Fun fact: Irish lore may have had a mentionable impact on Norse lore as we know it today. The vast majority of Norse lore which survived into modern times is of Icelandic origin. During the Norse settlement of Iceland they brought thousands of Irish people with them as slaves, to the extent that over half of the women in Iceland were Irish. This massive influx of Irish people might have left an impact on Norse lore. One possible example which really stands out to me is the death of Odin's son Baldr, which bears a strong similarity to the death of Fergus mac Róich in the Ulster Cycle. According to Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda the god Loki, who knows that Baldr's only weakness is mistletoe, sharpens a piece of mistletoe into a weapon and tricks the blind Hodr into throwing it at Baldr, killing him. There is a striking similarity between this tale and the Ulster Cycle tale in which Ailill tricks his blind brother into killing Fergus by throwing a spear at him. I'm not a scholar by any means, but when this similarity is considered in context with the history of Iceland’s demographic origins, it appears to me that this could be an instance of Irish lore directly impacting a Norse tale. And as a Heathen who is also studying and exploring Irish paganism, this potential connection fascinates me. Great video Jon, as always. Thank you for your perspective and insight.
Having grown up in the USA and under Christian influence, it took me some time to truly grasp polytheism and embrace deities from multiple pantheons. I appreciate you addressing this matter.
Thank you so much for the amazing content as always, Jon. I'm a pagan who practices with both Norse and Irish Deities. For years, I have been working with Thor and Freyja up until about a year or so ago when I had an unusual run in with a murder of 3 crows and then a series of dreams that were as subtle as a bullhorn letting me know that The Morrigan was reaching to me. Doing my research and finding your school, I was able to delve more into the Irish deities and the expectations of working with them. This was crucial to approaching The Morrigan in a respectful and non- offensive way. It has resulted in The Morrigan being probably the most present goddess in my life currently. I still have no idea what she wants from me (and gods know I have asked...and asked), but we have a very good relationship where she knows I am at her call when needed so much as she respects what I am willing to do (which I have made clear). So at the risk of writing a book, here is how, I, a Norse and Irish pagan, honor my multiple gods in the most respectful way I know how: I keep a main/norse alter in my home. It's got a little incense holder that was custom carved with the runes and the World Serpent and a candle. A few times a week I will open a prayer by lighting a candle and asking whatever deities and others feel like listening to my words as long as they mean me and mine no harm. I hail the Aesir, the Vanir, the Tuatha dé Danann, and the spirits of the land and honored ancestors. At this time I may specifically call out to Thor and/or Freyja depending on what I am thanking them for. It could be something as generic as thanking Thor for teaching me how to be tenacious or Freyja for protecting my tom cat. I will then state that gifts have been given by the gods and to honor the gifting cycle, I give a gift of wine/whiskey/beer/bread/etc. For The Morrigan, she gets her own space. She has a shelf alter in my office that I literally look straight ahead at all day. I keep an incense burner in front of a print I picked up in New Orleans of a very powerful looking crow standing on a human heart. Kinda dark, but hey....The Morrigan, ya know. I also have a little iron kettle up there next to her as sort of a "Hey Dagda...it's ya boy". She is top of mind all day. Gets a little incense burning a few times a week. I feed that mentioned murder of crows at my house to the point that they recognize my truck and lose their minds when I get home (I know it's just a crow thing, but it still feels powerful).
@@liannsherbin5515 Absolutely! These are not my words to give, honestly. My ritual has been cobbled together over the years, and I have found that when dealing with any of the gods, just being respectful and direct seems to work best...for me. I don't get into flowery prayer. My paraphrased prayer that I have gleaned from other Norse pagan practitioners is something along the lines of: "From the gods, to the earth, to us: gifts have been given. Both those which we have asked for and those given without our knowledge. In reciprocity, from us, to the earth, to the gods: a gift has been given. Please accept this as an appreciation and to harbor continued good will and relationship. Hail to the gods." I'll usually pour the libation or break the bread or whatever I'm offering at this point. I'll use the same kind of prayer with The Morrigan, but it seems more personal and direct as my relationship with her is to honor her on her own. She's a queen, after all.
I love this. While there are similarities, the geographical separations of these cultures make sense for the differences; the names are how they explained the energy's presence.
When I’ve done regression meditation on myself, Irish past life and that part of me was always the strongest. It’s incredible to think that when I was 24, the Mòrrìgan was helping me and I didn’t find out until 20 years later. ❤️ I love many of the pantheons. If we were in our native land and had no internet or worldview, we would worship what our ancestors revered. We are fortunate to live in these times.
