The Sacredness of the Feminine Divine Meditation Event

International Women’s Day celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievement of women and takes place every year on 8th March.

This year on Wednesday, 8 March 2017, the Isian Centre of Metaphysics will be holding a special MEDITATION ON THE SACREDNESS OF THE FEMININE DIVINE to celebrate International Women’s Day.

This special women’s only event will commence at 7.30pm and will last for approximately an hour.

Entry to the Isian Centre of Metaphysics for this event will be available from 7:20pm.

Dreaming Back the Sisters

On this day when families gather, and others remember, and as we journey ever closer to the ending of one calendar year  pausing for the new year to commence, I would like to share with you this beautiful poem by Marie Elena Gaspari. In doing so, I would also like to invite you all to dream back your sisters, your feminine line (both biological and spiritual) as an inspiring and beautiful intention for 2017.

A wonderful way to continue this dreaming back is to join other women as we gather together.  One type of such gathering are Sister Moon Circles that welcome women of all ages.  The first of the Sister Moons Circles for 2017 will be taking place at the Isian Centre of Metaphysics from Friday, 21 April 2017.

Opening the Discussion about Death

Death.  Such a taboo subject in our Western culture yet a subject that really needs to be talked about more openly.  After all, death is a natural process that will happen to all of us at some stage.  It is something we are not able to avoid, no matter how hard we try.

 

In recent times, "Death Cafes" have started to be established as a means for people to gather together and discuss the concept of death over a cup of tea (or coffee) and a slice of cake.  The first Death Cafe took place in East London in September 2011 and since that time similar events have been held all around the world.

 

Learning to Ebb and Flow with the Seasons

The sky is low, the clouds are mean,
A travelling flake of snow
Across a barn or through a rut
Debates if it will go.

 

A narrow wind complains all day
How some one treated him;
Nature, like us, is sometimes caught
Without her diadem.

 

So wrote American 19th century poet Emily Dickinson and winter has certainly arrived at The Goddess House. 

 

With the changing energy levels of the season, not to mention the increasing reluctance to venture out on wet and wintry evenings, a decision has been made to postpone the Monday Night Meditations until Monday, 1 August, the festival of Imbolc on the seasonal calendar for the Southern Hemisphere which marks the commencement of Spring.

 

Monday Night Meditations - Tara

Traditionally, a mantra has been described as a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or even a group of words in ancient Sanskrit believed by practitioners to have psychological and spiritual powers.  A mantra may or may not have syntactic structure or literal meaning. 

 

They come in many forms from single words or sounds such as the familiar Om (or Aum) mantra, through to complex requests and prayers.  In more sophisticated forms, mantras are melodic phrases with spiritual interpretations such as a human longing for truth, reality, light, immortality, peace, love, knowledge, and action.  Other mantras have no literal meaning, yet are musically uplifting and spiritually meaningful.

 

Getting the Creative Juices Flowing

Over recent months there have been a number of ideas with respect of what The Goddess House will be interested in offering once we properly resume again in the Spring.

There is also a possibility of holding a series of crafting workshops.  The first of these will be taking place on Saturday, 28 May 2016 where people will have the opportunity to make their own Protection Bottle (also known as a "Wytch's Bottle").

 

These bottles have been used for many centuries with the first documented use appearing in the 17th century (although their actual use is believed to pre-date this).  These bottles were used as a means of protecting the home from negative influences, curses, hexes, and the "Evil Eye". Today, such bottles are used primarily as decoys to attract, absorb, confuse and defuse negative psychic energy being sent.

 

How will you honour your Sacred Gift of Womankind?

In her book, The Thirteen Original Clan Mothers, author Jamie Sams asks us:

 

“We are being asked to honour the gifts of womankind and to call on the strength of our sisters in order to discover ourselves. The circle will come full when every human can see the beauty within the Self, as well as in all others.  The transmutation of competition, separateness, hierarchy, jealousy, envy, manipulation, control, selfishness, greed, dependency, old wounds, and self-righteousness must be accomplished before we will come to wholeness.  These attitudes are the enemies of humankind and are found within the Shadow-self, rather than outside ourselves.

 

International Women's Day Gathering of Sisters

A special Gathering of Sisters to mark International Women's Day will be held at The Goddess House on Tuesday, 8 March 2016 from 10:00 am.

Participants are encouraged to bring a photo or picture of a woman whom they admire or who has inspired us as together we will be creating an altar to honour and acknowledge those women who have gone before us, who are still with us and who are still yet to come.

Please also bring a flower to decorate the altar, a plate of food to share afterwards and a $5 donation to help cover all other incidental costs.

 

Grainne Ni Mhaille - the Irish Pirate Queen

Statue of Grainne Ni Mhaille

by Michael Cooper

From the mysterious world of the Celts a number of women were renowned for their power, warrior strength and independence.  They led revolts against their enemies, wheeled and dealed to require the best possible outcome for their people, and were even said to have used their “woman’s magic” to curse the lives of those who sought to cause them (or their loved ones) harm.  One of these such women was Grainne Ni Mhaille, who is better known to us by the English version of her name - Grace O'Malley, the 16th century Irish pirate queen.

