The far-off origins of the Serpent-crowned Witch Goddess, Medusa are clouded by the mists of time and unclear, however, there are various theories and legends surrounding the Goddess.
Some are of the opinion that Medusa was originally a Libyan (Arabian) Goddess ruling over the underworld ( chthonic), similar to Ereshkigal , Persephone or Lilith; others maintain that Medusa was a Greek Witch with snakes as hair and possessing the Evil Eye.In the Triple Goddess tradition ( most Goddesses are represented as a triple); Medusa had two sisters, Stheino and Euryale, coming from a lost , ancient world and born of Dark underworld Sea deities Phorcys and Ceto.
Together they are known as the Gorgons, but Medusa is the original Gorgon, capable of transforming into a monster or a beautiful goddess with terrifying serpents writhing as her hair and with a gaze that could turn anyone to stone or freeze them in their tracks.
To this day it is believed by many that this is the origin of the Evil Eye.
In later Greek myths, Athena, who was originally part of another Triple Goddess grouping with Neith and Medusa in happier, pre-patriarchal times ; supposedly found Medusa, a now- mortal priestess of Her temple, having forbidden sex with Poseidon and desecrating the temple. In a rage, Athena changed Medusa’s hair to snakes and made her features so terrible that any onlooker would freeze and become a statue of stone.
The most well-known story, also from Patriarchal Greece, is that of the demi-god Perseus who is sent to take Medusa’s head by a king. Aided by Hermes, Athena and other gods, he eventually succeeds in his quest and , using a mirror to deflect the gaze away from himself, takes the head of Medusa. Corals from the Red sea and deadly vipers sprung up wherever the blood from the severed head spilt. And it is said that as Medusa had been made pregnant by Poseidon, when She died, Pegasus, the winged horse of legend and a giant, Chrysaor , were born of Her.
Medusa’s head was then taken by Perseus to Athena, who incorporated the head on her shield, which then had the same powers as Medusa had when alive. These tales speak of taking primal Dark Goddess powers, and turning them into powers that are controlled by a masculinised version of Athena, to be harnessed by a male-dominated pantheon and to combat anything associated with the Crone and Dark Feminine principle.
Athena and Medusa as mentioned were part of a Trinity of Goddesses in the first place and Athena has always been known as the Goddess of Justice. Athena’s sacred bird, also linked to Lilith , Minerva, The Morrigan and other Goddesses, is the Owl, a symbol of wisdom and the mysteries of the night.
The Crone Mother was venerated by the Greeks long before all the myths were altered to suit a new and revised, male-dominated religious and social system, as it was done in most places over the last 5000 years or so of earth’s long herstory.
So, Athena’s original alter-ego, Medusa, was again put through the “demonization” process as the authors of the new, male-dominated beliefs tried to divide Goddess power and weaken the Old religion by making the Old Ones into “evil” demons or devils, while at the same time re-inventing the mythos of some Goddesses to make them all-male friendly and keeping them in the new and revised pantheon, as nicely subordinate to the male gods.
Probably the most insulting is the so-called dominion of Zeus over Athene . What a joke.
Various translations of Medusa’s Name are : “Guardian” or “Protectress”;“ Cunning One” or “Queen” ; Stheno , as “Mighty One” and Euryale , as “Wandering One”
The earliest accounts are generally much closer to the truth than later, patriarchal ones, and Medusa and the other Gorgons were seen to incarnate as beautiful, golden sea goddesses originally, by the ancient Greeks.
The head of Medusa has been the subject of many theories and even Sigmund Freud wrote an article on Medusa, where briefly, the head is symbolic of Maternal sexuality and the discovery of the child that this natural part of his development is taboo. Freud called this first awakening and necessary denial a form of social castration on the child’s psyche. Medusa’s head is found even today on various flags and coats of arms as the ultimate symbol of protection and it is said that the Gorgon’s mask was traditionally used by priestesses of old to scare away unwanted intruders or those who were trying to spy on sacred rites, just as many temples had a likeness of the Magickal charm to serve as a guardian. Medusa’s head as a charm will protect against negative or destructive influences. If a Woman is in a fighting rage of fury, the face of Medusa can be seen, almost as a mask overlaid on top of the normal face during this time .
Within modern Feminist interpretations , Medusa is seen as the face of righteous female rage and fury ; beautiful and alluring , but deadly to any MCP or other fool who thinks that by virtue of his manhood he can denigrate or abuse women in any way.
