Back in 1997, a psychic told me I should read “The Mists of Avalon.” I don’t remember the context in which he made that suggestion, but I bought it and started to read it. I’d always been fascinated by the Arthurian legends, but never found any that put the female characters at the forefront. This one had that unique perspective and it gave me greater insight into the worship of the Goddess before the spread of Christianity. Some have called it feminist, but there is much more going on here. Over the centuries, women have been pretty much relegated to the cheap seats in every world arena, but that may be changing in this present paradigm shift, which is the crisis of perception all are currently witnessing and experiencing on a global…and personal level. I feel this may be a resurgence of the Feminine, the Goddess, that we are experiencing.
Andrew Harvey, mystical scholar, author, and founder of the Institute for Sacred Activism, asserts that “…the new cherishing of the values of compassion, interconnectedness… the attention being paid to holistic medicine, the passion for a new vision of cooperation in business and a new vision of ecological sustainability, … are all evidence of the return of the Feminine as Sacred.” He goes on to note, “…What this means is that the force of divine compassion and interconnected understanding and love in action that is the Sacred Feminine … is the way through for humanity … the Sacred Feminine is a force that can save the planet.”
You could say that the Feminine has always been an important focus of my own spiritual practice. My guru repeatedly tells us that, “The Shakti is the teacher.” The Shakti is the Feminine – the creative power of the universe – and even though she wears many faces, as every culture has these archetypes in their history, what we see and experience as the world is the manifestation of the Shakti, the Goddess. Sri Ramakrishna recognized the Sacred Feminine when, in one ritual, his wife and spiritual companion Sarada Devi, sat at the altar of Kali and Ramakrishna worshipped her as the Divine Mother. Perhaps our goal for 2014 could be to strive to re-awaken and re-connect to the feminine archetype we recognize and resonate with according to our own personal beliefs and which resides in all of us.
Below is the final scene from the miniseries made from the book, “The Mists of Avalon.” It depicts the return of Morgaine and Arthur to Avalon and Morgaine’s recognition that although Avalon and the Goddess seem to have been forgotten as she knew them, the Goddess still lives on in a new incarnation…
Wishing you all a magical 2014!
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