Gods & Goddesses
Native British Gods - An Overview

From the article: "Native Gods" by Sorita D'Este
First published in Witchcraft & Wicca Magazine, Beltane 2006

The Celtic Gods and Goddesses are very popular amongst those of us following modern magickal traditions, drawing from our ancient heritage. Yet, little about the practices of our ancestors who celebrated these deities are known, and many of the Gods and Goddesses of the British Isles remain completely obscure today.

The British gods fall into three categories, each of which is quite distinctive in its members and influence.

1. The Old British / Celtic gods, whose names were recorded by the Romans in inscriptions on altars and statues and their worship, in some instances, were continued under the Roman names (the Romans equated them to their own deities). We don't know that much about these indigenous deities, and they are currently the least explored of the British gods.

2. The literary British / Celtic gods, described in the literature of Ireland and Wales particularly. As their stories were recorded by Christian monks the deities are frequently denigrated in their qualities and roles.

3. The Saxon and Norse gods, brought here from Scandinavia and the Continent. The Saxons gods came from the same source as the Norse gods, and for that reason are generally considered as part of the same group.

Looking at the early British gods and goddesses we find that there were a greater predominance of local deities than which is generally found in cultures of the same era. Many deities were localised and was believed to dwell in a particular forest, in a particular river or well etc. The Roman deities were more generic and for this reason many of the British deities were merged, by the Romans, into the cult of one of their own gods. The Roman gods Mars and Mercury provide excellent examples of this.

Divine Survival
To explore the British gods we must consider the context of their survival. In the case of the old Celtic gods, we have inscriptions left by the Romans on altars, statues, plaques and walls, with statues and cult objects. A number of Roman writers also recorded details of ancient British practices, albeit with a certain level of their own propaganda. These writers include Julius Caesar in the mid first century BCE, Strabo around 40-25 BCE, Diodorus Siculus in 60-30 BCE, Lucan in the first century CE and Dio Cassius 155-230 CE.

The Irish started recording their oral tradition in the sixth century CE. Most of the surviving material was recorded by Christian monks during the twelfth century CE, referring back to tales that stem from at least the previous six hundred years, possibly earlier. These tales divide into three groups, the first of which is the Mythological Cycle, which includes the Book of Invasions and the History of Places (Dinnshenchas). The deities are most prominent in the tales of this cycle.

The other two groups are the Ulster Cycle and the Fionn Cycle. The Ulster Cycle includes the Cattle Raid of Cooley (Táin Bó Cuailnge), and focuses more on the heroes, though there is interaction with many of the deities. The Fionn Cycle focuses on the adventures of the hero Finn, again with reference to supernatural interactions.

The Welsh myths suffered from very poor documentation. The material now known as The Mabinogion comes from two sources, the White Book of Rhydderch (c. 1300 CE) and the Red Book of Hergest (late 14th century CE). Some of the stories may date back some centuries earlier than this, such as the tale of Kilhwch and Olwen, which is thought to be tenth century.

The material of prime interest in The Mabinogion is the Four Branches and the tale of Kilhwch and Olwen. A number of other stories were added into the collection by Lady Charlotte Guest, which are much more Arthurian and continental in their flavour.

Goddess of the Waters
"Springs, wells and rivers are of first and enduring importance as a focal point of Celtic cult practice and ritual." [ Pagan Celtic Britain, Anne Ross, p20.]

One of the most common qualities associated with many of the British goddesses was water. Considering the magickal and liminal nature of water in the Celtic worldview, this is not really surprising. Water was seen as a boundary between the worlds, and the use of votive offerings representing afflicted body parts shows the belief in the healing power of water to take away afflictions. Wells and springs, coming from deep within the earth, were considered particularly sacred, as they connected to the otherworld, which existed below our world.

In Celtic Britain we see many of the goddesses associated with healing springs or wells, or rivers, with rivers often being named after them. Thus we see the river Aeron being named after Agroná, the river Boyne being named after Boann, the river Braint and the river Brent named after Brigantia, the river Danube (in Germany) named after Danu, the river Shannon named after Sionna, and the river Wharfe named after Verbeia.

Triple Deities
Three being such an important and magickal number to the Celts, it is no surprise that many of their deities were represented in triple form. These triple forms were all represented in the same aspect though, as a true triple, not in the comparatively modern form of maiden, mother and crone. Examples of these triple deities include the Genii Cucullati (hooded fertility figures), the Triple Mothers, Badb, Brigid, the Cailleach, Coventina, Sulis and the horned god Vitiris.

Important Symbols
There are a number of motifs which recur through the worship of the old British deities and can therefore be seen as important themes to consider. These include the triple motif, with numerous triple deities; the head, sometimes horned. Horned heads invariably have bull horns, emphasising power and fertility, and the occurrence of the head alone may be a stylised representation, as the head was the seat of the soul and the most important part of the body to represent.

Important Animals
Certain animals occur repeatedly in Celtic art and were clearly sacred animals. These include the serpent, water birds, bulls, boars, horses (by far the most numerous animal represented on ancient British coins). Other animals which occur occasionally include the stag, the dog and the crow.

Certain animals seem to possess a more mythic quality, as they are variants of the norm. The ram-headed serpent and triple-horned bull both occur throughout the Celtic world. The triple-horned bull emphasises the magickal power of the number three, and the ram-headed snake is particularly associated with the god Cernunnos (as in the Cirencester relief and Lypiatt altar, both in Gloucestershire).