Newsletter September 2006 |
Blessings, Sisters!
I have returned from the opening of the Goddess Shrine in Canberra recharged and ready to go!
I hope you will be able to join me for one or more of the following forthcoming events:-
Chalice Ceremony - Monday
evenings 6-7pm
(ongoing) at the Sun, Moon & Star
A love-offering to the Goddess and a prayer
for the healing of our fragmented world.
This devotional ceremony involvesguided meditation, prayer &
sharing from the heart. It is open to all who are drawn to the presence
of the Goddess, women and men, and you are welcome to join us regularly
or whenever you are able. (By donation).
Ishtar Mysteries Ceremonies
Sat 23rd September - Held In Her arms Sat 4th November
- Daughterhood Sat 16th December - Ishtar Enthroned |
.
Reclaiming Lilith: Passion,
sex and spirituality
20 & 21st October
An experiential workshop with Ishara exploring
the story of Lilith, the original woman and its resonances in our own
lives as contemporary women. See
website for more details
Friday evening 7 til 9pm & Saturday 9.30am til 4.30pm
in Hilton (venue details on registration)
Cost: $75 ($65 conc)
screech owl
(associated with Lilith)
Volume 2, No.4
"A change in paradigms, in consciousness, always makes us uneasy. Whenever we feel the slightly fearful, slightly embarassed sensation that words like Goddess produce, we can be sure that we are on the track of a deep change in the structure as well as the content of our thinking."
Starhawk, Dreaming the Dark, 1982
The Opening of the Goddess Shrine was a very special evening, and I fully expect it to be remembered as a pivotal moment in the history of the Goddess movement in Australia. I've included a report from Hollie Baker, whose project it is, later in this newsletter. Whilst I was in Canberra I also had the pleasure of spending some time with Patricia Corner from Queensland, the president of the Goddess Association in Australia, and hearing more about the forthcoming Australian Goddess Conference to be held onthe Gold Coast on 6th & 7th October. To learn more, about the conference or the Goddess Association, please visit www.goddessassociation.com.au
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"Lilith
is one of the dark goddesses, like Isis, Persephone, Hecate, or
Kali, expressing the feminine power of the divine creative, transformative
force. M. Kelley Hunter, astrologer |
Red
Blessings ~
Celebrating menstruation
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In my last newsletter I wrote about the need to attend to the mysteries, to create space and time in our lives for the remembering of the sacred...
Why
the Goddess mysteries matter for women and the future of our world |
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The ISHTAR Mysteries as spiritual nourishment for women in the contemporary world As you may remember, in my last newsletter I spoke of creating an invitation to our own deep beings, that would lead to a renewed sense of connection and belonging…and I suggested how this might be done very simply, through simple actions done with intention, through paying attention to the connecting power of the breath. Of course, such wisdom is retained and shared through teachers from many traditions, male and female, not only those on a path of devotion to the Great Goddess. Today I would like to explore some ways in which we, as women of the modern western world, may discover ourselves uncommonly gifted by returning to a more explicitly feminine spiritual attunement. The Ishtar Mysteries offer us a spirituality that is grounded in the practical life-experiences of ordinary women. In this system, we discover the sites of our most sacred mysteries precisely in those pivotal moments of physicality and human relationship, as we navigate our way from the arms of the mother, through increasing autonomy and the recurring trickle of menstrual blood, into the embrace of a lover and the flood of love-fluids from our juicy vulvas down our inner thighs.
Then comes our intiation into the deep mystery through which the invisible is made visible, a vision realised. Some of us are blessed with biological motherhood, bringing us the direct experience of that supreme creative power through which a spiritual impulse becomes manifest in embodied human individuality. We discover our mother-selves through the unthinkable opening of the waves of birth-giving.. Others of us grow into our mother-power through the creative arts, or through practical projects in our professional lives, or the broader human work of sustaining family and community. Whatever form our motherhood takes, we all face the challenge of recognising the ripe moment and having the faith and trust to let our babies go their own way. We all of us grow older, and hopefully wiser, and sooner or later, we all enter the final mystery of death, our bodies recycled into the earth. It would be difficult to over-estimate the life-affirming power of a spirituality which values the wisdom of women’s bodies, the connecting power of sexuality and erotic relationship, the physical and emotional processes of bringing forth and nurturing children, in a culture which increasingly does not… A
healthy sense of self-worth empowers our creativity and our capacity
to take positive action in the world. For those of us heirs to
a family or cultural norm which taught us early to doubt our own
worthiness, to distrust anger, self-love and other displays of
self-hood, healing our capacity for self-esteem is essential and
urgent work. The Ishtar mysteries offer an experiential affirmation
of our original blessing as women, of our own innate beauty and
worthwhile-ness as female human beings. We feel it in ourselves,
see it in each other, and reflect it back. Over time this shared
reality can help to transform core beliefs and imprinted patterns
of self-sabotage and self-doubt. Only then can we most effectively
respond to the collective call of our times: to transform global
culture for the health of our mother the earth. |
To be continued..
| Healing
work Now that I am settled in my new home, I am once again available to assist your personal journey of growth and healing through intuitive energy work and healing ceremonies. My special areas of interest are:
Price: |
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* Sorry, no photos yet!
The Goddess Shrine was
officially released on Saturday 2nd September with a spectacular ceremony
in the Lunation Temple.