 

Celtic Queens and Warrior Goddesses coming to Melbourne

Amongst the legends of the Celts can be found various powerful and fascinating women.  Rebellion leaders, pirates, initiators of heroes, fierce warriors, and foretellers of doom.  Some who are historically known to us, while others are blended with the mists from a somewhat romantic past.  

 

Regardless of whether they are fact or fiction, there is something immensely powerful and awe inspiring about these Celtic women, some of whom include:

Ebbing and Flowing with the Times

If there is one thing that I have been forced to learn over the last eight months is that flexibility is the key for you never know when carefully laid plans need to be changed or when new opportunities appear waiting for you to grasp them.

 

After a restless night the difficult decision was made this morning to cancel to commencement of the proposed Sister Circles that was to commence at the Morella Community Centre in March.  While I am still very passionate for this venture to commence, the timing does not appear to be right at the moment.  I am hoping that another opportunity to present this venture to the community will make itself available later in the year.

See me at the Seven Sisters Festival (27-29 March)

Neolithic Snake Goddess

At the end of this month I have the great honour of being at the Seven Sisters Festival that will be held at Mt Martha, Victoria from Friday, 27 to Sunday, 29 March 2015.  This three day festival specifically gathers for the modern woman of the 21st century who balances technology and careers with health and spirituality.  As such, I am delighted to be presenting an introduction workshop on Goddess spirituality - in fact on who actually the Goddess is.

 

For the emerging woman the word "Goddess" can present a wide array of interpretations from an ancient creatrix who was worshipped during some distant time through to meaning "feminine energy" and the space that all women hold - we are all "Goddesses".  In my talk I will be focusing on the first interpretation - Goddess as an ancient creatrix whose stories of creation can still be found and whose sacred temples still remind us today that She once held the key to the universe.

 

Meditation in the Modern Age

These days it seems that no matter how many "time saving" devices we own, we tend to end up with less and less "free time" as there tends to always be something (or someone) else that requires our attention.  Even with the invention of social media, we are encouraged more and more to "download an app" for something as opposed to truly applying our own energy.  While all these advances in modern technology are wonderful and far-reaching, there is a downside.  This downside is potential of losing the ability to be "unwired" and to simply be ... without the need of external stimulation.

 

Honouring Kali at The Goddess House

The Goddess House is delighted to announce that on Monday, 10 November 2014 as part of the Monday Night Meditation group, the Hindu Goddess Kali will be honoured in a special Kali Mantra and Meditation night, with special guest, Devidasan being in attendance and sharing his knowledge about this often feared and rather mistaken Goddess.

 

As Persephone Returns

Asasa Ya

The time of the Spring Equinox is upon us and according to Greek myth, the Goddess Persephone has now well and truly returned from the Underworld to be with her mother, Demeter.  This return and reunion of the daughter and mother is an extremely delightful time as the trees and flowers bloom, and the gentle hum of the bees collecting their honey can now be heard.  This rising of energy begins to quicken in pace as the last shackles of Winter are cast aside. 

 

Buoyant and with the signs of proposed bounty, Spring can be such a joyous time (especially after what seems to have been a long, cold Winter).

 

Prayer and Meditation - the Art of Asking and Receiving

Throughout this year, The Goddess House has been offering meditations on Monday evenings.   These meditations are aimed at being non-secular with subtle metaphysical themes (ie, chakras and auric bodies), and sometimes use the repetition of mantras or chants.   As such, this article about meditation by Madisyn Taylor of Daily Om seems most appropriate to share.

 

 

Meditation and prayer can offer us different experiences

and both can be powerful tools.

2014 Australian Goddess Conference

At this year's Australian Goddess Conference, to be held over the weekend of 24 to 26 October in Sydney, the theme is "The Wellspring" - a place of community gathering, exploration of wise ways, and the celebration of the receptive waters of womanhood and the moon.

 

Rite of Her Sacred Fires in Adelaide

Every year The Goddess House, together with the Temple of the Dark Moon, include the Rite of Her Sacred Fires in with the May Full Moon Gathering ritual. 

 

 

The Rite of Her Sacred Fires is a unique international devotional celebration of the mysteries and magic of the Goddess Hekate.  It was born out of the Hekate Her Sacred Fires anthology project and written by Sorita d’Este who offered it as an act of devotion for all who wished to participate in May 2010.  The first year saw the Rite of Her Sacred Fires translated into numerous languages, with several thousand people from around the world participating by doing the ritual on the Full Moon that month.  To read more about the Rite of Her Sacred Fires, please visit the Covenant of Hekate (where the above information has been sourced from).

 

Puja style rite in honour of Tara

For the last few weeks, the Monday Night Meditations (which are held every Monday evening at The Goddess House) have been focusing on Tara, the "mother of liberation", and in particular Green Tara, the "Buddha of enlightened activity".

 

As a way of celebrating this work, this coming Monday evening  (7 April 2014) a puja styled rite will be held in honour of Tara.

 

A puja is a prayer ritual often performed within Hinduism to honour and worship either one or more deities, as well as to spiritually celebrate a particular event and guest.

 

Everyone is welcome to attend this upcoming honouring of Tara that will be held at The Goddess House.  We do ask to attendees to bring a small bunch of freshly cut flowers as an offering to Tara that will be placed upon the altar.