 Celtic Magick |
The Worlds of The Celts
Planes of Existence
The Celtic people had many correponding Triads in their system of worship, many of which were changed to Fourfold elements of the religion at a later date, from my understanding. It is my hope that you can see how the elements etc related to the History and the Gods. That is the main importance of this page. The why of it, more or less.
Like the men themselves, the Gods & Goddesses, of these people were a fierce, fighting clan. And this clan was headed by the Great Mother Danu of faeries who was the Moon Goddess and Patron of the Wizards and Magick as well. (yes, I said faeries. Supernautural Beings. Well, some of ya'll believe in angels!!)These Gods were called the Tuatha de Danaan and they fought valiently & courageously against their foe, the Fomoire (Sea Demons).The races of the Gods & Goddesses goes as follows & correspond to each of the three planes of existence, spiritual, mental, & physical.
- Tuatha dé Danann - Spiritual Level, beings of pure Spirit.
- Fomoire - Mental Level, beings of pure Mind.
- Fir Bolg - Physical Level, beings without Mind or Spirit.
The Ancient Celts believed in these three planes of existence that also corresponded to their deities. Imagine, if you will as you read this that we are speaking of "Heaven", Hell", and "Earth". According to the Ancients, the universe consists of the three specific planes below:
Above, which represents the bright aspect of the Otherworld;
Below, (Sea) which represents the shadowy aspect of the Otherworld;
which is where man dwells.
The nature of these worlds is fascinating, beyond imagination, & also uncertain.
Now let's talk about the gods for a bit so we can learn a bit more about magick and its correspondence in the Ancient Celtic world. I don't intend this as a complete lesson in the deities because there is another section for that, but there are a few correlations to the gods that needs be made here. The Tuatha de Danann, themselves, inhabited the Northern Islands of the world, studying magick, sorcery, & the druidic arts. These tiny beings were called the "Sidhe" (shee) in the gaelic, & otherwise known as the Faery people. (Btw, faeries were often as big as humans or as small as ants.)
Morfesa was in Falias; Esras was in Gorias; Uiscias was in Findias and Semias was in Murias. Thus the Danann became very powerful.
So they made a decision to take over Ireland, for it was in the center of the earth and was believed to be just above the heart of the Goddess and most powerful indeed.
Now the three planes of existence, Sky, Land, & Sea, that also corresponded to the Tuatha (the deities) do not show Fire as an element in the traditional way, only Sky, Sea, and Land. Yet the Goddess Brighid (Another aspect of the Mother) brings the 4th element into the fold. Now how would you answer this question if someone ask you? Where is the center of the World? To a Celt, there are 3 answers, all of them relevant. So in answering you, he answers this question as a singular person, as a family member, & also as a member of his clan. His/her answer would have been, "It is here where I stand." This refers to the "gorm a cli" or the center of the self, the heart. As a family member, his answer would have been, "It is the cleithe, the center pole of my home". And as a member of a tuath or clan, itself, it would have been, "The Bíle or sacred tree of the Gods".
Each of the above mentioned "centers" were connected together through the Goddess Brighid who was the "daughter of fire" of The Dagda. She was the Goddess of fire, fertility, home & hearth, all feminine arts & crafts, plus the martial arts. Known as the Fiery Arrow, she was the fire in the home and hearth, fire in the head and heart, the fires of the smiths and the poets hearts. She controlled the serpents of the "need-fire" and it was she that was the Magical element of Fire that connected the Three Worlds or planes of existence together.
With the elemental aspects of each of these Three Worlds: Land, Sea and Sky (Greek: Earth, Water and Air), then Brighid was the Fire that transformed all three into the Spirit. It was fire that illuminated them all. The Sacred Fire was always at the center of Celtic and Druidic ritual. Their major festivals were called "Sacred Fire Festivals" as a matter of fact. These included Samhain, Beltaine, Imbolc, etc. There were other things that the Celts viewed as "Elements" as well that have to do with the human body and are called "dhuile" by the Irish. (I am hoping to do a section on this someday as well.) Now I would like to go on and show you another Triad of the Celts.
In this next Triad, the ancients described man, himself, as mind, body, and soul.
Another Triad. Today, we have added the subconscious to
that definition and this produces a four-fold classification. The
universe is also divided into four corresponding worlds as well.
spiritual world; spiritual body (soul or kia) intuition
The subconscious is the psychic conductor for the "energies" that we produce within ourselves when thinking, feeling, even breathing. Sort of like the wiring inside of a wall that channels the electricity into our homes. This realm, the realm of the subconscious, is considered by many to be the realm of visualization and imagination. It is a generator for electromagnetic impulses. It is also called the astral body and if you will notice is tied to your emotions. This is the major source of energy power in your body other than the major organs themselves & sometimes those thoughts and feelings can become very powerful.
With hard work, we can eventually get all of the above energies centers moving--your physical senses, emotions, rational thought & intuition -- and as they begin to be aware of each other and interact together, then your psychic energy will flow from one to another & back again. Then you can learn how to control it. (From the spiritual plane to the mental, on to the astral and then finally the physical.) This is how we make magick & it was well known to the Ancients. Don't fret over it though. You'll get there & you'll eventually understand it. lol! I promise. One way or another, if we have to email each other forever, I will help you to understand this & follow it...if you wish.
As a magician, the Ancient Celt practitioner, cultivated this connection that I have just mentioned, making it grow through meditation & visualization. You yourself must practice repetitively, study it closely, really get to know it if you want to release your own psychic energy because this is the source of your magick. Look inside yourself. And this is how a microcosm is thus connected with the macrocosm. In other words, this connection creates an intimate relationship of energies between you and everything else in existence. The universe is reflected within each of us and we are projected back out into the universe. This is considered extremely important when working with magick. And as you begin on your way to learning how to do this, you will become more & more adept at controlling your own energy. Meditation & Visualization!! Those are the keys.
Often the Celts of Olde related stories of visitations from the Tuatha and these visits came in many forms. There are multiple legends out there. The deities were masters of Draiocht (magick) and manifestation. Magick was everywhere in this land of the fantasy come true. To the Celts, Life itself was Magick & they lived it daily. Let's make this true for you as well. Shall we?
Their thirst for knowledge was unending for they desired the secrets of the universe, the secrets of all knowledge. Don't we all? Study and practice was not foreign to them and eventually they learned these secrets & perfected them in four different cities that existed in four different directions:
In those four cities is where the Tuatha became aquainted with the four wizards that taught them magick & the secret knowledge that they craved so dearly. The names of these wizards were:
The Element of Fire
mental world; mental body (conscious mind) rational thought
astral world; astral body (subconscious) emotions
physical world; physical body, physical senses
Lessons in the Craft
