Category Archives: Goddess Emergence Project

Amaterasu: A Guided Meditation

Amaterasu: A Guided Meditation

As I’ve been working on the companion book to the Surcadian Oracle, I have been writing some guided meditations as ways to make contact with each goddess. Amaterasu represents a very Firey Sun Goddess and her meditation turned out to be much sexier than I thought going in. But I went with it nonetheless. It’ll be interesting to see what edits happen before making it into the book…In the meantime, here is the card, the excerpt from the book and the meditation for you!

S.O. Amaterasu

Amaterasu is a Japanese Goddess of the Sun. There are multiple stories written in about Her. In one of them it describes Her arguing with her brother. Because of this terrible argument, She chooses to hide in a cave, a result of Her anger and grief.

It was Uzume, a goddess of laughter and joy, who was finally able to lure Her out of Her cave and out of Her depression. Uzume was known for her dancing and comedic antics. It was precisely these things that enticed Amaterasu to venture out.  When She emerged from the cave, She saw Her reflection in a large mirror that was placed in front and She was momentarily distracted by Her own beauty and love allowing Her to be drawn out further and never return to the darkness.

Amaterasu allows us to acknowledge our dark periods. Those times of grief and depression. Sometimes it is necessary to go into our caves to heal. What Uzume shows us is that we cannot stay there forever.

If the healing turns to self-pity and becomes an addiction sometimes it takes another to be a mirror to us and show us our true selves. As a mirror we can be shown the true beauty of who we are and not the darkness that we may have become.

When Amaterasu steps in, you are being asked to bring more joy into your life. Examine your shadows and where you might be stuck. Take a look again at who you are in a brighter light. Now is the time to come out of your cave and to begin life anew. Go ahead, laugh at yourself, allow joy, close your eyes and feel the warmth of the sun. And remember that sometimes you are the light and sometimes, you are the mirror. Reflect love.

Making Contact

You rise and dress comfortably putting on a light jacket. You look around your room packing some items in your backpack and preparing for the journey ahead. The day is cloudy and it looks as if a storm might be­ brewing but you are not concerned.

A brisk wind stings your face as you open the door to venture out. Your first clue that this will not be an ordinary journey.

The ground is springy beneath your feet and the grass here is quite green and soft. You set off in the direction of the mountain in the distance. You feel full of energy and optimism. But as you walk you notice that your chest gets heavy. The air becomes thinner and it becomes more difficult to breathe.

Your pace slows as the ground becomes uneven and rocky. Your pack begins to weigh heavily on your back as the terrain steadily inclines. You begin to lean forward to counter the weight.

As your ascent continues, your descent into yourself begins. You begin to question why you chose this journey.  You lament all the decisions you have made in preparation. Why didn’t you chose a warmer coat? Why did you pack such a heavy bag? Why didn’t you wear better shoes? You should have known. You should have known. You should have known. The sky grows darker.

You continue to move forward but you are tired now. Your breath comes in ragged gasps. You cough and you trip on slippery ground. You catch yourself with your hands, cutting them on the sharp gravel. You wince with pain noticing the tiny drops of blood pushing up through your skin.

You think you cannot go on when the rain begins to fall.

Your head swims with thoughts of “what if?”. You curse yourself for not being good enough, for not being strong enough, for not having what it takes to reach the top. You decide you were never going to make it anyway so you may as well quit now.

It is then that you notice a cave in the hillside. You decide to rest there until the rain passes.

You sit for some time in the entrance of the cave listening to the storm and watching the rain as it falls heavily upon the ground. You are wet and cold and alone.

Shivering, you turn toward the tunnel leading into the earth and decide to venture into its depths. Your despair becomes overwhelming. You no longer care and you wish to disappear. You gather up your pack and begin to walk into the darkness.

You smell the fire before anything else. The smoke from burning wood peaks your curiosity.  You move forward, deeper into the depths of the cave. You begin to hear the crackling as it burns and then begin to feel its heat.

A tiny spark floats in your direction, beckoning you toward the warmth. As you round the bend, it comes into view. The cave is filled with light. There are soft piles of blankets on the ground and a plate of warm food.  

Then you notice Her. She sits with the hot golden glow of the fire on her skin as it burns between you. Her face is twisted in pleasure and beauty. Sweat sparkles like diamonds on her skin. You briefly wonder what it is you walked into and contemplate a quick and embarrassed exit. But you stand there unable to move in her presence, wondering what it is that compels you to stay.

She motions for you to remove your wet, cold clothing and to sit. You drop your pack, disrobe and you take your place upon the soft blankets. The warmth of the fire relaxes you and pulls you into a sensual embrace. Her unreal beauty mesmerizes you and you continue to stare unblinking. Your fingers absently touch the fabric of the blankets, mindlessly noticing their otherworldly softness when you suddenly realize it is in fact, your own skin that you are stroking.

