We are not human beings having a spiritual experience, we are spiritual beings having a human experience

Thursday, May 05, 2011

Honoring The Triple God



All of us as Wiccans know who the Triple Goddess is – Maiden (love), Mother (fertility) and Crone (wisdom) and Her important roles as they pertain to our life cycles,  but what about the Triple God?  What are His aspects and exactly “how” does He fit into all of this?

I have been thinking a lot about this subject as of late with the Midsummer/Litha celebration as our next Wiccan sabbat. The Triple God is, respectively, – the Young Lord (child), the Father (protector/warrior) and King (Sage).

This year, I have chosen to honor him in all of his forms as they relate to our Wheel of the Year, along with the Triple Goddess, at my Midsummer ritual.  I feel that it is really important to recognize him as well as the Goddess even if She is generally given a higher status being that She is, after all, the Earth Mother and mother to all.

One of the many things which I absolutely love about Wicca is its’ duality – the “balance” between feminine and masculine, Goddess and God and the logical and spiritual need for both in order to become “The One.”  Ever since the very beginning of my Wiccan journey, I have always held an enormous respect for both Goddess and God.

Much as the phases of the Moon are attributed to the Goddess, as are the various life cycles of the Sun related to the God. Generally speaking, they are considered to be Young Lord-Dawn/Sun Up, Father-Midday/Noon and King or Sage-Sun Down. There is even a ritual called, “Drawing Down the Sun” which is very similar to “Drawing Down the Moon” in that it is meant for empowering one’s self with the God’s Sun energy.

So, how does this relate to the Wheel of the Year? Well to me, after the God is born of the Goddess, He continues to age throughout the year - even though His “phases” aren’t quite as emphasized as the Goddess’. Put simply, this is how the God is related to and is affected by the Wheel of the Year:

Yule/Imblog/Spring Equinox – The God is a Youth who, in His adolescence has not taken notice of the Goddess who herself is recovering from His birth at Yule. She is cleansing and regaining Her maidenhood.


Beltane/Summer Solstice  - The God is a mature Man and Father, holding His rightful place as the Waxing Sun. He is strong and full of vitality – ruling over the fields and animals of the land. He has reached maturity and is now courting the Goddess who has taken Him as Her consort once more. Seeds have been planted and the Goddess is Mother once again.

Lughnasadh/Autumn Equinox – The God is beginning to age and become tired. He no longer has the power and strength He once had during Spring and early Summer. He is past courting the Goddess and is content to allow the days to grow shorter and the shadows to grow long. The Goddess is now the one who has become busy in the fields making sure all is right for the harvest seasons.

Samhain – The God dies. The Goddess is a Crone-like figure and welcomes Her consort to the Underworld. She is still pregnant with the new God who is waiting to be born once again at Yule.

The concept of exactly how our beloved deities coincide with the ever changing seasons of the year vary from Wiccan to Wiccan as do the many different traditions and deities which go with them, but the one thing which remains the same no matter what – They will always and forever be  regarded as our Mother Earth and Father God.

13 comments:

  1. Just beautiful, my sister. I love this! I too love the balance they give to one another and to us. I see so many that completely leave Him out of their lives and I feel so bad for all they are missing!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I couldn't agree with you more, my dear sister!!

    Blessed be!

    Kim

    ReplyDelete
  3. I totally agree, Kim with you and April. I honor the God with every sabbat; and every morning, welcoming the warmth of the sun. It is a shame that many Wiccans focus just on the Goddess; the Practice is so much more full and perfect when we embrace the duality of our Deity.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love what you said here about the balance, I too have noticed that the God takes a back-seat a lot and it is a shame. BB ☽✪☾

    ReplyDelete
  5. Good job sisters! Love the comments, too!

    ReplyDelete
  6. AS the consort to the goddess, you have awoken me.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I remember being called a heretic for holding this same view and teaching it in our coven back in the early 1990s

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have been a Wiccan for more than 45 years now and only just realized that the God is also triple. I find everything you wrote fascinating save one thing. Why call the oldest god King and Sage when the oldest goddess is the Crone. I had to come up with names of my own when I discovered Him for myself but the term crone is insulting to women. I accept it for tradition but why make the god somehow better?
    For me, I call the oldest figure the Graybeard to convey his age without granting him the special authority of a king or sage. My own names for the other ages are then youth and father, similar to what you call them.

    ReplyDelete
  9. In the concept of witchcraft, the term Crone is not meant as an insult but more of a coming of age. An honor to become the woman of wisdom.

    ReplyDelete
  10. As is the same for Sage as a wise old man.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I like your phases for the Triple God, those were the ones I have been using, I have also ran with Prince, Father and Sage. The only difference I have in my group is the Bright Lord dies at Autumnal Equinox and Dark Lord dies at Spring Equinox. But verey good info

    ReplyDelete
  12. The triple goddess colors are normally white for Maiden red for mother and black for crone. What are the colors for the triple god? As in father son and sage? I know most god colors are gold but I'm trying to figure out what the three are for the god.

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I use green for the young Lord/child/son, yellow for the Father/warrior, and gold for the Sage/King. Thanks for asking!

      Delete