The Dark Goddess and my Descent

It has been a number of months since my last posting here at The Goddess House and this has largely been because of various change in circumstances, the most recent coming for a forefront about four weeks ago.  However, from a place of  contemplation and reflection, this current change has actually began its progress some 10 years ago.

 

It was in about 2006 that I first commenced workshops on what was then a rather neglected and misunderstood aspect of the Divine Feminine, that of the "dark" goddess.  Contrary to public opinion at the time (and still even today in some circles) that this Underworldly aspect of the Feminine Divine was restricted to that of the Crone and the dark moon, through my own exploration of mythology and folklore, I felt that there was indeed more to her than this. 

 

Water - the Source of Life

A new calendar year and the Summer's heat has arrived to this dry brown land.  With the Australian weather patterns often moving across the country from west to east, the heatwave that Perth was sweltering under around Christmas time, is now making its presence felt in the southern central states - however the heat has intensified due to the desert.

As the life force energies can very quickly be sapped from the living during this intense heat, I thought I would share an article that has a cooling watery feel that had originally been posted on my old blog.  It is important that in the heat we keep our fluids up.  It is also vitally important that we keep an eye out for those who may not be able to look after themselves - the elderly and infirmed, our pets, and local wildlife.  It doesn't cost much to put a couple of extra bowls of water out (in shadey places) or to knock on someone's door to ensure that they are coping, or even drop them off a bag of ice.

Spring Equinox, Eggs and Seeds

With the Spring (or Vernal) Equinox just around the corner for those of us residing south of the equator, there are still two traditional symbols associated with this festival - that of the egg and the seed.

Eggs are one of the symbols of this festival since they represent new life and potential. Folklore tells us (combining two themes of the season) that eggs balance on their ends most easily at equinox.  Femininst author, Z Budapest, in her book Grandmother of Time says that eggs were dyed red (the color of life) on the Festival of Astarte (17 March, close to the time of the Spring Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere). 

In Silent Contemplation

As the venue used by The Goddess House for our monthly devotional services and healing circles is the covenstead of the Temple of the Dark Moon runs, this means that just prior to each service I strip the Temple's altar and create something more fitting for The Goddess House. 

Usually the altar resembles something  of a gathering of Goddesses as I love sharing my collection of statues with others.  For the upcoming April service however, I decided to make the focal point the beautiful piece of artwork that was gifted to The Goddess House by a regular attendee, Tara-Jade.

Adding a beautiful lotus candle that I recently found in my local Asian grocers, surrounded by devotional candles for all those who will be attending on Tuesday night, I cannot wait to see what my creation actually looks like in the subtle hue of the flickering candles.

As we will also be including a special rite in honour of the passing of Merlin Stone, I have added to the altar two statues of the more ancient Goddesses that I have, being what Marija Gimbutas described as a Snake Goddess (left of picture) and and Bird headed Goddess. 

Now that the altar has been prepared, all that is left for me to do is to finalise the handouts for the month and decide what passages from Stone's books "When God was a Woman" and "Ancient Mirrors of Womanhood" I will share ....

Sacred Symbols of the Goddess - the Labrys

The Labyrs, Sagarus, Halbryce, and Labyris are all names for symmetrical double-headed axe that was known to the Classical Greeks as “pelekus”, and whilst a version is still used in woodcutting and forestry today, the symbolism of the labyrs axe dates back to the early Goddess civilizations found around the Mediterranean. 

In ancient Minoan, Thracian and Greek religion, mythology, and art, dating from the Middle Bronze Age (3,000 to 600 BCE) onwards, and surviving in the Byzantine Empire, the labyrs can be found, as well as in specific African religions, such as Shango, where it also contains an element of religious symbolism.