This month, we dive into the ancient Sumerian pantheon with one of the oldest archetypes of the divine feminine. A precursor to deities such as Ishtar, Aphrodite, Venus, and the Virgin Mary, the figure of Inanna dates back to 3,000 BCE. Her image appears carved into ancient stone, and Sumerians laid out her mythology in numerous epic poems. Considered by some to be the first literary hero, the goddess Inanna has started claiming her well-deserved spot in the modern pagan pantheon.

Who is Inanna?

Inanna goes by several titles according to ancient texts, “Queen of Heaven” and “Inanna of the Evening” being the most used. She is a goddess of war and justice, but also love and sensuality. In Mesopotamian religion, Inanna came to be identified with the goddess Ishtar, although it is unclear as to whether Inanna is also of Semitic origins or if the two became conflated due to their similarities.

A Sumerian hym tells the story of Inanna’s visit to a magical palace called kur, and her desire to eat a sacred fruit of knowledge. When her brother relents, she eats the fruit, giving her the awareness of her own sexuality. 

She is featured in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the world's oldest epic poem written around 2100 BCE. In this story, Inanna proposes marriage to Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk, counter to the courtship norms. When Gilgamesh refuses, she lashes out and sends the Bull of Heaven to kill him. Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu kill the bull, but Enkidu dies as punishment, and this leads Gilgamesh on his quest for immortality. 

Even more ancient is the tale of the “Descent of Inanna,” where Inanna visits her sister in “the great below”, who is grieving the death of her husband at the hands of Inanna herself. To get to the Underworld, Inanna must pass through seven gates, each of them stripping her of her symbols of power and protection. When she arrives, Ereshkigal kills Inanna and hangs her on a hook for 3 days. Inanna is revived by the god Enki, but in order to get out of the underworld, she must trade places with her husband. 

What can we learn from Inanna?

Within the mythology of Inanna, we find the archetypes of other divine female deities: Eve, who eats the forbidden fruit and comes to know “sin”, Persephone who journeys to the underworld and returns with the cycles of nature, and Venus, the evening star who embodies sensuality and female pleasure. 

The mythology of Inanna is one of the oldest records of a female figure seeking divine knowledge for herself and embracing sex and sensuality outside of the patriarchal norm. As a goddess of love, she helps us to embrace and fulfill our own desires, and to connect and build intimacy with others and ourselves.

Inanna’s sense of personal power and sovereignty recommends her to those seeking to build self-confidence, or those who feel trapped or controlled. Her support is also ideal for self-discovery and celebration. It is well documented that many priests of the cult of Inanna were androgynous men or two-spirited. As a result, modern, queer pagans may be called to work with Inanna.

Inanna is a fascinating study in the divine feminine archetype. As one of the oldest recorded literary heroes, she reaches out to us across millenia, and her gift of personal sovereignty certainly speaks to us today. 

If you take a look at a typical modern pagan calendar, you will come across, in the midst of various harvest festivals, a feast day dedicated to the Goddess Hekate on August 13th. We know Hekate or Hecate as a dark and powerful goddess: a goddess of death and the underworld, of crossroads and necromancy, and the patron goddess of witchcraft itself. 

Hekate as an Earth Goddess

How did such a goddess come to have her feast day in the middle of the harvest season? Typically, we don’t associate Hekate with agriculture. Her qualities lead us to celebrate her in the colder, darker months of the year, like around Samhain, so August 13th seems like an arbitrary day for honoring Hekate. While the links to an ancient Greek festival look tentative, we have several explanations for why August 13th became known as “Hekate’s Night”.

One record from Samothrace details a ritual sacrifice to Hekate at the Zerinthian cave, where devotees would offer up a dog for protection against storms and terrors. This would fit the description of Hekate as Lady of the Storms; however, August is not known as a particularly stormy month.

Porphyry wrote about Hekate as “the symbol of the cultivation of crops, which she makes grow up according to the increase of her light”. This is in reference to Hekate’s association with the moon phases (used for harvesting crops) as well as the fiery torches she carries, which give light for the crops to grow. 

Two Ancient Festivals

So, we have two sources that associate Hekate with storms and agriculture, which would explain her celebration during the harvest season; however, these still don’t quite explain why August 13th is important. Our last pieces of evidence are two historical Roman and Greek celebrations which took place around mid-August every year: Nemoralia and Kourotrophos.

Nemoralia was in honour of the goddess Diana, who is often conflated with Hekate throughout pagan history.. Furthermore, the day was celebrated with a procession of torches, which is quite suited to Hekate, the torch-bearing goddess.

Kourotrophos is celebrated in honor of the Goddess Kourotrophos, who protects children. She is heavily associated with both Artemis and Hekate, who are also celebrated during this festival. Whether these two festivals contributed to the fixed date of Hekate’s Night is impossible to determine. However, it wouldn’t be the first time a static date was established for a celebration with a historically changing date. 

Modern Celebrations of Hekate’s Night.

While we may never know the true origins of Hekate’s night, we can confirm that she was honored during this time in ancient Greece. Traditionally, these days were celebrated with processions, music, theatrical performances, sacrifices, and, of course, large and lavish feasts. 

In the modern day, we can use Hekate’s feast day to give thanks and make an offering to her. This is also an excellent day to work with her or petition her for protection. Witchcraft practiced on this day will be amplified if Hekate is included in your rituals, even more so when performed at a crossroads. 

Feast days are perfect for practicing some kitchen witchery, either by yourself or with friends and family. Infuse your food with magical intention as you celebrate Hekate’s night. Below, we have shared a kitchen magic spell, perfect for witches of all experience levels. All magical supplies can be found in our shop, and our experienced staff are ready to give guidance where needed. Happy Celebrations. 

