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الههه�: اسرار الوهیت زنانه
نخستین اثر کمبل در مورد الهه‌ها� با مقدمه و ویرایش دکتر سافرون رُسی، مدیر یک بایگانی بزرگ و مرکز تحقیقات که مجموعه� آثار جوزف کمبل، ماریبا گیمبوتاس، جیمز هیلمن، و سایر پژوهندگان اسطوره‌شناسی� یونگی‌ه� و روانشناسی کهن‌الگویی� و علوم انسانی را در بر می‌گیر�.
در ستایش جوزف کمبل
در قرن ما هیچ‌کس� نه فروید، نه توماس مان یا لوی استروس، به اندازه� کمبل مفهوم اسطوره‌ا� جهان و چهره‌ها� جاویدان آن را وارد آگاهی روزمره نکرده است.
جیمز هیلمن
کمبل به یکی از نادر روشنفکران زندگی آمریکایی تبدیل شده است؛ متفکری جدی که فرهنگ عامه از او استقبال کرده است.
ــ نیوزویک
در ستایش جوزف کمبل
در قرن ما هیچ‌کس� نه فروید، نه توماس مان یا لوی استروس، به اندازه� کمبل مفهوم اسطوره‌ا� جهان و چهره‌ها� جاویدان آن را وارد آگاهی روزمره نکرده است.
جیمز هیلمن
کمبل به یکی از نادر روشنفکران زندگی آمریکایی تبدیل شده است؛ متفکری جدی که فرهنگ عامه از او استقبال کرده است.
ــ نیوزویک
376 pages, Paperback
First published December 10, 2013
489 people are currently reading
7,894 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Campbell
406books5,873followersJoseph Campbell was an American author and teacher best known for his work in the field of comparative mythology. He was born in New York City in 1904, and from early childhood he became interested in mythology. He loved to read books about American Indian cultures, and frequently visited the American Museum of Natural History in New York, where he was fascinated by the museum's collection of totem poles.
Campbell was educated at Columbia University, where he specialized in medieval literature, and continued his studies at universities in Paris and Munich. While abroad he was influenced by the art of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, the novels of James Joyce and Thomas Mann, and the psychological studies of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. These encounters led to Campbell's theory that all myths and epics are linked in the human psyche, and that they are cultural manifestations of the universal need to explain social, cosmological, and spiritual realities. �
After a period in California, where he encountered John Steinbeck and the biologist Ed Ricketts, he taught at the Canterbury School, and then, in 1934, joined the literature department at Sarah Lawrence College, a post he retained for many years. During the 40s and '50s, he helped Swami Nikhilananda to translate the Upanishads and The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. He also edited works by the German scholar Heinrich Zimmer on Indian art, myths, and philosophy. In 1944, with Henry Morton Robinson, Campbell published A Skeleton Key to Finnegans Wake. His first original work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, came out in 1949 and was immediately well received; in time, it became acclaimed as a classic. In this study of the "myth of the hero," Campbell asserted that there is a single pattern of heroic journey and that all cultures share this essential pattern in their various heroic myths. In his book he also outlined the basic conditions, stages, and results of the archetypal hero's journey.�
Throughout his life, he traveled extensively and wrote prolifically, authoring many books, including the four-volume series The Masks of God, Myths to Live By, The Inner Reaches of Outer Space and The Historical Atlas of World Mythology. Joseph Campbell died in 1987. In 1988, a series of television interviews with Bill Moyers, The Power of Myth, introduced Campbell's views to millions of people.�
Campbell was educated at Columbia University, where he specialized in medieval literature, and continued his studies at universities in Paris and Munich. While abroad he was influenced by the art of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, the novels of James Joyce and Thomas Mann, and the psychological studies of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. These encounters led to Campbell's theory that all myths and epics are linked in the human psyche, and that they are cultural manifestations of the universal need to explain social, cosmological, and spiritual realities. �
After a period in California, where he encountered John Steinbeck and the biologist Ed Ricketts, he taught at the Canterbury School, and then, in 1934, joined the literature department at Sarah Lawrence College, a post he retained for many years. During the 40s and '50s, he helped Swami Nikhilananda to translate the Upanishads and The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. He also edited works by the German scholar Heinrich Zimmer on Indian art, myths, and philosophy. In 1944, with Henry Morton Robinson, Campbell published A Skeleton Key to Finnegans Wake. His first original work, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, came out in 1949 and was immediately well received; in time, it became acclaimed as a classic. In this study of the "myth of the hero," Campbell asserted that there is a single pattern of heroic journey and that all cultures share this essential pattern in their various heroic myths. In his book he also outlined the basic conditions, stages, and results of the archetypal hero's journey.�
Throughout his life, he traveled extensively and wrote prolifically, authoring many books, including the four-volume series The Masks of God, Myths to Live By, The Inner Reaches of Outer Space and The Historical Atlas of World Mythology. Joseph Campbell died in 1987. In 1988, a series of television interviews with Bill Moyers, The Power of Myth, introduced Campbell's views to millions of people.�
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews
November 12, 2013
Gender conflict has deep, historical roots.
Goddesses: Mysteries of the Divine Feminine, is a book based on lectures and notes by the late Joseph Campbell. It is produced by the Joseph Campbell Foundation and edited by Dr. Safron Rossi. The book traces the Goddess in history from ancient times and peoples to around the time of the European Renaissance (around the 15th century).
It is a fascinating work and an in-depth look into an aspect of mythology that is frequently overlooked. Many works feature entire pantheons and tribal deities but few are devoted to following the archetypal motif of the Goddess as she moves, evolves, diminishes, and rises transformed through the many arcs of history and mythologies. Goddesses is one of those few that I've encountered.
The story begins in the Old Stone Age (30,000 - 10,000 BC) where archaeological artifacts depict women as magical vessels which produces life and where men are depicted as task-performers. The book notes that today, women are more often than not, seen as objects seen primarily in terms of appearance and youth, while men are seen as task-performers -- not much has changed.
With the development of agricultural societies, authority transfers to the female and the Goddess is seen as the global forces and energies of nature and life. As some tribes become nomadic with hunting as their primary means of support, the Goddess decreases and the male hero-gods gain prominence. The mythologies depict these gods killing off their maternal ancestors. The male gains authority and dominance among these societies.
As history continues the two types of societies increasingly come into conflict with one another. Cultures are subsumed by conquering. The warring societies dominate. Cities develop and mythologies have to change and adapt to justify specialization of tasks and castes. For a period of time, from around 3000 BC (give or take several centuries) to around 700 BC, male-oriented mythologies dominate.
However, the Goddess cannot be silenced forever and begin their return into the Greek pantheon. Based on its themes, it is suggested that The Odyssey was composed by a woman to bring the feminine characteristics and power back into Greek thought. The book goes into great detail on an analysis and interpretation of the Iliad (which precedes) and The Odyssey to see the transformation in thought that takes place between these two works.
Goddesses shows that throughout history, the feminine mythologies focus on life and harmony, that she help unite people into community. On the other hand, the masculine kills and divides, and promotes mostly self-interest.
Because many readers have the Jewish and Christian texts as their primary religious and mythological background, comparison are made throughout Goddesses highlighting similarities between what is found in the Bible and what is found in surrounding cultures, often predating the biblical texts by hundreds and thousands of years.
The major monotheistic religions are patriarchal. According to Goddesses they have effectively conquered and killed the female character, even though vestiges can be found in their texts if one looks deeply. Attributes and characteristics that are typical of the female are assigned to the male deity. In so doing, these religions are able to keep the Goddess dead.
Goddesses ends in the time of the Renaissance with a return of the Goddess into mythology. The Arthurian legends, the Virgin Birth, and the veneration of Mary are interpreted as part of the return.
I really enjoyed Goddesses and found it quite informative. It shows how mythology and religion have been employed as weapons in gender and sex power struggles since the dawn of human civilization. It shows how people have tried to make sense of the world and the universe from the very beginning of consciousness. It shows how mythologies form, develop, change, are borrowed, and are transformed to fit the needs of people at any given time. It shows that mythologies themselves are not sacred, but they point to a transcendent reality that is believed to exist.
For some this book will be very uncomfortable. It will challenge and greatly refute the concept of divine special revelation (at least the way "special revelation" is typically understood) in certain religious traditions. It will challenge the foundational soundness of the idea that an exclusive "male deity" can be truly good. It will challenge the origins and purposes of religious thought and practice. I think this is a good thing. We need to be more aware of the use and misuse of the powers of mythology and religion. We need to be more cognizant of our commonalities across cultures and beliefs.
The rise of feminism in the modern era, I now see, is no accident. It is a natural process predicted by anthropology, history, and mythology. It is part of a working out of gender relationships in our time. Will the feminine be able to successfully establish herself a lasting presence as an equal power and authority in the still-patriarchal modern society? Will she be able to transform the mythologies and religions that inform us today into ones that welcome the full participation of the feminine?
(This review is based on an advance review copy supplied by the publisher through NetGalley.)
Goddesses: Mysteries of the Divine Feminine, is a book based on lectures and notes by the late Joseph Campbell. It is produced by the Joseph Campbell Foundation and edited by Dr. Safron Rossi. The book traces the Goddess in history from ancient times and peoples to around the time of the European Renaissance (around the 15th century).
It is a fascinating work and an in-depth look into an aspect of mythology that is frequently overlooked. Many works feature entire pantheons and tribal deities but few are devoted to following the archetypal motif of the Goddess as she moves, evolves, diminishes, and rises transformed through the many arcs of history and mythologies. Goddesses is one of those few that I've encountered.
The story begins in the Old Stone Age (30,000 - 10,000 BC) where archaeological artifacts depict women as magical vessels which produces life and where men are depicted as task-performers. The book notes that today, women are more often than not, seen as objects seen primarily in terms of appearance and youth, while men are seen as task-performers -- not much has changed.
With the development of agricultural societies, authority transfers to the female and the Goddess is seen as the global forces and energies of nature and life. As some tribes become nomadic with hunting as their primary means of support, the Goddess decreases and the male hero-gods gain prominence. The mythologies depict these gods killing off their maternal ancestors. The male gains authority and dominance among these societies.
As history continues the two types of societies increasingly come into conflict with one another. Cultures are subsumed by conquering. The warring societies dominate. Cities develop and mythologies have to change and adapt to justify specialization of tasks and castes. For a period of time, from around 3000 BC (give or take several centuries) to around 700 BC, male-oriented mythologies dominate.
However, the Goddess cannot be silenced forever and begin their return into the Greek pantheon. Based on its themes, it is suggested that The Odyssey was composed by a woman to bring the feminine characteristics and power back into Greek thought. The book goes into great detail on an analysis and interpretation of the Iliad (which precedes) and The Odyssey to see the transformation in thought that takes place between these two works.
Goddesses shows that throughout history, the feminine mythologies focus on life and harmony, that she help unite people into community. On the other hand, the masculine kills and divides, and promotes mostly self-interest.
Because many readers have the Jewish and Christian texts as their primary religious and mythological background, comparison are made throughout Goddesses highlighting similarities between what is found in the Bible and what is found in surrounding cultures, often predating the biblical texts by hundreds and thousands of years.
The major monotheistic religions are patriarchal. According to Goddesses they have effectively conquered and killed the female character, even though vestiges can be found in their texts if one looks deeply. Attributes and characteristics that are typical of the female are assigned to the male deity. In so doing, these religions are able to keep the Goddess dead.
Goddesses ends in the time of the Renaissance with a return of the Goddess into mythology. The Arthurian legends, the Virgin Birth, and the veneration of Mary are interpreted as part of the return.
I really enjoyed Goddesses and found it quite informative. It shows how mythology and religion have been employed as weapons in gender and sex power struggles since the dawn of human civilization. It shows how people have tried to make sense of the world and the universe from the very beginning of consciousness. It shows how mythologies form, develop, change, are borrowed, and are transformed to fit the needs of people at any given time. It shows that mythologies themselves are not sacred, but they point to a transcendent reality that is believed to exist.
For some this book will be very uncomfortable. It will challenge and greatly refute the concept of divine special revelation (at least the way "special revelation" is typically understood) in certain religious traditions. It will challenge the foundational soundness of the idea that an exclusive "male deity" can be truly good. It will challenge the origins and purposes of religious thought and practice. I think this is a good thing. We need to be more aware of the use and misuse of the powers of mythology and religion. We need to be more cognizant of our commonalities across cultures and beliefs.
The rise of feminism in the modern era, I now see, is no accident. It is a natural process predicted by anthropology, history, and mythology. It is part of a working out of gender relationships in our time. Will the feminine be able to successfully establish herself a lasting presence as an equal power and authority in the still-patriarchal modern society? Will she be able to transform the mythologies and religions that inform us today into ones that welcome the full participation of the feminine?
(This review is based on an advance review copy supplied by the publisher through NetGalley.)
May 21, 2022
اگر عنوان کتاب و مهم‌ت� از آن، زیر عنوان: اسرار الوهیت زنانه را در نظر نگیریم، کمبل مثل همیشه تو را به سفر جذابی بین اسطوره‌ه� می‌بر� و با تحلیل کردنشان معناهایی را یادآوری می‌کن� که اسطوره‌ه� به آدم‌ه� داده‌‌ان� تا باورهایشان را بر آن‌ه� پایه‌گذار� کنند. اما با در نظر گرفتن زیر عنوان کتاب به نظر می‌آی� همچنان همه اساطیر، خدایان و خدابانوان دارند به یک اندازه مورد توجه قرار می‌گیرن� و کفه هیچکدام سنگین‌ت� نیست. وقتی کمبل جزئیات داستان اودیسه را می‌شکاف� دوباره روایت از همان زاویه‌دی� همیشگی بررسی می‌شو�. زن‌ه� در این داستان همان‌طو� حضور دارند و مورد دقت قرار می‌گیرن� که اگر عنوان کتاب خدایان اساطیری بود نه الههه�. کمبل سعی می‌کن� الههه� را پیدا کند، سراغ اساطیر رم و یونان می‌رود� به ادیان هم سرک می‌کش� و تصاویر و مجسمه الهه‌های� که بین یافته‌ها� باستان‌شناس� پیدا شدند را تحلیل می‌کند� اما مدل ارائه این محتویات اساطیری بر محور کشف اسرار الوهیت زنانه نیست.
