The CLAND NESSA™ Ivernian Heathen Revivalist Clergy Society

My Spiritual Beliefs

The stranger had climbed up the side of the mountain from the glen surrounding the loch below, and was approaching the summit, the clearing atop which was surrounded by a Sacred Grove.

Suddenly another person stepped forth from the shadows of the Grove, a man with long dark hair and beard. He wore a long white robe covered with feathers and a mantle of black oxsuede, and bore an intricately worked staff as he walked down the side of the mountain to where the stranger was now catching his breath. When the white-and-feather-robed man drew nigh at last, he regarded the stranger. The white robed man was in his 40s, and had begun his studies at age 13, so the intense eyes of hazel which looked forth from his face showed not only the weight of the long illness he had endured and survived (Thanks be to Brìghid!), but also the accumulated knowledge of a scholar of the faith. His voice was soft and kind, yet it commanded respect and attention as he spoke.
"Good evening, friend." He gave a warm smile. "I am Crommán, the Arch Druid of the CENÉLE DÁIRI™ Túath and Chief of its CLAND NESSA™ Clergy Society."

"What is a Druid you ask?" He arched a brow and continued smiling as he sat upon a stone and drew forth a pipe and pouch from his robe. "Ah, well, now that will take some time to explain. Let me have a smoke as I consider where to begin." As the stranger sat on another nearby stone and the Druid loaded and lit his pipe, the sounds of Nature which had stilled at the stranger's approach now began to resume, and Crommán looked around and listened and FELT the ALLNESS/ONENESS/NOTHINGNESS which pervaded all and was beyond all in and between each of the Three Cauldrons (In the Macrocosm, these are Sea, Land, and Sky; in the Microcosm, they are Warming, Vocation, and Knowledge), even as He took in that All-Pervasive Transcendance through the Grove and mountains surrounding the two persons, and all of the creatures of water, earth, and sky, including himself and the stranger. In the distance, he saw a White Sow under the Tree called Most Silvery of Skin, and heard the bellow of the White Bull, and thus knew it would be alright to begin, for the stranger had also slowly started to relax and commune with Nature. Clearing his throat, he spoke again in the same manner as before.

"A Druid or Druidess is a person who studies and practices a certain one of the Three Vocations within the Aos-Dàna, the People of the Gift. Aos-Dàna (with some slight spelling differences) is what the Irish and Manx and Scots named these three holy vocations, which are made up of those usually called Druids, Seers, and Bards. There are of course certain studies which must be undertaken before a Druidic Aspirant becomes a Druidic Priest, and likewise with the other two Vocations."

He pointed down the mountain to the loch in the glen. "In the Cauldron of Sea, the Underworld, the Ancestors, History, Genealogy, Commemoration, the Past, Music, these things are the pursuits of the Scholar who is usually named a Bard or Bardess."

He paused to relight his pipe and smoke a bit more, also taking a wineskin from his belt and squeezing some mead into his mouth, then offering a drink to the stranger, who noted that this fellow wore a college class ring indicating he had a BA in something, and had been a member of a professional fraternity, and that the mantle of black oxsuede sported a lapel pin indicating membership in a charitable fraternity of good reputation among all who love freedom. From the Druid's tartan waist cord also depended a black remembrance cord with a series of beads in different colours, and a ring of some white material hung at the end thereof.

Gesturing to the Highlands which surrounded them, the Druid continued. "In the Cauldron of Land, the earth wherein we live, Nature and the Spirits of Nature, Political Criticism, Herbalism, Poetry, the Present, Political Satire, these things are the pursuits of those Artists who are usually called Poet-Seers or Vision Poets."

The Druid paused again and continued to enjoy his smoke for a while, then gestured to the air above them and resumed his discourse.

"In the Cauldron of Sky, the Heavens, Gods and Goddesses, Law, Ethics, Government, Doctrine, Philosophy, the Future, Ritual, these things are the pursuits of those Priests and Priestesses usually referred to as Druids and Druidesses.

"The traditions of the CLAND NESSA Society are those of the northern Érainn before any version of Christianity was brought to them, though we have had to restore or revive, and sometimes reconstruct much that was lost, or rely on the work of others who have done so.

The Staff which the Druid bore was of Yew wood, and was ringed around the lower grip with white rabbit fur. The upper or main grip was ringed with grey suede, and the top was ringed with black bear fur. Hanging from the Staff from a cobalt blue suede thong was a single wing feather from an adult male Northern Goshawk.

He smiled again and continued.

"As for the CLAND NESSA Society, it is a group of people who study the teachings and practices of Druids and other aspects of Celtic culture with me. We examine various expressions of the Heathen Sacred Tradition from various Celtic cultures, and we embrace northern Ivernian culture (that is, the culture of the Érainn as found in Ulster and western Scotland). The CLAND NESSA Society is a Druidic Tradition of Scholarship, which I established some years back. The CLAND NESSA Society was not established for providing ordination (though some of us are ordained), but only to aid and assist in the study of Druidism and the various manifestations of Celtic Heathen Sacred Tradition, and the study, preservation, and promotion of Celtic cultures, including their great love of individualism and freedom."

He nodded. "Yes, I am a Priest. I was Ordained by a Past High Druid of the Dragon Clan following a mere five years of friendship and mutual learning (but there is a bit more to my story; read on), and my Ordination is legal, under the auspices of the ULC, the Universal Life Church, but I was not Ordained until I had completed my twenty years of study and practice. That's right. Twenty years. Just like a 'Palaeo-Druid.' Admittedly, I did not have access to all of the teachings that our ancient brethren did, but I also know that even an Arch Druid continues to learn every night and every day, and that was just as true in the Past as it is in the Now and will be in the Future. It is also true that I did not begin studies as a Druid, but began as a seeker of Truth. which studies and practice commenced in 1978, and I was Ordained in 1999. The ULC granted me the title of Druid in 2001, which was a mere formality. I have since been Ordained again, by the Shrine of the Irish Oak, as a Druid Priest.

