An Archetypal Understanding Of The Daughter In Filianism

I have struggled for many years to make sense of the Daughter in the Filianic tradition. I think it is fair to say that many of my issues with the doctrines of Christianity carried over into my understanding of the Filianic teachings. I could not accept what appeared to be the teaching of “original sin” and the necessity of a sacrificial savioress. While reflecting on my understanding of this Faith and how it has changed over the years, I came across some tidbits I wrote from a personal correspondence many years ago:

I consider myself as Filianic, but I really only worship God as Mother within the Filianic Tradition. God as Mother alone is my personal bhakti.

As far as the Sacrificial Death of the Daughter goes, I would caution against throwing out something with significance that is beyond our understanding. I don’t currently “believe” in the Sacrificial Death of the Daughter, per se, because I do not really understand it at this time, but I don’t think throwing it out of the thealogy entirely without exhausting the possibility of it having no deeper spiritual meaning would be appropriate either.

 I suppose one could more accurately have described my path as Déanic as opposed to Filianic. As stated on Chapel of Our Mother God:

Filianists, indeed, regard themselves as Déanists. An often-used formula is: “All Filianists are Déanists, but not all Déanists are Filianists”.

However, most Déanists have at least some relation to the Filianic faith, and in practice the separation between the two is less clear-cut than it might seem. To understand this, we must realize that Déanic/Filianic thealogy is much less “literalist” than Christian theology.

My return to the Faith after a long hiatus (during which I explored general esotericism outside of the context of Filianism) has brought with it a fresh perspective. I’m really grateful to have made peace with the Mythos of Creation and God the Daughter

I came across an interpretation of the Creation Mythos that describes “the fall of maid” not as a moral failing that left all future descendants punished with the taint of original sin, but rather as a necessary separation from the divine perfection of Dea inherent in the condition of manifestation and its unfolding process. The “fall of maid” likewise was not a singular event. There have been various degrees of manifestation through Creation’s process, from the ethereal Satya Yuga to the profane Kali Yuga, each degree more bound to the material world. These degrees progress in a cyclical fashion as opposed to the linear conception of reality promulgated in the modern West. The processes of creation and destruction follow one another. Creation and destruction coincide on a continuous basis and range in magnitude from the Great Inspiration and Expiration at the Beginning and End of Creation to the daily death and birth of the individual cellular units that together form our bodies. In this beautiful matrix of Being is a sign for those who reflect on Her Mysteries.

While the Mother is the Creator, the Daughter is the Sustainer. The Daughter understands the immortality of the unmanifest and the mortality of the manifest simultaneously, for She carried Her Mother’s Light into the dark depths of death and was saved from Hell through the shedding of Her Mother’s tears. She is the union of polarity, the fulcrum balancing Creation and Destruction simultaneously in the powerful moment of the present.

I believe that Dea is ultimately One. Filianists use the language of Mother, Daughter, and Absolute Deity to describe the nature of Her Ultimate Reality in the form of unified polarity understandable to maid. I also believe that Dea and the created are intimately connected through a direct link in the form of the Higher Self. Every created being has a Higher Self through which the unique experience of being an individual is mediated and reconciled via alchemical processes into reunion with the Creator. This relationship is the purest form of Love. I understand the Daughter as this reflection of the Mother in manifest creation. The Higher Self is none other than the spark of the Daughter’s light, a lantern inviting the humble maid into Holy Communion with Her Divine Light:

As it is performed above in the spirit, so is it reflected below in the body and the soul, and through the reflection do earth’s children have part in the Real.

(The Mythos of the Divine Maid, 7:24)

Blessed is She who is the saving grace of maidenkind.

.Sources:

http://www.mother-god.com/filianism.html

http://www.mother-god.com/original-sin.html

“The Sacred Myths and Rites of the Madrians”

“The Gospel of Our Mother God”

Chaitra Navratri: Siddhidatri

Siddhidatri

On the ninth and last day of Chaita Navratri, Shakti is worshipped in the form of Siddhidatri (Siddhi=perfection, Datri=giver). In iconography, She is depicted with four arms and holds a lotus, conch, gada (mace), and chakra, and She sits on top of a lotus flower. She governs the planetary body Ketu, which is the southern lunar node.

