The Faerie Faith is an ancient Welsh and Pictish folk belief that evolved into a religion from both Druidic and Witchcraft sources around the time Christianity took root in Wales. Based on Shamanistic folk lore and myth, this religion has shaman and magickal foundations. It's priesthood evolved from Pictish Shamans and Folk Witchcraft sources . It is said that it's hierarchy are faerie doctors, cunning men, men in black or wise women. These are people who have seen and interacted with faeries and obtained the knowlege needed to see and experience them.
Based on the ancient Welsh gods of Don, the teachings evolved into a oral Faerie Tradition. The Children of Don chose to stay in Wales after the invasion of the Celts, and took refuge under the hills. Faerie Folk of Wales or Y Tylwyth Teg are man sized Faeries, and supposedly the spirits of Pict heros. They live underground, in Dolmens or underwater. Of these we can derive the Heroic Faerie and the Medieval Fairie. Wales has two races, a visible race called the Cymry and the invisible Faerie People or the Tylwyth Teg.
The tradition of Y Tylwyth Teg derived from Dynion Mwyn, was named after these Welsh Faerie people of the OtherWorld.
One of the most important functions of a High Priest and/or High Priestess is a knowledge of not only the seasons and their various influences, but to know which god or goddess rules during which period of time, and being able to be a mediator between your human members of the coven and the Gods. The importance of this art and duty cannot be minimized because all knowledge flows from the gods.
The Welsh pantheon of tribal Gods consists of a very passionate, and inspired Mythology, rich in magick, enchantment, battle and wisdom. Both Gods & Goddesses are somewhat equal in the Welsh Tradition depending on their aspects, but their relationship to each other and humanity, is very complex. It is a religion of Duality, with one diety complementing the other. These Deities are called upon for different reasons because each is a particular personification of the Great Spirit and represents certain primary aspects: agriculture, weather, hunting, prosperity, love, war, etc.
By recognizing and calling upon our gods, we also awaken our own intuitive and creative aspects. We re-establish a harmonic relationship with the inner reality represented by the children of the earth. Our tribal ancestors knew this secret, and included it in their religious beliefs and practices. The Earth's first children were the Gods, and their children were the heros who came after. By identifying with this ancient pantheon, we establish links with age old energy of a very powerful order. This is always done in a very creative context, since we look at each person as an individual expression of the Gods and Goddesses. We also recognize that the stories of our heroes which occur in Triads, stories, and song, also awaken these aspects and inspire us to wisdom and knowledge.
We discover our innermost fires and embrace the female and male part of ourselves in all their aspects. The Goddess is incorporated within her aspects of the Virgin Maiden, Mother and Wise Crone. The God is worshipped in his aspects of: the Virgin Lad, the Warrior, and the Wise Man.
Nature is deified in all its forms. Trees and flowers are given names that symbolize certain personalities and archetypal energies. The wrinkled faces of stones are the faces of our gods. This is the religion of the Earth Mother and Sky Father. By selecting one or more of the Gods and/or Goddesses listed below to work with, certain archetypal energies within your life can be contacted, activated and amplified. In this way it is possible to synthesize their energies into your life.
Our deities show themselves as the female principle of fertility and creation, The Lady (or the Goddess), and the male principle of procreation, The Lord (or the God) (which are but two of it aspects). This belief is completely compatible with all religions; for if we were all created in Gods image...man as well as woman...then God must be Female as well as Male. We believe that divinity is as likely to manifest in female form as it is in male form, and therefore, women and men are spiritually equal. The Gods manifest at any point in space or time, including within human beings, which they might choose to do, although they may often have other preferences. Underlying all religious teachings are similar ideas. In truth, the gods have many names but they are still only an attempt by humankind to give form and substance to its beliefs. Welsh Witches believe that divinity is both internal and external. We believe in a multiplicity of gods and goddesses, all of whom are to be respected, loved and worshipped. Sometimes we believe in these divinities as individual and independent entities; sometimes as archetypes of a collective unconscious; sometimes as aspects or faces of one or two major deities, Goddess and the God; and sometimes as "all of the above" We feel this sort of flexibility leads to spiritual balance and an increased tolerance of other people's beliefs and lifestyles. All of these ideas are vital if our species is ever going to learn to live in peace and harmony amid a multiplicity of human cultures;
A seeker may personally meet the God and Goddess in the process of meditation and during rituals, and can experience the God and Goddess on the inner planes as well as the physical level. We therefore take the position that the God and Goddess is everything and everywhere. All living creatures are the children of the God and the Goddess, and like them, have a spiritual as well as a physical existence. We believe that true realization of our oneness with the God and Goddess, the Lord and Lady, will give us true understanding and enlightenment, which is our ultimate goal as well as the result of our spiritual evolution.
This glorification of the God and Goddess constantly heightens truth within each person, thus allowing us to realize a accurate understanding of the precepts of our faith. We see our God and Goddess in all things. Our deities are symbolized by the Earth and the Sun respectively because in our reality, Nature and Spirit are linked. Without this relationship there would be disharmony and imbalance. We believe it is necessary to have a respect and love for Nature which is divine in her own right, and to accept ourselves as a part of Nature and not as her "rulers." We accept what has come to be known as "the Gaia hypothesis," that our planet is a living being who deserves all the love and support that we, her children, can give her. This is especially important in our modern era, when 3000 years of a monotheistic belief that "mankind is to have dominion over the Earth" has come close to destroying the ability of the Earth to maintain herself. Thus we consider ecological awareness and activism to be sacred duties.
We believe that it is possible to communicate directly with the God and Goddess who have secret names which are never written down and have meanings known only to a few. By keeping the names secret, we preserve the powers which we may invoke for the benefit of ourselves and humankind. Using these names, we relate to and communicate with our Gods on a personal level.
The Gods love humanity, and our rituals take the form of dance and song...a celebration of life, in which we give our thanks to the Gods; for if the Gods are to help us, we must help them. This help takes the form of special types of Magick which is essential to the celebration of the mysteries of Welsh Witchcraft. Magick, which is normally defined as Action in Accordance with Will (or Actualization of Mental Energy), can be used to obtain that which we desire, as long as it is not used for selfish reasons. We believe that with the proper training, human minds and hearts are fully capable of performing most of the Magick they are ever likely to need. This is done through the use of what we perceive as natural, divinely granted psychic powers. As with many other traditions, the practice of Magick is a central part of most of our rituals. Unlike Christians, we see no clear-cut division between magic and prayer. Neither, however, do we assume an automatic connection between a person's ability to perform miracles, and their spirituality.
The importance of the Craft for women, is a direct outgrowth in the decline of Goddess religions and the rise of God dominated religions. Male images of divinity are characterized in both western and eastern religions today, and women are thus deprived of religious models and spiritual systems that can speak to female needs and experiences.
In male dominated religions, women are discouraged from exploring their own strengths and realizations. They are taught to submit to male authority, to identify masculine perceptions as their spiritual ideals, to deny their bodies and sexuality, and to fit their insights into a male mold, no matter how ludicrous that may seem.
Our cosmos is modelled on the male and female bodies. All phases of life are sacred and age is a blessing, not a curse. The God and Goddess, do not limit women to their bodies. They awaken the minds and spirits and emotions. Through her, they can know the power of anger and aggression, as well as the power of love.
