Cailleach Beira, Mother of Winter

The Cailleach Beira (a.k.a. The Veiled One. Mother of Winter)

Divine Domains

The Cailleach is the primordial goddess of Winter and the Unseelie Court Unseelie Court. She wanders Emain Ablach (and later, the Fortunate Isles and Kornôgel as her legend spread, between Kalan-Goañv and Kala-Hañv, spreading Winter with her magical crook and hammer.
She is the personification of the Blackwind, the fierce and bitter wind from the Far North, represented by a silver-scaled ice-breathing dragon in this role.
She is seen as a creation goddess, sculpting the glaciers, icebergs and mountains of the world, as well as each individual snowflake. She summons storms and snow, but also blesses hearthfire. She is the guardian of deer and horned wild animals.
The Caillech is a member of the Druidic Pantheon, but is worshipped primarily by the Unseelie and the Glaistig.

Divine Symbols & Sigils

-Hazelwood Shepherd's Crook

Hammer

Woman in a grey cloak.

Tenets of Faith

The last sheath of the first corn harvest of the year is made into a corn dolly, which is tossed into another field. The farmer who harvests last in a community must protect the effigy for the Winter or bring about the Cailleach's wrath.

Holidays

Kala-Hañv - Brigid defeats her sister, turning Beira to stone.

Kalan-Goañv - Beira returns to life, casting Brigid underground.

Nedeleg - Beira seeks out the Well of Youth, restoring her vitality.

Emwalc'h - Beira gathers firewood for the rest of Winterrule. If the day is bright and sunny, she intends to make Winterrule last long and strong with plenty of heathfire, but if it is overcast, she is asleep.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Cailleach Beira can appear in many forms. Often described at a distance as a great one-eyed Gargan or silver-scaled dragon (There is some contention in the legends if the dragon is an avatar Beira herself or is an associated familiar.)
When she appears to directly interact with other creatures, she will assume the size and shape of a female of the species, appearing as a young child, a beautiful woman or a hunch-backed crone, depending on her needs and whims. In all forms, only her left eye is visible, the right either blocked by hair or an eye-patch, or an empty socket in its place.

Facial Features

Beira's skin is a dark blue-grey, while her hair is snow white. Her single eye is an icy blue and her teeth are the colour of rust.

Physical quirks

At the end of Kala-Hañv, Beira is turned to stone. She returns on Kalan-Goañv

Apparel & Accessories

Cailleach Beira most commonly appears and is depicted wearing a simple woolen cloak, almost always with a hood or transparent veil, resembling the obscuring flurry of a snowstorm.

Specialized Equipment

Beira carries a Hazelwood shepherd's crook, which freezes the land and rivers it touches as its carrier wanders across the land. It is also used to herd the deer of her wintery domain.
Beira also carries a stone hammer, delicate enough to forge snowflakes, but strong enough to shape glaciers.

Social

Contacts & Relations

The Cailleach exists in partnership and opposition to her sister, Brigantia, The Exalted One, who personifies Summerule. The pair are frequently at odds in stories, but they are often considered to be two parts of the same whole.
The Cailleach is married to Bodach, the Old Man. He carries a spear and is most commonly employed to frighten Sidhe children.

Divine Classification

Goddess, Gargan

Church/Cult

The Druids

Current Residence

Hagshead Cliffs, in the Southwest of Emain Ablach

Pronouns

She/Her

Sex

Female

Gender

Woman

Presentation

Feminine

Eyes

A single ice blue in the left socket.

Hair

Long, wild and white as snow

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

Dark Blue