Origins: The Mare Goddess
The origin of the Mare Goddess is hardly spoken of anymore. Only a few still whisper of the early days, before St. Columba’s martyrdom. The island of Thisby was a cruel and unforgiving place in those days—perfect conditions for the cruel and unforgiving capaill uisce to thrive.
The Mare Goddess was the island’s original inhabitant, and the capaill were her subjects and charges. She is a fearsome to behold, even more so than her subjects.
There are some myths and legends, most lost to time, that claim the ancient Greeks happened upon Thisby, and that the Mare Goddess was mistaken for Aphrodite. Well, some claim She was mistaken for Aphrodite, while others claim she was the inspiration for Aphrodite. She was as beautiful as She was fearsome, rising out of the waves and sea foam. The Greeks trembled as they beheld this steely, unforgiving goddess. They left offerings to supplicate her and left. Later, some say, the Greeks returned to find the Mare Goddess again, but She did not grace them with a second viewing.
Despite common belief, the Mare Goddess has not left the island. Oh sure, She is portrayed by an islander during the Riders’ Festival, but make no mistake. She walks among us, as surely as the sea spills forth capaill uisce. She is the reason they still come, for without Her, they would cease to exist. She is in the sea and the air and the land. She is the one who grants boons, and while people think receiving the boon from the “Mare Goddess” during the Riders’ Festival is the significant moment, it is really the true Mare Goddess that grants them. She directs who the boon is given to, and she weighs both the supplicant and their wish to decide their worth.
She is with those that love Thisby, and those favored ones feel a peace about the island, a connection with it. Some can hear her in the shhhhhh, shhhhhh of the the sea. Others, those less fortunate, want to leave, and the Mare Goddess sometimes helps them on their way—sometimes benevolently, sometimes not. She could help them start a new life on the mainland, or drag them into the depthless dark of a watery grave.