#wiccan religion

[greenpanda-basicfakewitch]

Lore | Horned God

[This one is a little longer]

Horned God may in fact be the horned GODDESS [hypothetically]

[Deer Goddess]

 The Horned gods origins are a little tricky. There are sources that claim that the Horned god was originally the horned goddess. Cernunnos, originally derived from old pagan myths of a horned ‘Goddess’ , a story about how a deer would turn into a woman. In folklore society in 1930, a researcher put his theories on a matriarchal Hunter gatherer society ruling highlands of scotland as a pre-celtic deer cult. J.G. Mckay.

Modern Scottish Gaelic and modern Irish Gaelic dictionaries both give the word Fiadh having two meanings: “Deer,” “God.” The deer was some sort of god, as well as divine messenger, some type to the Goddess Artemis. How you had to ask permission to hunt.

In Faerie lore, deer are their cattle and a common form of Faire women, Witches can transform into mice, hares, cats or black sheep but never the sacred deer.

In many pagan animal-cults, the priest or priestess would often wear an ornamental headdress of the sacred animal. There are Scottish folktales of a deer woman that Mckay theories could be explained by this real practice. In these folktales, a hunter, who has been stalking deer, observes, when putting up his gun to take aim, that the animal changed into a woman. He falls in love with her. Adventures ensue and they are separated until he finds her again on a distant island and they finally marry and live happily ever after.

The Deer Cult and the deer-goddess cult date back from a remote matriarchal time. Diana as well as Artemis and her nymphs, would appear to be classical examples of a hint at this older heritage. No one in patripotestal times, it would seem, would dream of inventing a feminine hunting divinity.

Celtic Society developed and created a masculine Horned God from the deer goddess and keep the feminine character next to him as a reminder as his shadow. By the stage the Deer Goddess matriarchy would have been in decay and her worshippers have grown fewer. While worshippers of the male Cernunnos became ever more numerous.

 Today, there are whispers of this old Deer Goddess Cult in traditional German and English stag dances that are performed by men who dress themselves in women’s clothes, thereby preserving a memory of a former time when stag-dances were perfect by women, and of a later time, when the religious functions of women were usurped by men. 

Shakspearen roots.

Swiftly moving on a couple thousand years, we come to the iconic bard, Shakespeare. Elizabethan english comedy abounds with images of the cuckold- a man with horns on his head, symbolising his shame that his wife has taken up with another man-

Herne the Hunter- from Shakespeare to popular culture. So at least thats where the name came from.

Robin Hood Myth [Horned God] 

[Authors note: This website is not secured so take care also- these types of websites were the ones I’ve seen and how I came to know about Wicca]

The Horned God is the father of Robin Hood? And it’s Pagan?

The Horned god is a central theme/character in many european pagan faiths. Generally seen as a deity of woods, wild animals, hunting and virility he is an elemental force of nature and commonly identified as a male deity often the consort of the female force or earth mother. 

This is the case in the Wicca religion where the horned god is worshipped as both the child and the consort of the great Mother, Triple Goddess.

 There are some evidence that the idea of the ‘Lord’ and ‘Lady’ in Wicca is part of ancient tribal rites but such evidence is limited.

 For many modern Wiccans the ‘Horned God’ sometimes known as the Great God or Great Father is his own father.

Mating with the Goddess at Beltaine then dying at Summer Solstice only to be reborn as her child  at the new year, or Winter Solstice, he is a key symbol in the birth/death/Rebirth cycle.

The Horned God is known as the ‘Hunter’ has strong links in Britain with the idea of ‘Wild Hunt’ he is the taker of life, a vengeful spirit, hunting evil with a pack of demonic hounds. 

He is often portrayed as carrying a bow. 

The british Herne the HUnter is rumoured to survive still as a powerful spirit.

Herne is linked to Robin Hood just as Robin provided for the needy, Herne provided food for the tribe.

 In some legends he is listed as Robin Hoods father, although this adds greater status to Robin Hoods legends.

 He is portrayed has either having horns or Antlers, as well as his image is full of Phallic symbols.

Locations: There have been representations of Fertility icons for thousands of years as in the Altars of Stag Horns which have been found in Temples of Apollo and Diana in ancient Greece. 

He is sometimes depicted with hooves or Goat hindquarters, a link to the Greek God Pan. Which of course had christians mistaken this horned fello for Satan.

Stag God image can be found in a cave painting at Trosi-Freres in France. This painting is thought to date around 13,000 BC known as the “Sorcerer” and depicts a half human, half stag spirit. This image is often seen as a representation of a shaman dressed as a stag performing a rite to ensure good hunting.

