Druid, Celtophile, Author, Poet and More, Interview with Jim Donaldson.
By Christopher Blackwell

Jim was suggested to me by another reader because of his help in founding the Druid Order of Three Realms and for his authorship of novels about the man most of us know as Merlin. I got in touch with Jim and he gave permission for this interview and took time out of his busy schedule to give it.

Christopher: How would you describe yourself and how long have you been following the Druid path?

Jim: How would I describe myself. It almost brings a smile to my lips. Humans love to categorize, to define, to capture an understanding of the world, to place everything in its rightful place.

It could be claimed that this innate mindful process is a useful remnant of the scars of our youth hundreds of thousands of years ago.

The primitive mind of our ancient lineage remembers its instincts for survival; black or white, friend or foe, food or poison.

When our ür Mother became conscious and self-aware, the world took on more than color, the mind and body gained the spirit, and the third realm ignited the tongue with language. The world was no longer black and white but filled with an infinite diversity.

Recently, I became involved in an occasionally heated discussion on the Druid Wisdom Exchange about how Druids see themselves and what set of core principles would define Druidry.

Nothing came of the debate for the DWE community, but I was able to define my own path clearer. The principles and virtues I set down are provided on my Dragon & Oak zenDruid site (http://dragonandoak.org).

OK. I haven't actually answered your question.

I am a Druid as defined on my personal site and on the Druid Order of the Three Realms (DOTR) site (http://druid3realms.ning.com), of which I am a founding member and Custodian.

Spiritually, I can also claim to be agnostic, deist, with some leanings toward the physical and meditative practices of Buddhism.

Like many druids, I feel as if I have been a druid since my youth but did not define myself with the word 'Druid' until recent years when I was fortunate to find other local friends who shared the same life philosophy.

Christopher: Why the Druid path?

Jim: I am glad that you used the word path. There is a strong vocal contingent within the druid community that regularly debates and argues against defining druidry as anything beyond a life philosophy. Druids and many pagan groups show that distinction through the use of 'path' rather than belief system or faith.

For myself, druidry is a spirituality, a direct relationship with the earth, an unconscious connectedness with all life, and a thirst for knowledge.

The deep forest calls to me, the gentle wind and rustling leaves whisper in my ears, and the sparkling light that prisms through the branches invoke ancient magic. The waves of the sea beat in my breast, each crash of the surf echoing the thump of my heart, and I am drawn to its depths, the taste of its salt in my blood. The sun warms my face and lights my path. And I celebrate the 8-fold year as it traipses across the sky.

The poetic joys I evoke in the previous paragraph don't separate my beliefs from others, it provides my foundation. The DOTR principles discuss how each Druid's path is a personal one, solitary but shared within the community of the Grove.

The fact that each of our paths is a personal journey also provides a basis for the acceptance and respect for other beliefs. I occasionally share this open philosophy on another of my sites, The World Order of Druids (http://worldorderofdruids.org), which attempts to posit that druidry is a core spirituality that can be shared by people of other faiths.

Many Druids belong to a number of other groups, orders, and associations. It is not an attempt to cover one's bases, but a desire to grow and exchange wisdom.

I belong to numerous mailing lists and groups, occasionally attend mass with my wife- a beautiful German Catholic, discuss philosophy with my younger son, who balances a mix of Christian and Muslim beliefs, and my older Buddhist son, presently serving in Afghanistan. An eclectic and loving family, if I may say so.

Christopher. What other things influence your path?

Jim: As a boy growing up in the old South, my Sundays were full of church services of the Southern Baptist persuasion. I attended Sunday school and knew the Bible well.

But my head was also buried in the Classics of the past and the visionary science fiction of tomorrow. I was a bookish, skinny, outdoorsy, blonde little Celt whose hero was King Arthur.

Being of the type of temperament that questions everything and enjoys debate, I became disillusioned with the Church. I think that this is the main reason most leave- when the only answer to every question or contradiction is that you must have faith.

For me, faith is not blind acceptance of dogma, it is the belief in instinctive facts - the sun will rise in the morning. I studied other world religions that might be considered acceptable for the Bible-belt and kept quiet, becoming deeply agnostic, almost atheistic.

But I loved walking in the woods, something I did with my Dad often, the walks becoming my church of the greenwood.

I am sure that many pagans from the southern states will acknowledge that the church does not go away. It is at the core of the community

- and it is where the girls are.

