is the root of poetry. When the Celts were reformed by theChristians, Brigid was turned into St. Bridget. Diancecht was the god of healing. Hecreated a well that could heal anyone who was put into it. These are some of the maingods all the Celtic tribes believed in. It is believed that each tribe had its own local deity;therefore thousands of deities were known to the Druids (4,5).Animals were respected by the Druids because they were nature and its trueessence. Many animals represented a sacred quality. The salmon represented wisdom.Deer represented honor because they were hunted for food and the appearance of a deersometimes indicated the presence of an entrance into the other world. Boars representedheroic skill because of the effort needed to kill one. The serpent was sacred because itrepresented earth powers. The crow was very sacred because it carried the soul from onelife to the next. To the Druids all the animals of nature were holy (4,5).Possibly of greater importance than the animals to the Druids were the trees. Theword Druid itself comes from the Gaelic word “duir” meaning oak. Trees were mostspecial because they connected the earth and the sky and within them the other world.Where these realms came together was considered a powerful place. The Druids had eight main festivals throughout the Celtic year. They includedfour major holidays, Shamain, Imbolc, Beltain and Lughnasad. Along with these four,they celebrated the equinoxes and the solstices. Samhain was held around November andwas the beginning of the new year. On this day the boundaries between this world and theother were closest, making it the day of the dead. Imbolic was celebrated around the firstof February. It celebrated the rebirth of spring. Beltain was celebrated around the first ofMay and was called the day of life. Lughnasad was celebrated around the first of Augustto thank the earth for the bounties of the year (4,5).During these festivals, t...