Medusa is also known as the first Gorgon. The Gorgons are similar in many ways to other Goddess figures that retaliate against evil-doers or those who angered the Goddesses and Gods. Those who committed crimes such as the murder of family members, are oath-breakers or go against the natural laws could expect to be harassed and pressed into showing genuine remorse for their deeds, or else face up to the consequences.
The Furies were sinister - looking, winged black females armed with serpents, knives and torches , with poisonous blood dripping from their eyes; the Daughters of Nyx, the primordial Greek Goddess of Night. Their title was “ Children of Eternal Night” and they were totally merciless when it came to the punishment of anyone who injured, harmed or murdered their mother or went against the laws of Nature.
Justice is upheld and enforced by many other Goddesses and the Dark Goddesses always seem to end up in a protective or avenging role. A few other examples from mythologies around the globe include Sekhmet , Durga and Kali.
Medusa is seen as a primal Sea or Underworld Goddess by some Neo-Pagans and others, and Her role as protectress and guardian , especially of women and the innocent, makes this Goddess much loved and venerated in modern-day times. Medusa is a face of the Terrible and Dark Mother , so beware to those who think that they can get away with insulting Her by abusing women or children, harming the innocent , being cruel to animals or breaking other natural laws…..
Friday 18 February 2011
Thursday 17 February 2011
Mami Waters
Wow! When I read this article by Phoenix Tzu I just had to share it!
Mami Waters is one of the most well-known of Vodoun Loas and in fact the name Mami Wata is ancient, so ancient that the name or word “ Mami” is to be found in every root language. Mami means simply, mother, and in some ancient tongues also means wisdom and truth. Tiamat , the primordial Dragon Goddess of Mesopotamia, was also known as Mami.
Uati is the root word that “wata” originates from and is an ancient Egyptian word meaning the sea or the ocean. This is also the word used by the Khoisan, or as they are known , the Bushmen of Southern Africa which are one of the only so-called Stone Age peoples still surviving in a cohesive unit; to mean the ocean or great waters.
Uati is one of the oldest praise names of more than ten thousand for Isis.
The Queen of Magic was first worshipped as Mama Uati in Egypt and as Mami, or Aruru, in Mesopotamia , and it is thus remarkable that as Mami waters, Isis is still revered as The Divine African Mother, just as in modern-day Pagan culture Isis is revered by many as The Mistress of Magick.
The versatility of Isis is also shown in another of Her Names, Au-Set. This means, literally, “Lady of the Throne” and goes back to the primeval Goddess, Ua-zit, the Great Serpent creatrix of Egyptian mythology. In fact, Isis sometimes manifests with the lower half of the body as a serpent, just as Lilith, Persephone, Aida-Wedo and a host of other Deities ( including of course, Mami Waters) sometimes appear.
“I am Nature, the Universal Mother
Mistress of all the elements.
Primordial child of time,
Sovereign of all things spiritual.
Queen of the dead, Queen also of the immortals,
The single manifestation of all gods and goddesses that are,
My nod governs the shining heights of the heavens,
The wholesome sea breezes.
Though I am worshipped in many aspects
Known by countless Names….
Some know me as Juno, some as Bellona, the Stygians as Proserpina…
The Egyptians who excel in ancient learning and worship
Call me by my true Name,
Queen Isis”
Isis appears everywhere in both ancient and classical mythology as is read here:
“ I am She that is the natural mother of all things, mistress and governess of all the elements, the initial progeny of worlds, chief of powers divine, Queen of Heaven, the principle of the Gods celestial, the light of the goddesses:
At my will, the planets of the air, the wholesome winds of the seas,
and the silences of Hell be disposed;
My Name, my divinity is adored throughout all the world,
in diverse manners, in variable customs and in many names.
Some call me Juno, others Bellona of the Battles; others, Hecate.
Principally the Ethiopians who dwell in the Orient,
And the Egyptians who are excellent in all kinds of ancient doctrine, and by their proper ceremonies accustomed to worship me, call me Queen Isis”
Excerpt from “The Golden Ass” by Lucius Apuleius
Isis was further syncretised with Ereshkigal as Hecate Ereshkigal in around 400 BCE.
(Before Common Era)
Many Goddess adherents nowadays view all goddesses and gods as being One Goddess, almost like a multi-faceted crystal with thousands of sides or faces. Dark and Light, the Goddesses unite!