یکی از معدود نکته‌های� که کمبل در راستای هدف اصلی کتاب گفته مقایسه‌ا� است که بین باور کلی درباره ارتباط شخص و خدا در شیوه تفکر الهه مادر و ادیان وجود دارد. در اولی شخص خودش را با خدا یکی می‌دان� و می‌گوی� من و خدا یکی هستیم. در دومی اما شخص باید خدا را قدرتی برتر بداند و اعتراف به اینکه من و خدا یکی هستیم می‌توان� به داستان تصلیب مسیح یا منصور حلاج منجر شود. این تحول که در باورهای بنیادین آدم‌ه� اتفاق افتاده معمولا به تدریج اتفاق افتاده و شاید بشود گفت -همانطور که کمبل هم در جایی از کتاب گفته - روایت‌ه� شکل مردانه‌ا� به خود گرفته‌ان�.
یکی از معدود نکته‌های� که کمبل در راستای هدف اصلی کتاب گفته مقایسه‌ا� است که بین باور کلی درباره ارتباط شخص و خدا در شیوه تفکر الهه مادر و ادیان وجود دارد. در اولی شخص خودش را با خدا یکی می‌دان� و می‌گوی� من و خدا یکی هستیم. در دومی اما شخص باید خدا را قدرتی برتر بداند و اعتراف به اینکه من و خدا یکی هستیم می‌توان� به داستان تصلیب مسیح یا منصور حلاج منجر شود. این تحول که در باورهای بنیادین آدم‌ه� اتفاق افتاده معمولا به تدریج اتفاق افتاده و شاید بشود گفت -همانطور که کمبل هم در جایی از کتاب گفته - روایت‌ه� شکل مردانه‌ا� به خود گرفته‌ان�.
November 19, 2020
Puanım 3/5 (%60/100)
Bazı kısımları çok güzel bazı kısımlarının çok karışık ve klişe olduğu bir kitap. Bildiğim kadarıyla Campbell'in makale, konuşma, mektup vs. gibi yazılarından toplanıp yapılan bir kitap. Yüksek lisans tezimde Campbell çalıştığım araştırmacılardan birisi olduğu için bu kitabın bazı kısımlarını okumuştum İngilizce olarak. Türkçe çevirisi Mayıs'ta çıkınca aldım fakat daha yeni okuyabildim.
Campbell'in ünlü teorisi monomit (veya kahramanın yolculuğu) birçok yönden eleştirildi ve hala da eleştirilmeye devam ediliyor. Bu eleştirilerin bir kısmı Campbell'in teorisinin tamamen erkek odaklı olmasından kaynaklanıyor hatta beyaz erkek bile diyebiliriz. Bu yüzden etnik kökeni, cinsiyeti ve cinsel eğilimi farklı olan kim varsa monomitin dışarısında kalıyor. Monomit günümüzde binlerce kitap, dizi veya filme uyarlanabilir. Fakat uyarlama yapmak için monomit üzerinde birtakım değişiklikler yapmak da gerekiyor. Bu yüzden bu kitap bana sanki eleştirileri biraz azaltmak için yapılmış gibi geldi.
Yine de genel olarak hoşuma giden bir kitap oldu fakat Kahramanın Yolculuğu veya Campbell'in diğer mitoloji kitapları kadar detaylı veya düzenli bulamadım. Tanrıça arketipi ve kültürü üzerinde mitoloji ile bağlantılar kurup böyle bir kitap ortaya çıkarmışlar. Güzel olan şey kitabın birçok farklı mitolojiden ve tanrıçadan bahsetmesi. Yine de bir mitoloji kitabından çok teorik hatta felsefi bir kitap olarak bile kabul edilebilir. Kahramanın Yolculuğu kitabından sonra okunmasını tavsiye ediyorum. Bu şekilde eleştirdiğim noktalar size de mantıklı gelecektir.
Bazı kısımları çok güzel bazı kısımlarının çok karışık ve klişe olduğu bir kitap. Bildiğim kadarıyla Campbell'in makale, konuşma, mektup vs. gibi yazılarından toplanıp yapılan bir kitap. Yüksek lisans tezimde Campbell çalıştığım araştırmacılardan birisi olduğu için bu kitabın bazı kısımlarını okumuştum İngilizce olarak. Türkçe çevirisi Mayıs'ta çıkınca aldım fakat daha yeni okuyabildim.
Campbell'in ünlü teorisi monomit (veya kahramanın yolculuğu) birçok yönden eleştirildi ve hala da eleştirilmeye devam ediliyor. Bu eleştirilerin bir kısmı Campbell'in teorisinin tamamen erkek odaklı olmasından kaynaklanıyor hatta beyaz erkek bile diyebiliriz. Bu yüzden etnik kökeni, cinsiyeti ve cinsel eğilimi farklı olan kim varsa monomitin dışarısında kalıyor. Monomit günümüzde binlerce kitap, dizi veya filme uyarlanabilir. Fakat uyarlama yapmak için monomit üzerinde birtakım değişiklikler yapmak da gerekiyor. Bu yüzden bu kitap bana sanki eleştirileri biraz azaltmak için yapılmış gibi geldi.
Yine de genel olarak hoşuma giden bir kitap oldu fakat Kahramanın Yolculuğu veya Campbell'in diğer mitoloji kitapları kadar detaylı veya düzenli bulamadım. Tanrıça arketipi ve kültürü üzerinde mitoloji ile bağlantılar kurup böyle bir kitap ortaya çıkarmışlar. Güzel olan şey kitabın birçok farklı mitolojiden ve tanrıçadan bahsetmesi. Yine de bir mitoloji kitabından çok teorik hatta felsefi bir kitap olarak bile kabul edilebilir. Kahramanın Yolculuğu kitabından sonra okunmasını tavsiye ediyorum. Bu şekilde eleştirdiğim noktalar size de mantıklı gelecektir.
January 9, 2020
I don't know how to put into words how great this book is.
January 18, 2015
Joseph Campbell is a well known scholar of mythology who has taught a number if years at the University level and has authored numerous books. His material is gold as far as I am concerned . AT the same time as being scholarly his style is also highly readable and enjoyable. Read this and you will get lots of information. Beware though because this book may well change your perspective on things.
Change it did. Many scholars such as Margaret Murray and Marija Gambutas have stated that in man kinds beginning there was a whorl wide religion that revered the Goddess. Now perhaps that was an overstatement but there were places that venerated the Goddess. Three such areas were identified South Eastern Europe plus Greece and Mesopatamia, South East Asia and part of Central AMerica. THese three areas had mastered agriculture and planting. THe societies tended to be settled into communities and there was at the time no threat of invasion or violence. THe Goddesses reign lasted from the Paleolithic to Neolithic times.
The Earth was seen as the mother. From her came all life and at the end all life returned to her. You did not have to be awesome to pick some fruit. Women were cultivators, admired for their beauty. Men were idolized based on how they performed their tasks. In the houses one would find figurines or Venus statues, These could be goddess statues or fertility votives. Men had their rituals in underground caves which were highly representative of the Goddesses womb. The sun was a feminine sign as was the lion and the cat and the snake. The sun radiated on the earth and represented freedom from time and space. Lions were royalty and serpents represented wisdom and life force.
For the male representation it was the bull. The bull was lunar. It's horns represented the crescent of the moon. The male figure was the child of the goddess who grew into her lover and then dies only tobe born again much like the moon.
During the Iron age when the feminine world was being invaded by Indo Europeans in the north and Bedouin tribes from the south things began to change. The Indo- Europeans were semit nomadic warrior who cultivated livestock mostly cows. THe Bedouin cultivated sheep and goats. As was tendency once these warrior tribes took over the feminine lands they did not eradicate the goddess but rather had there moveable gods move and and marry them. Of course this would change the whole mythology
Joseph Campbell covers these ideas and their evolution by going over Hindu Culture, heavy emphasis on Greco=Roman myth and Middle Eastern Mythology. Carefully showing how three once powerful Goddess was reduced to a subordinate undeeer the ancient paganism to how she was merely venerated under monotheism. But you cannot keep a good woman down. SHe rises up during the romantic period of courtly love and she is making her voice heard again. This book is a must read
Change it did. Many scholars such as Margaret Murray and Marija Gambutas have stated that in man kinds beginning there was a whorl wide religion that revered the Goddess. Now perhaps that was an overstatement but there were places that venerated the Goddess. Three such areas were identified South Eastern Europe plus Greece and Mesopatamia, South East Asia and part of Central AMerica. THese three areas had mastered agriculture and planting. THe societies tended to be settled into communities and there was at the time no threat of invasion or violence. THe Goddesses reign lasted from the Paleolithic to Neolithic times.
The Earth was seen as the mother. From her came all life and at the end all life returned to her. You did not have to be awesome to pick some fruit. Women were cultivators, admired for their beauty. Men were idolized based on how they performed their tasks. In the houses one would find figurines or Venus statues, These could be goddess statues or fertility votives. Men had their rituals in underground caves which were highly representative of the Goddesses womb. The sun was a feminine sign as was the lion and the cat and the snake. The sun radiated on the earth and represented freedom from time and space. Lions were royalty and serpents represented wisdom and life force.
For the male representation it was the bull. The bull was lunar. It's horns represented the crescent of the moon. The male figure was the child of the goddess who grew into her lover and then dies only tobe born again much like the moon.
During the Iron age when the feminine world was being invaded by Indo Europeans in the north and Bedouin tribes from the south things began to change. The Indo- Europeans were semit nomadic warrior who cultivated livestock mostly cows. THe Bedouin cultivated sheep and goats. As was tendency once these warrior tribes took over the feminine lands they did not eradicate the goddess but rather had there moveable gods move and and marry them. Of course this would change the whole mythology
Joseph Campbell covers these ideas and their evolution by going over Hindu Culture, heavy emphasis on Greco=Roman myth and Middle Eastern Mythology. Carefully showing how three once powerful Goddess was reduced to a subordinate undeeer the ancient paganism to how she was merely venerated under monotheism. But you cannot keep a good woman down. SHe rises up during the romantic period of courtly love and she is making her voice heard again. This book is a must read
October 16, 2024
„Žemė gimdo ir teikia peno, bet taip pat priima mus atgal į save. Ji taip pat yra mirties motina ir nakties miegas, į kurį nugrimztame�, � knygoje „Deivės. Dieviškojo moteriškumo paslaptys� rašo mokslininkas Josephas Campbellas. O aš visa laiminga skaitau ir žaviuosi, kaip pagarbiai ir net didžiausiam glušiui suprantamai jis plėtoja dieviškojo moteriškumo archetipus, mitologiją bei simboliką 🥰.
Jeigu jūs, kaip ir aš, esate dėl graikų mitų pamišę feministai 🤓 � skaitydami šią knygą turėsite geriausią laiką savo gyvenime. Joje Cambellas pasakoja apie deivių svarbą pasaulio mitologijoje (nuo Graikijos iki Egipto dievybių). Atpasakojamas ir Motinos žemės mitas, vaizduojantis žemę kaip gyvą, moterišką dievybę, kuri yra gyvybės rato šaltinis. Motina žemė � galinga jėga, gebanti išlaikyti natūralų ciklą tarp gyvenimo ir mirties.
Didžiausias šios knygos netikėtumas man buvo pažintis su iš Lietuvos kilusia pasauline archeologijos žvaigžde � Marija Gimbutiene. Cambellas rėmėsi Marijos idėjomis apie neolito Europą, kurioje dominavo moteriškosios deivės garbinimas. Jis buvo grįstas harmonija ir gyvenimo ciklo šlovinimu, o ne agresyvumu ir karu, kurį vėliau atneš patriarchalinė indoeuropiečių įtaka. Tam brudui atėjus, šventas deivių statulėles pakeitė Dangaus dievo ir kitų piktų vyriškų dievybių garbinimas (labai nefeministiška iš jų pusės 👎). Cambello dėka įsimylėjau Gimbutienę ir tapau jos fane nr. 1 (Rasa Navickaitė parašė nuostabią knygą apie šią ikoną, kurią REKOMENDUOJU perskaityt 🫡).
Pasak mokslininko, moteriškos dievybės svarbios iki šiol. Jų tyrinėjimas padeda įvertinti moters vaidmenį ir galią šiuolaikinėje visuomenėje. Jis taip pat padeda mums, superboboms, suprasti save. Nors šlovė ir kiti ditirambai deivėms buvo sunaikinti ir uždrausti, šiuolaikinės moterys turi išskirtinę privilegiją iš savo žiūros taško nuspręsti, kokios yra mūsų ateities galimybės. Tik jos gali suteikti Deivėms galimybę kilti aukštyn.
„Kur ateina vyrai, randasi susiskaldymas, o kur ateina moterys, randasi vienybė�, � teigė Josephas Campbellas. Kokia aktuali mintis dabarties chaoso ir netikrumo laike!
Jeigu jūs, kaip ir aš, esate dėl graikų mitų pamišę feministai 🤓 � skaitydami šią knygą turėsite geriausią laiką savo gyvenime. Joje Cambellas pasakoja apie deivių svarbą pasaulio mitologijoje (nuo Graikijos iki Egipto dievybių). Atpasakojamas ir Motinos žemės mitas, vaizduojantis žemę kaip gyvą, moterišką dievybę, kuri yra gyvybės rato šaltinis. Motina žemė � galinga jėga, gebanti išlaikyti natūralų ciklą tarp gyvenimo ir mirties.
