Sunday, January 26, 2014

The Goddess with a thousand names

Writing the Goddess' name
I have been thinking a lot about my last post about how to get the know the Goddess by naming aspects, qualities and attributes; by coming up with suitable adjectives and epithets. I also thought it would be a good idea to do some collage. Up till now it is hard to find pictures which represent Her and at the same time don’t confine Her. So I find myself back behind my laptop with a new Word Doc.
How am I going to capture Her essence in words?
Which words can describe Her without limiting Her?
Since She is all encompassing, where do I start?

To be honest I speak a lot about God(dess) but momentarily I perceive God as Female. This differs from time to time but for now I will address God as She and Her. Feel free to substitute these words by He and Him or They and Them

In my opinion the goddess is represented by numerous goddesses/archetypes. In every culture there are for instance a mother, a warrior, a maiden, a protectress, a wise woman, a lover, an enchantress, a teacher, a healer, a storyteller, a weaver, a spinner, a witch, a wild, woman….. etc.
These words tell us something about Her, yet they remain colorless and abstract. With adjectives and epithets we can paint the nouns and give them more depth and layers. For example:
Teacher of a thousand ways –Diligent Weaver of lives – Gentle Healer with the softest hands – Lady who has dominion over all that is wild and ferocious. Brave warrior, full of strength and compassion,
Nurturing Mother with Her arms open wide…..etc

When you start playing and shuffling like this with words, the possibilities are endless. And isn’t that what She is all about. So for the time being I will shift my attention to writing about Her instead of trying to make a collage or a painting.
To boost my “creative writing skills”, I thought it might be a good idea to draw a single card  (oracle or tarot) which will point me to an aspect of The goddess
Robin Wood Tarot and Goddess statue
For example this morning I’ve drawn the Page of Wands. In my tarot journal I have written this quote from Leila Vey: “I am the spirit of innovation and self-expression. I see the world in a new way, and can hardly contain my excitement with its possibilities. I live for the spark of inspiration which plunges me into the joy of creating something new. Even when others disapprove, I cannot help but express myself with truth. I celebrate my individuality, my originality in everything I do.”
So I could name The goddess:
The creative confident Lady of exiting new possibilities
The fierce Adventuress who dares to take a risk
The brave and frank Speaker of truth
(I have to admit this is easier in Dutch J). So, these are just a few of my thoughts and I welcome any ideas from you how to get to know Her a little bit better.

12 comments:

  1. You express yourself much better in English than you think you do! When I did my life timeline and looked at the deities I'd been drawn to over the years, I found that only 3 were male, 6 were female, 4 could be either (bodhisattvas like Kuan Yin/Avalokita), and one had no gender (Ein Soph). So like you, I think I lean toward a more feminine version.

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    1. Thank you for saying that. I have mainly been drawn to a general Mother Goddess and I have been trying to "fit" her aspects into known goddesses At first mainly Germanic and later on I've researched other pantheons too. Then it really got confusing and I was more reading up on myths and trying to fit it all together than I was associating with Her. So here I am back to the basics

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  2. I always find your posts so timely - relevant to themes going on in my own life. Since the New Year I have been immersed in the study of the Goddess and how I relate to her energy. Your lovely posts are always appreciated : ) I would ask what deck that first card is from - I love it, but don't recognize it. I have only one of Lisa Hunt's decks - the Animals Divine, but I know it's not from that deck...

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    1. How nice to know we are both on the same journey. I've found this picture online and it is the cover of a book called Celtic Lore and Legend
      Thanks for stopping by

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  3. I love your lyrical naming of the Goddess - that's just beautiful! And your inspiration from the Page of Wands sounded pretty good in English, too :D

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    1. Well thanks Kerry. It seems like I am improving my English a bit as I was hoping when I started writing this blog :)

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  4. In her wild free incarnation Tina Turner singing comes to mind...

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    1. That could be fun too: to assign aspects of Her to famous people or movie characters. Brunhilde (Kristanna Loken) from "The Ring of the Nibelungs" could be the warrior or protectress
      http://www.pinterest.com/pin/146578162843130910/

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  5. HI Ellen! I love this post! It's very beautiful and deep. Not only you are a great artist, as I can see in your paintings but and excellent writer too!!! Muchas Estrellas!!!!!!!!

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    1. Hi Las Magas! Long time no see. How have you been?
      Thanks for the compliments that is so sweet of you to say
      hugs

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    2. I'm fine dear Ellen, thank you!!! "I'm back..." :D Regarding my comment it's totally true, you anallyze in detail and you write in a clear and excellent way. I send you a kiss and Muchas Estrellas!!!

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