A Candlegrove visitor shares his knowledge of pre-Celtic origins of our culture and customs

"The "Carol of the Bells" is based on the Ukrainian carol called "Shchedryk" which has the same melody as the Carol of the Bells, but different English words. The word "Shchedryk" means the "Generous One". It refers to the god of generosity, the Dazh Boh - the Giver God, which is the sun.

Dazh Boh's feast was on the winter solstice; after all, that is when he started his return. With the coming of Christianity to Ukraine in 988, the people did not forget their ancient customs; they incorporated them into their new beliefs. To this day Ukrainians sing the "Shchedryk" during Christmas season.

My family will not sit down to the traditional Christmas Eve meal, where no meat or dairy products are allowed, without first playing this ancient chant on our record player.

Many of these customs come from pre-Celtic times. An indicator of this ancient culture, which still provides the primordial underpinning of Western Civilization, can be traced from the root word "Gal". We have Gaelic from Ireland, Gaul from France, Galicia from northwestern Spain (where the language is quite similar to Irish Gaelic), St. Paul's epistle to the Gallatians (in Turkey!), the Galati Bridge in Istambul. And even Western Ukraine is called Galicia, Halychyna in Ukrainian.

Many of the customs in all these places have Celtic-druidic elements. Ukrainian and Irish mythology: mermaids, household spirits, etc, are almost identical. This entire culture started in the central Danube region around the 8th century BC. It is now called the Hallstadt culture. It was developed by the wandering Celts who migrated throughout Europe, including eastern Europe, and even into Asia Minor (Turkey).

Its vestiges still remain all over, Yuletide, May Pole, summer water rites, and on and on. Even Julius Caesar commented in his Bellum Gallica (The Gallic Wars) about finding so many votive sites in forests (especially oak stands by springs and streams). And Gallia in his days referred to France, Belgium, western Germany, in fact most lands northwest of Italy.

This whole culture still permeates our entire spiritual outlook.

I share this season with all those who still feel that innocent joy of these ancient beliefs. They are irrational, but that is their strength. They satisfy the subconcious, not logic. They bind us to a hoary past which always brings us comfort and hope for life from the Giver God.

Andrew Zwarun