This form of Shakti is worshiped by not only humans but also the other Gods. Her worship by Shiva is mentioned in Scripture, as related by Baba Rampuri:

When the Universal Mother was gripped with the idea of projecting Creation, She, first of all, created Lord Shiva who prayed to Her to endow him with perfections.  For this purpose, the Universal Mother (Durgaa) produced Goddess Siddhidaatri from Her own person.  As the behest of the Universal Mother, Goddess Siddidaatri bestowed eighteen kinds of rare perfections and powers and potentialities (Siddhis) on Lord Shiva.  By virtue of these siddhis, Lord Shiva happened to develop a divine splendor.

Having acquired the siddhis from Goddess Siddhidaatri, Lord Shiva created Lord Vishnu who in turn created Lord Brahma who was entrusted with the task of the Creation whereas Lord Vishnu got the task of Protection and Lord Shiva that of Destruction.

Lord Brahma felt a great difficulty in his task of the Creation in the absence of man and woman.  Thereupon he remembered Mother Siddhidaatri.  When she appeared before him, Lord Brahma said to her, “Oh Great Mother!  I cannot carry on with the task of the Creation in the absence of man and woman.  You kindly solve this problem of mine through your supernatural attainments (siddhis).”

Having heard Lord Brahma, Mother Siddidaatri converted half the person of Lord Shiva into a woman.  Thus Lord Shiva became half-male and half-female and came to be known as Ardhanaarishwara.  Thus the problem of Lord Brahma was resolved and the task of the Creation went on smoothly.

Her mantra is:

Sidhha Gandharvay khshadher Surair Marair Api

Sevya Mana Sada Bhooyat Siddhida Siddhidayini

Which in English means:

Goddess Siddhidatri who is worshipped by Siddha, Gandharva, Yaksh, Gods, Demons etc., holds Conch, Chakra, Gada and Lotus in her hands, giver of all siddhis and victory all over, be propitious to me.

For purposes of pronunciation, I have included a link to the spoken mantra (The mantra itself lasts for the first minute of this video, after which a speaker gives a lecture in Hindi).

Resources:

http://experiencehinduism.com/festivals/navratri-ninth-day-nine-form-durga-siddhidatri

http://www.drikpanchang.com/hindu-goddesses/parvati/durga/navdurga-siddhidatri.html

http://www.astrosage.com/festival/navratri/devi-siddhidatri.asp

http://hinduism.about.com/od/godsgoddesses/ss/navadurga_10.htm

http://vedicgoddess.weebly.com/3/post/2012/09/-siddhidatri-devi-9th-aspect-of-durga-in-navaratri.html

http://rampuri.com/navdurga-navratri/

Chaitra Navratri: Kushmanda

Kushmanda

On the fourth day of Chaitra Navratri, Shakti is worshipped in the form of Kushmanda (Ku=little, ushma=warmth, anda=egg). Symbolically, Her name means “that is from whose fraction of warmth the universe has been emanated,” designating Her as the comic egg which created the Universe and hence a Creator Goddess. Parvati takes on the form of Kushmanda after She started living inside the core of the Sun to liberate energy to the rest of the Universe. As a solar Goddess, Her governing planetary body is the Sun. This goes back to Her role as a Creator, for in the beginning the Universe was nothing more but a void of darkness until Her light spread in all directions. Her mount is a lion and She is depicted with eight arms in iconography. She holds a kamandal (an oblong water pot carried by ascetics), dhanush (bow), arrow, and lotus flower (symbolising blooming above the murk to achieve enlightenment) in Her right hands, and in Her left hands She carries a kalasha (a metal pot with a large base and small mouth), Japa mala beads (prayer beads), gada (a blunt mace/club), and a chakra (a disc-like weapon). Kushmanda bestows brightness, clarity, and peace upon Her worshippers.

