Conflict

Conflict

"On Tuesday they dressed in their finery,
On Wednesday their common desire was bitter,
On Thursday envoys were chosen,
On Friday carnage was assessed,
On Saturday action was forthright,
On Sunday bloody blades were distributed,
On Monday they were thigh-deep in blood."
   ___ Aneirin, "Y Gododdin" (trans. CM)


    The battle of Catreath in A.D. 600, fought between the northern Britons and the Angles, is commemorated in this epic Welsh poem. The resolution of conflict is never simple. We may long and pray for peace to come, but it cannot be built upon shaky foundations of wished-for pacification. We cannot tiptoe around areas of conflict forever. If we truly want to seek peaceful solutions, we have to be actively prepared to deal with conflict. Principles of arbitration and conflict resolution are traditionally part of the druid path: when conflicts, arguments, and differences arose in ancient times, a druid was consulted as an arbitrator.

"Meditate upon some area of your life where you are in conflict with another person.
  Visualize your opponent as an innocent child, an uncertain teenager, a mature adults, a wise elder. Cease to demonize your opponent. Consider how your conflict warps the world's web, the great net of life and consciousness that binds us all together. With your own issue of conflict in mind, repeat this prayer for peace, written by druid Cairisfiona Worthington:

   "Deep within the still center of my being may I find peace,

Silently with the quiet of the Grove may we share peace.

Gently within the greater circle of humankind may we radiate peace."

Take a period of silence to allow solutions to arise."

[From: "The Celtic Spirit" by Caitlin Matthews]