Goddess Rising

By Lyn Thurman

Goddess Rising: Journey with 52-goddesses to awaken your spirit and enrich your life.

Goddess Rising invites you to reconnect with the Divine Feminine by introducing you to 52-goddesses from around the world.  Let Egyptian goddess Isis introduce you to magic and Slavic Baba Yaga is waiting for you to take a risk to f

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lyn Thurman
• Release date: Mar 31, 2017
• ISBN: 9781788085403

Lyn Thurman

Lyn Thurman is the author of The Inner Goddess Revolution (published by O-Books) and Goddess Rising. She is the founder of the Inner Goddess Circle and the creator of the Sea Whispers oracle. With her special interest in the divine feminine, she bases her spiritual & holistic therapy practice around the gifts of the Goddess - nourishment, intuition, healing and creativity. She lives with her family near the sea in Hampshire, England. You can reach her at www.LynThurman.com

Book preview

Introduction

Our past is a puzzle and the pieces we have tell of a balance between the Divine Feminine and the Divine Masculine, which tangoed together and danced the Universe into existence.  There were gods and goddesses, until, of course, there was only an angry war god. He swept in from the Middle East, ditched his consort, rallied the people, and drove his influence throughout the earth.  Yahweh, newly single and out for a good time, outlawed his old god and goddess friends and sought world domination.  Monotheism tilted the balance, tipped it over to make a patriarchal society, and let the sand storms of time cover the memory of the fallen deities from ancient times.

Our ancient past is not buried completely: it is fragmented and needs a good dusting off. Archaeologists' careful excavations find clues to our history and dedicated scholars have resurrected dead languages so stone tablets and carvings can whisper their secrets to a new millennium. Then there are stories told from generation to generation, passed down in the hopes that future offspring will be able to understand where they came from, and learn from the stories told by their ancestors.  Throughout the years, people have written them down, often with a slant towards their own belief system but always with a hope of preserving our past.

Look around you, the world isn't in great shape. Humanity isn't fairing well either.  No one can say what life was like when the masculine and feminine were equal partners.  We can only witness life as it is today and observe what is missing or lacking.  There's plenty of fighting, aggressive politics, control, consumerism, and rampant fear.  As a whole, we don't give creativity, nourishment, compassion, healing, and abundance the same prominence.  They do exist.  These 'feminine' attributes are hidden in the background whereas the others make front-page news. 

It's time to restore the balance and the very first step begins with you.  Changing the world is a tall order but changing one life at a time, that's doable.  Let's do that.

Goddess Rising invites you to reconnect with the Divine Feminine by introducing you to 52-goddess from around the world.  You will get to know some of her stories and learn her attributes.  By seeing her strengths and gifts, which society generally ignores, you will appreciate your own connection to the Divine Feminine.  You can understand yourself on a deeper level, find confidence in pursuing a life of greater meaning, connect with the cycles of nature, and maybe even find a patron goddess to guide you in the process.

By restoring the balance into your own life, you will be happier.  You will see parts of your spirit come alive and harmony won't be so elusive.  This is how you make a difference.  This is how you change the world. 

How to use this book

Goddess Rising includes 52-goddesses from no particular pantheon and in no particular order.  There are enough goddesses for you to get to know over the course of a year at a steady one-per-week schedule.  I designed the book so you could journey with the Goddess for a year. If you choose to acquaint yourself with a different goddess each week, you can deepen your understanding and relationship of the Divine Feminine.  It's the difference between speed-dating and courtship. 

Alternatively, you can flick through the book and stop at a goddess that resonates with you at that particular moment.  Use the book in whichever way you feel called.

In Goddess Rising, each goddess has a theme, her story, goddess guidance, journal prompts, an affirmation, and goddess magic.

Goddess theme

Each goddess has a theme in Goddess Rising.  It's based on the attributes of the goddess, her story, and intuition.  Use the theme as a guide: it's not an absolute, only a suggestion.  I'm sure the goddess would love for you to use your own interpretation so if you don’t agree with the keyword theme, make your own.

Her story

Some goddesses have an extensive collection of stories to share with the world while others have very little to tell.  For example, Sheela-Na-Gig is now only a stone figure found on old buildings in a few locations in northern Europe.  Egyptian Isis, on the other hand, could fill a book by herself.

There are variations found even in the most popular mythologies.  Written or oral sources have varied over time, and even scribes who penned down stories for us were often not objective.  Ancient sources of information such as Egyptian and Sumerian writings are reliant on the skills of modern-day academics to piece together a language that died thousands of years ago. 

I've given you a story of the goddess or, in the case of scant tales, information or history that we do know.  Her story is there for you to get an idea of the personality and attributes of the goddess.  It's her introduction into your world.

