#gaulish deities

[paganpillar]

Creative journal entry inspired by Cernunnos!

[blackcrowing]

So as far as I'm aware in the Celtic umbrella of deities we don't have any deities SPECIFICALLY related to weaving/textiles or pottery. Which in the grand pattern of Indo-European branches (or even humanity as a whole) seems.... very odd...

What are the community's thoughts on these acts falling under the purview of Brigit or her other language counter parts? Are there other deities that would make more sense for these activities? What are our thoughts?

[that-cunning-witch]

Know any good sources on Celtic (specifically Gaulish practices)? I know it’s not your area, but you seem like someone who might know some people who dabble in that sort of stuff. The area I live in has some celtic archeological sites, but sadly not much is known about the local religion or culture. I am trying to put together a Romano-Celtic hearth cult, but it’s difficult finding practices and deities that feel right.

Gaul is a larger Celtic area of Western Europe (modern-day France and parts of modern-day Belgium, Germany, and Northern Italy). I say this because the Celts, when invaded by Rome, took in a lot of Roman religion including Hellenic and (rarely) Kemetic beliefs as well. When the Celts did this, so did the Gauls.

If it helps at all, the specifics you're looking into is called Gallo-Roman, which is part of the larger Romano-Celtic area.

This selective acculturation manifested in several ways. One of the main ways we see this is with the melding of Greco-Roman deities with Gaulish (Celtic) deities. Gaulish epithets for Roman gods (Jupiter Poeninus) and Roman epithets for Gaulish gods (Lenus Mars). Roman gods were given Gaulish god partners (Mercury and Rosmerta & Apollo and Sirona). Towards the east of the Gauls, many mysteries were formed, including one for the Greek hero Orpheus, the Iranian (or Persian) god Mithras, and the Egyptian goddess Isis. In other words, a whole lot of syncretism.

When it came to the Gauls (and the Celts overall) a main part of their belief system was the heavy use of animal imagery. More specifically, zoomorphic deities. However, we see a lot more human-looking representations of the gods because the Romans (and Greeks) weren't too keen on the idea (see Greco-Egyptian).

As for specifically Gallo-Roman hearth religious beliefs, the Lares (Lar singular) is a good place to start. They're the equivalent of Agathos Daimon in Greek religion (Hellenism). Essentially, they're personal household deities that are connected to the hearth.

A majority of the information we have about the Gaelic culture and the eventual melding of the Gallo-Roman culture stems from two sources: artifacts and Julius Ceasar, who wrote all about in what we now call the "Commentarii de Bello Gallico". The gods that he mentions the Gauls worship (like Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, and Minerva) aren't really the Roman gods that the Gauls are worshipping at that time but rather the closest thing Ceasar can connect. For example, Caesar may say that the Gauls worshipped Mars, when in reality they were worshipping Lenus, a healing god that quickly became associated with Mars because of Caesar and the Roman Empire. However, not all of them were caught. Gobannus is the most well-known example we have, with him being the equivalent to the Roman god Vulcan or the Greek god Hephaestus and yet Caesar makes no comment on the Gaulish god.

One other thing, the specific time we are taking a look at was prior to the overtaking by the Anglos, Saxons, and Jutes (aka pre-Anglo-Saxon times). Because of this, Germanic (Norse) gods weren't known to these people yet. Odin, Thor, and Freyja were unknown to them at this point in time.

Other than that, the last thing I can give to you are articles and books that I stumbled upon that may pique your interest. I do recommend a couple of Wikipedia links, but just know that I recommend using Wikipedia as a jumping-off point. Hope this helps! :^)

Becoming Roman: the origins of provincial civilization in Gaul -- Greg Woolf https://archive.org/details/becomingromanori0000wool

The gods of the Celts -- Miranda Green https://archive.org/details/godsofceltsar00mira

Gallo-Roman Religious Sculptures -- A.N. Newell https://www.jstor.org/stable/640758

Fifth-Century Gaul: A Crisis of Identity? -- John Drinkwater & Elton Hugh https://www.loc.gov/catdir/samples/cam031/91018375.pdf

Caesar's Commentaries on the Gallic War: literally translated -- Frederick Holland Dewey, A.B. https://archive.org/details/caesarscommentar07caes

Category:Gaulish gods -- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Gaulish_gods

Category:Gaulish goddesses -- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Gaulish_goddesses

sources: https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/1999/1999.10.34/ http://www.deomercurio.be/en/dii.html https://www.britannica.com/topic/Celtic-religion/The-Celtic-gods https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lares https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lar-Roman-deities https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallo-Roman_culture https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallo-Roman_religion

[nemetonian-brainworm]

hallo pagan tumblr, i'm new here!

currently researching:

DEITIES

Nemetona

the Morrígan

Rhiannon

possibly also interested in:

Artemis

Loki

Sirona

PRACTICES

Reconstructionist polytheistic paganism

naturalism-focused Appalachian folk magic

Herbal medicine

Celtic druidry

Irish, Gaulish, and Appalachian spirituality in general

[blackcrowing]

Open, unequivocally open.