MOTHER EARTH
Living on her surface in the everyday turmoil of "living", we tend to forget the great wonders of our Mother: She is almost eight thousand miles in diameter and almost twenty-five thousand miles in circumference. She completes one rotation every twenty-four hours at a speed of approximately 1000 miles per hour. She is nourished by the proximity of her Father\Husband\Brother star, our sun, around which she dances every 365 (and a quarter) days, completing a voyage of 760 million miles every year at a speed of 66,000 miles per hour. Her nourishment comes in the form of heat, light and other radiation streaming continuously out of her husband, The Sun along with actual atoms and molecules of what we call the solar wind. And like smaller creatures, the Earth stirs in her sleep, breathing in her own way, her skin slowly wrinkling, her sore spots volcanically breaking out but almost as quickly healing over again, her magma juices circulating, her flexible flesh, skin and breath metabolizing, her electromagnetic nerves flashing their increasingly vital messages. Intermittently she also rumbles with confined internal gases, utters earthquakes, dreams strange dreams and through us, her inhabitants, she feels awareness.
Her continents are also dynamically related, each land mass moving a few inches a year under complex pressures of planetary circulation. Her central core is a ball of solid nickel-iron bigger than the moon and immersed in a molten outer core, with an oscillating transfer of rotation between the two. Earth's magma flows in a dynamic crystal pattern associated with her magnetic field, which, as she moves through space, is shaped somewhat like a comet, because of the solar wind blowing away from the sun.
She is very fluid, not only in her internal and outer circulations but also on her surface. In fact, her oceans, lakes, rivers, glaciers and atmosphere contain about millions of cubic miles of water, hundreds of miles which evaporate every day, enough to lower the worlds sea level a tenth of an inch, were it not ceaselessly renewed by rivers and rain. This means there is a complete cycle of water flowing through Earth's land, sea and sky every three thousand years.
The energy cycle of the earth participates in the atmospheric cycle as well as the cycle of the oceans (Earth, Air and Water.) The earth cycle is divided into the grazing chain and the decay chain which participates in the photosynthesis cycle. Photosynthesis converts one tenth of one percent of the energy that the mother receives from the father, into organic matter.
But there are also other phenomena linking the Sun, the Planets and the distant Galaxies in a web of electromagnetic and higher frequency energy waves. The closest and most well known is the gravitational and electromagnetic pull of the moon on the Earth (tidal effects on the oceans as well as electromagnetic effect on the earths core). The solar wind of ionized gas that flows outward from the sun maintains speeds of 180-310 miles per second. Cosmic rays bombard the Earth continuously. Modern astronomy, astrophysics and quantum physics are investigating areas of knowledge which unbelievably stretch the human consciousness. The more that is unveiled, the more fantastic and exquisite the mysteries of life become. These communications can best be understood as an unfolding Spiritual revelation of the God and Goddess.
By Spirit, we mean that everything which can be experienced by our normal five senses has a dynamic and real existence at a higher frequency energy level. Sometimes these invisible energy states (X- rays, gamma waves, cosmic rays, etc.) can be measured by scientific instruments. Sometimes not. This leads to a primary belief of our religion: that the God and Goddess manifests as Life through Matter (or Form). Therefore The Earth that we are living on is only the form or lower frequency energy state of a higher frequency electro- magnetic essence (Danu, the Goddess).
These and other cycles and circulations illustrate the complex organism that is our mother, the earth. She has maintained a constant temperature over the past four billion years despite the fact that she receives two times as much heat as she did in her early years! This stability is because she is alive, she adapts, and she has a consciousness that is aware of her condition. For many thousands of years we of Welsh Witchcraft have known about this consciousness of our mother, have spoken to her and been answered. She has given us the secret knowledge of the mysteries of life itself.
THE GODDESS
The Goddess symbolizes the mystery of three, the cycle of life, death and rebirth, playing out one's karmic role ever walking toward the Gate of Inspiration, and once there, to pass through to await rebirth on the physical plane and start over. We all know this cycle. But are there any deeper, personal teachings the Cymry hold as the secrets of our tradition? Yes. To become one with the family of the Cymry means to become one with the knowledge handed down during the generations of seekers and teachers; the mysteries given by the Goddess and God in our rituals, celebrations and individual lives.
The image of the Goddess inspires women to see themselves in a very different light. As Daughters of the Goddess, they are divine, their bodies are sacred, and the changing phases of their lives are holy. Their aggression is healthy, and their anger can be purifying. Their power to create and nurture as well as their ability to limit and to destroy, when necessary, is seen as the very force that sustains all life. Through the Goddess, women can discover their own strength, enlighten their minds, own their bodies and celebrate their emotions. They can move beyond narrow constricting roles and become whole people. For women, the Goddess is the symbol of the inmost self and the beneficent, nurturing, liberating power within all women.
The Goddess is woman and man in all their infinite splendor. She is the passion that flows between lovers and all acts of loving pleasure are her rituals. Women and men are equal in her sight. She teaches love of each other regardless of color, ability, age, shape, size or type.
The Goddess is Magick, the subtle forces of planets, moons and stars, and the power of our own internal thoughts and feelings. She is our ability to call forth that which we have need of (once in the month, and better it be when the moon is full), and to banish that which we have achieved. It is in praise of the Goddess that we come together and join with the forces within to further peace and nurture the Earth.
The Goddess is also the dance of the seasons in the cycle of the mysteries. She is the maiden flowering in the spring, the woman bleeding, the mother giving birth, the lover loving, the grandmother growing wise, the crone dying, and the spirit child being reborn. Each stage of her is sacred, beautiful and necessary to the whole. Although the Goddess is known by many names during the aeons of mankind, the Cymry frequently call the Triple Goddess by the names of Arianrhod for the maiden, Rhiannon for the mother, and Cerridwen for the crone.
We see the Goddess in many different forms. We experience her as the Earth which is the mother of us all. In this form she fills us with awe and wonder as we experience the myriad forms of life that emanate from her womb. When the flowers bloom, we see her as the eternal maiden who fills us with inspiration. When the plants produce their fruits and grains, we see her as the all giving, all nurturing Mother; and when the land is barren, we see her as the Crone of death to which everything returns. All forms of matter are children of the Great Mother.
The Image of the Goddess has a great deal to offer men. Men are oppressed in a God ruled, patriarchal society. Men are encouraged to identify with a model that no human being can possibly live up to. But in a balanced religion, the Goddess becomes the mother who: will never abandon her child, will never refuse to nurture him when he is feeling his most vulnerable, and; tempers her justice with compassion and understanding. She does all these in ways not always possible in human women and other men.
For a man, the Goddess is his own hidden Female self, as well as being a part of the Universal Life force. She embodies all the qualities society teaches him not to recognize in himself. His first experience with her may therefore be somewhat stereotypical, in that she appears as the cosmic lover, the gentle nurturer, the eternally desired Other, or the Muse. As he becomes more whole and becomes aware of his own "female" qualities, she changes, to show him a new face. Always holding up a mirror, she shows what may seem unknowable to him. As the Moon, he may chase her forever and she will elude him, but through the attempt, he will grow until he too learns to find her within.
