Cernunnos, the Serpent, and the Torc

[covenrochester]

An Image of Cernunnos from the Gundestrup Cauldron. Note the Serpent and the Torc.









Three images of a wee Cernunnos sculpture from a rock harvested in Scotland. With wee insertable/removable antlers carved from horn at the top. He holds the Serpent in His left hand. He holds the Torc, a symbol of victory, in His right hand.

My old Witch Mother did not like this symbolism because she thought that the Serpent represented the Divine Feminine. So the message to her was: "I, the Horned Father, have conquered the Great Mother.”

As in a few other things, my Witch Mother and I disagreed on this point. For me, the Serpent is a symbol of the Desire Nature. And it is so wherever it appears, on the head of Medusa, the legs of Erechthonius, the Tempter on the Tree, the Dragon confronting George, the 7-Headed Hydra killed by Hercules, and so on.

Therefore, the Horned Father’s message is: “I have conquered my own desire nature. I am not a slave to the world.”

This is one of the primary goals of the Witches, as shown forth in our religious iconography. In future posts, we will discuss additional important points of iconography.

*** Blessed be to those who serve the Great Mother and the Horned Father.

* Copyright to Coven Rochester