As a hedgewitch I see the Goddess and God as forming the divine in equal parts. The Goddess is Maiden, and young lover of the God, she is Mother, giving birth to the God, and she is the Crone, embodying the darkness and wisdom out of which all creation comes. But the God is equally important, and has been somewhat neglected in Wiccan literature in recent years, due to the interest in (and I would cynically say, the market-ability of) the Goddess.

In my experience, I find I am often inspired by the God in his many different forms, his strength and his energy form a large part of the ritual. Perhaps one of the most inspiring incarnations of the God, is that of the Green Man. I find that, of all the various forms the divine takes, the Green Man is the most visible and the most alive in my day to day world. You can see him in the thick foliage of green trees, even those planted on pavements, or in the patches of woodland scattered throughout the town. He is the Jack in the Green, a lively spirit who imbues the landscape with energy, and survives despite the onslaught of tarmac and carbon monoxide. In folk lore he is told of again and again as Robin Hood or the Green Knight from Arthurian legend. He is the representation of the rebirth of nature. In her 'Wheel of the Year', Theresa Moorey describes another side of him, that which comes from the 'black, ruthless side of nature', thus, like all forms of the God he is binary, embodying the darkness and the light.

Two other important incarnations of the God are the two halves of this binary, and represent the waxing and waning year. This is the God in his dual form, the Oak King and the Holly King, light and dark. The Holly king rules the waning year, from Midsummer to Yule, and the Oak King rules the Waxing year, from Yule to Midsummer. One represents decay and destruction, and is often seen as the Lord of the Underworld, Pluto, who snatches Persephone and plunges the earth into winter. He represents inner knowledge and mysteries. The Oak King, inversely, represents growth, expansion. The two Kings symbolically fight to win the Crown of the year, at Yule the Oak King wins, and at Midsummer, The Holly King is victorious. In Arthurian Legend, the Green Knight is the Holly King, who wishes to be slain and must be, for life to go on.

Another symbol of sacrifice is the Corn King, the spirit of the corn that is cut down, but which will return each year. This happens at Lughnasadh, 'The Mourning of Lugh', who is another sacrificial God. His name is Irish, meaning 'shining one', and he is the God of the Sun and crafts. He is linked to the idea of sacrificial mating, who fertilizes his Goddess consort and is slain when this fertility is reaped. He has counterparts in all traditions, in Wales he is Llew Llaw Gyffes, in Egyptian mythology he is Osiris.

Another important God is Cernunnos, or Herne, or Saturn, the Horned God. He represents fertility, sexuality and for some pagan traditions he is also a dark God, the ruthless side of nature. I may be being rather controversial, but it is a belief of mine, and many other pagans and historians, that this God gives many attributes to the Christian's 'Satan', who embodies the dark aspects of the Horned God, and his form. However, we do not need to see him as 'evil' or 'sinful', but as a powerful incarnation of the God, who has tremendous energy.

There are many other Gods in other traditions, but these are the main incarnations that represent the Wiccan Wheel of the Year.