Anyone who explicitly says, or otherwise implies, that you must be X to participate are participating in nationalist thinking. You don't need to have 'celtic' blood (which trying to define that would be a whole task honestly), you don't need to live in the land of the gods (despite what some say, the gods seem perfectly capable of and happy to travel), and the gods will not see you as 'less than' if you don't check these boxes.

The strongest encouragement among the community is to strive to educate yourself. Learn the actual history of the deities, not the Wiccanisms. Learn about the living cultures of your area of interest and the struggles they have faced in keeping that culture preserved. Learn the language (or at least a few words if you're not talented in that department) of your interest group, help keep it alive and thriving.

Quick question, is Celtic Paganism open, closed, or partially both? Because I've heard all different angles and honestly I'm so confused now.

I am not Welsh by blood but have citizenship and have lived here for the majority of my life since I was a child so does it count if I practice? I do consider myself Welsh as I've lived here for so long.

[childofflamesandmoonlight]

Which deities do you personally associate with change/transformation?

[oh-my-little-hearth]

Calling all pagans and practitioners!

I have been wanting to do more devotional poetry so if you’d like a poem or prayer about your specific’s deity or practice, send me your request in asks or the comments of this post!

All practices and paths are welcome to request <3

REQUESTS ARE OPEN

[fernthewhimsical]

Fern's Cernunnos Deep Dive pt. 2

Aspects

Animals

The most obvious on here is of course Cernunnos' antlers. It ties him to the stag, and through this to the realm of animals. However, this is not the only evidence we have. Most who have written about Cernunnos, like Green, Ross, MacCana, and Strutynski, all name him "Lord of Beasts" or a variation on this theme. On the Gundestrup Cauldron, one of the most iconic images we have of Cernunnos, he is surrounded by animals. The depiction found of him in Reims show a rat on his antlers, and a stag and bull at his feet.

Forest and Hunting

From the depiction of animals, especially those of the stag and the boar, it is a natural step to associate Cernunnos with the forest. The stag is known in different European cultures as the King of the Forest, so an antlered God being a Lord of King of the forests and all that lives within, makes sense. On the Grundestup Cauldron we see prey animals, such as the stag, the fish, and the bull. As well as animals used for hunting, like the dog. This had lead many to believe that he is also the God of the Hunt, and even, through an admittedly flimsy connection with Herne, as the leader of the Wild Hunt. David Fickett-Willbar posits that there is not enough evidence of actual hunting to support Cernunnos as a Lord of the Hunt. On none of the depictions there are actual hunting attributes seen, only the dog, which in Celtic and Gallo-Roman depictions more often symbolized the underworld or Otherworld than hunting. That being said, in my experience Cernunnos is definitely a God of the hunt, being both the stag (the hunted) and the wolf (the hunter).

Cycle of Life and Death

Because of his aspect of both Hunter and Hunted, and his tie to animals, I also associate him with the cycle of life and death. Birth, to adulthood, to death, to decay, to rebirth. The cycle of nature, in animal and in plant life. A thing that is easy to observe in the deep forests.

Chthonic God

This ties into the cyclic aspect of life, but there are more things that tie Cernunnos to "within the earth" or the Underworld. He is often depicted with a horned serpent, which according to Marian Green depicts the calm nature of Cernunnos. However, in Greek myth we also have a ram-horned serpent called the Cerastes. This serpent would burrow itself within the earth, until only the two (or four) horns were visible. There it would wait for its prey to come by, leap out, and devour it. Because of the burrowing the Cerastes, and through it the horned serpent, are also tied to the Underworld, to which it was thought he was closer. The dog or hound is also often found on images of Cernunnos. Not just a symbol of the Hunt, the dog was also a symbol of the Underworld in the Germanic world.