She laughs at your shock and discomfort. You can’t help but laugh at yourself too.

She stands and walks toward you. You lick your lips in anticipation and your heart beats faster. You don’t understand what it is you are feeling, but you no longer care.

Taking Her place beside you, She picks up your pack and throws it in the fire. It crackles and burns clean away. She scoops up your clothing and burns it in the fire. It too dissolves in the heat of the flame.

Naked and exposed, you lose your desire to hide. She picks up the food, one morsel at a time and pushes it gently into your mouth. It melts like magic over your tongue in an indescribable taste explosion. You feel it vibrate through your entire body.

As she feeds you, she tells you her story. She speaks of a grief so deep and unending that it takes your breath away and cuts deep into your heart. You feel the knife of her pain cutting into you, carving away pieces until a deep, empty chasm is all that remains.

Then she kisses your heart and you feel it soften. She kisses your belly and you begin to feel your own inner fire. She kisses your pelvis and you feel pleasure that is akin to pain. She stands to kiss the top of your head, pulling all of these sensations through your being. Filling the cavernous space that she carved.

Lastly, She picks up a mirror and slowly turns it toward you. For the first time you are able to pull your eyes away from Her and look at your own reflection within.

And there you are with skin the color of the golden flames, sweat sparkling like diamonds in the firelight. There is laughter in your eyes and love in your heart. And there is light. A light so big and blinding that you know you will never totally give into the darkness again.

She laughs as you gasp in surprise at who you have become. She laughs as the light flashes, blowing you back from the flame and blocking out all sight as you lose consciousness.

You hear nothing.

All is quiet.

You slowly wake to find that you are resting outside of your door on the soft grassy earth where you had taken the first steps of your journey. You are not sure of the time or how long you’ve been gone. As your eyes adjust to the rising of the sun, you laugh at Her shining down upon your new day.

Goddess Reading of the Day: Bridget

Goddess Reading of the Day: Bridget

Bridget Coloring Page

In Celtic Mythology She was a daughter of the Tuatha De Danann. She rules over creativity, blacksmithing, home and hearth, war, poetry, healing, livestock, springtime. She was a powerful figure and force, then and now. She is fiery and strong and She asks you to be the same. Bridget, Brigid, or sometimes Brigit, is celebrated and honored during Candlemas or Imbolc in February of each year. She’s the Goddess that brings light after the dark winter. When she shows up, things begin to move, birth, flow, grow, begin.

When we feel lost in the dark of winter, literally or figuratively, Bridget is the one to light the fire that warms and guides us. She is passion and creativity, headstrong and determined. She is asking us to use our passion. Find creative solutions. Remain determined. Never give up hope, never give up the fight.

There is a sexual energy related to Bridget that is in play. It’s the power of creation. You are being asked to reach down into the primal source of who you are and from that, pull forth new ideas, new energy and a passion that will propel you forward to the next stage in your life.

It is understandable to feel fear, to feel nervous about all of the unknown. When the blacksmith’s hammer hits, sparks fly. Bridget is hitting the hammer hard now. The heat is frightening, the noise almost painful, the sparks mesmerizing. When the metal cools we are left with a strong and powerful tool.

You have been beaten and burned, forged in the flame and Bridget has asked much of you. But you are ready to emerge, stronger than you ever were and ready for the next adventure. This time you get to be the one to shape instead of being the one shaped. You have been created so that now you can go and create. You are being given the opportunity to do big and great things. You may not see it yet but you are emerging from the darkness of winter. Whatever time of year it may be on the calendar, for you it is Spring.

Art and excerpt are from The Goddess Coloring Book.  Find it HERE

 

 

 

 

Goddess Reading of the Day: Kamuy Fuchi

Goddess Reading of the Day: Kamuy Fuchi

Kamay Fuchi Coloring PageThe other day my husband and I took our children to the botanical gardens in town. They have a display of Christmas trees from all around the world, we visited with Santa and then the kids made a craft. The craft that they made was a kadomatsu. Its a type of decoration that’s usually placed in pairs by the door to welcome the Kami, or ancestral Spirits. We placed ours on the hearth. For the Ainu, the Kami is spelled ‘Kamuy’ and Kamuy Fuchi is the goddess I pulled today.

Kamuy Fuchi is the Ainu Kamuy, or Goddess of the Hearth. She is the gatekeeper of communication between the living and the dead. She represents family, ancestors and your soul pod. She is a teacher of the people and oversees all domestic affairs and relationships.

