Religions of Ancient Origin:

By:Aishah,Hassan,Kaldia

and Najee

Significance of Principal Rituals

Supernatural Powers and Dieties

Introduction

Religion and Society

'Science investigates ,religion interprets.Science gives man knowledge which is power.Religion gives man wisdom which is control'- Martin Luther King Jr

Religion provides individuals with an identity and a home which holds their answers.On one hand,your world revolves around your religion and on the other,religion may not even exist in your world.Religion has existed from the very beginning of time and has been interpreted, developed, altered, faded and sometimes renewed.The religion we will be discussing today is of ancient origin it is the Celtic Religion.

Celtic rituals can be divided into four areas:

1.Rituals performed at seasonal feasts:Lughnasa” it is held on Augutst 1st in memory of the Celtic god Lugos and his marriage to an Earth goddess.There is a massive community festival and typically a big feast.During this period individuals express religious truths through poetry and analogy ,using creative forms rather than anaylsis of their religion.The community bond over contests,stalls and music to reciprocate the bond Lugos had with his bride.It involves individuals and creates a sense of belonging and idenitity within them.

2.Transmigration rituals :Transmigration rituals such as name giving, various initiation rites until adulthood was reached inauguration rites to kingship and finally death rites. The initiation to kingship rituals varies from place to place and in time. Rituals such as the king being carried by his followers standing on his shield and the king stepping into a "footprint"

3.Divinatory rituals:Divinatory rituals usually carried out by Druids who were able to predict the future from an examination of the intestines and innards of dead birds, or from observation of the death throws of a sacrificial human. Death rituals included a big feast in the area of the graveyard area including a piece of meat and a container with drink.

4. Magical rituals :Magical Rituals included the collection of curative plants and is relayed through such stories as that of the Druids. Blessings and curses were invoked by calling a god to do something to somebody else and evidence of these were found on such things as lead plates.Human sacrifice such as that of the Lindow man, the bog body from Lindow moss in England was ritualistically killed.Headhunting was connected to beliefs in the power of the head of the victim and was practised by the ancient Celts. The heads of enemies were hung at saddlebow or fixed on spears of warriors as they returned home from battle.

Beliefs about the Celtic Gods are not well known except that the Gods all had different functions .The Celts believed that the Gods lived in the 'otherworld' .They worshiped and personified the elements (earth, sun, moon, sea, wind etc.). There was a belief in divine beings filling heaven, earth, sea, air, glens, lochs, and rivers, and following human customs is revealed in oaths, odes, songs, stories, prayers and poems of the ancient Celts.

Goddesses and gods

There are over three hundred names for Celtic gods. Only two gods can be identified almost everywhere being the god Lugos - Irish Lugh and the mother goddess matrona (mother) to which a number of female names have been attributed, for example; Sequana, Noreia, Brigitana, Eriu and Boand.

The Role of the Gods

The Sky father usually referred to as the head of the pantheon and was often the god of thunder and lightening. The function of this god is that he is the progenitor of all other gods together with the earth mother. The Earth mother together with the Sky father is the parent of all the other gods.The Matres, primarily the goddesses of fertility and plenty originated in an age when women cultivated the ground. The Matres had more extensive functions; they were river-goddesses, they were found as guardians of individuals, families, houses, of towns, whole nation, and lived over rocks, springs, wells, fields and meadows. They also guarded women, especially in childbirth.

Origins of the Universe

It is difficult to determine with certainty the influence of the Celtic religion on society. Eventually practices that had their roots in earlier more ancient times became more symbolic and significant and were passed on through stories, poetry, prayers and song and remembered through rituals, customs and festival celebrations. Religion for the earliest Celts was of the life embodied in nature. Men and women probably had separate cults. As hunters, men worshipped the animals they killed, apologising to them for the slaughter. Other animals, too scared to be slain, would be preserved and worshipped, the cult then giving rise to domestication and pastoral life.

The Celts created emphasis on the number 3. There were three classes of people and three classes of Gods and Realms. This belief had influence on society of that time because it determined how things were organised and different social, cultural, environmental practises progressed. Classical observers were struck by the inquisitiveness of learning the religion by Celts and their eagerness to conquer the unknown through rituals and magic art.

The Celts were a group of ancient people that occupied lands stretching from the British Isles to Galatia between 2000 and 50 BCE; this was during the ‘Iron Age.’ They were a group of people loosely tied by similar language, religion, and cultural expression. They were not centrally governed, and quite as happy to fight each other as any non-Celt. They were warriors, living for the glories of battle and plunder. It is difficult to determine a solid basis of belief for the Celtic beliefs because there are little to no written records left just like many other ancient religions. From remaining archaeological evidence and historical accounts it is gathered that their beliefs are mythical much like the Greeks.

There is no solid fact, but scholars speculate that the Celts may have had a cosmogony that included a Heaven and Earth myth, but there is no remaining evidence of it. A cosmogony is simply a theory or story of how the world came to being and the development of the universe, cosmogony's origin is with the Greeks. They believed that the earth was created by giants and fairies. Bodies of water came from the tears of giants, wells came from the touch of fairies and islands were formed by the digging of land by giants.

