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I post on this site less as the other demands on my time shout for attention. Just too much going on these days! I'll be back when I can, because I do live with a goddess by my side.

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

The Gift of Love

Happy Christmas Eve to everyone. 

If you celebrate Christmas then I wish tomorrow to bring you lots of blessings.  I kind of do, celebrate it, because it's the tradition in which I was raised.  Family traditions are hard to phase out.

And I am in the midst of a Christian family for this holiday, so am being smothered in all the things that that entails.  I have no trouble meeting them on praise for Jesus, who was a wonderful loving "enlightened" teacher...with some really wise ideas which have become part of our society for a couple of thousand years.  That speaks pretty highly of his message.

I think that many enlightened teachers have offered us similar messages over time.  And when I see a picture of Christ smiling in benevolence, or Quan Yin, or the Buddha, or Meher Baba, or many other enlightened ones, I realize how their love is the message that this season is truly promoting.  It's not the gift of things, but the gift of love we can offer to each other.

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Science and sprituality of Solstice


There's the scientific part of it.

December Solstice in Asheville, North Carolina, U.S.A. is on
Sunday, December 21, 2014 at 6:03 PM EST

2 pm shadows cast northerly on 12/19/14

Then there's the spiritual part of it.

Our whole planet will stop tilting completely for that moment in time, though fortunately it keeps spinning.

I ask you to observe that moment as a stopping time place for yourself as well.
You could stand at attention...lie down, sit in meditation...just something different.  Salutations of some kind are due.

See what happens.  What is your experience?

I have often marked on a wall or floor where I live, the point that is the furthest the sun reaches on that day, at that time...as it's at its furthest declination to the earth.  It returns yearly to that same point on the floor...if I calculate the time right.

Just think of Newgrange and Stonehenge...yep.  Those astronomers knew how to calculate the time just fine.  Salutations to our wise ancestors. 

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Contemplation for Solstice

Last year, before setting aside my spiritual interests into this blog, I posted on my "personal blog" about the Winter Solstice HERE, as well as Newgrange Ireland.

I want to add just a bit more about the triple spirals, which I've copied into a finger labyrinth, a form which is in clay ready to be "walked" with one's fingers, or a pencil or toothpick, around the path of 3 spirals.  I've only created a few of these in permanent ceramic shapes, which serve interestingly as trivets or coasters when not in more spiritual use!

The other labyrinths are the design used in the Chartres Cathedral in France...which also can be meditative as you travel it with a small implement between the grooves.

How do these meditations work?  Like all meditations, be sure to set aside some time in which you won't be interrupted.

One popular way is to have a question in mind when starting...or perhaps an intention.  Whenever you meet a turning place, where you have to stop from advancing in the direction you are going, remember that question or intention.  Then move on slowly to the next turning.  By the time you've turned all those directions, even with just a pencil or toothpick, you've repeated your question/intention many times.  Stop at the center.  Reflect.  Do you know more than when you began?  Have you a change to consider?  Spend this time wisely, and don't hurry back out.  As you move back from center to the outside, again take a moment at each turning.

If you are like me, you may have many ideas that you didn't have to start with.  You may want to repeat these at the turns, so as to remember them.  When you finish the labyrinth, you indeed will have traveled to another place with your spirit.  Take time in quietness to record what you experienced.

And munch on something that gives energy, either protein like nuts, or sweets like chocolate, because the body has been serving the higher good of your spirit for the last little while, even if just by sitting and concentrating, rather than walking a full size labyrinth.

I have no idea if the original creators of the triple spiral had this in mind, but it's become a ritual that I find very fulfilling.  What else do you think it might mean?


Tuesday, December 16, 2014

On my list

Come over and check out this lovely post that is a book review, but oh my, what a book.
Click here for the blog: On Animals and the Human Spirit

Terri Windling's blog "Myth & Moor" has beautiful thoughts and imagery.  And her review of the book Zoologies: On Animals and the Human Spirit by Alison Hawthorne Deming, included this quote:
Deming discusses elephants and ants, pigs and oyster, and the animal nature of human beings. "I am tired," she writes, "of the conventional palette with which the lives of animals are painted. Most renderings feel too saturated with gratuitous piety, weighted down by ceaseless elegy, or boastful about heroic encounters on the last islands of wilderness. I want something closer to the marrow of our lived days, as in childhood, when an animal story or encounter could make me wonderstruck."

Windling also posts images this time of her dear companion dog, Spencer.  The next day she focused on Fairy Tales and wonderful art images.  Do look every once in a while to see what she's sharing.

It took me a night or two before it sunk in, how few animals have encounters with human children, or vice versa, these days.