Goddess guidance

Goddess guidance takes you deeper.  You've met the goddess through her story and now you get to know her better.  Think of it as a coffee date.  It's all very well and interesting learning about the mythologies of the Divine Feminine but there are lessons, blessings, and strengths we can take from Her.  The Goddess is being woken from her slumber because there's a need to address the imbalance we see in our world.  Use the goddess guidance to reflect how you could use the goddess energy or attributes in your life.  You hold the key to bringing balance back into your own life and through this, you will be taking a step to bring balance back on a global level.  It starts with you.

Write it out

Each goddess has a set of journal prompts based on her story, her attributes, or her theme.  They are there to take you further into understanding yourself and getting to know the goddess on a more personal level.

Working with the Goddess means diving into self-awareness and bringing light to the shadow-self.  You'll meet Inanna in Goddess Rising who journeyed into the Underworld.  Baba Yaga will greet you too – she's the scary, old hag who lives in the middle of the forest.  Kali, dark as night, will show her tongue and dance destruction.  These 'darker' goddesses guide you to accept and love the whole-package – they, and perhaps you too, have been silenced for too long.

Affirmation

Keep the affirmation in mind when you work with the goddess.  If it doesn't resonate, find an affirmation you see as more fitting.

Goddess magic

The goddess magic is an activity for you to do.  It might take the form of a ritual, craft project, or even making a cocktail!  There are a couple of activities too that will lead to more soul-searching.  You don't have to be artistic-creative or have any particular belief system to do the goddess magic.  It's an activity to take you out of your everyday routine and into a form of creativity.  Have fun with goddess magic!

Embracing your goddess journey

Use Goddess Rising as a stepping-stone into a journey of self and spiritual discovery.  Here are some suggestions how you can add more depth and dimension to your goddess journey:

Connect with your inner high priestess

Until recent times, women provided spiritual service and took roles of priestess and high priestess.  There are no absolute definitions of a high priestess and there are no rules, roles, or responsibilities.  The high priestess is what you allow her to become.

If we look back into our distant past at ancient Mesopotamian text, we find the En.  These high priestesses held respected positions within the community and because of their status, they were allowed to transact business and own property in their own names.  One high priestess, Enheduana, served during the third millennia BCE and she is one of the earliest women in history of whose name we know.  She was the priestess of the moon god Nanna and she left behind a body of literary work including a personal devotion to the goddess Inanna: The Exaltation of Inanna.

The high priestess is the wisdom you find when you listen to your quiet inner voice. You find her in stillness.  She's your guide through life and she's always been part of you but this wise counsellor is drowned out because the world is noisy.  We are taught to seek guidance and answers from outside sources in preference to our own inner voice.  Connecting with your inner high priestess means developing self-trust. 

The high priestess asks you to pause before acting so she can guide you.  She works with the subtle energies of the universe and provides guidance in what may seem illogical or hard to understand at first.  The language of the high priestess is symbolic: one of the first steps to embracing her is to expand your awareness —look for co-incidences, synchronicities, omens, repeated messages, signs, pay attention to gut feelings, and to look beyond the obvious for deeper meaning.

The high priestess is a bridge between the visible and the unseen world, a channel for spiritual wisdom.  She doesn't belong to any religion or belief systems— she connects with the source energy.

Intuition and reading the signs of the Universe are strong aspects of the high priestess.  This might mean opening up as a channel for the wisdom to flow through you.  Perhaps you will want to learn a new divination method or deepen your understanding of the divination tools you already use.

Create an altar space

Set up an altar to the Divine Feminine or the goddess you are exploring.  An altar does not have to be big or fancy – your altar can be as simple as a candle dedicated to the Divine Feminine. 

A goddess statue or figure is a popular choice for an altar and you can find them at New Age shops and through online retailers.  If you are going to buy an altarpiece, consider purchasing from small businesses that hand-make their goods.  You will find the energy and spirit of the item more vibrant than mass-produced goods.  Best of all though, make whatever you can.  During the afternoon of my Awaken Your Inner Goddess workshops, I pull out a slab of air-drying clay and we all make a goddess statue or pendant.  It's a lot of fun and immensely satisfying making a representation of the Divine Feminine with your own hands.

Keep a Goddess journal

It's a good idea to get a Goddess Journal to chart your year-long journey with the Goddess.  Each goddess has a series of journal prompts for you to explore your own life, aspects of the goddess' stories, or spiritual considerations. 

You can buy a journal but it will have more significance to you if you make it your own.  Creativity is a central theme to goddess spirituality and you are tapping into this divine birthright every time you create.  I suggest getting a journal or notebook and then decorating it up in your own style.  Your inner child will appreciate the opportunity to play with paper, scissors, and glue!

As you begin to become more aware of Goddess energy in your life, you will find the Divine Feminine reaches out to connect with you.  Use your journal to record any goddess related synchronicities or dreams in which the goddess appears or delivers a message.

