Rose Ariadne's Chitchcraft Blog

Dear Friends,

Since we discussed the Triple Goddess in the last message, I thought it was best that we pay due to her consort, the Horned God. The Pentacle which we wear and use so proudly in Wicca is a representation of their Union’the three upper most points are the three aspects of the Triple Goddess, and the two lower points represent the Horned God.

The Horned God is a symbol of male energy in the form of the divine. He reigns over the woodlands, the hunt and animals. He provides strength and is the Lord of Life, Death and the Underworld. He provides the Sun to the Goddess? moon. He alternates with her in ruling over the fertility cycle of birth, death and rebirth. He is reborn every Winter Solstice, unites with the Goddess in marriage and Beltane and dies in the Autumn in order to bring fertility to the land.

The Horned God is a Wiccan Deity, but does not belong soley to Wicca. He has appeared throughout mythologies all over the world. He is:

- Cernunnos, The Celtic God of fertility, animals and the underworld.

- Herne The Hunter, a specter of Britain.
- Pan the Greek god of the woodlands,
- Janus the Roman god of good beings.
- Tammuz and Damuzi, the son, lover and consorts to Ishtar and Inanna.

- Osiris, the Egyptian Lord of the underworld.
- Dionysus, the Greek god of vegetation and vine.
- The Green Man, the lord of vegetation and the woodlands.
No matter what form he takes in your Wiccan practice, he is as equally important as the Goddess. He contributes the male part of the male-female polarity. During rites in a coven, the High Priest personifies him. In fact, the use of an antlered headdress or a horned helmet by High Priests is what may have contributed to the misconception that Witches were cavorting with Satan.

The concept of Satan is a perversion of what the Horned God represents. The horns on his head represent the domain over the woodlands and his association with the bull and the ram. The two horns also symbolize the cycle of birth and death, creation and destruction, separation and return. Just like nature, the Horned God contains both powers within him. He is both the God of Life and the God of Death. Nature requires balance and the Horned God shows that balance.

He is sometimes depicted as half man and half animal, such as the Horned God seen as Pan or Cernunnous. This represents the natural union between man and nature, something our modern world has sadly forgotten.

Some may fear the Horned God, because he is the primal and active force within all things. We humans try to deny our primal aspects, and origins from the wild. He is a God who is unfettered by civilization. He is driven by his primal instincts and calls us to either do the same, or at least acknowledge that we have them. He is both the hunter and the hunted, with his death he is slain so others can live. He starts the natural cycle and allows the harvest to take place.

Honoring the Horned God is as simple as acknowledging our connection with nature. We also honor him when we learn that life is full of balance. He is brought into our lives through our courage, our passion and our will. Adding a small picture or figure of his visage to your altar is always a good complement to a representation of the Goddess. Remember that in magick, just as in nature, balance is the key.

Love And Light,

Rose Ariadne, Your Warm And Caring “Resident Witch In Charge”