"DRUIDS BANE" A Tundrawolf Story

DRUIDS-BANE 'Standing Stones'

Part Three     3500 BC     'Standing Stones'

The High King had his meeting with the Tribal Chiefs and Clan Leaders of the Kingdom of Meath. It was near the time of Alban Elfed, the fall equinox. The meet was held on the field inside the standing stones known as the Druid's Circle, which was located behind the stronghold of Tara. The area inside the standing stones was a flat, grass covered plain over a hundred paces wide surrounded by a circle of worked stones and thick oaken logs. The stones were evenly spaced around the field and towered over twenty feet tall. Spanning across the tops of the stones lay capstones over each of the open areas. The standing stones were huge, as wide as a large man with arms outstretched and half as thick. The capstones were square, matching the thickness of the standing stones, and they were long, sitting half way on the upright stone and spanning the distance between. The construction of the stone circle was a marvel and a testament to the power of the secret magick of the ancient Druids.

The stones were notched along the top and down the sides. They were carved with runes to mark the placement of the sun, moon and stars at certain times of the turn. Placed in a square in the center of the field were four low lying rectangular stones about half the height of a man. These were for finer observance of the movements of the moon and played an important part in the Druidic ceremonies.

It was a huge celestial observatory used by the Druids. The mystic men and women of the land tracked the movements of the heavenly bodies that traveled the skies at night and during the day. Through the stones they knew when the summer solstice and winter solstice were upon them, the longest and the shortest days of the turn. They could see when the spring equinox and autumnal equinox were happening, the time of the turn when night and day were the same length and the seasons for summer and winter were beginning. They could tell when the time for planting and harvesting began. For the Druids tracked the seasons that were important to the farmers and herdsmen of the land. Festivals and holidays were planned from the observance of the skies to honor the Gods and Goddesses. The Druids could also predict eclipses and track the movements of the constellations, the planets and comets. Those without knowledge thought of the comets as fiery dragons in the night sky. Because of the stone circle the Druids were able to take some of the mysticism out of the heavens above.

The stones of the circular henge were quarried and brought in from hundreds of miles away. They were a beautiful blue stone that had been carried and pushed so far because of the musical qualities they possessed, they rang like a metal bell when struck. No one knew when the circle was constructed, but the Druids maintained it so meticulously it looked as if it had been put up yesterday. The only thing that changed on the stones were the markings the Druids made as they hit them with their hammers made of flint.

Each place on the stone made a unique tone when struck. So the Druids had made patterns and each spot made a different sound. Most of the patterns were circles within circles that had been chiseled out over the turns with the strikes of their flint hammers. Some stones had a multitude of cupped patterns as each hole made a different bell tone. It was really quite a mystical sound when the Druidic Bards lined up around the circle during ceremonies and festivals and played a tune, each striking the stones at different times. 

The entrance to the circle of stones and logs faced east and then south. An exit from the Druid's Circle was at the true north. It led to a trail that went through the bogs and marshes into the Hills of Tara. It was only used in death ceremonies when the body of a fallen Druid or Clan Chief of high esteem was to be entombed in a cairn or dolmen in the Hills of Tara.

Rounded stone boulders with flat tops at table height lined the path leading to the bogs. The only other time the Druids used the northern exit was to place offerings of milk, butter, baked goods, nuts and fruits on the stones that led through the willow trees to the water. The offerings were for the 'Aes Sidhe,' the Faery people who lived in the mounds, waters and the woods of the surrounding lands. At times a herdsman or a farmer would cause damage to a patch of earth or a tree that was under the protection of the Fae Folk. If they were not appeased they could be vicious pranksters causing much damage to crops, harm to the herd animals and even souring milk from the cows. So the Druids would put out the offerings at every holiday and sometimes in between to keep the Faery Folk happy. It was not a perfect relationship with the Children of the Earth but the Druids did what they could to keep them from causing too much trouble.