The Goddess has been known to every race and in every corner of the world. She has had many names and many faces; she is chaste virgin and passionate lover, fruitful mother and barren crone, creator and destroyer, the giver of life and the bringer of death.
In the twentieth century, both men and women began to realise that female spirituality and the role of the Goddess had been denied. Feminists and modern Pagans alike have striven to restore this balance, most recognising a male and female aspect in equilibrium, two halves of one harmonious whole. This world view regards humankind as part of nature, children of the Great Mother along with the earth, heavens, animals and plants, all related in a single whole. The Goddess is not separate from manifest Nature, but is part of it and part of each of us.
The feminine aspect of the deity has had many aspects- goddesses of love and hatred, war and peace, birth and death, summer and winter, moon and sun, night and day, and thousands of others. She has been called many names- Isis, Astarte, Diana, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna, and thousands of others. These cards explore twenty-five goddesses, but of necessity, I can only relate a fragment of what each of those goddesses is and what her attributes are. The fluffy side of the Pagan movement has reduced our goddesses to easily digestible archetypes, but I want to show that not only are these goddesses multi-faceted, fully rounded characters, but also awesome beings that should be approached with respect. These cards will give you a starting point from which to explore the nature of these goddesses, and the goddess within yourself. Each of the goddesses within these cards represents a facet of your nature, as well as a facet of the greater whole, the cosmos itself.
It is time for both women and men to reclaim the Goddess, to reclaim a balanced, harmonious spirituality and to recognise the Oneness of being with all of creation.
Written by Anna Franklin and illustrated by Paul Mason
Written by Anna
The cards
The Oracle of the Goddess utilises twenty five multi-cultural aspects of the Goddess, depicted in the twenty five cards of the deck, to help the reader explore his or her spiritual path, and determine past, present and future life trends.
Published by Vega
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