“What You Call Divine Doesn’t Matter – Only the Connection”

“What You Call Divine Doesn’t Matter – Only the Connection”

These are words The Morrigan spoke to me once and they have had a lasting impact.

In a world where people are so focused on what is the “right or wrong way”, the idea of “Our Way” is forgotten. Spirituality isn’t a set of rules with a universal path all should follow – It is a journey of exploration and experience. The way we experience Divine is going to be unique to our own journey. The lesson our Deities gives us, is tailored to our own particular growth and transformative work we need to go through. How we interact with Them and experience the depths of Them is going to look different for each of us.

Roots of Deities

Every culture around the world has representations of Deities. Figures that represent all different forms of the human experience. Thought and Memory, Death, the Stages of Life, the Hunt, Wisdom, Love, Wrath, Justice, Battle – if there is a domain of life, there is a Deity connected to it. Each culture has their own names and perspectives of the domains They rule over. Some are rolled into one or two, while others break Them down into many.

On the whole, Dark Goddesses and Gods rule over the aspects of the inner self, our foundations and boundaries. They are rooted in Death and the worlds unseen, because They are focused on the transformation of the Self. They are shape-shifters and often use divine trickery in order for us to see something we normally would not have. Their healing is more internal than external, walking you through your shadow and illuminating it. They deal in Dualities and the Battle between them. They walk the land of spirit and mist, the liminal spaces between. They hold forgotten knowledge, deep wisdom, and the keys of divination to uncover them.

Light Goddesses and Gods on the other hand are more rooted in the outer self and physical world. Their domains and concerns are more about the life we are living and the world we are shaping. The relationships we build, the creations we unleash, the legacies we leave behind. Dealing in the physical aspects of nature more than the spiritual ones. They rule over things such as agriculture, the Hunt, the Hearth, and Love – all things that are the foundations of our physical world.

Web of Dark and Light

Each one has Their own domains, Their own ways of doing things, but they are also all interconnected. Think of it like a large web. Every Dark Goddess has their own point on the web that is Them, while being connected to each other through the threads, and all belonging to this one large pattern (web) that is the Dark Goddess. Now if we want to take that even further, the Duality between the Dark Goddesses and Light Goddesses are just two halves of an even larger pattern. Still their own sides yet also a place where they overlap and work together.

What is in a Name

The Morrigan is one face of the Dark Goddess. She is older than the Tuatha de Danann but also part of them. Her symbolism predates them by at least 1500 years in Ireland alone. The Morrigan is the oldest name I have for Her but it is not Her oldest name. Cultures blend and change, as people blend and change. Deities evolve along with the people, and with that, Their names change and evolve. These are things She has shown me and that I have discovered in my own research.

People get so caught up in the name and then in the lore that I think they sometimes forget that is just the surface of who They are. This is what The Morrigan is driving at when She says the name doesn’t matter. The name is for us, a way to identify Them, call out to Them, to start the bond building process between Them and ourselves. It is not the name itself that is important, it is the connection, the bond we build with Them. That is what really matters because that is what will guide our growth.

From Lore to the Depths of Them

A name and the Lore attached to the name gives us a starting point, a focus. Lore is not truth, it is not gospel. It is a story that contains truths, histories, and lessons, but they have been altered and embellished over time. Written long after the events actually happened and written by people with their own agendas. This does not mean they do not hold value, it just means they are not supposed to be taken as literal truths. Some will disagree with me here, and that is fine. I am just expressing my own views and understandings from my own journey with my Deities.

What I found with The Morrigan, is that She is so much more than the domains and figure Lore has portrayed. By building a strong bond with Her, developing clear communication between us, and learning to trust what She shows me, I have been able to experience Her, as She is, at Her core. If I had continued on with just the surface information given in lore, I would have truly missed out on the greatest spiritual partnership and growth I have ever known.

This is what She means by “it is the connection that matters.” Our experience, our lessons with Deity will be reflective of Their domains, but they are specifically tailored to our own growth and what we need. You and I can both have similar backgrounds but our perception of those, how they affected us, and the challenges we have to overcome because of them may look very different. Thus we will need different approaches and different lessons. Same domains but different ways. You and I may both walk with The Morrigan, but our experience of that may look very different.

I think this is how it should be, and instead of arguing who is right or wrong, we should be embracing the beauty in those differences. Our connection to Divine is personal. By sharing our own experiences we are allowing Them to live beyond the constraints of written words and live again in the world. Inspiring others to form their own connections and make their own discoveries. For in the end, The name of Divine does not matter – it is the connection we are building with Them and the personal growth we are experiencing with Them that has the power to not just transform ourselves, but the world around us.

What has your experience been with this? What depths and new understandings have you developed through your relationship to your Divine? I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences.