Beli Mawr
The Origins of an Ancient British Deity
by Yuri Leitch
by Yuri Leitch
Beli Mawr is the father god of ancient Britain, the Dis Pater of pre-Christian Europe. In Ireland he is Bile, husband of Dana, mother of the famous Tuatha de Danaan. Beli and Don are the British counterparts of the Irish Bile and Dana; all are Celtic. Links have been made between Beli and the Babylonian god Bel because of the obvious similarity between the names, however this remains subjective. Yet there is a link between Beli and the Orient in an obscure piece of folklore which gives Beli a Phoenician origin.
In a Dictionary of Non-Classical Mythology by Marian Edwards and Lewis Spence a story is given, that in far ancient Phoenicia there was a huge tower from the top of which the entire world could be seen. One day three men upon the tower; Ith, Beli and Mile espy Ireland. So won over are they by Ireland's beauty that they decide to live there. It now being known for sure that the ancient Phoenicians had much interaction with Ireland and Cornwall, the above story could hold some hidden truth.
All that is known for sure is that Beli is a Gaelic personification of Dis Pater the God of Death and the Underworld. In British he is Beli, In Irish he is Bile (pronounced Bill-lay) and to the Formorians (the ancient race that lived in Ireland before the Tuatha de Danaan) he is Balor. The Gaelic root syllable of Beli, Bile and Balor is Bel, which means "to die".
Beli is the husband of Don, Don is the ancient goddess of fertility of Britain. Their offspring are called the Children of Don and are also known as the children of light. Metaphorically, it is from the darkness of death, i.e. emptiness, nothingness, that "light" can spring. The Children of Don as a pantheon of deities are symbolic of different enlightenment's and knowledge. Celtic mythology is full of heroic characters who venture into the underworld or who come back from the realms of death, with learnt or gained treasures that would then benefit mankind or the worl
d about them. That illusive divine spark, that bright idea, that initiator of motivation, that guiding light ij the darkness of despair, and that big bang of universal creation all come from the darkness that Beli is.
The light of the children of Don and their descendants was their creed for living. Druidically it was expressed (as in all things Celtic, in a tinity) as the Three Pillars of Light, a three fingered symbol of enlightenment; that which was, is and will be as one. In later centuries this light and the creed that it followed would be symbolised by the motif of the Three Crowns of the Wise men, a possible ironic return to the oriental source of Beli Mawr.
The myth-smiths of early medieval heraldry , forming noble blood lines of descent with stories of picture symbols paint a scene of enigmatic lineage. The Three Crowns as an emblem shine back (and forward, outside of time) through history. Connecting the likes of St Helena of Colchester and the tragic but devoted King Arthur back to the source.
12th century heraldic artists give Beli Mawr, the god-king of Britain, the coat of arms of the Three Golden Crowns upon a dark blue background. Orion's belt of heraldic expression. In a time before television, in an ancient time even before writing. When fingers drew symbols in the sand, the night sky was an open story book and the characters within it were known to all. The great expanse of dark nothingness was the all encompassing father of the underworld/otherworld - Beli Mawr.
As Balor the Formorian the bright burning ball of fire - the Sun, was his all consuming eye, the beautiful shining moon that governed the seasons of farming his beloved wife and the Queen of Heaven, Goddess of fertility - Don. The bright shining myriad of stars and constellations of the heavens were their children of light. Known in the east as Angels and to the Vikings (of the great Odin with his one eye) as Elves. To the Celts they were known as the Faerie, beings of light from beyond the veil.
In a Dictionary of Non-Classical Mythology by Marian Edwards and Lewis Spence a story is given, that in far ancient Phoenicia there was a huge tower from the top of which the entire world could be seen. One day three men upon the tower; Ith, Beli and Mile espy Ireland. So won over are they by Ireland's beauty that they decide to live there. It now being known for sure that the ancient Phoenicians had much interaction with Ireland and Cornwall, the above story could hold some hidden truth.
All that is known for sure is that Beli is a Gaelic personification of Dis Pater the God of Death and the Underworld. In British he is Beli, In Irish he is Bile (pronounced Bill-lay) and to the Formorians (the ancient race that lived in Ireland before the Tuatha de Danaan) he is Balor. The Gaelic root syllable of Beli, Bile and Balor is Bel, which means "to die".
Beli is the husband of Don, Don is the ancient goddess of fertility of Britain. Their offspring are called the Children of Don and are also known as the children of light. Metaphorically, it is from the darkness of death, i.e. emptiness, nothingness, that "light" can spring. The Children of Don as a pantheon of deities are symbolic of different enlightenment's and knowledge. Celtic mythology is full of heroic characters who venture into the underworld or who come back from the realms of death, with learnt or gained treasures that would then benefit mankind or the worl
d about them. That illusive divine spark, that bright idea, that initiator of motivation, that guiding light ij the darkness of despair, and that big bang of universal creation all come from the darkness that Beli is.The light of the children of Don and their descendants was their creed for living. Druidically it was expressed (as in all things Celtic, in a tinity) as the Three Pillars of Light, a three fingered symbol of enlightenment; that which was, is and will be as one. In later centuries this light and the creed that it followed would be symbolised by the motif of the Three Crowns of the Wise men, a possible ironic return to the oriental source of Beli Mawr.
The myth-smiths of early medieval heraldry , forming noble blood lines of descent with stories of picture symbols paint a scene of enigmatic lineage. The Three Crowns as an emblem shine back (and forward, outside of time) through history. Connecting the likes of St Helena of Colchester and the tragic but devoted King Arthur back to the source.
12th century heraldic artists give Beli Mawr, the god-king of Britain, the coat of arms of the Three Golden Crowns upon a dark blue background. Orion's belt of heraldic expression. In a time before television, in an ancient time even before writing. When fingers drew symbols in the sand, the night sky was an open story book and the characters within it were known to all. The great expanse of dark nothingness was the all encompassing father of the underworld/otherworld - Beli Mawr.
As Balor the Formorian the bright burning ball of fire - the Sun, was his all consuming eye, the beautiful shining moon that governed the seasons of farming his beloved wife and the Queen of Heaven, Goddess of fertility - Don. The bright shining myriad of stars and constellations of the heavens were their children of light. Known in the east as Angels and to the Vikings (of the great Odin with his one eye) as Elves. To the Celts they were known as the Faerie, beings of light from beyond the veil.
