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The Archdruid of Stonehenge's guide to Pagan Glastonbury

Rollo Maughfling helped pioneer Glastonbury's modern Druidic revival. Here are jogos escapehis top ways to enjoy the spiritual town beyond its famous festival, from sacred sites to Pagan wares.

Glastonbury, a small town in Somerset, England, is most famous for hosting the?Glastonbury Festival, a five-day bonanza of music and performing arts. The event attracts more than 200,000 people annually, with iconic performers from Paul McCartney to Beyoncé taking the stage over its 55-year history. But Glastonbury's contribution to local culture is far more ancient.

Rollo Maughfling is the Archdruid of Stonehenge and Britain. In 1989 he helped found the?Council of British Druid Orders, which secured public access to Stonehenge in 2000. He performs druidic ceremonies throughout the year, both in Glastonbury and at Stonehenge.

(Credit: Fran Gomez de Villaboa)

Set amid the hilly wetlands of the Somerset Levels, Glastonbury has been a spiritual magnet for centuries. In the Middle Ages,?many believed?that Joseph of Arimathea visited with the?Holy Grail,?and the sacred cup is central to the Arthurian legends that infuse the town and its landscapes. Glastonbury is also?considered?the hub of English "Neo-Paganism", a collection of pre-Christian beliefs and spiritual practices undergoing a?modern renaissance, including witchcraft,?Wicca,?the Goddess movement?and?Druidry.

To find the heart of Glastonbury's spiritual side, we spoke to?Rollo Maughfling, the Archdruid of Stonehenge and Britain. For decades, Maughfling has helped spearhead a modern, inclusive form of Druidry.

For Maughfling, Glastonbury's interwoven Christian and Pagan lore is what makes it special. Originally from Cornwall – a land of "quoits and dolmens and strange Druid outcrops and witchy stories, too" – Maughfling moved to Glastonbury in 1971, drawn by its spiritual appeal, where he has lived on and off ever since.

Glastonbury is dotted with shrines and sacred landmarks, from the ruins of?Glastonbury Abbey (founded on a 7th-Century church) to Glastonbury Tor looming above. Its streets stir with witches, Druids, hippies and New Age believers of every stripe – especially during Pagan events, and when festivalgoers spill into town each June, turning it into a kaleidoscope of colour and spirituality.

Maughfling was involved with Glastonbury Festival for 30 years. Along with other Druids, he consecrated the site’s famous stone circle, created in 1993 because public access to Stonehenge was revoked at the time. Did he ever imagine the event getting so big? "There was an enormous feeling that it would," he recalls. But despite its astonishing growth and the town's own development, Maughfling says Glastonbury remains authentically Pagan. "Most people who have been in Glastonbury for any length of time are immersed in the culture," he says.

Here are Maughfling's favourite ways to experience modern – and ancient – Pagan Glastonbury.

Glastonbury Tor ("tor" means hill, in some parts of England) rises 158m above sea level on the town's eastern edge. For Maughfling, it's the preeminent example of how Glastonbury's blend of Neolithic, Pagan and Christian history give some landmarks "a certain energy or presence or power about them, which is sacred".

For an immersive journey, Maughfling recommends a tour of the tor, led by a man called… Tor. Local tour guide Tor Webster is a character deeply versed in Glastonbury lore. "You'll be safe in his hands," says Maughfling. "I can say no more!" Starting on High Street and finishing atop the tor, the tour transports you back in time to explore Glastonbury's sacred sites.

The?discovery of flint tools suggests human activity since the Neolithic period. The Christian ruin of St Michael's Tower sits on top, but the Tor is deeply significant to Neo-Paganism. "It's towards the centre of a great ley line known as St Michael's Line," says Maughfling. "[It] goes across the landscape from St Michael's Mount in Cornwall, up through Glastonbury up to the ancient site [of] Avebury], and on the mound at Eye in Suffolk."

The Tor offers views over town and across the picturesque Somerset Levels, including one of Glastonbury's many disputed legends: the Temple of the Stars, a landscape zodiac proposed by Katherine Maltwood in 1934. "She believed that the stories of the knights and the ladies and their quests – as described in the High History of the Holy Grail, a 12th century manuscript discovered at the Abbey – all seemed to centre around names that were still local," Maughfling says. "She gradually deduced that there was a pattern… a zodiacal pattern."

No Glastonbury Tor visit is complete without visiting its two sacred springs, both said to have healing powers: Chalice Well is "a little garden, beautifully kept and lovely, where you can go and drink from the iron-laden red spring", and White Spring is "underneath the footing of the Tor – a cave with calcium-rich water pouring through it and candles and all sorts." Both are popular with pilgrims, Pagan and otherwise.