Pets become our dear friends, where their own personalities can be expressed.

How important it is to be quiet when walking in the woods (preferably without a dog) so that you might just chance upon a real live creature of the woods.  Our children are chatter boxes.  They also live in a life of boxes...homes, schools, SUV's and techno-boxes.  No live creatures to cause wonder there.

And pul-eeze don't tell me the entertainment at an amusement park with doll-like animals can inspire the same awe as rounding a corner and looking into a deer's huge liquid eyes.

Nor can going to the best zoo, where animals may be treated humanely (what's wrong with that phrase!) but they know they have very few choices like they would have in their natural habitat.  That's animal jail, folks.  Don't you want to go visit the inmates in a human jail?

I hope you enjoy Windling's blog, and I think I'm going to be reading the book by Demming.

Sunday, December 14, 2014

Breath and meditation

I recently spent all day with another woman, doing a pottery show.  I knew it could get stressful, so told my friend that I would be taking intentional meditative moments whenever I could.  I would just go "away" and spend a moment or two grounding myself. (I planned to do it at 5 minutes past the hour if possible.) She liked the idea, and I noticed her sitting in a meditative pose with her eyes closed a few times.  I could do it just staring into space and saying the mantra I've connected with my own meditative trances.

Then a few days ago I was pleased to read about breath and meditation.

Just Breathe: The Practice of Permission, Affirmation, & Dedication

Posted by on in Studies Blogs

Daily Practice is giving ourself the permission to breathe. It is accepting that the world will keep spinning regardless of whether I am in it or not, so why not take a moment for myself. It is just one moment.... And so I ask, are you breathing? Right now, wherever you might be reading this, are you giving yourself the permission to breathe just one deep breath with intention? If not, then let this be your invitation. If that is the only intentional breath you have taken or will take today, that is good enough, because you are good enough.
Thanks Erick!

Since I also have COPD with breathing treatments 3 times a day, as well as lots of medications, this was an important reminder of the connection that I haven't been practicing...breath and meditation together.  I usually do my yoga-ish poses before meditating, but don't do breathing as part of it.  No longer!

Friday, December 12, 2014

Sharing a sad idea

I'm sharing this
because I'd just spent a week in "civilization" the paved world that my son and his kids live in.  I did insist on a walk in nature one day...and it felt so good for me.  My granddaughter could only relate to the swing sets on a playground, and she's 16.

Trees?  Flooded river?  Natural spring?  Seeing a crane preening? Not so much.

A couple of days ago I read this blog...
Nature is for the rich. This is a fundamental belief of Capitalism. If you are rich, then you are entitled to natural beauty and spiritual morning walks. If you are not rich, then nature is a magnanimous gift the rich can bestow upon you when they feel like it.
This is an excerpt from her posting.  Thanks Asa West for your insights, at Shahkinah Calling.

I do believe being a pagan, loving and being inspired by nature, is inherently everyone's right.  But access is sometimes a bit more difficult for those who just have their survival needs met at the basic levels.  This is something we have to stand up for, I think.

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Divine Feminine program

Susa Silvermarie
I'm am so pleased to have talented friends who put on a great program of poetry and music last Sunday.
Annelinde (Linda) Metzner
I mentioned it here on another of my blogs.

Linda and Susa both write poetry, and are published in the 2015 WeMoon calendars.  That's why the cover was posted, as they sold both wall and book forms of these calendars.

These are some of the photos I took of the performance.

Susa Silvermarie, Annelinde Metzner and Kim Hughes

Kim's singing was truly wonderful

Linda composed the music which Kim sang, and recited poems she wrote also
Susa's poetry included her dramatic gestures

Intermission included lovely snacks with proceeds to benefit the church in which the event was held.
The program about the Divine Feminine attracted many woman and a few men.  Shelly speaks with Kim during intermission.
Nels Arnold and Susa had a discussion
Three talented women who inspired the audience!
Pottery by Nels Arnold
A simple altar with bowls of water for blessing ourselves
Thank you so much dear powerful, beautiful, goddessing women!  The photos are available by request from blackmtnbarb AT gmail DOT com...in higher resolution.

Monday, December 8, 2014

Your personal Spiritual Court.

Thanks for this concept to -
Ancestor healing web page and blog post here.

One particular quote I'd like to share says:
When modern peoples, therefore, choose to become initiated into one of these systems – whether that be Santeria, Druidism, or something else – what they are actually doing is being adopted into the worship of another culture’s deified ancestors.
Now am I saying that there is something wrong with this? Absolutely not! As anyone who has ever been involved with almost any of these religions knows, initiation and participation into one of the so-called “nature-based” polytheisms can be one of the most rewarding, enriching and transformative experiences you will ever have. If that’s what you have done, or are considering doing, great!
 Check out the whole article, it's enriching!

