Page 424 - Microsoft Word - Belicena respaldo

–My dear Dr. Arturo Siegnagel –the Professor was looking me steadily– What do you
know about the Druids?

The question took by surprise, because I was thinking about it at full pelt, since the same
moment in which the Professor completed his translation.

–I know very little –I said–. That they constituted a kind of Priestly Caste amongst the
ancient Celts. That they practiced the magic and soothsaying… I think that they were reputed
as Wise men and notwithstanding their pagan origin, they possessed a very despicable moral –
All what I knew about the Druids, or Golems, proceeded from the letter of Belicena Villca, and
my opinion about them, as is natural, could not be worse. However I ignored the concept that
they deserved for Professor Ramirez and I was trying to not commit myself condemning them
flatly–. I think that they disappeared after the conversion of the Celts to the Christianity –I
concluded innocently.

The Professor smiled derisive:

–Take a sit Siegnagel that we are going to talk –he stood up and, after that he locked the
door of the office, he poked around for some minutes in the nourished private library. He chose
books hither and hither, puffing of satisfaction when he found any of them that had resisted
for more than thirty seconds. Finally, taking a hanging carpet of an archive, he settled
comfortably on his elbow chair.

–Look Dr. –the Professor started with grave tone–I’ll be sincere: if who brought me that
draw would have been other, I would have kicked him out. But as I know that you are a serious
person, I’ll trust you my thought, because something is telling me that behind this ingenuous
draw there is something else.

I laughed for the accurate intuition of the Professor.

–To start, let’s remember that the best etymology seems to be Druvid, word which is
decomposed in Dru = «thing itself» or «such thing» and Vid = «to know», what would mean «to
know the things per se». The Druid would be then «the one who knows thing profoundly»; but
an older acceptation calls them «the one who knows the truth». You must not be surprised,
Arturo, to know a little about them, due to even though the Druidism was an institution
amongst ancient Celts and many classic writers mention it, their origin and Doctrine remains

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