THE HORNED GOD
The Horned God is born of a Virgin Mother and is a model of male power. He has no father, because he IS his own father. As he grows and passes through the changes on the Wheel, he remains in close relationship with the prime nurturing force of the Goddess. The Horned God represents powerful, positive male qualities that derive from deeper sources than the stereotypical violence of some men present in our society. When a man strives to emulate the God, he is free to be wild without being cruel, angry without being violent, sexual without being coercive, spiritual without being chaste, and able to truly love.
For men the God is the image of inner power, and of a potency that is more than merely sexual. He is the undivided Self, in which mind is not split from the body, nor spirit from flesh. United, both can function at the peak of creative and emotional power. Men are not subservient or relegated to second class spiritual citizenship in Welsh Witchcraft. But neither are they automatically elevated to a higher status than women, as they are in other religions. Men in the Craft learn to interact with strong, empowered women.
Many men find this prospect disconcerting at first. For women raised in our present culture, the God begins as a symbol of all those qualities that have been identified as male, and that they, as women, have not been allowed or encouraged to own.
The symbol of the God, like that of the Goddess, is both internal and external. Through meditation and ritual a woman invokes the God and creates his image within herself. In this way she connects with those qualities that she may lack. As her understanding moves beyond culturally imposed limitations, her image of the God changes and deepens. He becomes the Creation, which is not simply a replica of oneself, but something different and of a different order. True Creation implies separation as the very act of birth is a relinquishment or letting go.
Through the God, women find this power within themselves, and so, like the Goddess, the God can empower women. In the Craft, the cosmos is no longer modeled on external male control. The hierarchy is dissolved and the heavenly chain of command is broken. "Divinely Revealed" biblical texts are seen as poetry not the "Word of God." Instead, a man can connect with the Goddess who is intrinsic in the world, in nature, in women, and in his own feelings. She is intrinsic in everything that childhood religions taught need to be overcome, transcended, and conquered, in order to be loved by God. The very aspects of the Craft that seem threatening also hold out to men a new and vibrant spiritual possibility: that of wholeness, connection, and freedom.
The Goddess and the God, our Supernal Parents, guide us through our many lives in ways that may be mysterious to some who have not been initiated. They appear to us in many disguises in our daydreams, dreams and visions. They also affect our relationship with our surroundings. When we properly recognize each of them and we allow their influence to balance us, we grow healthy, happy and spiritually mature. When we deny them, or attempt to follow one to the exclusion of the other, we become unhealthy, unhappy and spiritually destitute.
THE GODS AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LAND
In the Welsh Faerie tradition each God and Goddess is represented by a totem animal which symbolizes the power of the deity in our daily life. This relationship between animals and deities, has over the eons, built a complex relationship of religious rituals, energies of the land, and magickal practices. This same philosophy is applied to trees, plants, mountains, springs and the weather.
Every Land or tribal location has a Sacred Centre of Divine Being.
Following is a summary of major Welsh totem animals and their divinities:
The Owl is associated with Bloeddewedd, and is a symbol of knowledge.
The Stag is associated with Cernunnos. This is the aspect of the wild hunt in which the spirits of the dead are transported to the underworld. The horns of the stag are symbolic of the Lord of the Animals. Also associated with Merlin.
The Serpent is also associated with the God Cernunnos and is found on Torcs, the sacred neck ornament. Some serpent Torcs also have a ram's head which symbolize the power of nature and animals.
The Horse is associated with the Goddesses Epona and Rhiannon. This represents the power and fertility of the horse connected to the Kingship of the clan.
The Bear is associated with the Goddesses Artio and Andarta and the Gods Arthgen (Arthur) and Artogenus. The Bear symbolizes the King's connection to the land as well as the Constellation Arcturus, The Great Bear.
The Bull is associated with the God Esus, trees, and the three Cranes.
The Boar is associated with the Goddess Ceridwen and the God Math.
The Pig is thus closely associated with shape shifting transformative powers as well as necromancy and flight.
Other important totem animals are:
the Raven is associated with the goddess Morrigna,
the Salmon of Knowledge is associated with, the Hare is associated with,
and the Ram is associated with the God Cernunnos.
The Celtic Cross, the Winged Ankh, and the Pentacle are also symbols of these mysteries. The Celtic Cross is the equal armed cross in a circle which is the symbol of male and female energies confined only by the boundaries of the Universe. The Ankh represents eternal life and the Pentacle represents spiritual and earthly power; the point of the pentacle is always pointed up, meaning good, never down, which symbolizes evil.
We believe that when we die, we travel to that land beyond the veil of Maya, where weary souls repose within the realms of the Horned One and the Great Mother, to grow young again and to be reborn upon the earth. This is that fair land of nod called GWLAD YR HAV or the Summerland. It is the land to which the Wiccae go when they leave this life on earth. This is the abode of the Gods and Goddesses. There are many different deities within the Welsh Tradition.
Y TYLWYTH TEG TRIBAL GODDESSES: THE SKY GODDESS
Her name is Arianrhod. She is called the Blue Virgin of the Outer Darkness. She is the whole Universe, created and un-created, before and after. She is the great infinite one who divided herself and brought forth light. The Star Goddess appears as a beautiful woman with great wings, her whole body Dark Blue, her hair sprinkled with a million stars. She is seated on a throne of amber with a silver egg in her lap, surrounded by a halo of blue flames. Her emblem is a serpent with its tail in its mouth.
THE CORN MAIDEN
Nimue, the Spring Queen. She is the spirit of new growth, of both plants and animals. She is the daughter of the Earth Mother, the spirit of all her children. The Corn Maiden appears as a young girl, her body shining white, holding a silver bow. Her emblem is a six- day-old crescent Moon, which She wears upon her brow. Nimue also takes a prepubescent form whose color is pink, and who is the first emanation of the Star Goddess. She appears as a young child, naked or robed in white or pink, and is especially associated with caves and wells. Nimue also known as Morgan, is "the lady of the lake", who is mentioned in the Arthurian legends. She was Merlin's half- sister and "the trickster". She tricked the secret of enchantment from Merlin, and she demonstrates the virtue of responsibility to the seeker. She welds the power of healing and Magick and is the guardian of woman's powers dedicated to higher wisdom. In order for her powers to become awakened, your desire and energy must be pure and sacred.
THE GREAT MOTHER
Donn (Danu), the great mother goddess; she is an embodiment of the forces of the sacred land. This can range from the family to the solar system or a pattern of stars. She is also called Mari (Mary) and is the spirit of Earth, Sea, and Sky. The world is her body, and through it she manifests. She gives us birth, nourishes and sustains us while we live, and receives us back again in death. She appears as a tall, majestic woman standing naked upon the sea. Her hair is black, and covers her like a veil. In her aspect as Modron (Matrona), she is the archetypal Mother Goddess who is mother of The Land. Her breasts are full and heavy, and her belly is swollen and round. Her entire body shines like silver. She wears a circle of twelve stars around her head. Her emblem is the full Moon.
