Just like we use the energies of herbs and crystals, the elements, elementals, and familiars to help us in our spellwork we also call the energies of chosen Deities. Once we have decided our intent, we chose moon phase, days and planets, herbs, oils, crystals, elements to helps us in this intent. We may also call a God and or Goddess. You do not have to use the same God or Goddess each time. So for a spell needing courage and fortitude you may call Athena or for a spell for fertility you may call Persephone.
As well as choosing Deity for spellwork we also choose Gods and Goddesses for ritual and celebration. Some Wiccans use the generic Lord and Lady of the triple goddess in one of her aspects, other are drawn to a few particular gods and goddesses.
Choosing your Personal God & Goddess can be difficult to grasp for anyone who is new to their path, and has little to no concept, of who or what the Gods & Goddesses are and what they mean to them. In this situation, the first thing to do is hit the books or the internet and do some reading, use the information to familiarise yourself with a selection of Gods & Goddesses and the different Pantheons. It will then be easier to select a Pantheon that appeals to you and from there you can focus on individual Gods & Goddesses within that Pantheon and see which ones ‘speak’ to you. It may be that Isis and Cernunnos appeal to you, both are from different Pantheons but that doesn’t matter, your guiding Deities don’t have to be from the same Pantheon. Nor do they have to be the only ones you work with in the future.
There’s a lot of confusion caused by the sheer number of Deities to choose from, but don’t get to bogged down with the choice. If you think that working through all the different Pantheons to find ‘the one’ is too difficult to start, then just think of the God & Goddess as single entities, you may decide this works for you and continue this way on your Path for good. Many people do, there is a belief amongst some Pagans that all Gods are one God, and all Goddesses are one Goddess, meaning that it doesn’t matter which Deity you work with as they’re all really the same ones. Whatever anybody tells you, there is absolutely nothing wrong with worshipping one God and Goddess. When I first started on my Path I was very unsure, in ritual, and when seeking guidance I simply referred to them as the Lord & Lady.
In time, my God & Goddess made themselves known to me. Today I work with a variety of Gods & Goddesses depending on what spell or ritual I’m doing. If you feel that you want to work with more than one God & Goddess, and feel that they are all individual and not just one and that you would prefer to work with one specific God or Goddess or a set of Gods & Goddesses then you can, but how do you choose?
One way to find your personal dieties is to meditate, and ask that a your God & Goddess make themselves known to you. Then watch your life carefully for any signs of the God and Goddess trying to get your attention. Don’t forget that the Path you’ve chosen is unique and personal to you and experiences are different from one person to the next. So if there doesn’t seem to be any signs or you can’t master the art of meditation, then it’s up to you to take the matters into your own hands, and find your God & Goddess yourself. Look again at the various Pantheons and get a feel for them. Choose a God or Goddess that you feel would suit you, for example if you have an afinity with cats and Egypt, Bast would be an ideal candidate to research for your Goddess.
I often find that people are drawn to their God and Goddess through many different reasons. Some think that because it wasn’t given to you whilst meditating or in ritual that someohow it means less. I don’t agree. I think just like you are drawn to Wicca you are also drawn to your gods and goddesses. You may even have been fascinated by them from childhood and they may have been in your daydreams where you made stories about them.
by Kernow Wytch
