There
is alot of information out there, easily obtained. This page is for my
thoughts and ideas about my religion. Every one has their own ways of seeing
the Divine, and this is just my way.
The
Wiccan God is not the Christian devil.
I
once told my husband, that if you are going to worship some one or some
thing, then it would be a good idea to at least believe in what it is that
you are worshipping. I believe that there is evil in the world, but, nothing
is totally evil, just as nothing is totally good. That is the idea behind
the Wiccan God, and the Goddess, too. They both have their Good, or light,
side, and both have their Bad, or dark, side. Just as we humans have the
same light and dark sides.
For
me, the God is represented by the Green Man. Lord of the Green Woods. I
think this aspect is partial to me, as I grew up on a farm, taking care
of livestock, tending gardens, and my early years were very much affected
by the seasons of the year. Growing up on a farm has taught me that we
are dependent upon the Earth for our survival, but, the Earth is also dependent
upon us for it's survival. The above is just one of many Green Men. This
one is my favorite.
The Green Man is a symbol pre-Christian in His origins, but, later adopted
by Gothic carvers and placed in thousands of churches and cathedrals throughout
Europe, from Ireland and Scotland to Russia. He is usually shown as a male
head formed as a leaf mask, often disgorging vegetation from his mouth.
He stands for humanity's deep kinship with trees and woods, irrepressible
life, and the cycle of renewal and rebirth.
The Green Man is intimately associated with Robin of the Wood, the Green
Knight of Arthurian legend, Jack in the Green, the May king, or Summer
Lord, and with Cernunnos, the Celtic God of the Forest. He is also related
to Silvanus, the Roman God of the woods, Adonis, born from a tree, and
with Dionysus, Attis of Anatolia, Tammuz of Mesopotamia, Okeanus of Greece,
and the Fool, first Arcanum of the Tarot. The Green Man was part of May
Day festivals in England, Germany, Belgium, Czechoslovakia and elsewhere.
Some festivals are celebrated even today, as at Hastings.
An old English term for the countryside is green mans. And
it is a favorite name for taverns-- in London alone, there are 30 pubs
called-- The Green Man. There are also a few Green Women, who remind
us of the Goddesses, Asherah and Flora, the Nymph of Chloris, Dakshi the
tree Goddess of India, and even Green sleeves. To William Anderson, author
of the Green Man, he is also the guardian and revealer of mysteries,
the intelligence of the world of vegetation Who knows and utters
the secret laws of Nature, and the life force that sustains us, but
is beyond our power to control.
The above
is from a parchment about the Green Man. I suggest reading Anderson's
The Green Man, a very interesting read.
The
Green Man is only one personification of the Wiccan God. Now, I will discuss
a couple more.
BELENUS
--Gaulish-- God of Light, The Shining One, associated with Apollo. He is
married to BELISAMA. Belenus was the most widely worshipped Celtic God.
Belenus is in charge of the welfare of sheep and cattle. Corresponds with
the Irish God-- BILe. The Feast of Beltaine means Fire of Bel.
CERNUNNOS--
Celtic-- The Horned One. A God of fertility, life, animals,
wealth, and the Underworld. He was worshipped all over Gaul, and his cult
spread into Britain as well. Cernunnos is depicted with the antlers of
a stag, sometimes carries a purse filled with coins. The Horned God is
born at the Winter Solstice,( Yule), marries the Goddess at Beltaine, and
dies at the Summer Solstice, (Midsummer). He alternates with the Goddess
of the Moon in ruling over life and death, continuing the cycle of death,
rebirth, and reincarnation. Paleolithic cave paintings found in France
that depict a stag standing upright or as a man dressed in stag costume,
seem to indicate that Cernunnos' origins date to those times. Romans sometimes
portrayed him with 3 cranes flying above his head.
Anubis
by Stephanie
Cass
Anubis,
who the ancient Egyptians called Ienpw (phonetically "Yinepu"), is the
mysterious canid funerary deity of ancient Egypt. Even the meaning of his
name is unknown -- speculations range from "Royal Child" to having derived
from the world for "to putrefy". Both certainly fit the deity, who was
at various points in time of Egyptian history known as the lord of the
dead before Osiris and, later, became popularly known as the son of Osiris.
Just
what type of animal Anubis is represented by is unknown as well; definitely
canid and most likely a jackal or a wild dog -- or a hybrid of both --
but, as in the case of Seth, with alterations that deliberately smudge
the lines of reality. The deep black color Anubis's animal is not reflective
of its actual coat but is instead symbolic of his position as a funerary
deity. The reason for Anubis's animal being canid is based on what the
ancient Egyptians themselves observed of the creature -- dogs and jackals
often haunted the edges of the desert, especially the cemeteries where
the dead were buried.
Anubis
is an extremely ancient deity. The oldest mastabas of the Old Kingdom have
prayers to him carved into their walls, and he is mentioned in the Pyramid
Texts in his most celebrated role as a guardian and protector of the dead.
A standard offering formula for the dead in the Old Kingdom began thusly:
"An offering
which the king gives and Anubis, who is upon his mountain and in the place
of embalming, the lord of the necropolis...."