The Horned God is not an exclusively Wiccan concept as one would expect as many Pagan faiths have similar roots, the Horned god concept can be seen in the Greek God Pan, the Celtic god of the underworld and animals cernunnos, the Roman Janys, Tammuz and Damuzi the consorts of Ishtar and Inanna, Osiris and Dionysus as well as the Green Man mythological figure in the Uk.

The link with Osiris and Cernunnos which were both gods which guarded the underworld or judged souls and Osiris was both brother and consort of Isis seen by many as the Egyptian mother goddess. Cernunnos was a fertility god of the pagan celts and Gauls and is thought by many to have been the basis for the christian concept of the horned devil being a half man half goat guardian of the underworld and certainly a rival faith for early christianity.

The link between the Horned God and the Green man in English folk lore is very strong and even today many pubs in UK villages bare the name  “The Green Man” often with a very pagan image on the pub sign. The Green man also known as ‘Green Jack’ or ‘Jack in the Green’ is an English spirit of trees and plants with the power to make it rain and crops grow well. The Green man is thought to share his home in the forest with forest fairies sometimes called “Greencoates” or Greenies depending on the region of the UK. In popular imagery the Green man is shown as face peering out of foliage, his wood spirit companions and fertility imagery clearly links him to Pan and also as a sort of sanitised Hern the Hunter and Wild hunter.

For many modern Druids and Wicca the Horned god is a key part of the birth, death, rebirth cycle and mentioned in many rites and celebrations, his imagery is powerful and has a strong attraction to many as a symbol of almost suppressed power / violence and male sexuality. Some modern pagans reenact the ancient rite where the hunter who brought the most/ best meat to the table was dressed in stag horns and furs and was rewarded with the right to couple with the priestess representing the goddess sometimes in front of the whole tribe. The few pagan groups that reenact this mostly do so symbolically or with the hunter and goddess being intimate partners already with only a small part of this “Great Rite” being performed before the rest of the coven.

[chelledoggo]

there's too much animosity towards queer people who want to practice their faith/spirituality, both within their respective religions and within the LGBTQIA+ community.

we need to protect and lift up our queer siblings of faith.

our queer Christians.

our queer Jews.

our queer Muslims.

our queer Hindus.

our queer Buddhists.

our queer Sikhs.

our queer Baháʼís.

our queer Wiccans/Pagans.

our queer Shintos.

our queer siblings of indigenous/folk faiths.

our queer SBNR siblings.

our queer siblings of whatever religion/spiritual systems they observe.

you're all beautiful and valid and loved and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. 💖

[animatedglittergraphics-n-more]

wiccan dividers

f2u (please don't claim as your own)

[aerial-jace]

Take 2 because I set it up as 24 hours instead of a week!

For the purposes of this poll, agnostic (does not claim to have or that it's possible to have certain knowledge of whatever their position is) does not count as a secret 5th option.

I, for example, fall under atheist because while I'm not convinced of the existence of any deity I remain open to change my mind due to a strong enough personal experience. Thus I only claim my belief to be provisional. Someone who does not claim certainty of their belief about their one god/many gods/everything being a god would fall under monotheism/polytheism/pan(en)theism respectively.

[annasinthewalls]

Feel free to rb for more varied input

[sovaghoul]

Wicca 101 Masterpost

Introduction

Definition

Categories

History

Ethics

Theism

Magick

Death

Celebrations

Elements

Roles

Tools

Names

Ritual

[sunbeam--daughter]

Mary IS God

this has been an honorary Collyridian post

[the-sorcerer-shark]

Anyone else's parent do really witchy things but would go crazy if you said you were even remotely interested in it?

My mother (Christian) is very much 'not a fan' of anything Wicca or witchcraft related but yet she:

Owns a cast iron cauldron to burn incense in

Sages the house

Tells me I have to greet the dead people in the cemetery because no one ever does, so they're sad

Has prophetic dreams

And so on.

Of course everyone is allowed to have their religious opinions and stuff as long as they don't push it on others but its like come on man, you come into my room and look at my Wicca stuff like 🤨?? Bro your whole family literally believes you're a witch, and has since you were little, like come on. She also has red hair and I know that's not like an indicator or anything obviously, its just very coincidental with all the other stuff.

Just admit you're a witch already and we can go supply hunting fr

[crazycatsiren]

Bringing back again the importance of actually learning about the history of a religion if you're going to practice it.

The lot of y'all who call yourselves Wiccans aren't even practicing Wicca.

Seriously.

[v-tired-queer]

*Veiling = covering your head/hair, usually in an act of devotion to a higher power, but not always. Some people veil every day, some only veil every once in a while, and some only veil on specific days/occasions. Some people veil for religious reasons, some for spiritual reasons, and some for cultural reasons. No matter your reason for doing so, if you're sapphic and also veil, please feel free to answer!