Some other titles of Isis are:
She Who is Feared in the Tuat (the Tuat is the Egyptian version of the underworld)
Lady of the House of Fire
Wife of the Lord of the Abyss
Great of Magic
Queen of the Stars
She of Ten Thousand Names
The Great Sorceress
Goddess of the Sea
Isis is probably best known in mythology as the only other Goddess aside from Lilith, to obtain the ineffable name of God which has magickal powers and thus take His power for Herself. Isis, just as every other Goddess, has two sides to her personality. She was known as one of The Two Ladies, the other being Nephthys, Her sister and wife of Set. Nephthys (identified by the classical Greeks with Ereshkigal) and Isis always worked together and were known as the Sisters of Darkness and Light.
Isis had temples dedicated to Her worship in just about every land from the main temple on the Nile river, to Germany, England and India, and formal worship of the Great Goddess continued until severe persecution of all Pagans put a stop to this and her followers went underground. The influence of Isis was so powerful even amongst Christians that to keep the people happy, the same exact statue of Isis and Horus, used by devotees of the Goddess for centuries, was taken over and stolen by the churches to represent the Madonna and baby Jesus. Stolen, just like many of the other stories and Deities that were around millennia before the new religions forcibly took over.
Another hotly debated issue amongst Pagans is the apparent enmity between Set and Isis, evidently caused by Set slaying Osiris, and the constant battles between Set and his cousin, Horus, the falcon god and son of Isis.
This saga has in my opinion been terribly misunderstood by many Pagans and scholars. Just as Apophis, the Great Serpent, was guided by means of magical iron rods by Set, and not slain by him or any other Deity. The medieval religions used the image of Set “slaying’ the Dragon to mean the victory of Christianity over Paganism and the Serpent, shown by St. Michael and others so-called killing the Dragon or Serpent which was and is the symbol of Paganism. (The heart that never dies)
Apophis represents the very energy that courses through the universe or Dragon power, which the Goddesses and Gods control and guide to ensure that the serpent energy which really makes the world go round, does not get out of control and become too destructive.
Every day, Set and others guide the Serpent which supports and powers the solar boat in which the goddesses and gods travel. Au-Set, Set, Nephthys and Osiris ( and by extension, Horus and Anubis) were depicted as one family by the ancients, bound by blood and spirit. Here we can see very clearly that the Deities are not actually slaying each other, but in the mythology , the interplay of Light and Dark Magick (as in the Yin-Yang) is shown by the interactions and interplay between the Goddesses and Gods.
Set and Nephthys to represent Death, and Isis, Osiris and Horus to represent Life. This was done in a simple story fashion to explain the way the universe works to the common Egyptian who was not admitted to the mysteries. Probably because the tales are so simple in essence and because modern people do not relate to ancient Egyptian culture, the misunderstandings and confusions have arisen . The rivalry between Set and Horus was at first meant on a purely metaphorical level; and was further elaborated on over time.
What most do not know, is that there was a well-documented historical competition on many levels between the northern and southern kingdoms of ancient Egypt, which lasted for thousands of years. The symbol of the Kingdom of the North was the Vulture (Buto) and the Southern Kingdom, Wadjet (Ua-zit) the Cobra or serpent. As the two halves of the Kingdom were separated by climate and distance, there was a natural “rivalry” that developed on the economic , social and cultural levels of society. This was a friendly rivalry which never developed into open warfare or civil war but rather it strengthened both kingdoms and united them firmly. One has to ask if these kin, family members, really wanted to kill one another why one never succeeded given their tremendous powers? Thoth, later known as Hermes, the Master Magickian was called upon continually to mediate between the two to resolve their differences.
The term “killing” and “slaying” meant a very different thing to the Ancient Egyptians in the context of mythological stories, than the taking of a physical life – no-one “slayed” anyone in these divine stories, just as Queen Isis did not have to find actual pieces of Osiris’ body, but in fact went in amongst the common people, in humility, and eventually succeeded in bringing spiritual and physical unity once again to the fragmented Kingdom, previously divided by petty differences.
Osiris could never be killed as the Gods and Goddesses are immortal and energy cannot be destroyed, it just changes shape or form. Thoth, or Hermes, was the Magickal mentor of Isis and taught the Queen all that he knew until Her powers exceeded even His.
