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There are many types of deities in this world. Some people follow the deities of the celtic roots, others would prefer to follow greek deities, while others may follow native-american deities. My question is how do you know which ones you should "follow" throughout this lifetime. I have tried to figure out through meditation, etc. I have not been successful. From research I have done on the deities of different "groups" there seems to be a god and goddess that rules over the same things in each culture, just named something different, and they have different stories of how they came to be, and there are different aspects in each of them, just like there are similar personalities in all kinds of people, but each person is still unique in their own way. Anyway, I was just wondering how you decided and how I should figure out what "group" to follow. Do you follow the path that starts at your ancestory or do you just pick one you like the most, etc.?

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Pick the one deity that seems to always cross your path. You don't have to have Celtic ancestry to work with Celtic deities - my take is, choose the deity/pantheon you feel most comfortable with.

I'm one who does not believe that mixing pantheons is wrong, so you may end up with, say, a Norse Goddess and a Celtic God... That's all right if you're comfortable with it.

At some point, something will call to you. You'll start seeing things related to a particular deity/pantheon everywhere - you may feel a pull toward those, too - or some will often come to your mind... Follow those signs; you can't go wrong.

You may end up changing deities along the way, too. For example, I started with Isis, then toyed with Cerridwen... But my patron goddess ended up being Hekate.

I hope that helps!
That does help, and thank you very much. I know many people may think I have a strange way of looking at this, but the way I see it is you have THE God and THE Goddess, and then under them, you have the gods and the goddesses, and then you would have like us as humans for example under them. And I think we can call upon THE God and THE Goddess in rituals and in doing magick, but I also believe we should have a god and goddess as well that we can call upon and walk with. I know deities can't be rushed, and they will come when they are ready, but I would like to know who to call on to be with me in rituals other than THE God and THE Goddess. haha
Well said Rev.
MM
being a hindu 'pantheon" was chosen for me. even then choosing the patron deity was and is still difficult. i have 3 deities which are equqlly important.
as far as i found out, it is not important what the deity's role (what it rules over or deity of - eg nyx is deity of darkness) but how you can communicate with it that is important. with proper religious practice one can concentrate on any deity.
there is one catch, if one tries experimenting, it is the old adage rolling stone gathers no mass. instead relax and conentrate on any one panthoen fully. after some time (prob years of concentration) you will be comfortable with your chosen pantheon. if you are cacusian and of european discent, celtic pantheon will work best for you
blessee be
I would say choose that which brings you comfort, and the one you know the most about. you dont haft to be any race or culture to work with the energies as I call them , just as God has many names so to,does the Mother. For all of us these can be different, as everyone's perspective is different, some stick to family traditions or ancerstry, while others tread a new path, but what ever you choose, Im sure it will be right for you. As you learn and grow in your wisdom, you just may find your self walking a whole different path and this is what wisdom does. I would say keep notes, then see how deity works for you, if it is right the signs will appear all around you. I have moved many times in my journey, but am now home. Good luck BB
After a visit from Grandmother Spider many years ago I celebrated Her as my primary representation of the Sacred Feminine. After a trip to Greece and a communication from Aphrodite, She took prominance on my altar with Grandmother Spider called in as a special guest and Her energy accessed as needed for creative purposes. Brigid made Herself known to me on Imbolc several years ago, so She is always prominant and honored during this time of year.