It is said that Kamuy Fuchi never leaves the hearth. And why should she? The hearth is the center of the home. Here is the flame that warms our bodies, cooks our food and sustains our lives. Here is the place where souls return and wait to be reincarnated once more. Here is the place where families come together.

How do you maintain your “hearth”?  Is it clean with a fire burning bright? Or is it covered in soot and your flame dwindling? It is time to clean house. Often doing this literally, helps us to do this on an emotional and mental level as well. See how what you have around you and what you are bringing into your space is affecting yourself and your family. It could be that there is someone around you who is being disrespectful to this sacred space.

Community space, family space should be respected by all. Are you enabling by cleaning up after everyone’s messes? Are you or others being disrespectful by bringing in clutter and leaving it for others to work around? Think about this not only in a literal sense but in a metaphorical sense as well. Sometimes the words we use as well as our actions can be just as messy as those dirty dishes left all over the kitchen counter.

Call on Kamuy Fuchi to help in your marriage or in family disputes. Like a tough grandmother she can deliver the swats as readily as the hugs. Though you cannot change others, she will guide you to making changes in yourself; to become more self- aware, allow for self- respect. She teaches us how to nurture that spark and that flame within ourselves. She allows us to talk with our ancestors, living and dead and to make connections that further us in our destiny. She reminds us that sometimes our family is not only those that share our DNA but those with whom we have incarnated time and again. Kamuy Fuchi shows us how to clean up our acts and stoke the fires of a warm and sustainable life.

Excerpt and Illustration are from The Goddess Coloring Book available now.

Goddess Reading of the Day: The Sophia

Goddess Reading of the Day: The Sophia

Sophia Coloring Page

For my reading today, I pulled Sophia. My daughter’s name is Sophia. She’s been going through a tough time lately and has been on my mind. I guess this one’s for her!

Sophia is considered to be a goddess of wisdom in Hellenistic traditions. The name Sophia in Greek translates as wisdom. The wisdom Sophia gifts us takes place inside of ourselves. To work with Sophia means it is time to break through your illusions, your delusions and the lies you tell yourself.

This commitment is one that can result in pain as your ego falls away and your true self is revealed. The results are always worth it. The process is difficult.

Wisdom comes through experience. Don’t hold back. Do not choose to remain quiet because you fear humiliation if you speak. Do not choose to hide because you fear what people will think if you are seen. Things perceived as “bad” are lessons to be learned. They are opportunities for growth and change.  Humiliation brings humility. Humility is the understanding that not everything is about us. Wisdom comes with the realization that there is something more, something bigger than what it is we see and the understanding of our role within that.

The image is a page from my Goddess Coloring Book that features all the Goddesses of the Surcadian Oracle along with a description of their energy and history.

 

Goddess Reading of the Day: Xochi Quetzal

Goddess Reading of the Day: Xochi Quetzal

coloringbook xochiquetzal

After a long weekend of dealing with sick kids and little sleep. I am not exactly hitting the ground running today. Hoping that I am not coming down with something as well, it makes sense for me to pull Xochi Quetzal for my Goddess Reading. If I am to listen to my body wisdom, I think I had better get as much rest as possible today, not worry about what I “should” be doing and take care of me instead. Here’s what She has to say about it:

Xochi Quetzal is an Aztec goddess. She is a goddess of passion, excess, sex, beauty, fertility and earthly pleasures. She is known to protect mothers, especially during pregnancy and childbirth. She’s also a creative goddess inspiring art and crafts of the day, such as weaving.

In our society, we are often told that our bodies are bad. We are told that to evolve and become enlightened we must escape our earthly desires and our physical selves and become more spirit like. We forget that the tools we have to do this reside in our physical. Xochi Quetzal asks you not to separate the two but combine them. Go into yourself, feel your body. Check in with each cell, each breath, each smell, each urge. Feel them. Honor them. Experience them. Use all your senses to explore your bloody, snotty, smelly self! Begin to accept these parts of yourself that have amazing purpose and creative potential. This is not the time to hide. There is no time for shame. Know you are beautiful, in your body. Know you are wise, in your body. Know you are powerful, in your body. There are many things we can “know”, in our heads. Learning to “know” them in your body is a whole other level of wisdom.

From The Goddess Coloring Book, available soon.

Goddess Reading of the Day: Oshun

Goddess Reading of the Day: Oshun

coloringbook oshun

 

As I continue to work on my Surcadian Oracle and my Goddess Coloring book, I’ve decided to share what the Goddesses have to say. Today Oshun came up. I think she is a good one to keep in mind as we start our week. This is an excerpt from the book, the illustration from the Coloring Book. Enjoy!

Oshun is a Yoruba Orisha or Goddess. She is associated with love, sex,wealth, beauty and marriage. There are stories in which she is proud like the peacock. There are stories where she is selfless and sacrifices her beauty and becomes the vulture. And there is  a lesser known story of Oshun as a mermaid.  Fresh water is her domain, the rivers in particular.She represents our emotions and the flow of life.