Didžiausias šios knygos netikėtumas man buvo pažintis su iš Lietuvos kilusia pasauline archeologijos žvaigžde � Marija Gimbutiene. Cambellas rėmėsi Marijos idėjomis apie neolito Europą, kurioje dominavo moteriškosios deivės garbinimas. Jis buvo grįstas harmonija ir gyvenimo ciklo šlovinimu, o ne agresyvumu ir karu, kurį vėliau atneš patriarchalinė indoeuropiečių įtaka. Tam brudui atėjus, šventas deivių statulėles pakeitė Dangaus dievo ir kitų piktų vyriškų dievybių garbinimas (labai nefeministiška iš jų pusės 👎). Cambello dėka įsimylėjau Gimbutienę ir tapau jos fane nr. 1 (Rasa Navickaitė parašė nuostabią knygą apie šią ikoną, kurią REKOMENDUOJU perskaityt 🫡).
Pasak mokslininko, moteriškos dievybės svarbios iki šiol. Jų tyrinėjimas padeda įvertinti moters vaidmenį ir galią šiuolaikinėje visuomenėje. Jis taip pat padeda mums, superboboms, suprasti save. Nors šlovė ir kiti ditirambai deivėms buvo sunaikinti ir uždrausti, šiuolaikinės moterys turi išskirtinę privilegiją iš savo žiūros taško nuspręsti, kokios yra mūsų ateities galimybės. Tik jos gali suteikti Deivėms galimybę kilti aukštyn.
„Kur ateina vyrai, randasi susiskaldymas, o kur ateina moterys, randasi vienybė�, � teigė Josephas Campbellas. Kokia aktuali mintis dabarties chaoso ir netikrumo laike!
April 13, 2022
Audiobook pe scribd.
Cu mici excepții, miturile sunt asemanatoare in toate colturile lumii. De a lungul timpului , fiecare noua cultura a împrumutat si construit pe elementele predecesoarelor ei.
Nu cred ca exista altcineva care sa stie atat de multe povesti fascinante si sa le redea intr o maniera atat de atragatoare.
Aceasta carte este despre eternul feminin.
Mama pamant, mama natura , forta creatoare feminina de a lungul istoriei, din neolitic pana la trubaduri, imaginea femeii a fost inaltata sau dimpotriva doar o umbra a bărbatului.
Gaia, Ishtar, Isis, Hera, Demetra, Artemis, Fecioara Maria, Ioana D arc ,Isolda. Toate Sunt aici, si in diverse proportii, in fiecare femeie.
Bărbatului ii aparține forta fizica, dar femeii ii apartine magia transformatoare, a naturii si a baiatului in barbat.
Culturile agrare au avut drept zeitate principala femeia, in timp ce culturile razboinice si de vanatori, au avut drept zeitate principala barbatul.
Natura -puternica, misterioasa , cea care da viata a fost identificata cu femeia, pana cand oamenii au gasit metode de a cuceri mai mult pamant si au inceput sa iti imagineze ca isi pot depasi creatorul.
Transformarile prin care a trecut principiul feminin, sunt si ele foarte interesante - deitate principala in culturile neolitice, egalitate/dualitate in culturile babiloniana, mesopotamiana, indiana , greaca si romana, ajunge sa fie complet pedepsita, alungata si stearsa din panteon de religiile care au folosit forta si prigoana pentru a se impune -iudaism si ulterior cele construite pe aceasta-crestinism si islamism. Aici, femeia devine sursa tuturor relelor si anexa fortei, a barbatului. Natura inconjuratoare a fost spoliata de om de toate misterele si natura umana a trebuit si ea incorsetata si corectata. Ca reprezentat al ei, prin gratie, frumusete, putere creatoare a vietii si nu numai, femeia a trebuit invaluita, ascunsa vederii si asa cum barbatul a luat in stapanire natura, pamantul, asa a luat in stapanire si femeia.
"Reinvierea" principiului feminin , povesteste Campbell are loc o data cu aparitia trubadurilor si a conceptului "credo versus libido".
Poveștile de amor cu final tragic au facut deliciul multor generatii si oamenii au inteles ca "vindecarea ranilor " din dragoste poate fi obtinuta doar de la cel care a infipt sageata. Si, totodata inima cere ce ochilor le place.
" si amandoi, nu pricepeau de ce -oricat se straduiau sa-si stapaneasca inima -ea -i indemna unul spre altul, fara s-o poata infrana"
Cu mici excepții, miturile sunt asemanatoare in toate colturile lumii. De a lungul timpului , fiecare noua cultura a împrumutat si construit pe elementele predecesoarelor ei.
Nu cred ca exista altcineva care sa stie atat de multe povesti fascinante si sa le redea intr o maniera atat de atragatoare.
Aceasta carte este despre eternul feminin.
Mama pamant, mama natura , forta creatoare feminina de a lungul istoriei, din neolitic pana la trubaduri, imaginea femeii a fost inaltata sau dimpotriva doar o umbra a bărbatului.
Gaia, Ishtar, Isis, Hera, Demetra, Artemis, Fecioara Maria, Ioana D arc ,Isolda. Toate Sunt aici, si in diverse proportii, in fiecare femeie.
Bărbatului ii aparține forta fizica, dar femeii ii apartine magia transformatoare, a naturii si a baiatului in barbat.
Culturile agrare au avut drept zeitate principala femeia, in timp ce culturile razboinice si de vanatori, au avut drept zeitate principala barbatul.
Natura -puternica, misterioasa , cea care da viata a fost identificata cu femeia, pana cand oamenii au gasit metode de a cuceri mai mult pamant si au inceput sa iti imagineze ca isi pot depasi creatorul.
Transformarile prin care a trecut principiul feminin, sunt si ele foarte interesante - deitate principala in culturile neolitice, egalitate/dualitate in culturile babiloniana, mesopotamiana, indiana , greaca si romana, ajunge sa fie complet pedepsita, alungata si stearsa din panteon de religiile care au folosit forta si prigoana pentru a se impune -iudaism si ulterior cele construite pe aceasta-crestinism si islamism. Aici, femeia devine sursa tuturor relelor si anexa fortei, a barbatului. Natura inconjuratoare a fost spoliata de om de toate misterele si natura umana a trebuit si ea incorsetata si corectata. Ca reprezentat al ei, prin gratie, frumusete, putere creatoare a vietii si nu numai, femeia a trebuit invaluita, ascunsa vederii si asa cum barbatul a luat in stapanire natura, pamantul, asa a luat in stapanire si femeia.
"Reinvierea" principiului feminin , povesteste Campbell are loc o data cu aparitia trubadurilor si a conceptului "credo versus libido".
Poveștile de amor cu final tragic au facut deliciul multor generatii si oamenii au inteles ca "vindecarea ranilor " din dragoste poate fi obtinuta doar de la cel care a infipt sageata. Si, totodata inima cere ce ochilor le place.
" si amandoi, nu pricepeau de ce -oricat se straduiau sa-si stapaneasca inima -ea -i indemna unul spre altul, fara s-o poata infrana"
March 24, 2022
Kitap çok değerli bir misyona sahip ve bunu layıkıyla yerine getiriyor. Ancak öncelikle kitabın okunuşu ile ilgili benim deneyimimi paylaşmak istiyorum. Mitoloji, okurken beni mutlu eden bir tür. Ancak karakter isimleri ve olayların birbirine benzemesi her zaman kafamı karıştırır. Kitaplar bitince bir çok hikayeyi ve ismi unuturum. Bu kitap da biraz öyleydi. Madeline Miller ‘ın kitapları böyle değildir mesela. Onun kitaplarını okuduğum için de Yunan tanrıları ve tanrıçaları hakkında olan bölümleri anladım, dolayısıyla buralar çok akıcıydı. Ancak diğer kısımlardaki isim ve olayları gelecekte dönüp hatırlamak için çizmek ve sayfa işaretlemek zorunda kaldım. Buralar da oldukça sıkıcı ilerledi. Kitap biraz önce bitmesine rağmen bazı olayları unuttum bile diyebilirim. Ayrıca tam bir derleme kitabı edebi derinliği makale düzeyinde. Kurgusu da konu hakkında özel bilgisi olmayan okuyucular için kafa karıştırıcı olduğu için üç yıldız verdim .
Ancak kitabın misyonundan ve bunu nasıl yerine getirmesinden ayrıca bahsetmek isterim. Çünkü kitap bir mitolojiye başlangıç veya dünya mitolojisi özeti olmasından çok daha öte bir amaçla sahip. Dünya tarihi boyunca insanın kendini evrende nerede konumlandırdığı ve bu çıkarımın nelerden kaynaklandığının öyküsünü bize aktarıyor. Erişilebilen Arkeolojik ve paleontolojik bulguları nasıl yorumlanması gerektiği ile ilgili de ayrıca bilgilendirici bir özelliğe sahip. Ancak insanın evreni yorumlaması ve kendini konumlandırdığı yer ile ilgili anlattıkları çok daha önemli. Anayanlı toplumlardan, babayanlı toplumlara geçişi, sebepleriyle ve bulgularıyla ortaya koyması çok aydınlatıcı. Tarihi süreçlerin kurgusu da oldukça güzel tasarlanmış kitapta. Şu anda insanlığın neden feminizmi yarattığı, kadınların ve erkeklerin kendini yeniden neden evren içinde konumlandırmaya çalıştığını tarihin akışı içerisinde çok güzel anlatmış.
Kadınların toplum içindeki yerinin değişmesinin insanlığın tamamı tarafından talep edildiği bir dönemde yaşıyoruz. Kitapta da aslında bunun ne kadar doğal olduğunu anlıyoruz. Bu değişime karşı benliklerin ise aslında ne kadar ilkel olduğu vurgulanıyor . İnsanlığın ancak erkek ve kadın olarak bir bütün halinde var olabileceğini çok güzel anlatan ufuk açıcı bir kitap.
Tarih derslerinde dünya tarihi ve insanlığın kendini evrende tarih boyunca nasıl konumlandırdığını anlatmamız lazım . Böylece toplumsal ve bireysel egolarımızdan, sıyrılabiliriz . Çok değerli olduğunu sandığımız görüşlerimizin ne kadar sıradan , ilkel ve aslında insanlık tarihi içinde “yeni� olduğunu yani hiç de kadim olmadığını anlayabiliriz. Bu bilinç yayıldıkça dünya daha barışçıl bir yer olacaktır. Çünkü dişi gücü bastırmanın ne kadar kaotik ve kabus dolu bir dünya yarattığını yeterince gördük. Şimdi ebedi dişinin hepimizi yukarı taşımasına izin vermemiz gerek.
Bu kitabı saygıyla saklayacağım .
Ancak kitabın misyonundan ve bunu nasıl yerine getirmesinden ayrıca bahsetmek isterim. Çünkü kitap bir mitolojiye başlangıç veya dünya mitolojisi özeti olmasından çok daha öte bir amaçla sahip. Dünya tarihi boyunca insanın kendini evrende nerede konumlandırdığı ve bu çıkarımın nelerden kaynaklandığının öyküsünü bize aktarıyor. Erişilebilen Arkeolojik ve paleontolojik bulguları nasıl yorumlanması gerektiği ile ilgili de ayrıca bilgilendirici bir özelliğe sahip. Ancak insanın evreni yorumlaması ve kendini konumlandırdığı yer ile ilgili anlattıkları çok daha önemli. Anayanlı toplumlardan, babayanlı toplumlara geçişi, sebepleriyle ve bulgularıyla ortaya koyması çok aydınlatıcı. Tarihi süreçlerin kurgusu da oldukça güzel tasarlanmış kitapta. Şu anda insanlığın neden feminizmi yarattığı, kadınların ve erkeklerin kendini yeniden neden evren içinde konumlandırmaya çalıştığını tarihin akışı içerisinde çok güzel anlatmış.
Kadınların toplum içindeki yerinin değişmesinin insanlığın tamamı tarafından talep edildiği bir dönemde yaşıyoruz. Kitapta da aslında bunun ne kadar doğal olduğunu anlıyoruz. Bu değişime karşı benliklerin ise aslında ne kadar ilkel olduğu vurgulanıyor . İnsanlığın ancak erkek ve kadın olarak bir bütün halinde var olabileceğini çok güzel anlatan ufuk açıcı bir kitap.
Tarih derslerinde dünya tarihi ve insanlığın kendini evrende tarih boyunca nasıl konumlandırdığını anlatmamız lazım . Böylece toplumsal ve bireysel egolarımızdan, sıyrılabiliriz . Çok değerli olduğunu sandığımız görüşlerimizin ne kadar sıradan , ilkel ve aslında insanlık tarihi içinde “yeni� olduğunu yani hiç de kadim olmadığını anlayabiliriz. Bu bilinç yayıldıkça dünya daha barışçıl bir yer olacaktır. Çünkü dişi gücü bastırmanın ne kadar kaotik ve kabus dolu bir dünya yarattığını yeterince gördük. Şimdi ebedi dişinin hepimizi yukarı taşımasına izin vermemiz gerek.
Bu kitabı saygıyla saklayacağım .
January 5, 2019
The title is a little misleading, because there isn't as much about the Goddess as there is about the Goddesses' place in ancient myth telling. (Hint: It is often tangential to the main story.)
When reading Campbell, you can usually count on at least one instance where you get an insight into an old story you didn't have before, like Paris choosing between Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera, was a choice between three archetypal female characters, love/lust, wisdom/career, and home/hearth. The obvious representations of the Goddesses were more about Paris choosing a life path. I know that seems obvious, but the shift and viewing the myth as metaphor for life choices struck me.