One of the guests commented that the Ceremony was like a United Nations
of Paganism, with official speeches and performances by, and on behalf
of many well-known members of the Goddess community in Australia.
It was most certainly the most inspiring Rite I have been involved in.
The beauty was not in the Ceremony itself, but the many people who were
involved and made it so incredibly special. I have the deepest sympathy
for those who couldn't or didn't make it on the night. To those people,
you missed a very powerful shedding of the layers to awakening of Goddess
Culture for Australia. I only hope we see many events like it in the future.
The Ceremony started by collectively calling forth the Feminine Divine
in her roles as Chaste Maiden, Abundant Mother, and Wise Matriarch. The
room buzzed with the power of over fifty voices calling to the Maiden,
Mother and Crone, bringing forth three robed and masked figures in the
respective Goddess colours, white, red and black...
Official guests were then invited to speak in honour of the Goddess, bringing
gifts and inspiration. Patricia Corner, President of the Goddess Association
in Australia (GAIA), spoke moving words about the webs that build amongst
our communities, through the lives of women, through the lives of those
she called 'the Sons of the Goddess' and the children of our tribes.
'Finally,' she said, 'the webs we have each built are beginning to weave
together across the nation, from coast to coast, to build an even stronger
web entranced with the power of the Goddess...'
And so it was fitting that her speech was followed by Ishara, from the
Daughters of Ishtar Temple, WA. Ishara spoke of her Earth Dreaming tradition,
where both the land and the Goddess are honoured equally. She performed
a beautiful song and gifted The Shrine with three special offerings represeningt
her work with the Sacred Feminine Divine.
Christiana Rose, principal of Om Shanti College in Canberra brought offerings
to represent the healing apects and life essence that are so much a part
of the work of Om Shanti, and also of the Goddess.
Soror Potnia Therion, from the Burley Griffin Oasis of Ordo Templi Orientis
read from the Litany of the Holy Spirit (Isis), Gnostic Mass, and also
the Priestess' Oration from behind the Veil. The words from these texts,
of great importance to the OTO, were striking for their beauty.
Sean Galadar represented the Church of All Worlds with a terrific performance
of a song about when God was a woman, and even managed to get everyone
to join in!
By this stage of the night the room was crackling with emotion and power,
but still speakers came forward representing the Pagan Awareness Network,
the Alexandrian Wiccan tradition in Canberra, We the Temple of the Moon,
and individuals including; Katherine Cunningham of the Temple of the Blood
(Vic), Lilith West of Goddess Place (SA), Glenys Livingstone author of
Pagaian Cosmology (NSW), author Stacey Demarco (NSW), Wise Womon of the
Goddess, thea Gaia (ACT), Michelle Royce aka SpiralDancer, of the feminine
path, and author of Moon Rites (NSW).
Official speeches ended with the great, great grandchildren of Robert
Graves who read a passage from his book The White Goddess, reminding us
of the beauty and poetry of the Sacred Feminine...
At this point we shared a delicious supper that consisted of all types
of Goddess inspired delicacies that had been brought by those present.
Guests were now also invited to visit the Shrine and honour Her in their
own way. The figures representing the three aspects of the Goddess took
to the centre altar to empower a brew, of which the recipe will be copied
each month at the ongoing ceremonies.
Many visitors left notes and wishes to the Goddess, and all of these were
collected after supper to be raised to Her. This part of the ceremony
is the same as will be used each lunation to honour The Goddess Shrine,
and build the power of the Feminine Divine throughout the City, and in
turn the Nation.
Water was used for this part of the rite, because water holds memory of
the Earth and Her people. Water can take energy and hold it, and disperse
it elsewhere, and this is exactly the purpose for this ritual. The 'wishes'
were taken to the figures of the Goddess and their essence entranced to
the water. The water was later taken to ground level, outside of the Temple
- to the Centre of the City of the Nation's Capital. This water, filled
with the power of The Goddess and the wishes for and to Her was placed
on the earth to soften the ground, and those who walk over it. The aim
in doing so is that the Nation will take on the essence of the Goddess,
and allow Her life, abundance and wisdom to empower us all...
The evening ended with all who were present sharing in the rich, powerful
Goddess brewed punch, and a whole lot of hugs, laughter and blessings...
The Goddess Shrine official release was more than just another Opening
Ceremony. This event enabled deeper networking of the Goddess and those
who work with Her. It was a testament to the case that The Goddess Shrine
is there for all creeds, all genders, all ages, and all beings.
I want to personally
thank every single person who was involved with the planning and development
of the Ceremony.
I give deep thanks to the people who sent their wishes from afar, and
those who cam to lend their own energy on the night .
I give deep thanks to the three Priestesses who stood by my side on Saturday
night, because without their work in the background the evening would
not have turned out as perfect as it did.
I give deep thanks to everyone who has worked in some way with the Goddess
over the years, and those who have worked to bring Her into the modern
world, because without your work She would perhaps not be recognised as
She is now, as a Divine figure in Her own power.
And I give the deepest thanks and gratitude to the Goddess, for She is
everything there is, and Her power encompasses us all...
If you missed out on the ceremony, you are still able to visit The Goddess
Shrine. Please visit www.thegoddessshrine.com
for details about The Shrine and the ceremonies held each lunation.
Hollie BAKER
| Questions or comments? Email
me at ishara@ishtarsdaughters.com
or phone 08 9494 1665 To subscribe to this newsletter, please signup online at www.ishtarsdaughters.com |