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Gainism, polytheism and pantheism

That's the site which has lots of FAQ's about pagan topics. And it's a great magazine about Pagans and Witches. I usually call our mother earth, Gaia. I also call pantheism an earth-based religion. http://witchesandpagans.com/paganism-101/introduction-to-paganism/286-faq-about-paganism.html

Q: What is a Gaian? What is Gaianism?

A Gaian is a person who focuses his/her spiritual faith upon the Earth (Gaia.) Gaianism is a growing movement devoted to the creation of an earth-wise spirituality that honors the Earth and all life as the primary source, sustainer, and reality for life. Gaians may be Pagans, Christians (see Creation-Spirituality movement of Matthew Fox), atheists, Scientific Pantheists, or any other religion/faith that is willing to focus its energy upon the spirituality of connection with the biosphere. As a very young offshoot of Paganism, Gaian theology, philosophy, and ethics are still in a formative stage.

Q: What are the ethics of polytheistic and pantheistic traditions?

A: Because each tradition has its own set of ethics, these vary considerably. Common ethical guidelines include: Treat all sacred objects, places, and entities with respect. Honor the Earth who gave you life. Take only what you need, and offer fair return for whatever you take. Destruction in its proper time can prove beneficial, but do not destroy anything just for the sake of destruction. Every person contains a little spark of divinity, so speak to the divine spark in everyone you meet. Allow others to worship as they choose. Sexuality is a blessing, not a curse; yet the power to create new life brings with it the obligation to do so responsibly. Do not meddle with that which you do not understand.
==========================

Polytheism has more than one god or goddess.

Pantheism is the belief that all living things have the divine within them.




Tuesday, December 2, 2014

She's how tall?

Seventeen and a half feet tall.
And they've removed her to a museum.  That's ok, more people can see her that way.

The Venus of Laussel


From Lisa Sauresson: (Blog posted Nov 20, 2014 HERE) where she compares Mary Magdalene with the Venus of Laussel.
Much of what we know about human origins comes to us from southern France, the prehistoric cave paintings and engravings discovered there. Our ancestors' art, such as the Venus of Laussel, shows our original impulse to revere women and the center of women's bodies.
b2ap3_thumbnail_Venus-de-Laussel-detail-bras.jpgThis limestone engraving, discovered in 1911 in the Dordogne, has been a central inspiration for The Woman's Belly Book. Seventeen and one-half feet high, the ochre-stained engraving dates back 25,000 years.
The Venus of Laussel brings forth a full-figured woman. She rests her left hand on her belly, perhaps pointing to her navel. Her head turns over her right shoulder; she's looking at the horn she's holding up in her right hand. Thirteen lines scratch the horn's surface.
Who knows what the sculptors had in mind and heart when they carved out this figure? Who knows what they meant their work to signify?
As I see her, this figure is using her arms and hands to link her belly with the calculation, the calendar, which is the horn she is holding.
b2ap3_thumbnail_Venus-de-Laussel-detail-tete.jpgThe horn's crescent shape reprises a phase of the moon. With a count of thirteen marks on the horn, the engraving as a whole may be noting the year's thirteen lunar months as well as women's annual round of thirteen menstrual cycles.
In effect, this engraving presents the cycles implicit in a woman's body in relation to the cycles marked by celestial bodies.

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And from Wikipedia:
The Venus of Laussel is a Venus figurine, a 17.5 foot high limestone bas-relief of a nude female figure, painted with red ochre. It was carved into a large block of fallen limestone in a rock shelter (abri de Lausselfr:Abri de Cap Blanc) in the commune of Marquay, in the Dordogne department of southwestern France. The carving is associated with the Gravettian Upper Paleolithic culture (approximately 25,000 years old). It is currently displayed in the Musée d'Aquitaine in Bordeaux, France.
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OK, nobody took the stone carving off the wall, in order to get it into a museum, which makes me sigh.

And it's such a great message 25,000 years later.  Women, moon, menstruation (that's her belly that she's got one hand on, and the other, as well as her face pointed at it has the 13 marked moons.

Yep, we can still understand it's message.

Thank you very smart people who knew all about what us human women were like.  And still are.  I absolutely love the photo from Wikipedia, which shows how curved this carving is, since all the others I'd seen are flattened.  That's celebration of that belly of a woman.  What a wonderful part of our anatomy.  Oh dear, I'm editorializing, aren't I?


Sunday, November 30, 2014

blending attitudes about pagans

Q: Can you be a Pagan and a Christian?

