Patrons? Coincidence? ...Or am I just mad?!?!

[Rioto_Kish]

Many people on Gaia have shared their experiences with their patrons here, and I always found them really interesting. I'm still a beginner (and will be for quite some time! wink ) so I don't have a patron, and I'm not particularly bothered if I don't have one, but I've been seeing some very coincidental patterns that are making me think that maybe someone is trying to tell me something.

(Warning: this is going to be long, because of all the connections I've been seeing over the months I've been studying)

I've always been interested in wolves, and when I became pagan, I thought that the wolf might be my animal guide. I looked it up, and although the wolf did not appear to be my guide, I decided to look up wolf gods, to see if that lead anywhere.

I came across the Egyptian war god, Wepwawet, 'Opener of the Ways.' He is also interchanged with Anubis. I was instantly drawn to him, and as I learnt more about him, the closer I felt to him. I think that it might have something to do with the fact that I was opening a new door in my life (my decision to become pagan) but even though that was months ago, I still feel the same way.

I'm not allowed to practice any magic while I live at home (which is fair) so I have never been able to communicate fully to Wepwawet. I did, however ask for help, and he did, so even though I didn't see or hear him, I know that he listened, which made me even more dedicated to him.

(This is where the connections come in)

I've been looking up information on various gods and goddesses (Egyptian in particular, because ever since I was little I've been interested in Egypt and its gods) and today, I came across a list of Egyptian gods. I was skimming through the list (there were many names, so I was reading a few at a time-I plan to read all of them) and I stumbled across the goddess Seshat.

I started reading, and, like I did with Wepwawet, I felt drawn to her. There is not much information on her, but her name means 'The Female Scribe,' and she is the goddess of writing, measurement of time and libraries. She is also the consort of Thoth.

I kept reading, and it turns out that Nephthys is also called 'Seshat, Foremost of Builders.' So I looked up Nephthys.

Nephthys is the sister of Isis, and her son is Anubis (Anubis' father is said to be Osiris, or Ra.) The fact that got me thinking is that Anubis is often interchanged with, you guessed it: Wepwawet.

Now that I'm back at square one.....

I felt that there are too many coincidental connections, and that maybe all this is kind of like a sign telling me that this is important (sorry, I can't think of a better word!) to me. I'm wondering if Wepwawet and Seshat are my patrons, and that this is their way of telling me?

So....

question Could this could be a sign?
question How did your patrons let you know who they were?
question Am I making something out of nothing?  

[WebenBanu]

I suppose it depends on what you mean when you say "Matron" or "Patron"- there are a few possible interpretations that I can see.^_^

In my case, when I say that Someone is my Matron or Patron, what I mean is that They are the god within my spiritual family (that being the Egyptian pantheon) Who are especially known as patrons of a particular craft which is important in my life. So, for example, my Patron god is Djwhty- Who is a Patron god of scribes and all that they represent: languages, mathematics, wisdom, and magic (He is also known for His skill in magical healing, as I've recently found out, which seems fitting considering my next Patron). My Patron/Matron goddess is Skhmt- Who is a Patron goddess of all those in the medical field. Since I work in the medical field, it makes sense that She's my Patron, and since I have always had a great love of languages, the written word, and occult learning it makes sense that Djhwty is also offers me His Patronage. To find your Patron, think about what you would like to do with your life- then find a deity Who would be willing to "sponsor" you through that adventure, and see if you can cultivate a relationship with Him or Her. You'll likely learn a great deal which will help you on your life path, and gain a staunch supporter.