At the time when the hippy became synonymous with freedom and the war protests were in full swing, and heavy metal and the Beatles ruled, I found a church where young people flocked. We performed Godspell and Christian rock, we went to church camp on the Florida coast, and I believe I even gave a few sermons.

It had a wonderful accepting group of adult leaders and a caring and intelligent pastor. Even though I was accepted, maybe even considered a youth leader, there was something awry, something in my spirit that could not be filled.

I guess I rebelled in reverse, because at a time when the military and conservative thought was at its lowest, I applied for and received a military scholarship, attended Georgia Tech, and went off to Europe as a butter bar Lieutenant.

Europe provided the release from the need to fit in. Its diverse cultures, great beers, and attitudes toward the world began a new period. In the end, I did not fit the military but I did volksmarch through the German countryside, found my future wife, and a renewal of my desire to learn.

Two events occurred when I returned stateside to marriage and work. I began my first studies in martial arts and in 1982, Marion Zimmer Bradley, one of my favorite Sci-fi authors, wrote 'The Mists of Avalon'. As with many others, it re-triggered my love of Celtic myth and culture.

Over the ensuing decades, I raised a family, built an impressive library of Arthurian and Celtic lore, studied philosophy and martial arts, went online with my websites and wrote my own historical fantasies of the Arthurian past.

I knew who I was, I accepted and acknowledged my spirituality, and I began to develop a web component of spirituality to stand alongside my Celtic sites.

Christopher: How did the Druid Order of Three Realms come to be?

Jim: One could say that I was a long time Druid without a formal personal practice. I meditated, I worked in the garden, studied wildlife, walked in the woods, practiced my martial arts, studied and gained knowledge - maybe even a little wisdom. But I was solitary.

I had explored other sites and online groups but not found a grove for myself. Several years ago, I picked up a new Druidry book, Archdruid John Michael Greer's Druidry Handbook. While no book defines all Druids, I still felt that this was as transforming as 'Mists'.

I sought out AODA online, joined the mailing list, and eventually the Order (technically I am still a member).

More importantly, it introduced me to Bob Patrick, a Latin teacher and Druid priest, who was leading an AODA study group, in all of the unlikely places, just a few miles from my home in the east Atlanta area. I had found a grove and kindred spirits.

I mentioned earlier that I am inquisitive, and insightful. My wife will sometimes characterize it as annoying how I find the flaws in an argument. I would not say that I am argumentative. I am very open and want to try to understand all sides of a discussion, even if I have already decided I am right.

You can't learn without study and questioning. I began to have issues with the controlling structure of AODA, especially on the Yahoo moderated group. I discussed my concerns with Bob and the study group and found that I was not alone.

So I dropped into the background on the AODA list but worked to strengthen my ties with the study group. I had not given up on the ideals of AODA, just the aspects that conflicted with my development and growth as a Druid.

Bob and I may not always agree on all topics, but at the core, our Druid philosophies complement and strengthen the other. Along with Paige Varner, a fellow Druidess, we reached the same conjunction: the strict hierarchical structure and control of most Druid orders blocked personal development and growth. When Bob made the personal decision to leave AODA, the germ of DOTR was already brewing.

Christopher: What is unique about the order?

Jim: The Druid Order of the Three Realms shares most of the core principles of other Druid orders. The uniqueness of the order is a lack of hierarchy. There is no elected archdruid or specially titled Druids that govern the order. There are three elected custodians that must rotate out on three year cycles, but they do not set policy, only manage the operational aspects of the order.

All full members of the order are Druids. They may take on other roles as we move through the cycle of the year and its celebrations:

ritual leader, priestly functions (if so trained), bard, ovate, healer, and other aspects of a druid life. They may train in the many spirals of knowledge and assume other roles, even special titles; but all Druids within the order are equal. All druids are expected to offer their unique skills and offerings.

Christopher: Where might readers learn more about it?

Jim: The main public site of the order is at http://druid3realms.ning.com. This is a public ning that anyone who professes an interest in Druidry may join. If after joining and reviewing the information and communicating with Druids of the order, an individual may request to join the Order either as an Aspirant or full Druid, based upon their present path and skills. At this time, that means requesting and being accepted to the main grove, the Sylvan Sanctuary.

Christopher: The legend of King Arthur is one of the old classics. You seem to have a special feel for the man we call Merlin, but I note you see him as being what we later call a Scot. Could you tell us why your fascination and who do you base him on? How much is history, legend and your imagination?

