The Oneness of the All

 

(First appeared in The Druids Egg, Lughnasadh 2007)

We live on this one planet, Earth or Gaia. The planet is a living, breathing, entity, and we are apart of Gaia’s ecosystem, a complex, interdependent system that sustains all of the life forms,both seen and unseen that is dependent on the planet including ourselves.

We call this concept oneness and it is the idea that every human (or every being present in a human body) is a part of every other human, and every other living thing on the planet,including the planet itself. This concept has been the heart and soul of Druidism from the very ancient times up to our present day. The ancients knew, as we know now, that there really aren’t any differences between the races, or between cultures, that justify fear, separateness,or any kind of ethno or racial phobias. It’s like the bumper sticker says:

One Planet, One People, One Future…

So as Druids then we are called to evolve beyond petty ideas about cultural and racial differences. A common trap we fall into is the idea that Celtic culture is more important or superior to any other, or that we as Druids serve only those from the Celtic community. It’s an absurdity, when one examines the attitudes of real Celts. There is no word for Celtic in any of the Celtic languages. The Welsh, for example, call themselves Cymru which simply means the people. This Welsh word therefore has no ethnic or cultural exclusivity. Anyone,therefore, is Cymru. As Druids, we need to be open to whatever works for the betterment of all, regardless of its origin. For instance, most martial arts are very beneficial for those who practice them, leading to discipline of body and mind and of course, better health. Most martial arts are also Chinese or Japanese in origin, but that shouldn’t matter. Likewise, Yoga is very beneficial for those who practice it, and it’s an Indian discipline. But that shouldn’t matter. The fact that it does matter to some, who wish a purely Celtic Druidism, is problematical at best, and unbecoming a Druid at worst. We had a fellow email us recently, complaining because we have made the Dalai Lama an Honorary Druid. He went on to complain that because His Holiness was Tibetan he could never be a Druid. I think the ancient Druids would laugh at such a concept. I personally found it to be very sad.We sometimes are prejudiced in other ways. We know it’s a bad thing to disparage another because of race, or creed, or ethnicity. But some of us will use birth sign as an excuse. I can offer myself here as an example. I have experienced two bad marriages in my life and both of those women were Pisceans. So in the past I have tended to shy away from friendships with Pisces women. If a persons chart has Mars in Aries, I also tend to shy away from them and I have even in the past engaged in saying that perhaps Pisceans shouldn’t be allowed in our Order. This was a major wrongness on my part, and I humbly apologize to all the Piscean women out there whom I might have disparaged. It won’t happen again. I’ve also made excuses for myself in the past by saying “Oh, it’s a Scorpio thing,” when I’ve exhibited some bad behavior.Using your own sun sign to excuse your bad behavior, or disparaging another sun sign for whatever reason is just as bad as exhibiting bigotry toward another race or culture. It’s a wrongness no matter what.We are one people on this Earth. We’re not black or white, we’re not Celtic or Indian, we’re not Aries or Scorpio, we’re one people, one tribe, one race (the human race). Yes, in past incarnations we may have come from the Pleiades, or from Arcturia, and we might have been Elves, or Angels. But we’re here now. We’re in human form in this incarnation at this time on this Earth.It’s time to embrace each other. It’s time to celebrate our one-ness! It’s time to act like the Gods we have incarnated to become.One planet, One people, One future… We are one.