Learn how you can cultivate spiritual abundance during the harvest season

Uncover the story of Baphomet and celebrate Pride!

Reknowned psychologist, Carl Jung, categorized mother archetypes into 3 groups: personal mothers (mothers, grandmothers, step-mothers, and mothers-in-law), any woman with whom a relationship exists (a nurse, teacher, or a distant relative), and then a third group of figurative mothers, to which the Goddess belongs. 

What is the Mother Archetype?

Mythology gives us various mother archetypes to work with. In Four Archetypes,  Jung writes, “Many things arousing devotion or feelings of awe, as for instance the Church, university, city or country, heaven, earth, the woods, the sea or any still waters, matter even, the underworld and the moon, can be mother-symbols.”

The archetype is closely associated with things or places that represent fertility and fruitfulness, protection, hollowness, helpfulness, and nurturing. Many of the great mother figures in religion also have a dark side, such as Kali, India’s “loving and terrible mother.” The goddesses of Fate can be seen as ambivalent mothers in Greek mythology. Traditionally, “evil” mother-symbols can include the witch, the dragon or serpent, the grave, deep water, and nightmares. 

Positive qualities include any helpful impulse, anything that is benign, all that sustains, nourishes, and cherishes. On the other hand, negative qualities are secrecy and darkness, anything that devours, seduces, and poisons, and anything terrifying and inescapable, like fate. 

How can we connect with the Great Mothers?

While the mother archetype in mythology is more or less universal, our own experiences with it will be unique to the individual. Around Mother’s Day, many of us celebrate the “personal” mothers in our lives, our own mothers or our family and friends who are mothers. For some of us, however, Mother’s Day may bring mixed feelings, either because we do not have a maternal figure in our lives, or because we have had to part ways with our biological family due to any number of reasons. In this case, we may seek to celebrate those figurative mothers, divine parents of our spiritual self. 

In Greek Mythology, the Chthonic Mother is a term for goddesses associated with the Earth and the Underworld, who rule over life-giving and death-dealing aspects of nature. Such goddesses would include Demeter and her daughter Persephone, Gaia, Hekate, and the Anatolian nature goddess Cybele.

All of us can take part in connecting with and celebrating these ancient mother archetypes. Whether you already work with a Great Mother in your practice or want to invite one into your craft, use this Mother’s Day as a dedicated time to pay special tribute to them. Meditate on how maternal energy has functioned in your life: how has it nurtured and protected you spiritually and physically? How has it guided your intuition and led you to truth and enlightenment? How has it demonstrated the balance of light and darkness in your life? Where can you call upon this maternal energy if it is lacking? 

If you are practicing the craft around this time, be sure to include one of these great archetypes in your work, or make a place on your altar to commune with them. You can offer wine, cheese, or bread to show gratitude to the Great Mother. Celebrate with us this Mother’s Day, whatever that may look like for you. As always, our shop offers all the supplies and guidance you may need on your journey. 

Storytelling at Beltane
Storytellers have walked among us for millennia. Around the world, storytellers entertain and teach us through folk tales old and new. Reciting myths and legends was a favorite amusement of ancient Celtic-speaking nations. In pre-Christian traditions, there were even ranks for different storytellers: poets, professors, bards, and historians. Their duty was to learn by heart the folk tales, poems, and histories of their people.
A “folk-tale” is an umbrella term for a story passed down orally from one generation to the next. The most common types of folk tales are myths and legends. These are stories used to explain natural phenomena, teach a lesson, or describe a recent historical event. Some myths and legends have spread throughout the world and been assimilated into many cultures, while others are extremely local to one group of people or a place. Some of them contain accounts of real people and events, while others are about eerie supernatural occurrences. The setting of storytelling took many forms: a storyteller may have an audience of a few people crowded around a hearth or a court of royal princes and kings. Sometimes, they would take the shape of a performance accompanied by instruments. Even today, huddled around a fire is a popular context for storytelling as it was in Celtic traditions.
Why Tell Stories at Beltane?
Beltane is the third fire festival of the Celtic year and the fifth Sabbat on the Wheel of the Year. As bonfires are a large part of traditional celebrations, it was common for storytellers to use this setting to recite poems and myths relating to the season. At this time of year, we focus on the myth of the May Queen and the Green Man, the God Bel and the Great Mother, or more broadly, the Goddess and the God. Their story has taken many shapes and forms, but generally, it is about the union between the two and the subsequent fertility of the Earth, bringing on the growing season. Stories relating to the Fae or other spirits are popular at this time due to the veil being thin.
Retelling myths and legends helps keep the history of the festival alive; they can teach us about the world around us and ourselves, and, of course, they keep us entertained and raise our spirits. The most magical part of these ancient stories is that they remain relevant to us today. Their roots in oral tradition mean they can be molded by the storyteller to craft a moral we can use in the present day.
How can you incorporate this storytelling tradition into your Beltane celebrations? If you are celebrating with a coven, you can recite your favorite poems and tales that reflect the season we are in. If you are celebrating alone, you can write your own poems and stories or simply journal about what is happening in your life.
As always, we have plenty of handcrafted tools and ingredients made in-house, specifically for this season. This year, we are launching our hummingbird bath soak, cauldron candle, and tea blend to help attract a deep sense of love and expansion, allowing you to seize the moment and be led to your soul’s highest purpose. You can use these handmade rituals to help prepare for your Beltane celebrations and sink into that fiery energy of the season. You can find the new hummingbird collection online or in our Asheville brick-and-mortar. Blessed Beltane!