For me, I'm usually not thinking much about it. I happen to be a sapphic, and I also happen to veil for religious and spiritual reasons. But sometimes there's this very rude little voice in the back of my head that tells me I can't possibly be both a lesbian and someone who veils, and that I have to either stop veiling all together or marry a man one day and keep veiling. It's a struggle between feeling like I'm either betraying my God by being a lesbian (I'm not), or I'm betraying my sapphic community by being religious and actually acting on it (again, I'm not). 97% of the time, I don't even question myself, comfortable and confident as the demiflux lesbian God made me to be, but that 3% of the time that I'm struggling with it, I've noticed that having my veil on, though usually a comfort for me, a constant reminder that God's love surrounds me wherever I go, can trigger some guilty feelings. Hence the poll.

So, what about y'all?

[alpine-sitte]

I really don't know if I'm even talking about the same thing as other people here on tumblr when I talk about magic, cause when I think of it, I think mostly of "folk magic". The magic of everyday cultural traditions, the stuff that is often branded "superstition".

I don't know what makes people think that you need any special preparation or education or training in order to do all this stuff. There's nothing secret about it, and nothing complicated. And unless you engage in behaviors that physically/mentally harm you, I don't see what dangers could possibly be involved.

But also I think people overcomplicate the whole thing. You don't need any sort of special tools. You don't need to spend money on any of this. Literally all you need is the knowledge of what you're trying to achieve and a clear idea of what you are trying to practice. And please, let's stop acting like "trivial" activities are excluded from this. The same goes for what you desire to achieve with these activities. Nothing is too trivial of a need/desire. You are hoping for the bus to arrive on time tomorrow? That's a perfectly fine thing to want out of whatever you're about to practice!

I think as a whole, the pagan community needs to get their heads out of the clouds a bit and ground themselves and their practices. As cliche as it sounds, y'all need to touch more grass again. It's a hands-on spirituality, after all.

And genuinely, the gatekeeping and mystification of it all has to stop. There's no secrets, no exclusivity, no sacrilege, no entry barriers in paganism, no scholars, and no knowledge is off-limits.

It's the religion of the common folk. You do not need to read any books about it, you don't need anyone to interpret for you, or follow anyone's directions on how to practice this or that. And if you feel like there's nothing tangible about your paganism, if you find yourself having to believe in things rather than simply experiencing them.... it's time to ask yourself who indoctrinated you with such ideas.

[soup-mother]

hate how often "only white privileged westerners are athiests, real progressives love the nuclear family and religion" type posts go around on here. you are either a psyop or a fool chasing a "problem" that only exists within niche leftist discourse. white privileged westerners are overrepresented in athiesm because of being white, privileged and westerners and generally less likely to be targeted or killed for it yea?

i promise you the constant control and abuse from religion and family are bigger problems than feeling like communists and anarchists of all people "reject religion", like yea no shit, it's materialism innit.

[aerial-jace]

If you are agnostic of any kind (doesn't claim/believe it's possible to have certain knowledge of their position) select the position you're agnostic about.

For example: I'd fall into agnostic atheist because while I do not believe in any deity I remain open minded that a strong enough personal experience may convince me otherwise in future. I hold my belief to be only provisional. Meanwhile, someone who believes in a monotheistic God but does not think it's possible to know for sure would fall into agnostic monotheist.

[natureslily]

The harvest is ending,

the earth is dying.

We have the earth's bounty

on the table before us,

and for this we give thanks to the gods.

— Autumn Prayer by Learn Relgions

[thevelvetpriestess]

𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲

𝓒𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓪 𝓼𝓹𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝓸𝓵𝓭 𝓻𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓰𝓲𝓸𝓾𝓼 𝓽𝓮𝔁𝓽𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓫𝓲𝓫𝓵𝓮𝓼.

𝓘𝓷𝓰𝓻𝓮𝓭𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓼:

𝓑𝓲𝓫𝓵𝓮𝓼, 𝓡𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓰𝓲𝓸𝓾𝓼 𝓽𝓮𝔁𝓽𝓼, 𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓮𝓼 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓼, 𝓛𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻, 𝓕𝓵𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓭𝓪 𝓦𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓻, 𝓜𝓲𝓬𝓪 𝓹𝓸𝔀𝓭𝓮𝓻, 𝓖𝓵𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓮𝓻

[sunbeam--daughter]

I often see the myth of the Mother and Daughter likened to Demeter and Persephone, but I think an equally worthy myth would be from Lithuania - Saule and Ausrine. Saule is the Sun Mother who birthed all the planets, all of which are female (Saules Meitas; ie "Saule's Daughters) with Menules, the Father Moon. But one daughter in particular is the morning star Ausrine: goddess of the dawn, love, beauty, called the "Queen of Heaven" who tends to Her Mother every day, lighting the way for Her Mothers journey across the sky.