Discuss both the role of seers within at least one Indo-European culture and the relationship of seers to other members of the society, including in that discussion how seers or visionaries would have supported themselves or how they would have been supported by their people. (minimum two paragraphs)

In Celtic lands, the Seer is in charge of obtaining luck, determining the will of the Gods, and discovering hidden knowledge. To not heed the advice of a seer meant death, and his or her prophecies always came to pass. Attempts to avoid the predicted outcome always led to the creation of the special circumstances required for the event to take place. Though it is hard to tell, some seers may have "organized sacrifices, acted as judges, and been responsible for the preservation . . . of learning and traditional lore." (Davidson, Myths and Symbols, p. 156-7)

The seer seems to have been near the top of the pyramid in social order, and was likely respected and feared. As an advisor to kings and warlords, he or she was probably supported by the state. It is doubtful that anyone in the first function would need to do manual labour, but it is even less likely that a seer, who would be seen as a liminal in Celtic society, needed to do much work at all. Though we have little evidence, some form of social support can be expected.

 

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