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Getting to know the God

Just as the Goddess can be understood by paying attention to the Phases of the moon, so can the God be recognized by paying attention to the seasons.    It is for  this reason that he plays such an important part in each Sabbat.   In  Wicca there  are primarily two God-themes that are reflected in the Sabbats, that of the  Sun-God figure and that of the Oak King and Holly King.   The rest of this article will look at these two themes and also discuss the God in his aspect as  the Horned  One.

The Sun-God Theme

The Sun-God rules the sky during our hours of activity.  His rising and setting  effectively mark the time in which we can work because we need his light  to see by.   He is also the Sky Father whose light fertilizes the earth and the  hostile sun   that makes the desert barren.   In Wicca we trace his life through the seasons.  

At Yule, he is born as the embodiment of innocence and joy, of a childlike delight  in all things.  His is the triumph of the returning light.  At Candlemas his growth is  celebrated, as the days grow visibly longer.  At Eastra or the Vernal  Equinox, He is   the green, flourishing youth who dances with the Goddess in her Maiden aspect. On  Beltane, he is the young man who has fallen in love and takes the Goddess as  his  bride.  Their marriage is celebrated with maypoles and bonfires.  At Summer  Soltices he consummates the marriage in a union that is so complete it becomes a  death.  He is named Summer-Crowned King instead of Winter-Born, and the crown   is of roses: the bloom of culmination coupled with the stab of the thorn.  He  is  mourned at Lammas, and at the Autumnal Equinox He sleeps in the womb of  the  Goddess, sailing over the sunless sea that is her womb.  At Samhain, he arrives at  the Land of Youth, the Shining Land in which the souls of the dead grow  young  again, as they wait to be reborn.  He opens the gates that they may  return and  visit   their loved ones, and rules in the Dreamworld as He too grows young,  until at Yule  He is again reborn.  

The Oak King and Holly King Theme

The Oak King and Holly King are twin gods that represent the cycle of fertility.   Each of them rules for half a year, fights for the favor of the Goddess  and dies.  Yet the defeated twin is not truly dead; he merely withdraws during the six  months of his brother's rule into Caer Arianrhod, the Castle of the ever-  turning  Silver Wheel. 

The Oak King ,who is the light twin, rules from midwinter to midsummer.  He  represents expansion and growth.   His tree, the oak, obviously symbolizes  strength and longevity; its acorn is expressively phallic; and its roots are said to  extend as far below ground as its branches do into the air - showing that the god   has dominion over Heaven, Earth and the Underworld.

The  Holly King, who is the dark twin,  rules from midsummer to midwinter.  He represents withdrawal and rest.  His tree, the holly, has leaves that  are  evergreen  and its bright berries glow red when all else is bare of fruit.  Thus  while  his reign   is one of withdrawal culminating in apparent lifelessness, his symbology reminds  us all the time that he is his brother's other self and holds life in  trust  while it  rest.     

The Horned God

The Horned God is a natural-fertility figure.  He is Oak King and Holly King,  the  complementary twins seen as one complete entity. He is a vivid  expression of the  son/lover of Mother Earth - swift-moving, wide-roaming, concupiscent,  ever free.  

He is a hunter and yet he is respectfully killed to feed other creatures.  And  although he dies, he eternally reappear as strong and splendid as ever.  

He is that which impregnates the earth, and shepherds and defends her creatures. His is the true wisdom of cosmic and terrestrial law.   

He is truly Lord of the Dance, for he represents the rhythms of life, growth, death  and rebirth.   But mostly he is the "Horned" God who reminds us that divinity and nature are not separate.   His very appearance teaches us this by combining animal and human aspects.
 

Summary and Meditations

Aspect: Sun God, Sky Father
Represents:  The cycle of life
Gods: Apollo, Helios, Lugh, Ra
Color: Gold or yellow

Meditation (adapted from Wicca A Guide For the Solitary Practitioner ):

Upon rising in the morning,  stand before the Sun and soak in it's energies.
Ground and center then think about the Sun God.  
Visualize Him as you wish keeping in mind what time of year it is.  (For instance, if it is near Yule you might wish to visualize a child laughing in the sun.)    
Reach out with your feelings; open your awareness to higher things.  
Chant out one of his names, such as Lugh or Apollo.   
Call out to him with any words or sounds expressing  your desire to attune with Him.

Aspect: Oak King
Represents: Growth, Expansion
Gods:  Oak King, Jupiter, Janus, Dagda
Color: Red
Bird:  Robin

Meditation (adapted from Eight Sabbats for Witches):

Ground and center.  Image you see a grove of oaks.   
You enter the  grove and a  man appears amidst the trees.  He looks a bit like Robin Hood - a handsome blond man dressed in green.  His staff is of oak and  he wears oak leaves in his hair.  He steps out into the glade and sunlight lights up his face.  He looks at you and speaks:

I am a stag of seven tines;
I am a wide flood on a plain;
I am a wind on the deep waters;
I am a hawk on a cliff;
I am fair among flowers;
I am a god who sets the head afire with smoke.

You feel his energy within you and know the part of yourself that is the Oak King.
You now can stay with him a while learning from his ways.   
When you are ready  you see him disappear back into the trees and you open your eyes. 

Aspect: Holly King
Represents: Withdrawal, rest, lessons
Gods: Holly King, Saturn, Bran, Cronos
Color: Black
Bird:  Wren

Meditation (adapted from Eight Sabbats for Witches):

Ground and center.  Image you are walking in the snow.  All around the trees are barren and no sign of life appears.   As you are walking you spot a holly tree, its  leaves still green and its fruit a bright red.    A man walks out dressed in a cloak of fine ermine.  His  hair and beard are black and there is a twinkle in his eye. Power seems to pour out from him.   
He looks at you and speaks:

I am a battle-waging spear;
I am a salmon in the pool;
I am a hill of poetry;
I am a ruthless boar;
I am a threatening noise of the sea;
I am a wave of the sea;
Who but I knows the secrets of the unhewn dolmen?

You feel his energy within you and know the part of yourself that is the Holly  King. 
You now can stay with him a while learning from his ways.   When you are ready you see him disappear back into the trees and you open your eyes. 

Aspect:  Horned God
Represents:  Untamed, fertility, the hunt, the sacrifice, divinity within nature
Gods: Horned God, Pan, Kernunnos (Care-NOON-nos), Herne
Color:  Green

Meditation: 

Ground and center.  You are walking at night with the moon guiding  your way.  The stars are so bright that you can see each of them.   In the distance you can hear the cry of a wolf.   Then all of the sudden the woods are filled with the sound of reed pipes.   The music seems to call to you.  As  you follow your steps turn  into dancing.   As you dance you are drawn into the presence of the Horned One. 
Standing before him  you are struck with  awe.  For here is the embodiment of the  God; at once wild, sexual,  and powerful while at the same time gentle, protective and caring.  He starts to dance with you and the creatures of the wild arrive to add power to the dance.   You continue dancing and you notice that he is looking at the moon with unmistakable love.  As you finish the dance you feel your connection to him and just for a moment you become him.  Then when the dance is over he is suddenly gone but in your mind are his teaching and in your heart is his song.
You  stay a moment to reflect on what has transpired and then open your eyes.