She is associated with the Anahata Chakra (anahata=unstruck, unhurt in Sanskrit, implying that beneath all the pain in our heart, universal love and compassion is our core nature that is still intact even though we may believe it is damaged), which is the seat of love located in the heart. Love does not only refer to the popular sense of the word, however, but also to the deep, compassionate, Divine love. In a beautiful description of the Anahata chakra, a writer on chakras.net writes:

The Anāhata Chakra is our inner temple in which the divine Ātmā, “the flame of life”, resides. Self-Realisation, also known as God-Realisation, involves the recognition of our own Self, the Ātmā. To show that something belongs to us or concerns us we spontaneously point to the centre of the chest, the site of the Anāhata Chakra. No-one points to the head, the stomach or any other part of the body. This shows clearly that we spontaneously identify ourselves with the Ātmā within the heart centre. In the Chandogya Upanishad it is written:

“In the centre of the body there is a little shrine surrounded by a wall with eleven doors. Hidden within the shrine a Lotus blossoms, and within this there is a tiny, little room.”

What does this tiny room in the heart of the Lotus mean? It is the Ātmā, our true Self. The Ātmā is a part of God. It is pure, unchanging, Infinite Consciousness. It is Eternal, Unborn and Immortal, and exists in every living being. Just as the whole tree is already contained and present within a seed, the essence of the entire cosmos exists in the centre of the Heart Chakra.

Her mantra is:

Sura Sampurna Kalasham Rudhira Plutmev Cha

Dadhana Hastpad Mabhyam Kushmanda Shubh Dastu Me

Which means in English:

May the Goddess Kushmanda who holds two pitchers full of madira and blood in her lotus hands, be propitious to me. (I believe the word ‘madira’ is in reference to amrita, the nectar of immortality. Corrections for the meaning of this mantra, as well as further explanations regarding its meaning, are very welcome!)

For purposes of pronunciation, I have included a link to the spoken mantra (The mantra itself lasts for the first 35 seconds of this video, after which a speaker gives a lecture in Hindi).

Resources:

http://www.astrosage.com/festival/navratri/devi-kushmanda.asp

http://hinduism.about.com/od/godsgoddesses/ss/navadurga_5.htm

http://www.drikpanchang.com/hindu-goddesses/parvati/durga/navdurga-kushmanda.html

http://www.chakras.net/energy-centers/anahat

http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/898?page=5

http://www.ekunji.com/learn/navratri-puja-vidhi-nav-durga-puja

My Struggle with Doubt: Part One

Have you ever felt at one point in life that you don’t know what to believe in anymore? That the world around you is falling apart as you desperatley try to make sense of it all? That you don’t know what you thought you knew? I feel as though I have reached that point.

On a spiritual level, my entire concept of God has wavered, and this fundamental lack of spiritual peace has run over into other areas of my life. I find myself with constant questions of “Is God personal or impersonal?”, “Is God one or many?”, “How does an imperfect creation come from a perfect God?”, “Is everything I believe about God false?” I feel that many of the answers to questions of the Divine that Filianism provided me still leave me with the same doubts that my birth faith, Christianity, left me with.

Due to time constraints, I will give the first example that comes to mind for the time being regarding my struggle with doubt and cycnicism. The question of imperfection’s origin has ravaged my mind for some time now. In Filianism the origin of khear (that which keeps us from the Divine) is given in the following passage from The Holy Mythos:

