The Northern Isles
The Northern Isles of Scotland generally refers to the two archipelagos of Orkney and Shetland. The islands have been inhabited since very early times and have many ancient archaeological sites with human activity going back to the Mesolithic Age. There are still many Pictish and Norse influences which have combined to create a rich tradition of mythology and folklore on the islands.
Folklore and Tradition
One such tradition tells of an annual battle between the forces of summer and winter for supremacy. This battle is expressed in folklore with summer being represented by a mythical female spirit called the Sea Mither, or Mither of the Sea. Her opponent is called Teran, a mythical spirit of the winter who sends the wild waves, storms and high winds at sea and the death of vegetation on land. Both spirits are invisible to humans directly but their force is experienced in the weather and seasons around the islands that play an integral part of island life.
The Sea Mither
The Sea Mither brings growth, renewal, rebirth and harvest. The word “Mither” is the Orcadian way of saying “mother” so she is the mother of the sea in the sense she gives birth to all living creatures in the sea.
It is the power of the Sea Mither that reawakens the world after the harsh, barren wilderness days of winter, driving out darkness and bringing warmth and light. She brings growth and fertility to the sea and land giving life to all living things and calms the stormy seas.
Teran
Her enemy, Teran, brings the cold and dark and causes the winter gales and winds. It is he who causes the waves to rise wildly and dash against the rugged coastline of the islands and it is his voice who rises above the wind in anger that the islanders hear in the winter gales.
Vore Tully – the Spring Struggle
Around the time of the vernal equinox, about mid-March, there begins a titanic struggle for supremacy between the Teran and the Sea Mither when she returns to challenge him. For weeks the seas all around become a frothing, churning cauldron as the battle between the two foes ensues. Finally Teran is overcome and the Sea Mither confines him to the ocean’s depths. Every so often he attempts to break free which manifest as spring and summer storms.
During this period the power of the Sea Mither quells the storms and seas allowing growth and renewal to take place all around. The continued stress of keeping Teran confined and maintaining the summer seas and weather begins to wear down the Sea Mither.
Gore Vellye – The Autumn Tumult
Around the time of the autumn equinox when the Sea Mither is at her weakest and Teran has regained his strength the conflict is renewed. He breaks free from his prison and challenges the Sea Mither to regain supremacy and gain control of the weather and seas. The Sea Mither having used up her strength in renewal, calming the seas and keeping her foe in check is defeated and Teran rules the seas and the weather.
The Cycle
However, as was the case with Teran, defeat is temporary. Come the vernal equinox she will be ready to take up the fight again and win back the sea and land and spring and summer will come again.
It is in the battle of the Sea Mither and Teran that the local people made sense of the forces that brought the changing seas and weather. To personify these unseen forces makes them easier to understand and to come to terms with. It is a tactic that is used all around the world by many different human cultures in an attempt to explain the invisible forces that bring such dramatic and crucial changes to their environment.
Balance and Harmony
This cycle was seen as important because although it is natural to want continuous and permanent summer that is not how nature works. Neither does it work by providing continuous and permanent winter. Each has its time of precedence and decline which comes in cycles and is necessary to provide balance and harmony to the earth. In their own way one is essential as the other to the well-being of the Earth and life on the planet. Although lacking modern science and technology, the ancients knew this making sense of it and giving it due respect in their own way.
© 17/06/2020 zteve t evans
References, Attributions and Further Reading
Copyright June 17th, 2020 zteve t evans
Under the influence! 
A great meld for the Scot-Norwegian that I am.
Thank you!
It does make sense that the unpredictable weather of spring or autumn would be imagined as a battle between opposing forces, especially with the frequent storms those times seem to have brought. I’m sure the seasons and storms were quite impactful for an island community where many people relied on the sea for a livelihood!
I agree with you. I listened to the weather on TV the other day and their was talk of high pressure against low pressure and warm fronts and cold fronts and it seemed like a battlefield. Any way, thanks for your insightful comments which are always interesting!