Do you know a powerful woman
changing the world through
her green thumb?
Are YOU a woman healing the earth through ecological activism and organic gardening? Come on in!
"Sleeping in the Garden" by Erika Hastings
For information on living garden goddesses, check out these books:
Women of the Harvest: Inspiring Stories of Contemporary Farmers (Voyageur Press, 2007)
Sacred Land: Intuitive Gardening for Personal, Political & Environmental Change
by Clea Danaan (Llewellyn, May 2007)
ISBN 978-0-7387-1146-1
Order it from Amazon here.
Goddesses of the Garden
The following are excerpted from Sacred Land by Clea Danaan (Llewellyn, 2007).If you would like to submit illustrations for this page, please send me an email.
Gaia
The supreme Mother Goddess of the Greeks, Gaia birthed the first race of gods and the humans. Her name comes from the Greek word for land, ge or ga. The people worshiped her at the temples of Delphi, throwing barley and laurel into her sacred cauldron. An omnipotent prophetess, Gaia spoke through the oracle at Delphi, giving advice on matters of home, law, and the land. In Roman mythology, she is called Tellus or Terra.
Gaia is the soul of the planet Earth. Her gentle yet all-powerful strength gives life to all green and growing beings, and holds us in a protective embrace. She is the whole of the Earth, however, and does not regard humans as more important than Nature. In our foolish arrogance we have upset the natural balance, and Gaia is working to set things right with the Earth changes we face today.
Give thanks to her each day as you enter your garden, and attune with her essence as you work and play with the sacred land. As she rules over fertility, motherhood, healing, and dreams, we gardening sisters can call on her in all we do.
Demeter
The great mother of soil and grain, Demeter gave seeds to the first peoples, and taught them to farm the land. The Doorway of the Mysterious Feminine, she guides us past the garden gate into the sacred womb of life and death. Old myths present her as the trinity of maiden, mother, and crone; originally Pluto was not a god, but a version of the Mother, the chthonic goddess of earthly death (perhaps our recent demotion of Pluto to a dwarf planet marks a resurgence of the power of the Mother). Though more recent tales have split Pluto into Persephone the maiden, Demeter the mother, and Pluto the underworld god, the ancient world saw these as different aspects of the Great Mother. When we listen to these older myths, Demeter is earth mother of life, death, fertility, and growth.
Say a prayer of thanks to Demeter as you till the soil and plant your seeds. Honor her in the fall with sheaths of corn, and remember her when the sky shines with the perfect blue of a summer’s day. She is with us as we explore how we co-create with Mother Earth.
Pachamama
The great Dragon Mother, Pachamama taught the Incan peoples to cultivate corn. When her people were secure in their knowledge of agriculture, she returned to her home in the Andes Mountains, where she may cause an earthquake or two by rubbing against the great stone walls of her palace. She presides over agriculture, and women sing and pray to her as we work in our gardens or tend the fields. Today Pachamama has become a symbol for the wisdom of the indigenous peoples of South America; when we sprinkle cornmeal on the Earth in honor of this Mother Goddess, we honor these people as well.
Seshat
The Egyptian star goddess Seshat blesses us with clear communication. She embodies the powers of the sky, including communication and beginnings. Her name means female scribe, and she is mistress of the house of books, and the minister of time. As the great accountant, she remembers all since the very beginning. She creates the world using sacred geometry, and her magic wand featuring a seven-pointed star represents the source of all creative ideas. When planning your garden, call on Seshat for her creative guidance. She will watch over the land, remembering each moment as it unfolds, blessing you with the powers of the air.
Selene
The goddess of the full moon, Selene is also known as Semele, Zemelo, and Cybelle. The full moon radiates the plenitude of lover, bride, and mother. She blesses all nocturnal beings, the crickets and bats and night-blooming flowers. To call her blessings upon your garden, place a gold or silver glass globe next to white flowers. Plant rose, bluebell, and nicotiana in her honor, and she will help your garden grow with fullness and vigor.
Amaterasu
Japanese ruling clans traced their heritage from the great Sun goddess, Omikami Amaterasu. Heavenly Shining Great Female Person protects the Japanese people, and her image of the rising sun is still featured on the Japanese flag. Call on Amaterasu to bless your garden and assure a balanced amount of heat and light. Thank her when eating the crisp and nourishing vegetables that depended on her to grow. If you struggle with your own inner fire, she can help you come out of your cave; she will reflect to you your beauty and potential.
Chantico
Aztec goddess of fire, home and fertility, Chantico teaches us how pain and pleasure can occur simultaneously. She teaches us about living the dialectic that life insists. Health is being able to hold both pleasure and pain without running from or martyring ourselves to either polarity. While all of the elements hold the powers of creation and destruction, we tend to see this reality most immediately in fire, the life-giving heat that can lick away everything we hold dear in an instant. To help understand your relationship with this dynamic element, call on Chantico. Her symbol is the red snake, and she brings us wealth and protection. In the garden, honor her with a spiky cactus planted in red stone, or grow fiery peppers or paprika, perhaps in a red pot studded with gems.
Yemaya
This ebony-skinned Momma Ocean protects women and children, and she understands a woman’s desire to create and nurture. She herself birthed the Earth’s waters, as well as all the gods and goddesses. Whether you long to create a lush and nourishing garden, a work of art, or a child, call on her sweet and powerful blessings. Offer her corn and yams beneath the full moon, or dance in your birthday suit at the edge of the ocean. In exchange, offer her a promise you can keep that will help protect the planet’s water, like donating to an environmental activist organization or cleaning up a local stream or beach.
Chalciuhtlicue
The Aztec goddess of lakes, streams and flowing water, Chalciuhtlicue wears a blue and white dress decorated with water lilies. Her name means "jade skirt." She presides over beauty and fertility. Images of the prickly pear and a river represent Chalciuhtlicue, for cactuses and rivers both bring hydration and beauty to the arid desert. She created violent floods that destroyed the fourth world when the god Quetzalcoatl drove away her lover, Tlaloc the Rain God. Call on her to help you build a new relationship with water, or to help with fertility – in the garden, in your relationships, and in your life.
Danu
The Mother of the Tuatha de Danaan, Danu’s presence can be felt at all rivers and wells. When we toss a coin into a well, we call on her prosperity magic and wisdom. Danu is a goddess of abundance and can lead you with love to your true life. Her name comes from dan, meaning knowledge. To honor this great mother of the Celtic lands, set up a wishing well or small pond with a fountain in your garden. Alternately, visit a local natural spring or river. Place a stone beside the pond or spring, marked with a triple spiral, which is a sign of the Goddess. Attend this spring regularly, and when in need of healing, simply sprinkle some of her water upon yourself.