Aine
Aine is
one of the Great Goddesses of Ireland. She is the moon and love goddess,
and also the fairy queen of Munster.
Aine (pronounced
'aw-ne') rules agriculture, fertility, crops, and animals. She was originally
a sun goddess who could take the form of Lair Derg, a red mare that no
one could outrun. It is possible that Aine and Grainne alternated as goddesses
of the waning and waxing solar year, changing place at the solstices. |
| |
| Aine's
father, King Egobagal, is a member of the Tuatha de Danann. Aine is also
known as Aine Marina and Aine of Knockaine. Associated with Cnoc Aine/Knockainy
(Aineís Hill) in Munster, and also associated with Dun Aine (Dunany
Point) in County Louth. People with the surname O'Corra are said to be
her descendants.
There are
several myths about Aine, some say was a mortal who was taken and enchanted
by the fae. She possesses a magical ring that can reveal fairies. Aine
liked humans and often mated with men, producing fairy children. She once
made a magical vow to never sleep with a gray-haired man. Aine kept this
vow even after her jealous sister Miluchrach used enchantment to turn her
beloved Fionnís hair that color. She used magic to kill Aillil Olom,
the King of Munster, when he tried to rape her.
There are several stories about how Aine came to marry Gerald, the Earl
of Desmond. Gerald came across her bathing in a river and fell in love
with her at first sight. He stole her cloak and refused to return it until
she agreed to marry him. In another version he found Aine combing her hair
beside the river, and used her own cloak to capture her. There is even
a version where it was Aine who enchanted the Earl, who then married her.
They had a son, Geroid Iarla, Earl Fitzgerald, who was called 'The Magician'.
Gerald was under a taboo to never show that he was surpised by anything
their son did, but he broke this taboo by exclaiming aloud when Geroid
jumped in and out of a bottle. The Magician then turned into a wild goose,
and flew away. Disgusted with her human husband, Aine disappeared into
Knock Aine. She is said to dwell there still, in a fairy castle. Geroid
is said to live beneath a lake, but will return one day to expel all foreigners
from Ireland. Others say that Geroid rides forth every seven years, as
a phantom upon a spectral white horse that is shod with silver shoes.
Invoke Aine for love spells, fertility, fairy magic, abundance, prosperity,
punishing sex crimes, keeping magical vows, revealing fairies, bearing
magical children, and leaving unsuitable mates. The Sun and the Moon are
her planets, southwest is her direction, and Air is her element. The red
mare, rabbit, and swan are her sacred animals. Midsummer Eve (Summer Solstice)
is Aine's main feast day, when she is traditionally worshiped with torchlit
processions through the fields at night. The first Friday, Saturday, and
Sunday after Lughnasad (August 1) are also her sacred days. Some say that
she claims a life at that time. |
| |
Airmed
Airmed
or Airmid is an Irish fairy goddess of witchcraft and herbal lore. She
is Dian Cecht's daughter, one of the Tuatha de Danann, and helps him to
protect his sacred healing spring. Airmed mourned so keenly when her brother
Miach died that all the herbs of the world sprung from his grave while
she tended it, and taught her their uses.
Invoke Airmed for fairy magic, magical herbalism, and witchcraft. Earth
is her element. |
| |
Caer
Caer (yew berry) is a beautiful fairy maiden of Connacht, Ireland. She
lived in the guise of a swan, adorned with necklaces of golden chains and
tinkling golden bells. Angus, the handsome god of love, saw Caer in a dream
and fell so in love with her that he became seriously ill.
According to one myth, when Angus finally learned who she was, he asked
her father Ethal, one of the Tuatha de Danann, if he could marry her. Ethal
replied that it was her decision, but that Angus could propose to her if
he could pick her out of a flock of swans. On Samhain Angus went to the
Lake of the Dragonís Mouth, knew Caer immediately, and called out
her name. He was instantly transformed into a swan, and they flew away
together.
