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For the Deverry series I did a fair amount of research on the actual history of Dark Age cultures so that I could make up a plausible society and a consistent technology. I started out to do the same for the magic worked in this world, but eventually I realized that what knowledge we have about the magic of Celtic lands in the Dark Ages is extremely scant. We can postulate a lot of charms and curses, and indeed, I did incorporate a lead curse tablet into the plot in A Time Of Omens and the subsequent sections of the books that deal with the Deverry Civil Wars. The inscription upon it, by the way, is based upon a curse given in Joshua Whatmough's The Dialects Of Ancient Gaul.
I realize that there are plenty of books available purporting to teach "ancient Celtic magic," supposedly preserved in folk customs or passed down among initiates or even "read from akashic records on the astral plane." Anyone who's inclined to believe these theories might profit from reading two books, The Triumph of the Moon and The Stations of the Sun by Ronald Hutton, a reputable historian whose study of the actual facts reaches a very different conclusion.
What a great many people consider "ancient Celtic magic" is actually the product of the occult movements that flourished in 19th and 20th century Great Britian. Modern paganism is indeed modern, the first and probably only religion ever born in the U.K. Wicca falls into the same category. Most folk traditions only go back so far and not very far at that, perhaps to the 16th century in some cases. Now, I'm not saying that because of their lack of history these religions are somehow invalid or silly. Every religion had to start somewhere and with someone, either a great leader or a group of mystics whose teachings were later codified.
To those who follow the paths of Paganism and Wicca, their mystical experiences have proved the value of their practices. A false history will add nothing to their life-affirming beliefs.
Likewise, as long as the writers of fiction know they're writing fiction, I see nothing wrong with using these magical practices in books. After all, I used them myself. When I realized how fragmentary and downright boring the surviving "ancient Celtic practices" were -- I mean, how many lead curse tablets do you want to see, anyway? -- I decided to put together my own system. I based it mostly on the Golden Dawn material published by various occult presses over the years and added in some authentically ancient practices and beliefs from the religions of the late Roman Empire, particularly Neo-platonic philosophy. Since the Golden Dawn material draws heavily on the Kabbalah, we can also say quite confidently that Deverry dweomer is at least half Jewish.
One major element of the magical events in Deverry does come from surviving Celtic legends, mostly Irish and Welsh: the shape-changers. People who can change themselves into birds and thus fly appear in Old Irish legends such as "The Three Daughters of Llyr". The Welsh culture-hero Taliesyn changed himself into a veritable parade of animals as he attempted to escape from an angry goddess, who changed herself into the natural enemies of those animals as she pursued him. I stole, er I mean was inspired by, this idea nearly whole for the clever way that Evandar eventually defeats his rebellious younger brother in the Fire dragon.
This brings us to the theme of reincarnation that's such a prominent part of the books. Now, ancient writers who knew actual "Celts", that is Greek and Roman writers who knew various Gaulish tribes and individuals, tell us that the druids taught the belief in an afterlife including the transmigration of souls. Whether or not these writers meant what we mean by reincarnation is a moot point. They could easily have been referring to a belief common in the ancient world that a soul can at times live on after death for a time by taking over an animal's body, usually a bird. Some version of this belief did survive for a long time in folk culture. In the late medieval Scottish border ballad "Lord Henry," for instance, the murdered lord becomes a little bird who indites his murderer with its song.
Since we don't really know what the druids taught -- and anyone who doubts that should look into Stuart Piggot's study The Druids or some more modern reference -- I decided to take what my plot demanded and fall back on the more general Indo-European belief in reincarnation. But please, never take this device as an actual historical belief. It may be, it may be not, and I honestly don't know.
Next: Who or what is the Awen? And how did she take over my life, anyway?
The Silver Mage, Katharine Kerr, Deverry, fantasy, Silver Wyrm, dragons, DAW