THE CRONE
Ceridwen or Kerridwen, Ceridwen, Caridwen, (sometimes spelled with two r's), the Mother Goddess of corn, inspiration & keeper of the Cauldron of Knowledge; she is the symbol of the Witch and her name translates as "the Cauldron of Wisdom". She has the power of Magick and prophecy and she helps the seeker to find their own powers; beware of anger that is the cause of your powers being stolen; best known for her role in the story of the poet Taliesin's childhood. There was born to her a son named Morvan ab Tegid, and a daughter named Creirwy, the fairest maiden in the land. These represent the dark and light aspects which are part of her makeup; If you align herself with Ceridwen, you must be ever watchful that you are conscious of all life and magickal operations around you in order to guarantee a complete success.
Her symbol is the Cauldron which is the symbol for prosperity and rebirth. Her totem animal is the White Boar or Sow which also represents the moon as well as Ceridwen's crone/transformation aspect. The Pig is thus closely associated with shape shifting transformative powers as well as necromancy and flight. She is the consort of Tegid Foel. In the Taliesin story, Ceridwen prepared a brew in a great cauldron which was to give her son Afagddu the gifts of inspiration and knowledge to compensate for his ugly appearance, and set the child Gwion to stirring it. However, Gwion tasted the brew and thus obtained its benefits. Ceridwen, realizing what had happened, pursued the boy, during which both she and Gwion transformed themselves into a variety of creatures.
Finally, Ceridwen in the form of a hen, swallowed Gwion in the shape of a grain of corn. However, this only served to impregnate Ceridwen, and she later gave birth to the rejuvenated Gwion. She wrapped the infant up in a leather bag and threw him into the river. The child was rescued by a fisherman on May eve, who, struck by the child's beauty, named him Taliesin ('radiant brow'). He became the great bard Taliesin, and attributed his magic talents to her. She is also called Anna or Annys, the Hag and Queen of the Dead. She is the spirit of night and the sleeping body of the Earth in winter, the realm of the dead. She is also the primordial Priestess, often called "the Black Anna of the Forbidden Mysteries." The Crone appears as a very old woman, wrapped in a hooded black cloak. Her skin and hair are pure white. She holds a great curved silver sickle, and She is crowned with nine blue stars. Her emblem is a black raven.
Y TYLWYTH TEG TRIBAL GODS: THE GOD OF THE BLUE STONES
Danaglas is also called the Serpent in the Well and the Flower King. He is the spirit of Spring, youth, and potency. His seed is the life- giving moisture of rain and rising springs. He also represents the human Divine Spirit, from His quality of pure innocence. The Blue God appears androgynous; he has the breasts of a young girl, and an erect penis. His body is a light, silvery blue. He wears about His neck a great serpent, and in His hair are peacock-eye feathers. He is represented by the stones in the avenue at Avebury. His emblem is a golden peacock with a silver star on its breast.
THE HARVEST LORD
Twr (Welsh for tower) is the Corn King. He is the spirit of Summer, a spirit of Light and Heat in its aspect of nourishing and energizing life. He is the son and lover of the Earth Mother. The Harvest Lord appears as a stag-headed man. His body is completely golden: skin, hair, eyes, and horns. His neck is wreathed with a garland of summer flowers and green leaves about the neck. His emblem is a golden sun.
THE WINTER KING
Arddu (Old Welsh, "royal darkness") is the Dark Lord and King of the Dead. He is the spirit of winter and death. In Witchcraft, Death is called the Great Teacher, and so the Winter King, as the bringer of death, is the giver of wisdom and knowledge, the Guardian of the Mysteries. The Winter King has the black wings of a bat, the breasts of an old woman, and the head, horns, and legs of a goat. Between his horns rises a flaming torch. On his forehead is a large red jewel. The Bull is also associated with him.
THE HORNED KING
Kernunnos, the horned one, the Celtic "Father of Animals" with his companion Stag and Boar is associated with Cernunnos, connected with fertility and wealth. Cernunnos is depicted as the 'horned god', with the antlers of a stag, most notably on the famous Gundestrup cauldron discovered in Denmark. This is the aspect of the wild hunt in which the spirits of the dead are transported to the underworld. The horns of the stag are symbolic of the Lord of the Animals. He is an archetype of masculine energy in balance with the natural world. He is the god of wisdom & woodlands; God of green and growing things; he is pictured sitting cross-legged with antlers growing out of his head, in meditative entrancement with nature; around his neck Kernunnos wears a torc, commemorating his sacred marriage as husbandman to Mother Earth; with his right hand he bestows upon the seeker a torc of initiation. Held under control in his intuitive left hand is the ram-headed serpent connoting sexual power and vitality. He is also known as Hern the Hunter, saxon god of wisdom, and as such he is often pictured leading the Wild Hunt with a pack of white hounds with red ears.
The Welsh Tribal Gods are further divided into three families: the children of Donu (Dione, Diana); second, the children of Nudd (Lludd, Lud); and third, the children of Llyr (Le'r, Lir). A fourth family, the Children of the Dagda is also included below as it's dieties were shared by Ireland and Wales. These Gods may also be defined within the three broad categories of Gods and Goddesses within the Three Worlds: Primal Underworld which is also Stellar; Solar and planetary...the divine powers of creation; and the Lunar forces of nature controlling the order of living beings on the Earth.
THE CHILDREN OF DONN
The Children of Donn are the Gods of the Heavens; the constellation Cassiopia is called "Donn's Court", the constellation of The Northern Crown (containing Polaris, the Pole or North Star) is called "Caer Arianrod" - the Castle of Arianrod, who was Donn's daughter. The Milky Way is the "Castle of Gwydion" - The son of Donn.
Beli, Bile, Belenos), Master of the Gods; God of the power of light and beauty with many solar attributes. Identified with Apollo, is the consort of Donn and the father of Nudd. Donn herself has a brother, Math son of Mathonwy (who is Beli under another aspect). Math means "Treasure". Math, vab(son of) Mathonwy; is also the god of wizardry and transformation; he changes his shape into that of animals and birds; he is guide to many mysteries; It is a common belief among our people that wisdom as well as wealth came originally from the underworld (Atlantis), and Math hands down his magickal lore to his sisters son and pupil Gwydion, who, there is good reason to believe is also known as Woden or Oden to the teutonic tribes of Scandinavia.
Thus equipped, Gwydion son of Donn, became the Druid of the Gods, the master of fantasy and illusion, the teacher of all that is useful and good, the helper and friend of humankind, and the perpetual fighter against the powers of evil, for the good gifts which they would not allow out of their keeping. Gwydion, is the bardic god of Wisdom is a nephew to King Math; he is also the arch mover and a magician. Gwydion's brothers, Amaetheon, God of Agriculture; this is the God of the Earth and of the East, and Govannan, blacksmith of the Gods; the brother of Amathaon and Gwydion. It was Govannon who slew the sea god Dylan. God of the South; fight shoulder to shoulder with Gwydion in the war of "learning" against ignorance. In another aspect he is also Nwyvre, husband and son to Arianrod, sky father.
