This is not an easy question to answer. In some respects it’s one of the biggest sticking points in the CR community because in trying to answer it, there is the risk of codifying the path into something that excludes many who identify as Celtic Reconstructionist but take a different approach. For example, some consider themselves to be on a warrior path. Others focus on the druidic path, or one dedicated to the poet class.

One thing that seems to be certain is that there were a variety of social classes within Celtic society as a whole. While the druids are commonly considered to be the priestly class, this doesn’t mean religious expression was confined to the druids alone. Therefore not all (or most, in fact) Celtic Reconstructionists consider themselves to be druids. Instead, they focus on more personal practises usually based on particular roles in society that are relevant to them in the modern day.

For myself, I don’t consider myself to be a druid. I’m a mother of two with a part-time job who mostly looks after the kids and the house. It seems natural to me, then, that my practices revolve around my home and hearth. My beliefs might agree with a lot of other Celtic Reconstructionists, but my expression of those beliefs might differ from others - even those on the same ‘hearthy’ sort of path.

I don’t speak for other members of the CR community in outlining my beliefs, and nor do I speak for others in talking about my practices. These are personal takes on something that has yet to be codified into something that is unified and standardised (something I like about the path, as it happens, but which can be frustrating to a newcomer needing a little guidance…I know, I was a noob once as well).

I focus on Scottish culture, which therefore forms the cultural basis for how I express my beliefs in my personal practises.

I believe in:

• Honouring the gods, my ancestors and the spirits of the place I live in
• The deep connection with kin, land and divinity as being interlinked and intertwined
• Celebrating the cycle of the seasons as expressed by the four Cross Quarter Days of Là Fhèill Brìghde, Bealltainn, Lùnastal and Samhainn
• The three realms of land, sea and sky and the cosmology of the sacred tree (bile) and wells

The hearth is the focus of my practises since I believe it to be central to the home, family and therefore my ancestors. In this sense it provides a link with the past and also the gods, since the flame of the hearth nourishes and warms, just as I believe the gods and ancestors are involved in the well-being of myself and my kin. Therefore tending it helps me focus on my duties to my family and all that my gods provide, and so naturally cooking forms a large part of my celebrations at the Quarter Days, along with other traditional observances based on evidence from folklore. This includes leaving offerings to the Good Folk (or faeries), who were traditionally beings to be feared and propitiated in the hope that they would leave a household alone or even have a hand in providing a good harvest instead of a very bad one, as well as performing divinations related to each of the Quarter Days.

In addition to the Quarter Days I try to perform my Daily Practises and observe additional festival days that are relevant to Scottish practise to honour my gods - such as the triumph of Brigid over the Cailleach on March 25 (Latha na Caillich) according to legend, marking the official end of winter and start of spring, and Hogmanay.

Since Scottish pagan practises are primarily influenced by Ireland - both in terms of the fact that the Dal Riatans, the people who brought Gaelic culture to Scotland, were originally Irish - and then the continued cross fertilisation of Scottish and Irish cultural ideals throughout history, I find that studying Irish sources are invaluable.

My gods are primarily the Irish gods since many of them are (possibly) attested in the Scottish landscape and legend, along with more localised deities such as *Clota, who is specific to where I live (the probable name of the goddess of the river I live by).

And finally, as a Scottish Reconstructionist, I believe that supporting Scottish Gaelic culture is important as well. Since language is a key element of a culture, understanding the language is an important part of understanding my own spirituality. I don’t speak Scots Gaelic fluently (although I'm learning) - yet - but hope to one day, and hope to pass it on to my kids too.