Another story I enjoyed was Campbell's take on Chrétien's poem, Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart. . Here is Campbell's take on the Perilous Bed:
A number of knights had to experience the perilous bed before getting access to a lady, and it works like this; You come into a room that’s absolutely empty, except in the middle of it is a bed on rollers. You are to come in dressed in your full armour � sword, spear, shield, all that heavy stuff- and get into bed. Well, as the knight approaches the bed, it shears away to one side. So he comes again, and it goes the other way. The knight finally thinks, “I’ve got to jump.� So with his full gear, he jumps into the bed, and as soon as he hits the bed, it starts bucking like a bronco all over the room, banging against the walls and all of that kind of thing, and then it stops. Then he’s told, ‘It’s not finished yet. Keep your armour on and keep your shield over yourself. � And then arrows and crossbow bolts pummel him- bang, bang, bang, bang. Then a lion appears and attacks the knight, but he cuts off the lion’s feet, and the two of them end up lying there in a pool of blood. Only then do the ladies of the castle come in and see their knight, their saviour, lying there looking dead. One of the ladies takes a bit of ‘fur� from her garment and puts it in front of his nose and it moves ever so slightly � he’s breathing, he’s alive. So they nurse him back to health.� The knight is then off to his next adventure.
Per Campbell, the myth is the metaphor for the male experience of the female temperament. You have to love myths.
When reading Campbell, you can usually count on at least one instance where you get an insight into an old story you didn't have before, like Paris choosing between Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera, was a choice between three archetypal female characters, love/lust, wisdom/career, and home/hearth. The obvious representations of the Goddesses were more about Paris choosing a life path. I know that seems obvious, but the shift and viewing the myth as metaphor for life choices struck me.
Another story I enjoyed was Campbell's take on Chrétien's poem, Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart. . Here is Campbell's take on the Perilous Bed:
A number of knights had to experience the perilous bed before getting access to a lady, and it works like this; You come into a room that’s absolutely empty, except in the middle of it is a bed on rollers. You are to come in dressed in your full armour � sword, spear, shield, all that heavy stuff- and get into bed. Well, as the knight approaches the bed, it shears away to one side. So he comes again, and it goes the other way. The knight finally thinks, “I’ve got to jump.� So with his full gear, he jumps into the bed, and as soon as he hits the bed, it starts bucking like a bronco all over the room, banging against the walls and all of that kind of thing, and then it stops. Then he’s told, ‘It’s not finished yet. Keep your armour on and keep your shield over yourself. � And then arrows and crossbow bolts pummel him- bang, bang, bang, bang. Then a lion appears and attacks the knight, but he cuts off the lion’s feet, and the two of them end up lying there in a pool of blood. Only then do the ladies of the castle come in and see their knight, their saviour, lying there looking dead. One of the ladies takes a bit of ‘fur� from her garment and puts it in front of his nose and it moves ever so slightly � he’s breathing, he’s alive. So they nurse him back to health.� The knight is then off to his next adventure.
Per Campbell, the myth is the metaphor for the male experience of the female temperament. You have to love myths.
September 3, 2018
I came across Joseph Campbell's lectures on the goddesses at a time when I was in a faith crisis precipitated by the realization that my participation in a religious organization with an all-male priesthood had caused me to internalize misogyny that I had not previously been aware of. My journey to understand that led me, first, to ask why a benevolent god who regards me as having as much worth as any of his other children would ordain a social order that diminishes women (short answer: he wouldn't) and, second, if god were a goddess, what would that look like?
Joseph Campbell's lectures were very helpful to me in answering the second question. At first I was a little put off by the idea that the only thing that seems to be divine about women is their life-giving capacity, but then Campbell pointed out that the 'masculine' and 'feminine' constructs are man-made, and the gods and goddesses are ways that we make sense of powers that are in ourselves and in the world. Women are not meant to be wholly defined by our understanding of the goddess.
I very much appreciated Campbell's descriptions of the ways that our cultural myths, particularly the Judeo-Christian myths, were built upon prior myths. For example, he points out that the story of Cain and Abel is about the tension between the agricultural and herding societies, which were encountering each other in the historical era during which the bible was written. He says that Cain, a farmer, represents the agricultural society and Abel, a herder, represents the herding society. They each bring their offering to a male god, and that god prefers the meat to the grains. Cain then kills Abel out of jealousy. Campbell points out that there was an older myth in which the two offerings are presented to the goddess, and she chooses the grains over meat. Campbell points out that this biblical rewrite of the older myth is about setting supreme the male god of the herding society and erasing the goddess altogether. There are many more examples of the ways that the bible erases, demotes, or evilizes the goddess.
Joseph Campbell's lectures were very helpful to me in answering the second question. At first I was a little put off by the idea that the only thing that seems to be divine about women is their life-giving capacity, but then Campbell pointed out that the 'masculine' and 'feminine' constructs are man-made, and the gods and goddesses are ways that we make sense of powers that are in ourselves and in the world. Women are not meant to be wholly defined by our understanding of the goddess.
I very much appreciated Campbell's descriptions of the ways that our cultural myths, particularly the Judeo-Christian myths, were built upon prior myths. For example, he points out that the story of Cain and Abel is about the tension between the agricultural and herding societies, which were encountering each other in the historical era during which the bible was written. He says that Cain, a farmer, represents the agricultural society and Abel, a herder, represents the herding society. They each bring their offering to a male god, and that god prefers the meat to the grains. Cain then kills Abel out of jealousy. Campbell points out that there was an older myth in which the two offerings are presented to the goddess, and she chooses the grains over meat. Campbell points out that this biblical rewrite of the older myth is about setting supreme the male god of the herding society and erasing the goddess altogether. There are many more examples of the ways that the bible erases, demotes, or evilizes the goddess.
July 3, 2014
This book is a collection of Joseph Campbell's lectures and workshops on goddesses that explore the symbols and themes of the feminine divine. Edited by Safron Rossi, this book is a treasure chest and overview of Campbell's perspective on goddess mythology. A terrific read for anyone interested in the goddess tradition but as a writer and psychotherapist, I feel this book is an important source for writers, therapists, particularly Jungian and sandplay therapists, and adds an important piece to Joseph Campbell's body of work. Highly recommended.
March 3, 2018
Joseph Campbell worked off of outdated theories and lacked a detailed knowledge of many of the cultures about which he theorizes. For example, he says that Egypt's geographical location protects it from stronger cultures in every direction except the north. Meroe in general, and The 25th Dynasty in particular, would like a word.
He is still an acknowledged giant in the study of mythology and folklore. Many of his ideas are still worth digging into, despite his frequent casual racism and sexism.
He is still an acknowledged giant in the study of mythology and folklore. Many of his ideas are still worth digging into, despite his frequent casual racism and sexism.
January 29, 2017
A little dated and a little disjointed, and as ever I always want him to finish his thoughts. His mercurial mind jumps to the next thing before wrapping up a subject. But that aside the only other criticism is how short this was. I want more! Miraculously accessible for being presented in a flurry of connections and texts and stories. Always enlightening and edifying. A rare treat.
April 9, 2014
This exceedingly well-edited collection of essays, lectures and notes by Joseph Campbell was useful in seeing his overall opinion of goddesses in mythology and the goddess as she appears in various mythologies.
June 30, 2020
Campbell'ın bazı savları çok spekülatif, hatta yer yer ezoterizme bile kaymış, ama üslubu tam bir hikaye anlatıcısı gibi, onu okumak hep zevkli.
December 5, 2024
Man tai buvo labai sunki knyga,bet kartu ir labai įdomi,suteikianti tiek informacijos kas kaip ir kodėl? Apie mitus ir kitas religijas ,kai susisieja galų gale viskas į vienį. Bet nuoširdžiai pasakysiu ties viduriu buvo jausmas,kad tos informacijos knygoje tiek daug, kad viskas pradėjo pintis galvoje. Taip pat knyga pilna sudėtingų tarptautinių žodžių. Tad nėra lengvas skaitalas, bet praturtinantis tai tikrai. Ir didžiulė pagarba autoriui, tokią knygą parašyti, čia viso gyvenimo darbas.
September 30, 2016
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Joseph Campbell, know that he was a renowned mythologist endowed with the ability to make myth accessible and appealing to all. It is a true pleasure to read his works and to receive his knowledge of the spiritual principles ingrained in all legends.
This book is a compilation of lectures given by Joseph Campbell on the subject of the feminine divine. Campbell traces the evolution of the concept of the Great Goddess from Neolithic Old Europe to the Renaissance. I very much enjoyed reading it and I recommend the book to anyone who has an interest in the subject.
The following quote, at the very beginning of the volume, touched an inner sensitive cord. It is both surprising and amazing to me that he had such deep understanding of our feminine energies.
“Many of the difficulties that women face today follow from the fact that they are moving into a field of action in the world that was formerly reserved for the male and for which there are no female mythological models. The woman finds herself, consequently, in a competitive relationship with the male, and in this may lose the sense of her own nature. She is something in her own right, and traditionally (for some four million years) the relationship of that something to the male has been experienced and represented, not as directly competitive, but as cooperative in the shared ordeal of continuing and supporting life. Her biologically assigned role was to give birth to and to rear children. The male role was to support and protect. Both roles are biologically and psychologically archetypical. But what has happened now—as a result of the masculine invention of the vacuum cleaner—is that women have been relieved, in some measure, of their traditional bondage to the household. They are moving into the field and jungle of individual quest, achievement, and self-realization, for which there are no female models. Moreover, in pursuing their distinct careers they are emerging progressively as differentiated personalities, leaving behind the old archetypal accent on the biological role—to which, however, their psyches are still constitutionally bound. The grim prayer of Lady Macbeth before her deed, “unsex me here!� must be the unspoken, deeply felt cry of many a new contender in this masculine jungle.
There is no such need, however. The challenge of the moment—and there are many who are meeting it, accepting it, and responding to it, in the way not of men but of women—the challenge is to flower as individuals, neither as biological archetypes nor as personalities imitative of the male. And, to repeat, there are no models in our mythology for an individual woman’s quest. Nor is there any model for the male in marriage to an individuated female. We are in this thing together and have to work it out together, not with passion (which is always archetypal) but with compassion, in patient fostering of each other’s growth.�
If only he was still alive�. I would have loved to read his thoughts on “The Hunger Games� and “Fifty Shades of Gray�.
This book is a compilation of lectures given by Joseph Campbell on the subject of the feminine divine. Campbell traces the evolution of the concept of the Great Goddess from Neolithic Old Europe to the Renaissance. I very much enjoyed reading it and I recommend the book to anyone who has an interest in the subject.
The following quote, at the very beginning of the volume, touched an inner sensitive cord. It is both surprising and amazing to me that he had such deep understanding of our feminine energies.
“Many of the difficulties that women face today follow from the fact that they are moving into a field of action in the world that was formerly reserved for the male and for which there are no female mythological models. The woman finds herself, consequently, in a competitive relationship with the male, and in this may lose the sense of her own nature. She is something in her own right, and traditionally (for some four million years) the relationship of that something to the male has been experienced and represented, not as directly competitive, but as cooperative in the shared ordeal of continuing and supporting life. Her biologically assigned role was to give birth to and to rear children. The male role was to support and protect. Both roles are biologically and psychologically archetypical. But what has happened now—as a result of the masculine invention of the vacuum cleaner—is that women have been relieved, in some measure, of their traditional bondage to the household. They are moving into the field and jungle of individual quest, achievement, and self-realization, for which there are no female models. Moreover, in pursuing their distinct careers they are emerging progressively as differentiated personalities, leaving behind the old archetypal accent on the biological role—to which, however, their psyches are still constitutionally bound. The grim prayer of Lady Macbeth before her deed, “unsex me here!� must be the unspoken, deeply felt cry of many a new contender in this masculine jungle.
There is no such need, however. The challenge of the moment—and there are many who are meeting it, accepting it, and responding to it, in the way not of men but of women—the challenge is to flower as individuals, neither as biological archetypes nor as personalities imitative of the male. And, to repeat, there are no models in our mythology for an individual woman’s quest. Nor is there any model for the male in marriage to an individuated female. We are in this thing together and have to work it out together, not with passion (which is always archetypal) but with compassion, in patient fostering of each other’s growth.�
If only he was still alive�. I would have loved to read his thoughts on “The Hunger Games� and “Fifty Shades of Gray�.
May 2, 2022
This book gave me so many ‘aha� moments. I’ve always wondered why some religions have a feminine focus of spirituality, while others are fully focused on the masculine version of the spiritual realm, with no feminine presence. Campbell looks back to the formation of earth’s earliest religions and how they evolved, why they integrated certain invading tribal spiritual concepts and dismissed others.
I thought he would delve deeply only into western anthropological/religious history, but it quickly became clear to me that his study of the Indo-European people included heavy material on the ‘Indo� part of that as a comparison point - that being said, the balance of material was still western centric.
Overall, a wonderful read for anyone interested in major religions and why they differ.
I thought he would delve deeply only into western anthropological/religious history, but it quickly became clear to me that his study of the Indo-European people included heavy material on the ‘Indo� part of that as a comparison point - that being said, the balance of material was still western centric.
Overall, a wonderful read for anyone interested in major religions and why they differ.
March 4, 2018
Es maravillosa la manera en que Joseph Campbell escribe, se nota el apasionamiento que siente hacia la historia en cada línea y logra transmitir esa pasión al lector. Diosas así en plural para hablar sobre las diosas que en realidad simbolizan a una sola, la Diosa Madre y que fue la deidad original madre de todos y que a través de los años sufrió cambios, fue reducida o por completo destruida con la invasión de tribus agricultoras por las tribus cazadoras y guerreras con dioses patriarcales . Pero la Diosa siempre resurge, como lo que es , el misterio de la vida, la dadora de vida , el agua, el fruto, el renacimiento.
July 17, 2017
Read the chapters I needed (up to the Gods and Goddess of Ancient Greece). Its been a while since I read anything even close to scholarly, and I really enjoyed Campbell's cross-cultural approach to understanding both the power of the Goddess and how that power was eventually stripped away as Creator Father figures took over. My only complaint is that the illustrations were small and in black and white. Some of the works he refers to as evidence for his theories are difficult to see, and you have to accept his interpretation of the artifacts since you can't make out details.
