Manannán mac Lir
Celtic God of the Sea, Lord of the Liminal, and Master Magician
As we seek to understand Manannán we must set aside the idea of simple or easy expectations. Instead we must sit back and contemplate the entirety of his mythology and folklore, the good and the bad — or as he says in the story of the Ceithearnach Caoilraibhach, the sweet and the sour — and be willing to embrace that such contradiction is a part of his nature. Those who seek the Irish god of the sea will find him easily but understanding him may be the work of a lifetime.
-Morgan Daimler, Pagan Portals: Manannán Mac Lir¹
The simplest thing to be said about Manannán mac Lir is that he is an extraordinarily complex deity. While I haven’t worked with him long, I’ve learned that he’s really laid back, but knows when to be serious. He detests being lied to but is known to be deceptive at times. He even has a magical cup that serves as a lie detector, which I will tell you more about in the “Magical Tools” section. Much like the sea, he serves many purposes and is as mercurial as he is mysterious. Based on ancient Irish literature and contemporary research I’ve conducted over the past few years I’ve been able to identify the major roles Manannán plays. I will take you through each category but before I do, I want you to note that no deity can be definitively defined. Just when you put them into a neat little box they will break…
