How to Choose a Patron Deity

So you are new to the Wiccan religion and are a bit confused by the process of choosing a patron deity to work with, or you have been practicing a while and only now come to decide that everyone else has a patron deity maybe you should get one of your own. The good news on either account is that it is not a mandated relationship. Nowhere is there a law that says all Wiccans must work with a patron deity.

Many people find that working with a patron deity gives them a sense of comfort, however, and even a more personalized religious experience. So how does one choose their own patron deity? That can be the tricky part. Many people feel that your patron will chose you, while others feel that it is advisable to seek out the deity yourself.

How do you know if a deity has already chosen you? Well, given the common belief among pagans that all deities are simply figureheads for aspects of the same central force, if you feel any relationship with the divine at all, you know that you have already made the connection to deity, and thus in a sense, been chosen. Many long practicing Pagans believe that the deity chose them through symbolic life circumstances, for instance, if the situations in your life present a need for the aspects of a particular form of deity then you have thus been chosen by that deity.

Most often though people choose their own patron deity according to what appeals to them or what they would like to learn to achieve in their lives. Yes, it really is that simple. A person interested in the arts might choose a particular deity who is associated with various arts, soldiers might choose Gods of war such as Mercury, and so forth and so on. If your life is rough in the areas of love or balance then you might choose a goddess whose main concerns are in those arenas, or whose aspects you would like to incorporate into your own personality and behaviors. This can be the easiest approach.

To find a patron deity this way, one needs only research the associations commonly fixed to a specific aspect of God or Goddess, and begin to spend time meditating, or praying to that aspect. Create a picture of them, or find one from a book, and focus on that image. Offer up a prayer, or dedicate your rituals to this deity in particular. Some people even advocate an open prayer or ritual asking the deity to grace you with their patronage.

Whatever method you choose when you select your own patron deity, remember that it is a very personal process, and should first and foremost respect your feelings in the matter. The most important thing is that you choose a deity that you feel a connection with, not that you be constrained by by charts of associations. If the deity speaks to you, and you feel compelled to have a relationship with that deity, then that is the one you should be working with.