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Cosmogony CT050

Celtic Tomes

Release Date: 04/12/2020

Cult Accessories CT054 show art Cult Accessories CT054

Celtic Tomes

This chapter covers Temples, Altars, Images, Symbols, and the Cult of Weapons of the Ancient Celts.

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Festivals CT053 show art Festivals CT053

Celtic Tomes

The Celtic year was not at first regulated by the solstices and equinoxes, but by some method connected with agriculture or with the seasons.

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Tabu CT052 show art Tabu CT052

Celtic Tomes

The Irish geis, pl. geasa, which may be rendered by Tabu, had two senses. It meant something which must not be done for fear of disastrous consequences, and also an obligation to do something commanded by another.

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Sacrifice and Prayer CT051 show art Sacrifice and Prayer CT051

Celtic Tomes

The Celts offered human victims on the principle of a life for a life, or to propitiate the gods, or in order to divine the future from the entrails of the victim. We shall examine the Celtic custom of human sacrifice from these points of view first.

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Cosmogony CT050 show art Cosmogony CT050

Celtic Tomes

The Celts may have possessed the Heaven and Earth myth, but all trace of it has perished. There are, however, remnants of myths showing how the sky is supported by trees, a mountain, or by pillars.

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Animal Worship CT049 show art Animal Worship CT049

Celtic Tomes

Animal worship pure and simple had declined among the Celts of historic times, and animals were now regarded mainly as symbols or attributes of divinities.

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Tree and Plant Worship CT048 show art Tree and Plant Worship CT048

Celtic Tomes

The Celts had their own cult of trees, but they adopted local cults. This chapter also details how the Celts made their sacred places in dark groves, the trees being hung with offerings or with the heads of victims.

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River and Well Worship CT047 show art River and Well Worship CT047

Celtic Tomes

Among the Celts the testimony of contemporary witnesses, inscriptions, votive offerings, and survivals, shows the importance of the cult of waters and of water divinities. This chapter also details the many fairies and folklore creatures associated with water.

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Primitive Nature Worship CT046 show art Primitive Nature Worship CT046

Celtic Tomes

McCulloch talks about animism, where everything was a person and the greater objects of nature were worshiped for themselves alone.

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The Cult of the Dead CT045 show art The Cult of the Dead CT045

Celtic Tomes

The custom of burying grave-goods with the dead and other grave customs is the subject of this chapter. McCulloch also talks about the role of fairies and the festival of Samhain.

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More Episodes

The Religion of the Ancient Celts (1911)

Chapter 15: Cosmogony

by

J. A. MacCulloch

The Celts may have possessed the Heaven and Earth myth, but all trace of it has perished. There are, however, remnants of myths showing how the sky is supported by trees, a mountain, or by pillars.

Names Used in this Section

Uranus

Gæa

Kronos

Dyaus

Prithivi

Indra

Eleusinia

Brigit and Patrick

drochet bethad

drochaid na flaitheanas

Tuatha Dé Danann

M. D'Arbois

Senchus Mór

Gargantua

Partholan and Nemed

Nevyd

Dwyvan and Dwyfach

Apollonius 

Eridanus 

Belenos

Badb 

Voluspa

 

Religion of the Ancient Celts can be found on Sacred Texts.

You can find out more about J. A. McCulloch on Wikipedia.

Try the Celtic Myth Podshow for a dramatic re-telling of the Tales and Stories of the Ancient Celts at http://celticmythpodshow.com or in Apple Podcasts.

Our theme music is "Gander at the Pratie Hole" by Sláinte.  You can find their music on the Free Music Archive.