Just as Light and Dark, masculine and feminine need each other to survive and thrive in Nature, so the symbolic interplay between Set in the North and Horus in the South was necessary for Egyptian religion and social life to ensure harmony and balance. What is revealed here is the difference between the winged vulture of the North and the Serpent of the South and the combination of the two in Egyptian symbolism. This can be seen as the mythological union of the bird of prey ( meaning the God in various ancient cultures from the Vedic culture in the east to the Mayans in the west) and the Serpent, (representing the Goddess), in the Egyptian context. The Winged Serpent is the ultimate primal Pagan Deity as seen in the symbolism of this culture. When the Eagle and the Serpent are separated, there can be no harmony or balance spiritually. When combined, they become the Dragon, or spiritual enlightenment.
Mami Waters is one of the most well-known of Vodoun Loas and in fact the name Mami Wata is ancient, so ancient that the name or word “ Mami” is to be found in every root language. Mami means simply, mother, and in some ancient tongues also means wisdom and truth. Tiamat , the primordial Dragon Goddess of Mesopotamia, was also known as Mami.
Uati is the root word that “wata” originates from and is an ancient Egyptian word meaning the sea or the ocean. This is also the word used by the Khoisan, or as they are known , the Bushmen of Southern Africa which are one of the only so-called Stone Age peoples still surviving in a cohesive unit; to mean the ocean or great waters.
Uati is one of the oldest praise names of more than ten thousand for Isis.
The Queen of Magic was first worshipped as Mama Uati in Egypt and as Mami, or Aruru, in Mesopotamia , and it is thus remarkable that as Mami waters, Isis is still revered as The Divine African Mother, just as in modern-day Pagan culture Isis is revered by many as The Mistress of Magick.
The versatility of Isis is also shown in another of Her Names, Au-Set. This means, literally, “Lady of the Throne” and goes back to the primeval Goddess, Ua-zit, the Great Serpent creatrix of Egyptian mythology. In fact, Isis sometimes manifests with the lower half of the body as a serpent, just as Lilith, Persephone, Aida-Wedo and a host of other Deities ( including of course, Mami Waters) sometimes appear.
“I am Nature, the Universal Mother
Mistress of all the elements.
Primordial child of time,
Sovereign of all things spiritual.
Queen of the dead, Queen also of the immortals,
The single manifestation of all gods and goddesses that are,
My nod governs the shining heights of the heavens,
The wholesome sea breezes.
Though I am worshipped in many aspects
Known by countless Names….
Some know me as Juno, some as Bellona, the Stygians as Proserpina…
The Egyptians who excel in ancient learning and worship
Call me by my true Name,
Queen Isis”
Isis appears everywhere in both ancient and classical mythology as is read here:
“ I am She that is the natural mother of all things, mistress and governess of all the elements, the initial progeny of worlds, chief of powers divine, Queen of Heaven, the principle of the Gods celestial, the light of the goddesses:
At my will, the planets of the air, the wholesome winds of the seas,
and the silences of Hell be disposed;
My Name, my divinity is adored throughout all the world,
in diverse manners, in variable customs and in many names.
Some call me Juno, others Bellona of the Battles; others, Hecate.
Principally the Ethiopians who dwell in the Orient,
And the Egyptians who are excellent in all kinds of ancient doctrine, and by their proper ceremonies accustomed to worship me, call me Queen Isis”
Excerpt from “The Golden Ass” by Lucius Apuleius
Isis was further syncretised with Ereshkigal as Hecate Ereshkigal in around 400 BCE.
(Before Common Era)
Many Goddess adherents nowadays view all goddesses and gods as being One Goddess, almost like a multi-faceted crystal with thousands of sides or faces. Dark and Light, the Goddesses unite!
Some other titles of Isis are:
She Who is Feared in the Tuat (the Tuat is the Egyptian version of the underworld)
Lady of the House of Fire
Wife of the Lord of the Abyss
Great of Magic
Queen of the Stars
She of Ten Thousand Names
The Great Sorceress
Goddess of the Sea
Isis is probably best known in mythology as the only other Goddess aside from Lilith, to obtain the ineffable name of God which has magickal powers and thus take His power for Herself. Isis, just as every other Goddess, has two sides to her personality. She was known as one of The Two Ladies, the other being Nephthys, Her sister and wife of Set. Nephthys (identified by the classical Greeks with Ereshkigal) and Isis always worked together and were known as the Sisters of Darkness and Light.