March 4, 2014
This is a wonderful editing job, of putting together in a very cohesive way, all of Campbell's writings on the Goddesses. I am already a big fan, but this is by far the best compilation that this publisher has done to date.
July 23, 2014
Campbell's estate is taking all his old lectures and editing/converting them into books, and this reads like that. But I still liked a lot of the material, some of it new and some of it from other works of Campbell.
November 5, 2024
Прежде всего, неприятно удивлена тем, что книги в таком виде продолжают выходить "впервые" через 13 лет после дебютных выборов Их Мандаринового Простодушия Вла Вла Пу - каждая из глав отличается повторением уже сообщённого именно в том виде, в каком оное было сформулировано задолго до последнего Гонолулу сравнительного мифолога; а между публикацией и использованными лекциями прошло, в некоторых случаях, до 40 мойш - неужели трудно так отступиться от принципа документальности и "наследия", и направляясь по стопам автора, пусть те всего-навсего потерянные на одном из жизненных этапов стельки: популяризировать мифологию не через внушение, не за счёт повторения формулировок со специфическим нажимом, точно перед читателем не "Mysteries of the Feminine Divine", а не пересматривавшийся со времён первой из мириад роковых встреч Инанны с сестрицей из Андердарка устав Института Благородных Ослиц, возведённого на окраине Порт-Артура фельдмаршалом Сыр Гу Шоем из миллиона, миллиона, миллиона с накладными ресничками меченых колод, выуженных среди имущества Павших Смертью Храбрых, будучи раздавленными шестерёнками Карусели Оплачиваемого Малодушия.
So where are damned mysteries, Safrono, tesoro? And what part of casual humour is supposed to be divine?
Wenn das Ewige Weibliche dich nach "hinan" zieht, warum klammerst du dich dann an den Job des Redakteurs in Santa Barbara?
"..at the moment, when death came into the world and with the flow of time, there occured also a separation of the sexes; so that with death there came also the possibility of procreation and birth" - вероятно, диониссуя в первые послегимнази-не-стические годы я могла рассуждать в таком тоне на 1492 миллилитре картонной каберны. Почему бы и нет, в концерн концов - время, смерть, пол, лестница у нефункционального входа в гостиницу для работников электростанции, претенциозно именованую подслащённой закомпанией "Отелем" (it could have gone as far as "Overlook"), тени елей, берёз, клёнов и лоз, прорезаемые фонарной Хуанхэ, точеный-переточеный карандаш, прорастающий из всполошившегося, оскорбившегося даже, Грядущего сквозь не располагающее эволюцией к продлению окончание хребта, жестокосердные реплики, недоношенный балласт, мракобесие детервинизма, развешиваемые на ресницах и кончиках родственных ушей, путающиеся в шевелюрах, поскрипывающие неделями на зубах, по неминуемом воспарении зачумленной интеллигенции к прихожей. Чем не "смерть, открывающая жизни возможность её собственного, однако доселе ей не принадлежавшего рождения"?
"The father is the initiator into society and the meaning of life, whereas the mother represents the principle of life itself" - однако отец, отвечающий за инициацию и смыслы, фундаментально игнорирует ответственность за [возможную] несовместимость наличного общества с принципами жизни самой по себе. Ужели отец "мифогенетически" лишён способности сопоставления того, что он стремиться воспитать в чаде - с тем, что предсуществует, если уверовать на миг не в такую уж булькающую расу, вкладывается природой, его собственным, в частности, наследием, соглядатайствующим Этосом Этносовичем Кетцалько?
К тому, что Джо, не смотря на ванильно-земляничные нотки в оборотах, планомерно отодвигает "Weib an Sich" за кулисы, в то время как авансцену заполоняют несчётные ding-a-ling-a-ling. Предсказуемо, привычно, широкоупотребимо, неизбывно печально.
"..the dance rather than the dogma, for the theoretical side comes up with the masculine mythologies. The women ask for the experience.." - no, Joseph, you're irreversibly and [it may be] eternally wrong in such interpretation of female intentions!
Women ask not for experience, because they experience all without asking. Women though ask for men to stop this valetudinarian occupy movement in the field of mythological theoritisation!
Women ask, especially, what could men do for the Deified Science of Making Yourself Stop? How and when will men experience self-detheoretisation?
Otherwise, we will take "metaphors transparent to transcendence" for granted. Moreover, it will be evaluated functionally as a key to end the wars by [finally and again] starting the very last one. Since as far as any professor knows "there are no representations of goddesses or gods out of relationship with polarities of the world".
И уроженец Белых Равнин настойчив, как в повторении необязательных для развёртывания территории дискурса фактиков, так и в упомянутом озакулисивании женственности (в пользу ли андрогинной божественности?) - в гомеровском эпосе ему мнится, что "we're thrown out of the normal life, because something is missing - namely, a proper relationship of the male to the female" - де Містер Пропер, як відомо, мало того, що веселіше, ще й прибирає в 10-30 тисяч років швидше.
Надлежащее отношение мужчины К-женщине н�� даст понять Корней своих чуковских разве что женщине, нуждающейся в надлежащем отношении-К по причинам психопатологическим [и пока без особого труда и антиперс..пресс..десанта излечимым]. Ибо ведь "..literal, Classical virgin-birth motif..is actually repulsive to the whole Old Testament tradition" - а индоевропейское-то племя грёзило все эти непопятно-распятые эры об одном только методе, заслужившем высокое право зваться Агамогенезом!
К настораживающему счастью мальтитолового словоблудия, автор не только содержит в чистоте и уюте собственную драмокружность, но и не упускает подвернувшейся бананово-искусствоведческой кожуры, провозглашая, что "the shock put a frame around it, and the frame gives you initial, unique, timeless experience of that piece, not..in relation to other times, objects, or concepts" - под заблудившимся в треугольнике, образованном островами [знаменитого первооткрывателя] Пеннивайза, [не менее популярного рельсоглатателя] Будвайзера и [такой простой и понятной] Итакой, it ("ить") толкуя ничто иное, как условный объект искусства (условности непредусмотрительно-безуспешно лишаемый).
"Painting is analytical, sculpture is synthetic!" - доносит до Киевской Гидроэлектростанции тяжёлый калифорнийский ветер возмущённый голос господина Редактора. На что я могу, пожав припорошенными известкой плечами, ответить вопросом, поставленным ставшим для нас связующим звеном (хотелось - "зерном") профессором из Колледжа Сары: "What is the tragedy but the shattering of the main characters in the drama?"
So where are damned mysteries, Safrono, tesoro? And what part of casual humour is supposed to be divine?
Wenn das Ewige Weibliche dich nach "hinan" zieht, warum klammerst du dich dann an den Job des Redakteurs in Santa Barbara?
"..at the moment, when death came into the world and with the flow of time, there occured also a separation of the sexes; so that with death there came also the possibility of procreation and birth" - вероятно, диониссуя в первые послегимнази-не-стические годы я могла рассуждать в таком тоне на 1492 миллилитре картонной каберны. Почему бы и нет, в концерн концов - время, смерть, пол, лестница у нефункционального входа в гостиницу для работников электростанции, претенциозно именованую подслащённой закомпанией "Отелем" (it could have gone as far as "Overlook"), тени елей, берёз, клёнов и лоз, прорезаемые фонарной Хуанхэ, точеный-переточеный карандаш, прорастающий из всполошившегося, оскорбившегося даже, Грядущего сквозь не располагающее эволюцией к продлению окончание хребта, жестокосердные реплики, недоношенный балласт, мракобесие детервинизма, развешиваемые на ресницах и кончиках родственных ушей, путающиеся в шевелюрах, поскрипывающие неделями на зубах, по неминуемом воспарении зачумленной интеллигенции к прихожей. Чем не "смерть, открывающая жизни возможность её собственного, однако доселе ей не принадлежавшего рождения"?
"The father is the initiator into society and the meaning of life, whereas the mother represents the principle of life itself" - однако отец, отвечающий за инициацию и смыслы, фундаментально игнорирует ответственность за [возможную] несовместимость наличного общества с принципами жизни самой по себе. Ужели отец "мифогенетически" лишён способности сопоставления того, что он стремиться воспитать в чаде - с тем, что предсуществует, если уверовать на миг не в такую уж булькающую расу, вкладывается природой, его собственным, в частности, наследием, соглядатайствующим Этосом Этносовичем Кетцалько?
К тому, что Джо, не смотря на ванильно-земляничные нотки в оборотах, планомерно отодвигает "Weib an Sich" за кулисы, в то время как авансцену заполоняют несчётные ding-a-ling-a-ling. Предсказуемо, привычно, широкоупотребимо, неизбывно печально.
"..the dance rather than the dogma, for the theoretical side comes up with the masculine mythologies. The women ask for the experience.." - no, Joseph, you're irreversibly and [it may be] eternally wrong in such interpretation of female intentions!
Women ask not for experience, because they experience all without asking. Women though ask for men to stop this valetudinarian occupy movement in the field of mythological theoritisation!
Women ask, especially, what could men do for the Deified Science of Making Yourself Stop? How and when will men experience self-detheoretisation?
Otherwise, we will take "metaphors transparent to transcendence" for granted. Moreover, it will be evaluated functionally as a key to end the wars by [finally and again] starting the very last one. Since as far as any professor knows "there are no representations of goddesses or gods out of relationship with polarities of the world".
И уроженец Белых Равнин настойчив, как в повторении необязательных для развёртывания территории дискурса фактиков, так и в упомянутом озакулисивании женственности (в пользу ли андрогинной божественности?) - в гомеровском эпосе ему мнится, что "we're thrown out of the normal life, because something is missing - namely, a proper relationship of the male to the female" - де Містер Пропер, як відомо, мало того, що веселіше, ще й прибирає в 10-30 тисяч років швидше.
Надлежащее отношение мужчины К-женщине н�� даст понять Корней своих чуковских разве что женщине, нуждающейся в надлежащем отношении-К по причинам психопатологическим [и пока без особого труда и антиперс..пресс..десанта излечимым]. Ибо ведь "..literal, Classical virgin-birth motif..is actually repulsive to the whole Old Testament tradition" - а индоевропейское-то племя грёзило все эти непопятно-распятые эры об одном только методе, заслужившем высокое право зваться Агамогенезом!
К настораживающему счастью мальтитолового словоблудия, автор не только содержит в чистоте и уюте собственную драмокружность, но и не упускает подвернувшейся бананово-искусствоведческой кожуры, провозглашая, что "the shock put a frame around it, and the frame gives you initial, unique, timeless experience of that piece, not..in relation to other times, objects, or concepts" - под заблудившимся в треугольнике, образованном островами [знаменитого первооткрывателя] Пеннивайза, [не менее популярного рельсоглатателя] Будвайзера и [такой простой и понятной] Итакой, it ("ить") толкуя ничто иное, как условный объект искусства (условности непредусмотрительно-безуспешно лишаемый).
"Painting is analytical, sculpture is synthetic!" - доносит до Киевской Гидроэлектростанции тяжёлый калифорнийский ветер возмущённый голос господина Редактора. На что я могу, пожав припорошенными известкой плечами, ответить вопросом, поставленным ставшим для нас связующим звеном (хотелось - "зерном") профессором из Колледжа Сары: "What is the tragedy but the shattering of the main characters in the drama?"
April 4, 2016
Pagan religions and goddess worship are the subjects of Campbell's work. He explores how the goddess is linked to both life and death, agriculture and spirituality. I expected him to delve more into the goddess cults of history but he does spend a lot of time providing a synopsis of myths too. This I feel detracts from the focus, as a lot of attention is given to Zeus and Odysseus, Atlas and other heroes.
October 29, 2022
This was good but not great. I must warn you: spoilers abound in this review. You have been warned!
Campbell starts his discussion of the Goddess with the stone age and the early views of the divine mother. He emphasizes that “she receives the seed of the past and through the magic of her body transmutes it into the future, the male representing the energy so transformed. A male child thus carries forward the life, or as the India would say, the dharma, the duty and law- of his father. And the mother is the vessel through which the miracle comes to pass. (p. xviii).
In Egypt, the divine mother is Hathor, the “House (hat) of Horus (hor). She is the Wild Cow whose four legs are the pillars of the heavens, her belly spangled with stars (p. xx). Like Mary, she is the Mother of God (in her version as Isis), with the Savior enthroned on her knee. Indeed, the pharaohs are even represented nursing at her breast. (p. xxi).
Chapter 1: “Myth and the Feminine Divine,� examines the goddess figure in the early paleolithic cultures of the world. Campbell opens up in the very beginning, asking his Western readers to rethink their religion:
Since we’re going to be talking about pagans, we children of the biblical traditions have to realize that they are not idolaters; in a real way, it’s we who are the idolaters, because we mistake the symbol for the reference. I think that deep inside us all we know that theat’s idolatry, and that’s why we go around calling everybody else idolators and insist that they believe the way that we do so that we can reconfirm and reassure ourselves that we’re okay in terms of our own mythology. My definition of mythology is “other people’s religion,� then is “misunderstood mythology� � and the misunderstanding consists of making the symbol for the reference. (p. 14)
Hebrews and Protestants
“Read the Old Testament: the gods of other people are not gods, they’re demons. Read also the story of the Christian Spaniards conquering America: they actually called the deities of the Natives devils. Using the word devil is a strange thing; let’s use the word dimon. (I think Campbell means daimon - δαίμων here) For the Greek, the dimon was the energy of your life, and the energy of yoru life doesn’t obey the rules necessarily that your head puts on it� What we’re are looking at in these mythologies is a world of demonic powers, and these demonic powers are the powers of our own lives. When the Semites moved in as conquerors, they dislodged the deities to make way for their own, and the Hebrews are the most extreme in turning against the Goddess, who represents the powers of the Earth. In the Old Testament, the local goddesses of Canaan are called an abomination� One of the worst things Protestants say about Catholics is that they worship the Virgin. Catholics are very sure to make clear that they don’t worship the Virgin- they venerate the Virgin. There is a difference. (p.16)
Chapter 2: “Goddess-Mother Creator� discusses Campbell’s view that the goddess appears in many cultures with many names: Aphrodite, Artemis, Demeter, Persephone, Athena, Hera, Hecate, the Three Graces, the Nine Muses, and the Furies (p.22). These are his names for those images of the goddess in Classical myth. Among those in the Near East, she is Ishtar in Babylon, Inanna in Sumer, and Isis in Egypt.
