I don't know what Bardism is
I am just a humble student of life (on good days that is). We
all have our own personal connection to the universal spiritual source,
to the land we live on and we all have our own way of perceiving what
that is and giving meaning to that experience.
My sense of place is inexorably linked with gazing at the sky for inspiration. In such a state of afflatus, one's attention is constantly drawn to the horizon and its suggestion of melodic rise and fall. At night time, the stars remind us of a greater cosmic harmony. At the same time, the very ground beneath our feet seems to grumble a base tone and as such, each place generates its own unique musical forms.
My entry point into Bardism has been the discipline of singing the landscape, albeit that I have developed a few other skills in that time! All over the world different genes interact with their geography to produce the myriad reflections of art, craft and science that go to form a culture. All these forms of cultural expression appear to stem from interactions around the hearth, making tea and cooking food naturally lead to the telling of stories and the singing of songs. It is this earth heart theatre that creates, reflects and transforms the specific geomantic patterns of each individual place.
The real trick to life is not to be in the know, but to be in the mystery
The challenge facing the English Orders is that much of
the lineage of the oral traditions has been broken. Those of us that feel
a strong affinity with Celtic culture have our work cut out for us in
order to restore the old knowledge and teachings. There is a wealth of
material to draw upon, some spurious, some scholarly, the debates will
run and run, no doubt. In fact, part of the learning process is in those
debates and the joy of the challenge is discovering the mysteries for
ourselves, separating out the disciplines which are a core part of
Bardism and that which belongs to other, distinct cultures. Culture is a
living thing, it is pointless trying to replicate the past when the
present and the future bring new challenges that our Bardic forbears may
never have had to face. What would they have done if faced with the
internet?
Anyhow, you should not take my word for anything other than poetry. I will leave you to make up your own mind, but don't forget:
