The Rowdy Goddess

An Ecstatic Vision of the Goddess, dancing in harmony with the Universe.

Archive for the tag “Mother”

15 Feb 2009

The Goddess, With Chocolate: The Spirituality of Chocolate

I could write a lot about chocolate, as I’m sure many of us can. Chocolate comforts us, heals us, and makes us feel good. It’s a delight to the senses with a pungent earthy smell and a delicious flavor. It combines well with other substances and flavors to bring us to a state of sensation and satiation.

Botanically, chocolate means “food of the gods,” and it held a sacred place in the customs and rituals of native peoples of Central America. Our modern culture has worshipped chocolate, shaping it to our own beliefs. Women have a special affinity for chocolate and we know the Goddess infuses Herself into it.

Brieflly, and I’m sure there will be more later, the spirituality of chocolate is complex and powerful. Here is part of my vision of it, though I’m sure more is to be revealed:

  • White chocolate corresponds to the Maiden
  • Milk chocolate corresponds to the Mother
  • Dark chocolate corresponds to the Crone

And before you think I’m employing M-M-C fundamentalism talked about in another post,

  • Cocoa Powder corresponds to the Hag (more on Her later)
  • Chocolate with nuts corresponds to the God

I am actively pursuing additional wisdom on the spirituality of chocolate. It’s a sacrifice, something I do in service to All-That-Is. And I’m very glad the Universe has a good sense of humor as well as the good taste to bless us with this wonderful substance.

Happy Valentine’s Day and may your day be filled with love and kisses, chocolate or otherwise.

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27 Jun 2008
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Mother, Maiden, Crone Fundamentalism

I go to a number of women’s gatherings and pagan festivals and sometimes I get twitchy when those gathered [very sincerely] categorize the Goddess and the divinely incarnated women present into the pigeonholes of Maiden, Mother, Crone. Like it’s some kind of divine order or framework into all of us MUST and WILL fit into.
I went to a Mother’s Council at one gathering and never went back because the mothers present made it implicitly clear that if you did not have children, had not borne children out of your body, you were not welcome. At that gathering, the age limits were strictly, if non-verbally, “enforced.” So even though I was single, career-oriented and driven to excel, I couldn’t join the maidens because I was older than 19, way older. Because of that experience more than 15 years ago, I ignored my mothering side, rejected it or was defensive about that fact that I never had children out of my body. Never mind that I’m a doggie mom, that I guide people to become witches and priest/esses in their own spiritual life, I supervise, I counsel, and I am often the chief cook and bottle washer in my various roles.
If you’ve read this blog (go ahead read the previous posts, you will like it!), you know that I resisted the Crone threshold too. I only accepted after I realized the the Crone is a threshold, a stage, a step onto a strange new shore. The Crone isn’t all there is. There’s more and I get to discover that!
There are lots of writers out there suggesting new roles. Donna Henes in her book Queen of Myself
says there’s a stage between mother and crone where a woman has sovereignty over herself and her life. She is the Queen. Vivianne Crowley in her book The Way of Wicca expands her view of the Goddess and the God into five aspects. In my book, Rituals of the Dark Moon, I suggested nine ways. Since I wrote that book, I’ve learned that woman and Goddess is even more limitless and encompassing.

We don’t need to be pigeonholed and categorized into one label. We can encompass many roles at once. Maiden, Amazon, Warrior, Queen, Mother, Teacher, Priestess, Witch, Crone, Grandmother, Crone, Croney, Daughter, Sister, Companion, Friend, Lover, Sweetheart; and even the less complimentary terms of Bitch, Slut, Bad Girl, Rowdy Girl, Babe, and more…………
We need to remind ourselves of this chant

Woman am I, Spirit am I
I am the Infinite within my Soul
I have no beginning and I have no end.
Oh, yes I AM!
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13 Mar 2006
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More Ways to Look at the Goddess

More Ways to Look at the Goddess: Keying Her Aspects to the Phases of the Moon and the Wheel of the Year
Part III

Last week I talked about the nine phases of the Goddess, keying them to the nine phases of the Moon. I mentioned that it worked for me, but it didn’t work for one of my friends. I suspect that these things are very individual and we each need to find ways to relating to the Goddess that resonate with our own personal truth. Pick a little from here and pick a little from there.

Last year, I was researching a project that I call Tarot by Moonlight and I came across this very cool article in Llewellyn’s 1996 Moon Sign Book And Lunar Planning Guide. In it I found an article by Karin E. Weiss entitled “The Goddess Circle: A Lunar Portrait of Feminine Spirituality (pp 244-255).” In this article, Weiss presents the eight phases of the moon (my view of nine phases is not traditional, eight phases is the traditional view) in three aspects. She also keys these aspects to the pagan Wheel of the Year, giving a model with a lot of symmetry. I like a lot of symmetry!

Within each of the phases, she points out that there are three faces of the feminine. She bases her ideas on astrology combined with [archetypal] psychology. I’ll try to summarize in a way that is coherent. If you have any questions, please post them in the comments section and I’ll give you my thoughts….