A: Yes. Such people may call themselves Christo-Pagans, Mystic Christians, or other names reflecting their dual heritage. Angel Wicca is another popular example. Some Afro-Caribbean religions like Santeria combine Pagan and Christian elements too. You can blend together aspects from many different religions according to what feels right to you; many people do this. In your explorations you might meet a "Jewitch" studying Judaism and Witchcraft, or a "Pagan Sufi" studying Paganism and the Sufi branch of Islam, or just about any other combination you can imagine.
Thanks to:
Elizabeth Barrette, lives in central Illinois with lifepartner, in a large Victorian farmhouse with a yard frequented by wildlife. An avid wordsmith, she works as a writer and editor, doing poetry, articles, essays, reviews, interviews, short stories. She is a former editor of PanGaia magazine and has written several popular books published by Llewellyn including the popular 2012 Magical Almanac and Composing Magic and many more. She is a member of The Greenhaven Tradition, and Fieldhaven Coven in central Illinois.

It is perhaps misleading even to say that there was such a religion as “paganism” at the beginning of [the Common Era] ... It might be less confusing to say that the pagans, before their competition with Christianity, had no religion at all in the sense in which that word is normally used today. They had no tradition of discourse about ritual or religious matters (apart from philosophical debate or antiquarian treatise), no organized system of beliefs to which they were asked to commit themselves, no authority-structure peculiar to the religious area, above all no commitment to a particular group of people or set of ideas other than their family and political context. If this is the right view of pagan life, it follows that we should look on paganism quite simply as a religion invented in the course of the second to third centuries AD, in competition and interaction with Christians, Jews and others.
—North 1992, 187—88, in Cameron, Alan G.; Long, Jacqueline; Sherry, Lee (1993). Barbarians and Politics at the Court of Arcadius. University of California Press.


Wikipedia gives this:
Paganism is a broad group of indigenous and historical polytheistic religious traditions—primarily those of cultures known to the classical world. In a wider sense, paganism has also been understood to include any non-Abrahamic, folk, or ethnic religion.
Contemporary or modern paganism, also known as neopaganism, is a group of new religious movements influenced by, or claiming to be derived from, the various historical pagan beliefs of pre-modern Europe.
 There is much more discussed on that site.

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Margo Adler

Excerpts from the memorial service recently held for a goddess.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuuJ6DQtHYY&feature=youtu.be

If you don't know much about Margo, besides having heard her on NPR frequently...go search and learn about a powerful, amusing, dedicated, loving, down-to-earth...woman!

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Goddess, God, and Wicca

I spoke up the other night and said "I'm a pagan."  This was in answer to someone saying the word as if it were nasty...you know the sneer on someone's face who was brought up believing pagans worshiped the devil...a totally Christian viewpoint.  She said she is finding out that "Christian" as a term also has many meanings, depending upon which denomination you might find talking about it.  A Catholic and a Baptist certainly say many different things than a Unitarian Universalist Christian.

But as a Pagan, I also embrace the Goddess in Her many aspects (though not all pagans do).  Let's look at more information that isn't biased from the Christian perspective. After all, that's probably why you're reading this!

 -----------------------

Q: Who is the Goddess? The God?

A: The Goddess is the female aspect of divinity. As Maiden, She is the perfect innocent child who shows us the simple joys in life. As Mother, She is the perfect mate and provider who nourishes and guards us. As Crone, She is the perfect grandmother who teaches us wisdom and leads us into the next world. The Goddess loves all of us as Her children; all life comes from Her and eventually returns to Her. The God is the male aspect of divinity. At different stages, He is the son and the lover of the Goddess. He teaches us about manhood and fatherhood. As the Horned One, He reigns over the crops of the field for harvest and the wild animals for hunting. Together the Goddess and the God bring us blessings and challenges according to our needs. Their eternal dance marks the changing seasons, as They each change form and show us Their different faces.

Q: What is Witchcraft? Is it the same thing as Wicca?

A: Witchcraft encompasses several branches of Paganism, one of which is Wicca. Others include Stregheria (Italian Witchcraft) and a feminist version that considers every woman a Witch. Not everyone means the same thing when they say "Witchcraft" – some mean only religion, some mean magic, and many mean both. The lowercase "witchcraft" may refer simply to the practice of magic, not to a religion. Usually Witchcraft is a complex, positive belief system which incorporates a God and a Goddess venerated through ritual. Wicca follows that paradigm, drawing most of its content from the works of Gardner and Alexander; modern traditions include Dianic, Faerie, Eclectic, and even Angel Wicca. The Wiccan religion incorporates gender equity, immanent divinity and immanent worth, and the responsible use of magic.

