Cernunnos: Lord of the Wild

Cernunnos is generally depicted as a bearded man with deer antlers, holding a snake in one hand and a torc in the other. Cernunnos is associated with fertility, nature, and the life-death cycle. In some depictions, Cernunnos is shown with a purse full of gold. This is thought by some to be a metaphorical reference to knowledge or wisdom, not monetary wealth. Little is known for sure about the role Cernunnos played historically or how he was worshiped.

Mystical Ecology

Throughout the history of polytheistic belief structures, there have been many practices designed to show reverence for the Earth. Ironically, many of these practices have been quite ecologically destructive. From the pollution of waterways with sacred objects to the harvesting of trees for Yule, rituals created to celebrate nature have resulted in damage to the […]

Yule: Wheel of the Year

Yule: Wheel of the Year

Yule has roots in many European traditions making it difficult to determine which traditions stem from what specific regions. Germanic peoples made sacrifices and burned Yule logs. Druids venerated Evergreens as a symbol of life triumphing over death. Romans held a festival called Saturnalia in which they made sacrifices to the God of Saturn in the name of a coming golden age. 

Samhain: Wheel of the Year

Samhain is an ancient Celtic festival that is still celebrated by many Pagans today. It originated as a festival that was observed by the the Celts from southern Ireland, through the Isle of Mann, and into Northern Scotland. These Celts were known as the Gaels. Samhain began as a celebration to mark the end of the harvest season and the slaughter of cattle. The veils between the material world and the Otherworld were thought to be the thinnest during this time, which allowed the Aos Sí, faeries, souls of ancestors, and other beings to cross over into the physical world.

Touta Caillte: A Proposal

The Celtic peoples were a linguistic-cultural group in Europe around 2800BCE. The history of the Celts is a subject of controversy in part because the Celts weren’t too keen on keeping a lot of written records but also due to subjugation from various imperial powers, namely the Roman Empire. Few scholars can agree on what metric to use to decide who was and wasn’t Celtic. The most common defining factor is use of Celtic languages. From here Celts are generally subdivided into one of two groupings either P-Celtic vs Q-Celtic or insular vs continental Celts.

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