The Goddess
“Listen to the words of the Great Mother, She who of old has been called Artemis, Astarte, Diana, Selene, Melusine, Cerridwen, Dione, and by many other names.
Whenever ye have need of anything, once in the month, and better it be when the Moon is full, then shall ye gather together in some secret place to adore the spirit of Me, who is Queen of the Witches.There shall ye assemble, ye who are fain to learn all sorcery, yet have not yet won its deepest secrets; to thee will I teach things that are yet unknown. And ye shall be free from slavery; and as a sign that ye be really free, ye shall be naked in your rites; ye shall dance, sing, feast, make music and love, all in my praise. For mine is the ecstasy of the spirit, and mine is also joy on Earth; for my law is love unto all beings.Keep pure your highest ideal; strive ever towards it; let naught stop you or turn you aside. For mine is the secret door which opens upon the Land of Youth, and mine is the cup of the wine of life, and the Cauldron of Cerridwen, which is the Holy Grail of immortality.I am the gracious Goddess, who gives the gift of joy unto the heart of woman. Upon earth I give knowledge of the spirit eternal; and beyond death I give peace, freedom and reunion with those who have gone before.Nor do I demand sacrifice; for behold, I am the Mother of all living, and my love is poured out upon the Earth.Hear ye the words of the Star Goddess; she is the dust of whose feet are the hosts of heaven, and whose body encircles the universe.I who am the beauty of the green Earth, and the white Moon among the stars, and the mystery of the waters, and the desire of the heart of man, call unto thy soul. Arise, and come unto me. For I am the soul of Nature, who gives life to the universe. from me all things proceed and to me all things must return; and before my face, beloved of gods and of men, let thine innermost divine self be enfolded in the raptures of the infinite. Let my worship be within the heart that rejoiceth; for behold, all acts of love and pleasure are my rituals.And therefore let there be beauty and strength, power and compassion, honour and humility, mirth and reverence within you. And thou who thinkest to seek for me, know they seeking and yearning shall avail thee not unless thou knowest the mystery; that if that which thou seekest thou findest not within thee, thou wilt never find it without thee. For behold, i have been with thee from the beginning; and I am that which is attained at the end desire....”One of the most obvious differences between Wicca and most current world religions is the presence of a divine female image who is not dependent upon a male deity. This image of the Goddess as a creative, strong force has attracted many women and men in modern society to Wicca, and encourages people fighting oppression in its many forms. The Goddess is generally believed to have three major aspects: Maiden, Mother and Crone.A Celtic Coven, will have selected the triplicity of the Goddess Brigid as the example for this class. Brigid, the Celtic goddess of fire (the forge and the hearth), poetry, healing, childbirth, and unity, is celebrated in many European countries. She is known by many names, including that of Saint Brigid who is, perhaps, the most powerful religious figure in Irish history.The Goddess represents the sacred feminine, and takes a different form for each of us, she might be Crone, dispensing wisdom, she might be mother soothing your hurts, or she could be the maiden forever enticing you. And as you grow and change so too will your image of her.For Wiccans and Pagans, connecting with the Goddess often means performing a ritual in which we invoke the her. But rituals, while magnificent, often take planning time and energy. Depending on the week we're having, these things may be precious commodities. After working or going to school all day, performing a ritual can seem as appealing as scaling Mt. Everest. Even those blessed with the time and the energy for frequent meditation and ritual work may find there's something missing from their routines. The "pit stop" of a ritual may not be enough to see them through the day.No matter our schedules, every one of us can do more to integrate worship of the Goddess into our daily lives. Worship need not be elaborate; it can be done while walking to work, waiting for a bus, standing in line at the grocery store, or on a coffee break. Here are just a few ways you can sneak some time with the Queen of Heaven and Earth.The Goddess is within everything, every thought, every action. She is manifest within us and around us; there is not a thing our eyes can behold that She did not birth into Creation.The "morning prayer" is part of the religious practice of millions of people across the world. And while devotees of the Goddess have no fixed Bible. This is good news! It means that the world is your oyster, and that you can draw inspirational readings from thousands of traditions across the world.Find a passage, or take a line from a well-known poem, memorise the Charge of the Goddess. Read the passage over several times, until you don't just hear it in your head, but *feel* it in your body. Feel the Goddess working both inside and around you.
The Charge of the Goddess - By: Doreen Valiente