His sister Arianrod (Silver Wheel) the Welsh mother goddess (goddess of the moon and stars; earth goddess, daughter and/or wife of Don, wife and/or sister of Gwydion, and mother of Lleu Llaw Gyffes and the sea god Dylan. Her name is interpreted variously as meaning 'silver wheel', 'silver circle' or 'high fruitful mother'; she is the stern mistress of fate; Caer Arianrod, her home, is the castle of death and rebirth; and is also the place of initiation. She is the mother of Llew and of Dylan. She is the ruler of Caer Sidi. Her name means Silver Wheel. She is the weaver of the threads of life.) who is also his wife, gave birth to two sons: Dylan of the Waves, whose nature is of the sea; God of the West, and Llew of the Steady Hand, the Sun God, Lleu of the Dexterous Hand, analog of Irish Lug. He was the son of Arianrhod and Gwydion. Dylan and Llew were considered to represent the Dyad of Darkness and Light. Dylan was killed by his uncle Govannan with a spear, and all the waves wept for him because he was of the sea. The sea is inseparably connected to the darkness by Celtic philosophy. The other son Llew grew up to become the Celtic sun god Llew Llaw Gyffes, Light (or Lion) of the Long (or Steady) Hand.
Gwydion and Math made a woman out of flowers by charms and illusions. they called her Blodeuwedd (flowery-face) and gave her to Llew as a wife. They also gave Llew a palace called Mur y Castell, near Bala Lake. After attempting to murder Llew and run off with Goronwy (a prince of darkness), Blodeuwedd was turned into a owl. Llew killed him with a spear despite the fact that Goronwy stood behind a stone.
Nynniaw, and Peibaw are twin brothers and also sons of Don. They are said to be continually battling each other for the stars and the sky in which they rest. Their symbols are Oxen.
The last child of Don was Penardun, who married the sea-god Llyr.
THE CHILDREN OF NUDD
Nudd or LLudd is the equivalent of the Greek god Zeus and is the same person in Wales as is Nuada of the Silver Hand in Ireland. Nudd is the God of Heaven and battle. His symbol is the Sun, and he drives a chariot drawn by four horses. Nudd is the son of Beli;
Gwyn ap Nudd (Gwyn son of Nudd) is the equivalent of Finn Mac Camahil (Finn MacCool), the Irish hero, and is a god in his own right. Gwyn means White and he is a hunter of men and is a god of battle and the dead. He is also god king of Y Tylwyth Teg. He is the ruler of "The Mountain Mist". Gwyn is not a sinister god in our legends. Arawn, King of the Otherworld; (Gwynn ap Nudd in another aspect) is King of the Faeiry and the Underworld; He conducts our souls, at the time of our deaths, to Avalon also known as Annwn, the Summerland, a happy place of rest and preparation for rebirth. Gwyn has a brother who is also his rival. His name is Gwyrthur (Arthur) ap Greidawl (Griendle or Grindel) which translates as Victor Son of Scorcher". As in all myths, we must consider the two rivals as merely aspects of the same deity, and Gwyn is as we know, the god of Summer.
His sister, Creuddylad, who is also his sister, is the Welsh "Persephone", the Goddess of Spring and the daughter of Lludd; she is the child of the shining sky. She is a Goddess of Beauty. Gwyn and Gwyrthur are rivals for the love of Creuddylad, and each in turn, steals her from the other at Midsummer and Yule. Llud decreed that, "they shall fight each other on the first of May and the first of November for the hand of the maiden, and whichever of them shall be the winner shall have the maiden." This story is a symbol of the powers of Winter and Summer in contest, each alternately winning and losing a bride who represents Spring with its Garland of flowers.
THE CHILDREN OF LLYR
The next child of Donn, Peradur, guardian of the Grail, married the sea god Llyr Llediaith,. The name Llyr (Le'r) means "the sea" and he is God of the Ocean and father of Bran; Llyr had two wives, Penardur and Iweridd (Ireland). By Penardur the daughter of Donn, Llyr had a son called Manawydan, Manawyddan or Manannan (also Barinthus); he is the master God of the seas, the guide of souls who seek the Summerland; and God of navigation and travelers. By Iweridd, Llyr had two children, a daughter named Branwen and a son named Bran. The last child of Donn was Arddun, sister to Peredur and wife of Catgor son of the Dagda.
Branwen of the fair Bosom, is a goddess of love and is identified with the sea, like the goddess Aphrodite, and is descended form an earlier Celtic goddess of love. She was the daughter of the sea god Llyr by Iweridd, sister of Bran, and wife of King Matholwch of England. She is also Bronwen, Sister of Bran, and is called White Raven;
Brighid, Brigit, or Bride, is the sister of Lugh, the goddess of Spring; this one of our major deities; she represents the sister or virgin aspect of the Great Goddess; she is the patroness of cultural development, the arts and sciences, and domestic skills; she is also the patroness of heroes who undertake magickal and spiritual tasks. She is linked directly to religious themes of Underworld Quests and Sacred Kingships.
Bran the Blessed, Titanic God of the Britons, on the other hand is a dark deity of Hades (Celtic Heaven). He was so vast in size that he could wade through seas towing the ships of his followers; he is a god of earth and mountains. He delights in battle and carnage. He also, by contrast, was the patron of Bards, Minstrels, and Musicians. He is the brother of the sea god known to the Irish as Manannan mac Lir and to the Welsh as Manawydan ap Llyr. The raven (or crow) was associated with him, and his name can be taken to mean 'raven', and some scholars take this to mean that he was a god of the underworld. In Irish myth, Bran was said to have sailed to the otherworld, from which voyage he and his men could not return without dying once they set foot on Irish soil, a great deal of time having passed in the world of the living. In Welsh myth, Bran was said to have been killed while leading an invasion of Ireland. Bran was said to have instructed his men to bury his head in the White Mount in London, where it would ward off invasion as long as it remained undisturbed. King Arthur is said to have had the head removed from the site, saying that Britain should be protected by the valour of its people rather than by supernatural means. His son was called Caradawc the Strong Armed.
The last daughter of Llyr was Arddun, sister to Peredur and wife of Catgor son of the Dagda.
THE CHILDREN OF DAGDA OF THE TUATHA DE DANNAN
The Tuatha De Danaan were the main family of Irish gods. The name means "Children of the Goddess Danu". Danu served as their chief goddess and matriarch but was not literally their mother. They defeated the Fomors at the battle of Moytura. They were in turn defeated by the Milesians, after which they retired to the Irish underworld.
Dagda, the Good God is a god of immense strength and appetites, he is all competent. He wears the humble garment of a servant, wields a huge club symbolic of his power, which could both kill and restore men to life, and a great cauldron which provided an inexhaustible source of food. This is the same cauldron which Cerridwen guards. This cauldron has properties of rejuvenation and inexhaustibility; The Dagda couples with the Morrigan at Samhain, invoking her fertility and blessings on the tribe in the coming year. He is leader of the Tuatha De Danann. One of his epithets was Ollathir, which is generally interpreted as meaning 'All-father'. He is paired with the goddesses Morrigan and Boann, and is the father of Brigit and Aengus Mac Oc. The Dagda is portrayed as possessing both super- human strength and appetite.
