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| Contents | |
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| Home | Back to the Grove's entrance |
| Articles | Articles on Paganism |
| The Message Board | The place to leave all suggestions and comments |
| Book of Shadows | The Book Of Shadows |
| Info | Information on Paganism |
| Celtic Druidism | Some information on Celtic Druidism |
| Herb Lore | Information on various herbs. |
| Gods and Goddesses | Celtic and other Gods and Goddesses |
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| Sign the guestbook | Please feel free to sign our guestbook |
| External | |
| Paganlife | A great Pagan forum |
| Beliefnet | A massive and very active online religious community |
| Sacred Texts | A useful resource site |
| Spiral.com | A very good online shop |
| The Willow Grove | Discussion forum |
| Wiccan Wisdom | A informative site about Wicca |
Freyja
The Viking goddess of love and sexuality and can be invoked for rituals concerning passion. A witch goddess potent for
all magic, especially gem and crystal magic.
Aine
The daughter of Manananann, Celtic Sea God and ruler of the Isle of Man, she is a goddess of the cycles of the solar and
lunar year. Even in the 12th century she was remembered on the Hill of Aine in Ireland, by tourchlight processions and
the burning of straw at midsummer and the old corn harvest of Lughnassadh (around the beginning of august).
Lugh
The Celtic "shining one", who gives his name to Lughnassadh, Celtic festival of the first harvest, was the young solar
deity who replaced the Dagda, father of the gods, as supreme king. He was associated with sacrifice, as the Sun God who was
reborn each yeah at the mid winter solstice or the spring equinox. Legend has it that Lugh arrived to join the Tuatha de
Danaan and asked for a position at court. (The Tuatha de Danaan were the ancient Irish gods and goddesses, literally the
"tribe of Danu"). He was admitted to the Tuatha de Danaan and eventually became their leader.
Arianrhod
A Welsh goddess of the full moon and also of time and destiny. She ruled over the realm of the Celtic Otherworld called
Caer Feddwidd, the Fort of Carousa. Here the mystical fountain of wine offered eternal youth and health for those who
chose to spend the immortality in the Otherwold. She brings inspiration, health and rejuvination and is a focus for all magic
as she is a witch goddess.
Cerridwen
The Welsh Mother Goddess, the keeper of the cauldron and goddess of inspiration, knowledge and wisdom. She is a natural
focus for rituals involving creativeness and for increased psychic and spiritual awareness. Invoke for divination and
especially for scrying.
Frigg
The viking Mother Goddess whose jewelled spinning wheel formed Orion's belt, patroness of marriage, women, mothers
and families. As Ostara goddess of spring, she was known amoung the Anglo-Saxons and is remembered at Easter as a goddess of
fertility. In her role as Valfreya, Lady of the Battlefield, Frigg recalls the Northen tradition of warrior goddesses and
offers courage.
Dagda
The Celtic Father God, he was also called Eochaid Ollathair (father of all) and Ruadh Rofessa (the Red One of Knowledge).
He was the first king of the Tuatha de Danaan, and it was believed he saw to the weather and harvest. Dadga was lord of life
and death and the primary god of fertility. His great cauldron was handed onto his daughter Brighid (Cerridwen in the Welsh
tradition). In some legends Dagda is associated with Balor, sun deity of the Formoiri, enemies of the gods, who was slain
by Lugh at the Battle of Moyturam thus representing the ascent of the new sun as Lugh went on to become king. The death of the
old order is a requirement for the new and Dagda can offer a focus for rite of passage where change is necessary but not necessarily
welcomed.
Odin
The Viking Father God, known as All Father, god of wisdom, inspiration and poetry as well as war. Odin was desperate to
acquire the wisdom of the old order of giants, he traded one of his eyes for wisdom and obtained the knowledge of runes, the
ancient symbols of spiritual power by sacrificing himself on the World Tree. Odin can be invoked for magic and divination,
especially for casting runes. If Frigg is also invoked the energies will be more balanced.
Brighid
The Celtic Triple Goddess, patroness of smiths, poets and healers has the longest enduring following in Ireland, which merged
into that of the christian St Bridget of Kildare. Her name means "high one" and she is sometimes seen as three sisters, daughters
of the Dagda, or as the maiden, mother and crone. There are a number of sacred wells throughout England, Wales and Ireland
dedicated to her or her Christian counterpart.
Cernunnos
Cernunnos means "horned one" and was generic term for the various Horned Gods of the Celtic tradition. The god dates back to the shamanic
figures drawn on cave walls. Cernunnos was lord of the winter, the hunt, animals, death, male fertility and the Underworld,
and was sometimes portrayed as a triple or trefoil god. Other forms of the horned gods include Herne, Pan, Dionysus.
Cernunnos' importance has been his continual presence as the Horned God, the male principle in Wicca and many other neo pagan faiths.
Iduna
Viking goddess of enternal youth and health. As a goddess of spring she possessed a store of golden apples that endowed immortality.
Sulis
Sulis, or Sulevia, is the Celtic goddess of healing, especially healing waters. Her name is derived from the Celtic word for
sun and her most famous site is the hot mineral springs that have for at least 10,000 years poured from the ground at Bath.
From Celtic times and maybe earlier, the springs became a formal centre of healing.
Cailleach
Meaning the "veilied one", it is the Celtic name for a number of hag goddesses. These are powerful crone goddesses who maintained
their links with the winter. hags are expert shapeshifters and may appear in many forms including cats, stones and even trees.