1. But there was one that had not been shaped by Her, and that was neither Her daughter nor a creature of spirit. But it was the space between the fragments and the nothingness that had been before things were. It had neither power nor delight, but only weight. It had no shape, but could only coil and uncoil itself about the things that were. It was the snake, and it was not silver but black. 2. The snake hated all the things that had become, and hated the separation of the waters and the sky. It hated light and power, desiring all to be darkness and nothingness. 3. And when the world had lived a time in joy (though no one can say what that time was, for there were neither days nor nights, nor moons to tell the month), the snake came to the first of the daughters of the Mistress of All Things, and coiled about her feet and spoke to her: 4. “First of the daughters of creation, you have lived a time that cannot be counted, and have run for all that time in superfluity of strength, and have never known the sweetness of rest. Only embrace me and you shall have rest.” 5. For a long time she listened to the words of the snake. She did not know what rest might be, but knew that it was not of Her. 6. And yet so enticingly did the snake speak of the sweetness of rest, surpassing all delight, that at last she threw herself down and embraced the snake. 7. And because she was suffused with the delight of the Mistress of All Things, the snake immediately took on shape. 8. And its shape was like hers, but its body was filled with weight and was barren, for being not a creature of spirit, it had not the power of creation. 9. And at once she became tired with all the outpouring of her energy, for her energy was no longer boundless. 10. Though she desired to rest, but could not rest, and she spoke to the snake, saying: “Snake, what must I do now?” 11. And the snake said: “First daughter of creation, you must go to the Mistress of All Things and ask Her to make the world dark that you may rest.” 12. So she asked that of Her, and She darkened the world for a period that Her daughter might rest. This was the first night. (1:2:1-12)

The concept of something in the universe that is entirely uncreated by God, a sentient vacuum of sorts, is difficult for me to grasp. How is something entirely outside of the realm of Dea’s creation? Both the snake and Dea are uncreated beings. Some believers may not overthink matters as I do, or may say that I am being too literalistic in my interpretations of the Scriptures. But for me it is an important question, because the origin of where things went wrong is an important question if one believes that God is an eternally just, perfect, omnipotent superbeing. The Fall of Maid in Filianic Scripture is very similar to the Fall of Man in Biblical Scripture. Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) answer this paradox with the introduction of Satan, but I don’t really buy into that idea either. These religions view Satan as a creation of God who rebelled against Divine command and landed himself in Hell for the rest of eternity. But if God is the Perfect Creator of everything, how did an imperfect creation (the origin of sin, Satan) come from a perfect God?

I am a rationally minded individual, and it’s very difficult for me to accept apologetic phrases like “God works in mysterious ways”. Of course the universe is mysterious and far beyond human comprehension, but I am highly skeptical of claims of knowing things about the universe beyond what is logically discernable while covering illogical inconsistencies with apologetic statements like the one above. Perhaps I am a product of the times in which I live in. Perhaps I have not done enough soul searching. Perhaps I am a lost soul trying to make sense of this crazy world. The only thing I am sure of is that I don’t know.

An Introduction to the Seven Great Janyati

In Filianism, there are seven main planetary powers that are known as the Seven Great Janyati (which may be translated as either Angel or Goddess). Mr. Race Capet, who authored the wonderful Wikipedia page on Filianism, gives the following explanation regarding the Seven Great Janyati:

The Great Janyati form the core of Filianic angelology. Each is associated with a virtue, a color, a musical note, a metal, a planet, and a day of the week, and together their system of correspondences encompasses all being under their combined jurisdiction. Each is considered not merely to represent, but to be the underlying metaphysical essence that forms the basis of her aspect of manifestation; they are the essential content by which all worldly forms are shaped.

In Filianic Scripture, the Janyati are compared to the splitting of white light through a prism, creating a plethora of rainbow colour that are created from the original white light and yet are at the same time still a part of this light, as found in the following passage from the Holy Mythos:

1. As the rain fell, the light came again, and a rainbow appeared in the sky, shedding its light upon all things.” (1:3:1)

In many way, the Janyati are similar to the seven planetary powers in Classical astrology, and indeed each Janya has Her own corresponding planetary body and attributes over which She rules. The earliest recorded Greek creation myth describes the creation of the world by the Goddess Eurynome, including Her creation of the Janyati:

Next, the goddess created the seven planetary powers, setting a Titaness and a Titan over each. Theia and Hyperion for the Sun; Phoebe and Atlas for the Moon; Dione and Crius for the planet Mars; Metis and Coeus for the planet Mercury; Themis and Eurynmedon for the planet Jupiter; Tethys and Oceanus for Venus; Rhea and Cronus for the planet Saturn.