When I first started on this path, the pick and choose was what I was doing, because even though I had a lot of resources online... They all said the same thing, that it was okay. That I was an eclectic witch. It's one thing if you don't actually know, it's another to know and still do it. I was the first one.
After decades of following the monotheistic God in multiple ways that never felt true to myself I came to the conclusion that the only god I knew existed was the Earth Mother goddess. From there I found my way to Brigid. It was on a journey through the Irish Pagan School that Brigid told me to also learn about the native lore from where I live. I don't yet know how to do that in a way that honors that culture
I was confused with this because I honor gaia of hellenic paganism as my matron goddess, but primarily irish/celtic paganism. Does irish pantheon have an earth goddess like gaia, I always thought it was danu, but she's more of a mother of the tuath de dannan
I will agree with you I think people can believe in what they want a single or multiple religions even more of one than the other. I think as long as they respect them it's fine.
Hello, I have a question, and sincerest apologies if it is disrespectful or odd or anything like that, and sincere apologies for this being a bit long-winded, I just want to try to explain myself and my question as best I can, but can I practice Christianity as well as Paganism? I know that the Catholic church (religion I was baptized in as a baby and raised with) would say "No" and denounce me as a heretic for even the suggestion, but I am not particularly concerned with what the Catholic church thinks. My stance/relationship to Christianity is that I do believe in Jesus Christ, that he was a man who walked this earth, and I believe in the message that he taught while here (love one another as I have loved you, let he who is without sin cast the first stone, do unto others as you would have done unto you, things such as that) as they were taught to me. However, I have no respect for the Catholic Church as an institution and do not acknowledge its "authority". The corruption and the rampant abuse and hypocrisy in it drove me away from faith and spirituality entirely for years and I only began to return to a spiritual/religious path once I realized my problem was with the church as an institution and people abusing power rather than faith/belief in the teachings or faith in general. I began to feel called to Irish/Celtic paganism about a year ago, and in particular, I feel called to Brigid and work with my ancestors. The more I learn about her, the more I feel her energy has been around me for many years, I just did not have an understanding of it or words to describe it, similar to how you described finding your way to the Dagda. Much of my recent learning has been with the IPS channel as well as the Ogham Academy and books on the subject my family already owned. I feel a call to both paths in a way and neither one feels wrong. My Grandma who basically raised me was a Catholic, but she also engaged in witchcraft and taught me elements of both, as has my Mother. I am sincerely trying to avoid doing the "grab bag" of putting in tokens and expecting blessings as you put it, and have been working to have a meaningful relationship with divinity and striving to live my life following the principles of these teachings and in harmony with my environment and giving back to others. I pray and make offerings of incense, candle burning, plants, tea, etc to both sides and thank them for the many ways my life has been blessed, and when doing so I try to focus my full energy on one so as not to half-ass it. My altar tends to change with season, holiday, intent, etc. but I keep various spaces and objects sacred and consistent. Due to sheer lack of space (small apartment) I only have one altar. Is this way of practice considered disrespectful/disingenuous? If so, how would I start fixing it? I would be very interested to hear your thoughts and answer, and am very grateful to have found this channel. Thank you and have a blessed day
Talking about relationships to the gods especially with diffrent pantheons - you can have diffrent relationships with deity and diffrent depth , but talk about what is expected in that relationship so that you are not giving a false impression, leading anyone on on how much and how involved and if you have over commited sit down and negotiate and explain i´m human I f...ed up and didn´t know my limits can I renegotiate to be able to better do the work, do not take these relationships lightly they might say yes they might say no but at least they know you are not ignoring them and there might be something you can do which is smaller or not perfect that still is honering them. Part of it for me has been where do I want to put my focus and when and what do they need me for and what is the timeframe there and how to get that to work and how can I do the work without breaking myself because then I won´t be much use to anyone including myself and those I consider my tribe, my loved ones and in general.
The "Gallowglass" were Hiberno-Norse mercenaries from the late 1st Millennium/early 2nd Millennium, made up of what were probably immigrated or 1st generation Vikings from the Hebrides and the Isles of the western coast/islands of Scotland. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallowglass
![[Irish Reaction] Celtic Shamanism, Irish Mysticism & The Faerie Faith | Jonny Enoch | Lora O'Brien](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/GQC5OCJxuNY/mqdefault.jpg)
![[Irish Reaction] Celtic Shamanism, Irish Mysticism & The Faerie Faith | Jonny Enoch | Lora O'Brien](/img/tr.png)
Fun fact: Irish lore may have had a mentionable impact on Norse lore as we know it today. The vast majority of Norse lore which survived into modern times is of Icelandic origin. During the Norse settlement of Iceland they brought thousands of Irish people with them as slaves, to the extent that over half of the women in Iceland were Irish. This massive influx of Irish people might have left an impact on Norse lore. One possible example which really stands out to me is the death of Odin's son Baldr, which bears a strong similarity to the death of Fergus mac Róich in the Ulster Cycle. According to Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda the god Loki, who knows that Baldr's only weakness is mistletoe, sharpens a piece of mistletoe into a weapon and tricks the blind Hodr into throwing it at Baldr, killing him. There is a striking similarity between this tale and the Ulster Cycle tale in which Ailill tricks his blind brother into killing Fergus by throwing a spear at him.
