The Religion of the Ancient CeltsMacCulloch, J. A. (John Arnott)
Religion
The Religion of the Ancient Celts
MacCulloch, J. A. (John Arnott)
Celts -- Religion; Mythology, Celtic
Some sixty names or titles of Celtic war-gods are known, generally
equated with Mars.[70] These were probably local tribal divinities
regarded as leading their worshippers to battle. Some of the names show
that these gods were thought of as mighty warriors, e.g. Caturix,
"battle-king," Belatu-Cadros--a common name in Britain--perhaps meaning
"comely in slaughter,"[71] and Albiorix, "world-king."[72] Another name,
Rigisamus, from _rix_ and _samus_, "like to," gives the idea of
"king-like."[73]
Toutatis, Totatis, and Tutatis are found in inscriptions from Seckau,
York, and Old Carlisle, and may be identified with Lucan's Teutates, who
with Taranis and Esus mentioned by him, is regarded as one of three
pan-Celtic gods.[74] Had this been the case we should have expected to
find many more inscriptions to them. The scholiast on Lucan identifies
Teutates now with Mars, now with Mercury. His name is connected with
_teuta_, "tribe," and he is thus a tribal war-god, regarded as the
embodiment of the tribe in its warlike capacity.
Neton, a war-god of the Accetani, has a name connected with Irish _nia_,
"warrior," and may be equated with the Irish war-god Nét. Another god,
Camulos, known from British and continental inscriptions, and figured on
British coins with warlike emblems, has perhaps some connection with
Cumal, father of Fionn, though it is uncertain whether Cumal was an
Irish divinity.[75]
Another god equated with Mars is the Gaulish Braciaca, god of malt.
According to classical writers, the Celts were drunken race, and besides
importing quantities of wine, they made their own native drinks, e.g.
[Greek: chourmi], the Irish _cuirm_, and _braccat_, both made from malt
(_braich_).[76] These words, with the Gaulish _brace_, "spelt,"[77] are
connected with the name of this god, who was a divine personification of
the substance from which the drink was made which produced, according to
primitive ideas, the divine frenzy of intoxication. It is not clear why
Mars should have been equated with this god.
Cæsar says that the Celtic Juppiter governed heaven. A god who carries a
wheel, probably a sun-god, and another, a god of thunder, called
Taranis, seem to have been equated with Juppiter. The sun-god with the
wheel was not equated with Apollo, who seems to have represented Celtic
sun-gods only in so far as they were also gods of healing. In some cases
the god with the wheel carries also a thunderbolt, and on some altars,
dedicated to Juppiter, both a wheel and a thunderbolt are figured. Many
races have symbolised the sun as a circle or wheel, and an old Roman
god, Summanus, probably a sun-god, later assimilated to Juppiter, had as
his emblem a wheel. The Celts had the same symbolism, and used the wheel
symbol as an amulet,[78] while at the midsummer festivals blazing
wheels, symbolising the sun, were rolled down a slope. Possibly the god
carries a thunderbolt because the Celts, like other races, believed that
lightning was a spark from the sun.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account