Jim: The earliest story of Merlin comes to us from Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain in 1136. He was the fatherless boy Merlin Emrys that confounded Vortigern's magicians, released the red and white dragons from their pool beneath the tower, and prophesied great events including the death of Vortigern and the rise of Arthur.

Merlin became the chief councilor of Arthur, the magician trickster behind the history, and even the conscience of the king. He exits, old and besotted by a young beauty, trapped by his own magic to spend eternity witnessing the future he helped create. A small part in a large history, but the die is cast.

Alongside his young king, he has become the very fabric of British myth, often overshadowing Arthur. His fame even surprised Geoffrey who later penned The Life of Merlin, that expanded upon his role and presented his prophecies.

But who was Merlin? In 1982, the 'Mists' kicked off a new wave of Arthurian fantasy and study. I devoured each new story even as my library grew with histories and philosophies, and the search for a real history for our 'Once and Future King'.

Even as I read, my vision of the story developed, and at times, disagreed with the plot choices of the new Dark Age retellings. I dreamed and determined to present my own vision. But I did not want to retell Camelot, for new books were appearing regularly.

As a boy reading Malory, I spent more time daydreaming about being at Merlin's side than being a knight. So, it made sense that my books should present the past from his shadow.

Again, who was Merlin? The legends of Camelot are a rich amalgam, kernels of history and truth, warriors of different times and locales linked to Arthur's court, fictions and borrowings, threads of story interwoven and arranged to fit a writer's dreams or comment on the politics and ideals of the present. Urien and Peredur (the grail king Parsival) and their battles against the Angles and the poetic witness to the British failure in Aneirin's Gododdin poem shift them almost a century beyond the traditional time of Arthur's reign.

The old Welsh poetry and saint's lives present glimpses of memories of the men of the North. In them, we find poems attributed to Myrddin,the mad prophet of the Celyddonian forest, and the Battle of Arderydd in the same age as Peredur. The life of Saint Kentigern presents us with a madman and prophet called Lailoken that haunted Rhydderch of Strathclyde's court.

We are presented with potential evidence that Geoffrey's Merlin is also an amalgam, part saint, part madman, a Welsh Emrys and a northern British Myrddin. Other books appeared that took these musings and expanded and reinterpreted, including Nikolai Tolstoy's The Search for Merlin.

The plot thickens and the storyline begins to unfold for the Dragon skies, the time of the last great British kings. The epic is Arthurian and yet not of Arthur. It developed to include a Grail subplot, but maybe not quite the expected one.

The plot spans across the late sixth century, from the time of Maelgwyn's death, encompassing the life of a hero and madman, a fatherless boy named Lailoken who became Myrddin. Through his eyes, we witness the struggles of the old British kingdoms of the North against the rise of the Angles of Northumbria.

Christopher: How many books in this series have you written so far and how many more do you believe are left to write?

Jim: There are presently four books in the series that cover the period from Maelgwyn's death sometime around 547CE and Lailoken's birth up through the death of Peredur at Caer Grau around 580. I am working on other books and stories at the present. Eventually, I may return to the main story, which could span ten novels and encompass the wars of Artwyr and Urien, the Gododdin, a grail plot, and the last days and death of Myrddin.

Christopher: Where can our readers learn more about these books and where can they buy them from?

Jim: Additional details on the series are available on my website at http://gorddcymru.org/dragonskies. The books are available at most of the web retailers, such as Amazon, B&N, etc. I hope to have them available in Kindle and eBook format in the near future.

Christopher: You maintain several web sites and a blog. Care to tell our readers a bit about them?

Jim: My web presence grows and shrinks as time and efforts change.

The original site, well over a decade old, was an Arthurian site that evolved into the Celtic Twilight (http://celtic-twilight.com). It is not the largest Arthurian website on the internet, but it does provide a large and growing collections of books, poetry, images and speculation.

In addition, for a number of years, I have supported the Celtic community in the Atlanta region with Celtic Atlanta (http://celticatlanta.com) and the atlantacelts Yahoo group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/atlantacelts), which provides information and updates on Celtic music, pubs, festivals, and culture. Any of the Celtic sites and the Druid sites can be reached from my main portal Gordd Cymru (http://gorddcymru.org).

Christopher: Anything else you would care to tell our readers?

Jim: Change your own life and you change the world. Have compassion, but don't take the world's problems on your shoulders. Be mindful.

Live in the present. Remember that if you put a smile on your face, it just might make you happy.

And by the way, visit my websites and read my books. That makes me happy.