🐑❄️🌱Deities of Imbolc 🐑❄️🌱 (Patreon)

Let’s talk about the deities of Imbolc! Here are two articles by Learn Religions for you.

Although traditionally Imbolc is associated with Brighid, the Irish goddess of hearth and home, there are a number of other deities who are represented at this time of year. Thanks to Valentine's Day, many gods and goddesses of love and fertility are honored at this time.

Aradia (Italian)

Popularized by Charles Godfrey Leland in Gospel of the Witches, she is the virginal daughter of Diana. There is some question about Leland's scholarship, and Aradia may be a corruption of Herodias from the Old Testament, according to Ronald Hutton and other academics.

Aenghus Og (Celtic)

This young god was most likely a god of love, youthful beauty and poetic inspiration. At one time, Aenghus went to a magical lake and found 150 girls chained together — one of them was the girl he loved, Caer Ibormeith. All the other girls were magically turned into swans every second Samhain, and Aenghus was told he could marry Caer if he was able to identify her as a swan. Aengus succeeded, and turned himself into a swan so he could join her. They flew away together, singing exquisite music that lulled its listeners to sleep.

Aphrodite (Greek)

A goddess of love, Aphrodite was known for her sexual escapades, and took a number of lovers. She was also seen as a goddess of love between men and women, and her annual festival was called the Aphrodisiac. Like many of the other Greek gods, she spent a lot of time meddling in the affairs of mortals, mostly for her own amusement. She was instrumental in the cause of the Trojan War; Aphrodite offered Helen of Sparta to Paris, the prince of Troy, and then when he saw Helen for the first time, Aphrodite made sure he was inflamed with lust, thus leading to Helen's abduction and a decade of war. Despite her image as a goddess of love and beautiful things, Aphrodite also has a vengeful side. At her temple in Corinth, revelers often paid tribute to Aphrodite by having rambunctious sex with her priestesses. The temple was later destroyed by the Romans, and not rebuilt, but fertility rites appear to have continued in the area.

Bast (Egyptian)

This cat goddess was known throughout Egypt as a fierce protector. Later on, during the Classical period, she emerged as Bastet, a slightly softer, more gentle incarnation. As Bastet, she was regarded more as a domestic cat than a lioness. However, because of her position as a guardian, she often was seen as a protector of mothers — as a cat to her kittens — and childbirth. Thus, she evolved into the identity of hearth goddess, much like Brighid in the Celtic lands.

Ceres (Roman)

This Roman agricultural goddess was a benefactor of farmers. Crops planted in her name flourished, particularly grains — in fact, the word "cereal" comes from her name. Virgil cites Ceres as part of a trinity, along with Liber and Libera, two other agricultural gods. Rituals were performed in her honor prior to spring, so that fields could be fertile and crops would grow. Cato recommends sacrificing a sow to Ceres before the harvest actually begins, as a gesture of appreciation.

Cerridwen (Celtic)

Cerridwen represents powers of prophecy, and is the keeper of the cauldron of knowledge and inspiration in the Underworld. In one part of the Mabinogion, Cerridwen pursues Gwion through a cycle of seasons — beginning in the spring — when in the form of a hen, she swallows Gwion, disguised as an ear of corn. Nine months later, she gives birth to Taliesen, the greatest of the Welsh poets. Because of her wisdom, Cerridwen is often granted the status of Crone, which in turn equates her with the darker aspect of the Triple Goddess. She is both the Mother and the Crone; many modern Pagans honor Cerridwen for her close association to the full moon.

Eros (Greek)

This lusty god was worshipped as a fertility deity. In some myths, he appears as the son of Aphrodite by Ares -- the god of war having conquered the goddess of love. His Roman contemporary was Cupid. In early Greece, no one paid much attention to Eros, but eventually he earned a cult of his own in Thespiae. He also was part of a cult along with Aphrodite in Athens.

Faunus (Roman)

This agricultural god was honored by the ancient Romans as part of the festival of Lupercalia, held every year in the middle of February. Faunus is very similar to the Greek god Pan.

Gaia (Greek)

Gaia is the mother of all things in Greek legend. She is the earth and sea, the mountains and forests. During the weeks leading up to spring, she is becoming warmer each day as the soil grows more fertile. Gaia herself caused life to spring forth from the earth, and is also the name given to the magical energy that makes certain locations sacred. The Oracle at Delphi was believed to be the most powerful prophetic site on earth, and was considered the center of the world, due to Gaia's energy.

Hestia (Greek)

This goddess watched over domesticity and the family. She was given the first offering at any sacrifice made in the home. On a public level, the local town hall served as a shrine for her -- any time a new settlement was formed, a flame from the public hearth was taken to the new village from the old one.

Pan (Greek)

This studly Greek fertility god is well known for his sexual prowess, and is typically portrayed with an impressively erect phallus. Pan learned about self-gratification from Hermes, and passed the lessons along to shepherds. His Roman counterpart is Faunus. Pan is a distinctly sexual god, often described in legends regarding his lusty adventures.

Venus (Roman)

This Roman goddess is associated with not only beauty, but fertility as well. In the early spring, offerings were left in her honor. As Venus Genetrix, she was honored for her role as the ancestress of the Roman people — Julius Caesar claimed to be her direct descendant — and celebrated as a goddess of motherhood and domesticity.