Nuada, "Nuada of the Silver Hand". An Irish god and one time leader of the Tuatha de Danaan. He lost a hand at the first Battle of Magh Tuireadh fighting against the Firbolgs. Due to this infirmity, he was forced to give up his position as king of the Tuatha De Danaan. Dian Cecht made him a silver hand (whence the epithet). However, Dian Cecht's son Miach later gave Nuada a new hand of flesh and blood which allowed him to regain the kingship. Nuada was killed in the second Battle of Magh Tuireadh by the Fomorii leader Balor.
Balor, Irish god of death, King of the Fomorians. Son of Buarainech, husband of Cethlenn. Balor had one eye which had the power of striking dead anyone who looked into it. At the Battle of Moytura he slew Nuada but was slain in turn by the god Lug. It had been prophesied that Balor would be killed by his own grandson. To prevent this, he had his only daughter Ethlinn locked up in a crystal tower on Tory Island. But Cian, one of the rival Tuatha De Danaan, managed to reach Ethlinn with the aid of a druidess named Birog, and slept with her. Ethlinn gave birth to a boy, which Balor discovered and threw into the sea. The druidess Birog saved the boy, who was subsequently fostered by the sea god Manannan Mac Lir, and the boy grew to become Lugh Lamhfada of the Long Arm, or Lug.
Danu, Anu, Dana, Irish (Celtic) earth mother. Matriarch of the Tuatha de Danaan ('People of the Goddess Danu)', the gods of Ireland. The Dagda, one of the 'People of Danu', was sometimes referred to as her father. Her Welsh equivalent was the goddess Don.
Angus eventually displaced his father Dagda from his palace. As a god of love and amorous alliances, he has some of the qualities of the Greek Eros. He is the Irish god of youth. Son of the Dagda and 'the wife of Elcmar', generally believed to be the goddess Boann. He is associated with the valley of the River Boyne. Aengus was said to have dreamed of a beautiful maiden, for whom he searched all Ireland. He eventually found her, named Caer, chained to 150 maidens who were destined to turn into swans at the feast of Samhain (November 1). Aengus transformed himself into a swan and was so united with Caer, who followed him back to his palace at Brugh na Boinne on the River Boyne (modern New Grange).
Brigit, Brigid, Brigindo, (Brigantia - "exalted one"), is the Goddess of Northern England; She is the triple goddess of the hearth, childbirth, abundance and poetic inspiration; is also the goddess of poets, healing, fertility, and patroness of smiths. In Ireland she was known as the daughter of the Dagda and wife of the god Bres. Also known in Gaul and Britain, she is patroness of the spring festival of Imbolc, on February 1. Giraldus Cambrensis, a medieval Welsh chronicler, wrote that in his day a fire was maintained at her sanctuary at Kildare, Ireland. Her worship continued after Christianization in the form of St. Brigit or St. Bride.
Mider was king of the underworld and had his castle in Falga, (Isle of Man)
Ogmas is the God of literature and invented the Ogham alphabet. He is married to Etain, a daughter of Dianecht, the god of healing and medicine. The son of Dagda. He is equivalent to the Gallic Ogmios.
Morrigan (also Medbh), which means Phantom Queen, has three sister aspects: Morrigna or Macha, the death crone symbolized by the raven; Nemhain or Ana, the fertility maiden; and Badb, the boiling mother cauldron, producer of life; she is the red haired war goddess of the Sea and of death; she is sometimes seen as the Wise woman in her destructive aspect. She often appears in triple form. She combines the threshold energies of life and death, sexuality and conflict in one Goddess. She has the ability to open up your capabilities to prophecy or channeling. She is an enchantress. But you must beware of her ability to awaken deception in yourself and others. Her symbols are the Raven and crossed spears.
MISCELLANEOUS GODS AND GODDESSES
Dyfed (the modern county of Pembrokshire, Wales) was ruled by a local tribe of gods whose central figures were Pwyll, king of Annwn; his wife Rhiannon, Lady of the Birds; also called Epona.
The Horse is also associated with Epona and Rhiannon. The power and fertility of the horse is thus connected to the Kingship of the clan. Rigantona, The Great Queen, is also a Goddess of horses and fertility. She is queen to the underworld, and moves about the countryside so fast that a mere mortal can never catch her. She brings kindness into your life, but does not abide arrogance and cowardice. She is concerned with the forces of fertility and nourishment. Her symbols are the pale grey horse and the three sacred birds who sing lullabies and sweet melodies. She is associated with corn, fruits and serpents. She gives birth to Pryderi, son of Pwyll; After Pwyll's death, his widow Rhiannon becomes the wife of Manawydan. They become co-rulers of Summerland and the Wardens of the Cauldron of Inspiration. Aedd is the father of Prydain, father of Britain; The Gods Arthgen (Arthur) and Artogenus became associated with the Arthurian legends. Their totem, the Bear, symbolizes the King's connection to the land as well as the Constellation Arcturus, The Great Bear. Gwenhwyvar was the wife of Arthur.
MINOR CELTIC GODDESSES
Artio, Andarta, Andraste and Andred, Goddess' of Southeastern England are Goddess' of War and battle, were invoked by the famous Queen Boudicca. The Bear is associated with these Goddesses.
Adsullata, Continental Celtic river goddess.
Aibell, (Aoibhell), Irish 'fairy' goddess.
Abnoba, Romano-Celtic forest and river goddess (Black Forest area). Source of the English river name "Avon" and its cognates in continental Europe.
Agrona, Celtic goddess of strife and slaughter. The river Aeron in Wales is named after her.
Aimend, Irish sun goddess.
Aine, Irish goddess of love and fertility. Daughter of Eogabail, who was in turn the foster-son of Manannan Mac Lir. Later regarded as a fairy queen in County Limerick.
Ancamna, Romano-Celtic water goddess of continental Europe.
Andarta, Gallic (Celtic France) fertility goddess.
Andraste, Andrasta, Adraste, Goddess of war in Celtic Britain. Queen Boudicca (Latin Boadicea), leader of a rebellion against the Roman occupation, reportedly sacrificed captive Roman women to this god in AD 61.
Arduinna, Gaulish (Celtic) goddess of forests and hunting. Known particularly from the Ardennes region of France, to which she gave her name. Her sacred animal was the boar. The Romans equated her with Diana.
Arnemetia, British-Celtic water goddess.
Artio, Artio of Muri, Continental Celtic goddess of the bear cult. Known from inscriptions in the Bern region of Switzerland.
Aufaniae, Continental Celtic deities, they seem to have been matron- like figures.
Aveta, Gallic goddess of birth and midwifery.
Arduina, the moon goddess of the Gauls worshipped in what is now France.
Badb, the Badb, Bodb, Irish (Celtic) goddess of war. She formed part of a trinity of goddesses with Macha (Nemain) and the Morrigan. She often took the form of a crow or raven during war, when she was known as Badb Catha, 'battle raven'. She often took part in battles, influencing their outcome, and led the Tuatha de Danaan to victory over the Fomore at the mythical battle of Magh Tuireadh (Moytura).
Banba, Banbha, Goddess representing the spirit of Ireland. Part of a trinity with the goddesses Fotla and Eire. She appears to have been a fertility goddess as well as a goddess of war.
Beag, an Irish goddess of the Tuatha De Danaan, associated with a magic well.
Becuma, Irish goddess who married the High King Conn after being banished to the human world.