Campbell takes us to the earliest years, back to 11,000 BC when “the first to cultivate plants� worked to see how their activity was related to the divine (p. 22-23). He explains, “with the coming of seed planting and the plow, the obvious analogy to the sexual act is recognized, and the act of planting is turned over to the males. In fact, the early plows in Mesopotamia seeded while they furrowed- a restatement in a sort of cosmic way, as it were, of the human act of procreation� (p. 23).
He relates that the early cities were seen as the mother of all: “The city is the mother city, and its walls are symbolic of the walls of time and the walls of space that enclose us. So the city is a microcosm, a small cosmos� (p. 26).
He notes that Cybele, mother of the gods according to the Phyrgian’s, was identified with Rhea to the Greeks. It is noteworthy that Cybele appears with lions, one on the right and other on the left of her throne (p. 27). Campbell does not point this out, but I find this interesting in my research of Asherah, the Israelite goddess who the Israelites called “The Lion Lady.� (See: Dever, Did God have a Wife?)
Goddess of the Mountain
Campbell discusses the idea of mountains and the goddess when he says, “Images of the Goddess frequently show her atop a mountain. The whole mountain is the Goddess. This idea reminds me of El Shaddai, what KJV translators called “God Almighty.� This El Shaddai is also seen as the god of the mountain, and can also be read as “God with the breasts.� El Shaddai can be read this way (see: David Biale, “The God with the Breasts: El Shaddai in the Bible,� History of Religions, Vol. 21, No. 3, Feb. 1982, p. 240-256). This goes back to the old Sumerian times, when the cosmic mountain is represented by ziggurats. In India, Parvati is the goddess of the mountain, even as she is the mountain � that’s what her name means: “mountain.� On p. 52 Campbell shows the Indian goddess with her two lion attendants, with a male standing before her showing her reverence. Reading this bit by Campbell, I could not help but think of Asherah, the Lion Lady. The crossover of goddess images seems to be happening here. When Herodotus examined the gods of other nations, he essentially saw them the same as the Greek gods, just named differently.
On Symbols
Symbols do not reflect historical events (p. 53), rather they refer to “spiritual or psychological principles and powers that are of yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and that are everywhere.� Later he affirms:
“When the symbol is working, you are fascinated. You don’t have to be told what it means, you know what it means � and yet you don’t. And that fascination, when it is rendered through the symbols of the group, link the individual to his group, and through the group to principles that are beyond those of his personal interest.�
Chapter 3: “Indo-European Influx� is a brief view at the history of the movement of peoples in the ancient world and the syncretization of their religious ideas.
Chapter 4: “Sumerian and Egyptian Goddesses� dealt with the rise of cities and urban centers in Mesopotamia, where Campbell asserts they first arose (p. 71). These new centers gave rise to differentiated groups of people, as well as a further development of the things associated with the goddess. He notes that the “Lion Goddess� is attached to the theme of the symbols of solar power: the lion and the eagle (p. 77).
Campbell briefly discusses the Descent of Inanna, noting that it “possibly predated Gilgamesh,� and relates her descent into the Underworld, and her death at the hands of her sister Ereshkigal, with her later release and ascent into the Upper World (p. 83-84).
He briefly examines the conflict between Marduk and Tiamat, who he calls “the grandmother of all the gods� (p. 86). After Marduk defeats Tiamat, he “kills her, cuts her up, makes the heavens out of the upper part of her body, and the underworld out of the abyss. He creates men from her blood…� Campbell then concludes, “Well, that’s a nice thing to do to Grandma.� This is the beginning of the masculine assumption of the creator role (p. 86).
The Biblical Tradition
Now this is the masculine emphasis against the Goddess emphasis; when this occurs in individual psychology you’re overemphasizing the father role: you repudiate nature, you repudiate women. This is what Nietsche calls the Hamlet experience, bowing to the father and saying, “Ophelia, you can drown yourself.�
In the biblical tradition (p.87), which is the last great tradition of this Semitic line, there is not even a goddess in the tradition (I would disagree w/Campbell here, see Dever, Patai, and Barker). Here’s a Father God with no Mother Goddess- a very strange thing. What happens to the Mother Goddess? She is reduced to the elemental level. She is the cosmic water; that’s there where God’s spirit hovers, above the water. He is given the human personification, and she is not. The Chaos is exactly Tiamat, the goddess of the abyss, who now has been deprived even of her personality. This places terrific stress on our culture (and I would agree!). Then you realize that also within the Jewish tradition, the covenant is symbolized by the circumcision. You can see that woman is out altogether.
Isis and Osiris
Campbell’s explanation of the myth of Isis and Osiris is straightforward and easily understandable (p. 93-99) and should be read by anyone with a desire to see the overall picture without getting too distracted by too many details.
Chapter 5: “Goddess and Gods of the Greek Pantheon� deals with exactly what it says. I like how he lays out one of the big differences between the Greeks and other religions with authoritative texts. He says, “One of the great things about Greece is that there never was scripture. Rather, the Greeks had the playful world of Homer and the Homeric Hymns, Hesiod’s tales, and so forth. There are versions of the stories in which Eros is the youngest of the gods, and versions (such as Plato’s Symposium) in which he is the first and the eldest. The Greeks had the rituals but there was no authority with the power to say “This is it� (p. 108).
With this introduction into the gods and goddesses of Greece, Campbell briefly skims over Artemis (p. 108-111), Apollo, Leto, Zeus, Hera, Asclepius, Dionysus, Ares, and Athena. He ends this chapter with a brief comment on the ways that gods could be multiplied over space, “Athena actually means ‘protectress of the port� � thus you can have Athena of Athens, Athena of Pireaus, Athena of Ephesus� this is a perfect way that deities were assimilated and transformed into Classical shapes� (p. 141).
Chapter 6: “Iliad and Odyssey� begins with this statement: “The Odyssey was probably written by a woman� (p. 143). He emphasizes the female principle: Odysseus has encounters with Circe, Calypso, and Nausicaa. “When we study these figures, we see that Circe is the temptress, Calypso the wife, and Nausicaa the virgin� (p. 143).
He then examines the judgment of Paris and the competition between three goddesses: Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena. This judgment brings about the Trojan War, a conflict over a woman, Helen. After several pages of examining both the Iliad and the Odyssey, Campbell concludes that much of the Odyssey can be read as an initiation:
Now, I don’t know anyone who has read the Odyssey as an initiation in this way, but it seems to fit perfectly with what might be called the archetypal voyage into the night sea and the return to the time of being readjusted to the female principle, which had been downgraded ever since the Trojan War. The recovery of the Goddess and the reintegration of the female power represents a new dynamic, but while these myths speak of the anxieties and the problems of the moment, what are dealt with are always the same powers that now have to be integrated (p. 178).
Chapter 7: “Mysteries of Transformation� � here Campbell explores how different ideas coalesced into syncretic ideas, specifically Christianity. He asks if the cults of death and resurrection in Egypt had any influence on Christian ideas (p. 184-185). He says, “One could say that not only the Old Testament but also Classical paganism � and even Asian mystery religions played a role in the development of Christianity� (p. 185).
Chapter 8: “Amor: The Feminine in European Romance� explores some of the ideas of the goddess in later times.
The Virgin Birth
I like Campbell’s opening on the difficulties of the virgin birth when he says, “One of the great problems for St. Paul was whether Christianity was something for the Gentiles as well as for the Hebrews, and he opted for the Gentiles. One of his companions was Greek, St. Luke, and it is in the Luke Gospel that the image of the virgin birth appears. You will not find it in the books of Matthew, Mark, or John, who were all Jews. It is in the Gospel of Luke, the Greek. There’s no such thing as a virgin birth, at least overtly, in the Hebrew tradition, as this is an idea totally repulsive to it. Now, when you think of Sarah giving birth to Isaac when she was about 108 years old, mythologically speaking, that’s a virgin birth (p. 230-231).
The virgin birth appears in practically every tradition in the world. American Indian myths are full of virgin births. Quetzacoatl was born of a virgin, he created human beings, and he died and was resurrected, and one of the prime symbols of Quetzacoatl was the cross. When the Roman Catholic Spaniards entered Mexico they didn’t know what to think of this. They had two explanations. One was that St. Thomas, the apostle to the Indies, had reached America and had taught the doctrine of Christ� The other explanation they had was that the devil was throwing up mockeries of their own traditions in order to frustrate the mission. In either case, they recognized that this was the same god in a different local form (p. 231).
Making Sense of Food Laws
Many religious traditions have what are strange food laws (at least to outsiders). Latter-Day Saints don’t drink coffee or alcohol, as well as avoid tobacco. Muslims and Jews abstain from pork, many Hindus and Buddhists are vegetarians, Seventh-Day Adventists avoid alcohol, tobacco, and meat, fish and poultry. Sikhs and Muslims avoid alcohol.
Campbell gives his views as to how these food laws can be contextualized in religious thought:
A warrior people fighting for its existence against others accents the special forms of that society and its ways of life, and so you have a social rather than a nature accent, and this can go so far that it amounts to an attempted abolition of nature, and that’s what you get in the Old Testament. Read again Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy: laws, laws, laws. How to part your hair, how to blow your nose, what to eat and what not to eat. It has nothing to do with nature; it has to do with what we do that holds us together. We can’t associate with anybody else, and so we don’t get mixed up with anybody else. Food laws, whether they are for the Brahmins or the Jews, are isolating � that’s what they’re there for. Just read them over; they don’t make sense in any other terms (p. 232).
The Destruction of the Goddess
I agree with Joseph Campbell regarding religious orthodoxy run amok. The vandalism that has occurred in the name of God over the years is horrendous. He explains:
The mythology of the Bible has nothing whatsoever to do with the European experience. It is pasted on top of what was already there. It was brought in by force of arms and maintained by terrific authority, and the crisis period comes at the end of the fourth century A.D. It is at this time that Theodosius the Great declared that no religion but the Christian religion would be tolerated in the Roman Empire, and no variety of Christianity except that of the Byzantine throne. Immediately people began burying things to protect them from the vandalism of the early Christians- and the vandalism of the early Christians was incredible. When you voyage in the Easter Mediterranean lands of Greece, Syria, and Egypt and see the beautiful monuments that have been deliberately destroyed, you cannot believe the amount of energy that went into destroying them. The Acropolis and the other great temples- those things didn’t fall apart. They were knocked down by vandals. They represented the beauty of the Goddess. “Thou shalt not have a graven image� (p. 234).
After covering some of the ideas of the stories of the medieval period, Campbell brings it back to the goddess:
The story of the mysteries ultimately come into the Christian tradition from the old pagan system. It is my thought that Christianity is far more Greek than Hebrew. The whole theme of the virgin birth is alien to traditional Judaism; it is absolutely native to the Classical tradition. The dove comes to Mary, the swan comes to Leda, and the birth of the Christ or the birth of Helen- the most beautiful and glorious representation of the human body and spirit the world has ever seen- this is all one great mythology and the Gnostic and hermetic thinkers of the early Christian era understood that and expressed that in these bowls and mosaics. Going back at least nine thousand years to the early agriculture of the Near East and Old Europe, we have a tradition of the power of the Goddess and her child who dies and is resurrected � namely, it is we who come from her, go back to her, and rest well in her. This tradition was carried through the cults of ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, and down into the Classical world, before finally delivering the message into Christian teaching (p. 257).
Campbell starts his discussion of the Goddess with the stone age and the early views of the divine mother. He emphasizes that “she receives the seed of the past and through the magic of her body transmutes it into the future, the male representing the energy so transformed. A male child thus carries forward the life, or as the India would say, the dharma, the duty and law- of his father. And the mother is the vessel through which the miracle comes to pass. (p. xviii).
In Egypt, the divine mother is Hathor, the “House (hat) of Horus (hor). She is the Wild Cow whose four legs are the pillars of the heavens, her belly spangled with stars (p. xx). Like Mary, she is the Mother of God (in her version as Isis), with the Savior enthroned on her knee. Indeed, the pharaohs are even represented nursing at her breast. (p. xxi).
Chapter 1: “Myth and the Feminine Divine,� examines the goddess figure in the early paleolithic cultures of the world. Campbell opens up in the very beginning, asking his Western readers to rethink their religion:
Since we’re going to be talking about pagans, we children of the biblical traditions have to realize that they are not idolaters; in a real way, it’s we who are the idolaters, because we mistake the symbol for the reference. I think that deep inside us all we know that theat’s idolatry, and that’s why we go around calling everybody else idolators and insist that they believe the way that we do so that we can reconfirm and reassure ourselves that we’re okay in terms of our own mythology. My definition of mythology is “other people’s religion,� then is “misunderstood mythology� � and the misunderstanding consists of making the symbol for the reference. (p. 14)
Hebrews and Protestants
“Read the Old Testament: the gods of other people are not gods, they’re demons. Read also the story of the Christian Spaniards conquering America: they actually called the deities of the Natives devils. Using the word devil is a strange thing; let’s use the word dimon. (I think Campbell means daimon - δαίμων here) For the Greek, the dimon was the energy of your life, and the energy of yoru life doesn’t obey the rules necessarily that your head puts on it� What we’re are looking at in these mythologies is a world of demonic powers, and these demonic powers are the powers of our own lives. When the Semites moved in as conquerors, they dislodged the deities to make way for their own, and the Hebrews are the most extreme in turning against the Goddess, who represents the powers of the Earth. In the Old Testament, the local goddesses of Canaan are called an abomination� One of the worst things Protestants say about Catholics is that they worship the Virgin. Catholics are very sure to make clear that they don’t worship the Virgin- they venerate the Virgin. There is a difference. (p.16)
Chapter 2: “Goddess-Mother Creator� discusses Campbell’s view that the goddess appears in many cultures with many names: Aphrodite, Artemis, Demeter, Persephone, Athena, Hera, Hecate, the Three Graces, the Nine Muses, and the Furies (p.22). These are his names for those images of the goddess in Classical myth. Among those in the Near East, she is Ishtar in Babylon, Inanna in Sumer, and Isis in Egypt.