Wealth

Another attribute that is carried often by Cernunnos is the torc. A torc is a neck ring, often made from bronze or gold. It is seen as a symbol of status, of divinity, and of material wealth. Later the torc was replaced with a bag of bowl of coins, another symbol of material wealth. Oxen were also a sign of wealth that appear on Cernunnos' engravings, also tying him to the wealth of towns and agriculture, rather than the forests. This is an aspect of Cernunnos that does not appear to me often, personally, but I do see the association.

Liminality

The liminal, the in between. Often we see Cernunnos depicted with a horned snake in his left hand, the snake meaning death and the left hand having negative connotations, and the torc in his right hand, the torc meaning wealth and the right hand a positive sign. Cernunnos places himself in the center by holding his hands at shoulder height. On the depiction of Cernunnos found in Reims we see the stag and the bull. Both symbols of wealth, but where cattle is a sign of domesticated wealth, the stag is a sign of the wealth of the wild. And once again, Cernunnos is depicted in the center. On the Grundestup Cauldron there are dogs, a sign of the hunter and death, and stag, a sign of the hunted and life, opposite of each other, both facing Cernunnos. Which brings us to the tricephalous, a Gaulic representation that is found for several Gods, amongst which Cernunnos. It is a figure with three heads, one facing forward, and the others facing to away from the center to the sides. Many interpretations can be made about facing the past and the future, death and life, the negative and the positive. But all places the center head, which is often most detailed or bigger than the others, in a more important position. Two statues of Cernunnos found in Atun and Condat, both are tricephalous and have removable antlers. On a personal note have also experienced Cernunnos as liminal when it comes to gender. He has helped me see my own liminality, and I often see him with different mixes of primary and secondary sex characteristics. Other non-binary devotees of Cernunnos have expressed similar experiences.

And with that we have reached UPG territory. The next ones are purely from my personal experience with Cernunnos, and, as far as I know, have no basis in the historic evidence that has been found.

the Otherworld

To me, Cernunnos is also a King of the Fae. The deep wild woods are reminiscent to the realm of the Wild Fae, and often entrances to this realm can be found there. As said above I associate him with the Wild Hunt, a procession of beings racing through the skies at certain times of the year. Sometimes these are beasts, sometimes these are fae, and sometimes these are witches. (Perchta's procession is children, but that is specific to her.) In the path that I walk witches and fae are very closely related, and through this Cernunnos is also seen as the Witch King. Teaching magic and journeying to and from other realms.

Bonfires

Another personal association. To me Cernunnos is closely tied to music, and to ecstatic dance, often around a bonfire. I have had several instances of dancing in front of a fire, and suddenly seeing myself on top of a mountain, a huge bonfire in front of me, and other witches and devotees sharing this moment of dance and passion. There is also the Dutch festival of Castlefest, which is a pagan- and fantasy festival. On Saturday they burn a wicker creature, which holds offerings made by the visitors. My offering is always for Cernunnos, whose presence I feel strongly at this festival. So this is another reason for this personal association.

[Masterpost]

[sillysybilsden]

Ehilà, viaggiatore

Hey there, traveller

Dedicated to my twin Lares.

Foreword

Hello there! It's me, the Silly Sybil (fka Clever Crow). I've been wanting to do this post for months, but life got in the way and I eventually forgot about it. But hey: better late than never, right?

Now, to the post.

In this foreword, I do want to address the nature of my resources. In fact, I am not writing all of this off of articles or academic works, but off of a questionnaire I had published back in July 2023. The answers given by fellow pagans are the main resources for this blog, whose objective is that of determining the main characteristics of two different approaches to lost practices: reconstructionism and revivalism.

Why choose such a peculiar approach to resources? Reconstructionism and revivalism are part of a spectrum, which can be intended and defined differently by different practitioners. Every pagan will have a slightly different idea of these terms. That means that these labels do not have a universal meaning - there is no institution recognised worldwide that gives us the requirements to be a revivalist or a reconstructionist: it is up to the practitioner and their understanding of the term. This is the reason why I've decided to opt for a form rather than articles as a resource. After all, who, better than a pagan who lives and practices paganism daily, can instruct us about paganism-related terms?

One last important thing I want to do is introduce you to our “cast”* - the wonderful pagans who took the time to compile the form, that is:

➳ anonymous contibutor (revivalist)

➳ Dead (revivalist)

➳ Guenevere (reconstructionist)

➳ Magpie (reconstructionist)

I do feel like thanking the people above is the least I can do. For this reason, I thank all of those who participated from the bottom of my heart: this post wouldn't exist without you.

*The "cast" is formed by aquaintances from a closed Amino community.