This is not necessarily the same thing as the god or goddess with whom you feel closest, in my opinion. The god or goddess with Whom I have felt closest to has varied a bit over the years- depending on my situation. When I started on this path it was Bast Who was the first to receive me- and She has remained more or less a constant ever since. However, She introduced me to Djhwty Who figured very prominently in my life when I was in school (which makes sense), but has since faded a little into the background. Skhmt's presence flared up a bit while I was specifically studying things related to veterinary medicine- and also martial arts- but didn't really become pronounced until I actually began working paid positions as part of the staff of a veterinary hospital. In times of challenge and upheaval, Hrw (Horus) and Stkh (Set) have made Their appearances- and in fact at the moment I have three main gods Whom I honor in my rituals these days: Bast, Skhmt, and Hrw. Bast Who has always been there, but Who lends particular help with Her feline children; Skhmt Who is the Medicine we practice; and Hrw Who is helping me to overcome the challenges which I am facing as I establish myself in a new hospital- with all their new protocols and faces to learn. In Hrw's case I received some outside confirmation when He moved in- numerous sightings of hawks during the transition period, and when I finally found the hospital that I wanted to join I noticed a beautiful portrait of a hawk in flight hanging over their stairway (you only see it when you're coming down the stairs from the employee lounge, so it took me a while to notice it). They also have a computer program to manage their patients' medical information, whose mascot is a lion (Skhmt's sacred animal).

Bast, for some reason seems to be a constant- and to be honest I couldn't tell you why. As you say, I was drawn to Her from the start- not knowing anything about Her. And, in fact, not knowing anything about Her I addressed Her in some pretty silly ways at first and couldn't get Her to respond to me for what seemed like a long time. Maybe that was why She introduced me to Djhwty- to reinforce that book-learning streak which eventually led me to a more accurate understanding of Her, and gave us a platform from which we could develop our relationship. wink However, I've also heard it said that Bast and Inpw (Anubis) are both well known for bringing folks to the Kemetic religion... and then fading into the backgroud. Somehow I doubt that this will be the case for me, but we'll see.

If you feel drawn to Wpwawt or Sshat, then my suggestion is to pursue a relationship. ^_^ I suspect that a lot of what drew me to Bast at the beginning was just such an undefinable attraction to Her- mixed with a love of cats. Many of the gods are related in various different ways, so whether your notice of Nbt-Ht (Nephthys)'s relationship with Seshat and Inpw, and through Him Wepwawet, is significant... is difficult for me to tell from here.^_^ It is certainly interesting. cool You may also be interested to know, however, that Seshat is also associated by some with Nt (Nit, or Neith)- and there is a pamphlet of information on the three which is available from IKOS. It mostly covers Nbt-Ht, but also briefly mentions the other two at the end. edit: At the moment, their website seems to be having some difficulties- so you might need to try the link a few times before you get through.

Whether They will turn out to be your Patron gods, or even your main ones, I don't know- but you may very well learn something from Them, and the things we learn from the gods usually turn out to be helpful at some point. wink They may also at some point introduce you to other gods, Who will become important in your life. It's not a one-time deal, at least not in the Egyptian pantheon, in my experience- these things are fluid, just like life. Some temples will divine you for a certain set of gods or goddesses Who have had an impact on your souls' creation- and that will remain fairly constant... but even those temples do not presume to define your relationships with all of the deities, and there can even be changes over time to certain aspects of those divination results (gods sometimes show up later in life, and become added to them).

I hope that helped!  

[Rioto_Kish]

Thank you for your reply, Banu! 3nodding

So, a patron/matron is a god/dess is a deity whose skills (lack of better word, sorry) are those which feature prominantly in your life?

Okay, I'm going to say things that are important in my life, and then I'll see if anything comes from this.

My beliefs and paganism
Languages (I wish to become an interpreter, or an English teacher in a non-English speaking country-I'm studying three languages at uni)
Reading
Music (singing, song-writing, dance, instruments)
Writing

That's all I can think of. So, if what I want to do with my life is languages, teaching, reading and music to some extent, then a god/dess who is the patron of some of those things would be a deity that I could ask for their guidance, and try to begin a relationship with them?