Campbell takes us to the earliest years, back to 11,000 BC when “the first to cultivate plants� worked to see how their activity was related to the divine (p. 22-23). He explains, “with the coming of seed planting and the plow, the obvious analogy to the sexual act is recognized, and the act of planting is turned over to the males. In fact, the early plows in Mesopotamia seeded while they furrowed- a restatement in a sort of cosmic way, as it were, of the human act of procreation� (p. 23).
He relates that the early cities were seen as the mother of all: “The city is the mother city, and its walls are symbolic of the walls of time and the walls of space that enclose us. So the city is a microcosm, a small cosmos� (p. 26).
He notes that Cybele, mother of the gods according to the Phyrgian’s, was identified with Rhea to the Greeks. It is noteworthy that Cybele appears with lions, one on the right and other on the left of her throne (p. 27). Campbell does not point this out, but I find this interesting in my research of Asherah, the Israelite goddess who the Israelites called “The Lion Lady.� (See: Dever, Did God have a Wife?)
Goddess of the Mountain
Campbell discusses the idea of mountains and the goddess when he says, “Images of the Goddess frequently show her atop a mountain. The whole mountain is the Goddess. This idea reminds me of El Shaddai, what KJV translators called “God Almighty.� This El Shaddai is also seen as the god of the mountain, and can also be read as “God with the breasts.� El Shaddai can be read this way (see: David Biale, “The God with the Breasts: El Shaddai in the Bible,� History of Religions, Vol. 21, No. 3, Feb. 1982, p. 240-256). This goes back to the old Sumerian times, when the cosmic mountain is represented by ziggurats. In India, Parvati is the goddess of the mountain, even as she is the mountain � that’s what her name means: “mountain.� On p. 52 Campbell shows the Indian goddess with her two lion attendants, with a male standing before her showing her reverence. Reading this bit by Campbell, I could not help but think of Asherah, the Lion Lady. The crossover of goddess images seems to be happening here. When Herodotus examined the gods of other nations, he essentially saw them the same as the Greek gods, just named differently.
On Symbols
Symbols do not reflect historical events (p. 53), rather they refer to “spiritual or psychological principles and powers that are of yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and that are everywhere.� Later he affirms:
“When the symbol is working, you are fascinated. You don’t have to be told what it means, you know what it means � and yet you don’t. And that fascination, when it is rendered through the symbols of the group, link the individual to his group, and through the group to principles that are beyond those of his personal interest.�
Chapter 3: “Indo-European Influx� is a brief view at the history of the movement of peoples in the ancient world and the syncretization of their religious ideas.
Chapter 4: “Sumerian and Egyptian Goddesses� dealt with the rise of cities and urban centers in Mesopotamia, where Campbell asserts they first arose (p. 71). These new centers gave rise to differentiated groups of people, as well as a further development of the things associated with the goddess. He notes that the “Lion Goddess� is attached to the theme of the symbols of solar power: the lion and the eagle (p. 77).
Campbell briefly discusses the Descent of Inanna, noting that it “possibly predated Gilgamesh,� and relates her descent into the Underworld, and her death at the hands of her sister Ereshkigal, with her later release and ascent into the Upper World (p. 83-84).
He briefly examines the conflict between Marduk and Tiamat, who he calls “the grandmother of all the gods� (p. 86). After Marduk defeats Tiamat, he “kills her, cuts her up, makes the heavens out of the upper part of her body, and the underworld out of the abyss. He creates men from her blood…� Campbell then concludes, “Well, that’s a nice thing to do to Grandma.� This is the beginning of the masculine assumption of the creator role (p. 86).
The Biblical Tradition
Now this is the masculine emphasis against the Goddess emphasis; when this occurs in individual psychology you’re overemphasizing the father role: you repudiate nature, you repudiate women. This is what Nietsche calls the Hamlet experience, bowing to the father and saying, “Ophelia, you can drown yourself.�
In the biblical tradition (p.87), which is the last great tradition of this Semitic line, there is not even a goddess in the tradition (I would disagree w/Campbell here, see Dever, Patai, and Barker). Here’s a Father God with no Mother Goddess- a very strange thing. What happens to the Mother Goddess? She is reduced to the elemental level. She is the cosmic water; that’s there where God’s spirit hovers, above the water. He is given the human personification, and she is not. The Chaos is exactly Tiamat, the goddess of the abyss, who now has been deprived even of her personality. This places terrific stress on our culture (and I would agree!). Then you realize that also within the Jewish tradition, the covenant is symbolized by the circumcision. You can see that woman is out altogether.
Isis and Osiris
Campbell’s explanation of the myth of Isis and Osiris is straightforward and easily understandable (p. 93-99) and should be read by anyone with a desire to see the overall picture without getting too distracted by too many details.
Chapter 5: “Goddess and Gods of the Greek Pantheon� deals with exactly what it says. I like how he lays out one of the big differences between the Greeks and other religions with authoritative texts. He says, “One of the great things about Greece is that there never was scripture. Rather, the Greeks had the playful world of Homer and the Homeric Hymns, Hesiod’s tales, and so forth. There are versions of the stories in which Eros is the youngest of the gods, and versions (such as Plato’s Symposium) in which he is the first and the eldest. The Greeks had the rituals but there was no authority with the power to say “This is it� (p. 108).
With this introduction into the gods and goddesses of Greece, Campbell briefly skims over Artemis (p. 108-111), Apollo, Leto, Zeus, Hera, Asclepius, Dionysus, Ares, and Athena. He ends this chapter with a brief comment on the ways that gods could be multiplied over space, “Athena actually means ‘protectress of the port� � thus you can have Athena of Athens, Athena of Pireaus, Athena of Ephesus� this is a perfect way that deities were assimilated and transformed into Classical shapes� (p. 141).
Chapter 6: “Iliad and Odyssey� begins with this statement: “The Odyssey was probably written by a woman� (p. 143). He emphasizes the female principle: Odysseus has encounters with Circe, Calypso, and Nausicaa. “When we study these figures, we see that Circe is the temptress, Calypso the wife, and Nausicaa the virgin� (p. 143).
He then examines the judgment of Paris and the competition between three goddesses: Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena. This judgment brings about the Trojan War, a conflict over a woman, Helen. After several pages of examining both the Iliad and the Odyssey, Campbell concludes that much of the Odyssey can be read as an initiation:
Now, I don’t know anyone who has read the Odyssey as an initiation in this way, but it seems to fit perfectly with what might be called the archetypal voyage into the night sea and the return to the time of being readjusted to the female principle, which had been downgraded ever since the Trojan War. The recovery of the Goddess and the reintegration of the female power represents a new dynamic, but while these myths speak of the anxieties and the problems of the moment, what are dealt with are always the same powers that now have to be integrated (p. 178).
Chapter 7: “Mysteries of Transformation� � here Campbell explores how different ideas coalesced into syncretic ideas, specifically Christianity. He asks if the cults of death and resurrection in Egypt had any influence on Christian ideas (p. 184-185). He says, “One could say that not only the Old Testament but also Classical paganism � and even Asian mystery religions played a role in the development of Christianity� (p. 185).
Chapter 8: “Amor: The Feminine in European Romance� explores some of the ideas of the goddess in later times.
The Virgin Birth
I like Campbell’s opening on the difficulties of the virgin birth when he says, “One of the great problems for St. Paul was whether Christianity was something for the Gentiles as well as for the Hebrews, and he opted for the Gentiles. One of his companions was Greek, St. Luke, and it is in the Luke Gospel that the image of the virgin birth appears. You will not find it in the books of Matthew, Mark, or John, who were all Jews. It is in the Gospel of Luke, the Greek. There’s no such thing as a virgin birth, at least overtly, in the Hebrew tradition, as this is an idea totally repulsive to it. Now, when you think of Sarah giving birth to Isaac when she was about 108 years old, mythologically speaking, that’s a virgin birth (p. 230-231).
The virgin birth appears in practically every tradition in the world. American Indian myths are full of virgin births. Quetzacoatl was born of a virgin, he created human beings, and he died and was resurrected, and one of the prime symbols of Quetzacoatl was the cross. When the Roman Catholic Spaniards entered Mexico they didn’t know what to think of this. They had two explanations. One was that St. Thomas, the apostle to the Indies, had reached America and had taught the doctrine of Christ� The other explanation they had was that the devil was throwing up mockeries of their own traditions in order to frustrate the mission. In either case, they recognized that this was the same god in a different local form (p. 231).
Making Sense of Food Laws
Many religious traditions have what are strange food laws (at least to outsiders). Latter-Day Saints don’t drink coffee or alcohol, as well as avoid tobacco. Muslims and Jews abstain from pork, many Hindus and Buddhists are vegetarians, Seventh-Day Adventists avoid alcohol, tobacco, and meat, fish and poultry. Sikhs and Muslims avoid alcohol.
Campbell gives his views as to how these food laws can be contextualized in religious thought:
A warrior people fighting for its existence against others accents the special forms of that society and its ways of life, and so you have a social rather than a nature accent, and this can go so far that it amounts to an attempted abolition of nature, and that’s what you get in the Old Testament. Read again Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy: laws, laws, laws. How to part your hair, how to blow your nose, what to eat and what not to eat. It has nothing to do with nature; it has to do with what we do that holds us together. We can’t associate with anybody else, and so we don’t get mixed up with anybody else. Food laws, whether they are for the Brahmins or the Jews, are isolating � that’s what they’re there for. Just read them over; they don’t make sense in any other terms (p. 232).
The Destruction of the Goddess
I agree with Joseph Campbell regarding religious orthodoxy run amok. The vandalism that has occurred in the name of God over the years is horrendous. He explains:
The mythology of the Bible has nothing whatsoever to do with the European experience. It is pasted on top of what was already there. It was brought in by force of arms and maintained by terrific authority, and the crisis period comes at the end of the fourth century A.D. It is at this time that Theodosius the Great declared that no religion but the Christian religion would be tolerated in the Roman Empire, and no variety of Christianity except that of the Byzantine throne. Immediately people began burying things to protect them from the vandalism of the early Christians- and the vandalism of the early Christians was incredible. When you voyage in the Easter Mediterranean lands of Greece, Syria, and Egypt and see the beautiful monuments that have been deliberately destroyed, you cannot believe the amount of energy that went into destroying them. The Acropolis and the other great temples- those things didn’t fall apart. They were knocked down by vandals. They represented the beauty of the Goddess. “Thou shalt not have a graven image� (p. 234).
After covering some of the ideas of the stories of the medieval period, Campbell brings it back to the goddess:
The story of the mysteries ultimately come into the Christian tradition from the old pagan system. It is my thought that Christianity is far more Greek than Hebrew. The whole theme of the virgin birth is alien to traditional Judaism; it is absolutely native to the Classical tradition. The dove comes to Mary, the swan comes to Leda, and the birth of the Christ or the birth of Helen- the most beautiful and glorious representation of the human body and spirit the world has ever seen- this is all one great mythology and the Gnostic and hermetic thinkers of the early Christian era understood that and expressed that in these bowls and mosaics. Going back at least nine thousand years to the early agriculture of the Near East and Old Europe, we have a tradition of the power of the Goddess and her child who dies and is resurrected � namely, it is we who come from her, go back to her, and rest well in her. This tradition was carried through the cults of ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, and down into the Classical world, before finally delivering the message into Christian teaching (p. 257).
July 26, 2020
These lectures are investigations of the symbolic, mythological, and archetypal themes of the feminine divine in and of herself, and for Campbell her main themes are initiation into the mysteries of immanence experienced through time and space and the eternal; transformation of life and death; and the energy consciousness that informs and enlivens all life. � Foreword, Safron Rossi
. . .
In the older view of the goddess Universe was alive, herself organically the Earth, the horizon, and the heavens. Now she is dead, and the universe is not an organism, but a building, with gods at rest in it in luxury: not as personifications of the energies in their manners of operation, but as luxury tenants, requiring service. And Man, accordingly, is not as a child born to flower in the knowledge of his own eternal portion but as a robot fashioned to serve.
. . .
A powerful book (collection of lectures) on the feminine divine throughout history. Campbell has some really fascinating takes on ancient religion and its connection to the Goddess. I particularly liked his interpretation of the Odyssey, and the mystery cults of the ancient Mediterranean world:
I regard The Odyssey as a book of initiations, and the first initiation is that of Odysseus himself into a proper relationship to the female power . . . Now the female power must be recognized to make possible a proper relationship . . . in which the male and female meets as co-equals. They are equals, but not the same, because when you lose the tension of polarities you lose the tension of life.
. . .
And having studied Christianity for some time, I can really empathise with his critique of the Abrahamic religions. There’s a repulsion, a strong unease of the worldview of the Old Testament whenever it is brought up. Here’s an example on Genisis:�
What happens to the Mother Goddess? She is reduced to the elemental level. She is cosmic water; that’s there where God’s spirit hovers, above the water. He is given the human personification, and she is not. The Chaos is exactly Tiamat, the goddess of the abyss, who now has been deprived even of her personality. This places a terrific stress on our culture. Then you realize also that within the Jewish tradition, the covenant is symbolized by the circumcision. You can see that woman is out altogether.
