M. Isidora Forrest's Blog, page 29

Do You Dream of Isis?

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In this strange stay-home-and-stay-isolated world right now, many people are reporting changes in their dreaming patterns. More dreams, odd dreams, dreams that are not like their normal dreaming life. Are you dreaming more, dreaming weird? I know I am.

Our Lady is a Goddess of Dreams. People slept in Her temples, hoping for dreams of healing or divination. Interestingly, the most common Egyptian term for dream was rsw.t, from a root meaning “to awaken.” So in dream, we awaken in our sleep…

Does Isis communicate with you in your dreams?

In Egypt, as in most of the ancient world, people definitely paid attention to their dreams. Kings and commoners alike regularly acted on messages received in dream. Sometimes the dreams were clear, the message needing no interpretation. Or a dream might be prophetic, providing information or warnings about the future. Some dreams instructed the dreamer to carry out certain actions; the temples were full of dedicatory plaques to the Deities stating that some action was taken “in accordance with a dream.” Yet these types of dreams were rare—as they are today. Most often, people dreamed in symbols and images that had to be interpreted in order to understand the meaning. For this, one needed a dream interpreter.

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(The artwork above was inspired by a dream the artist had of the Temple of Isis in Pompeii. See what her dream was and more of her work here.)

The dream interpreter might be a village wise woman like the one of whom we have evidence from Deir el-Medina. Dream interpreters would set up shop outside the temples—especially during festival days. But most often the dream interpreter would have been one of the priests or priestesses of the Houses of Life at the great temples. Dream Books cataloged dream symbols and their meanings and may have served as resources for the temple interpreters. We have several surviving examples of these dream books.

[image error] An artist’s fantasy version of an Egyptian healing temple

In addition to bringing one’s dream to the temples for interpretation, one might also seek a special dream by sleeping in the temple. This sacred sleep is known to scholars using the Latin term incubatio (Greek enkoimesis) and was particularly associated with healing temples and healing Deities, such as Isis, Hathor, and Asclepius. It was a frequent practice in temples of Isis. In fact, the temples of Isis at Memphis and Canopus were quite famous for incubation. The Goddess was known to provide accurate diagnoses and effective prescriptions to those who appealed to Her. Diodorus Siculus records that She

gives assistance in their sleep to those seeking it, visibly revealing her very own presence and her beneficence towards those in need. As proof of these claims they say that they themselves offer not myths akin to those of the Greeks, but visible results: for nearly all of the inhabited world serves as witness for them, seeking to add to her honors because of her manifestation through healings. For appearing in their sleep she gives aid to the sick against their diseases, and those who heed her regain their health contrary to all expectation.

An example of an Isis incubation dream survives from a Greek orator named Aristides. Aristides spent a great deal of time visiting healing shrines due to his chronic illness. (Some have even called him a hypochondriac.) In one of his books, he describes a number of synchronicities surrounding a sacrifice of geese to Isis that was surely part of his pre-incubation rite. Then he gives a hint about his dream, writing that a light came from Isis relating to his salvation.

[image error] Isis with Horus upon Her lion throne

Another interesting example of incubation in an Isis temple comes from a letter written from Aspasia (470-410 BCE), the hetaira who was so beloved by the Athenian statesman Pericles, to Pericles telling him of her journey to several temples of healing to seek relief for (perhaps) a skin irritation of some kind. On the advice of her physician, she first visited the temple of Isis in Memphis. She writes, “I beheld the statue of Isis and her son Orus, seated on a throne supported by two lions” and says that sebestus (a species of Egyptian date) grew about Her shrine and describes the burning of incense in the morning, myrrh during the day, and cyplis [kyphi?] in the evening.”

Aspasia slept in the temple, but says she found no relief. The problem, according to the temple attendants, was Aspasia’s “incredulity.”

Next she went to the temple of Hygieia at Patras where the Goddess “appeared to me in the form of a mysterious pentagon.” Finally it was Aphrodite Who, in in the form of a dove, cured Aspasia.

I include this interesting anecdote for several reasons: first, to demonstrate that then, as now, the hoped for dream communication may not always come to us; second, that “mysterious pentagon” form in which Hygieia appeared to Aspasia. It is likely that the “mysterious pentagon” was the Pythagorean  pentagram associated with Hygieia and used as a symbol of recognition among the Pythagoreans. As an educated woman, Aspasia conversed with philosophers, was a philosopher herself, even being described as “a female Socrates” by one ancient writer. And finally, Who better than Aphrodite to heal a hetaira? For me, Aspasia’s experiences ring true and reflect some of the many and varied ways the Deities can interact—or not—with us.