---------------------------------

We shared a little about Pagans before.  Still to come...Gainism, polytheism, and magic.  (Or you can go look at the site, which I've heard less than 50% of people actually do.) 


Monday, November 24, 2014

The Great Goddess and her Influence

I don't need to reiterate all the scholarly work that has been written about the goddess throughout history.  And this article is one that I find covers a lot of information.

The author, Dr. Cristina Biaggi is an artist, sculptor, lecturer and author/editor whose works are a reflection and an extension of her lifelong interest in the classics, art and art history, archaeology, literature, and languages.

Let's see if you feel like clicking a link today...
The Great Goddess and Her Influence

It was published in 2006 in the first issue of the magazine "Goddess Pages" which is still available on line.  As a matter of fact all issues are available here.

I may have more quotes from this site later.

And Dr. Biaggi is still doing what she does...here is her web site, and in 2010 she had a blog HERE.
That blog has lots of great photos in nature and of goddesses!  I'll be reading more of it myself.

 Crucifixion_I_thCrucifixion Triptych I, 1977





Sunday, November 23, 2014

Women gathering in Her Name

Ramya, Barbara, Judy,(in back) Jane, Linda, Louise?, Heidi, Mamie, Byron.  Front row, Annie, Rita, Joni, Su, and Teresa
In 2010, this great group of women met for 8 sessions of a class that focused upon goddess her-stories that ranged throughout the world, from Mary Magdelene to Pele'.

Sadly, two of these gorgeous women have passed beyond the veil, as they say.  We miss them both.

I no longer have red hair...indeed in the 4 years after this I've let it grow out and is totally white now, and long. I do still have a tummy that likes to peak out from below my shirt.  I won't say what has been happening in any of the other women's lives...and I also am sad that I haven't had any continuing touch with several of them.

This class studied a Unitarian Universalist curriculum "Rise Up and Call Her Name."  It was taught with variations based on the desires of the class and the facilitators.  Three wonderful dedicated women shared the duties of presentations, and we were all so grateful to Byron, Linda and Mamie.

What was important about this class (as well as many others shared by women through UU curriculums) is that it helps women speak together and learn more of the powerful her-stories of goddesses.

This last year Linda and Byron taught another class to encourage a new generation of women and their daughters to learn through song, dance, art and crafts...and we elders certainly enjoyed it as well.

Saturday, November 22, 2014

The Divine Feminine

The following article is the introduction on a web site by the same name, which began in 2009 and continues (intermittently it seems) with dialog and courses.  The organizer is Joy Reichard, of San Mateo, CA.  http://www.meetup.com/Divine-Feminine-Wisdom/
 
The voice of the Divine Feminine is re-emerging in human consciousness bringing with Her a new vision of the sacredness and unity of life. Her voice is needed during these chaotic times. Our stressful, fast paced culture that emphasizes masculine ideals such as competitiveness, control and domination often confuses and dis-empowers women. Confused as to what is appropriate feminine behavior, many women become over-involved in care taking others, are afraid to say no, or to set healthy boundaries. Unsatisfied needs and/or unexpressed rage can lead to fatigue, indecisiveness, a lack of enthusiasm and depression. Or it can manifest as the martyr, the victim, the saboteur or the “bitch.”These negative character traits are destructive whether we act them out, or are victimized by them when they erupt in others.
By reclaiming the images and mythologies of the Divine Feminine from around the globe we rediscover Her wisdom, Her rich symbolism and Her life-affirming traits that offer positive role models and guidance to modern women and men. By honoring the Divine Feminine we remember to honor ourselves, our bodies, our ability to feel deeply and express our feelings, and our feminine ways of knowing. We remember to value motherhood and children, as well as all living beings with who we share this beautiful but increasingly fragile planet. By honoring the Divine Feminine we take time to remember the Great Mother of us all who has provided for all living beings for eons; She who is both abundant and unpredictable in her terrible but awesome beauty. As we reclaim the Divine Feminine, we reclaim the divine that is within each woman, and each man who opens to Her, enabling us to reconnect to ourselves, the sensuality of our bodies and to our feminine wisdom as we can claim, or reclaim, our personal power and our passion for life. The message of the Divine Feminine is one of peace, compassion, and respect for all life. She is ancient and wise, and she is very present within each one of us right now.
Join me in exploring the wisdom of the Divine Feminine that has been passed down through the ages and is flavored with contemporary philosophy, theology, psychology and creative expression. This Meetup sponsors a monthly In Her Name Circle celebrating a manifestation of the Divine Feminine . These Circles evolved from a growing need for women to gather together to honor the Divine Feminine and the divine within. We meet on the second Friday of the month.
The IN HER NAME CIRCLE will resume 
January 23, 2015  
Relationships are important for women, and circles provide a natural way for women to gather and create a safe place to greet old friends and make new ones.  In circle women find the confidence to speak freely from the heart and know that they will be heard, if not always agreed with.  
Unitarian Universalist Congregation

300 East Santa Inez Ave., San Mateo, CA (map)

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As I just tumped my laptop upside down to get the piece of rice cake out of the crack in the keyboard, I also checked in on Facebook.  So there was a post about Starhawk.