An alternative version of the myth has it that Angus had to get his own
father, the Dagda, to imprison Ethal in order to persuade him to give Caer
to him in marriage. There is even a version in which it was Caer who enticed
Angus to the lake, in order to change him into a swan. Caer and Angus are
said to dwell happily as swans in the megalith of Brugh na Boinne, where
they sing beautifully together.
Call upon Caer for transformation, fairy magic, and happy endings after
difficult beginnings. Air and water are her elements, the swan her sacred
animal. |
| |
Cliodna
Beautiful, lusty, Cliodna of the Fair Hair is the Irish goddess of beauty,
the sea, and the afterlife. One of the Tuatha de Danann, she is Mannan's
daughter and rules the Land of Promise, an otherworld where there is no
violence or death. Her name, which means 'shapely one', is pronounced 'kleenah'.
It can also be spelled Cliodhna, Clidna, or Cleena. A fairy queen of Munster,
she is said to be the daughter of Geban, the last druid in Ireland. Cliodna
is associated with the coastline near Cork. Carrig Cliodna, in County Cork,
is her sacred hill. Tonn Cliodna, the great wave of Cliodna, is mentioned
in Irish mythology as being off the coast at Glandore, in County Cork.
Cliodna has three magical birds that heal the sick by singing them to sleep.
She is the matron of waves, especially large waves and the ninth wave of
every series of waves that break on shore. Cliodna is the protectress
of the O'Keefe family, who some say are her descendants.
When she assumes human form, Cliodna is the most beautiful woman on earth.
She often takes mortal men for lovers but being loved by Cliodna can mean
being loved to death, for if she takes them to the otherworld they are
never seen again.
There are many legends about her. Cliodna fell in love with a young human,
Ciabhan of the Curling Lock, and she escaped from the otherworld to be
with him. They reached the shore of Ireland together. Ciabhan (pronounced
Keevan) went hunting and Mannan, the sea god, put Cliodna into an enchanted
sleep and sent a wave that drew her back into the Land of Promise. There
is another version of this legend where it is Cailleach, the crone goddess,
who sent her fairies to lull Cliodna into the enchanted sleep, and then
sent the wave that drowned her.
Invoke Cliodna for beauty, healing, fairy magic, love spells, and life
after death. Songbirds and sea birds are her sacred animals; nine is her
number. A beach is the best place to call upon her, since she may take
the form of a sea bird or a large wave. |
| |
Eri
Eri Of The Golden Hair is an Irish fairy goddess, one of the Tuatha de
Danaan. Bres, Brigid's consort, is her son. His father is Elatha, a handsome
Fomorian king.
Eri and Elatha met at the seashore and were so struck by each other's beauty
that they immediately made love, despite the fact that their people were
enemies. According to some myths Eri was a virgin when they met, but other
myths say that she was married to another of the Tuatha de Danann and allowed
her fairy husband to assume that he was the father of Bres. |
| |
Grian
Greine, House of the Sun, is a Celtic solar goddess; a crone goddess who
awakens the fertility of the earth every Spring. Her priestesses dwelt
in 'griannon', sun houses. Also called Grian, Grainne (hateful goddess),
Grania or Grian of the Bright Cheeks, she devolved into the fairy queen
of Leinster, Ireland. Cnoc Greine, in Leinster, is her sacred hill.
There are several legends about Grian. When Conall's sons attacked the
stronghold pf her father, King Cormac Mac Art, she ran them down and turned
them into badgers. Most of Grian's legends center on her elopement with
Diarmuid of the Love Spot. Cormac had promised Grian in marriage to Finn
MacCool, the head of his bodyguard. But the willful Grian had her own ideas
about marrying the aged Finn, and things went awry at the wedding.
Heroes gathered to celebrate the wedding feast, and Grian offered herself
to each man in turn, until Diarmuid accepted her advances. There are versions
of the tale in which the handsome Diarmuid is the only one Grian wants,
but he is too afraid of Finn's wrath to respond. The usual version of the
story is that Grian fell in love with Diarmuid after she glimpsed the magical
spot on his forehead that rendered any woman who saw it hopelessly in love
with him.
