Skye Alexander - Your Goddess Year: A Week-by-Week Guide to Invoking the Divine Feminine

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First Adams Media trade paperback edition December 2019

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Interior illustrations by Emma Taylor

Cover design by Erin Alexander

Cover illustration by Emma Taylor

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In memory of my sister and beautiful goddess, Myke Perkins.

Once again, I am indebted to the many talented people at Adams Media for making this book possible, especially my editor, Eileen Mullan. Thanks, too, to Katie Corcoran Lytle, Erin Alexander, and everyone else who helped bring my idea to fruition.

Protection. Guidance. Power.

Our ancestors worshipped pantheons of deities that helped them interpret the universe and their place in it. These gods and goddessesalong with lesser divinitiespersonified the energetic forces that operated in the cosmos and governed all life on earth. The earliest deities were female creator figures such as the Babylonians Tiamat; the Chinese goddess Xi Wangmu; and the Hopis Spider Grandmother, who brought our planet and the heavenly bodies into being.

Later goddesses represented various aspects of the Divine Feminine, the creative power of the universe. These goddesses were earth and fertility goddesses who made the crops grow, love goddesses who guided human relationships, and protector goddesses who kept mortals safe from birth to death and beyond. The ancients saw the Goddess wherever they looked: in the sun, moon, and stars, in the rivers and mountains, in the wind and rain. She ruled everything. She was everything.

In this book, youll meet fifty-two of these omnipotent goddessesone for each week of the yearand learn about their virtues, their roles in the spiritual traditions of many cultures, and their significance and influence in our lives today. (Please note that because each deity is aligned with a seven-day period, the months dont necessarily begin on the first day of a month.) Many of the goddesses are introduced on the dates our ancestors honored them with festivals and other rituals, some of which people around the world continue to celebrate. The ancients ascribed earthly events such as floods, earthquakes, and volcanoes to the actions of these powerful deities; they believed they needed to appeal to and appease the goddesses with festivities in order to attract divine blessings and prevent calamities.

The Babylonians, for instance, engaged in eleven days of ceremonies at the beginning of the spring planting season to praise the fertility goddess Tiamat and solicit her aid in producing healthy crops. In India, Hindus worship the goddess Kali during the festival Kali Puja, a night when evil spirits are said to abound. The festival honors the fierce destroyer goddess and petitions her protection from these spirits.

Other goddesses are presented on dates that relate to their personal attributes and historiesor rather herstories. Many goddess myths emerged in early agrarian civilizations, when people lived close to the earth. Mother Earth herself is often thought of as a physical manifestation of the Divine Feminine. Therefore, this book aligns the goddesses with the times of the year that exemplify their characteristics in accordance with natures cycles. Spring, for instance, is a time of promise and hope, when the earth reawakens after her long sleep. Youthful and beautiful goddesses, such as the Romans Flora who governs spring flowers, represent the rejuvenation, fertility, and new beginnings we associate with this season. Winter goddesses symbolize the final stage of life. Like the Gnostics Sophia, they appear as wise elders who encourage us to discover our inner strength and the deeper meaning of human existence.

As you work your way through the book youll likely notice similarities in the legends and lore surrounding the various deities, although the stories also contain features distinctive to the cultures in which they arose. All civilizations have creation myths, for instance. According to Chinese legend, the mother goddess Xi Wangmu wove the universe into existenceancient images often show her holding a loom. We find a similar story in Native American lore, which says the creator deity Spider Woman wove a great web that holds everything in the cosmos together.

Different versions of the myths exist too, for theyve evolved over time and reflect sociopolitical developments, geological events, and the perspectives of the storytellers who handed them down through the ages. But no matter the similaritiesand differencesamong the goddesses stories, as you read the legends about them youll marvel at their strength in the face of adversity; their wisdom, compassion, and patience; and their insight and ingenuity.

As you work with the goddesses, youll come to understand their relevance not only in the past but today as well. By inviting and honoring them, you have much to gain. You dont have to like or approve of a particular goddess to learn from her saga and benefit from what she teaches. Oftentimes a deity will challenge you to take a good hard look at what you value and confront parts of yourself that may not be pretty. Youll see aspects of the goddesses in yourself and recognize their trials and triumphs as things you, too, may experience. Perhaps, like Rhiannon, you feel betrayed by someone you trustedher courage can show you how to bear the hurt and gain strength through patient perseverance. Diana can teach you the importance of independence and self-sufficiency. Brigid can spark your creativity and inspire you to express your artistic talents confidently. Each goddess offers you a gift and shares a lesson for your continued growth.

Theyll also connect you with the seasons; the earth and the cosmos; and the ongoing cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. In our modern society, many of us have lost touch with natures rhythms; as a result, we feel isolated and out of touch with the world in which we live. Working with goddess energy will help restore your connection to the Divine Femininethe creative power of the universeand our planet as her most fundamental symbol. In so doing, youll learn to ride the ebbs and flows in your personal relationships, your career path, your health and well-being without losing your center. Youll come to see yourself as an integral part of the greater whole, and gain a deeper sense of belonging in this world and the world beyond.