She was my introduction to goddesses, divine feminine and eco-feminism...as well as lots of other things.  Check out this article, I won't copy it here...it's probably copyrighted anyway.

9 Lessons in Spiritual Leadership From Starhawk 


Friday, November 21, 2014

What is a pagan?

This is one simplified answer.
A Pagan is a person who feels a strong connection to nature, who holds the Earth and its creatures sacred, and who seeks a personal connection with the Divine. Pagan religions come from all around the globe, from ancient history and contemporary times as well. Paganism encompasses the reverence of nature, the worship of the Divine in many guises but especially as an embodiment of natural forces, the observance of seasonal cycles, and a perennial quest for personal growth. Most Pagan religions are polytheistic, celebratory faiths. Like any religion, Paganism is much too complex to describe fully in just a few words.

Q: What do Pagans believe?

A: This depends on the Pagans, because different Pagan religions have different tenets. Still, some common threads emerge. More often than not, Pagans believe: The God(s) and Goddess(es) made this world as a kind of school, where souls can enter bodies to learn many valuable lessons. Your body is a precious gift that you should cherish and care for accordingly. All the plants, animals, landscape features – everything in this world is sacred and worthy of respect. You must take responsibility for your own life and actions. Magic, a focusing of Will to alter reality, can help you shape your life to positive ends. Many good spirits offer help and guidance along the way. You have a right to choose a religion meaningful to you and helpful in achieving your goals. You are a good and worthwhile person; you do not need to "do" anything to earn or keep the love of the God and the Goddess, because unconditional love comes with no strings attached. Humanity includes the capacity for great good and great evil; we are not tainted by some "original sin" from which we need "salvation" but we do need to choose right action over wrong action. After you die, you will travel to a beautiful place and be reunited with your ancestors and friends who have gone before; you may or may not return to Earth for another lifetime.
More questions about pagans are answered at the on-line magazine Witches and Pagans, on their FAQ page HERE. 

The author of this FAQ:
Elizabeth Barrette lives in central Illinois with her lifepartner, in a large Victorian farmhouse with a yard frequented by wildlife. An avid wordsmith, she works as a writer and editor, doing poetry, articles, essays, reviews, interviews, short stories. She is a former editor of PanGaia magazine and has written several popular books published by Llewellyn including the popular 2012 Magical Almanac and Composing Magic and many more. She is a member of The Greenhaven Tradition, and Fieldhaven Coven in central Illinois.

I'll share more from the FAQ sheet about various pagan/goddess/wiccan questions.

Thursday, November 20, 2014

The Lost World of Old Europe Exhibition

 “Goddess is a metaphor for the great force of creativity and compassion that underlies existence”. Starhawk

Before you go running off to New York, remember this exhibit was in 2010...sorry about that.  I just thought it was worth commemorating here, as written.

Observations on The Lost World of Old Europe Exhibition
by Lydia Ruyle, Artist, Author, Scholar


