Nine Virtues

What are they?

The Nine ADF Virtues are wisdom, piety, vision, courage, integrity, perseverance, hospitality, moderation, and fertility. These qualities are something that ADF asks its Dedicants to reflect on. In our work as Initiates we can delve deeper into these concepts and begin to incorporate their themes into our ritual work.

The virtues are loosely divided up into groups of three. The first triad relates to qualities of a spiritual nature. They encourage personal reflection on how we live our lives. The second triad relates to qualities that help you through difficult times, whether they are physical or mental challenges. The third triad relates to qualities that describe ways we interact with the world around us.

The definitions below are from Our Own Druidry.

The First Triad

Wisdom

Good judgment, the ability to perceive people and situations correctly, deliberate about and decide on the correct response.

Piety

Correct observance of ritual and social traditions; the maintenance of the agreements, both personal and societal, that we humans have with the Gods and Spirits. Keeping the Old Ways, through ceremony and duty.

Vision

The ability to broaden one’s perspective to have a greater understanding of our place/role in the cosmos, relating to the past, present, and future.

The Second Triad

Courage

The ability to act appropriately in the face of adversity.

Integrity

Honor; being true to one’s self and to others, involving oath-keeping, honesty, fairness, respect, and self-confidence.

Perseverance

Drive; the motivation to pursue goals even when that pursuit becomes difficult.

The Third Triad

Hospitality

Acting as both gracious host and appreciative guest, involving benevolence, friendliness, humor, and the honoring of a gift for a gift.

Moderation

Cultivating one’s appetites so that one is neither a slave to them nor driven to ill health (mental or physical) through excess or deficiency

Fertility

Bounty of mind, body, and spirit involving creativity and industry, and appreciation of the physical and sensual, nurturing these qualities in others.

an ADF priest kneels down at a fireplace lighting a lantern that has been set on the hearth

Where Are the Virtues Present in ADF Rituals?

When we look at the various aspects of ADF ritual we can begin to see reflection of our virtues at work. For instance, when we make sacrifice and receive blessings in return, we are seeing hospitality at work. It is that reciprocal relationship that exemplifies that virtue.

We can look within our rites and often see the virtues reflected, whether through the ritual actions themselves, or through the seasonal and other stories we tell during the rites.

Using the Virtues in Ritual

When you're considering incorporating the virtues and their themes into ritual work there are some questions you can consider in order to brainstorm ideas.:

Are there any deities or other spirits that exemplify this virtue? How do they exemplify it? What do they think or do?
Are there myths (historical or modern) in various cultures that demonstrate this virtue?
How is this virtue acquired? Is it something you need to learn, or is it something you just are?

a triangle showing the three categories of virtues. Wisdom, Piety, and Vision are at the top corner. Hospitality, Moderation, and Fertility are at the bottom left corner. Courage, Integrity, and Perseverance are at the bottom right corner. The ADF tree symbol is in the middle of the triangle.