"As for my more recognised affiliations, I am a member of the Henge of Keltria, but only a member. I am a former member of the Order of the Whiteoak, which I left a few years ago. I have also been a member of the Triple Flame Network and the Seekers' Coven. Both of those organisations are currently in hibernation, though I do not think the Seekers' Coven will rise again since the death of my close friend and spiritual brother with whom I founded the Coven in 1990.

"The Triple Flame Network was a group of people with an interest in 'the Lady B' in all of Her forms, including the Goddess Brìghid. It is the purview of one Faerun na Fhíor, who may some day revive it. The Seekers' Coven was a study group that did engage in actual practice under the watchful eyes of my brother and myself. It went dormant due to relocation of several members. If it ever seeks to be revived, I should be informed, as I am the only surviving original Teacher of the Coven, and as I would like to find out where all of those people went and what they are doing now. At present, I have contact with only two of them."

Words Of Wisdom

"Ye wish to hear some of the teachings of my faith, you say? Well, we have no holy book other than Nature herself, but there are various Words of Wisdom which are generally recognised as forming a part of our Sacred Tradition, or at least reflecting our beliefs, such as the following:

"Three things from which never to be moved: one's Oaths, one's Gods, the Truth.

"Three candles that illumine every darkness: Truth, Nature, Knowledge.

"You can't have a good crop without some crap.

"Praise the child and the child will progress.

"Three things without which there can be nothing good: Truth, Peace, Generosity.

"Only the hound that was made fun of killed the deer.

"Three people accursed: he who works against Nature with no concern, he who is wilfully ignorant of the Gods, and he who has much knowledge and does not share it.

"No wrong to be done to seven classes of persons excited to anger: a Bard, a Chief, a woman, a prisoner, a drunken person, a Druid, and a King in his own dominion.

"Three things very alike to one another: an old blind horse playing the harp with his hooves, a pig in a silk dress, and a merciless person prating about piety.

"What the child sees is what the child does.

"There are three whose full reward can never be given to them: parents, a good teacher, and the Gods.

"Avoid haste in your judgement of others, for they could be inspired by worthy motives which to you are unrevealed, and under the same or similar circumstances you might well have performed even more inappropriately than you judge them to have acted."

Keeping the Faith

The Druid spoke again. "I suppose you wonder about the name of CLAND NESSA Society, the Children of Ness. This name is taken from my Ancestress Ness, Mother of Conchobhar mac Nessa, King of Ulster in the First Century BCE. Ness later became confused with (or purposely identified with) a local River Goddess called Nes, and grew to be the Goddess of Sovereignty of Ulster and Dál Riata and Dál Riada, as well as Goddess of Rivers and Lochs, or perhaps Ness always was the Goddess in question, and the story of Conchubar being Her "son" was meant to be taken in a spiritual sense. The Beastie which is said to inhabit the Loch there in the glen below us may be simply a manifestation of Her Presence." He shrugged and smiled and continued puffing on his pipe.

"Oh, you must go so soon? Ah, well." He smiled again. "It was nice meeting you. Walk With Wisdom." And he made a sign over the stranger, the Druidic Triple Blessing, and spoke. "May you be blessed in body, mind, and spirit," and then he smiled again and sat back on the rock, relighting his pipe again. "Go in peace and freedom, and return with the same, should you wish to do so. Beannachd leat."

~~~~~
"That bearded host seemed young, yet looked out of eyes steeped in the elder mysteries."
---H.P. Lovecraft, "The Strange High House in the Mist."
~~~~~

The name Croman mac Nessa (and its several variations: Krumbanos maqi Nesiâs, Crommán mac Nessa, Croman mac Nise, Cromán mac Neasa) is mine, in use (in one form or another) from 1994-2007 and continuing, CromanmacNessa@aol.com, and is protected by US & international law, All Rights Reserved, in spite of the fact that I cannot Copyright it. I could make it a Trademark rather easily, as I have Prior Usage established, but I don't want to have to bother. In spite of its non-Mark status, there are laws against impersonating someone and using their name for personal gain or for purposes of defrauding their reputation. Please respect my identity.

The teachings of the CLAND NESSA Society are © Copyright, 1997-2007, CromanmacNessa@aol.com, and are protected by US and international law, All Rights Reserved. In this case, I have made the name a Mark, so please respect my intellectual property.


( http://www.irishclans.com/articles/famirish/niall9hostages.html )
Check out the site and the links it leads to; you might learn something about your heritage.

This page is © Copyright, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, and continuing, CromanmacNessa@aol.com, All Rights Reserved.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: The opinions presented in this site do not necessarily reflect those of any group, and only reflect personal opinions of, and teachings approved by, the Chief of the CLAND NESSA Society and the Founding Druid of the GARRÁN BUILG™ Community (though these teachings are inspired in part by others).
"GARRÁN BUILG" is a Trademark held by Croman mac Nessa (CromanmacNessa@aol.com).

The picture atop the page, "Krumbanos maqi Nesias i-Liic," depicts my name in its form in Primitive Irish ("Krumbanos maqi Nesiâs"), in Ogam. This picture is © Copyright 2007 by Crommán mac Nessa. All Rights Reserved.

Page last updated: 20 July 2007.

Religious Links

The GARRÁN BUILG™ Virtual Nemeton of the CENÉLE DÁIRI™ Túath
The Henge of Keltria
The Ulster Cycle