Boann, Boand, Boannan, "She of the white cattle". Irish goddess of the River Boyne. Wife of the water god Nechtan or of Elcmar, consort of the Dagda, by whom she was the mother of the god Aengus.
Berecyntia, Gaulish goddess, probably the same as Brigit (q.v.).
Bodb, Irish goddess of battle. She prophesied the doom of the Tuatha De Danann after the Battle of Magh Tuireadh (Moytura).
Breg, Irish goddess, wife of the Dagda.
Brigantia, British goddess of the rivers Braint and Brent, which were named after her, and a tutelary goddess of the Brigantes in Yorkshire. She was also a pastoral goddess associated with flocks and cattle. During the Roman occupation she was associated with the Roman goddess Caelestis as Caelestis Brigantia.
Brigindo, Name of the Celtic goddess Brigit in eastern France.
Britannia, Romano-Celtic (British) tutelary goddess.
Cailleach Beara, Cailleach Bheur, Celtic (Ireland) goddess represented as an old hag. She was said to turn to stone every April 30 (Beltine) and to be reborn every October 31 (Samhain).
Carman, Irish goddess whose three sons (Calma, Dubh, and Olc) ravaged Ireland before being defeated by the Tuatha De Danann.
Cathubodua, Irish and continental Celtic war goddess.
Cliodhna, Irish goddess of beauty. Later a fairy queen in the area of Carraig Cliodhna in County Cork.
Clota, Celtic goddess of the river Clyde.
Coventina, Goddess of water and springs in Celtic Britain. Known locally in the area of Carrawburgh (Roman Brocolitia) along Hadrian's Wall.
Creiddylad, (Cordelia), Celtic (Welsh) goddess, daughter of Llyr. She later appeared in Shakespeare's King Lear as the king's daughter Cordelia.
Cyhiraeth, Celtic goddess of streams. Later entered folklore as a spectre haunting woodland streams. Her shriek was said to foretell death.
Damona, Gallic goddess, known as the "Divine Cow"; spouse of Borvo (Bormanus).
Dea Matrona, Celtic deity at source of Marne.
Dea Sequana, Celtic deity at source of Seine.
Domnu, Irish goddess of the Fomors.
Dwyvach, the Goddess which is also the first woman; this is the Goddess of beginnings.
Edain, A Celtic goddess associated with riding and probably equivalent to the Gaulish goddess Epona.
Epona, Celtic mare goddess, goddess of horses. Later adopted by the Romans (also Bubona) as a goddess of horses and cattle.
Eriu, Irish goddess whose name is preserved in Eire, the Gaelic name of Ireland.
Fand, Wife of the Irish sea god Manannan.
Fodla, Irish goddess who was part of a trinity of goddesses said to have ruled Ireland at the coming of the first Gaels to the island.
Fotla, Irish goddess.
Gaia, mother goddess in all her raw and fertile splendor. She is the Great-breasted nurturer, the great-bellied giver of life.
Gwenn Teir Bronn, Celtic goddess of motherhood.
Macha, Celtic goddess of war, one aspect of the triple Morrigan.
Matres, MATRONAE, Celtic mother goddess of Gaul.
Medb, MEDHBH, Celtic goddess of war.
Minerva, Gallic, Gallic goddess of handicrafts and arts.
Modron; this is the original Great Mother, the Primal being who always was.
Morrigan, THE MORRIGAN, MORRIGU, Celtic battle goddess. She was said to hover over the battlefield in the form of a crow.
Murigen, Irish lake goddess, probably a form of the Morrigan.
Nantosuelta, "Winding River". Gallic protective goddess and goddess of water. Among the Mediomatrici of Alsace she is often portrayed holding a model of a house, indicating a domestic function.
Nemain, Celtic battle goddess.
Nemetona, Nemeton = "shrine". Celtic goddess of sacred groves or shrines; the War Goddess worshipped at Bath, England.
Nicnevan, the Pictish goddess of Witches;
Olwyn, the fertility goddess;
Rigantona, Goddess of pagan Britain.
Rosmerta, Celtic goddess of plenty.
Sabrina, Celtic river goddess of the Severn.
Scathach, "Shadowy One". Irish goddess who taught warriors the art of war.
Sequana, the Celtic river goddess. She stands in a duck-prowed vessel, wears a diadem, and stretches out her arms to welcome pilgrims who visit her shrine seeking cures; Celtic river goddess of the Seine.
Shannon, SIANNON, Irish goddess of the river Shannon.
Sheila-na-gig, Celtic female demon.
Sirona, DIRONA, Continental Celtic goddess of the Mosel Valley.
Sul, SULLA, Celtic British goddess of hot springs, especially at Bath (Aquae Sulis).
Tailtiu, Celtic goddess of the earth.
Tamesis, Celtic goddess of fresh waters. Her name survives in the English River Thames and in Tamise, a French name for the Scheldt.
Verbeia, Celtic goddess of the river Wharfe.
MINOR CELTIC GODS
Abandinus, Romano-Celtic god known from an inscription in Cambridgeshire, England. Little else is known.
Abarta, "Performer of Feats". Irish (Celtic) god, member of the Tuatha De Danann.
Abellio, Gallic (Celtic) local deity of the Garonne valley, possibly a god of apple-trees.
Aed, An Irish (Celtic) underworld god. Son of Lir and Aobh.
Aericura, Romano-Celtic chthonic underworld god.
Aes Sidhe, The people of the hills', collective name for the old Irish gods who dwell in hills.
Ai, (AOI MAC OLLAMAIN), Irish poet god, a member of the Tuatha De Danaan.
Aillen, In Irish mythology, a malevolent Otherworld beast.
Airitech, Irish creature of the Otherworld whose three daughters took on the shape of werewolves who were eventually killed by the warrior Cas Corach.
Alaunus, (ALANNUS, ALOUNIS), A Celtic version of Mercury in the areas of Mannheim and Salzburg.
Albiorix, "King of the world". An epithet of the Celtic god Teutates on an inscription at
Avignon.
Alisanos, ALISAUNUS, Local god of Celtic Gaul, in the region of the Cite d'Or.
Amaethon, Welsh god of agriculture.
Ambisagrus, Continental Celtic god, equated by the Romans with Jupiter.
Andras, God of Southeastern England;
Anextiomarus, British-Celtic tribal deity.
Arvernus, Gallic god of the Arverni.
Arawn, Welsh (Celtic) god of Annwn, the underworld of the dead. A famous tale in the Mabinogion relates how Arawn persuaded Pwyll, prince of Dyfed, to trade places with him for a year and challenge Hafgan, Arawn's rival for dominion of the underworld. Pwyll defeated Hafgan and was rewarded with a gift of pigs.
Bean Sidhe, BANSHEE, Popularly known as banshee, a type of Irish god or fairy whose wailing warned of approaching death. Literally, 'woman of the hills', indicating the demotion of the old Irish gods to the status of fairies.
Belatucadros, Celtic god of war worshipped in Britain (primarily in the region of Wales). The name seems to mean 'fair shining one' (compare Belenus). Belatucadros was equated by the Romans with their god Mars.
Belenus, BELINUS, BELENOS, "Shining" or "Fair Shining One". Celtic god, probably of fire or of the sun.