One may take note here that the seven planetary powers in the Greek myth were created in pairs of male and female. Many in the Filianic community argue that the seven planetary powers were originally all-female and that later were given consorts during the patriarchal era. These male consorts were later given complete dominion over their respective domains. This view is supplemented by much of the archaeological scholarship produced by Marija Gimbutas and reported by Merlin Stone in her ground-breaking book, “When God was a Woman”, as well as earlier theories on ancient matriarchal religion by Robert Graves and Jane Ellen Harrison. The idea of universal matriarchy and Goddess religion in the ancient world is highly disputed in modern archaeology, but evidence found to support the theory is intriguing.

In Filianism, different traditions (Matronite, Kyrian, Madrian, Cheoluranyan, etc.) have different names for the Janya, but every tradition recognizes the same universal principles that each Janya represents. For example, whether one calls the Janya ruling over Venus Sai Sushuri, Lady Grace, Kyria Tethys, or something different altogether, She is still the same Janya who rules over the Universal Principle of Love.

There is no single correct way to worship Dea, although the basic religious framework of Filianism prevents the sort of wishy washy eclecticism that undermines modern Paganism. Much like Hindus who may approach Brahman (Ultimate Reality) through Durga, Shiva, Vishnu, etc., Filyanis also may approach Dea through the Janya. One can approach Dea in any number of ways depending upon one’s personal preferences and inclinations. An archived Aristasian article relates several different devotions to Dea and comments on these devotions with the following view on religious difference within our community:

Now none of these are “different religions” in the Western sense, or even opposing sects. They are simply different Ways. Do they all agree on anything? Yes. They all agree that there is one supreme Spirit, our Mother, who is everywhere called Dea (or Dia). And furthermore— and this is important — they disagree (in the Western way) on nothing. No one disputes that the other Ways are Ways. No one “disbelieves” in another’s view of Dea…In the first place, we are all agreed that there is one Spirit, one God, one Dea. That is the one fundamental. Dea: our Heavenly Mother. After that there are different Ways. The simplest is just a belief in, and love of, Dea.

This is something I especially find comforting, as I struggled with this idea for years. I have always believed in a single Supreme Spiritual Power, but felt drawn to worship this Supreme Power through a variety of more personable, tangible Goddesses from a variety of pantheons, from Isis to Kuan Yin. I could not sum up my devotions into any sort of existing religious organization, so I defined myself as an eclectic Pagan. Eclectic Pagans receive quite a bit of hate from other Pagans who belong to well-established traditions, like Reconstructionists who accuse eclectics of stealing gods from different cultures and worshiping them outside of their original context. I could not consolidate my devotion to these different aspects of Dea that I felt called to into a framework that made sense to me (and certainly not anyone else), and so my religious ideas became more and more convoluted as I struggled with my identity and personal beliefs. When I first learned about Filianism through the Chapel of Our Mother God site, I saw that Filyanis saw Dea in many different forms, including Mary who I had always felt great love for but did not include in my worship as an ex-Catholic. Through discovering Filianism, I have found a religion through which I can worship my Mother in an authentic, traditional manner while also being able to learn from Her through the many Ways She has revealed Herself to people throughout the ages and around the world.

In conclusion, the concept of planetary powers may be confusing to the modern rationalist mind. Common misconceptions regarding Janyati are perfectly summed up the following passage from an archived Aristasian article:

In the first place, let us be clear that the Janyati are not “forces” or “energies” conceived after the model of Newtonian physics (and dearly beloved of New Age movements). They are Intelligences. They are not people like us, it is true. But they are something more than people, not less than people. The greatest force in the universe is less than a person. It cannot think. We are speaking here of Intelligences immeasurably greater than ourselves. They have everything we people have, magnified a thousand times, and they have many qualities we cannot even conceive of. To picture them as something akin to people may not do them justice, but to picture them as something impersonal, like a force of nature, would do them infinitely less justice. They are everything we are and much more.

