Embracing the Dark Goddess – Empowering Paradigm Shifts, Part 2 by Judith Shaw

 The Dark Goddesses, with qualities that are mysterious, magical, chaotic, destructive, violent and transformational bring a wholistic understanding of ourselves and of nature. They are wild and untamed.  Today I finish up my initial dive into the Dark Goddesses which began yesterday with the publication of Part 1. Look for a more detailed look at these goddesses and more in the coming months.

Dark goddesses are wild, free, and sexual – Lilith, Erishkigal and Medb

Lilith and Erishkigal
Long before the rise of civilization, people lived together in very different ways and Goddess was understood as the force that encompasses all life – the light and the dark. It’s very interesting that two of the world’s oldest dark goddesses – Lilith and Erishkigal –  are found in the creation story of Sumer, considered as the world’s first civilization.

This story, The Huluppu Tree, begins with the formation of everything that was needed referring to our place in the natural world. Yet in the 10th line, “And the name of man was fixed” we see the beginning of man’s rule over nature and women.  Gods An and Enlil received domain over Sky and Earth and on line 13 (a goddess number) the Goddess Erishkigal was given the Underworld. Erishkigal became one to be feared as she ruled over death, darkness, decay and dust – topics greatly feared by humans. In this very first civilization a powerful goddess is relegated to the Underworld, leaving the brightness of Sky and Earth in masculine hands.

Yet to truly understand life one must understand and accept death. So the God of Waters, Enki, sets sail for the Underworld seeking death’s wisdom. Eriskigal resists but, as they are equal, neither win. Instead a tree becomes manifest – the Huluppu Tree. Then a storm – a wild force of nature – cast the tree adrift in the waters.

Enter the young goddess, Inanna, Erishkigal’s sister, who rescues the Huluppu Tree and plants it in her garden – taking it from the chaos of wildness into the place of cultivation. She waits for this tree to grow and provide the wood needed for her throne and her bed – things she can have only when she matures into womanhood. 

But alas the tree does not grow as she hoped. It becomes inhabited by 3 wild beings who Inanna must rid the tree of before she can reach her queenship on Earth. 

“Then a serpent who could not be charmed
Made its nest in the roots of the tree.” 
The serpent is symbolic of rebirth and sexuality.

“The Anzu-bird set his young in the branches of the tree”
The Anzu bird craves power and knowledge.

“And the dark maid Lilith built her home in the trunk.”
Lilith, represents wildness, independence, and female sexuality.

Already, with the very first civilization the untamed woman is demonized and must be banished.

Later in time the story of Lilith continued in the Hebrew creation story. She was Adam’s first wife created by God from dust just like Adam. She was his equal and refused to be subordinate to him. In some myths she was then banished from the Garden of Eden whereas in others she left by her own will. Whichever way she left she obviously did not fit well into patriarchal ideology. She was depicted as  a wild woman, a she-demon who preyed on pregnant women and infants and a succubus who preyed sexually on men. 

Patriarchal civilization fears female freedom and sexuality as represented by Lilith – remember the burning times. Lilith reminds us of our birthright to live as full human beings.

Today Lilith is embraced by many women as a symbol of resistance. Lilith calls us to embrace our wild and untamed selves, to run free and to return to a wild untamed way of living together and with nature. 

Medb – Celtic Sovereignty Goddess of Fertility
Medb represents passion, sexuality, assertiveness, strength, and fertility. 

Medb whose name translates as strong or intoxicating, drove men wild with desire at the mere sight of her. Indicative of her connection to the earth and fertility, she clothed herself with live birds and animals who lay across her shoulders and arms. Further evidence of her strength, sexuality, and passion lies in her ability to run faster than any horse.

Medb had an insatiable sexual appetite, taking men as she pleased and marrying at least four, who each became King of Connacht in their turn

Queen Medb, more commonly known today by her Anglicized name Maeve, is a central character in one of the most important old Irish epics, the Tain Bo Cuillaigne – the Cattle Raid of Cooley.

This long, bloody event began innocently enough one evening while Medb lay in bed with her husband of the moment, King Aillil. Aillil, attempting to prove his superiority and maintain his position, claimed he had more wealth than Medb. On all counts they were equal until Aillil mentioned his ownership of the magical and fertile bull, Finnbhennach. Fennbhennach had actually been born into Medb’s herd but due to the changing values of the time, disdained being owned by a woman and thus transferred himself to Ailill.

Medb, not one to accept defeat or an inferior position, determined to get the equally fertile bull, Donn Cuailnge, from Cooley in county Ulster. After a deal to get the bull by negotiation broke down, Medb raised an army and set out to capture the bull, Donn Cuailnge.

After many months of bloody battles and strange twists, Medb achieved her goal, bringing the bull Donn Cuailnge back to Connacht.  

Medb brings us the awareness of the intoxicating power of passion. She personifies the passion of love and desire, of anger and war. Call on Medb to maintain balance and good intent with your passions. With Medb by your side, you can ride forth to battle those who would rob you of your birthright as a fully sovereign being.

The Dark Goddesses are uncontrollable.
The Patriarchy can only exist by exerting control over nature and humans – women in particular but also non-elite men. So the Dark Goddesses, who are uncontrollable, have been shunned, suppressed and distorted into evil beings.

The Dark Goddesses shows us that both the brightness of love, compassion and empathy as well as the darkness of excessive power, violence, and sexuality exist within us all. She guides us to rebuilding ourselves with greater understanding and acceptance of our totality.

Every element in our existence has its duality. Light and dark are opposing aspects of the same concept. Go too far into the light and you might get burned. Go too far into the dark and you might stumble and fall. To find balance we must find our way to non-judgement and the understanding that darkness is not inherently evil. The Dark Goddess gives us the courage to look within and discover our own dark and unsettling parts.

Wild and violent urges will forever coexist within us, yet the Dark Goddess as Morrigan serves as a poignant reminder—that it is we who have chosen the path of control, domination, and war to express these urges. The key lies within; we must embark on a journey of self-transformation. By doing so, we can collectively forge a new path. The resurgence of the Dark Goddess heralds the downfall of the 8,000+ year-old patriarchal paradigm. Guiding us through these transformative times, she leads us towards a world that embraces and honors the diverse spectrum of human experiences and emotions. Mysterious, magical, chaotic, destructive, violent, and transformational, the Dark Goddess imparts a holistic understanding of ourselves and nature.

Life, with all its joy and its pain, is beautiful. It’s all connected.  It’s all sacred.

Sources: Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth by Diane Wolkstein and Samuel N. Kramer

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