30 October 2019
Documentary describing the life of the late Irish druid, Ben McBrady.
Ben McBrady, known as Brady of the Name and Herenach of the Two Kilmores, was Aircinneac and Herenach of a pre-Druid Megalithic Order called “The Old Gaelic Order,” often referred to simply as “The Order.” Ben McBrady is believed to have been the last member of “The Old Gaelic Order.” Because of this he was called “The Last Druid.” He passed away in January of 1996. Ben McBrady was a descendant of Lugar MacLugair (Lughaid mac Loeguire), who was Chief Druid of Ireland and Druid to the High King Leary and the Kings of Leinster. Lugar MacLugair was also believed to have been a member of “The Old Gaelic Order.”
“The Old Gaelic Order” came originally from Phoenicia and they were Sun worshippers. They were known as the priests of Pelagius and emanated from the tribe of Dan, hence the order being called snakes; the emblem for the tribe of Dan.
They were Bards, Psychics, Healers, Walkers between the Worlds, Lawgivers and Makers, Priests and Kings. One of the first abilities taught to new Initiates was Telepathy. “The Order” at all times was to remain outside society; within it yet outside it at the same time. All knowledge came within the realm of “The Order”, but they were particularly concerned with Astronomy because they had experience of so many significant calamities. It was thought that a full knowledge of Astronomy would enable them to predict conditions when these calamities were likely to take place and take some action to protect themselves. Another primary function of the order was to preserve language.
The Order of Druids in Ulster
When the Druids came, many members of “The Order” infiltrated that order. Elsewhere in Europe the Druids carried out their ceremonies in oak groves. The term for oak is Druha, so they became known as Druidi or Druids. Now, in Ireland specifically the Druids worshipped The God of the Sunset, The Dah Ruah -The Red God. A priest of that order was called a Ceile Dah Ruah – a servant of The Red God. Over time this was shortened to Da Ruah then Druah or Druid. That’s how confusion arises between the Druids on the Continent and the Druids in Ireland. They both have the same name for different reasons.
The order continued to survive by adapting itself, first to the Druids and then to Christianity. It kept its traditions and beliefs but operated inside the Christian Matrix. The members of the order were Priests and Kings, and in Christianity, this developed into Bishops and Herenachs about the 12th century. In Ireland eventually the Herenachs, not being Bishops anymore because of the suppression of Catholicism, integrated into Protestant religion. There was no change in the central purpose of “The Order” whatever guise they operated under.
Ben’s earliest recorded ancestor was Lugar MacLugair. MacLugair seems to have been the most important figure in the 2nd century – he was a Lawgiver. He was described as the one who adapted “The Senchus Mor” the great compendium of Law to the Christian tradition. MacCugar was one of those characters who emerge every few generations and totally transform the character of a society. But because of the conflicts between Paganism and Christianity, he was written out history. MacLugair was the most important Druid of his time and a member of “The Order”. He was Chief Druid of Ireland and Druid to the High King Leary and Druid to the Kings of Leinster.
It was originally the task of each member of “The Order” to be a compendium of all knowledge. If humanity was wiped out except for one individual, he should be capable of re-establishing everything from his own resources. Now because of the exceptional increase in knowledge techniques and skills, medicine, science, it would not be within the abilities of a single human mind to encompass everything. So the system was developed whereby three were brought together as a triad. The one who seemed most suited for a particular group of skills or awareness was trained in those and thus the full range of knowledge was divided up among them.
The first vigil or initiation partly required the candidate to spend several nights at “St Kevin’s Bed” at Glendalough. Its old Irish name was Glen Da Lug (Glen of the God Lugh).
When a triad had to retrieve knowledge from the collective unconsciousness, one member of the triad was hypnotised and the third was the controller. Using this technique, vast amounts of information could be accessed from the collective unconscious.
The “Old Gaelic Order” had sacred dances, Kundalini exercises and created sacred space to commune with otherworldly beings. They celebrated the fire festivals and the solstices and equinoxes, although I’m not sure if these were a later addition. One of Ben’s triad, the Astronomer, worked out the exact date they should celebrate. His dates rarely fell on the dates accepted today by pagan groups.
Even though the Druids did not document history, they did preserve it for the Celts. In Irish mythology, the Druids are clearly represented as the authorities to turn to for information and advice in respect of history and genealogy.
A prime example is that Tacitus tells us that in 69 AD the Druidic historians of Gaul had kept a knowledge of how the Cisalpine Gauls, led by Brennos, had, in c. 390-387 BC, defeated the Roman army and sacked Rome, capturing the city but with the notable exception of the Capitoline Hill. Three hundred years after this event, the Druids of Gaul appear to be lamenting that their ancestors had not finished off the job instead of accepting payment of a tribute and withdrawing to leave the Romans to rebuild their city and create the empire which was now swallowing their civilisation. For such detailed knowledge as this to have been handed down in oral form is fascinating but not surprising.
One of the most important elements of the Druids in this respect was the Bard. The pre-Christian Celtic peoples recorded no written histories; however, Celtic peoples did maintain an intricate oral history committed to memory and transmitted by bards and filid. Bards facilitated the memorisation of such materials by the use of metre, rhyme, and other formulaic poetic devices.
What is particularly interesting about the basic facts of the sack of Rome by the Celts in the fourth century BC surviving in both the traditions of the Gaulish Celts of the first century AD and in the traditions of the British Celts of the twelfth century AD, is the very fact of their survival. The Celts who sacked Rome were Cisalpine Gauls, yet the historic traditions had not only made their way into Transalpine Gaul but in Celtic Britain and become inseparably linked with the histories of those disparate Celtic peoples. Here, surely, is another example of how closely the Celtic world was united by common bonds with the Druids, as a class, represented.
Further Study
Alan Wilson – The Ancient History of the Brits
History