On paganism

In order to understand the definition of paganism-related labels, we must first define paganism. My personal research led me to two definitions I will provide you with:

An umbrella-term that indicates non-Abrahamic religions*;

An umbrella-term that indicates religions that are not main world religions**.

The options above might seem similar - if not identical. However, the subtle difference between them is extremely important.

According to Dr. Angela Puca¹, pagan beliefs/religions show the following characteristics:

A polytheistic and animistic approach to spirituality;

A direct relationship with the divine - which sometimes translates with little interest to scriptures and interactions in a non-institutionalised way;

The belief of immanence - the belief that the divine is everywhere and, thus, is not external to the natural world but within the same;

As a consequence of (3.), the reverence for everything as everything holds divine power.

For the reasons above, pagans are very likely to believe in magick - if not practice it. Quoting Dr. Puca, one could say that some of the most popular beliefs that fall under paganism are “Wicca/Witchcraft, Druidry, Heathernry, Asatrù, Goddess worship, ethnic reconstructions and other animist earth-based traditions”.

Now that we have defined, very broadly, what paganism is, let us get to reconstructionism and revivalism.

*Abrahamic religions include Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

**Main world religions include, among the others, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism.

On reconstructionism

“Reconstructionism is about recreating an ancient or dead religion as closely as possible to the original source. This means learning about, understanding, and incorporating historical traditions. Being a Reconstructionist involves a lot of time and research.” - Magpie

“A reconstructionist seeks to find the historic pieces of practice and remain true to that as best they can.” - Guevevere

As the two members of the cast above already said ever-so-clearly, reconstructionism puts a lot of emphasis on historical accuracy - which revivalism also does but to a lesser extent, as we will see later on. The key characteristic of this approach to pagan traditions is the will to practice a dead religion as it was by ancient peoples.

For example: a modern Hellenic polytheist who considers themselves a reconstructionist will do a ritual as a 3rd century BCE Hellenic polytheist would have - if that is indeed the era they mean to reconstruct: the same pagan religion can show different characteristics depending on the century.

The modern reconstructionist practitioner will not alter the rituals and, sometimes, nor will they attempt to fill the gaps with their own UPG*². For this reason, many reconstructionists affirm that it takes a lot of time and research for them to add new practices to their own, as they must research thoroughly the subject and reconstruct it exclusively thanks to historical accounts - for this reason, they rely on academical and primary resources**. Sometimes, if gaps make it impossible to reconstruct a, say, ritual, reconstructionists might decide not to include it in its entirety - in place of, as said before, use any UPG to fill said gaps.

*Unverified Personal Gnosis: a belief that is not backed up by mythos and is exclusively theorized/recognised by the single practitioner.

**Primary resources: texts that were written in the historical period that one is researching. Eg: Saint Augustine of Hippo's texts are a primary resource to those who are researching 4th/5th century Christianity.

On revivalism

“Revivalism is a sort of subcategory of Reconstruction. It has the same goals and also has an emphasis on historical accuracy but tends to be on the less strict side and not as culturally focused*. While Recon. as a whole would include people that expect near-total adherence to historically or culturally attested practices, Revivalism is more theologically focused and has more room for adaptation to one's existing culture and environment. *cultural context is still important, revivalism just doesn't expect participation/membership to a specific culture.” - Dead

“Revivalists keep a sense of tradition within their practice but still allow room for UPG/SPG* and modern practices while still keeping it within the religion.” - anonymous contributor

As we anticipated before, revivalism, too, heavily focuses on historical accuracy. However, there is more room to add one's personal beliefs and/or alter some parts of the practice. This is the very big - and very important - difference between the two approaches: while reconstructionism hardly accepts UPG or SPG to fill the gaps - and, so, adjust part of a practice to one's needs/beliefs -, revivalism is much more flexible on that bit.

For example: a modern Gaulish polytheist who considers themselves a revivalist might decide to fill the gaps given by the little - and biased - resources on their practice by adding their own UPG to what is already historically attested.

Just because revivalism accepts UPG and SPG, it doesn't mean that it is a less-demanding approach than reconstructionism. In fact, it does require the same amount of research and of digging into academic and primary texts. Revivalism is about *adapting* an historical practice; it is not about eradicating it from its original historical and/or cultural context, which has to be researched nonetheless. One could say that revivalists want to reconstruct ancient practices as if they were never destroyed in the first place, taking into account the evolutions such practices would have gone through in the contemporary world. Thus, using one of the examples above, if I am a revivalist I am not practicing Hellenic polytheism as a 3rd century BCE polytheist would have, but I am practicing it as a potential 2024 Hellenic polytheist would have after all of the probable changes religion could have gone through.

