Reddit reviews Celtic Myths and Legends
We found 8 Reddit comments about Celtic Myths and Legends. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Used Book in Good Condition
Reddit reviews Celtic Myths and LegendsWe found 8 Reddit comments about Celtic Myths and Legends. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
(I prefer Druidry to Druidism, rolls off the tongue better).
Yes, you can do whatever you want. It's a belief system, a way of life, it is not Ikea plans. There is no right or wrong when it comes to someone's beliefs :)
As far as 'a certain ancestry', I assume you mean people of northern European descent claiming only they can be Asatru?
Look, here's the thing. Any neo-pagan religion is reconstructionist. Fact is there is very very little documentation of non-Abrahamic religions in Europe from the middle ages and previously. Even Greco-Roman religious practices and customs are largely speculative and taken from recorded myth and legend. For the most part 'pagan' religious weren't even very organized and beliefs could vary wildly from group to group, region to region, decade to decade.
I recommend you read the various myths and legends of all European cultures and even the Greco-Roman ones. You'll see a lot of recurring themes, the names of the heroes and deities will change but you see the same stories over and over.
Look at Thor vs Perun. Zeus vs Jupiter. Hel vs Prosperina vs Persephone. Hell look at the native tribes of North America, you'll see a dozen or more versions of Coyote.
Do what feels right to you, and don't be afraid to drift. But first, really dive into the source material for the deities we know about. I'll edit this post shortly with some things to start with.
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Edit:
That's a good start.
Also wherever you live find the Audubon society book for trees and the like in your area, you should be able to find one for your region on Amazon used for 5-10$.
Maybe try crossposting with r/druidism. On there when this came up, there were a lot of recomendations, but this stood out. From what I can tell, it's way different than other pantheons in that most of the deities were worshipped in their local enclaves, as Celtic land wasn't united back then. This also lead to much of the info we have on their religion being lost (also because they didn't have a writing system). Then there were the Christian poets that came later who did have writing but also used oral tradition a lot too. They created the Mabinogion myths, which is definitely worth looking into, though it isn't centred on just deities.
There are different valid starting points, and I think which one would be best depends on your interests, desires, and knowledge level.
If you're a Hibernophile who is itching to delve into Irish history and culture, or if you wish to read some epic and fantastic tales, then jumping into the mythological cycles is a fine starting point. The pro to this would be that you would be familiarizing yourself with the biggest bulk of Gaelic polytheist source material right off the bat. The cons would be that this literature alone is probably not going to give you much of a conceptual framework for polytheism and how to practice it, and you will certainly want to purchase a hard-copy with a reputable translation (unless you are fluent enough in Irish already) and annotations in order to properly comprehend the material.
If polytheistic practice is your biggest draw, then I would recommend starting your journey outside of Irish literature by examining the actual Celtic pagan archaeological remains at our disposal. The con to this would be that the majority of the material you examine is probably not going to be Irish. The pro to this is that it represents actual pagan and polytheistic practices that can inform us how our ancestors approached the gods and how we can do so as well. For this, I would recommend the somewhat misleadingly named Celtic Mythology by Proinsias MacCana. It is a highly accessible and enjoyable introduction to Celtic archaeology and it does an admirable job of connecting the archeological material to the later written mythology. You may also want to explore www.polytheist.com and J.M. Greer's A World Full of Gods.
Unfortunately I am not very familiar with literature about Gaelic folk culture, but that is another potential starting point. The pro being that it's Gaelic and would be full of practices and worldviews you could immediately adopt. The con being that many of those practices and worldviews are not completely (or even partially) pagan. I know many CR's are quite fond of the Carmina Gadelica, though I don't know of any other recommendable books outside of that.
If you are a total neophyte and those aforementioned avenues seemed daunting, then I would recommend Peter Berresford Ellis' Celtic Myths and Legends for a more modern and digestible rendition of the Irish and Welsh legends, or Morgan Daimler's Irish Paganism for a general overview of beliefs, practices, and source materials for Gaelic polytheism.
Some recommendations:
Gods and Fighting Men. This covers a lot of the Irish myths.
The Four Branches of the Mabinogi. This covers a great deal of the Welsh myths.
Celtic Gods and Heroes. This is a brief but decent overview of Gods and Goddesses of Irish, British and Gaulish origin.
The Isles of the Many Gods. I have not yet read this one, but it's on my wish list and sounds about right for you.
Celtic Myths and Legends. This covers it all, but perhaps not as directly focused on the gods as you would like. Its a decent read though.
There are some great online sources for the Welsh and Irish myths. If finances are an issue try them out. Good luck!
I've been in a mode for a while of reading only classics--which, of course, everyone already knows of. It's been a long time since I picked up a completely random book without knowing the author or something about the title.
With a few exceptions. Two weeks ago I was at B&N and wandered into the "Essay" section (which has some surprisingly good stuff) and there found, and immediately loved, a volume of Celtic Myths. This one as a matter of fact. I think it was the cover that drew me in, as well as a general love of myths (largely thanks to Tolkien.)
I got this book a while ago, it's full of Norse mythology. Some might be familiar (the real story of Cinderella, where the prince murders a village to find her), others are less so. The book is light on analysis though, just a series of stories.
https://www.amazon.com/Celtic-Myths-Legends-Peter-Berresford/dp/0786711078
I've found Peter Berresford Ellis is a good author to seek out for an introduction at least. He breaks the Celtic world down in very informative way that's easy to digest. He has a book called The Mammoth Book of Celtic Myths and Legends but it is not available in an audio format as far as I know. For me it has the best compilation of Celtic folklore, drawn from some of the most popular stories. There are sections where he addresses the history and culture of the various Celtic peoples, but the stories are largely all told via narrative. But again, no audiobook.
Another of his books, A Brief History of the Celts, does have an audio version. However, it's much more focused on history, culture and society. There's some mention of Celtic folklore but not presented in a narrative fashion.
I did a [quick search] (https://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_hp_tseft?advsearchKeywords=celtic%20mythology&filterby=field-keywords) on Audible and it gave me quite a few audiobooks on Celtic mythology and folklore, but I haven't listened to any of them so I can't speak to their quality.
Heroes Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths
Wizardology: The Book of the Secrets of Merlin
Celtic Myths and Legends
Tales of Ancient Egypt
Plus the ones already mentioned: Arabian Nights, Aesops Fable, Hans Christian Anderson's Fairy Tales.
You might also want to consider Rick Riordan's, Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series.