Isis is also known to call to Her initiates and devotees in dream. In Apuleius’ tale that culminates with his protagonist’s initiation into the Mysteries of Isis, we learn that Lucius must remain in the temple of the Goddess—waiting patiently—until he receives a summons from Isis Herself. Only then, when he knew for certain that Isis had invited him, could he undergo the ceremony of his initiation and further cultivate his relationship with the Goddess.

[image error] A Roman image of Isis. Is this what Lucius’ dream Isis looked like to him?

Dream invitation is part of modern devotion to Isis as well. Many are the modern priestesses and priests of Isis who were called to Her service in dream or in vision, which we may think of as a waking dream.

Yet, as always, there are cautions that go along with all this dreaming and visioning. We cannot forget that any information that comes from Her comes through us. The dream or vision-seed of information may come from Isis, but it passes through our human minds and souls, as well as our physical brains and bodies. It’s easy for that seed to be affected by what’s going on with us, in our daily lives and in our spiritual lives. There’s no way to avoid this. The best we can do is to try to develop wisdom and self-knowledge so that we don’t fool ourselves into thinking Isis told us something when we were really just hearing our internal echo chamber. Yet, as long as we can recognize it as our own stuff, this too can be a valuable learning experience.

If we can be honest with ourselves, then when we do have an important dream or vision, we will more easily be able to recognize it. The dream or vision will be more vivid—in our minds, hearts, and memories. We will have a sense of its importance and, at least for us, truth. (Never, ever rely on memory alone; write it down, please. I speak from experience.)

Once Isis has made Herself known to us in our dreams or visions, then it is up to us to take Her up on Her invitation or take up any tasks She may have given us.

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Why Does Isis Have Wings?

Well, dang it. It appears our Oregon stay at home rules have been extended through September…which means no Isia Festival this year. It had been planned for this September. So we will just postpone a year and pick things up next time. Sigh. My many thanks to the over 20 people who so graciously and enthusiastically joined the Isia Crewe. We shall meet again next time!

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THE most popular post on this blog is the one I’m reposting today: Why Does Isis Have Wings? Please read on for my answer, but I would love to hear about your experiences with Her wings in the comments. They are indeed magical and powerful.

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So why DOES Isis have wings? Or perhaps it would be more accurate to ask why images of Isis have wings. As a Goddess, Isis takes whatever form She likes, of course. So the question is, what do the wings mean to us that makes them important in images of Her?

The first and easiest answer is that Isis is a Bird Goddess. Her most important sacred animal is a bird of prey. The Goddess often takes the form of Her sacred raptor; the kestrel (the most common falcon in Egypt) or the black kite.

[image error] The powerful Black Kite, the sacred raptor of Isis

In Egyptian art, when Isis and Nephthys are not shown as women, They are shown in full bird-form or sometimes as woman-headed kites or kestrels sitting or hovering by the bier of Osiris. As birds, Isis and Nephthys mourn Osiris, screeching Their shrill bird cries to express Their sorrow. Even quite late, Isis and Nephthys were shown with wings attached to Their arms—which is the way we are most used to seeing Isis’ wings portrayed—or wearing a garment of stylized wings that wrap gracefully around Their bodies.

Kites were connected with funeral customs from at least the beginning of the Old Kingdom, if not earlier. Texts speak of a woman called The Kite who was the Pharaoh’s chief female funerary attendant. She was supposed to remove poisons from the deceased, magically purifying him.

Isis protecting Osiris with Her wings

Soon there are two Kites—specifically identified as Isis and Nephthys in the Pyramid Texts. The Kites not only lamented and purified Osiris, but also were responsible for ferrying Him to the Otherworld. It is not until the New Kingdom that we find illustrations of Isis and Nephthys as kestrels.

Black kites are fairly large, dark-plumed birds that feed on both live prey and scavenge for carrion. They are sociable, intelligent, and aggressive birds—and would even attack wounded human beings. It may have been the bird’s fierceness that inspired one of the earliest Pharaohs to take the name Kite.

Isis is fierce in protecting Osiris. And both Sisters are fierce in Their lamentations for the God. The black kite’s cry—a shrill, plaintive, screeching—may have sounded to the ancient Egyptians like wailing, lamenting women. It may have been that the ancients saw a correspondence between the kite’s scavenging for carrion and Isis’s scavenging for the scattered pieces of Her husband Osiris’ body in order to assemble them for renewal. Or perhaps in the cleverness of the black kite the Egyptians saw a reflection of the cleverness of the Goddess Isis as She tricked the enemy Set time and again.