I'm not a scholar by any means, but when this similarity is considered in context with the history of Iceland’s demographic origins, it appears to me that this could be an instance of Irish lore directly impacting a Norse tale. And as a Heathen who is also studying and exploring Irish paganism, this potential connection fascinates me. Great video Jon, as always. Thank you for your perspective and insight.
Definitely going to check out the Odin & Dagda story! That sounds very intriguing! I would LOVE to read about Mannan and Loki also!!!
Having grown up in the USA and under Christian influence, it took me some time to truly grasp polytheism and embrace deities from multiple pantheons. I appreciate you addressing this matter.
I will eagerly await the Loki and Mannanan mac Lir story! Thank you for making this video, it was very helpful and clarifying.
Thank you so much for the amazing content as always, Jon. I'm a pagan who practices with both Norse and Irish Deities. For years, I have been working with Thor and Freyja up until about a year or so ago when I had an unusual run in with a murder of 3 crows and then a series of dreams that were as subtle as a bullhorn letting me know that The Morrigan was reaching to me. Doing my research and finding your school, I was able to delve more into the Irish deities and the expectations of working with them. This was crucial to approaching The Morrigan in a respectful and non- offensive way. It has resulted in The Morrigan being probably the most present goddess in my life currently. I still have no idea what she wants from me (and gods know I have asked...and asked), but we have a very good relationship where she knows I am at her call when needed so much as she respects what I am willing to do (which I have made clear).
So at the risk of writing a book, here is how, I, a Norse and Irish pagan, honor my multiple gods in the most respectful way I know how:
I keep a main/norse alter in my home. It's got a little incense holder that was custom carved with the runes and the World Serpent and a candle. A few times a week I will open a prayer by lighting a candle and asking whatever deities and others feel like listening to my words as long as they mean me and mine no harm. I hail the Aesir, the Vanir, the Tuatha dé Danann, and the spirits of the land and honored ancestors. At this time I may specifically call out to Thor and/or Freyja depending on what I am thanking them for. It could be something as generic as thanking Thor for teaching me how to be tenacious or Freyja for protecting my tom cat. I will then state that gifts have been given by the gods and to honor the gifting cycle, I give a gift of wine/whiskey/beer/bread/etc.
For The Morrigan, she gets her own space. She has a shelf alter in my office that I literally look straight ahead at all day. I keep an incense burner in front of a print I picked up in New Orleans of a very powerful looking crow standing on a human heart. Kinda dark, but hey....The Morrigan, ya know. I also have a little iron kettle up there next to her as sort of a "Hey Dagda...it's ya boy". She is top of mind all day. Gets a little incense burning a few times a week. I feed that mentioned murder of crows at my house to the point that they recognize my truck and lose their minds when I get home (I know it's just a crow thing, but it still feels powerful).
I really like the flow and wording of your altar ritual. May I also use the flow and phrases you have listed here?
@@liannsherbin5515
Absolutely! These are not my words to give, honestly. My ritual has been cobbled together over the years, and I have found that when dealing with any of the gods, just being respectful and direct seems to work best...for me. I don't get into flowery prayer. My paraphrased prayer that I have gleaned from other Norse pagan practitioners is something along the lines of:
"From the gods, to the earth, to us: gifts have been given. Both those which we have asked for and those given without our knowledge. In reciprocity, from us, to the earth, to the gods: a gift has been given. Please accept this as an appreciation and to harbor continued good will and relationship. Hail to the gods." I'll usually pour the libation or break the bread or whatever I'm offering at this point.
I'll use the same kind of prayer with The Morrigan, but it seems more personal and direct as my relationship with her is to honor her on her own. She's a queen, after all.
I love this. While there are similarities, the geographical separations of these cultures make sense for the differences; the names are how they explained the energy's presence.
When I’ve done regression meditation on myself, Irish past life and that part of me was always the strongest.
