Originally Posted by Azra

That's a neat idea, Oonagh.  Do you see everything as cells of a larger body or simply interconnected?  Perhaps something different? ÂÂ

sorry, i've not been on this site in *ages*.
everything is connected (think spider web not blob).

What a broad question, and one the should require an indepth answer. So here I go.

I consider myself a Celtic Spiritualist/Celtic Reconstructionists. (Former, Wiccan for those of you who don't know.) As one that requires a sense of structure and almost dogmatic principles in their faith this can be difficult. Though their are not any blatant written records of what the ancient Celts believed, how they specifically practiced these beliefs, or on what their beliefs were based. There is however, a plethora of information to be used. Ancient tales handed down and eventually recorded, accounts by third parties, and recorded information from surrounding and similar belief systems.

Using this information and interpretations from well noted scholars I have formed the following cosmological view of the world and its inhabitants.

Three Realms of existence: Upper, Middle, and Lower.

Upper Realm: Deities are ancestors, which have either provided something very important to our continued existence or achieved a magnificent feat. When they died their soul was removed from the cycle of rebirth so that they might provide continued assistance to our evolution. Their characteristics are just as varied as those of humans today. I do not limit my recognition of deities to the Tuatha dé Danann or just Celtic gods and goddess. I also believe that Gandhi, Buddha, Martin Luther King Jr. and other great persons have achieved this removal from the cycle and can help us today.

Middle Realm: This is where we dwell alongside other natural and otherworldly creatures. We are the reincarnated souls from the Lower Realm (Underworld). There is really only one certainty in the view of reincarnation, "human" souls remain "human." Beyond this their are two plausible views of how reincarnation operates. (That is for another discussion.) The other "spirits," which permanently or occasionally dwell with us are what have been called Sidhe (side, shee, shide), Fae, and the gentry. I prefer the term gentry as the explanation of this group accounted for in "The Fairy-Faith of Celtic Countries" is shared by most folk perceptions.
According to the folk peoples, there are varying levels of the gentry. Those of lower status, "appear to be one yet separate." (When one raises their hand, they all raise their hands.) Their purpose is to aid in the tasks of other gentry. There are those gentry of a higher status strictly limited to perform their specific duties. These are what are more commonly called Sidhe, those that dwell in the hills. Some of them take the spirits of humans to dwell with them. Others help crops grow, aid in conception, provide protection, etc. The highest level of gentry is the Fae, former or current deities (depending on perception and acceptance of mythos) that deal with broad specific problems. Things such as massive death, famine, weather, etc. (I like to think of them as "middle management.") As mythos states, there are times these realms are divided and times and places where the division blurs.

Lower Realm: As I said before, this is where we pass to (are reborn to) when we die in this realm. This place has many regions, levels, and names, which are dependent on such things as the evolutionary status to your soul. There will be a point when either your soul is elevated to the status of deity or you are returned to a collective energy that drives the universe and creation itself. (Awen, Imbas, the Spark of Life...) This is the purpose for the indestructibility of the soul. (Even science tells us that matter cannot be destroyed, it merely changes its condition.)

A long and tedious explanation, I know. However, this is but the tip of the iceberg into the complexities of Celtic Spirituality.

Blessings of Ogma,
Tommy