Section 1 LORE
Part 1~Gods and Goddesses
Wicca is a pagan nature based religion. We believe in immanant diety. Immanant diety is the concept that the Divine, usually expressed as a God and a Goddess, is not removed from nature or above nature but IS nature. Everything in the universe, trees, animals, plants, stone, water, stars, sun, moon, space, human beings are a part of the Divine. But as our mortal minds aren't quite up to the task of recognizing or relating to the Whole we section it up into various aspects and these aspects we call Gods and Goddesses. Different cultures and societies throughout time have brought different concepts to the fore and embodied these in their mythologies.
As modern witches, we are blessed to be able to study a multitude of different faces of the Lord and Lady, not limited by the restraints of culture, time, or geological location and to be able to incorporate these truths into our worship and thought; to find those aspects of the Divine Female and the Divine Male which closest suit our own emotional, spiritual and intellectual needs and aspirations.
Here is a brief overview of some of the "Major" Gods and Goddesses of several pantheons.
Egyptian~
Ra~ Father of the Egyptian Gods. He is associated mainly with the Sun and with kings. A distant diety He is not much concerned with the day to day affairs of humans. He is pictured as a strong man with the head of a hawk. Ra is a distant father removed from the daily affairs of his children but charged with the overall care of the whole of creation.
Shu~God of the atmosphere. He rules the airs between the earth and the heavens. He is pictured as a handsome man with a light blue tint to his skin. The life giving air that we breathe is his domain and it is appropraite to call on him for the element Air.
Tefnut~Wife and sister of Shu. She is the Goddess of atmospheric moisture. She rules over the storm and the rain. She is pictured as a lovely woman with the head of a lioness. She is mostly seen as a benevolent diety but she has her destructive side, the differnece between summer rain and a raging hurricane.
Geb~God of the Earth. In most pantheons the earth is shown as female and the sky as male but in the Egyptian pantheon the atrributions are reversed. I think this is interesting in that the male aspects of the Earth are sometimes overlooked and Geb is a good representation that men can be nurturing and supportive too; the warm loving father image vice the cold authoritarian image that is so often portrayed in mythology. Geb is pictured as a giant man with warm brown skin.
Nut or Nuit~Goddess of the Sky, heavens, stars, the realms above the limits of the atmosphere. Some scientists are now speculating that life on Earth was started by meteors from space carrying complex amino acids and water, and in this divine portrait we see that space is our mother as much as the Earth is. Nuit is seen as a deep blue or ebon skinned woman with the stars embedded in her skin.
Osiris~Son of Geb and Nut. He is the God of nature and protector of the dead. In the most famous myth about Osiris, he is slain by Set and his body parts scattered, to be later collected by Isis and resurrected. We see this myth enacted in the cycle of life and death in nature. Plants and animals that die become the fuel and the base for other plants and animals to live. Destruction and creation in harmony leading to new life.
Isis~Wife of Osiris. Isis is the all Goddess in Egyptian lore and has provenance over all the aspects that other Egyptian Goddesses rule over as well. She is the triune Goddess. As a young woman (Maiden) she beguiles Ra's true name from him and thus gains power over the king of the Gods. As wife of Osiris and mother of Horus, we see the mother aspect. As the mistress of magick who resurrects her husband and aids her grown son Horus to avenge the death of his father, we see the wisdom and power of the Crone.
Thoth~God of knowledge. Something of a mystery as he is not related to any of the other gods, but all of them seek his aid. Thoth is the embodiment of learning and all that there is to be known is contained within him. He is pictured as a slender man with the head of an Ibis.
Ptah~He is the God of craftsmen and artisans and in some versions of the Egyptian creation myths it is he and not Ra who caused the Earth to come into being.He is pictured as a man with ebon black skin and fiery eyes.
Horus~Son of Isis and Osiris, he is the triune male diety. As the child he is the god of innocence and wonder. As an adult , he avenges his father and slays his father's killer; he is a mighty warrior and powerful righter of wrongs. As an old man he is pictured as a healer and sage, a hermit who gathers wisdom. He is shown as a man with the head of hawk.
Bast~Goddess of cats and intuition. She epitomizes the magickal mindset, being the patron of love, laughter, pleasure and music and her special animal the cat is both mysterious and playful, serene and poweful without being threatening. She is portrayed as either a cat or as a young woman with a cat's head.
Sekhmet~Twin sister to Bast. She is the wild cat, and she rules over war and vengeance. She is the holy cleansing that burns away evil. She is the darker side of magick, the powers of lust and revenge. Sekhmet is pictured as a woman with the head of a lioness. She is said to have been created by Ra to punish the evil and unjust.
Maat~Wife of Thoth. She is the Goddess of balance. She is the embodiment of justice, fairness and law. Her scales are absolutely unbiased.
Next lecture~
Gods and Goddesses continued: Greek and Celtic