The Celts believed that gods dwelt in groves, rivers, wells and trees, mounds and hills and not in one particular mountain. The Celtic belief was that men descended from the gods not that they were created by them. However, there are no solid stories about the creation of the world. As we look deeper into the religion of the Celts we are further introduced to their peculiar ideologies.

Principal Beliefs Continued

Principal Beliefs

Belief in Magic

Belief in magic is evident although what sort of magic is unclear. The most obvious one is what the Irish called Geis, or the plural Gessa, which means prohibition or obligation, similar to being under a vow or spell. In some cases Gessa were based on ideas of right and wrong, honour and dishonour, or were intended to avoid unlucky days. Gessa could be imposed by anyone in the form of incantations and spells that were believed in by everyone and thus commanded obedience or protection. Such Gessa could be anything from not eating in the company of three women to not hunting birds. It could also be included in tests of the kind for example in a statement like, “it is Geis for you to not return here until you have done this or that.”

Gods and Goddesses

The Celtic people had many and multiple gods, some were gods of the forests (Abnoba), others were gods of protecting horses, donkeys and mules (epona). So they had many gods with different purposes. The Celtics were pantheistic (believed in multiple gods), some of their gods were worshiped by a small group of people like a single tribe (they were localized), others were worshiped by big groups of people and they were the more common gods, they were usually worshiped by most of the Celtic people

Burial

The Celts believed that the human soul had an afterlife, so when a person died they were buried with many things they would need for the afterlife. Warriors were often buried with a helmet, a sword or dagger, shield and in some cases, even a chariot.

Overview

The Celts were very superstitious people Celtic priests were called Druids. They were linked between supernatural worlds and the ordinary human one. They were able to predict what would happen in the future by interpreting nature. They believed in many gods and goddesses, as well as spirits , sacred animals and birds. These magical creatures controlled every part of a person’s life. The Celts believed that the human soul had an afterlife and lived with the head, which is why they collected the heads of their enemies killed in battles.

The other world/ afterlife

The other world was basically the after life for the Celtic people. The other world would be the home for all gods and goddesses; it would be a place of joy and many feasts. The other world is not heaven and it was not a reward. The Celtic people believed anyone could enter the other world when they died.

Celtic tombs

Like the ancient Egyptians, the Celtic wanted there dead to have nice things with them. They wanted them to take food for the trip, they were buried with things they needed for afterlife. They buried them in tombs.Their tombs weren’t large like the Egyptian pyramids, rather they were similar to big rooms, the walls were decorated with drawings of earth gods, sun gods various spirits and scenes of battle and daily life.

How the Celtic Religion answers questions on meaning

Sacred Spaces and Beliefs

REALMS:

The positing of each god and goddess in their sacred space or realm emphasizes the Celtic beliefs. On the Upper Realm are the gods and goddesses of war as they are the most fitting protectors of the realms, female goddesses are not disregarded or discriminated against and are equal in power to the males of that realm. This reinforces the Celtic belief and practice of empowering women as they were as privileged as men, had their own property , wealth etc. The middle realm, are the gods and goddesses of peacekeeping and govern the weather of all the worlds including the movement of the sun. On the lowest realm lies the most ruthless of gods and goddesses who control the underworld, they often turn in to snakes, lizards and are often feared within all realms. Another noteworthy link between sacred places of the Celtic deities is that goddesses such as Matres also enforce the protection of women at all stages of their life and this characteristic is also present in Celtic society. Most gods and goddesses the Celts believe in portray ethics or virtues shown in their own community.

The youthful saviour champion god Cuchullin is the upper realm controller, he is also the warrior champion. The goddess of war is a triplicate goddess and has three forms

Upper Realm

The beliefs and practices of the Celtics are said to have had a huge influence on people during the time of the Celtic society. As a religion, the Celtic religion provides a distinctive response in regards to the search for meaning which we see embedded throughout their beliefs, rituals and daily way of life:

• Physical survival – they would please their God’s in return for a happy healthy life. They did this through rituals like human sacrifice.

• Magical spells, curses, superstitions, gods, goddesses, rituals, festivals and celebrations gave meaning to life.

• Human need and the potential for connection with the transcendent. This was explored through festivals like that of Samhain, in which they could catch a glimpse of the otherworld. Druids (Celtic priests) would be able to find answers to the various questions they have e.g. is there anything that exists after life?

• Celtics had a primitive need for survival through the reliance upon deities to control their fates. The belief in deities and supernatural forces made them believe their destinies were beyond their control. A distinctive response to their purpose in life is to fully serve their deity(s) and lead the life planned for them.

Middle Realm

Goddess of this realm is known as Medb or Aife, there is a link between this realm and the sun and the summer half of the year, the goddess of the middle realm is usually depicted as a horse.

The controller is usually the one who is in charge of the otherworld, usually depicted with a hammer and a dog. The goddess of the underworld is said to have a cow-like nature and she could change to become an eel, snake, serpent or wolf.

Lower Realm

Religions of Ancient Origin

THE CELTICS