To better explain the difference between reconstructionism and revivalism: Roman deities used to be offered incense and wine. If I were to use a reconstructionist approach, I might want to stick to these offerings as they are two of the few offerings that are historically attested. If I were to use a revivalist approach, I might prefer using incense or wine, but I could opt for a strawberry beverage from time to time.

*Shared Personal Gnosis: a belief that is not backed up by mythos and is exclusively theorized/recognised by a group of practitioners.

Conclusion

I personally, to this day, do not know whether to consider myself a reconstructionist or a revivalist. That is because, depending on the pagan community you're interacting with, the "requirements" to label yourself as reconstructionist or revivalist might change - and this is something I already mentioned in the foreword. What I - and the other contributors - tried to do is give you some very broad guidelines in order to let you establish whether you fall under one or the other category.

If you do not find any of these two approaches fitting for you, there is no need to worry: as I stated in the foreword, we are talking about a spectrum. Some people lean towards one of the two extremes of this spectrum and there might be people who find themselves outside of it, which is valid nonetheless.

This being said, I thank you all for reading this blog. Let me know in the comments whether you describe yourself as a reconstructionist, a revivalist or something else entirely!

Wish you a pleasant day/evening/night.

The Silly Sybil

Resources

Informative

¹ Dr. Angela Puca's video on paganism

² Dead's post on UPG and SPG

Paintings

¹ "Priestess of Delphi" by John Collier

² "Magic Circle" by John William Waterhouse

³ "Roman Woman Lighing a Lamp at the Home Altar" by Stephan Wladilawowitsch Bakalowicz

[flowersandfigtrees]

Epithets, Explained

Introduction

──────────────────

I’m just making this post to help explain exactly what epithets are, how they’re used, and the different types. I know that for beginners, getting a hold of all the terms used in relation to deity worship and/or work can be tough, and I’ve seen this subject trip people up in the past when they read about certain deities or translations of ancient texts.

For a quick definition, epithets are “an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned”. In relation to epithets of deities, you might also see them called ‘surnames’ and they're basically nicknames or bynames to refer to specific aspects or forms of a deity. Typically, they’re used alongside the actual name of the deity but there’s also plenty of times where only the epithet is used, such as calling Apollo by simply “Phoebus” and not “Phoebus Apollo” or calling Athena by only saying “Pallas”. This happens a lot in texts like the Iliad or the Aeneid where using the full name paired with the epithet every time would eventually end up sounding too repetitive but also, to ancient people, certain epithets would have been easily recognizable on their own and they wouldn’t need to have the actual name given. They can come before or after a deity’s actual name, order doesn’t really matter, it’s just whatever grammar rules you’re following.

Types & Examples

──────────────────

Generally speaking, there are four main types of epithets used in polytheistic religions: regional, functional, syncretic/fusion, and poetic. And just as a note; most of my religious experience is with Greek, Roman, and Gaulish religions so that’s where I’m gonna be getting most, if not all, of the examples used below.

The categories are, for the most part, arbirtrary but can be helpful when understanding epithets in a general sense when you come across them. Some types overlap with each other, for example, Dionysos Melanaigis (lit. Dionysos of the black goatskin) refers jointly to a functional/cultic role his worship played in a ritual during the Apaturia festival in Athens AND to a story in myth where he wears a black goat skin and comes to the aid of a guy named Melanthus (which is the mythic explanation for why he’s worshipped during Apaturia) but it makes Melanaigis a regional epithet (only used in Athens), a functional cult epithet (was only during rites to him for a specific event) and a mythic epithet (as it refers to a specific mythic event). Similarly, there's examples with Apollo; Delphios Apollo refers to both the form of Apollo specifically in Delphi (regional epithet) AND to Apollo in his function as an oracular deity of prophecy (functional), and Pythian Apollo refers to Apollo around the area where he slayed the mythical Python (so both a reference to myth as well as regional, in this case referring to the area around Delphi) and also functional, since it can refer to his oracular function.