Most important though, last year on my birthday, I recognized my own Higher Soul/Self as representation of Sacred Feminine. I made myself a candle with my picture on it honoring my Higher Soul/Self and now She takes center stage on my altar with all the other Goddesses invited as their energies are needed or when their specific holidays are celebrated in ritual. Finding the Goddess is primarily an inner experience. I am woman! I am Goddess!
Blessed Be!!! Gaia'l
BB IMBOLIC , I my self purify my self and do a cleaning bath , I ask the Mother and Father to bless me and give strength for this coming year , I ask cleaning for my body as well as my soul, I lite a candle for the self with my name carved in it, I ask that my words when spoken will give strength to others, and ask that Sophia rest in me. Have a blessed one each and ever one MP
MM
recognizing higher self is a very postive quality. self affirmation on that account is a very sacred thing. but one cannot draw energy from oneself, to reach higher planes of existance. this is because we have mortal bodies and generally are unable to have our celestial body to leave and re-enter mortlal body at will. that is why we use deities ancestors etc who have celestial bodies only. use of religous practice is to attain the goal. even if we can reach somewhere in ability of our celestial body to leave mortal body, we can hope to draw energy through celestial body
however if we cannot do it altogether, then use of ones own higher self will interfere in the rite/ritual as it gives rise to unfocussed energy of one's ego.
blessed be
MM
i commened your choice of deity. saraswati blesses those who seek her to gain knowledge, and in time she gives power to give knowledge (teaching). one who becomes embodiment of saraswati can actually teach well, in the sense that students understand better.
blessed be
Hi Lady Sapphire!

It took me awhile to determine which God/Goddess truly called to me but once they called, my "choice" was set. I asked Spirit to help me hear the call of the God/Goddess, I actually asked several times and did not give up. I can only surmise that my original request was not answered because I was not ready or that it was not the right time, and that when I was ready and the timing was right, my request was granted, and I heard the call loud and clear!

I do not worry about mixing pantheons because as a God/Goddess if they want to call me, they certainly will whether I think I should be following just one pantheon or not. I keep myself open to be called by another God/Goddess but after 22 years there has been no stirrings. I take this as a good sign that I am still on the right path for myself.

I would suggest that you ask Spirit for help and continue to meditate. It took me over a year to hear their call and it may take you that long or longer. Some people know almost instantly who calls to them, and others, like myself, need more time. As someone else suggested, you may want to look at a website or in books for lists of pantheons and the descriptions in that pantheon of the deities. One of them may pop out at you!

In Correllian Wicca, Deity is described as being like a diamond with thousands upon thousands of facets. Each God/Goddess is a facet of that diamond. I would like to also suggest that perhaps, for now, you are drawn to God/Goddess as a whole and not as a "facet." I know a couple of people who have never heard the call of a patron deity and so they worship the Divine Mother Goddess and the Divine Father God. For about two years this is how I related to Deity (and in some respects I still do). I do not know if it is because they are not ready or if they are not able or willing to hear a call from a specific God/Goddess or if this is how Deity wishes to interact with them, but whatever the reason, they are happy and spiritual people who connect to Deity the best way they know how. On their altar is a lovely hand-drawn picture of the God and Goddess and during ritual they ask and receive blessings from them.

I hope this helped somewhat and didn't make matters more confusing! Good luck on this journey and I wish you the very best!

~Ana
The God or Goddess Picks you! I have often found I have a natural affinity to work with certain deities whereas I feel no pull to others. I follow a Celtic Path so there are definitely Celtic deities I work with but I also work with Hindu, Greek, Norse, and maybe a few others on occassion when it is needed. To me "All are One". Just because they are from another culture doesn't mean that is not yet another aspect of the God or Goddess you actually pay your respects to. That is why I like the phrase, "I believe in all paths to god". It is a good phrase. Your God or Goddess can take on any form you may need on any given day. So if you feel pulled to a specific 1 it does not mean that later on that same deity may not decide to wear a different "Mask" later for a better occasion.

One thing you might do is gather a bunch of names of Gods and Goddesses together (keep the two piles seperate though) and pick 3 pieces of paper from each pile. The right God or Goddess for you at this time should find you just fine through this method, but it will require a little research on just a list of names alone. Those are easy enough to find though. So no worries.

I hope this helps and Lord, Lady bless and help to guide you along your path.

~With love and light, good fortune, abundance, and more, mp & mma
I appreciate all of your comments. You have all given me a lot of GREAT advice, and definitely given me a lot to think about. I am confident that I will get mine when it is time, and in the mean time, I will do more research, and I will keep meditating, and take everybody's advice. :) Thanks again, Blessed Be, and merry part until we merry meet again.

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