The Witch's and Druids Den

Awen Inspired, Pagan Mysticism

Gaulish Adoration

The surviving Roman accounts of Gaulish ritual offer tantalizing glimpses into a complex worldview in which movement, orientation, and the use of the hands were not merely practical acts but deeply imbued with spiritual significance. Through analysis of texts by Pliny, Athenaeus, and inscriptions such as the Chamalieres Tablet, we uncover a consistent and meaningful symbolism related to directionality and polarity in sacred action.

In Naturalis Historia 28.25, Pliny the Elder describes a curious custom: “In adoration, we bring the right hand to the kiss and turn the entire body around, which the Gauls believe is done more religiously with the left.” While the Latin phrasing may appear ambiguous, it suggests a ritual similar to that of thr Romans involving the right hand as the agent of devotion (a kiss, a gesture of piety), while the act of turning—perhaps sunwise—is guided or initiated with the left. This duality hints at a division of sacred labor between the two hands: the right performing acts of offering, the left initiating sacred movement. It evokes a spiritual choreography in which polarity is key, not unlike Indo-European traditions where sunwise (dexter) movement is considered auspicious.

Athenaeus, in Deipnosophists Book IV, adds to this picture: “A slave carries the liquor round, beginning at the right hand and going on to the left; and this is the way in which they are waited on, and in which they worship the gods, always turning towards the right hand.” This passage emphasizes a ritual circumambulation in which movement begins from the right and proceeds around the gathering, yet the turning is always toward the right. Again, we see the right side as the source of favor, of sacred alignment. The ritual is not random but ordered according to a directional sacred logic.

Further details emerge in Pliny’s Natural History 24.62.103–104, where sacred herbs are gathered according to precise ritual procedures. The selago plant must be harvested with the right hand covered and the left hand pulling it up “as if stealing it.” The harvester must wear white, be barefoot, and make offerings beforehand. Similarly, the samolus plant must be gathered with the left hand, by a person who is fasting, and placed only in the trough for livestock. The gatherer may not look behind them. These taboos and formalities frame plant gathering as a liminal, sacred act. The consistent use of the left hand—especially in the context of concealment or restriction—aligns the left with the mystical, the chthonic, and the hidden.

Finally, the Chamalieres Tablet, a magical Gaulish inscription, contains a striking refrain: “place to my right, place to my right, place to my right.” While the tablet’s overall meaning remains partly obscure, this repetition reinforces the power of the right as a sacred position—possibly for protection, guidance, or invoking divine action.

Taken together, these sources suggest a Gaulish ritual system in which directionality and polarity play crucial roles. The right hand and side are associated with piety, order, and divine favor—mirroring the Indo-European idea of dexter as auspicious. The left hand, meanwhile, appears in rituals involving secrecy, magic, or liminal transition. Turning, movement, and even plant gathering are not neutral acts but structured behaviors reflecting cosmic principles.

Left can be interpreted as stepping into magical acts, liminal rites, or threshold moments—where you’re moving into mystery, transformation, or communion with the Otherworld. It’s aligned with acts that are hidden, inner, or transgressive in a sacred way—magic, divination, initiation, or communing with the dead.

  • Giamos
  • Liminality and mystery
  • Death, rebirth, and underworld deities
  • Private ritual and prayer
  • Crossing thresholds
  • Ancestral communion or inner work
  • Initiation and transformation

Right, by contrast, fits regular acts of rite—offerings, feasting, blessings, solar celebrations, communal rituals—structured, orderly, and aligned with visible harmony and praise.

  • Samos
  • Blessings
  • Order and clarity
  • Sacred service
  • Solar or upperworld deities
  • Public ritual and blessing
  • Serving others or the gods
  • Hospitality and virtue

For us modern practitioners, these insights offer a compelling framework. One might consider adopting sunwise turns in ritual, reserving the right hand for offerings or blessings, and acknowledging the left as the hand of mystery and transformation. In doing so, one not only honors ancestral customs but also steps into a sacred dance of left and right, seen and unseen, light and shadow.

Adoration (Reconstruction)

I call this Molātocridiū (praise with the heart)

Inspired by Pliny’s account and the others, we interpret this as bringing the left hand—the hand of mystery and sacred intention—to the lips in a kiss. This is not merely a sign of reverence but a symbolic offering of breath and word, drawn from the unseen and dedicated to the divine. The act initiates the turning of the body sunwise (to the right), aligning oneself with the cosmic order.

  • Raise the left hand to the lips in a gesture of reverence — the Kiss of Offering (Potî Uediās) — a silent prayer to the divine, ancestors or spirits.
  • Initiate a sunwise (dexsiuos) turn of the whole body, beginning by stepping with the left foot, as the Gauls “believe it is more religiously done with the left.”
  • Complete one full rotation in place, aligning with the path of the sun and the order of the cosmos.
  • After the turn, release the Kiss Of Offering, lower the left hand in offering, bring both palms outward or toward the earth.
  • Speak (or think) a phrase of sanctity, such as: Immo Deuoboi or Sertom nōxtetōd/Sertom ē (I go with the Gods or Let it be Done/So be it)

When to Perform the Rite
There are many ways to interpret the ancient sources, and these are my interpretations a modified gesture based on a passage from Pliny and looking at the directions of the other sources. The Rite of Adoration may be performed in a variety of contexts. One may enact it upon entering a sacred space, as a way to acknowledge the divine presence. It can also be done before and after rituals to mark sacred transitions and realign with cosmic order. Yet the rite is not bound to formal ritual—it may be performed anytime and anywhere, as an act of personal devotion, grounding, or reconnection. Its power lies not in location but in intention.

Sources

In adoration, we bring the right hand to the kiss and turn the entire body around, which the Gauls believe is done more religiously with the left.

Plinius, Naturalis Historia, 28.25

“A slave carries the liquor round, beginning at the right hand and going on to the left; and this is the way in which they are waited on, and in which they worship the gods, always turning towards the right hand.”

Athenaeus in Deipnosophists Book IV

There is a plant similar to this Sabine herb, called selago. It is gathered without iron, with the right hand through a tunic (i.e., covered), and is pulled up with the left hand as if stealing it. One must be clothed in a white garment, with pure-washed, bare feet, having first made an offering with bread and wine, before it is gathered. It is carried in a new cloth. The Druids of Gaul have declared that it must be kept as a safeguard against all harm, and that its smoke is beneficial against all afflictions of the eyes.

They (the Druids) have also named the plant samolus, which grows in damp places. It must be gathered with the left hand by those who are fasting, as a remedy for the diseases of pigs and cattle. The gatherer must not look behind them and must place it nowhere except in the trough. There it is to be crushed for those who are to drink it.

Natural History Book 24 Chapter 62, 103–104

In the name of the good strength of the underworld gods, I invoke Maponos of Arverion. Pursue… those with the magic of the infernals. Gaius Lucius Florus Nigrinus the accuser, Aemilius Paterinus, Claudius Legitumus, Caelius the stranger, Claudius the stranger, Marcus Victorinus, Asiaticus Ađđedillus and everyone who would… these enemies. If it is reduced it is full. I straighten what is crooked. I (still?) see blind… place to my right, place to my right, place to my right.

Chamalieres Tablet