  • New Moon (time between Yule & Imbolc) is Mother-Containment-Nurturance
  • Crescent Moon (time between Imbolc & Ostara) is Maiden-Assertion-Innocence
  • First Quarter Moon (time between Ostara & Beltane) is Wildwoman-Action-Freedom
  • Gibbous Moon (time between Beltane & Litha) is Muse-Expression-Creativity
  • Full Moon (time between Litha & Lammas) is Lover-Fulfillment-Romance
  • Disseminating Moon (time between Lammas & Mabon) is Companion-Synthesis-Mutuality
  • Last Quarter Moon (time between Mabon & Samhain) is Warrior-Reaction-Passion
  • Balsamic Moon (time between Samhain and Yule) is Wise-Woman-Release-Mystery

Within each of those archetypes are more ways of looking at the Goddess, and below you’ll find a summary of Weiss’ concept of these archetypes along with the three manifestations of it.

Mother teaches us about our connections to mother earth while at the same time clarifies our knowledge of our own bodies, its rhythms and cycles. The Mother teaches the elemental power of fertility, pregnancy and birth, as well as the acts of conception, creation, and the sustenance of life. In her we find: Mother Earth, Divine Mother & Child, Grandmother Her holy day is Yule, a time of rebirth and renewal.

Maiden teaches us about emergence and initiation–they mysteries of puberty. She brings together innocence, curiosity, and playfulness as we discover our sexuality. This is the time of “coming out” and asserting our own individual personalities. In her we find: Good Girl, Orphan, Naughty Girl Her holy day is Imbolc a time of initiation and introduction

Wildwoman teaches us about raw, uninhibited power, wild sexual energy and using our passionate and erotic power. She shows us freedom and the unrepressed joy of living fully without artifice or restraint. In her we find: Maenad, Dame Nature, Whore Her Holy day is Ostara, a time of return and rejuvenation

Muse teaches us about giving voice to our own inner vision. She calls us to be true to our imagination and develop as we are called, not as others expect or tell us to. We master our won self-expression without censorship, including our own inner critic. In her we find: The Clown, The Star, The Siren Her holy day is Beltane a time of blossoming and exclaiming the beauty of life.

Lover teaches us about the richness of love, sexuality, and attraction in all its manifestation including lust, erotic, sexual, affection, romance, attachment, and love. She embodies magnetism, beauty, and desire. In her we find: Vamp, Sweetheart, Beauty Queen Her holy day is Litha, a time of high romance

Companion teaches us of relationships, focusing on others along with support, trust, and equality. The support of others’ identities can be a thorny issue of balance and sharing. In her we find: Sister, Mate, Handmaiden Her Holy Day is Lammas, a time of abundance and thanksgiving

Warrior teaches us about strategy, defense and self-authority. She shows us how to protect and to stand up for ourselves and what is right. She establishes boundaries and masters responsibilities. It is a time of passion, creative power, and courage. In her we find: Rebel, Huntress, Heroine Her holy day is Mabon, a time of dedication and liberation

Wise-Woman teaches us about the mysteries of live and of womanhood. She brings to light our erotic power and reveals the power of the Dark within us. She shows us how to transcend our limitations and move into sacred ecstasy. In her we find: Witch/Shaman, Priestess, Mystic Her holy day is Samhain, a time of casting out, letting go and healing

This vision further enriches our ways of looking at the Goddess, the Sacred Feminine and our own inner nature. Many, many facets reflecting the beauty of our own truth.

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13 Mar 2006

Finding Richness in Maiden, Mother, and Crone

Finding Richness in the Maiden, Mother, Crone Aspects
Part II

Of course there is a richness and diversity within the Triple Goddess aspects of Maiden, Mother, and Crone; especially if you move beyond some generic aspects of each of these archetypes. In my meditative work with these aspects of the Goddess, I’ve learned that my understanding is very personal. I key it to the moon cycles and to the seasons.

In my book Rituals of the Dark Moon, I talk about working specifically with the Dark Moon in the signs of the Zodiac and with the Maiden, Mother, and Crone aspects of the Goddess. In doing so, I discovered that, for instance, the Maiden aspect works within an astrological sign, she takes on those characteristics. So there is an Earth Maiden, Air Maiden, Water Maiden, and Fire Maiden. Likewise there is and Earth Mother, Air Mother, Water Mother and Fire Mother, as well as an Earth Crone, Air Crone, Water Crone, and Fire Crone. Then on the 13th month it all weaves together with the Witch.

Looking at the Maiden, Mother, and Crone aspects in this way brings us to the nuances of the Goddess. We see the subtle as well as the obvious. We can dive deep into these aspects and find a very personal interaction with the Goddess. We find out who she is in the infinite variety of She.

