ISHTAR RISING WORKSHOPS
Reclaiming Lilith : Passion, sex and spirituality
According to some accounts, Lilith was the original woman and Adam's first wife. However she 'disagreed with him in many matters, and refused to lie beneath him in sexual intercourse'. When Adam threatened to overpower her, she 'uttered the ineffable name of god' and flew off...Though she started out as Inanna's lefthand woman, for a couple of millenia, Lilith's reputation as a rebel and a seductrice earned her the title 'demonness'. More recently, she has become a source of inspiration to those of us who seek to reclaim& celebrate the more instinctual, earthy, sexual dimensions of a woman's nature.
In this workshop we will honour Lilith the dark and fiery by drumming and dancing up some of that earthy, instinctual female power. The intention is to break through the cultural silence around our personal encounters with Lilith - the dark feminine - in our sexuality & relationships. We will create and hold a sacred women's space, in which to speak & acknowledge our lived experiences of instinctual knowing, sexuality, passion, rage, contraception, abortion.
The workshop will conclude with a ritual to make friends with Lilith, opening to Lilith's gifts of animal alivenss and autonomous feminine power.
Next scheduled: Fri evening 20th October 7-9pm & Sat 21st October 9:30am - 4:30pm. Hilton. Cost: $75 ($65 conc)
Red Blessings: Celebrating menstruation as a gift from the Goddess
Have you ever had the chance to celebrate 'getting your periods'? If your entry into physical womanhood was somewhere on the spectrum from wretchedly embarrassing to more or less unremarked, here is an opportunity to go back and give your girl-self the menarche ritual you wish you could have had.We will create a sacred space together, in which to reflect on our own initial experiences of menstruation, and, through sharing stories and ritual, reclaim our women's wisdom around our bleeding. Each woman will make a simple doll to represent the girl on the edge of physical womanhood. We will then create our own ceremony to enable us to speak with our younger selves about the specialness of becoming a woman. It is a simple yet effective process which can help us to heal and/or deepen our relationship with this aspect of our womanhood.
Next scheduled workshop - Saturday 18 November 2006,9:30am - 4:30pm.
Hilton.
Cost: $60 ($50 conc)
Doll-making materials provided. Bring lunch to share, a cushion and a wrap, a notebook or journal and your coloured pens or pencils.
In the Gold of Flesh : Embodying Womanhood
This workshop is all about deepening our capacity to be fully present to the gift of our female bodies and our sensual, bodily experiences as women.We will dance, experience guided meditation, share our stories and our food. For those who wish, there will be the opportunity to give and receive some respectful healing touch. In the afternoon, time-permitting, each woman will create and decorate her own breast-plate emblazoned with the words "I AM" and other words and symbols of affirmation and celebration.
Next scheduled to run: early 2007.
Bring: yummy food to share for lunch, a blanket or wrap and apillow, a notebook or journal, and your coloured pens or pencils. I will provide art materials, tea/coffee and biscuits.
About the Facilitator
Ishara's personal journey with the Goddess began in her late teens as a deep concern with the nature and meaning of womanhood. Her innate spirituality draws inspiration from such sources as: Starhawk & Reclaiming Collective, the women's spirituality movement, creation spirituality, deep ecology practices, and the Dances of Universal Peace.In 1992 she formally dedicated herself to her priestess path. Since then Ishara has designed and facilitated a variety of courses, workshops, retreats and transformational rituals. She is vitally interested in finding ways to restore a deep sense of meaning and sacredness to our relationships with each other & the Earth.
Ishara's current work focuses on enabling contemporary women to deepen our connection to Goddess through our experiences of being alive in a woman's body in the early 21st century.
Enquiries & Bookings: phone Ishara on 9314 5973
or email ishara@ishtarsdaughters.com