One of the highlights of a holiday trip to New York City in 2009 was a visit to The Lost World of Old Europe, The Danube Valley, 5000-3500 BCE exhibition at New York University. We arrived just after a huge snowstorm had blanketed the east coast. The city streets were piled with snow and ice and we were bundled up from head to toe to deal with the cold.
A large banner with a Goddess image on it stood at the entrance to the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World building a block east of the Metropolitan Museum of Art on 84th. Walking inside, we deposited our gear in a closet and walked into the surprisingly small exhibition space. Visually the entire exhibition is a celebration of the feminine.
A case with a vessel, a large map of Old Europe, and an introduction to the exhibition are on the wall in the foyer. The introduction states:
“In 4500 BCE, before the invention of writing and before the first cities of Mesopotamia and Egypt were established, Old Europe was among the most sophisticated and technologically advanced regions in the world. The phrase “Old Europe” refers to a cycle of related cultures that thrived in southeastern Europe during the fifth and fourth millennia BC. The heart of Old Europe was centered in the Danube River’s fertile valleys, where agriculturally rich plains were exploited by Neolithic farmers who founded long lasting settlements—some of which grew to substantial size, with populations reaching upward of 10,000 people. Today, the intriguing and enigmatic remains of these highly developed cultures can be found at sites that extend from modern day Serbia to Ukraine. The Lost World of Old Europe: The Danube Valley, 5000-3000 BC presents extraordinary finds from the three countries with the richest Old European archaeological heritage—Bulgaria, the Republic of Moldova, and Romania.
While Old Europe can be defined geographically with relative simplicity, the identification of cultural groups who lived there is more complicated. Since these cultures did not leave behind any written sources, the material remains from excavated settlements are the only tools that scholars can use to reveal both localized and common customs. Archaeological exploitation began throughout the region at the end of the nineteenth century but systematic excavations did not commence until the 1930s. During these formative years, when a common Old European culture had not yet been identified, archaeologists began classifying individual cultural groups based upon the site where each was first recognized. Hence, the Cucuteni culture is named after the modern Romanian village of Cucuteni, where the first remains from this culture were excavated. The same is true for the lower Danube site of Gumelnita and Hamangia, and Varna in Bulgaria, all highlighted in this exhibition.
Modern observers have projected quite different visions on the remains of Old Europe. But this much is clear—far earlier than is generally recognized, southeastern Europe achieved a level of technological skill, artistic creativity, and social sophistication that defies our standard categories and is just beginning to be understood in a systematic way. New studies of old collections, future excavation projects, and exhibitions such as this one hold out hope for a clearer understanding of Old Europe, the first proto civilization of Europe itself.”


There are two rooms for the exhibition which you can see from the foyer through tall glass doors. One is filled with exquisite ceramics, large and small, small gold objects and items made from spondylous shells which were traded across the Danube area. A raised rectangle platform displays the ceramics at waist level making it very easy to see the details. The size of some of the vessels is astonishing, some two to three feet in diameter. The patterns and details on the full rounded vessels are stunning. The artistic ability and skill to create the vessels, decorate them with symbols and the technology to fire them in kilns are most impressive.