Additionally, epithets can be shared by multiple deities, “Phoebus” was used to refer to both Apollo and Helios, “Antheia” was both the name of a standalone deity as well as an epithet to Hera and Aphrodite, “Bacchus” was an epithet for the Etruscan god Fufluns and to Dionysus and would eventually become to go-to byname for Dionysos in Rome. There are also epithets such as “Aetnaeus” which refers to any number of deities associated with Mount Etna, including Zeus and Hephaestus, and “Eleutherios” which could refer to Dionysos, Zeus, or Eros.

i. Regional Epithets

──────────────────

The first type is regional or locative/toponymic epithets. These are used when referencing a form of a deity that is unique to a certain place for whatever reason or originated there. Sometimes deities will have unique local forms because of the inevitable variations of religion in any given culture (no religion is or was a monolith) and there may or may not be pseudo-historical/mythical reasons for the specific local variation. But it's pretty much just saying “the form of this deity that resides in Town A” or “the form of this deity representing a specific thing they did at this site”, examples include:

➻ Diana Nemorensis — literally: “Diana of Nemi”, used specifically to refer to her cult at Lake Nemi and was the form of Diana celebrated there during Nemoralia.

➻ Apollo Palatinus and Apollo Delphios — literally: “Apollo on the Palatine” referring to the temple built to him on the Palatine Hill in Rome by Augustus, this form of Apollo was also Augustus’ personal protector. Apollo Delphios was mentioned earlier but it refers to the oracular-centric form of Apollo in Delphi.

➻ Artemis Ephesus — literally: “Artemis of Ephesus”, refers to a form of Artemis unique to the city of Ephesus who had a very different representation to the other forms of Artemis. This manifestation of her was transported to multiple other cities such as Massalia and it was a form that was a sort of mother-goddess.

➻ Zeus & Hephaestus Aetnaeus — literally: “of Mount Etna”, for Zeus it refers to the form of him which has a small shrine and festival there and for Hephaestus, it refers to where he has his workshop.

ii. Functional Epithets

──────────────────

These epithets are ones that reference a specific (often cultic) function of the god. Many deities have multiple roles or concepts they embody and have domain over, so epithets can be used to zero-in on just the side of a deity relevant to why you’re praying to them or giving offerings. There are also festival-specific epithets which can be used on specific festivals in honor of that aspect of the given deity. Some examples include:

➻ Hercules Olivarius & Hercules Augusti — literally: “Hercules of the Olive Merchants”, referring specifically to his ability to guard the olive industry in Rome and also “Hercules of the Emperor” which was used to refer to the aspect of Hercules that guarded Roman emperors. (Gotta say, if I had to choose, it's Olive-Merchant Hercules every time for me)

➻ Hermes & Apollo Theoxenios — literally: “of the Theoxenia festival” and was the name used to invoke both Hermes and Apollo during that specific festival.

➻ Aphrodite Areia — literally: “Warlike Aphrodite” or “Aphrodite of War”, used to call specifically on Aphrodite’s war function.

➻ Apollo Acestor & Apollo Kataibates — literally: “Apollo the Healer”, was used when calling on Apollo to aid in healing, and Apollo Kataibatês literally meant “Apollo, Protector of Travelers” (also used for for Hermes) and was used by people to thank him for a safe journey or to ask for protection on a journey they were about to take.

➻ Poseidon Isthmia — literally: “Poseidon of the Isthmian Games” which was used only to call on him during this athletic festival.

➻ Ceres Legifera — literally: “Ceres, Keeper of the Laws (of marriage)”, was used to invoke her in marriage processions and during the confarreatio (a type of Roman marriage ritual where the couple eats a cake made with sacred wheat)

iii. Syncretic Epithets

──────────────────

Another form of epithets are those that serve to equate or combine deities. Oftentimes, foreign deities from one culture may transform into epithets of deities from other cultures or two deities within a single culture might be combined into one. This was especially common with Iron-Age Celtic deities in places that adopted aspects of Roman and Greek religion due to being governed by or just from existing in close proximity to them. Within Greek religion, it was common for more “archaic” or minor deities to become epithets of deities that held more cultural prominence. Some examples include:

➻ Apollo Grannus, Apollo Maponos, & Apollo Belenos — Grannus, Maponos, and Belenos were all standalone deities in Gaulish culture that became associated with Apollo once Roman religious influence spread. Each has their own unique nuance but all seem to be related to Apollo’s healing function

➻ Mars Condatis & Mars Toutatis — Both Condatis and Toutatis are also independently attested Celtic gods and both were interpreted to be a form of Mars. Through some of his Celtic epithets, Mars gained a traditionally uncharacteristic healing function.

➻ Sulis Minerva — Sulis is a Brythonic healing goddess and through her identification with Minerva, enjoyed a pretty large cult in Roman Britain.