In the story of Oshun as the mermaid, Oshun lives in an underground cavern where the river runs beneath the earth. She has lost her head and she has only one opportunity to find it. That time happens just once a year when the moon is full and shines through the small hole in the roof of her cave for just a few moments.

When Oshun enters your life, joy, beauty and abundance follow. She tells you to be aware of these things that already exist. She tells you to keep your heart open and do not fall prey to jealousy or envy. You may be lacking joy and sitting in fear, worried about finances or relationships. To embody Oshun you must let go of your poverty consciousness, your fears of lack and enjoy the beauty in life. It is easy to get caught up in the everyday and miss these important and beautiful moments. By becoming more aware of them and honoring them, they will increase. More and more we begin to fill our lives with love and beauty, wealth and abundance. Oshun may be smaller or seemingly less powerful than some of the others in her Orisha family, but do not let that fool you.  Where she lacks in brute strength, she makes up in cunning and intelligence. She uses what she does have to her fullest advantage. And because she does not doubt or question, no one doubts or questions her.

Do not doubt that you have what it takes to succeed. Recognize your gifts and talents, your resources and use them to their fullest. Act quickly and decisively. Sometimes we get that one shot to make something happen, to “find your head”.  If Oshun has stepped in, you had better step up because your time is NOW.

 

Goddess Reading of the Day: Bridget

Goddess Reading of the Day: Bridget

coloringbook bridgette

In Celtic Mythology she was a daughter of the  Tuatha De Danann. She rules over creativity, blacksmithing, home and hearth, war, poetry, healing, livestock, springtime. She is a powerful figure and force, then and now. She is fiery and strong. And if she is showing up for you today, she is asking you to be the same.

In the Surcadian Oracle, Bridget is found in the East of the Northern Quadrant of our wheel. Her Keyword is “Inspiration”. She is in the east where the sun rises, the beginning and she is in the Northern Quadrant which means she is about logic and mental aspects. She is about Wisdom. She is the one behind your “Ah Ha!” moment.

Bridget, Brigid, or sometimes Brigit, is celebrated and honored during Candlemas or Imbolc in February of each year. She’s the Goddess that brings light after the dark winter. When she shows up, things begin to move, birth, flow, grow, begin.

When we feel lost in the dark of winter, literal or figurative, Bridget is the one to light the fire that warms and guides us. She is passion and creativity, headstrong and determined. She is asking us to use our passion. Find creative solutions. Remain determined. Never give up hope, never give up the fight.

There is a sexual energy related to Bridget that is in play. It’s the power of creation. You are being asked to reach down into the primal source of who you are and from that pull forth new ideas new energy and a passion that will propel you forward to the next stage in your life.

It is understandable to feel fear, to feel nervous about all of the unknown. When the blacksmith’s hammer hits, sparks fly. Bridget is hitting the hammer hard now. The heat is frightening, the noise almost painful, the sparks mesmerizing. When the metal cools we are left with a strong and powerful tool. You have been beaten and burned, forged in the flame and Bridget has asked much of you. But you are ready to emerge, stronger than you ever were and ready for the next adventure. This time you get to be the one to shape instead of being the one shaped. You have been created so that now you can go and create. You are being given the opportunity to do big and great things. You may not see it yet but you are emerging from the darkness of winter. Whatever time of year it may be on the calendar, for you it is Spring.

Illustration is from the upcoming Goddess Coloring Book featuring the goddesses from the Surcadian Oracle.

A Thank-You

A Thank-You

I do murals, straight up painting, repair work and other creative type things to keep a money flow coming in but my goal is to one day simply do my art. I want to paint the stories that I feel passionate about. I want to be able to make a difference in this world through the art that I create.

My Goddess project that I have been working on is one of those passions. I don’t paint them because I expect to get rich, I paint them because I have to. There are times when I don’t get to work on them because I am busy with the survival things. It is easy for me to put myself, and my dreams, behind other things, the “practical” things. Then someone buys me some paint that I need, another sends me a check for new brushes and most recently, someone buys me some more boards so that I can start a new Goddess. (Not only does she buy me a board, she enlists the help of a friend who doesn’t even know me to deliver them to my home!)

I cannot even explain how this feels to me. To know that what I am doing is maybe something more than just MY dream. To know that perhaps it matters to others as well. It’s a validation that is huge for an artist like me. It keeps me motivated, it keeps me going. (It makes me feel less guilty for spending money on paint when I have a hundred other things I probably “should” be spending it on!)

To all my friends and to those I’ve never even met who have supported me in every way, I thank you. It’s huge.