ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Ancient Celtic religion

Hey there, kiddo! Have you ever heard of the ancient Celtic people? They lived a long, long time ago in places like Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. They had their own religion that was very different from what we believe today. Would you like to learn more about it?

The ancient Celtic religion was called Druidism. The word "druid" means someone who is wise or has knowledge. The Druids were like priests, but they were also scholars, judges, and storytellers. They believed in a lot of gods and goddesses, each one having their own powers and stories. It was kind of like a big family of gods and goddesses!

The most important god in the Celtic religion was the god of the sun, light, and war. His name was Belenos. They believed that he made everything grow and made the world full of light. When the days started getting shorter in the winter, they would hold a big celebration to ask Belenos to come back and give them more light.

Another important god was Cernunnos, the god of nature and the underworld. He was often shown with antlers like a deer and was said to be able to control animals and plants. The Celts believed that he was in charge of life and death, because everything that dies goes back into the earth and feeds new life.

The Celts also believed in magic and spirits. They thought that certain objects and places had special powers and that the spirits of their ancestors were always watching over them. They would even build big stone monuments called "standing stones" that they thought had special powers.

Nowadays, most people don't believe in the ancient Celtic religion anymore. But we still see reminders of it in things like Halloween, which comes from an old Celtic holiday called Samhain. And some people still like to learn about the old gods and goddesses and the stories they used to tell. See, learning about other people's beliefs can be really interesting!