➻ Poseidon Erechtheus — a fusion of Poseidon and a mythical king of Athens who was most likely a minor deity at some point. It would go on to be used as a name for Poseidon when in relation to Athens.

➻ Dionysos Zagreus — This is an equation that happened mostly in Orphism and other mystic cults but the earliest evidence suggests that Zagreus was originally a standalone deity or an aspect of Hades which later became an aspect of Dionysos.

➻ Mars Quirinus — Quirinus simultaneously became an epithet to Mars and also maintained an independent presence in Roman religion. It’s partly through his identification with Mars that the latter started to be more warlike as opposed to an agricultural deity.

➻ Pallas Athena — In some tellings, notably in pseudo-Apollodorus’ “Bibliotheca”, this name is the result of Athena taking the name of a Titaness named Pallas, daughter of Triton. Could also be a fusion of Athena and the giant named Pallas.

➻ Serapis/Osorapis/Userhapi — Userhapi and Oserapis are transliterations of the coptic name for Osiris-Apis which became Hellenized as “Serapis” under the Ptolemaic dynasty. It is the result of identifying Apis (a sacred bull turned deity during the Second Dynasty) and the Egyptian god Osiris.

iv. Poetic Epithets

──────────────────

Poetic (or literary) epithets are, well, epithets just used poetically in ancient literature. They don’t refer to cult or ritual functions and usually either are physical descriptors, compliments, or mythic achievements. It can also include any epithets used to describe mythic standing in relation to other gods, such Ovid calling Aurora “Pallantias” to signify that in his telling, she’s the daughter of the titan Pallas. They can be used in a devotional sense and in a more solely creative one to evoke a certain feeling from the reader and set a scene and they may be referred to as “Homeric epithets” as well since many come from Homeric works. Another function of Homeric epithets can be to help a line of poetry satisfy the line/format requirements of dactylic hexameter. Here's a nifty overview of the grammatical and descriptive purposes for various epithets in the Iliad and Odyssey. If you’ve ever read ancient epic poetry then you’ve encountered loads of poetic epithets, examples including:

➻ Eos Rhododactylos: literally “Rosy-Fingered Eos”, Eos Erigenia: literally “Early-Born Eos”

➻ Aphrodite Philommeides: literally “Laughter-Loving Aphrodite”, Aphrodite Eustephanos: literally “Richly-Crowned Aphrodite”

➻ Artemis Khrysenios: literally “Artemis Who Holds Golden Reins”, Artemis Keladeinos: literally “Strong-Voiced Artemis”

➻ Hermes Argeiphontes: literally “Hermes, Slayer of Argos” (a shepherd he killed in myth), Hermes Kharidotes: literally “Hermes, Giver of Joy”

➻ Hades Polysemantor: literally “Hades, Ruler of Many”, Hades Nekron Soter: literally “Hades, the Savior of the Dead"

Using Epithets

──────────────────

When it comes to using epithets in your practice, it's largely a personal choice. By no means is it something that you MUST do but, it's also not something that doesn't have a place in modern polytheism. I, for one, tend to find that it can connect my worship to a certain form/aspect of a deity (for instance, Apollo) more quickly or serve to "set the mood" more effectively. I tend to pray to epithets of him for his healing/protective/oracular roles, however, I'm not as personally connected to his musical/artistic roles so on the relatively rare occasions that I find myself wanting to invoke those aspects, using epithets related to that makes me feel closer to them. They can also be used to enhance prayers if you're someone who enjoys having very artistic wording or just wants to glorify the deity you're praying to.

Another way I like to use epithets is to create my own to use in prayers or as a devotional activity. This could mean creating new poetic epithets as compliments to a deity, creating an epithet to invoke them at a local place, or even making an epithet for a role they have in your UPG but do not traditionally have. I usually try to make them in various forms of Ancient Greek, Latin, Gaulish, or in English but you could utilize any language you feel like, it doesn't need to be the language of the ancient culture(s) where the deity was worshipped. And importantly, it doesn't need to perfect. I am certainly not fluent in any form of Ancient Greek or in Latin so it can take a while to get the correct (or even just loosely acceptable) grammatical set-up and lots of comparison with actual ancient epithets. Just for some examples, here's some epithets I've created for various deities:

➻ Dionysos Tautoteus: literally "Dionysus of Identity" but I made it to refer to him as a protector/affirmer of self-identification in relation to sexuality and/or gender.

