On Gods and Spirits: My Own Celtic Animistic Pantheon + some random ramblings and thoughts
Edit Note 8/25/2019: This is an old post which may not totally reflect what I still think today but it’s still fairly close to my ideas and I think it still can be an interesting read nonetheless. I may or may not make a more updated post here in a few days. Note that I use the term “the Fey” as if to refer to all nature spirits. I personally would not do this anymore and would instead keep the term to refer specifically to the ideas of the fairies and the Irish and Scottish Sidhe of folklore instead as it should be. Other then this it should still stand up as a decent post nevertheless.
My overall relationship and theological position on the gods is a very complicated and ever-changing one, but it generally revolves around the idea that most if not all gods came from one of the following origins:
1) Once an ancestral spirit, whose importance rose to that of divinity and thus their true origin was, overtime, forgotten about.
2) A spirit of nature, personified by humanity and worshiped in a more personal, human form.
3) Neither of the above, but instead totally and completely formed out of the sheer belief of many people who became convinced of their existence, thus creating a “thought-form” that became its own deified, independent spirit.
This perspective leads to many natural assumptions and conclusions. For example, many people could worship the “same god” but if their beliefs and notions are significantly different from each other, then different versions of that god may begin to manifest. Moreover, by worshiping the “spirit” of a natural phenomenon in the form of a personified deity, different “aspects” of that spirit may form. This leads to some interesting questions, like did the collective “spirit” of thunder storms decide to make gods like Thor, Perun, Taranis, and Zeus, or did humanity make them up and thus spawn them into existence?
At any rate, the importance of the gods on the psychological level seems to be that of fulfilling the need for archetypal role models and guidance. To this end I have come to the conclusion that, at least for me, it does not matter what or how you worship, so long as you’re feeling that inner need for a spiritual connection being fulfilled.
I myself am an animist, in that I believe nature is filled with spirits, all of which are to some extent connected with one another. As a result my belief centers around the worship of three main classifications of spirits, known in the ADF and other Druidic circles as the Three Kindred's.
These are:
The Ancestors
The “Fey” (Spirits of Nature)*
The Gods
*Edit Note: This isn’t really what the ADF calls the Three Kindreds. To the ADF, they are: the Shining One’s (gods) the Mighty Ones (ancestors) and the Noble Ones (basically spirits of nature, which would include, among others, the Fey)
This post will focus on what I’ve come to view as the main “gods” of this world, who are all based on concepts and forces of nature, almost all of which I’ve chosen to view in their “Celtic” forms, as for one reason or another they always appeal to me the most. This may not be remotely a complete list but it should be a good overview and hopefully get all of the main “archetypes.”
*Just to clarify, even though I call these gods by “Celtic” names and use their Celtic personifications and imagery, I’m not really thinking of it as worshiping Celtic gods per-say, rather I’m worshiping the personified form of spirits of nature using their Celtic name.
The Gods and Goddesses
“The Creator”
-”The Creator,” “Ba’al,” the Universal Spirit / Soul, etc,
basically the spirit of the whole universe
The Two Divine Masculines and Feminines:
Note: Think of these not as adversaries, but more like allies with opposing approaches who need each other to preserve the natural balance; don’t think Jedi vs Sith, think Yin and Yang.
The Lord and Lady of Order:
-Bel, or Belenus - God of the Sun and Purification
-Danu - The Earth Mother, and goddess of “pure” love
The Lord and Lady of Chaos:
-Cernunnos - Horned God of the Hunt, the wild and untamed forests, animals, the Otherworld / Underworld, and liberation
-Arianrhod, or Ariana - Goddess of the Moon, of emotions, wild and unrestrained love and sexuality, and divination
The Gods and Goddesses of both Nature and Civilization:
-Taranis - God of thunder, storms, and rain
-Manannan Mac Lir - God of the Sea
-Arawn (roughly pronounced “Are-on” I think) - God of the Underworld, possibly a more specialized aspect of Cernunnos
-Sucellus or Sucellos - God of agriculture, alcohol, and revelry
-Epona - Goddess of horses and travel
-Brigid - Goddess of hearth and home, poetry, creativity, (controlled) fire, love and healing
-Sirona - Goddess of spiritual healing and rebirth
-Maponos - God of youth
-Lugh or Lugus - God of many skills, and of justice, fairness, sportsmanship, and honor
-Ogma or Ogmios - God of knowledge, language, persuasion, and wisdom
-Andraste - Goddess of wrathful vengeance and revolution
-Morrigan - Raven Goddess of war, fate, and death
-Caturix - Boar God of warriors and brute strength and endurance
-Artio - Mother Bear Goddess of guardianship
The “Gatekeeper”
For many in druidry there is a “gatekeeper” who “opens the gates” between the Otherworld and this one, thus facilitating our connection with the gods.
For me this role is fulfilled by~
-Nemetona - Goddess of sacred groves, purification, peace, and serenity
To me this goddess not only serves as an invaluable liaison between me and the divine, but also as a protector of me and my sacred space from any malicious spirits.
Conclusion
So that is the basic rundown of “my” pantheon. It may not be totally complete but it should cover all of the main bases.
Anyway that’s about all for now. Thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings, and I hope you enjoyed it all. If you have any thoughts or questions on this feel free to comment or message me privately if you’d rather and I’ll try to get back to you as soon as I can.
Again, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it!
Further Reading
If you’re interested in reading more about druidry, I’d recommend starting with the official websites of some of the biggest neodruidic organisations, such as:
ADF (A Druid Fellowship): https://www.adf.org/
OBOD (Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids):
http://www.druidry.org/
And for one of the least dogmatic and chillest religious groups ever, I’d suggest the RDNA (Reformed Druids of North America), however their site is outdated and seemingly abandoned, so instead I would recommend the YouTube channel of “John the Verbose”: https://www.youtube.com/user/brojoghost
Or you can find him here on Tumblr @minnesotadruids
Unfortunately I do not live anywhere near Minnesota but if I did you’d better believe I’d be joining their grove, cause they is kewl. There are several other RDNA groves across North America however it’s just sadly none are within a reasonable travelling distance to me, so if you’re interested definitely check them out. Who knows, maybe you live near one of those many groves of theirs.
Oh, and here’s a good side by side comparison of the aforementioned groups:
https://www.danaan.net/druid-cat/druid-group-comparison/
