Celtic patterns: animals in Celtic culture

Celtic patterns: animals in Celtic culture

We’ve already told you about the mystery of Celtic never-ending knots forming beautiful patterns and fairy animals. And the animals and their portrayal precisely are the topic of this post.

So, birds, the messengers of skies, in the Celtic knots symbolize freedom and spirit which is unfettered by ground bonds and communes with divine forces. The birds bring messages from the gods and help mortals in their spiritual journeys. The raven symbolizes changes which will take place in life; the dove is the token of spiritual life, love and harmony, the egret is the bird of vigilance, and the duck is the symbol of the bridge that connects powers of water and divine power.

Some animals were devoted to certain gods. Thus, the ancient Celtic goddess Nehalennia who grants safety both in usual voyages and journeys of spirit. She was usually depicted with dolphins, ravens and dogs. Dolphins guide the soul through waters of the Universal Ocean to the Sacred Iceland, ravens warn about difficulties and dangers on this way, and dogs which symbolize faithfulness and protection guard the traveler and his way.

It’s obvious that the animals were meaningful for the ancient Celts. There is even the animal horoscope which compares animals’ descriptions and human’s characters. You can pass our ‘название кельтского гороскопа животных в виде ссылки’ and find out which Celtic animal sign is yours!