➻ Eos Dendrokhoria & Eos Anthestephanos: literally "Eos who Dances in the Trees" to refer to when the sunrise is barely visible above the tree line (I usually pray to her at dawn and there's a forest in that direction from my house lol) and the second is literally "Flower-Crowned Eos", just a reference to her being traditionally described as wearing flowers.

➻ Sirona Lindaia: literally "Sirona of the Lake" which I made to use when praying or giving offering to her at lakes, pretty self-explanatory but I also have made a bunch of others for her such as Sirona Nantaia (Sirona of the Stream), Sirona Natrix (Sirona of the Snake), and Sirona Dumnorigana (Sirona, the Queen of the Depths).

Some Useful Resources for Epithets

For most Greek deities, you can find lists of epithets to them online on places such as Theoi.com, within classical texts such as various Homeric Hymns, epics, histories, etc. Theoi is a great site in general, however it can occasionally lack further explanation and context for epithets so if you find that one isn't clarified enough, try searching it up independently.

Wiktionary.com is actually a really great free resource for looking up etymology and the ways different words are/were used in various languages.

For other languages, check things such as epigraphy [for example, CIL databases (Latin) or this EDH CIL database (across the Roman sphere), RIB databases (Roman Britain), IG databases (Greek)], curse tablets, papyri, etymological dictionaries or regular dictionaries. These can be really useful for obvious reasons. For non-Latin Italic languages and ancient Celtic languages, I tend to use etymological/reconstructed dictionaries this for Celtic languages and this for Etruscan. But again, you can make epithets just in the language you already speak, there's no need for them to be in some ancient or reconstructed one. Its literally whatever you want.

This was originally a blogpost of mine on the P&W Amino but has been reformatted for (and reshared) here since amino is heading towards its inevitable end... rip

[divine-crows]

Connecting with a lesser-known deity was something I never expected to feel so special.

Like don't get me wrong, my bonds with other deities are just as special and I cherish them deeply--

but there was something about having to dig endlessly to find information on Belisama after she reached out to me. There was something about having to intensely look and search and discern until I was 100% certain it was her. There was something about the fact that I've been drawn to thematic light/sunlight since I was a child and there was something about how I always felt a calling whenever I visited large bodies of water.

Especially because she was the first goddess to reach out to me in a very long time, it felt holy in a weird way? Like... after years of wondering why I never seemed to connect with goddesses... after years of worrying that I somehow offended them or caused them to hate me... she found me and she helped me learn how to connect with other goddesses.

[paganpillar]

Taking a moment to relax before finals week. I want to create another deity moodboard. I'm open to suggestions! Lmk who you want to see! Send some of their aspects as well!

[jasper-pagan-witch]

With all of the depictions of Cernunnos these days as this hulking, bearded, muscle-clad macho man who lives in the woods, it's very easy to forget that the single major depiction we have of him looks like this:

Image description begin: The engravings on the Gundestrup Cauldron, depicting a male-ish figure with noodle arms holding a torc in the right hand (image left) and a snake in the left hand (image right). There are deer of some kind on the left side of the image, and some strange dogs on the right side of the image. End image description.

I mean...

Image description begin: The same image, zoomed in to the face of the figure. The mouth is partially open, the eyes are looking slightly forward, and the nose is very flat. It overall looks very goofy. End image description.

[flame-of-brigid]

A great way to honor the metaphor of Cernunnos is to not use AI art!

[musingmelsuinesmelancholy]

The smallest God

Made by magickdeerystudio; hopefully when the Selkies Pearl opens back up for the season I can check out her stuff in person!

As if I wasn’t pleased enough with this little Carnonos, him being created by a local artist just makes it all the more special

I plan on commissioning her to create a piece for Tsirona and Melusine

[theflintwarlock]

I was practicing a mindfulness class I've been attending for the past 7 weeks and in todays session they asked us to think about a friend. I wasn't sure what friend to pick, but then I thought of Artio. (Perhaps it seems silly to think of a deity as your friend, but there it is)

I haven't seen many people online who worship her, but she has such a warm and cozy presence. It feels like snuggling up with a protective bear. At this time of the year I imagine her slowing down, going into hibernation, and I try to do the same where I can. It felt so lovely to feel her presence there, like I was resting my head on her fur.

There are a lot of goddesses that get pushed into the 'nature goddess' category, for me specifically she is the goddess of fruit, of plenty, of the sun and of animals. Whenever I have a fruit with pips in it I leave them on her section of my altar. It's nice to feel her presence even at this time of the year, to hunker down and hibernate with her.