In the second place, let us remember that we are dealing with an intelligent, not an accidental, universe. The things below mirror the things above. The microcosm reflects the macrocosm. While the Janyati are very different from us, they nonetheless have a common measure with us. Just as we are made in God’s image, so are they. Indeed they are far closer to the Dea-nature than we are, and in a sense, we may say that each Janya is Dea, in a certain aspect. That is why the translation “goddess” is in some sense as appropriate as “angel”.

It must also be made clear that we as Filyanis do not worship the planetary bodies themselves. Rather, they serve as material symbols for higher spiritual principles.

Resources:

http://www.mother-god.com/goddess-religion.html

http://aristasia.info/janyati.html

http://aristasia.info/janyati2.html

http://aristasia.info/Religion.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janya_%28Filianism%29

http://www.mythome.org/euor.html

The Colour Silver: Symbol and Scripture

If Filianism had a sacred colour, it would be silver. The colour silver appears in the Filianic Scriptures fourteen times. All but one of these references to silver are found in The Holy Mythos. Below I have included the scripture passages in which silver is mentioned, followed by a brief commentary on each one and its context within Scripture:

For each peal of Her voice became a silver fragment, broken from the whole and yet complete in itself. And She loved each fragment with all the joy of Her being, and Her hands were wisely skilled. (1:1:5)

Silver is a feminine colour that is both intuitive and mysterious, calming and purifying. It is traditionally associated with wisdom, as the hair becomes a silver colour as one ages. Its reflective qualities are of primary interest in connection with Scripture.

And each fragment was filled with Her delight, and therefore was living. And some grew in the deep earth, and were plants and trees; some ran about the ground or flew above it; and those first-made that had no place to be set down became the fishes and creatures of the sea. And everything was silver. And She laughed. (1:1:8)

Everything at the beginning of the Creation was a pure reflection of Dea, and everything lived in harmony with Her and all other things.

And every peal of Her voice became the image of a silver fragment of Her Spirit. (1:1:13)

This passage clearly demonstrates the reflective quality of silver in symbolism. Silver is also used in making mirrors, on which the back surface is coated with silver to produce a reflection of the true image. The reflection is dependent upon the true image, not the other way around.

But there was one that had not been shaped by Her, and that was neither Her daughter nor a creature of spirit. But it was the space between the fragments and the nothingness that had been before things were. It had neither power nor delight, but only weight. It had no shape, but could only coil and uncoil itself about the things that were. It was the snake, and it was not silver but black. (1:2:1)

The Fall of Maid is a tale that I have never quite wrapped my mind around, as it is difficult for me to imagine Dea as an all-encompassing being and yet for there to exist something that does not emanate from Her and is not a part of Her. For that reason, I will not attempt to examine this particular passage except in noting the contrast between the silver nature that is of Dea and the black void that is not of Her. The colour black traditionally carries negative connotations, especially in Western cultures where it is the colour of death and mourning. It should also be of no surprise that black is also associated with rebellion, as is seen by its adoption by various subcultures like punks and bikers.

Further commentary on this Scripture passage by those who are more knowledgeable about it than I may be left in the comments below.

And whereas all things had been silver, now they took on every hue and colour, and the world was beautiful; but it was not so beautiful as it had formerly been. (1:3:2)

While silver is a reflection of Dea, the world after the Fall of Maid is now coloured with many shades and hues. Although still beautiful on a material level, the purity of the reflection and connection with Dea is lost.

“But I shall keep watch in the heavens by night, and there shall be a silver light that there may never be complete darkness. By this I shall govern my movements of the waters, and the earth may never again be flooded; and when you look upon this light, you will remember the time when all things were silver.” (1:3:4-5)

This celestial light is in reference to the moon, which is a symbol of the Daughter. The Lunar Daughter is also an intermediary between maid and the Solar Mother, who is too bright to look upon. As stated by the Encyclopedia Cheoluranya:

 The Lunar realm is the realm of imagination and also of mental activity. The word “mind” comes from the same root as “moon”. While the pure Intellect which sees Truth directly is by nature Solar, the reflected Intellectual light which is our earthly reason is lunar (mental or moon-like), as also is our imagination.

