Our rivers need help

Whether you love or hate the idea of the Calne River Blessings, they have become a regular feature in Calne's diary of events.

Cllr Robert MacNaughton organised the first blessing in 2023 and since then, the event has seen a steady increase in interest. But what is the story behind it and what inspired Robert to start the tradition in Calne?  

by Cllr Robert MacNaughton

It all started way back in the summer of 2019 when I noticed an article that said nearly all the rivers in England are in bad health. I thought we must do something about it and with friends here in Calne in North Wiltshire,
we formed a local river group called the Friends of the Marden Valley 

After Covid in November 2022 we held our first River Festival where we declared the Rights of the River Marden. I am a local town councillor, so was able to ask our town crier to declare the Rights from the four directions – a tribute to the many years I had spent in a Druid Grove in North Oxfordshire.

I had seen a photo of the Bishop of London blessing the River Thames, and decided that that is what we were going to do next. I contacted our local Bishop, Andrew of Ramsbury, and I suggested he come for a walk with me, and others, to the real Source of Life – the Source of our local River, the Marden. He agreed.

Like many others, I know rivers to be living beings, that they have sentience, and that they need our support in dealing with the poisons and sewage that our selfish corporations are pouring into them, aided and abetted by our inept government. The general election won’t change anything with respect to the abuse of our rivers, in our opinion.

At our first River Blessing in March 2023, I introduced Kate, our shamanic practitioner from Stroud, to Bishop Andrew, gave them a pair of waders each, and asked them to create a blessing together. They only had half an hour to work it out but everything went well. They are both musicians, and love singing. Kate has had shamanic training in South America, and she created a despacho, a wreath of flowers made by the children who came to the blessing, and Kate herself. Once the despacho had been made, Kate and the Bishop got in the river and sang to each other from their different traditions, before releasing the wreath. Around 80 people came from the town to watch. 

I was elected Mayor in May 2023, and announced our group would be holding river blessings through the South West of England for my mayoral year. Being the ‘Druid Mayor’ helped attract attention and interest.

Each participant in the blessings is asked to bring a flower and water from their local area. The waters are mixed into one jug, the flowers are woven into a despacho, and each person steps forward in the circle we make, to talk about the water they have brought, and share any anecdote they feel is important.