Celtic Zodiac???

Описание: Is there a Celtic/Gaelic zodiac? What animals are sacred, symbolically important or even magical in Gaelic culture?

This is a huge topic, actually. However (spoiler alert) Erik shoots down the idea of a Celtic zodiac pretty fast.

As one of our academic friends put it, “The Celts looked down, not up.”

This is to say, the bulk of Celtic, and later Gaelic, pre-Christian spiritual thought focused on another world, parallel to our own, but visualized as being underground.

There is no substantive evidence that the Celtic tribes thought much about things like star signs or the night skies somehow influencing individuals. Did they make use of astronomy? Of course. As did the prehistoric peoples of the British Isles before them. But astrology was not their thing.

But what about animals? We do know that many animals were considered special, magical, symbolic, etc. And as with any old culture, some animals were simply admired for their strength and beauty - their ability to survive. However, there is no indication that the Celts/Gaels assigned “spirit animals” to people. Do you find animals in art? Yes. Do they sometimes have symbolism? Absolutely.

Erik and Rocky advise, as always, checking your sources and consulting more than one on any cultural, historical or archaeological topic. Celtic culture is especially confusing for the layperson due to a number of factors; from Victorian romanticism to the advent of Neo-paganism and the “New Age.” Make sure any source you read clearly states whether what they espouse is actually ancient knowledge OR a new idea inspired by ancient culture.



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