Druidism is one of the oldest belief systems in the world, and is said to span countless centuries dating back as far as 25000 years ago.
Although much of the history at this time has been lost to the ages, much of what we know about the ancient druids is found through the writings of the Romans who conquered many parts of the Western world.
In fact, some of the earliest cited recordings of the druids was penned by none other than the famous Julius Caesar himself, who first encountered these shamanistic peoples as the Roman Empire moved up into the northern parts of Britain, Scotland, and Ireland.
Even then they were known as wise and intelligent people, presiding over their own societies and holding almost all of the power, even being able to banish those they deemed unworthy.
Druidism has made a comeback in recent years, and while it doesn’t always fit into our modern lifestyle with our technology, globalisation, real money slots Canada, or many of the other things we’ve grown so used to, it’s worth looking back at how the druids of ancient times lived, and how other, ancient civilisations thought after meeting the druids for the first time.
The Romans And The Druids
During the first century BC, the Roman Empire had begun taking over more land than most other empires had ever seen, and their constant thirst for new land eventually meant them having to head into the wilder regions of the what is now Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.
It was the time when Julius Caesar was the reigning emperor of the Romans, and it was he who first made contact with the druids of old.
Even by today’s standards, the Romans were an incredibly advanced and their civilisation spanned continents, and for them, coming across the druids was as unusual as it is for us encountering a previously unknown tribe out in the jungles of the Amazon.
These were an almost completely unknown peoples, and they immediately clashed with the society and beliefs that the Romans prided themselves on.
The Druidic lifestyle that was once so revered in ancient times began to fall apart, especially as the newly formed Christian beliefs spread through the Roman Empire, and all of the lands that it had initially taken over.
Before this, however, the Romans chronicled much of what the druids believed at the time, and it was a recording that would eventually become more official during the Middle Ages.
Christianity And The Fall of Druidism
It would in the second century when Druidism would start to lose its popularity with the people of the time. Christianity was new to the world, and it was spreading through the Roman Empire at an incredible rate.
It would enter Britain around the fourth century before making its way to Ireland, where it has a powerful impact of the Druidic people of the time. Gradually, Druidism would start to die out, becoming replaced by Christianity, which has remained in place to this day.
Much of what we know about the druids of old is through oral tradition and some texts that were created as historic recordings of this once broad and powerful belief system.
