I'm working on a special project for the month of August. Those of you that know me IRL know that *religiously speaking* I swing with the Polytheist crowd with a slight emphasis on Irish Reconstructionist Paganism. This month, I'll be writing about the god Manannán mac Lir (and posting) every day. I got the idea from this post by Galina Krasskova, and plan on answering most of the questions to the best of my ability, though I am by no means an expert. Oh, and I'll still be doing Poetry Wednesdays, but the poetry will be devotional in nature—also the poems will replace four of the questions. Probably. Oh, and I'm cross-posting this on my personal blog.
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| Manannán mac Lir chariots over the waves. Art by Loime Studios. I love this piece. |
Who is Manannán?
Simply speaking, Manannán mac Lir is the Irish god of the sea. It's actually a bit more complicated than that, but, of course, everything is. And it would be a bit more accurate to say that he's the Celtic god of the sea, and Manx. And possibly Welsh, though I, for one, am more apt to believe that the Welsh deity, Manawyddan, and the Manx/Celtic deity Manannán are two separate but interrelated entities like the Greek Zeus and Roman Jove.
Manannán is a liminal deity, walking much in the in-between. He is associated with both the Tuatha de Danann and their enemies the Fomorians, and could be counted among either group or both. He is the accepted outsider. He is also the guardian (and ruler?) of the Blessed Isles of the Otherworld—Tír na mBean, Tír fo Thonn, Tír na nOg, Emain Ablach, and Mag Mell. He is also known to ferry the souls of the dead to the otherworld.
He is as vast and changeable as the sea itself.
He is a magician, a trickster, a wise man, a fool, a lover, a warrior, a protector, a gatekeeper, a father, and a teacher.
Oh, and he has a wicked sense of humor.
There is so much to this god, and I'm excited to be exploring more of him with you as the month goes on.
Manannán is a liminal deity, walking much in the in-between. He is associated with both the Tuatha de Danann and their enemies the Fomorians, and could be counted among either group or both. He is the accepted outsider. He is also the guardian (and ruler?) of the Blessed Isles of the Otherworld—Tír na mBean, Tír fo Thonn, Tír na nOg, Emain Ablach, and Mag Mell. He is also known to ferry the souls of the dead to the otherworld.
He is as vast and changeable as the sea itself.
He is a magician, a trickster, a wise man, a fool, a lover, a warrior, a protector, a gatekeeper, a father, and a teacher.
Oh, and he has a wicked sense of humor.
There is so much to this god, and I'm excited to be exploring more of him with you as the month goes on.
