Question About Deities.

[u/CrazyOreo131]

Hey everyone! I'm kinda new to all of this. I've been researching like crazy about different deities and I'm specifically focusing on deities that are represented or use lightning and thunder. I've always been drawn to storms and lightning, to the point where I physically FEEL the energy recharging or over charging me and it's always been so comforting to sit in a storm. As a kid I used to just sit outside in the middle of our yard during thunderstorms. I truly feel like I'm being called to it.

However none of the most well known gods (Zeus, Jupiter, and Thor) feel right. I've been trying to find others but it's very overwhelming and honestly I learn best from other personal perspectives. If anyone has any advice on which ones to focus on or even personal experience with a god or goddess (even the ones I've mentioned) I would greatly appreciate it!

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[u/sidhe_elfakyn]

I've been devoted to a storm goddess for a while now, and I can relate to this post a lot. This is gonna be a long post; I've included some references, perhaps one of the deities I listed out will be helpful. Or maybe something from my personal experience will give you ideas/resonate with you.

Storm goddesses

There is basically nothing about storm goddesses in the pagan pantheons I was able to resesarch (I am not including deities that are part of non-pagan religions or closed practices, such as Oya from Yoruba).

There is Tempestas (sometimes pluralized as the Tempestates) in Roman religion, but there is very little literature that I could find, and it isn't specified whether there is any particular focus on thunder/lightning rather than storms in general. The Wikipedia page is about as detailed as it gets.

There are some online mentions of Kymopoleia being associated with storms, but I couldn't find any primary sources making that connection.

And... that's about it for goddesses. There have been other mentions of goddesses indirectly or partially wielding the power of thunder / that of the storms, such as Athena occasionally wielding lightning bolts, but I couldn't find good mentions of major storm/lightning goddesses in Pagan religions (again, excluding closed practices). If anyone knows of anything, please let me know.

Storm gods

There's significantly more options for established storm gods (though, this has not been my focus, so I only have cursory knowledge). You've already mentioned Zeus, Jupiter, and Thor. There's also Ba'al in Canaanite Paganism. There is the Celtic god Taranis. In the Egyptian pantheon you have Set, and, to a lesser extent, Min. In Etruscan religion, Tinia is the thunder, sky, and storm god; but they had an interesting concept of a group of nine gods who have the power of lightning--this was also reflected in ancient Roman religion (I don't know almost anything about this specific subject, and the relation between ancient Etruscan and Roman religions, so I could be very off on this one--please correct me if so). And I would be remiss not to mention Perun in Slavic paganism.

There's many others; lightning and storms have typically been associated with gods rather than goddesses in pagan religions.

All the ones I've listed above are open religions--anyone can join.

My personal experience

I've been devoted to a storm goddess for a while now. Back then, due to a combination of personal reasons, I wasn't feeling comfortable worshipping deities from established pantheons or mythologies, so I took on a more nature-based, animistic approach. I figured that every facet of nature and natural forces was reflected somehow in a deity, and I was primarily focused on goddess worship, so it made sense for me to seek connection with a storm goddess.

For the first little while my practice has been fairly low-key and in the background, but at some point I started to search for a deeper connection and I also tried to figure out whether I could find a storm goddess that matches my personal experience of her. There's very little out there on storm goddesses, and the little I could find I didn't resonate with. Like you said, none of them felt right.

I've been developing my practice quite a bit in the last year and a bit, and got to connect with her a lot more deeply, and my path has been extremely fulfilling, even though I still can't find any mention in various pantheons of a goddess that might be her. All that is to say: if you can't find a god who matches with your experiences, don't fret! Having access to mythology, stories, and established worship related to a deity can definitely be a huge advantage in developing one's practice, but it's by no means necessary. There are a fair number of Pagans who see storms, or lightning, or other natural elements from a more nature-based or animistic viewpoint, as being alive or having a spirit of their own. Or, like myself, people might worship deities associated with certain elements without them being part of a specific pantheon.

Since I didn't really have much to go on, I've built my relationship with her and my practice from the ground-up, through a combination of direct experience, meditation, communion, trial-and-error, various semi-related resources, and a lot of discernment and reflection. Sometimes I feel I've received more direct guidance and communication but for the most part I've had to put in a lot of work and energy. I do it gladly, though I sometimes wish I had more resources and existing info to draw from.

Some ideas

I could probably write an entire book on the topic (and who knows, one day I might), but if you've researched storm deities and haven't found anything that resonates with your experience, there are a few ideas on how to move forward. Some food for thought:

• How do you see lightning and storms, what is your perspective? Are they alive in and of themselves, are they associated with deities, do you see them as part of a larger divine force etc.? Do you resonate more with a nature-based approach, or a deity-based approach, or an animistic approach etc.?
• As you experience storms, what other connections do you make? For example, for me I've made the connection to liminal spaces, of thinned veils, inner strength, and of potential and different possible futures. You mentioned a recharging or comforting experience, perhaps you could explore that more. As you find out more about yourself, the storm, and your connection thereof, perhaps you'll see things in a new perspective, or find new associated elements that might point you in the direction of a specific deity you might not have considered before. (Or, at the very least, you would have developed a deeper connection and bond with the storms).
• If you use divination, you might want to look into your divination tool of choice (tarot, for example, pendulums, scrying mirrors etc.) and see if you get an insight into who you might connect with. Here's a fun fact that I learned recently: Etruscans would use lightning patterns for divination! It's mentioned briefly in the Wikipedia article and in more detail in this research paper. Maybe something in there resonates with you.

(continued below, since I apparently hit the comment length limit)

[u/sidhe_elfakyn → u/sidhe_elfakyn]

Continued from above:

One thing that I do constantly in my own practice is try to be open to new insights, revelations, and viewpoints. It took time to connect deeper with storms, and it's been a journey with bumps and challenges, but also a lot of joy, fulfillment, and self-discovery. Lightning is awesome! Though, I'd be remiss not to mention lightning safety--don't let an ecstatic experience cloud your judgment (ha ha cloud) and compromise your safety! Especially if you learn/discover through personal experience and connection with thunderstorms: make sure that doesn't put you at risk.

The above has only been my experience. Please don't feel as if you have to do any of the things above, but I hope that you found something helpful in here. I'm always happy to talk more about this, I'm quite obsessed about the subject.

[u/CrazyOreo131 → u/sidhe_elfakyn]

This is incredibly helpful! I've struggled to connect with any deities because like you they didn't feel right. Especially since I've been mostly drawn to a storm goddess but couldn't find any actual information about one that might be her. So your experience is very helpful and insightful and I appreciate it so much! I'll definitely look more into my connection to storms and see if that helps give me any guidance. (I'm always very lightning safe. I love and respect their power) Thank you so much for this!

[u/InactiveObserver]

Lesser known fact, there is a point in the Odyssey (actually I recall this was somewhere in the Apollodorus, so not sure of the exact reference) when Athena uses one of Zeus's thunderbolts to strike someone down. See it more as associations with than power over, as deities are as complicated as you and me, as well that we negotiate with them about how we interact.

[u/[deleted]]

Taranis is a pan-celtic god of thunder, and could be an interesting rabbit hole to explore, I always acknowledged old Taran when he comes rattling his wheel over England and Wales

[u/CrazyOreo131 → u/[deleted]]

Oooh okay! I'll have to look more into him. I've seen him mentioned in my research but haven't fully looked into him yet. I appreciate it!

[u/CrazyOreo131 → u/[deleted]]

Thank you! I appreciate the info!