The Torah portion for May 21, 2022 is Behar (Leviticus 25:1 – 26:2). In it, the Israelites receive instructions for sh’mita and yovel – two types of sabbatical years. These years attempt to set up right relations between the community,… Read More ›
animals
Tzav: Holiness, the Situation in Ukraine, and Eating Animals by Ivy Helman
The parshah for this upcoming Shabbat is Tzav (Leviticus 6:1-8:36). It details the investiture of Aaron and his sons into the priesthood and lays out the basics of various offerings (mostly, although not exclusively, animal sacrifices) and the rules regarding… Read More ›
Hawk – A Soaring Visionary by Judith Shaw
Hawk, beautiful and deadly, soars high in the air – circling and circling – its piercing eyes focused below. Spotting Hawk, one is amazed by its elegance and power while feeling a strange and ancient connection to this magnificent bird…. Read More ›
From the Archives: The Serpent and the Goddess by Judith Shaw
Moderator’s note: This marvelous FAR site has been running for 10 years and has had more than 3,600 posts in that time. There are so many treasures that have been posted in this decade that they tend to get lost… Read More ›
From the Archives: The Way We Are Created: Eco-feminist Explorations of Bodily Hair by Tallessyn Grenfell-Lee
Moderator’s note: This marvelous FAR site has been running for 10 years and has had more than 3,600 posts in that time. There are so many treasures that have been posted in this decade that they tend to get lost… Read More ›
Carol P. Christ’s Legacy: Of Birds, Angels, and Tidings of Great Joy
Moderator’s Note: We here at FAR have been so fortunate to work along side Carol Christ for many years. She died in July this year from cancer. To honor her legacy as well as allow as many people as possible… Read More ›
Stag – Majestic Messenger of Light by Judith Shaw
The seasons turn and again we reach the Winter Solstice – the longest night which marks the sun’s return to light in the northern hemisphere. Stag, in all his antlered majesty, symbolizes the return of the sun’s life-giving rays.
Seal – a Soulful Clown by Judith Shaw
Seal – ever curious – stands up in the water gazing about with her dark, soulful eyes before diving again into the enigmatic, mysterious sea. Seal initiates us into wonder by her extraordinary presence filled with playfulness, adaptability and deep… Read More ›
Last Tuesday Night by Marcia Mount Shoop
It’s been just over a week. Last Tuesday night to be exact. That’s the night the four of us huddled around our beloved companion of sixteen and a half years and said goodbye. Buck became a part of our family… Read More ›
Elephant – Earth’s Gentle Giant by Judith Shaw
Elephants amble along through forest and savannah in unity with each other, generally causing no harm. They have long symbolized intelligence, power, wisdom and loyalty.
An All Hallows Story – My Father becomes a Beaver by Sara Wright
Transmutation? The year my father died I fell in love with beavers. All summer I watched them at dawn and dusk gnaw down the poplars, drag them to the plume, observing keenly how the trees slid so easily into the… Read More ›
Avian Friendship by Sara Wright
The other night I had a dream about a strange green hooded figure that was guarding a green gate underground. She wasn’t human; she had a hooked bird’s beak (like many of Marija Gimbutas’s goddess figures). Something about the strange… Read More ›
Spider Wisdom – Creation and Destruction Part 2 by Judith Shaw
In addition to being viewed as a Creator Goddess and a Destiny Weaver, Spider is associated with many other aspects of life. Some of these aspects fall into what we would consider the light – the good – and others… Read More ›
Spider Wisdom – Creation and Destruction, Part 1 by Judith Shaw
Spider, the eternal weaver of webs, has symbolized creation since people first began storytelling. Cultures worldwide have associated Spider with the Creator Goddess, weaving – and through association with women as they were the weavers who spent endless hours creating… Read More ›
Vigil by Sara Wright
The third daydawns under a cloud. Mourning dovesspread their wingsacross leaden skies.I am walking on air.Two restlessnights – a hugetruck in the yard –Blocked,my stomach lurches.I read Tributes in a daze.Fierce Little FlowerWarrior Womanfights a torrent of waves.She is bridging raging watersforging a New… Read More ›
Why Life Balance is a Feminist Issue by Mary Sharratt
The move to Portugal all but forced me to heal my relationship with time and productivity, to create a life that was sustainable and nurturing.