Defying her father, Grian used magic to escape from Tara and elope with
Diarmuid. They slept in separate tents at first, and it took several nights
before she was able to have her way with him. Relentlessly pursued by Finn
MacCool, they wandered the length and breadth of Ireland for sixteen years,
camping outdoors. Piles of stones called 'the bed of Diarmuid and Grania'
were once a common sight in Ireland. A cloak of invisibility helped Grian
to escape capture. After many adventures, the intercession of the love
god Angus with Finn enabled the couple to finally rejoin the community
and live together in peace. They had four sons together.
Diarmuid was killed by a boar while hunting. Grian blamed Finn MacCool
for this and swore vengeance upon him, but he was able to seduce her into
accepting him and they were finally married.
Invoke Grian for sorcery, fairy magic, wisdom, battle, transformation,
working with herbs, solar magic, invisibility, fertility, making your own
choices, being responsible for the consequences of your actions, and for
the fertility of the earth. The Sun is her planet. |
| |
Morgan
Le Fay
Morgan the Fairy (Morgan Le Fay or Morgan lá Fée), Queen
of Avalon, is the half-sister of the legendary King Arthur and the mother
of Sir Mordred. She is a mysterious, complicated figure who takes several
forms in Celtic mythology, British legends, and Anglo-French literature.
To Celts she was the Winter goddess of death and darkness, and a sovereignty
goddess. Some see her as a Celtic queen, and/or a pagan priestess. She
is said to dwell with her eight sisters in Avalon, the fairy otherworld
where they brought Arthur after his final battle.
Morgan le Fay is also a literary figure, a Christianized version of the
Celtic goddess Morgen. The ìevilî things she did to Arthur
were actually tests of his suitability for kingship, misinterpreted by
Christian re-tellers of the ancient tales. This explains her conflicting
roles as both black witch and Arthur's healer/protector. It is also why
there is no tale of Morgan and Merlin battling it out magically as representatives
of the opposing forces of good and evil.
King Accolon of Gaul is Morgan's lover in some the myths. She is the mother
of Yvain/Owein as well as of Mordred/Modred. Morgan le Fay is associated
with both the mystical Isle of Avalon and with the Orkney Islands, Scotland.
She is described as an old woman who is ever young and beautiful, and is
usually depicted with dark hair or with red hair.
Call upon Morgan le Fay for for magic, enchantment, sorcery, glamoury,
art, shapeshifting, healing, protection, witchcraft, sex magic, female
power, lunar magic, and creating magical weapons. |
| |
Perchta
Perchta or Percha, the Elf Woman, is a Germanic sun and mother goddess.
She is a White Goddess whose titles include Shining One and Bride of the
Sun.
Perchta has long white hair and wears a white cloak. She can be seen moving
through fields, like mist. The matron of spinning, she cannot tolerate
laziness or wastefulness. Perchta punishes the lazy and the wasteful by
scratching their faces, or by scratching their stomachs open.
Invoke Perchta for fertility, spinning, and the fertility of cattle
and sheep. The sun is her planet. The last day of Yule is sacred to her.
Pancakes are traditionally made in her honor then, and the remains of the
meal left as offerings for her. It is said that anyone who tries to spy
on Perchta when she comes will go blind that year. |
| |
Rodenica
Rodenica (or Rozhenica) is a glowing white Slavic fairy goddess. Originally
The Lady, creator of the universe with her consort Rod, The Lord, she devolved
into a fairy during the Christian era. Rodenica and her daughter are said
to appear at a baby's birth, in order to divine the child's fate.
Invoke Rodenica for creation, divination, and fairy magic. Ritual foods
that may be eaten in her honor include mead, bread, porridge, and cottage
cheese. |
| |
|
