International Goddesses Today
International Women’s Day 2023
The Goddess Herself is indeed international, superseding foolish borders created in mankind's imagination then forged in real blood. The story of the apparition of La Virgen de Guadalupe unto Toatzin/Juan Diego is such an example. Her words in native Nahuatl to a humble Aztec man on the slopes of Tepeyac, the very site of the destroyed Aztec temple of Earth Goddess Tonantzin, bolstered the dignity and the spirit of a brutalized Indigenous population that yet persists through continued colonization today, allowing original peoples of Mezoamerica to continue traditions and pass knowledge through generations under the mantle of Her protection/disguise. The Florentine Codex of 1590 written in part by Catholic occupiers blatantly complains how after the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe the native Mexican people were still worshipping Mother Mary by the title Tonantzin (an honorific similar to “Our Lady” in the Nahuatl language) and with many of their same ancient rituals.
Although Mary mother of Jesus was internationally used as a tool of obstruction in hopes to be a replacement, She often became more of a co-conspirator with, rather than destroyer of, the people wherever She was taken by Europeans. Caribbean Vodun is perhaps the most famous example of such specific syncretization. Mary was already an international phenomenon for Europeans before their own international plunders, having originated from a Middle Eastern Jewish tribe. The Gospel story itself also tell of how Mary had to flee empires within empires in Her own lifetime as a refugee from one land to another to protect Her divine child. This intuitive resolution and subsequent courageous ability to move about is part of the actual divine meaning in the ancient etymology of the word “Virgin” which you can read more about on Patr3 on. The Roman Empire who executed the son of the Virgin Mary by their extremely common method of crucifixion is the same responsible for the creation of the Catholic Church who would then be in charge of crowning the rulers of Europe for centuries. They twisted the story of the Virgin and the meaning of Virginity from wild and free, unmarried, untamed, unclaimed by any man, controlled by no man, to the shameful sexual shit we know today.
Continuing my musings on international Goddesses via my visual work is Kali Ma of the Hindu pantheon. This brilliantly fierce Mother of Time, slayer of ego, recycler of souls, originates from the Indian peninsula of South Asia. Kali is still found in name and visage among the Romani people across Europe, a testament to their heritage. These nomadic folks have mistakenly been called “gypsy” (widely considered derogatory) with the incorrect assumption that their heritage lies in Egypt. See my previous Kali post about the theory that the term “calendar” was appropriated in ancient Rome from from the Romani people and their lunar “time calling” rituals with Kali. These histories truly make Kali an international divine feminine figure.
Although the compassionate Guan Yin (also spelled in the Roman alphabet as Quan Yin or Kwan Yin) is famous for hailing from China, She actually came from India originally as well. She was first honored as the male bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara as a personification of empathy and mercy prior to transforming to Her feminine form during the Song Dynasty in China. In the time between the deity had attributes of both genders but became increasingly associated with mother goddesses in Chinese culture. By the 12th century, She was interpreted as a female form in flowing robes as far as Japan where She is known as Kannon. If you Google search “Kannon” you will likely be first served the Wikipedia article for Guan Yin. Her transformation is well documented. She is a spirit who has traversed the distances and time and through gender as well making Her not just an international Goddess but also effectively a Trans Goddess. May we embody the empathy and compassion for all our sisters internationally no matter how they started life!
Goddess Art by PJ Superior
PJsuperior.com