Druids of Turtle Island

The Druids of Turtle Island

Purpose
The Druids of Turtle Island (DTI) are an affiliated group of
individuals dedicated to providing a community of fellowship, a network
for information, and a resource toward inspiration for individuals who study
the scholarly pursuits, ancestral traditions, and spiritual practices of Druidic
philosophy while acknowledging the wisdom of the indigenous spirituality of
North America.

While embracing the Druidic path, we realize we cannot ignore the call of the
spirits of our own land. And, driven to practice our spirituality ( many times in
isolation - either by choice, by circumstance, or by geographic location) we
acknowledge this call and blend these teachings within the context of our
own lives and experiences; dictated not by dogma or doctrine, but by faith,
our personal relationship with the Great Mystery, and the wisdom of the
Old Ways.

We are a network...an organization...a fellowship of kindred spirits who have
chosen to affiliate under the spiritual banner of The Druids of Turtle
Island. Like many who have walked this path before us, we do not separate
our spirituality from our everyday lives - instead, it defines us and links us
to the spirits of our ancestors; including the ancestors of this lineage, the
ancestors of this spiritual practice, and the ancestors of this land.

As part of this fellowship known as The Druids of Turtle Island,
we give honor to the Great Mystery that inspires us as individuals to walk in
no one's footsteps...but our own. We seek not to preach what we have
learned; simply to live what we have learned. We seek not to appropriate
another culture's spirituality but to find common ground in which we can
share the Old Ways with all inhabitants of Turtle Island and the Earth
Mother.

We are The Druids of Turtle Island - kindred spirits who seek to
blend the spiritual practices of our European ancestors with the wisdom of
the First Nations People of North America.

Turtle Island has become home to both of our peoples.

Mitakuye Oyasin
"We Are All Related"

In 1969, poet Gary Snyder
published a collection of
poems and essays entitled
"Turtle Island". Snyder
explained his title in the
introduction:

"Turtle Island - the old/new
name for the continent, based
on many creation myths of the
people who have been living
here for millennia, and
reapplied by some of them to
North America in recent
years..."

Turtle Island then is North
America. Not present day
North America, but the
continent of the past, and of
the future. When Snyder
looked at modern man's
relationship to the earth, he
felt it lacked a spiritual
connection once common
among Native Americans.
Using the analogy that the
earth resembles the back of a
swimming turtle - if you tip the
turtle upside down -- that is,
disrupt the natural balance, the
turtle has no chance for survival.

Turtle Island became
symbolic of his own "back to
the future" sentiment of how
man's relationship to the earth
should be defined, and lived. It
should be biocentric (nature
centered) as opposed to
anthropocentric (human
centered), while possessing a
keen awareness of "place".

Once you appreciate the
place where you are, Snyder
thinks, you begin to treat life
and the earth with reverence
and respect, not to be
exploited, as modern
man has come to do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"In ancient times, the
turtle served as a
"spiritual" symbol to
many indigenous cultures
throughout the world, not
just those in the
Americas, and turtle
shells have been found in
many different places in
archaeological sites far
removed from where
turtles occur naturally."

Turtle Island Institute

Awen is a Welsh word
historically used to describe
the divine inspiration of gifted
bards in Welsh legend, and
sometimes ascribed to
musicians and poets today.

The British Druid Order
notes that "[t]he first recorded
reference to Awen occurs in
Nennius' Historia Brittonum,
a Latin text of circa 796 CE,
based on earlier writings by the
Welsh monk, Gildas."

Awen is the breath of
inspiration, wind of the spirit,
or breath of the divine which
gives inspiration. The term is
symbolized by an emblem
showing three straight lines
that spread apart as they move
downward, drawn within a circle
or a series of circles of varying
thickness, often with a dot
atop each line.

Many different modern groups
have their own interpretation of
the Awen. The three lines
relate to land, sea and sky;
body, mind and spirit; or love,
wisdom and truth.

It is also said that the Awen
stands for not simply
inspiration - but for inspiration
of truth. For without Awen, one
cannot proclaim the three
foundationsof truth: the
understanding of truth, the love
of truth, and the maintaining of
truth.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"It is often said - usually
by those who have not
studied the subject - that
the world-view and
philosophy of the old
Druids is lost beyond
recall... [but] it is by no
means impossible to
regain in the present age
the spirit of original
Druid philosophy. It is
essential indeed to do
so; for a revival of the old
Druidic way of thought,
acknowledging the
sanctity of the living earth
and all its creatures,
seems the only alternative
to planetary dissolution."

John Michell - "Stonehenge"

Awen

Turtle Island

An international fellowship dedicated to the study of Druidic Philosophy and Native American Spirituality

For more information on The Druids of Turtle Island, please contact:
admin@druidsofturtleisland.org

The Druids of Turtle Island are proud to be an affiliate of: