There's something fishy about this symbol

We know that most Christian symbols and images have Pagan roots: The cross, Mary's titles and dress, the rosary, the chalice/wine and bread, crossed keys, the dove, the lamb, the egg, the triskele, the halo, the palm, sea shells, the stag, the triangle... Also... The Fish! Another symbol for us to reclaim!

Hubby passed along this nifty article (again the atheists come through with the research!) and I want to share excerpts with the Loyal Horde:

But contemporary Jesus worshippers might be surprised, even outraged, to learn that one of their preeminent religious symbols antedated the Christian religion, and has its roots in Pagan fertility awareness and sexuality. Barbara G. Walker writes in "The Woman's Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects," that the acronym pertaining to Jesus Christ was a "rationale invented after the fact... Christians simply copied this pagan symbol along with many others." Ichthys was the offspring son of the ancient Sea goddess Atargatis, and was known in various mythic systems as Tirgata, Aphrodite, Pelagia or Delphine. The word also meant "womb" and "dolphin" in some tongues, and representations of this appeared in the depiction of mermaids. The fish also a central element in other stories, including the Goddess of Ephesus (who has a fish amulet covering her genital region), as well as the tale of the fish that swallowed the penis of Osiris, and was also considered a symbol of the vulva of Isis.

Well before Christianity, the fish symbol was known as "the Great Mother," a pointed oval sign, the "vesica piscis" or Vessel of the Fish. "Fish" and "womb" were synonymous terms in ancient Greek,"delphos." Its link to fertility, birth, feminine sexuality and the natural force of women was acknowledged also by the Celts, as well as pagan cultures throughout northern Europe. Eleanor Gaddon traces a "Cult of the Fish Mother" as far back as the hunting and fishing people of the Danube River Basin in the sixth millennium B.C.E. Over fifty shrines have been found throughout the region which depict a fishlike deity, a female creature who "incorporates aspects of an egg, a fish and a woman which could have been a primeval creator or a mythical ancestress..." The "Great Goddess" was portrayed elsewhere with pendulous breasts, accentuated buttocks and a conspicuous vaginal orifice, the upright "vesica piscis" which Christians later adopted and rotated 90-degrees to serve as their symbol. 

Go check out the article! Quiz tomorrow!(j/k, no quiz!)

Kyphi

Nemesis has been talking a lot about his latest batch of Kyphi and it has inspired not only tonight's post, but my own kyphi efforts as well.

What is Kyphi? It is, as Nemesis puts it, "The chai of incense!" Kyphi might be the phonetic translation of the Egyptian word for incense.  Plutarch, our favorite historian and Priest of Apollo, makes mention of a 36 ingredient Sun Kyphi, and a Moon kyphi. It was used as offerings, as aromatherapy, as a salve, or as a drink depending on the ailment.

Here is an article from Sevants of the Light school on the history of kyphi

"Kyphi is a mixture composed of sixteen ingredients; of honey and wine, raisins and galingale, (pine) resin and myrrh, aspalathos and seseli; moreover, of mastic and bitumen, bulrush and sorrel, together with the two kinds of juniper berries (of which one is called major and the other minor), cardamom and sweet flag. And these ingredients are not mixed by chance, but according to instructions cited in holy books, that are read to the incense makers while they mix them."

Plutarch, "De Iside et Osiride" ("On Isis and Osiris"), ch. 80.

This is a page of recipes with information about where each recipe comes from. It includes the ingredients etched into the walls of the temple of Edfu, but not the quantities. I'm a google-queen, but I doubt I'll be able to copy and paste the translated liturgy of Edfu here so we can all chant as the ancients did. The temple of Edfu has the recipes as well as sacred texts preserved on its walls. I've found talk on the internet about translation projects, but have not yet tracked down what sounds like academic papers. But you know I will!!!


I use the Edfu recipe. It takes days to make and longer to set. There are herbs and raisins to grind, wine to ferment, and honey to boil. Honey??? Actually, I don't use honey. I use agave. It's that vegan thing again. Agave is golden about the same consistency, and just as sweet. Sacred bee, sacred tequila... either way, it's all good! Oh, and then you have to form it into small balls and let em set for a few months. The longer, the better.

You can find recipes and instructions in the book Sacred Luxuries by Lise Manniche.

Years ago I used to love buying Tazo teas. It wasn't just for the taste, but because the ingredients always listed, along with whatever herbs were in the bag, "The mumbled chantings of a certified tea shaman." I loved the idea of someone chanting or infusing the herbs with energy.
They no longer list this as an ingredient :(

Kindred Spirits

I've been having the best time catching up on the blog Wandering Woman Wandering. I first came across the blog when searching for a picture of Mercury to use on here. I found one of her posts about Mercury and I loved the way she described him as The God of Exchange. Perfect! I've been going back through her previous posts and between that and our limited email conversations with each other, I have realized something- Not only are we are both devotees of the same deity, but we have had similar experiences with Him. She and I share many of the same opinions on several topics, and gravitate towards similar deities aside from Mercury. I haven't seen a picture yet, but I'm betting that she has a mischievious grin and sparkle in her eyes!

I've taken a look tonight, and an informal poll about the qualities of the followers of different deities. Shall we start with Mercury? I've already mentioned the smile and sparkle, but right there on a devotee's brow, you'll find the trace of his sigil- that is just a little more angular than the crescent moon, tho both dovetail nicely together. You might be marked by Mercury if...

...you are are quick-witted, investigative, snarky, sarcastic, and at times irreverent.
...you ten to ask why and don't just take an answer at face value
 ...you vacillate between order and disorder

...you feel called to several other deities at once! I don't think he minds sharing, as long as he gets his due.

Don't mistake being called by/to several deities at once for indecision. Mercury is The Opener of The Ways and when He opens things for you, they can be Wide open. You get attention from others. I think Mercury calls those who can multitask on many levels!

The children of Apollo, for another example, are sun-kissed, or just sunburned. They play with fire, literally, and are golden in some way physically, be it their hair or skin or a physical warmth which radiates from them.

Those stamped by The Queens of Heaven - Isis, Astarte, Diana, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna, Hera and others, share a quality of carriage- these are women and men who stand straight. There is a regal posture, a sense of dignity which flows from them. This dignity isn't about being better than, or stuck up, or overconfident, it's literally about having The Goddess inside of you and walking with you. Why would The Regal Queen of Heaven ever slouch? ;)

These are just a few scant examples and involve the Deities and Devotees I work with most often. I really would appreciate community feedback on this one!

I really like this topic. It's something to research and pursue! More questions keep coming up: Would the Mercury traits apply to devotees of Hermes? Or to any of the other deities He is syncretized with? We can also get into the chicken or the egg debate: Is the Deity attracted because the devotee already has the qualities, or does the devotee develop the qualities after they are "stamped" by the Deity?

While you're thinking about that, I recommend you surf over to Wandering Woman Wandering to read the advice on working with multiple deities!

Buon Ferragosto!

"In the Arician valley, there is a lake surrounded by shady forests,
Held sacred by a religion from the olden times.
On a long fence hang many pieces of woven thread,
and many tablets are placed there as grateful gifts to the Goddess.
Often does a woman whose prayers Diana answered,
With a wreath of flowers crowning her head, Walk from Rome carrying a burning torch.
There a stream flows down gurgling from its rocky bed..." --Ovid


This weekend is the Feast of Diana, Queen of Heaven! (Which Ovid was calling ancient in his day!)

And the Catholic Feast of the Assumption of Mary where she is raised bodily into the sky where she becomes... guess... that's right! Queen of Heaven!


And it was recently the Birthday of Isis...


Busy weekend, huh?


Ferragosto, what this weekend is called in Italy, is bigger than christmas- Rome is practically deserted, its residents staying down by the sea. Here's a nifty article about Ferragosto. Here's an interesting quote:

The modern dogma that the Virgin Mary was transported to Heaven on Ferragosto arose in the 18th century and was formally proclaimed by Pope Pius XII only in 1950.

Know your history or someone will try to rewrite it!


What is it about this time of year that lead people to set it aside for The Goddess? The Sun is in Leo, the Moon in Aquarius, as my evil twin pointed out earlier. This is also the time of the Perseid meteor shower! It will be hard to see because of the full moon. The peak of the Perseids is tomorrow night. I was reading about the event, which I like to observe every year, and the holy wiki and other sources believe that "most of the dust in the cloud today is around a thousand years old," with some younger bits from 1862. Wow.


Tomorrow I will be hosting a Nemoralia celebration. Tonight I was out under the Moon doing personal work and charging items for tomorrow. I was literally amazed by the Moon and connected with Diana once again, but in a different way than I'm used to. She gave me Her sign. She gave me a personal message and helped to set me back on my proper path. Ave Diana!


Have a Blessed Weekend of The Mother, by whichever name you know Her!

Fireworks!

There is some debate over who invented fireworks, China or India, but the Italians invented the art form. In another case of "use what works," Italians incorporated fireworks into their feasts and festivals the moment they were first introduced. Here's a fun story from Italy which includes the modern fireworks as a form of harvest divination:

In Tuscany, there's a fireworks display, lit from a fire which is lit from splinters of flint from the cave in which Jesus was alleged to have been buried. If the giant cart burns to the bottom, all is well, but if it fizzles out, the harvest is screwed, I tells ya! Talk about pressure! I bet that's more pressure than the Macy's folks with their harbor display!

Tonight I watched the D.C fireworks lighting up the mall and surrounding the Washington Monument. The display was so phallic in nature that I felt like I was intruding on a "private moment." Seriously, take a look! I had a moment tonight when I thought about George Washington as Osiris and the Washington Monument as his recreated phallus which is used to impregnate Liberty. I know, it sounds bizarre, but it works perfectly with the Isis/Osiris mythology. Osiris was killed and dismembered by Set and the 14 pieces were scattered. Isis collected all of the pieces, with the help of Nephthys, except for his phallus. So Isis created a new one. Looks like we created one right here in America.
All of this got me to thinking about "The Apotheosis of Washington."




In this painting, which makes up the ceiling of the capitol rotunda, George Washington is depicted as a god, along with Ceres, Columbia, Flora, Liberty, Mercury, Minerva, Neptune, and Vulcan.




I hate to say it, but Wiki does a pretty darn good job of not only describing the general scene, but also including each of the harder to see scenes with the Roman Gods! So I'm going to direct you there!

"The day will be most memorable in the history of America. I am apt to believe
that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary
festival…It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade…bonfires and
illuminations (fireworks) from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forevermore." 

 

-John Adams on July 3, 1776, in a letter to his wife

Egyptian Revolution

I'm happy that the people of Egypt are standing up for themselves. The revolution is inspiring. What is especially upsetting, besides innocent people losing their lives for protesting injustice, is that there are looters taking advantage of the distraction and raiding museums. Egyptology News is a blog which has updates from around the country.

Isn't this off topic? Hardly. Egypt's influence spread far and wide. They influenced Greece which colonized many areas of Italy, and pre-Roman Italic peoples with whom they traded. Once Rome stepped in, well, I don't want to get into the whole Cleopatra/Egypt/Rome thing. Not today, at least.

Isis worship spread far and wide, including to Italy. There was a Temple of Isis located in Pompeii, right along with the ones to Apollo, Diana, Jupiter, etc.

From ancientvine.com:  The Temple of Isis in Pompeii was small but ornate. It was destroyed in an earthquake in A.D. 62 but was rebuilt shortly after that. The renovation was financed by a freed slave in the name of his young son. There may have been political motivations for this since freed slaves were not allowed to hold public office, and the son who was appointed as a member of the city council was only six years old. The Temple has a mixture of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman architectural features. This is not surprising since Roman architecture of this period was very ornate, often used bright colors, and borrowed and mixed styles from many eras. There were many statues in the Temple of Isis and the portico walls were covered with elaborate murals. To the left of the temple was a small roofless structure containing a tank that may have held the sacred water from the Nile, which was very important in many Isis ceremonies. In the rear of the sanctuary was a room containing a marble table where sacred meals were probably served.

The Temple of Isis is the best preserved temple of Pompeii. It dates from the pre-Roman age and was almost entirely rebuilt after the earthquake of 62 A.D. at the expense of Popidius Celsinus. An inscription above the door mentions that Popidius Celsinus was only six years old when he was elected decurion. The sacred water of the Nile was kept in an underground passage. A large room that was used as a meeting room for the initiates of Isis is behind the temple.

Here is a fresco removed from the inside of the Temple, now in the national museum of archaeology in Naples.



 

May Isis bless us all.