Tucked off High Street with a quaint courtyard in the back,?Courtyard Books is Maughfling's favourite place for Pagan literature and learning. "It specialises in esoteric books, old and new, and they have some fantastic titles," he says.

The mysterious little shop stocks everything from magic to alchemy to witchcraft – including many rare finds and lots of second-hand tomes. The shop helps keep Glastonbury's second-hand book culture going, says Maughfling . "It's become a collector's art again, in a second-hand bookshop, to find things that are rare and unusual."

It's also an excellent place to get chatting, either in search of recommendations or insights into local culture. "The owner is very interested in all of this, mythologies and such," says Maughfling, "and he is also perfectly happy to talk to people, if he's not too busy, about Glastonbury's Pagan culture."

Website:?https://courtyardbooksglastonbury.co.uk

Address: 2-4 High St, Glastonbury, BA6 9DU

Phone: +44 1458 835050

This Pagan-infused apothecary and herbalist on High Street, is a veritable treasure trove. It's "a very special shop indeed for the Pagans and esotericists and occultists and witches and travellers and festival-going people… a whole mix of people!" says Maughfling.

Star Child is a sensory delight, its shelves brimming with herbs, oils, ointments, ceramics and candles – all hand-crafted, and many dedicated to zodiac signs and Pagan deities. "The guy who runs it actually goes out in the early morning dew throughout the year, collecting herbs and plants from the local area and compounding the incense," says Maughfling.

There's probably something for everyone, even if you don't know what you're looking for. "Just look around to see the things that seem to resonate with you," Maughfling recommends.

Website:?https://starchild.co.uk

Address: 7 High St, Glastonbury BA6 9DP, United Kingdom

Phone: +44 1458 834663

The?George & Pilgrims Inn has been in operation since the 15th Century, making it the oldest pub in Glastonbury. "It's got a lovely terrace out the back and they do good food there," says Maughfling.

The George & Pilgrims Inn may be Glastonbury's oldest pub, but for quality modern music and a lively beer garden, Maughfling recommends?The King Arthur on Benedict Street. It has "top-class music when it's on – which is most of the time, actually." The gig list features "all sorts of genres, from open mic through to some of the best psychedelic bands in the country," says Maughfling.

It was originally the hospitiumof Glastonbury Abbey, hosting pilgrims and guests. The Grade I-listed building on High Street features an ornate stone frontage in the 15th-Century style, battlement parapets on top and crooked wooden beams inside.

The George & Pilgrim has long been a gathering place for Pagans and the wider community. It's "the sort of meeting place where everyone who was anybody in Glastonbury has stayed," Maughfling says. "John Michell, the famous mystic and antiquarian vision philosopher, stayed there and used to hold court out the back on summer evenings… it gives you an idea of the charm of the courtyard."

Website:?https://www.georgeandpilgrims.com/

Address: 1 High St, Glastonbury, BA6 9DP

Phone: +44 1458 831146

Glastonbury revels in Pagan festivals as well as musical. For Maughfling, one looms large:?Beltane, a week-long Pagan celebration of summer's arrival, in early May. "[It's] really special in the year," says Maughfling, "connected with celebrating the season and merriment… but it's also linked with what we consider to be important world healing time."

Beltane is a week of music, maypole dancing, bardic poetry and other revelry. The?Glastonbury Order of Druids, including Maughfling, also host sunrise?ceremonies atop the Tor. "Prayers are said to the God of the Sun, and the Goddess of the Earth, and a Blessing is sent out to those in need in various troubled parts of the world," says Maughfling. "The coming months of summer is celebrated in song and dance: a very ancient global tradition, with its own unique Glastonbury flavour." Joining a ritual is the best way to engage with Druidry, says Maughfling, because "you're seeing it in practice and you're learning how to do it".

Can't make Beltane? Don't despair. Maughfling recommends following the Pagan Wheel of the Year: a calendar of eight Pagan festivals, or Sabbats, revolving around the solstices and equinoxes. At these times, Glastonbury will be a stir with Pagan and Druidic ritual.

Website:?https://www.glastonburyinformationcentre.co.uk/events/beltane-in-glastonbury/

Address: Glastonbury Information Centre, 1 Magdalene Street, Glastonbury, Somerset, BA6 9EW

Phone: +44 1458 333144

BBC Travel's?The SpeciaList?is a series of guides to popular and emerging destinations around the world, as seen through the eyes of local experts and tastemakers.

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