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Carr-Gomm, Phillip. "In the Grove of the Druids. The Druid Teachings of Ross Nichols". Watkins, London. pbk. xv, 264pp. illus. index. 2002. ISBN 1 84293 032 X. £12.99 / $16.95.

For those readers to whom the name Ross Nichols is unfamiliar, as it was indeed to me prior to reading this book, a few biographical words are in order. Ross Nichols was a seminal figure in British Druidry and also played a part in the creation of modern Wicca. To earn his crust Ross Nicholls was a poet, journalist, teacher and administrator. He also inhabited that peculiar British environment of dissent, which encompassed (during his lifetime, 1902 - 1975) such ideologies as pacificism, vegetarianism, socialism, naturism, theosophy and the occult. It is a matrix that is perhaps more familiar to more mature readers of the journal as it is from this very milieu that the British counter-culture of the 1960's sprang and which forms part of the background to this very journal. Yet he also remained a devout Christian throughout his life, and attended his local Anglican churches religiously. However he was also attracted to the more obscure variants of Christianity and was ordained an Archdeacon of the Ancient Celtic Church in 1963, whilst simultaneously also being deeply involved in Druidry. He joined the Ancient Druid Order in 1954 which, on the death of the ADO Chief Robert MacGregor Reid in  1964, he left and founded his very own "Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids." He died in 1975 soon after finishing his "Book of Druidry" which was finally published in 1990.

As for the book, Phillip Carr-Gomm needs congratulating in assembling this collection of miscellaneous writings by Ross Nichols and arranging them under the following themes: Druid Teachings; Esoterica; Christianity; and Mythology. The blurb claims this a study of these works but it is more collection of writings with short introductions. To which one can add Ronald Hutton's Foreword and a biographical essay by Carr-Gomm. As to the quality of Nichols' writings, to say they are uneven is an understatement. Some were polished pieces that were published in journals such as "The Occult Observer" (of which he was Assistant Editor) and the "New English Weekly". Others were drafts for chapters in his book "The Land of the White Bull" (which sadly was never published and much appears to have been lost.) Whilst others are rough drafts or notes for talks which were not intended for publication at all.

He was obviously widely read in many religions and mythologies and in psychoanalysis as well as more occult arts. His attempts at symbolic synthesis now read rather dated and confused. His take on Christianity is more a statement of his inner conflicts than necessarily stating more "universal" truths. Nichols obviously found enough in the structure and teachings of mainstream Christianity for some of his needs, but equally, it was insufficient on its own and needed supplementing from a variety of outside sources.

As for the Druid material, to me this is some of the weakest in the book. That said certain themes will be familiar to those who read International Times in the 1960's. (Indeed there is a letter to IT which shows that Ross Nicholls was familiar with this younger generation of dissidents and seekers.) Historically the material is questionable at times , for example, I'd like to see more evidence of William Blake not only claiming to be a Druid on one occasion but actually being Chief Druid for some 18 years!) Nicholls also discusses the Glastonbury Zodiac at some length in an article taken from The Occult Observer c.1949/50, which is a classic of sorts. (I have to confess to having a two pamphlet set of Mary Caine's ruminations on the "Glastonbury Giants" which drew upon the works of Katherine Maltwood, not to mention the collection of articles by Anthony Roberts on Glastonbury published by Zodiac House.) I doubt if many people take this material seriously these days.

As for his discussions on esoterica, these are, to the uninitiated (like myself) pretty incompressible. They reveal a mind that was adept at piling symbolic systems on top of each other in some form of equivalence. Some readers may find this type of material of use, but it completely baffles me.

Personally I found his writings on mythology to the most interesting. Nichols was very aware of the power of myth, and longed for the filling, he perceived, of the lack of a specifically English (Celtic-Scandinavian in his terms) myth system to equal those of Ancient Greece and Rome or even Scandinavia. He is dismissive of earlier attempts and tried to address the problem himself in his magnum opus "The Land of the White Bull" which, sadly, was never published. The fragment and other essays on the theme that are presented here show an awareness of the social construction of myth and how it cannot be determined from the top down (either by the state or by elements of the intelligentsia) but that it grows "organically" from below from the people, responding to their needs, its authors anonymous. (Here I note that Nicholls' socialism means he is conversant with Marxist writings on the matter, which he includes in his discussion.)

Nichols was also very determined that an English mythos should restore the relationship between the land and the people, reconnecting them with the cycle of the seasons in a meaningful manner (and here we see why his religion took the form it did). To objections that the Arthurian material could form the basis of such a mythos, he carefully distinguishes between legend and myth. Here one can usefully quote at some length the "Statement of Intention" that Ross Nichols co-signed with James Kirkup (presumably the same poet who caused such a furore with his poem about Christ in Gay News?)

"Myth is understood as the presentation of imaginary figures incarnating natural processes, or types expressing aspects of a consciousness of man as nature and nature as man under various aspects, both normally conveying a tragic sense of life and values. Legend is understood as the use of figures originally human, to which heroising transformation has been applied, rendering them to a greater or less degree mythical, as distinct from the fantasy wish-fulfilment of the Fairy tale..." (p.229)

But as Frank Kendon says (p.221) "Myths to be effective sources of power must not yet be seen as myths. Once you have said "let's pretend" you have killed all the vital power ... "

Nichols also knew that the old gods could never be resurrected on a mass scale, they had been shown to be deficient, and that Christianity was unable to provide the symbolic format for his purposes.

So he created his own religion: "The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids" which continues to prosper nearly 30 years after its founder's death. Yet I doubt that the writings in this book will do much to encourage people to join it. As a historic document of a nexus of English alternative culture (in its broadest sense) it is quite illuminating, showing that the 60's counter-culture didn't spring up from nowhere (and neither was it a purely American import) but that the seeds were sown in the 1940's and 1950's by people such as Philip Ross, Gerald Gardner (who knew each other very well) and their colleagues. Alternatively one could argue that Nichols and his cohort, kept alive ideas and developed them which have surfaced at various times in British history. But his attempted synthesis of religions, mythology and psychoanalysis fail to convince, however brave the attempt.

To conclude, this is a well-produced book, which for me, at least, was worth reading more for its value as social history than for its religious importance or contemporary relevance.

6/10

Richard Alexander