The moon’s governance over bodies of water on earth is also mentioned here in speaking of the Great Flood, a legend which has appeared in cultures all over the world.

The second princess held neither so much land nor treasure, but she was a maid of deep wisdom and profound meditation. Her crown was of pure silver; and as she took it from her head, the light of the star fell upon it, and it shone with a loveliness yet lovelier than that of the golden crown. (1:5:25)

The connection between wisdom and silver is made clear here in this verse. Following this verse, the archangel replies to the second princess “It is good that you bring your crown, for you have great wisdom, but the Holy Child is the Daughter of Wisdom Herself.” (1:5:27)

The Maid took up the great moon-axe, whose silver blades were the crescent of the moon, in symbol of Her light, and went alone into a desert place. (1:7:1)

Here again we see the connection between the Daughter, the moon, and the colour silver. In this passage, the moon spoken of in its crescent phase. Whether the crescent moon is in a waxing or waning phase is not specified, although by my understanding of the Madrian tradition, it seems that both  waxing and waning crescents were related to the Daughter and were celebrated by offering the Rite of Sacrifice. The great moon-axe mentioned in this verse is later hung above the Daughter’s corpse by the daughters of the dark queen “in symbol of the greatness of the deed.” (1:8:19)

And the Maid gave the silver circlet into her hands and passed through the gate. (1:8:6)

Circlets are headpieces that are similar to tiaras. In this passage, the Daughter gives up the circlet adorning her head to the second gatekeeper during Her descent into the underworld.

And She came to a sixth gate and the gatekeeper said ‘”Give me the silver girdle about your waist and you may pass.” And She unbound Her silver girdle and passed through the gate wearing only Her white robe. (1:8:10)

The silver girdle referenced here is more likely a girdle belt as opposed to the word’s more common definition as lingerie that aids in shaping the torso. After unbinding Her girdle, the Daughter is left only in Her white robe. White is not only a colour of purity, but it is also associated with death, especially in Eastern cultures like Japan where the dead are traditionally dressed in white kimono. This association is made clearer in consideration of the impending Death of the Daughter following Her arrival into the Underworld.

Then in the darkness after the second day, a silver star appeared in the heavens, whose brightness was too great for them to look upon. (1:9:8)

This is an interesting passage, as silver is typically associated with lunar cosmology and the Daughter. Both of these associations link silver to being an intermediary between the maid and Dea, as since the Fall of Maid, she can no longer look upon Dea’s brightness. However, in this verse the silver star is a sign of the Mother who has come to seek Her Daughter and save Her from Death and the Underworld.

And your dearest joy must ring as a silver bell that has a crack; sweetly, but never in perfection. (3:4:12)

This is the only verse outside of the Holy Mythos of the Filianic Scriptures that mentions silver. In this context, the Daughter is speaking to humanity of its own imperfection from the moment that maid turned away from Dea. One can easily see how this verse relates to everyday life, as even the most joyful of occasions and celebrations are marred by imperfection, and even in times of contentment, life often falls short of the expectation of what it should be. The Daughter cautions us from arrogant hubris in the following verse by saying: “Oh, do not say that you are perfect, for then you can not understand the world or your own selves.” (3:4:13)

Resources:

http://chelouranya.com/encyclopaedia/index.php?title=Sai_Candre&action=edit

Ataensic and Her Descendants: Iroquois Ancestral Mother

The Iroquois ancestral Mother Ataensic lived in the sky long ago. At that time, the entire Earth was a vast lake filled with water birds, otters, and turtles. In the heavens above, Ataensic became pregnant. Ataensic’s husband, Sky Chief, was a very jealous deity and doubted his wife’s faithfulness to him. One night in his sleep, he had a dream that the Tree of Life should be uprooted, creating a great hole in the heavens. When he awoke the next morning, he planned to push his unsuspecting pregnant wife into the hole. He called Ataensic over to the Tree and had Her gather nut tree roots, berry bushes, and various other plants and herbs to fill Her burden basket with. He then uprooted the Tree of Life, creating a huge opening in the heavens.