As mentioned
previously, Anubis began in the position that Osiris would later command.
In the earliest period of Egyptian religion Anubis was clearly the lord
of the dead and Osiris the embalmed god while Anubis performed the act
of embalming. Titles that were invested unto Osiris -- such as Khenty-Imentiu
or "Foremost of Westerners" -- were originally Anubis's. As the drama of
Osiris's death and vindication unfolded over the centuries, Anubis assumed
the role of the guide who holds steady the scales on which their hearts
are measured against the feather of ma'at as "He Who Counts the Hearts".
Should the heart be light as the feather, the soul would then be lead by
Anubis (or, in some cases, Harseisis) to be presented to Osiris. Should
the heart be heavy, it is fed to Ammit and the soul destroyed.
As Imy-ut,
or "He Who is In the Place of Embalming", Anubis is the embalmer who washes
the entrails of the dead and guards over their physical bodies as well
as the places that house them (the tomb and the necropolis). Priests wearing
a mask of Anubis were responsible for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony
that reawakened a dead person's senses. In a reflection of the royal seal
used on the tombs of the Valley of the Kings depicting pharaoh's victory
over the "nine bows" (enemies of Egypt), Anubis is shown recumbent over
nine bows meant to be hostile forces of the Underworld who he -- as "Jackal
Ruler of the Bows" -- has triumphed over.
Anubis's
parentage is a mystery -- in one tradition he is the son of Nebt-het (Nephthys)
and Ra. In yet another, from the Coffin Text period, the cow goddess Hesat
is his mother and, from the same source, Bastet is even accounted as his
mother (most likely a pun on the ointment jars that comprise her hieroglyphs
-- the same jars that were used during the embalming process Anubis was
lord of). The Pyramid Texts even supply Anubis with a daughter in the form
of the goddess Qeb-hwt ("Cooling Water") -- a celestial serpent or ostrich
Who purifies and quenches the monarch.
Anubis
is depicted most often as a man with the head of a black canid with alert,
pointed ears. He is also represented by a full black canid wearing ribbons
and holding a flagellum in the crook of its arm. Very rarely is he ever
shown fully human, though there are some cases (such as in the temple of
Ramesses II of Abydos) of this. Perhaps the most famous representation
of Anubis, the gold-gilded wooden canid found in the tomb of Tutankhamen,
was doubtlessly placed there as a protector of the dead and guardian of
the tomb.
Anubis
was worshipped throughout Egypt, but the center of his cult was in Cynopolis
(Upper Egypt).
Freyr
Freyr
is the god of sun and rain, and the patron of bountiful harvests. He is
both a god of peace and a brave warrior. He is also the ruler of the elves.
Freyr is the most prominent and most beautiful of the male members of the
Vanir, and is called 'God of the World'. After the merging of the Aesir
and the Vanir, Freyr was called 'Lord of the Aesir'. Freyr was also called
upon to grant a fertile marriage.
He is
married to the beautiful giantess Gerd, and is the son of Njord. His sister
is Freya. He rides a chariot pulled by the golden boar Gullinbursti which
was made for him by the dwarves Brokk and Eitri. He owns the ship Skidbladnir
("wooden-bladed"), which always sails directly towards its target, and
which can become so small that it can fit in Freyr's pocket. He also possesses
a sword that would by itself emerge from its sheath and spread a field
with carnage whenever the owner desired it.
Freyr's
shield bearer and servant is Skirnir, to whom he gave his sword, which
Skirnir demanded as a reward for making Gerd his wife. On the day of Ragnarok
he will battle without weapons (for he gave his sword away to Skirnir),
and will be the first to be killed by the fire giant Surt. The center of
his cult was the city Uppsala in Sweden. In southern Sweden he was called
Fricco.
There
are many more Gods of many more Traditions. I hope to add to this site
as often as I can.
Charge of the Dark God
Listen to the words of the Dark God, who was of old called, Bacchus, Donn,
Anubis, Hades, Cernunnos, Setesh, Pluto, and by many other names. I am
the shadow in the bright day, I am the reminder of mortality at the
height of living. I am the never-ending veil of Night where the Star Goddess
dances. I am the death that must be, so that life may continue, for, behold,
life is immortal because the living must die. I am the strength that protects,
that limits, I am the power that says no, and no further, and that is enough.
I am the things that cannot be spoken of, and I am the laughter at the
edge of death. Come with me into the warm enfolding dark, feel my caresses
in the hands, in the mouth, in the body of one you love, and be transformed.
Gather in the Moon less night, and speak in unknown tongues, the Dark Mother
and I will listen. Sing to us, and cry out, and the power will be yours
to wield. Blow me a kiss when the sky is dark, and I will smile, but, no
kiss returned, for my kiss is the final one for all mortal flesh.
I
got this from a friend, where she received it, I do not know. I added it
here, well, because it felt appropriate to do so.
Updated
June 3, 2000
Eliya's
Goddess Page
Eliya's
Earthly Realm