Celtic religion and mythology Books

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisA mind-boggling investigation into ancient wisdom -- and the nature of the universe. Monuments like the Pyramids or Stonehenge make us wonder: Were the ancients way more advanced than we know? In Numbers of the Gods, Sylvain Tristan does the math and finds fascinating answers. Yes, the Bronze Age had superb astronomers, who already knew the exact dimensions of our Earth, Sun and Moon, and that our planet rotates around the Sun, thousands of years BC. New discoveries prove that Celtic Druids and their predecessors used an amazingly precise and unified 366-degree geometry and astronomy to measure space and time. Many key sites of antiquity follow this geometry, from Babylon to Teotihuacán to the Great Pyramid of Giza. Stranger still, Druidic Initiates -- perhaps in the highest ranks of Freemasonry -- have discreetly continued to use their geometry in siting cities like Paris, Washington DC, and modern architectural monuments worldwide. Strangest and most awe-inspiring of all, the magic numbers of the Druids 366, 40 and 10 may be encrypted in the dimensions of the solar system, the physics of our universe and the biology of the human species, as if they were the signature of a Great Architect. The revolutionary evidence in this book is easy to check, the interpretation is limited only by your imagination! Revised edition with index.

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Book SynopsisIn "Stations of the Sun" and "The Triumph of the Moon", Ronald Hutton established himself as a leading authority on the historian of Paganism. His wealth of unusual knowledge, complemented by a deep and sympathetic understanding of past and present beliefs that are often dismissed as strange or marginal, and an ability to write lucidly and wittily, gives his work a unique flavour. The essays which make up "Witches, Druids and King Arthur" cover elegantly and entertainingly a wide range of beliefs, myths and practices.Trade Review ‘essential reading for anyone interested in the history, recent or older, of paganism.' ~ David CohenTable of ContentsIllustrations; Introduction; Acknowledgements; 1 How Myths are Made; 2 Arthur and the Academics; 3 Glastonbury: Alternative Histories; 4 The New Old Paganism; 5 Paganism in the Missing Countries; 6 A Modest Look at Ritual Nudity; 7 The Inklings and the Gods; 8 The New Druidry; 9 Living with Witchcraft; Notes; Index.

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Book SynopsisDiscover your spiritual gift in the company of Columba, Brigid, Cuthbert, Patrick and other Celtic saints in this ground-breaking and original book. As the rediscovery of Celtic spirituality has transformed Christian experience in recent years, Celtic Gifts explores the dramatic impact that a Celtic understanding of vocation and ministry could have in the life and work of the Church today, especially where small congregations, limited resources and overburdened clergy create particular difficulties. Offering a positive, imaginative and biblical solution to problems that are all too common today, Celtic Gifts will encourage every Christian to explore their own vocation and calling.

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Book SynopsisThis pocket-sized informative travel guide is a companion to the principal Celtic sites in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Comprehensive both in content and detail, the places featured include: Scotland - Iona, Whithorn, Melrose; England - Lindisfarne, Whitby, Jarrow, Ripon, Lichfield, Old Sarum, Glastonbury, Tintagel, Canterbury, Lullingstone; Wales - Bardsey and the Llyn Peninsula, St Winifred's Well, St David's, Lantwit Major; and Ireland - Skellig Michael, Glendalough, Kells, Kildare, Slane Hill and Tara. The stories of the saints associated with these and other places are retold for today's visitors and pilgrims, along with quotations, prayers and readings from the Celtic era. Practical information is also given, plus maps, illustrations and suggestions of other places to visit nearby. An introduction explains the significance of pilgrimage to these places both in Celtic times and in the present day.

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Book SynopsisMany people know of the Carmina Gadelica, the collection of Gaelic songs, prayers and blessings from the Hebrides, yet few have access to its five volumes published in Scotland between 1900 and 1952. Here, an attractive selection is made for the contemporary reader and freshly translated to reflect the particular Christian experience of the people who composed them: Celtic Christians in the 7th to 9th centuries who worshipped the Trinitarian God, had a devotion to the Virgin Mary, the Archangels and the Saints, and a love of the Bible, especially the Psalms. Some 130 poems and prayers are included, arranged in eleven sections including The Power of Heaven, Home and Family and Soul Journey. An extended introduction opens up the world that produced these extraordinary and beautiful prayers and blessings.Trade Review'This book is well worth reading for its poetic approach, as well as for its depth of prayer and intellect.' * Church Times *'As a collection of prayers, it is certainly to be commended.' * New Directions *

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Book SynopsisKate Tristam is a well-known island resident whose talks on the history of Lindisfarne hold visitors spellbound. A historian and a priest in the Church of England, she is ideally qualified to tell the remarkable story of this captivating place. From its misty beginnings as part of the mainland in the Stone Age right up to the present day, this popular history covers: its formation as an island, the Roman and Anglo-Saxon eras, the influence of Columba and Iona, Lindisfarne's own apostle, Aidan, the making of the Lindisfarne Gospels, Cuthbert, Cedd, Chad and Aidan's other followers, Hilda and the community at Whitby, Bede and the monastic tradition, the coming of the Vikings, the Benedictine years, the dissolution of the monasteries, and more.

