The Hidden Divinity of the Feminine
Image: Vikram Pataskar
I was once walking in the forests of the South Downs, a stone’s throw away from my home, when I began listening to a podcast interview of the fierce and captivating Max Dashu, a historian and goddess archeologist, whose research on the lost divinity of the feminine is shared in her incredible Suppressed Histories Archives. With unwavering dedication, and a single minded obsessesion, she has left no stone unturned in her quest to finding the Goddess. She has delved into obscure annals of history, lost scriptures, buried treasures, cave inscriptions and other such evidence of the earliest human writing.
Within her treasure trove of Goddess art and literature, Max Dashu unveils the suppressed tales of witches through the ages, as well as some of the earliest artistic expressions crafted by our ancestors. In these narratives, a profound revelation unfolds—one that challenges the beliefs we've grown up with, a truth too long concealed: God is a Woman.
The very term "Goddess" subtly implies a subservient role, as if she emerges only after the male counterpart—an appendage rather than the Mother of God. Yet, let us examine its etymology. "Goddess" is a noun of "secondary formation," surfacing in Middle English circa 1350, when combined with "God." Remarkably, "God" itself carries no gender, signifying "poured earth"* rather than a male entity. It is a constructed belief that has obscured the Feminine Principle for centuries.
So, how do we appropriately convey God as a Woman?
For answers, I turned to the rich tapestry of Tantra, my ancestral lineage. In Tantra, Shakti is not merely the Feminine Principle; she is the very Power of the Cosmos. She embodies the manifested form, and her essence encompasses the entire Universe. Shakti is Shiva incarnate, Shakti is God—the Creatrix. Her womb births all of creation. She is not an afterthought; she is the First Principle.
Greater is her name than of all gods and goddesses,
The primordial One, eldest of the primeval gods,
She who made that which is,
She who created that which exists…
Who gave birth to Ra,
Who brought forth in primeval time herself,
Never having been created.
These profound words, etched upon the grand temple at Sa in the Nile Delta,** echo the resounding truth that has been buried by the sands of time.
Our journey takes us across the globe, as we meticulously sift through suppressed narratives, unearthing the truth that lies beneath the layers of history. We summon Shakti, the Primordial One, to walk alongside us as we step into the uncharted. May her guidance illuminate our path as we rewrite herstory—the narrative that has long been forgotten.
And so it is.
*Etymology of "God" is derived from Old English "god," akin to Old Norse "guð" and Old High German "got," meaning "a being or object of worship."
**Reference to the temple at Sa in the Nile Delta, highlighting the reverence for the Divine Feminine in ancient Egyptian culture.
Sources:
Suppressed Histories Archives by Max Dashu https://www.suppressedhistories.net/
* Watkins, Calvert, ed., The American Heritage Dictionary of Indo-European Roots, 2nd ed., Houghton Mifflin Co., 2000.
Feminism and Religion: https://feminismandreligion.com/2012/06/30/that-which-is-sacred-by-max-dashu/