He is also displeased with Christianity’s obsession with historicity over symbolism and metaphors:
Virgin birth has nothing to do with the biological problem: it is birth of the spiritual life in the individual. When it is read concretely as a biological or historical event, the whole symbol is thrown off center.
. . . this is an important point about symbols: they do not refer to historical events; they refer through historical events to spiritual or psychological principles and powers that are of yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and that are everywhere.
. . . the birth of Christ or the birth of Helen � the most beautiful and glorious representation of the human body and spirit the world has ever seen � this is all one great mythology and the Gnostic and hermetic thinkers of the early Christian Era understood that . . .
. . .
I really want to go on and study Campbell, as well as Jung. I read Campbell’s ‘A Hero with a Thousand Faces� in 2016, and remember disliking it immensely. I think I would read it in a totally different light today. Mythology and symbolism has become a guide and companion for me today. Perhaps recording your dreams for almost five years will do that - once you start to develop an internal mythopoeia. Sometimes while reading Campbell’s explanations I was able to connect certain parts of my own subconsciousness that I couldn’t figure out before. And it’s almost eerie how well portrayed archetypes and symbols can be in your dreams.
To repeat once more Goethe’s old line, “The eternal feminine is what draws us on�. Having been drawn on for thirty-eight years, I watch it go on its own and I go back into an observant rather than a teaching role, watching the marvel of this ascent into heaven of the Goddess.
. . .
In the older view of the goddess Universe was alive, herself organically the Earth, the horizon, and the heavens. Now she is dead, and the universe is not an organism, but a building, with gods at rest in it in luxury: not as personifications of the energies in their manners of operation, but as luxury tenants, requiring service. And Man, accordingly, is not as a child born to flower in the knowledge of his own eternal portion but as a robot fashioned to serve.
. . .
A powerful book (collection of lectures) on the feminine divine throughout history. Campbell has some really fascinating takes on ancient religion and its connection to the Goddess. I particularly liked his interpretation of the Odyssey, and the mystery cults of the ancient Mediterranean world:
I regard The Odyssey as a book of initiations, and the first initiation is that of Odysseus himself into a proper relationship to the female power . . . Now the female power must be recognized to make possible a proper relationship . . . in which the male and female meets as co-equals. They are equals, but not the same, because when you lose the tension of polarities you lose the tension of life.
. . .
And having studied Christianity for some time, I can really empathise with his critique of the Abrahamic religions. There’s a repulsion, a strong unease of the worldview of the Old Testament whenever it is brought up. Here’s an example on Genisis:�
What happens to the Mother Goddess? She is reduced to the elemental level. She is cosmic water; that’s there where God’s spirit hovers, above the water. He is given the human personification, and she is not. The Chaos is exactly Tiamat, the goddess of the abyss, who now has been deprived even of her personality. This places a terrific stress on our culture. Then you realize also that within the Jewish tradition, the covenant is symbolized by the circumcision. You can see that woman is out altogether.
He is also displeased with Christianity’s obsession with historicity over symbolism and metaphors:
Virgin birth has nothing to do with the biological problem: it is birth of the spiritual life in the individual. When it is read concretely as a biological or historical event, the whole symbol is thrown off center.
. . . this is an important point about symbols: they do not refer to historical events; they refer through historical events to spiritual or psychological principles and powers that are of yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and that are everywhere.
. . . the birth of Christ or the birth of Helen � the most beautiful and glorious representation of the human body and spirit the world has ever seen � this is all one great mythology and the Gnostic and hermetic thinkers of the early Christian Era understood that . . .
. . .
I really want to go on and study Campbell, as well as Jung. I read Campbell’s ‘A Hero with a Thousand Faces� in 2016, and remember disliking it immensely. I think I would read it in a totally different light today. Mythology and symbolism has become a guide and companion for me today. Perhaps recording your dreams for almost five years will do that - once you start to develop an internal mythopoeia. Sometimes while reading Campbell’s explanations I was able to connect certain parts of my own subconsciousness that I couldn’t figure out before. And it’s almost eerie how well portrayed archetypes and symbols can be in your dreams.
To repeat once more Goethe’s old line, “The eternal feminine is what draws us on�. Having been drawn on for thirty-eight years, I watch it go on its own and I go back into an observant rather than a teaching role, watching the marvel of this ascent into heaven of the Goddess.
October 5, 2023
“The eternal feminine / Draws us on.� —GDZٳ, Faust
This is probably the first time I’ve encountered a book like this. Most of the scholarly texts that I read are about history; Goddesses, on the other hand, talked about the history as well as the human psychology that influenced and formed the “Mother Goddess�. Never have I been introduced to such a level of philosophy and critical thinking in a book. I also think this is the first time I’ve willfully picked up a highlighter and made notes while I was reading (I’m usually reluctant to mark up books, I like to keep them in a clean condition).
Goddesses is divided into eight chapters, and explores the feminine divine throughout a variety of cultures and how it has altered or remained the same throughout the centuries. While Campbell repeats himself often regarding certain motifs (the sun, the moon, the bull, etc.), I think it’s necessary towards emphasizing how these overlap in different belief systems. In Campbell’s own words, “The message is the realization that these different testaments are but local transformations of one great spiritual message.� Even in different cultures, the same idea keep popping up to lead back to the feminine divine—and yet, this doesn’t make the book tiring. Every page has something new, and I was fascinated by everything that Campbell had to say.
However, this isn’t just a book about mythology and ancient cultures� connections to the divine. It’s a book that also tells readers how to live in accord with the feminine divine. One example: The rules of love, they really are severe. If you’re giving up everything for something, then give up everything for something and stay with it with your mind on where you’re going.� In Goddesses, Campbell tells us that the feminine divine isn’t an ancient artifact, because it’s still present today—it’s just shifted, as it has throughout history.
One thing I found myself wishing while reading was that Campbell had included more information on religions and myths from East/Southeast Asia, but in the grand scheme of things, this is rather minor. The book’s focus on India and Southwest Asia, as well as all of the other ethnic groups and cultures (Greek, Egyptian, Celtic, etc.) suffice in divulging the feminine divine to the reader. The reader is given enough to go forward and apply what’s explained in Goddesses to other areas of the globe. The book’s mission is fulfilled without the extra information, so I’m satisfied as it is.
Overall an extremely insightful book that sheds a new light on timeless myths. 5/5
This is probably the first time I’ve encountered a book like this. Most of the scholarly texts that I read are about history; Goddesses, on the other hand, talked about the history as well as the human psychology that influenced and formed the “Mother Goddess�. Never have I been introduced to such a level of philosophy and critical thinking in a book. I also think this is the first time I’ve willfully picked up a highlighter and made notes while I was reading (I’m usually reluctant to mark up books, I like to keep them in a clean condition).
Goddesses is divided into eight chapters, and explores the feminine divine throughout a variety of cultures and how it has altered or remained the same throughout the centuries. While Campbell repeats himself often regarding certain motifs (the sun, the moon, the bull, etc.), I think it’s necessary towards emphasizing how these overlap in different belief systems. In Campbell’s own words, “The message is the realization that these different testaments are but local transformations of one great spiritual message.� Even in different cultures, the same idea keep popping up to lead back to the feminine divine—and yet, this doesn’t make the book tiring. Every page has something new, and I was fascinated by everything that Campbell had to say.
However, this isn’t just a book about mythology and ancient cultures� connections to the divine. It’s a book that also tells readers how to live in accord with the feminine divine. One example: The rules of love, they really are severe. If you’re giving up everything for something, then give up everything for something and stay with it with your mind on where you’re going.� In Goddesses, Campbell tells us that the feminine divine isn’t an ancient artifact, because it’s still present today—it’s just shifted, as it has throughout history.
One thing I found myself wishing while reading was that Campbell had included more information on religions and myths from East/Southeast Asia, but in the grand scheme of things, this is rather minor. The book’s focus on India and Southwest Asia, as well as all of the other ethnic groups and cultures (Greek, Egyptian, Celtic, etc.) suffice in divulging the feminine divine to the reader. The reader is given enough to go forward and apply what’s explained in Goddesses to other areas of the globe. The book’s mission is fulfilled without the extra information, so I’m satisfied as it is.
Overall an extremely insightful book that sheds a new light on timeless myths. 5/5
March 16, 2021
"Everything is changing, even the law of the masculine jungle. It is a period of free fall into the future, and each has to make his or her own way. The old models are not working; the new have not yet appeared. In fact, it is we who are even now shaping the new in the shaping of our interesting lives. And that is the whole sense (in mythological terms) of the present challenge: we are the 'ancestors' of an age to come, the unwitting generators of its supporting myths, the mythic models that will inspire its lives."
Este livro não é, de todo, fácil de ler mas vale cada página! Penso que nesta obra Campbell tentou honrar o papel da Deusa e dar a conhecer o quão importante a sua mitologia foi (e é) nos dias de hoje. Esta obra faz-nos voltar atrás no tempo, até as primeiras civilizações nas quais a agricultura era a atividade central e a Deusa era vista como aquela que dava vida e nutria o homem. Sem ela não seríamos capazes de nascer, muito menos de sobreviver. Nas suas páginas encontram-se descritas as histórias de Artemis, Persephone, Isis, Gaia, Demeter, Kali, Athena, entre outras. Adoro a subtileza e a leveza com a qual ele insere os Deuses também e faz-nos compreender o modo como as civilizações evoluíram de uma energia Ying para o Yang e como agora estamos a tentar equilibrar a balança de novo.
Este livro vale cada página e é um must para todos aqueles que queiram aprofundar o seu conhecimento sobre a Mitologia das Deusas & Deuses.
Om,
Cindy
Este livro não é, de todo, fácil de ler mas vale cada página! Penso que nesta obra Campbell tentou honrar o papel da Deusa e dar a conhecer o quão importante a sua mitologia foi (e é) nos dias de hoje. Esta obra faz-nos voltar atrás no tempo, até as primeiras civilizações nas quais a agricultura era a atividade central e a Deusa era vista como aquela que dava vida e nutria o homem. Sem ela não seríamos capazes de nascer, muito menos de sobreviver. Nas suas páginas encontram-se descritas as histórias de Artemis, Persephone, Isis, Gaia, Demeter, Kali, Athena, entre outras. Adoro a subtileza e a leveza com a qual ele insere os Deuses também e faz-nos compreender o modo como as civilizações evoluíram de uma energia Ying para o Yang e como agora estamos a tentar equilibrar a balança de novo.
Este livro vale cada página e é um must para todos aqueles que queiram aprofundar o seu conhecimento sobre a Mitologia das Deusas & Deuses.
Om,
Cindy
September 21, 2024
Mano šios knygos patyrimas telpa į šią citatą:
O Najagneqas atsakė: ,,Taip, galia, kurią vadiname Sila, jos niekaip nepaaiškinsi žodžiais: ji labai stipri dvasia, ji palaiko visatą, orą, net visą gyvybę Žemėje - ji tokia galinga, kad jos kalba žmogų pasiekia ne paprastais žodžiais, bet audromis, pūgomis, liūtimis, jūros bangomis, visomis jėgomis, kurių žmogus bijo, arba per saulėa šviesą, ramią jūrą ar mažus, nekaltai žaidžiančius vaikus, kurie nieko nesupranta. Gerais laikais Sila neturi ko pasakyti žmonijai. Jis pradingsta savo begaliniame nieke ir nesiartina, kol žmonės tinkamai naudojasi gyvybe ir gerbia savo kasdienį valgį. Silos niekas niekada nėra regėjęs. Jo klajonių vieta tokia paslapyinga, kad jis tuo pat metu yra su mumis ir be galo toli."
,,Visatos gyventojas ar siela, - tęsė Najahneqas, - niekada neregimas; tik jo balsas girdimas. Žinome tik tiek, kad jo balsas švelnus kaip moters, toks ramus ir švelnus, kad net vaikai jo nebijo. Ir jis sako: Sila ersinarsinivdluge, ,,Nebijokite visatos."
O Najagneqas atsakė: ,,Taip, galia, kurią vadiname Sila, jos niekaip nepaaiškinsi žodžiais: ji labai stipri dvasia, ji palaiko visatą, orą, net visą gyvybę Žemėje - ji tokia galinga, kad jos kalba žmogų pasiekia ne paprastais žodžiais, bet audromis, pūgomis, liūtimis, jūros bangomis, visomis jėgomis, kurių žmogus bijo, arba per saulėa šviesą, ramią jūrą ar mažus, nekaltai žaidžiančius vaikus, kurie nieko nesupranta. Gerais laikais Sila neturi ko pasakyti žmonijai. Jis pradingsta savo begaliniame nieke ir nesiartina, kol žmonės tinkamai naudojasi gyvybe ir gerbia savo kasdienį valgį. Silos niekas niekada nėra regėjęs. Jo klajonių vieta tokia paslapyinga, kad jis tuo pat metu yra su mumis ir be galo toli."
,,Visatos gyventojas ar siela, - tęsė Najahneqas, - niekada neregimas; tik jo balsas girdimas. Žinome tik tiek, kad jo balsas švelnus kaip moters, toks ramus ir švelnus, kad net vaikai jo nebijo. Ir jis sako: Sila ersinarsinivdluge, ,,Nebijokite visatos."
February 19, 2021
Joseph Campbell is one of the best authorities on mythology and early religion. This book has gathered together a lot of his speeches and writings on the Goddess, and he discovered the threads of the innate religion that was in various parts of the world thousands of years ago - a worship of the Mother Goddess. This tome threads together the rituals, the histories and shows how ancient civilizations worshipped the same gods and the same Goddess just by different names. What I found most fascinating is how he expertly shows that the Christian religion is another product of the ancient myths given new form and may be connected to the mysteries of ancient Eleusis. I’d never heard of this theory but the threads he has woven together makes it perfectly reasonable and logical. I adored this book!
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