Across Central, Western and Northern Europe, the Wild Hunt is a well-known myth. A ghostly leader and his group of hunters and hounds flying through the cold night sky during the winter solstice, as the winds howl and the cold seeps through the bones
A Great hunting party of the gods across the sky led by Odin and his horse Sleipnir, who can leap incredible distances.
The hunters are generally the souls of the dead or ghostly dogs, sometimes fairies, valkyries, or elves. Seeing the Wild Hunt was thought to forebode some catastrophe such as war or plague, or at best the death of the one who witnessed it.
Like Cernunnos, the Celtic god often called the Green Man, Herne is a horned god associated with the Wild Hunt.
Artemis, in Greek religion, the goddess of wild animals, the hunt, and vegetation and of chastity and childbirth; she was identified by the Romans with Diana
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Artemis (/ˈɑːrtɪmɪs/; Ancient Greek: Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. In later times, she was identified with Selene, the personification of the Moon.
Many of the traditional rituals honor the energy of rebirth, transformation, creativity, new beginnings, and the release of unwanted habits. During the Winter Solstice, we focus on what we would like to bring forth with the return of the light and our hopes and dreams for our highest expression.
One of the ways in which neopagans celebrate the Wild Hunt is by walking a route through the forest during the day, and then racing through the same circuit at night. If you can navigate it in time, you will be seen as having gained the trust of the wood spirits, and can cut down wood for their own use.
The Wild Hunt of Odin shows a hunting party of airborne horsemen who move across a dark sky. They are accompanied by ravens and owls and seem to emerge from clouds in the background. All horses are black except for one white horse at the front.