The Dark Moon is the perfect time for these kinds of meditations on the Goddess and her stories. The Dark Moon calls us to spiral inward into ourselves. As we do, we find that infinity exists within us, and the inside of us is as vast and eternal as the heavens. The Dark calls us to be honest and to bravely face/confront anything found there. When we do, we find richness and radiance. The anticipation and fear is the worst thing and when we work through that inner fretting and into acceptance, we find treasures. The facets of our internal jewels shine brightly, enhanced by the Dark not supressed by it.

May your brightness always shine wherever you are!

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10 Mar 2006

Maiden, Mother, and Crone, Isn’t She More?

Maiden, Mother and Crone: Isn’t She More?
Part One


Yes….Seeing the Goddess and Maid, Mother, and Crone is practically a doctrine in the Goddess and pagan communities; most people not realizing that this particular envisioning of a triple goddess is not universal and this M-M-C concept came primarily from the Greeks and popularized by Robert Graves in The White Goddess. Some cultures did not envision the Goddess as triple, and others did not see the triple Goddess as M-M-C.

For me, in particular, I didn’t always relate to one aspect or another. I never birthed a child out of my body so some of the more biological versions of Goddess/Woman as Mother held no meaning for me. As I became older [*ahem!*], my pagan friends started assuming I would want a croning ceremony. It has intensified as I’ve journeyed deeper into my fifties. I’m reluctant; not because of growing older or the death thing but because I keep asking “is this all there is?” I’m a crone and then I’m dead. EEEk!!
You already know the answer. No. Just as people, women and men, are incredibly diverse in their roles and self-understanding so is the Goddess infinitely diverse, adapatable and creative. So when I wrote my first book, Rituals of the Dark Moon, I talked about my concept of linking concepts to the nine phases of the moon. This provides a number of ways of relating to the Goddess at different times in our lives–or even multiple ways at one time in our lives.
  • Maiden corresponds to the New Moon. The light is reborn and shines as a tiny sliver, just as the Maiden is new and eagerly embarking on new ideas or a new life. This is a youthful, hopeful and joyous time.
  • Amazon corresponds with the Crescent Moon. The light sharpens and becomes more distinct. This is a time for pursuing passions and fighting the good fight. Confidence and strength are all part of this time.
  • Lover corresponds wit the First Quarter Moon. Half light and half dark. Fully sexual and living without the burdens of responsibility or worry. She looks to others not for completion but for partnership. She is in tune with herself and wants to harmonize with others. She is full of romance, love, lust, and sex.
  • Priestess corresponds with the Gibbous Moon. Waxing and nearly full. She is journeying with Spirit and integrating mind and body with emotions and spirtual life. She knows that there are many things hidden and sacred. She is an initiate in the mysteries of the mon and of sacred womanhood.
  • Mother corresponds with the Full Moon. The moon is all light and fully luminous. Fertile, nurtuing and shining without shadow. Optimism and a vision of hope throughout the world. Fullness. Happiness. Productivity. Fertility.
  • Teacher corresponds with the Disseminating Moon. This is the first phase of waning where the dark begins to overtake the light. Knowing and communicating. Lessons have been learned, and it’s time to pass wisdom on to others. This is a time of acknowledging the dualities of life as part of the song of life. Grief, sorrow, joy, love, life, light, death and dark begin to move together in life.
  • Elder corresponds with the last quarter moon. The moon wanes to half dark and half light, and we all know that the darkness is coming, inexorably. She knows of disappointments and lies, but she also knows of hopes, birth and truth. She reaches out to others, to share her experiences.
  • Crone corresponds with the balsamic phase. The moon is three quarters dark. The Crone knows power. She knows how to use it, badly and for good. Her choices define her, sadden her, uplift her, and enlighten her. She is fully in her power.
  • Witch corresponds with the dark moon. These are three days when the moon is no longer visible to the earthbound. It is a time of radiance and reflection. In my book, I called this phase the Weaver, because of the ability to bring things together in beautiful patterns. The Witch is equally if not more fitting because of the magic and mystery involved in bringing all the extraneous and diverse pieces into the pattern. The Witch brings together everything that the Maiden, Amazon, Lover, and Priestess knows and combines it with the experiences of the Mother, Teacher and Elder. She takes the power of the Crone and transforms this into a magical understanding of the mysteries of All-That-Is. The moon in all her phases is found here. The seasons pool their energy here. It is alchemical, radiant and fabulous!

The waxing phases of the moon teach us of exploration and activity. Through growth and change we learn and gain understanding. Waxing phases teach us that life is good and we can handle it with hope and happiness. After the full moon, it all begins to change and as we experience these changes, we learn that what we fear isn’t all that bad. Even the hardest lessons teach us of our toughness and ability to survive and thrive. In our sense of knowing we become aware of the songs of the Universe and how to sing all the harmonies.

Pretty cool, huh! I tied it all up in a nice neat little package. It works. I related this to a friend of mine and it didn’t work for her at all. So there’s more. And what about the eclipses? What about Void of Course? That’s why this is Part One!

Have a good one and stay tuned for more………….

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