Celebrate you

Your life is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  There are trials and tribulations, that's part of the human experience, but there is gratitude and wonder to be found too.  Each moment holds beauty and unlimited potential. 

The Divine Feminine controls the cycles of existence.  She is the maiden, the mother and the crone.  We see her also as the creator, the maintainer, and the destroyer.  We mirror her aspects as we journey through our own life and we forget, because we drown in busy-ness, to celebrate.  Life, a divine gift, is wonderful and messy and beautiful.

Make your goddess journey a celebration.  Celebrate where you are in life, whatever your age.  Embrace the beauty of you and around you.  Give thanks when you hit a sticky patch because it means there's a lesson to be learnt and ultimately a blessing to find. Laugh more, especially at yourself because life is not that serious.  Make a sacred altar to you.

Take it further

If a particular goddess catches your interest, research her further.  She might want to be part of your spiritual journey and she has been waiting for you to notice her.  When a goddess makes herself known, you'll find references showing up in your life so keep your eyes open for synchronicities and other meaningful coincidences.  The connection between you and a goddess might come as a surprise.  You may have had no interest in the culture, beliefs, or region where she originated from and then, all of a sudden, you feel a pull towards the goddess.  Embrace where the journey takes you.

Each month, I write a goddess inspired workbook and record a guided visualisation as part of my Inner Goddess Circle group.  If you want to continue learning more about the Divine Feminine, I'd love for you to join us.  You can find details at www.innergoddesscircle.com.

I hold Awaken Your Inner Goddess workshops.  These fun, creative and empowering workshops allow you to explore the gifts of the Divine Feminine with other women who want to find more balance and meaning in life.  I post upcoming events on my website www.lynthurman.com.

Goddess Rising

Meet the Goddesses

Rhiannon | Awakening

Rhiannon is a Welsh goddess whose name means Great Queen or Divine Queen. She’s a lunar goddess, has three magical birds as companions, and her animal is the horse.  She is part of the Otherworld – a place in mythology where the dead reside as do gods, goddesses and other powerful spirits.

Her Story

King Pwyll was out riding with his men when he saw a beautiful maiden on a white mare. He raced towards her as fast as he could but regardless of how hard he pushed his faithful horse, he couldn’t catch up to her. Relentlessly he pursued for several hours, but he never even got close. Finally, King Pwyll called out to her and begged her to stop. Immediately, she pulled to the side of the road and waited for him. When he caught up, he angrily asked her why she hadn’t stopped sooner. With an arched eyebrow and a slightly mocking grin, she replied, Because you didn’t ask. Now that you have, my name is Rhiannon and I am here to marry you.

That very day they exchanged vows. Rhiannon was a wonderful queen but the locals were suspicious of her. When she hadn’t conceived in three years, the people began to call her a sorceress and they demanded the king choose a new queen. Pwyll adamantly refused and it caused great tension in the kingdom.

A few months later, Rhiannon conceived. People stopped calling her a sorceress but they still didn’t like her. Three nights after the child was born, the servants watching him fell asleep at their post. When they awoke, the child was gone. Wanting to save their own lives, they killed a puppy and smeared its blood around Rhiannon’s mouth so it appeared she had eaten her own baby.

The king, out of his mind with grief, accepted the servants' lies. He sentenced Rhiannon to sit at the entrance of the kingdom and tell everyone that entered about her evil deed. She was then to allow them to mount her and ride her to the court as if she were a horse. For years, Rhiannon humbly served her sentence.

One day a farmer came to court to tell the king of a boy he found in his barn. The boy seemed to have supernatural powers and an affinity with horses.  The farmer had found the king’s son. The king exonerated Rhiannon and ordered the lying servants to be drawn and quartered. Rhiannon pleaded for their lives and talked the king into exiling them instead. She then took up her position and ruled the kingdom in love, refusing to mention the torment she had been endured.

Goddess Guidance

Being associated with the horse, Rhiannon is a goddess of freedom.  You can see her love for freedom in the story of Pwyll because she was the one at the head of the chase – no one could catch her unless she wanted to be caught.  Her son in this story is the hero Pryderi who later becomes the lord of Dyfed.  After she is widowed, Rhiannon set her sights on the British Royal family and she marries Manawydan, son of Bran the Blessed.  Rhiannon follows her own path and makes her own decisions. 

Otherworldly, Rhiannon’s horse rides slowly but no mortal horse can catch it.  She displays the strength of a giantess when she carries people on her back.  The three birds that accompany her ‘wake the dead and lull the living to sleep’.  Magic, enchantment, and mystery follow her.  In recent years, the Welsh Witch captivated Stevie Nicks and inspired her to write Rhiannon. 

With her fierce independence and her connection to the ‘other’ world, she brings awareness to the self and an awakening that perhaps life could