The Three Circles Of Existence ~ A Druidic View Of Reincarnation

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The Druids believed in a system of reincarnation involving three states of being. This is known as the Circles of Existence and it consisted of three circles representing worlds. The Druids were believers in a form of evolution of souls and that they passed through several successive graduated bodies until at last reaching the human species.

To the Druids, all life began in Annwn. This is the home of the Cauldron of rebirth - the smelting pot of Spirit. Once born the Spirit is within the first world known as the Circle of Abred.

The Circle of Abred (the Circle of Evolutions) consists of animal and plant incarnations up to the human level. It is characterized by suffering, ignorance and compulsion. Known as the world where mankind begins in the lower state of existence, it contains a mixture of good and evil, and mankind is taught to make the right choices and to balance his errors. From this lowest world it was believed that man would pass through the Gate of Mortality, into the next circle.

According to the theosociety.org:

Three necessary things are there in the circle of Abred, — the primordial origin of life, the protoplasm of all things, mortality and death.
Three things shared by every animated being whilst in Abred, Divine aid without which there could be no consciousness, the privilege of sharing in divine love, and harmonious action with the Divine in order to attain the end and object of their destiny.
Three necessary causes operate in the circle of Abred, that of the development of the bodily structure of every animated being, that of the attainment of universal knowledge, also that of moral growth in order to triumph over the spirit of evil (Cythraul) and obtain self-deliverance from evil (Droug) for without these there could be no progress.
Three essentials are there in order to obtain perfect knowledge, reincarnations in Abred, in Gwynfyd and reminiscence of past experiences.
Three are the things inevitable in Abred, the transgression of law (natural and spiritual), deliverance by death from Droug and Cythraul, growth of spiritual life.
Three are the essentials to man's triumph over evil, — suffering, calm endurance of change, — liberty of choosing, by which he can determine his own destiny.
Three are the alternatives offered to man, Abred and Gwynfyd (heaven and hell) necessity and liberty, — good and evil, all in equal balance, man being able to attach himself to one or the other.
By three things man falls under the necessity of Abred; ceasing to strive after knowledge, refusing and resisting good — preferring the evil, in consequence of these he descends in Abred to the place for which he qualifies himself and begins again his pilgrimage through the circle of evolutions.
Three principal things to be acquired in the stage of humanity — knowledge — love — and moral power. These cannot be acquired anterior to the human stage but through the exercise of liberty and free choice. They are the three victories. They begin with humanity and attend it through all the cycles of the ages. Three are the privileges incident to humanity — the adjusting of evil and good, giving rise to comparison — liberty of choice giving rise to judgment and preference — increase of moral power. These are necessary in the working out and accomplishment of human destiny.

The second world is the Circle of Gwynfydd (the Circle of Felicity). Known as a place of Bliss or Happiness, it is through this world that men have to travel after they had passed through their terrestrial lives. It consists of spiritual states of being from the human level up and is characterized by joy, freedom and knowledge. Here, there would be neither want nor adversity, sorrow nor death. However if an individual permitted evil affections and passions to govern him, then back he would descend out of the Circle of Happiness, and Death would return him to the lowest circle where he would suffer punishment in proportion to his offences.

According to the theosociety.org:

Three are the principal blessings in the circle of Gwynfyd, — freedom from evil, freedom from care, freedom from death.
Three things attainable by man in the circle of Gwynfyd, his primordial genius, — his primordial love and memory of past incarnations without which he cannot attain to perfect happiness.
Three are the Divine gifts to man, — a life complete in itself — an individuality absolutely distinct, — and natal genius. These constitute the personality of every animated being.
Three are essentials to universal knowledge — transmigration through the stages of being — the memory of each incarnation and its experience — the power of passing at will into previous states for the enlargement of knowledge and experience and these are attainable in the circle of Gwynfyd.
Three are the things of endless growth; fire or light, — intelligence or truth, — spirit or life; the ultimate result of which is the rule over all things when the circle of Abred (evolution) will terminate.
Three are the things continually decreasing, darkness, error and death.
Three are the things which ever become stronger, Love, Knowledge and Justice.
Three are the things which daily become weaker, Hate, Injustice, and Ignorance.
Three are the beatitudes in Gwynfyd, the reciprocal sharing of benefits, — the willing recognition and ready acknowledgment of individual genius and Universal Brotherhood based upon the love of God. Three are the prerogatives of the Divine, to be self infinite, to become finite in the finite and unification with all the various states of existence in the circle of Gwynfyd.

The third world is the Circle of Ceugant (the Circle of Space) is also known as the Circle of Infinity. It can only be traversed by the Divine. It holds nothing but God, who is spirit and the one governing force of the universe and nature which watches over us all. It is the ultimate space of creation from which all came and into which all will return.

According to the theosociety.org:

To most people Druidism is polytheistic in character, but this however is not the case because Druidism recognised and inculcated the belief in the unity of the Supreme Being, to whom alone the prayers of the people were addressed. It is however true to say that their belief included that the Supreme Ruler of the Universe was assisted by subordinate divinities, who were supposed to act like angels or messengers that possessed no inherent authority of their own. The Druids were also more open and held a great veneration for the elements and also for all of the different parts of the invisible world, for fire, water, the wind, the earth, trees, rocks, etc. for example. Moreover they held, that each aspect of this visible and invisible world was the seat or temple of a subordinate divinity, or angelic being who resided there and directed its operations.. When veneration was given, it was most certainly not to the visible object, whether it was the trees, wind or even the sun, but it was to the Intelligence behind the visible object that the veneration was rendered. Thus they did not adore or worship several gods who were equal both in power and dignity, but only one Sovereign God, who manifested through a large number of subordinate divinities or angelic powers.