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Book SynopsisEsther de Waal draws on the ancient traditions of Celtic and monastic spirituality to explore thresholds between people, between cultures, between the human and the divine. Ancient spiritual wisdom teaches that thresholds are sacred places and Esther encourages readers to become more receptive to their surroundings and to learn to pause, reflect and meet God at the places of encounter and change in our lives.

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Book SynopsisIn early Irish society there existed an honoured group of people called the "Filid." They preserved the native stories and they were learned in the magical arts. It is within this ancient tradition that Ella Young (1867-1956) lived her unique and creative life. In the late 1800s Ella began to gather the old tales that had been handed down from family to family for centuries. She lived among the rural folk in the West of Ireland and in the hills south of Dublin. As part of her devotion to Irish culture she learned Gaelic and, as a major contributor to the Celtic Revival, she taught classes in the language and the myths. Ella's spirituality reached deep into the land and into the heart of ancient Ireland. Others have called her a seeress, a druidess, or a witch - the magical name she gave herself was "Airmid" - the goddess of healing who drew her powers from the fertile green earth. She knew first-hand about the faery folk of Ireland - she heard their music and listened to their stories. Ella was truly blessed - for her life flowed in harmony with her beliefs, her nationalism, and her career as an author and lecturer. This new collection of her writings, edited and introduced by John Matthews and Denise Sallee, is a deeply magical and evocative tribute to Ella's many gifts, featuring some of the best of her poetry and mythical storytelling.Trade ReviewThere is a spell upon her prose, a real enchantment, that echoes through the mind like remembered music - to read the prose books of Ella Young - is to move in a world of epic proportion, heroic deed and heroic character, set against a background of warm earth, where even the gods delight in the small intimacy of blossom and flower - These tales are told with great conviction, as if they were rooted in the experience of the storyteller. - Frances Clarke Sayers

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Book SynopsisIt was the Celtic bards who laid down the foundation of inner wisdom that has come down to us as Arthurian legend, passing their traditions to the Arthurian romancers of the 12th and 13th centuries. Thus the Celts provide an immediate bridge that leads to a very ancient world. Focusing on the Brythonic Celtic material and the "Taliesin" cult whose lineage preserved the mysteries through the Mabinogion and other texts, Awen: the Quest of the Celtic Mysteries reveals the sources of the British sacred tradition right back to the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, and, as some believe, further back still to even more ancient sources. Awen is a Welsh word often translated as "inspiration". However, in its fullness it has a much deeper meaning, an irradiation of the soul from paradisal origins. In the context of the Celtic folk-soul it casts the paradisal pattern by which the people and the land were harmonised. Through the aligned symbolism of the goddess, the sacred king and the stars, a compelling picture is built of a thriving mystery tradition which marries the constellations to the landscape, exploring as an example the interwoven five-fold and seven-fold stellar geometry of Moel ty Uchaf stone circle in North Wales, and the stellar alignments on the landscape of Cadair Idris.

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Book SynopsisThe Irish Celtic Magical Tradition explores the wealth of spiritual philosophy locked into Celtic legend in The Battle of Moytura (Cath Maige Tuired), a historical-mythological account of the conflict, both physical and Otherworldly, between the Fomoire and the Tuatha de Danann. This legend contains within it the essence of the Celtic spiritual and magical system, from Creation Myth to practical instruction and information. Alongside a translation of The Battle of Moytura, Steve Blamires provides a series of keys to facilitate understanding of the legend and sets out an effective magical system based upon it, including interpretations of the symbolism, meditation exercises and suggestions for its practical use. The book offers a powerful and illuminating method of working with ancient Celtic legendary material in the context of modern magic.

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Book SynopsisCeltic spirituality is the "forgotten faith" of the West. It is essentially joyful and holistic and holds together the two human faculties of reason and intuition, taking joy in the beauty of the created world. The Celtic saints were intuitives whose feet were very firmly planted on the ground. It is their equilibrium as human beings that gives much of their appeal, and in this, as in the holiness their lives display, they are Christlike. This book by Anglican cleric Anthony Duncan examines the lives of the Celtic saints in the context of their time, along with the sacred places in the landscape that have become associated with them.

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