It’s incredible to think that when I was 24, the Mòrrìgan was helping me and I didn’t find out until 20 years later. ❤️
I love many of the pantheons. If we were in our native land and had no internet or worldview, we would worship what our ancestors revered.
We are fortunate to live in these times.
When I first started on this path, the pick and choose was what I was doing, because even though I had a lot of resources online... They all said the same thing, that it was okay. That I was an eclectic witch. It's one thing if you don't actually know, it's another to know and still do it. I was the first one.
Jon you’ve done a very very nice job on this video. Thank you for making it and sharing it with us.
Thats how i was, i felt a connection to gaia and earth before i became pagan, its how i got into the faith
After decades of following the monotheistic God in multiple ways that never felt true to myself I came to the conclusion that the only god I knew existed was the Earth Mother goddess. From there I found my way to Brigid. It was on a journey through the Irish Pagan School that Brigid told me to also learn about the native lore from where I live. I don't yet know how to do that in a way that honors that culture
Thank you so much for your information and lesson 🔝
I was confused with this because I honor gaia of hellenic paganism as my matron goddess, but primarily irish/celtic paganism. Does irish pantheon have an earth goddess like gaia, I always thought it was danu, but she's more of a mother of the tuath de dannan
I will agree with you I think people can believe in what they want a single or multiple religions even more of one than the other. I think as long as they respect them it's fine.
Hello, I have a question, and sincerest apologies if it is disrespectful or odd or anything like that, and sincere apologies for this being a bit long-winded, I just want to try to explain myself and my question as best I can, but can I practice Christianity as well as Paganism? I know that the Catholic church (religion I was baptized in as a baby and raised with) would say "No" and denounce me as a heretic for even the suggestion, but I am not particularly concerned with what the Catholic church thinks. My stance/relationship to Christianity is that I do believe in Jesus Christ, that he was a man who walked this earth, and I believe in the message that he taught while here (love one another as I have loved you, let he who is without sin cast the first stone, do unto others as you would have done unto you, things such as that) as they were taught to me. However, I have no respect for the Catholic Church as an institution and do not acknowledge its "authority". The corruption and the rampant abuse and hypocrisy in it drove me away from faith and spirituality entirely for years and I only began to return to a spiritual/religious path once I realized my problem was with the church as an institution and people abusing power rather than faith/belief in the teachings or faith in general. I began to feel called to Irish/Celtic paganism about a year ago, and in particular, I feel called to Brigid and work with my ancestors. The more I learn about her, the more I feel her energy has been around me for many years, I just did not have an understanding of it or words to describe it, similar to how you described finding your way to the Dagda. Much of my recent learning has been with the IPS channel as well as the Ogham Academy and books on the subject my family already owned. I feel a call to both paths in a way and neither one feels wrong. My Grandma who basically raised me was a Catholic, but she also engaged in witchcraft and taught me elements of both, as has my Mother. I am sincerely trying to avoid doing the "grab bag" of putting in tokens and expecting blessings as you put it, and have been working to have a meaningful relationship with divinity and striving to live my life following the principles of these teachings and in harmony with my environment and giving back to others. I pray and make offerings of incense, candle burning, plants, tea, etc to both sides and thank them for the many ways my life has been blessed, and when doing so I try to focus my full energy on one so as not to half-ass it. My altar tends to change with season, holiday, intent, etc. but I keep various spaces and objects sacred and consistent. Due to sheer lack of space (small apartment) I only have one altar. Is this way of practice considered disrespectful/disingenuous? If so, how would I start fixing it? I would be very interested to hear your thoughts and answer, and am very grateful to have found this channel. Thank you and have a blessed day
Talking about relationships to the gods especially with diffrent pantheons - you can have diffrent relationships with deity and diffrent depth , but talk about what is expected in that relationship so that you are not giving a false impression, leading anyone on on how much and how involved and if you have over commited sit down and negotiate and explain i´m human I f...ed up and didn´t know my limits can I renegotiate to be able to better do the work, do not take these relationships lightly they might say yes they might say no but at least they know you are not ignoring them and there might be something you can do which is smaller or not perfect that still is honering them. Part of it for me has been where do I want to put my focus and when and what do they need me for and what is the timeframe there and how to get that to work and how can I do the work without breaking myself because then I won´t be much use to anyone including myself and those I consider my tribe, my loved ones and in general.
Sure arnt we all connected , the grand one would say .
be safe from under the gaze of SeeFinn
The "Gallowglass" were Hiberno-Norse mercenaries from the late 1st Millennium/early 2nd Millennium, made up of what were probably immigrated or 1st generation Vikings from the Hebrides and the Isles of the western coast/islands of Scotland. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallowglass