Celtic Women's Spirituality: Accessing the Cauldron of Life - Edain McCoy 1998

The Virgin

The virgin is the most nebulous aspect of the Triple Goddess, primarily due to the human need to compartmentalize—and no aspect of the feminine divine defies categorization more than the virgin.

The problem begins with the way the modern world conceptualizes the term “virgin.” Because the old Latin word virgo meant “intact,” the patriarchal world began equating the state of virginity with an intact hymen, the thin membrane that covers the opening to the vagina. The hymen is broken during first sexual intercourse, though it can be broken in any number of non-sexual ways, including participation in certain sports, the insertion of a tampon, or through a routine medical examination.

Fortunately, the hymen is a body part modern women are beginning to evolve out of, just as we do any other useless appendage. Far too much has been made of this small bit of tissue, and most of it has only served to induce fear of sexual relations among young women who are told, either by older women or through misleading novels, that losing one’s hymen, or “virginity,” is very painful and very bloody. I experienced no great pain or excessive bleeding with my first intercourse, nor did any of the women in my acquaintance.

The original term virgo intacta referred to the whole woman, not just her hymen. A virgin was one who was intact. In other words, she was complete and whole unto herself. She needed no one else, such as a male mate, to make her complete or for society to acknowledge her worth.⁸⁵ She was free to mate with any man she chose, any time she chose, something that was especially true in the culture of the early Celts. Often she might be a priestess who used sex in a sacred fashion. In this she was similar to the famous Vestal Virgins, the sacred prostitutes of the Roman temples. They were certainly not virgins in the modem sense, but they certainly were in the original meaning.

You will note that in this book I have consistently used the word “virgin” rather than “maiden,” a practice in which I have been training myself. This is not easy, since the alliteration of the phrase “maiden, mother, crone” rolls off the tongue so easily. But the term maiden is too etymologically linked to the hymen, also called the “maiden head,” and reeks too much of the modem conception of what a virgin is for me to be comfortable with it any longer. I feel the word virgin best sums up the old view of the young Goddess as sexually awakened and well aware of the power her sexuality gives her as a sovereign deity.

By the Middle Ages, the two definitions of virgin had become confused in the minds of Celtic writers. This is seen clearly in the myth of Dechtere, an Irish Goddess who conceived the hero Cuchulain by drinking a liquid into which a magfly containing the spirit of the God Lugh (said to be Cuchulain’s “father”) had fallen. She gave birth by vomiting up the child, thus remaining a “virgin .”

There is at least one early modem precedent for the use of the word virgin for a sovereign or woman of power. England’s Queen Elizabeth I was always known as the Virgin Queen, simply because she never married. Several biographers have alluded to the fact that she did this because she did not wish to share her power—her sovereignty—with anyone else, even though this meant that upon her death she would have to pass her crown to her Scottish nephew, the son of her enemy, Mary Queen of Scots. Elizabeth had numerous suitors, several of which were likely her lovers, yet she always remained “the Virgin Queen”—whole and complete unto herself.

Attributes and Correspondences of the Virgin

The virgin represents new beginnings and awakenings. To the Celts, she stood for the power of the land itself. She is the Goddess of adventure, the magickal aspect of the feminine divine.⁸⁶ By contrast, she is also the embodiment of beauty and of both joy and sorrow.⁸⁷

Sometimes the virgin aspect of a Goddess or heroine will overlap that of the mother, and they will share attributes. When reading through Celtic myths, legends, and folklore, the virgin can best be identified using these cues:

Youthful

The virgin is almost always a younger woman.

Beautiful

She usually possesses great beauty and attracts both wanted and unwanted male attention. This attention usually results in battles or trouble of some kind, both for the woman and for the men wanting to possess her.⁸⁸ Two ex, amples of these virgins are Ireland’s Deirdre of the Sorrows, over whom the Red Branch fraternity broke up, and Wales’s Gwen, who was so beautiful that no human eye could look upon her for long.

Sovereign

She grants kings the power to rule, as did Queen Guinevere in the Arthurian legends.

Presents a Weapon or Chalice to a Male Figure

Any Goddess or heroine who offers an item such as this is acting in a sovereign role, and is likely a virgin aspect.

May Have a Horse Aspect

Because the horse is linked to sovereignty, a horse Goddess is usually a virgin, though in some cases she is a mother aspect. A few human women who were historically seen as sovereigns had horse nicknames, such as the warrior Car, tamandua, who was called “the silken pony.”

Strong Sexual Nature

Because the young virgin’s archetypal role is to mate with the king, and then with his chosen successor, she has a decidedly sexual nature. This aspect of her has been perverted over time and the women viewed as wantons or as whores. An example of this is seen in the Breton myth about a virgin Goddess named Dahud-Ahes, who left Brittany when the Christians came and was dubbed a Goddess of debauchery.

A “Faery” or Otherworld Woman Married to a Mortal

This is another type of sovereign Goddess who grants a mortal man full access to the Otherworld or to shamanic knowledge, or who makes the man divine in his own right. An example is Caer, a Goddess of sleep and dreams, who wed Aenghus MacOg, a God of love.⁸⁹ Another is Niamh of the Golden Hair, who takes Ossian into the Otherworld to live, although he dies when he disobeys her warnings about what he may and may not do when he revisits earth.

Linked to a Land or Water Site

While this can also be a mother attribute, it is more often a virgin who is embodied in these natural features, such as Boann, the Goddess and eponym of Ireland’s River Boyne; the Lady of the Lake in the Arthurian myths; Aine of the hills of Munster; or Sioann of the River Shannon.⁹⁰

Endures Great Sorrow or Personal Tragedy

A virgin usually has a series of tragedies or personal disasters as the central focus of her myth, such as Deirdre of the Sorrows, Wales’s Branwen, or the healing Goddess Airmid, who sees her jealous father slay her brother.

Embodies Joy and Takes Risks

Deirdre of the Sorrows,⁹¹ Grainne, and other Goddesses mentioned in this chapter express a great joy in life, and they take risks to get or keep it, even though the end result is more often tragic than happy.

Gives Birth to a Son, Often by Magickal Means

Examples are Eri of the Golden Hair, who is impregnated by a beam of sunlight; Dechtere, who conceives by drinking a soul from a cup; and Finchoem, who swallowed a worm she found crawling on a magickal well and conceived Conall of the Victories. Goddesses who give birth to animals are usually related to agricultural cycles and are viewed as mother aspects.

Goes on Great Adventures

One example is Grainne,⁹² who lures the young warrior Diarmuid away from her marriage feast to another man. Together they ran the length of Ireland with the Fianna warriors in pursuit.

Symbolizes Peace, Yet is Often a Warrior

Brigantia, the sovereign spirit of the Bretons, is one example. Ruling queens or chieftains, such as Queen Maeve, also fit into this category.

Part of a Romantic Triangle

A virgin is often pulled between two men, either two lovers, or a father and son. Examples are Isolde, who was in the middle of a contest between Cornwall’s King Mark and Ireland’s Tristan; and Grainne, who was wed to Fionn MacCumhal but fled with her lover Diarmuid.

Fought Over by Two or More Men

When two men are fighting for possession of a woman, either a sexual contest or a fight for some possession of hers, it is likely she is a virgin. The fight is one of sovereignty, with the old king weakening and dying and needing to be replaced by a younger man. The winner will be the one who possesses the sexual favors of the sovereign Goddess. In Welsh mythology we see an example of this in Olwen’s father Ysbadadden, who sets up obstacles to try and keep her from her desired lover Culwch.

Triple Goddess Aspect Embodying Virgin Attributes

Any Triple Goddess or thrice-appearing feminine archetype who embodies other attributes marking her as a virgin Goddess is likely a virgin aspect, such as Anu, the virgin aspect of Anu, Dana, and Badb, or Guinevere when she first marries King Arthur.

Questions About the Virgin For Celtic Women

The following questions may be asked of yourself at any time in your exploration of the virgin aspects. Whether you have been involved in Celtic Paganism for a long time, or whether you are just beginning to explore it, the virgin has something to teach you.

What ideas and images do the words “virgin” and “maiden” conjure up in my mind?

How do I feel about the virgin Goddess?

Do I feel the virgin has any relevance to my life now? Why or why not? Do I feel a kinship with the virgin, or am I at odds with her?

Does the virgin make me feel jealousy? Anger? Happiness? Why? Am I comfortable with the virgin archetype? Why or why not?

How do I imagine that the men in my life feel about the virgin Goddess?

Does any aspect of their feelings threaten or comfort me?

What do I hope to get out of working with the virgin Goddess? What do I think or expect her to give to me?

What can I offer the virgin in return?

What do I not expect the virgin to be able to do for me?

Can I easily relate the virgin aspect of the Goddess to her other two forms?

What virgin aspects do I possess or not possess? Which of these would I like to change if I can?

Virgin Meditation and Exercise

Set aside a block of time when you can be the virgin. This can be a few hours or an entire day. During this time allow your thoughts and outward actions to be those archetypally belonging to the virgin. Allow everything you do or plan during this time to be an adventure; plan new things to do in the near future, make fresh starts, deal with both joy and sorrow, indulge your vanity, bestow favors and delegate authority, indulge your spontaneous side, play like a child, giggle, or set aside some time with other women just to enjoy yourselves.

During this period you must be able to interact with at least one other person who is unaware that you are indulging your virgin self. If you can interact with more, all the better. This allows you to gauge the reactions of others to your virgin aspect.

As soon as possible after this exercise, find some private time to meditate on the qualities of the virgin Goddess and how those are and are not manifested within you regardless of your chronological age. Be sure to write down your impressions in a Book of Shadows or magickal diary for future reference.

Rituals of Awakening: Celebrating the Virgin

We have awakenings all the time; spiritual, ethical, life-changing, personal, and more. All these new beginnings mark the end of old cycles and the beginning of new ones. These are the province of the virgin.

Times you may especially want to celebrate, honor, or petition the virgin through ritual are:

✵ When you are coming of age or when you are leading a ritual for a young woman who is coming of age (this is a ceremony, widely popular in Pagan circles, that marks spiritual adulthood)

✵ When you need to ask for help making a change in your life

✵ When change has come and you need help getting used to its flow

✵ When pleasant changes have come and you wish to offer thanks

✵ When you need help making a change in your life

✵ During rituals of hallowing the sacred king

✵ During mating rituals

✵ When doing divinations pertaining to awakenings, new ventures, changes, fresh starts, or self-possession

✵ When the sun is weak and new in later winter and early spring

✵ When the waxing crescent moon first appears in the night sky

In Celtic virgin rituals the featured color should be white, though blue is finding favor. You may want to find one of those thick pillar candles boasting three wicks that are seen more and more in candle and gift shops. If you find one in white you can use it to honor the virgin while still acknowledging her other two faces who are present but unseen. Spring-related libations are best for the virgin; milk, honey, cream dishes, and sweets.

A variation on the traditional ritual circle appropriate to the virgin aspect is to cast two smaller circles inside your primary circle to represent the earth world and the Otherworld form that the virgin emerges as in spring. (See Appendix C for step by step methods for circle castings.)

85. Markale, Jean. Women of the Celts (Rochester, Vt.: Inner Traditions International, Ltd., 1972), 131.

86. Farrar, Janet and Stewart. The Witches’ Goddess (Custer, Wash.: Phoenix Publishing, Inc., 1987), 35.

87. Stewart, R. J. Celtic Gods, Celtic Goddesses (London: Blandford, 1990), 82.

88. Keane, Patrick J. Terrible Beauty: Yeats, Joyce, Ireland, and the Myth of the Devouring Female (Columbia, Mo.: The University of Missouri Press, 1988).

89. Green, Miranda J. Celtic Goddesses: Warriors , Virgins and Mothers (London: British Museum Press, 1995), 121-122.

90. Stewart, R. J. The Power Within the Land (Shaftsbury, Dorset: Element Books, 1991).

91. Caldecott, Moyra. Women in Celtic Myth (London: Arrow Books, 1988), 151.

92. Ibid, 196.