What does the future hold? Will there be
world war? Will the economy collapse?
In antiquity, leaders, politicians, and the public probably
asked the same questions when they consulted the priestess at the oracle. These
questions were often answered by “wise women” in early cultures. Modern day
concerns probably aren’t much different than the issues of the day in 7th
century BC, when, today, we consult astrology charts and have tarot readings as
we seek other options and new perspectives on things.
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| High Priestess TOCC |
In contemporary
interpretations of The High Priestess in Tarot, the basic meaning pertains to listening
to your intuition and paying attention to the inner voice within. When you
meditate on the High Priestess card in Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, think of
directing your thoughts to a deeper place, and connecting to an inner spiritual
language. Metaphorically, she represents a portal, so when you step between the
dark and light pillars and cross the threshold in your mind, you may open stored
buried memories and repressed emotions, symbolized by the little rainbow
colored vessels.
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| Venus of Wilendorf |
Many concepts of the
priestess’s role have been written about in historical mythology, from the
study of early Goddess worship and the role of sibyls in ancient cultures, to
modern day Wiccan practices. For some, it is rediscovering the feminine side of
God.
“The Goddess image
implies a new feminist matristic consciousness at the same time that it reveals
a new knowledge of our most ancient historical past.”
Gloria Feman Orenstein, The Reflowering of the Goddess (Pergamon Press 1960)
Gloria Feman Orenstein, The Reflowering of the Goddess (Pergamon Press 1960)
According to early Greek writers, the “Oracle of Delphi,” was
tended by the Pythia, a priestess, who sat on a tripod over a crack in the
earth, supposedly entranced by fumes where she related the prophecies or advice
of the gods. The story goes that the site was originally built for the Great Earth
Mother Goddess Gaia, but was taken over by Apollo after he killed the giant
python guarding the site. Thereafter, the priestess was channeling the voices
of the gods, especially Apollo.
Obviously, in our scientific age, we have come a long way from worshipping the old gods. In Tarot, we have the remnants of what the goddess and her priestess once stood for. She represents the gateway to one’s spiritual being and discovery of the Feminine Principle, the formator of life. In a reading of the High Priestess, we are connecting to something beyond our daily lives and attuning to cosmic patterns of life. Symbols and signs discovered here can be divine messages from our Cosmic Selfhood. This is often symbolized in art, music, dance, poetry, prose, religious ritual, and the spoken word.
Obviously, in our scientific age, we have come a long way from worshipping the old gods. In Tarot, we have the remnants of what the goddess and her priestess once stood for. She represents the gateway to one’s spiritual being and discovery of the Feminine Principle, the formator of life. In a reading of the High Priestess, we are connecting to something beyond our daily lives and attuning to cosmic patterns of life. Symbols and signs discovered here can be divine messages from our Cosmic Selfhood. This is often symbolized in art, music, dance, poetry, prose, religious ritual, and the spoken word.
Early Priestesses in Art
and Literature
1.
Paleolithic times, (30,000 BC to 10,000 BC)
small fertility goddesses held in the palm celebrated the great Mother Goddess.
“As in
Paleolithic art, female figurines and symbols occupy a central position in the
art of Catal Huyuk, where shrines to the Goddess and Goddess figurines are
found everywhere.” Raine Eisler, Chalice and the
Blade (HarperCollins, 1987)
2.
Neolithic times (10,000 BC to 2,000 BC)
Ancient Middle East: Cuneiform stories written on
clay tablets such as “Descent to the Goddess” was about the Goddess Inanna
(Ishtar or Ashteroth) and her trip to the underworld guided by her priestess
Ninshubur. Here she confronted death and resurrection. Reference: The Descent to the Goddess, Sylvia
Brenton Perera (Inner City Books, 1981)
Malta, Hypogeum: (around 3,000 BC) An elaborately
carved underground sanctuary/tomb with an oracular hole where a voice could be
projected throughout. Small sleeping ceramic goddess figurines were found there
– the priestesses were probably acting on behalf of the Goddess - was this figure
a depiction of drug induced dreaming/visions, prophesizing? It included a snake
pit – for snake bites to enhance the visions?
Reference:
“Sanctuaries of the Goddess,” Peg
Streep (Little, Brown and Company, 1994)
3.
Biblical, mentions goddess worship of
Ashteroth (around 1000 BC) (Judges 2:13; 10:6) Israelites broke their covenant
with God and worshipped the gods of the Canaanites, Baals (male god) and Ashteroth
(female goddess)
4. Egyptian (New Kingdom – 19th
Dynasty (1550 BC) – celebrated the Egyptian goddess Isis. Priestesses were living
representatives of Isis. Tomb paintings in the tomb of Nefertari show her as
priestess giving offerings to the goddess Hathor
5.
Early Greek and Roman cultures: Elaborate temples and realistic
sculpture to portray and celebrate the gods (450+
BC)
Greek statues were thought to be temporarily
inhabited by the gods.
Greek – (4th century BC) Oracle of Delphi – Pythia priestess
for Gaia/Apollo
Roman – Priestesses of Vesta performed
rites to regulate water-supply
Reference: “Oracles and Divination,” Michael Lowe,
Carmen Blacker (Shambhala, 1981)
6.
Early European earth worship – (up to the
11th century when Latvia was the last country to be Christianized)
There were ritual dances and celebrations of so-called pagan religious belief in
early European tribal cultures. The Earth Goddess was immanent in nature represented
by “wise women” who saw earth with sacred places and sacred springs, attended
by women at the well; sacred stones, nooks and crannies, and sacred forests.
There were Wiccan Priestesses, matres
familiae (older women casting lots) – such as Volva, Voluspa, Norwegian;
and Veleda, Eastern European women representing the Mother Earth Goddess.
“That Anglo-Saxon peoples invoked a mother
goddess at plowing and seeding is proved by an early medieval plowing charm
recorded ad preserved in a manuscript in the British Museum.” Pamela Berger, The Goddess Obscured (Beacon Press, 1985)
Reference: “The once and future Goddess” Elinor Gadon (HarperCollins, 1989)
7. Middle Ages Europe: (11th
century to 15th century) various oracles of prophecy spread throughout
Europe: astrology charts, tarot card paintings on cardboard; Norse carved signs
(Runes) on Rune Sticks and Tarot decks
of the 15th century: Parts of the Visconti Tarot deck of 22 Triumphi
are held in the collection of Pierpont Morgan Library in New York. It was
thought to be painted around 1400 -1466. The Visconti High Priestess is
depicted more as a Popess with a 3 tiered Tiara. Reference:
Visconti Tarots, Giordano Berti/
Tiberio Gonard (Lo Scarabeo, Turin 2002)
So you might ask, “Why are we looking back
at priestesses of the ancient past”?
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| Visconti High Priestess |
In today’s feminist mood, it is part of the
search for lost feminine wisdom, which has been suppressed, forbidden, cast
aside, and extinguished over the centuries. We can see that an acknowledgement
of the feminine has been re-emerging in the 20th century and
continues more than ever now. It
includes a recognition of our dependence on this sacred mother earth who is
currently being devastated by wars, blasted and drilled for her precious
resources, and trampled upon disrespectively in most all countries. When you get The High Priestess in a reading,
take time to pause and rethink your relationship to the earth; the safety of
the food you eat; the water you drink, and your role in acting on your
intuition. What is your “gut feeling” to do the right thing – without mad
ambition and greed, selfishness, or political motivation? It’s a time to get in
touch with the truth and goodness of your real self.