Blue Is My Favorite Color by Marie Cartier
You can’t have the ocean without blue. I walk at night, that’s the time of year the grunion run, a silver school teaching us that it’s work to populate –the small shimmer of a female screwing herself into the sand…. Read More ›
Are Bees Begotten from Bull? by Judith Shaw
At first glance the ancient belief that bees were birthed from dead bulls seems odd. But if we delve deeply into pre-historical artifacts we discover the mythopoetic roots of this idea.
The Little Mother by Sara Wright
This morning I met her by the barn sitting on a cedar fence regarding me with one shimmering marbled eye, a little spiked crown on her head. A moment later two tiny balls of feathers exploded out of a tangled… Read More ›
Bull, Oracle of Strength and Prosperity by Judith Shaw
Bull, with its components of aggressiveness, stubbornness, virility, and ferocity, is emblematic of masculinity. But Bull is also associated with fertility, abundance, strength, and determination. Viewed by some cultures as a solar symbol – in the oldest myths, we find… Read More ›
Bears and Radical Ecology by Sara Wright
As an eco feminist I am deeply concerned with the loss of the animals I love. One of these is the Black bear whose visits are becoming more and more scarce as the forest around me disappears. The bear in… Read More ›
Wren, Herald of Dawn by Judith Shaw
Wren, the first bird to sing at dawn, is known as the Herald of Dawn. It calls out its joy as each day begins.
Every Bird in the Mountains: Wisdom for this Climate Moment by Tallessyn Zawn Grenfell-Lee
I found a bird’s nest the other day. A perfect, round little nest, with five pale blue speckled eggs. I’ve been working for several years to figure out how to support the birds who share our yard, with bird feeders,… Read More ›
Rabbit, The Feminine, and The Moon by Judith Shaw
Rabbit plays in tall grasses, dances in the moonlight, nibbles on nature’s greens, then freezes if danger is sensed. With a thump as a warning, rabbit hops away in a flash, disappearing down its rabbit hole.
Lily B and Messages From the Beyond by Sara Wright
The night before last I had a dream that has stayed with me. My dreams rise out of my body to teach and to comfort me so I pay close attention. I had recently written tributes for two men, Lynn… Read More ›
Wings by Sara Wright
Early in January I discovered a chickadee with a broken wing floundering in the snow. I rescued him, providing him with a safe haven in the house, hoping he might recover use of his wing. For the first couple of… Read More ›
Toadwise: A Tale for a Life Lover – Part II by Sara Wright
Read Part I here… In the Americas I found more recent Indigenous mythology on the Toad as Goddess. Tlaltecuhtli is a Pre–Columbian (1200–1519) goddess belonging to the Mexica. Although Tlaltecuhtli’s name is masculine modern scholars interpret this toad figure as… Read More ›
Toadwise: A Tale for a Life Lover – Part I by Sara Wright
Last night I was thinking about the giant western toad that is living in my garden when I had a peculiar thought: Write a story about the Toad and an Old Woman and call it A Tale for a Life… Read More ›
Sacred Geese by Judith Shaw
The end of winter is near in the northern hemisphere. Though the cold persists the days slowly grow longer. If you’re lucky you might soon see a skein of geese flying overheard on their way to their northern nesting grounds… Read More ›
Running with Hares, a Personal Reflection by Sara Wright
An overturned bowl of starflakes, lays down a new pearl white blanket. Earthbound I shovel – Silvery showers obscure – and some paths are slippery in the dark. Grooming a circle round and round I attend to listening. When… Read More ›
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