (sayings of the Wise One aka Odin) is typical of this and contains much wise advice. Each person's relationship with the gods is unique and their journey is individual do the links below are more places I used in my own explorations...

Loki/Loca seems to have taken a particular interest in directing my path and if I forget his due it is a mistake. He definitely believes in the school of hard-knocks but those are the lessons you really learn from. Loca will be my occupational deity particularly as I work in IT and Loca is related to lightning and electricity. Loca/Loki...
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Ingwine-Frey is the lord of my land - when you go to school in a town call Steyning, have lived in Beeding etc... Steyn-ingas means Steyn's meadow/land but I have often wondered if it symbolically went deeper in the Saxon mind than that, because of the relation to the rune and meaning of Ingvi. Thor also has his name in the landscape but the land comprises the wooded glades of the Weald which I associate with Ingwine. Thus Ingwine is my tribal deity. I like to see him in the Green-Man, which is a powerful symbol here. Ingwine/ Green Man...
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Then Frige, or the mud goddess as I call her, in the garden and on the trails of the land I like getting down and dirty with her. Although as Odin's wife she also oversees the household and particularly the kitchen. I do all the cooking in our household so maybe that is why she's my personal deity. As the overall land deity, or Mother Earth, to me she represents the Goddess in us all. Frige / Mother Earth...
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Thunor makes regular appearances too. Tyr, Hana and Freja have also had influences in my dealings. Freja influenced me with Odin's mead and led me to my love, after all what other goddess could have led me to a fiery red-head who owns two cats and likes boar symbolism!

Why not be just a 'pagan'?

Simply because pagan is just too generic a term for so many different groups some that I wouldn't want to be associated with. Constant learning, practical application of this learning and finding a route to Inspiration/Awen/Óðrerir /The Mead of Poetry is fundamental to how I view being a pagan. It is also fundamental to the traditional paths of Druidry and Heathenism. There are many more new-agey pagan paths that disregard learning or practical application and have many a 'guru' to follow who can make up an easy way to spiritual wisdom. Those are not for me.

DaRC is the Gewessi Man


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