(^358) A Wiccan Bible
Meditrina—Female—Mediterranean
‘Healer’—Roman goddess of wine and
health. Perhaps an early observation of the
connection between moderate alcohol use and
health benefits.
Medusa—Female—Mediterranean
Animal associations: Snake, Horse (Pegasus),
Moth
Ruler of the Gorgon. She is so hideous that
any man who looks upon her gaze becomes
stone. One story on how this happened says
that Medusa was initially very beautiful—so
beautiful that Poseidon welcomed her to his
godly embrace. The jealous Athena would have
none of it, so she turned Medusa’s hair to
snakes.
Megaera—Female—Mediterranean
‘Jealous One’—Greek goddess of justice
and vengeance. One of the three Erinyes (Fu-
ries) with Alecto and Tisiphone.
Mehilainen—Female—Northern Europe
Animal association: Bee
Finish sacred messengers manifest in the
bee. May be connected to Mellonia (who
taught bee-keeping), or may just be a word for
bee.
Meilikki—Female—North Europe
Animal association: Bear
Finish goddess of the green. Sometimes de-
picted as a female incarnation of the Green
Man.
Melanion—Male—Mediterranean
Wife: Atalanta
Greek god who fell in love with Atalanta.
His advances were originally rejected by
Atalanta who said that he could not have her
hand unless he first beat her at sport. So he
and she had a foot race in which Melanion
dropped three golden apples given to him by
Aphrodite. Melanion won the race and her
hand because Atalanta stopped to pick up the
apples. In so doing he set the stage for the later
observation that ‘All is fair in love and war.’
Patron of suitors of women playing hard to get.
Melkart—Male—Middle East/Mediterranean
Animal association: Quail
Phoenician folk hero, god, and patron of
city dwellers and dwellings. Some cite as a
Phoenician equivalent of Hercules.
Mellonia—Female—Mediterranean
(Also known as Mellisa)
Animal association: Bee
Perhaps an aspect of Demeter, Mellonia is
a fertility goddess. She is said to have taught
humanity the art of bee-keeping.
Melpomene—Female—Mediterranean
‘Choir’—Greek Muse of the tragedy. See
also Muses, The.
Menat—Female—Middle East
(Also known as Manat)
Father: Allah
Holiday: Dark Moon
An aspect of the Triple Goddess Allat. She
is goddess of time and fate. Her holiday is the
dark moon, but the whole of the waning moon
cycle is also sacred to her. See also Allat.
Menthu—Male—Africa
Animal associations: Falcon, Bull
Egyptian god of war who is often depicted
as having the head of a falcon or hawk.
Mercury—Male—Mediterranean
(Also known as Mercurius, Alipes)
Lover: Venus
Animal associations: Ape, Jackal, Snake, Swal-
low, Turtle, Tortoise
Plant associations: Almond, Beech, Broom,
Cinnamon, Hazelnut, Lavender, Lemongrass,
Lotus, Mulberry, Olive, Palm (date), Vervain,
Willow
Roman god of communication, travel, and
merchants. He is the father of Cupid by Ve-
nus; as messenger of the gods this is perhaps
commentary on the relationship between love
z WB Chap 17.p65 358 7/11/2003, 6:04 PM
barré
(Barré)
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