Afraid not.  Most Druids are too busy following their paths to worry about writing how-to manuals.  What you WILL find are some excellent research books and histories that will help you to begin to understand the place of the Druids in Celtic history and in the religion of the Celts. A list of recommended texts will appear at the end of this piece. 
     The other place to find information on Druids is on some excellent web sites. There are a number of solid Druid organizations now who are reconstructing with
fervor and an eye to excellence.  These are perfect places for the person who needs the comfort and society of others to learn and worship.  There are also a number of solitary sites with wonderful information.  Those, too, will appear in the appendixes. 

     So...given all that?  What IS a Druid? 

     Let me begin by saying what a Druid is NOT.  A Druid is NOT the male priest of the Wiccans.  I cannot tell you how many people over the past year or so since
I have gone public on the web have tried to tell me that I cannot be a Druid because I am a female and am thus a Wiccan.  Hogwash! 

     The Druids counted females among them, though not, admittedly, in as many numbers as males. 
     Secondly, Druids are NOT witches. Their basic philosophy of the world is very different from that of the witches.  Witches worship an Earth Mother and view the
godhead as male and female, a triple-aspected goddess (maiden, mother, and crone) and her consort, the horned god.

      Druids see the world as earth, sea, & sky -- the triple realm.  They are polytheistic and worship many gods.  Some, like me, believe that there is a single divine force that is a culmination of all creation which I refer to as the godhead.  That force is neither male  nor female, contains no anthropomorphic form and is grander and  more powerful than all the energy in the universe and
beyond. 
     Others argue that there is only the pantheon.  I see the pantheon as part of the "Old Ones," super-human beings that have existed since the beginning of time and stand apart from man, but that is my personal opinion only. 
     
 Some Druids follow a Celtic pantheon, but others, like members of ADF, embrace an Indo-European base which widens the choice of pantheons.  My personal pantheons are Greek and Celtic. 

     In Druidic pantheons, goddesses with three aspects are not maid, mother, crone, but sisters. 
     
 Witches work with four elements which are invoked during ritual.  Druids work with earth, air, and water; with fire as the transformational force affecting all.  They call on guardians  and a gatekeeper during ritual and honor nature spirits, the Sidhe, and the ancestors. 

      Witches gather in covens and worship in small circles.  Druids gather in groves and are largely tribal groups that perform public rituals. 
      Witches follow a rede.  Druids follow tribal laws. 
      Witches "draw down the moon and speak as the deity."  Druids do not. 
     Though both practice magick, Wiccans concentrates on spellwork; Druids do not. A witch's knowledge is in her Book of Shadows.  A Druid's knowledge is
encyclopedic and often memorized.  Druids are scholars above all. 
     Much of the Druid information floating around in books and on the web is romanticized fiction. 

  What we know about Druids: 

 1.   the Celtic culture practiced a caste system in which the Druids were second only to the king, thus theirs was the responsibility for the entire culture, its knowledge, its history, its justice system, its ethics, its arts, etc. 

 2.  the Druids were walking encyclopedias, followed up to 20 years of rigorous education, and were the intelligensia of the Celts 

 3.  they were responsible for the rituals at public ceremonies and celebrations 

 4. ancestor worship was important, the connection to the history of the tribe and culture absolute 5.  they believed in reincarnation and were fearless about death; they believed that the veil between spirit and mundane worlds was thin and could be traversed 

 6.   they sometimes practiced asceticism as a way to wisdom 

 7.  they were practiced in magick, seeing, poetry, music, the arts 

 8.  they were nature mystics 

 9.    wisdom to the Druid meant a metaphysical awareness far above simple knowledge

10.   wisdom came through self-awareness as well as natural awareness 

11.   Knowledge, Nature, & Truth were the foundations of their belief system 

12.  the High Holidays were Fire Festivals, occurring approximately every twelve weeks at  Samhain,  Imbolc,  Beltaine,  and Lughnasaad. 

     So you still think you might want to be a Druid?   What steps do you take? 

 1.  Join an established Druid group (I belong to ADF) or find a qualified private Druid teacher.  The Druid path is difficult when traveled alone.

 2.  Read some of the history of the Celtic peoples.  Check the books and authors at the end of this lesson.  Get a feel for the ancestry involved. 

 3.   Study the websites for further Druid advice that isn't found on bookstore shelves. (See the end of this lesson. )

 4.  Prepare to study your Self as a way to wisdom. 

 5.  Learn as much about the natural world as possible through field guides, teachers, classes, etc.  Be out in Nature as often as possible. 

 6. Learn divination, and work on perfecting your third eye. 

  7.  Read, read, read.  Study everything!  History, anthropology, art, music, drama, theology, law, sociology, psychology, geography, biology, astronomy, herb lore, mythology, healing, etc. 

 8. Choose an area of specialization and attempt to perfect it. 

 9. Practice being a Druid 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  View it as a lifestyle rather than "just" a religion. 

     Though that seems to be a tall order, for many of  you, these studies, these beliefs, come naturally.  While the Druid path is not for everyone, it is certainly a choice for many pagans who have not yet found their heart's desire. 

     If you have questions about the Druid path, feel free to email me personally at: JudeToo@aol.com 

     I am currently accepting a limited number of dedicated, enthusiastic students who are ready to read and do a lot of writing. If interested, please go
to:      http://www.onelist.com and subscribe to “toadtalk”, my online class.