Vesta (Roman)

This hearth goddess of Rome was the one who watched over home and family. As a hearth goddess, she was the keeper of the fire and sacred flame. Offerings were thrown into the household fires to seek omens from the future. Vesta is similar in many aspects to Brighid, particularly in her position as a goddess of both home/family and of divination.

Brighid, the Hearth Goddess of Ireland

In Irish mythological cycles, Brighid (or Brighit), whose name is derived from the Celtic brig or "exalted one", is the daughter of the Dagda, and therefore one of the Tuatha de Dannan. Her two sisters were also called Brighid, and were associated with healing and crafts. The three Brighids were typically treated as three aspects of a single deity, making her a classic Celtic triple goddess.

Patron and Protector

Brighid was the patron of poets and bards, as well as healers and magicians. She was especially honored when it came to matters of prophecy and divination. She was honored with a sacred flame maintained by a group of priestesses, and her sanctuary at Kildare, Ireland, later became the home of the Christian variant of Brighid, St. Brigid of Kildare. Kildare is also the location of one of several sacred wells in the Celtic regions, many of which are connected to Brighid. Even today, it's not uncommon to see ribbons and other offerings tied to trees near a well as a petition to this healing goddess.

Lisa Lawrence writes in Pagan Imagery in the Early Lives of Brigit: A Transformation from Goddess to Saint?, part of the Harvard Celtic Studies Colloquium, that it is Brighid's role as sacred to both Christianity and Paganism that makes her so hard to figure out. She cites fire as a common thread to both Brighid the saint and Brighid the goddess:

"When two religious systems interact, a shared symbol can provide a bridge from one religious idea to another. During a period of conversion, an archetypical symbol such as fire may acquire a new referent, while not being entirely emptied of a previous one. For example, the fire that clearly signifies the presence of the Holy Spirit in Saint Brigit may continue to signify pagan conceptions of religious power."

Celebrating Brighid

There are a variety of ways to celebrate the many aspects of Brighid at Imbolc. If you're part of a group practice or a coven, why not try honoring her with a group ceremoy? You can also incorporate prayers to Brighid into your rites and rituals for the season. Having trouble figuring out what direction you're headed? Ask Brighid for assistance and guidance with a crossroads-themed divination rite.

Brighid's Many Forms

In northern Britain, Brighid's counterpart was Brigantia, a warlike figure of the Brigantes tribe near Yorkshire, England. She is similar to the Greek goddess Athena and the Roman Minerva. Later, as Christianity moved into the Celtic lands, St. Brigid was the daughter of a Pictish slave who was baptized by St. Patrick, and founded a community of nuns at Kildare.

In addition to her position as a goddess of magic, Brighid was known to watch over women in childbirth, and thus evolved into a goddess of hearth and home. Today, many Pagans honor her on February 2, which has become known as Imbolc or Candlemas.

Winter Cymres at the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids, calls her a "complex and contradictory" sort of deity. Specifically,

"She possesses an unusual status as a Sun Goddess Who hangs Her Cloak upon the rays of the Sun and whose dwelling-place radiates light as if on fire. Brigid took over the Cult of the Ewes formerly held by the Goddess Lassar, who also is a Sun Goddess and who made the transition, in the Isles, from Goddess to saint. In this way Brigid's connection to Imbolc is completed, as the worship of Lassar diminished, only to be revived later in Christian sainthood."

Brighid's Mantle

One commonly found symbol of Brighid is her green mantle, or cloak. In Gaelic, the mantle is known as the brat Bhride. The legend has it that Brighid was the daughter of a Pictish chieftain who went to Ireland to learn from St. Patrick. In one story, the girl who later became St. Brighid went to the King of Leinster, and petitioned him for land so she could build an abbey. The King, who still held to the old Pagan practices of Ireland, told her he'd be happy to give her as much land as she could cover with her cloak. Naturally, her cloak grew and grew until it covered as much property as Brighid needed, and she got her abbey. Thanks to her roles as both a Pagan goddess and a Christian saint, Brighid is often seen as being of both worlds; a bridge between the old ways and the new.

In Celtic Pagan stories, Brighid's mantle carries with it blessings and powers of healing. Many people believe that if you place a piece of cloth out upon your hearth at Imbolc, Brighid will bless it in the night. Use the same cloth as your mantle each year, and it will gain strength and power each time Brighid passes by. The mantle can be used to comfort and heal a sick person, and to provide protection for women in labor. A newborn baby can be wrapped in the mantle to help them sleep through the night without fussing.

To make a Brighid's mantle of your own, find a piece of green cloth long enough to comfortably wrap around your shoulders. Leave it on your doorstep on the night of Imbolc, and Brighid will bless it for you. In the morning, wrap yourself in her healing energy. You can also make a Brighid's cross or a Bride's Bed to celebrate her this time of year.

Brighid and Imbolc

Like many Pagan holidays, Imbolc has a Celtic connection, although it wasn’t celebrated in non-Gaelic Celtic societies. The early Celts celebrated a purification festival by honoring Brighid. In some parts of the Scottish Highlands, Brighid was viewed as a sister of Cailleach Bheur, a woman with mystical powers who was older than the land itself. In modern Wicca and Paganism, Brighid is sometimes viewed as the maiden aspect of the maiden/mother/crone cycle, although it might be more accurate for her to be the mother, given her connection with home and childbirth.

Sources:

https://www.silverbirth.com/blog-1/2021/2/28/goddess-brigid

https://www.learnreligions.com/brighid-hearth-goddess-of-ireland-2561958

https://www.learnreligions.com/deities-of-imbolc-2562103