Sky Chief told Ataensic to look at the Earth below through the hole. Curious, Ataensic went over to the edge of the hole, into which Sky Chief pushed Her. Waterbirds helped to ease her descent to the Earth and the other animals, sympathetic to the pregnant Goddess, built land up from the lake mud on top of Great Snapping Turtle who offered his giant back as a place to build the landmass upon. This is how the continent of North America became known as Turtle Island by the Iroquois.

Upon this earth, Ataensic gave birth to Her beloved Daughter, Enedeka Dakwa. Mother and Daughter shared a very close familial bond, and the relationship between a child and her/his mother became the most important familial relationship for the matrilineal Iroquois.

As Enedeka Dakwa grew older, She longed to have a family of her own. The Earth Spirit, North Wind, saw Enedeka Dakwa one day and became infatuated by Her great beauty. Wondering how he might approach this lovely Lady, he transformed into a squirrel and asked Her to marry him. Enedeka Dakwa thought the squirrel was cute, but as she had promised to ask Her Mother first for permission to marry any suitor that came to Her, She asked him to wait while She asked Her Mother. Of course, Ataensic would not allow Her Daughter to marry a little squirrel, so Enedeka Dakwa had to decline his offer. The same happened again when North Wind transformed into a raccoon and a fox. Still not discouraged, North Wind transformed himself into a handsome young man and asked for Her hand in marriage yet again. Ataensic agreed to Her Daughter’s marriage to this man, and soon after Enedeka Dakwa became pregnant with two sets of twins.

She bore two sons and two daughters, dying in childbirth because her second son,  Flint (Tawiskaroo) decided to take the shortest way out and burst forth from Her side. Enedeka Dakwa was buried and became the Mother Earth. From Her body came the Iroquois’ staple foods: corn, squash, and beans. Ataensic blamed Flint for Her Daughter’s death and so always sided with his twin brother, Sapling (Rawenio). The same pattern of a good and evil twin followed with the female twins, Sweet Blossom and Blue Lynx. Whenever Sweet Blossom would create something beautiful like the rose, Blue Lynx added thorns. Sweet Blossom was nurturing and caring, while Blue Lynx was bitter and selfish. Sweet Blossom only saw beauty around Her, while Blue Lynx had a jaded, negative perspective of the world.

One day when the evil twins Blue Lynx and Flint were trying to cross a river, they decided to make the area so cold that the river froze. Sweet Blossom and Sapling’s creations began to freeze and die, and so Sapling decided that the year would henceforth be regulated, with the spring and east governed by himself, the summer and south governed by Sweet Blossom, the autumn and west governed by Flint, and the winter and north governed by Blue Lynx.

One day an argument broke out between the two brothers. Flint was so jealous of Sapling’s ability to create such lovely beings that he stepped outside of his seasonal boundaries and began to freeze the entire earth. Ataensic asked her grandchildren to do something about the out of control Flint, so Sapling wrestled Flint into a cave and locked him as well as his monstrous creations inside with a large stone rolled in front of the cave’s entrance. Sapling became known as the Creator while Flint became associated with the Underworld and all selfish desires.

When Ataensic died, She returned to the celestial heavens and became Grandmother Moon. In honour of the thirteen scales on Great Snapping Turtle’s back who had given Her a place to dwell upon, the full moon returned thirteen times in a lunar year.

Resources:

http://www.marcinequenzer.com/creation.htm (I highly recommend this website, not only for detailed information on the Iroquois but also for the beautiful artwork available there)

http://journeyingtothegoddess.wordpress.com/tag/ataensic/