Maybe Wepwawet (I keep having to retype the name 'Wepwawet' because I keep typing it 'Wpwawt' from reading it in your post, sorry!) is introducing me to all of this, like you said Bast and Anubis are known for introducing people to the Kemetic religion. Maybe I was drawn to Him when I first started, because I was opening a new path in my life and maybe (like you and Bast) I have a love of wolves! 3nodding Well, that's the only thing I can come up with in regards to my attraction to Him. He did answer me once when I asked for help, so that's a start, I guess. I should try to communicate with Him in a more proper way. (When I asked for help, I was at work, clutching my ankh and pretty much pleading for help. Not the best start...) If I can, I'll try and communicate with Seshat too. I don't fully understand my attraction to Seshat (unless it's linked with my love of books) and unfortunately, there's not much information on Her, so I won't try anything until I learn more about Her. (I feel as if I should start capitalising 'Him and Her' when referring to the deities like you do.)

I noticed that the Kemetic gods are all connected in some way, like the deities of other pantheons are. It's just that, I've heard there are over 2000 Kemetic deities, and it seemed like a big coincidence that I am drawn to two completely different deities, who are connected to each other closely. (As in, not just 'fourth cousin of the other.') Bad example, sorry. Like I said, maybe it is just coincidence and I'm reading too much into it.

I'll take your advice and see if I can communicate with Wepwawet (I have more information on Him, so hopefully it will reduce the chances of me stuffing up big time-I've just got to find a place where I can communicate with Him) and then Seshat. They may not be my patrons/matrons but I could learn something from them, like you said.

Thank you for the link! If I can get the site to work, I'll definitely read it. smile

Thank you heaps, Banu! You've definitely helped me. 3nodding Hopefully I'll be able to understand the meaning of my attraction to Wepwawet and Seshat better.  

[Nomad of Nowhere]

Djhwty, Tehwty/Tehwt, and the Greek pronunciation of the latter, Thoth are all the same- and I myself have always been drawn to him, though Apollo has seized my heart. The more you start studying your patron deities, though, the more you see that they are all connected. Apollo was a plague-god as well as a sun god, and in that aspect his counterpart was the Sumerian Nergal, also called "Aplu" I felt that perhaps I should worship this aspect of him, but I came to terms with the truth that I came to Apollo for poetry and the inspiration, (though the lack thereof is the worst of illnesses.) and for the love of medicine and healing. However, these things were all traits that crossed over in countless other deities.
I simply honor Apollo regularly, and with him Ishtar, who is the powerful goddess figure I feel must be somewhere at the top of it all- a Sumerian god very similiar to Isis. I feel I must chose a main male deity just to identify with, but I also would never forsake goddess worship as an important part of the equation. I also bear in mind that the counterpart of Apollo, who stood for order, was Dionysos, (very similiar to the Russian Veles) and who's cult's beliefs were very similiar to those of Wicca, and who stood for liberation of oneself and for wild revelry- I favor the super-ego, but I do not lose touch with my internal nature. I also try to never forget the obligatory storm-god,Greek Zeus/ Babylonian Hadad/ Hindu Indra/ Celtic Taranis/ Slavic Thunis/ Norse Thor, who seems to have made his presence clear all across mythology, and is powerful in all of them (King of the gods in about half of them). Demeter is thanked before each meal. I will not pronounce her true name. So that's Apollo, Thunis, Veles, Ishtar, Demeter. I'm very eclectic, in case you can't tell, but I'm confident many of these gods span the gaps between seperate pantheons, and have made themselves known to people from Gaul to India.

By the way, on the note of them all being connected... Veles was the natural opponent of the sky god, being an earth god himself, and was credited with dying in accordance with the season. Ishtar is the force that brings Dumuzi back each season, and is therefore much like Isis, and Dumuzi is Veles, who is Dionysus, who is a god of music and rebirth, just like many sun gods, and Apollo is a sun god, and many chthonic earth/fertility gods are also often plague gods, like Aplu, who is Apollo, so every one of those gods is exactly the same person!... See? It's impossible. There's a real connection going on there, but it's too confused to refine.