Belisama, God of the river Ribble among the British Celts.
Bile, Irish god of death, equivalent to the Celtic gods Bel and Belinos.
Bodb Dearg, 'Bodb the Red', a son of the Dagda who succeeded him as ruler of the gods
.
Borvo, BORMANUS, BORMO, "Boiling". Gallic (Celtic France) god of mineral springs and healing. He was known as Bormanus in Provence and Bormanious in Portugal. The Romans identified him with their Apollo.
Boyne, Irish river deity. See Boann.
Brea, Minor Irish god -- a member of the Tuatha De Danann, Bres, BRESS, Irish (Celtic) god of fertility and agriculture, briefly a leader of the Tuatha De Danann and husband of the goddess Brigit.
Bussumarus, Continental Celtic god, identified with the Roman Jupiter.
Cai, Son of Cynyr, God of change;
Coll, God of enchantment;
Camulos, War god of Celtic Britain. He gave his name to the Roman town of Camulodunum (Colchester).
Caswallawn, A Celtic war god of Britain.
Cocidius, Hunting deity of Celtic North Britain. Equated with the Roman Silvanus.
Condatis, River god of Celtic Britain.
Contrebis, Local god in the area of Lancaster in Celto-Roman Britain.
Corb, Irish (Celtic) god; one of the Fomors.
Dian Cecht, Celtic god of healing.
Dis, Caesar's name for the supreme god of the Celts he encountered in Gaul. It is uncertain which Celtic deity this refers to.
Dwyvan, the God of primal beginnings;
Dylan, Welsh sea god; brother of Lleu. He was eventually slain by Govannon.
Esus, Celtic "Lord" or "Master". An agricultural deity of the Celtic Essuvi, who derived their name from him; God of trees, and the three Cranes.
Firbolgs, (FIR BOLG), Early gods of Ireland.
Fomore, (FOMORII, FOMORIANS) An Irish race of gods, adversaries of the Tuatha de Danann.
Goibniu, IRISH GOIBHNIU; WELSH GOVANNON, Celtic smith god. In Irish myth, Goibhniu, together with Credne and Luchtainel, manufactured the arms which the Tuatha De Danann used in defeating the Fomors.
Grannus, Continental Celtic god of healing, associated with mineral springs.
Greidiawl, god of conquest
Gwendolleu, god of strategy;
Gwythyr, son of Greidiawl (Victor son of Scorcher);
Herne, horned god of woodlands and wisdom;
Hooded Spirits, Triad of Celtic deities, associated with healing and fertility.
Lugus, Celtic deity, continental form of Lug (qv).
Luxovius, Celtic god of healing.
Mac Greine, Irish kingly god.
Manannan mac Lir, Irish god of the sea and of fertility. He was the son of Lir and the husband of Fand. His Welsh equivalent was Manawydan ap Llyr.
Maponus, (Mabon) the son of the Goddess Modron; this is the original child of the Great Mother. This is the Primal being who always was. This is the Son of light and the God of liberation, youth, harmony, unity and music.
Mars, Gallic. Gallic war-god.
Menw, son of Teirgwaedd, shape shifter;
Midir, MIDER, Irish chieftain god of the Underworld. Son of Dagda, husband of Etain.
Neit, Irish god of war. He was a consort of Nemain, an aspect of the triune goddess Morrigan. He was killed at the second Battle of Magh Tuireadh.
Nodens, NODONS, Celtic river god of the Severn estuary in south-west Britain. May be equated with Nuada.
Ogmios, OGMA, Gaulish god of eloquence, inspiration and eloquence.
Rudianos, Gallic local god.
Saone, SOUCONNA, Celtic river deity.
Segomo, Continental Celtic war god.
Shoney, A Celtic sea deity recognized in Britain.
Siannon, See Shannon.
Sidhe, The hill people of ancient Ireland. They were believed to be the spirits of the dead.
Smertrios, War-like deity of Gauls.
Sucellus, (SUCELLOS), Gallic syncretic god. He appears to have been a god of fertility, as well as a god of the dead. The hammer was a common attribute of Sucellus.
Taranis, (TARAN), "Thunder". Gallic thunder god. He was equated by the Romans with Jupiter. He is symbolized by a spoked wheel. He is also associated with the Oak tree.
Tarvos Trigaranos, (TARUOS TRIGARANUS), Gallic bull god. He is known chiefly from a monument on the Seine near Paris honouring Tarvos along with Esus, Vulcan, and Jupiter.
Tethra, In Irish myth, the Fomorii sea god and god of the otherworld.
Teutates, A Gallic war god whose name may mean "God of the People". The Gallic word touta means 'people' or 'tribe' (similar to the Irish tuath).
Yonne, (ICAUNIS), Celtic river deity.
THE SEVEN LORDS OF THE OUTER DARKNESS
The Seven Guardians are the highest manifestations of the elemental principles. The legends of our tradition call them the Nephelim, or Old Ones; it is said that they came to us when we called them from among the stars where they were born. The oldest form of the legend says that when humankind was in its infancy, the Nephelim mated with humankind, and that the Welsh Faerie Peoples, from whom the Welsh Tradition is handed down, are their descendants. They appear to us as both male and female in form, for the essence of each is, like the human spirit, androgynous: not merely male, and not merely female.
AMAETHEON, THE GUARDIAN OF THE EAST represents the power of knowledge. He appears standing before the rising sun. His body is transparent golden yellow, his eyes are two very bright light-blue stars, and he has great wings colored pale violet. His right hand holds a wand of sapphire, bound with gold at the top and silver at the bottom.
GOVANNAN, THE GUARDIAN OF THE SOUTH represents the power of Truth. He appears in the desert at high noon. His body is transparent ruby red, and he is surrounded by a cloud of fire like the teardrop shape of a candle flame. In his right hand he holds a sword of bright blue metal, the Sword of Dyrnwyn, which is also known as Excalibur.
DYLAN, THE GUARDIAN OF THE WEST represents the power of Love. He appears as a dragon colored transparent green, rising from the sea, with cascades of water gushing from his jaws, surrounded by the colors of sunset. His left hand holds a silver chalice.
BOREAS, THE GUARDIAN OF THE NORTH WIND represents the power of Wisdom. He appears as a jet-black goat with silver horns and golden eyes, in a cave deep in Earth at midnight, surrounded by a halo of flickering blue fire. His left hoof rests upon a perfect cube of green stone on which is engraved a pentacle.
ARIANRHOD, GUARDIAN OF THE HEAVENS The Guardian of the Heavens appears as a human-shaped silhouette, a blackness blazing with stars. This is Arianrhod, the ruler of the Stars.
TALIESIN, GUARDIAN OF THE UNDERWORLD The Guardian of the Underworld appears as a great fish which is normally a Salmon, coiled in a circle, with dark-brown scales flecked with green and blue iridescence, carrying a burning ember in its mouth. This is also Taliesin, of the Shining Brow, chief Bard of the Isle of Britain; he is companion to those who choose the narrow path of understanding through the highest elemental contacts.
MATH, GUARDIAN OF THE GATES The Guardian of the Center represents the power of pure consciousness.
Borrowed from Smoke and Mirrors, Written By Hellkat my sis..love ya!