Isis had temples dedicated to Her worship in just about every land from the main temple on the Nile river, to Germany, England and India, and formal worship of the Great Goddess continued until severe persecution of all Pagans put a stop to this and her followers went underground. The influence of Isis was so powerful even amongst Christians that to keep the people happy, the same exact statue of Isis and Horus, used by devotees of the Goddess for centuries, was taken over and stolen by the churches to represent the Madonna and baby Jesus. Stolen, just like many of the other stories and Deities that were around millennia before the new religions forcibly took over.
Another hotly debated issue amongst Pagans is the apparent enmity between Set and Isis, evidently caused by Set slaying Osiris, and the constant battles between Set and his cousin, Horus, the falcon god and son of Isis.
This saga has in my opinion been terribly misunderstood by many Pagans and scholars. Just as Apophis, the Great Serpent, was guided by means of magical iron rods by Set, and not slain by him or any other Deity. The medieval religions used the image of Set “slaying’ the Dragon to mean the victory of Christianity over Paganism and the Serpent, shown by St. Michael and others so-called killing the Dragon or Serpent which was and is the symbol of Paganism. (The heart that never dies)
Apophis represents the very energy that courses through the universe or Dragon power, which the Goddesses and Gods control and guide to ensure that the serpent energy which really makes the world go round, does not get out of control and become too destructive.
Every day, Set and others guide the Serpent which supports and powers the solar boat in which the goddesses and gods travel. Au-Set, Set, Nephthys and Osiris ( and by extension, Horus and Anubis) were depicted as one family by the ancients, bound by blood and spirit. Here we can see very clearly that the Deities are not actually slaying each other, but in the mythology , the interplay of Light and Dark Magick (as in the Yin-Yang) is shown by the interactions and interplay between the Goddesses and Gods.
Set and Nephthys to represent Death, and Isis, Osiris and Horus to represent Life. This was done in a simple story fashion to explain the way the universe works to the common Egyptian who was not admitted to the mysteries. Probably because the tales are so simple in essence and because modern people do not relate to ancient Egyptian culture, the misunderstandings and confusions have arisen . The rivalry between Set and Horus was at first meant on a purely metaphorical level; and was further elaborated on over time.
What most do not know, is that there was a well-documented historical competition on many levels between the northern and southern kingdoms of ancient Egypt, which lasted for thousands of years. The symbol of the Kingdom of the North was the Vulture (Buto) and the Southern Kingdom, Wadjet (Ua-zit) the Cobra or serpent. As the two halves of the Kingdom were separated by climate and distance, there was a natural “rivalry” that developed on the economic , social and cultural levels of society. This was a friendly rivalry which never developed into open warfare or civil war but rather it strengthened both kingdoms and united them firmly. One has to ask if these kin, family members, really wanted to kill one another why one never succeeded given their tremendous powers? Thoth, later known as Hermes, the Master Magickian was called upon continually to mediate between the two to resolve their differences.
The term “killing” and “slaying” meant a very different thing to the Ancient Egyptians in the context of mythological stories, than the taking of a physical life – no-one “slayed” anyone in these divine stories, just as Queen Isis did not have to find actual pieces of Osiris’ body, but in fact went in amongst the common people, in humility, and eventually succeeded in bringing spiritual and physical unity once again to the fragmented Kingdom, previously divided by petty differences.
Osiris could never be killed as the Gods and Goddesses are immortal and energy cannot be destroyed, it just changes shape or form. Thoth, or Hermes, was the Magickal mentor of Isis and taught the Queen all that he knew until Her powers exceeded even His.
Just as Light and Dark, masculine and feminine need each other to survive and thrive in Nature, so the symbolic interplay between Set in the North and Horus in the South was necessary for Egyptian religion and social life to ensure harmony and balance. What is revealed here is the difference between the winged vulture of the North and the Serpent of the South and the combination of the two in Egyptian symbolism. This can be seen as the mythological union of the bird of prey ( meaning the God in various ancient cultures from the Vedic culture in the east to the Mayans in the west) and the Serpent, (representing the Goddess), in the Egyptian context. The Winged Serpent is the ultimate primal Pagan Deity as seen in the symbolism of this culture. When the Eagle and the Serpent are separated, there can be no harmony or balance spiritually. When combined, they become the Dragon, or spiritual enlightenment.
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