A figure seated in a vessel decorated with symbols connects a female figure with vessel as a shrine. There are also several large clay figures of females, approximately twelve to fifteen inches high which are hollow, in cases along the wall.
I’ve found only by actually seeing and experiencing objects can you appreciate their scale and detail. I use what I call my artistic sight, trained now for over fifty years, to see, feel and touch the gorgeous, sophisticated objects. The ceramics symbolize to me the abundance of creation and creativity in female forms.
The second room, which you enter by parting two tall glass doors, felt like entering a shrine or sacred space. At the center of the room across from the doors is a case with the Thinking Man and Thinking Woman in it. The Thinking Man has breasts and I think is a female. Douglas Anthony, one of the exhibition curators, stated in a radio interview that The Thinking Man could be a woman. Hooray   Women can think   Amazing 
In the middle of the room are two cylinders lighted from within displaying groups of clay figurines, one titled a Council of Goddesses. One cylinder has the figures arranged in a circle, the other has the figures in a vessel. The figures are small, the largest perhaps eight inches, and half of them are seated on seats or thrones.
The text labels on the circle of figures states:
“This group of twenty-one figurines (thirteen large and eight small) was found together with fragments from two large ceramic vessels, one meant to contain them and the other functioning as a lid. The figurines and the fragments were placed adjacent to a hearth inside a large building, interpreted as a sanctuary, which from archaeological remains appears to have been intentionally destroyed by fire.
Originally wrapped in straw to protect them, the figurines can be identified as female by their clearly marked anatomy. All have schematically rendered bodies with abbreviated heads and arms, and exaggerated hips. The thirteen larger statuettes are set apart from the eight smaller ones by their painted decoration and the individualized chairs that accompany them. Two of the figurines could possibly be identified as senior by the fact that they sit on horn-backed thrones, a type of seating that in later cultures held ritual or religious significance. The intentional placements of these figurines next to a hearth, the emphasis on female anatomical details, and the hierarchy among the statuettes have prompted some scholars to identify the group as a “Council of Goddesses.” The lack of specific information concerning a Cucuteni or Old European pantheon, however, prevents a specific identification of this intriguing collection.”
The second lighted cylinder features figures seated around a central opening in a shrine like vessel again connecting figures with vessel suggesting female ritual in a defined ritual space.
There are cases around the room with more figures in them. An explanation text on the wall in the second room states:
“Old European Figurines: Materials, Composition and Technique
Anthropomorphic figurines were fashioned by Neolithic cultures from Anatolia to Thessaly, from Egypt to the Levant, and from Mesopotamia to Southeast Asia. Made in a wide array of materials—stone, metal, fired clay, ivory, shell, and bone—they are found in domestic and funerary contexts and probably played a central role in the social and ritual life of the communities producing them.
Among Old European cultural groups, figurines were predominantly modeled in clay. Bodies were usually composed of two modeled pieces that were pressed together and then covered with an additional layer of clay. For larger figurines, a two-piece mold may have been used. The body of each figurine was then decorated. Pierced holes, incision work, and painted motifs were frequently used to enliven the surface. After firing, small attachments, often in copper, were inserted in the holes as ornaments.
Each cultural group living in the Danube Valley developed a unique tradition for the depiction of the human body, favoring specific shapes, forms, and decoration. For example, the Cucuteni culture created highly stylized bodies with abbreviated heads and arms, and decorated them with extraordinarily precise incision work and painted motifs to create complex series of signs and symbols. In contrast, the Hamangia culture preferred more accurate representations or figures that combined realistic bodies and unrealistic “pillar” heads, while generally avoiding painted decoration.
An element common to all figures is their miniaturization. The small size, resulting from compression and abstraction of the human body, must have been fundamental in defining the function and meaning of these objects. It has been suggested that they were used in initiation rites, to prompt narratives or as magical depictions of deities. Regardless of the various interpretations, it is certain that the size allowed a person to interact with these tiny bodies, moving and arranging them with respect to surrounding space and to one another, thus creating a highly individualized relationship between each user and the figurines.
The female figure was of great symbolic significance during the Neolithic period, as attested by a proliferation of figurines in a variety of materials, here including stone, lime plaster, and clay. Although we cannot be certain whether these figures represent humans or deities, some scholars have identified them as representations of a Mother Goddess, possibly linked to the importance of fertile land in agricultural societies.”
(underlined emphasis mine)
The majority of the figures are small and female in form. Usage of the term figurines rather than figures suggests to me a subtle method of diminishing their significance as sacred objects. Their size could be a function of the physical properties of clay itself as larger figures must be hollow in order to keep clay from exploding at high firing temperatures.
The texts for the objects and explanations attempt to reflect a “scientific” left brained approach to the material. I included the mounted texts from the exhibition in this review in order to give a framework for what the exhibition organizers present. Like any selection process, the objects chosen and the texts are the choices of the organizers. I do not interpret them as negative just limited as to the concept of a Goddess. For me, the missing element is the artistic spiritual insight of the material which celebrates the fecundity and abundance of life in the female form as a Great Goddess. I agree with Starhawk that “Goddess is a metaphor for the great force of creativity and compassion that underlies existence”. From my experience, western archaeology avoids the term. Eastern European archaeology uses the term Goddess with respect and reverence.
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The perfect artist/scholar to review this exhibit, find out more about Lydia Ruyle.....
Getting inside her head:
"Seeking with my mind and body, knowing with my inner being, life gives me wake-up calls. Art and the Ancient Mothers call me on a journey. Art is my soul language. I create because I must. After exploring many media, I began to make icons, sacred images of the divine feminine, to tell herstory and share my art with the world." 
--- Lydia Ruyle
To see Lydia's incredible banners, true Ambassadors of Goddess, that have traveled around the globe for years raising awareness of the Feminine, go to www.lydiaruyle.com
The Goddess figure featured on a banner outside the exhibition and on the front page story in The New York Times about the exhibition opening is similar to Cucetani Venus, a Goddess Icon Banner Lydia created in 2006 for an Archaeomythology Conference at the Brukenthal Museum in Sibiui, Romania.
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Source: http://www.examiner.com/article/goddess-of-old-europe-debuts-new-york-exhibit-at-new-york-university

Please note, by checking for info on Lydia Ruyle, I only was able to get a link that worked to her art, which is very interesting!  http://www.lydiaruyle.com/artpage1.html

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Be wild

Borrowed from Facebook.

This dovetails nicely to my reading of "Glorious Women," a sermon from the free on-line book of sermons which won prizes, by Rev. Dorothy Wilson Kimble. (the entire PDF file was linked yesterday here.) It won the sermon award for 1992.  Part of the reason I read this one was that Rev. Kimble was born in the same year I was.  But this is one of the most powerful woman-authenticating sermons I've ever read (or heard.)

I quote...


From Mary Daly on answering the call of the wild.  She writes:

Enspiriting is hearing and following the call of the wild, which is in the Self.  The call to wild-ize our Selves, to free and unfreeze our Selves is a wild and fantastic calling to transfer our energy to our Selves and to Sister Selves…Wild means “living in a state of nature; inhabiting natural haunts: not tamed or domesticated…”  It means “growing…not cultivated…not subjected to restraint or regulation…exceeding conventional bounds…deviating from the expected course…great in intensity.

Source: Mary Daly, Gyn/Ecology: The Metaethics of Radical Feminism (Boston: Beacon Press, 1978), 343-344.