[image error] Isis fans life into Osiris with Her wings

On a magical level, Isis’ wings are the means by which She fans renewed life into Osiris. They are the protection spread out over the deceased in the tomb. Their shadow is our shelter in this life and the next. For human beings, wings have always exerted a strong fascination and engendered intense longing. We are in awe of the ability of winged creatures to fly under their own power. Even today when flight is available through mechanical means, many, many people still have “the flying dream.” In the dream, we fly on our own, our arms held out to our sides like huge wings, soaring like great, wild birds. Yet beyond physical flight, wings also commonly symbolize spiritual flight—ascent to the Heavens. And since feelings of rising, floating, or flying upwards can accompany spiritual experience, it is quite natural for cultures throughout the world to conceive of spirit beings—from angels to faeries—as winged.

In Egypt, a very ancient conception of the cosmos envisioned the Heavens as the enormous wings of the great falcon God Horus. These heavenly wings, attached to the disk of the Sun, were a common Egyptian protective motif. In fact, the image of the winged disk of Egypt was so powerful that other peoples, such as the Babylonians and the Hittites, adopted it. Some scholars believe that the beautiful Hebrew biblical phrase “the sun of righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings” may have been inspired by the Egyptian symbol of the winged solar disk.

[image error] I love the flying dream!

This protective aspect of the symbol of wings was key in Egyptian thought; so almost invariably, when you see the open wings of a Deity, the wings are intended to protect—and Isis is the protective Goddess par excellence.

[image error] Isis mourning with “to fold the wings” gesture

Furthermore, the Egyptian word for “to fold the wings,” sekhen, also means to embrace. An Egyptian mourning posture mimicked the protective embrace of Osiris by Isis. And surely, it was Isis’ protecting, enfolding, winged arms that the Egyptian mother had in mind when she recited this protective charm for her child: “My arms are over this child—the arms of Isis are over him, as she put her arms over her son Horus.” Nevertheless, the wings of Isis could also be aggressive, one text tells us that Isis “struck with Her wing” and closed the mouth of a river.

The open wings of Isis can also be related to a posture seen in images of the ancient Egyptian Bird Goddess. This is the posture of the famous Neolithic statuette of a so-called dancing woman with her arms raised in an open curve above her head, and which has become a popular amulet among modern Goddess worshippers. The same posture can be seen in the Goddess figures that ride in the curved boats that were a favorite theme of pre-dynastic Egyptian pottery and petroglyphs.

[image error] Perhaps a priestess of the Bird Goddess with her arms raised to indicate wings.

According to Egyptologist Louis Breasted, the posture is typical of Egypt. And although these ancient figures do not have obvious wings, their unwinged but upraised arms foreshadow the winged, upraised arms of Goddesses seen in later Egyptian art. These beak-faced figures are often identified as Bird Goddesses, so perhaps the wings are implied—or they may indicate that the figures represent human priestesses who are imitating their Bird Goddess. Whatever the case, the “wing” stance is a posture of great antiquity and numenosity and many researchers consider it to be characteristic of the Divine Feminine. Read more about these ancient images here.

If you wish to experiment with the power of Isis’ wings for yourself, try The Wings & Breath of Isis on page 268 of the new edition of  Isis Magic.

The Awe-full-ness of the Goddess

I recently came across a collection of epithets of Isis in which the author translated the core concept as “awful.” In the original sense of the word— “full of awe” —awful makes complete sense as a Divine epithet. In our common understanding of the word today, it’s…oh, let’s say…uncomfortable.

[image error]From the Goddess Power Oracle.

So you can get a full taste of the strangeness of it, here are some of Isis’ awful epithets: She is “The Lady of Awfulness,” “The Lady of Awfulness More than the Divine Powers,” “She Whose Awfulness is Great,” and “She Whose Awfulness is Greater than the Gods.” She is awful on earth, in the heavens, among the Deities, in Egypt. She is “Great of Trembling” and “Hundreds of Thousands Tremble at Her Sight.”

Oooh, scary.

And, She is. Scary. Sometimes.

So today, let’s talk about the awfulness of Isis.

The ancient Egyptian word translated as “awful” is transliterated nrw. To be able to pronounce it, we go with neru. It is associated with the vulture and with Isis and Nephthys as two Vulture Goddesses, the Nerti. (And you recall that the word for vulture in Egyptian is mut, that is, mother.) The ner root means to be strong, to be mighty, to terrify, to strike awe, to be victorious. Neru can be The Terrible One…or the concept of strength, might, or victory. It can also be fear or dread. Neri can be to over-awe. There is a Goddess of Strength called Nerit. And ner also can have connotations of protection because of the Awful One’s strength and might and power to protect. So, I guess, “awful” may be a pretty good translation of the idea.

Iset Nerit is Isis Who Strikes Awe.*

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An awe-some Isis by Ugo Sirius. Find more of his work here.

If you are just beginning your relationship with Isis, it is likely that you haven’t met Iset Nerit yet. Most often, we first meet kindly Isis, the Great Mother, the protectress. Ah, but Nerit is always there. For instance, She may come to you disguised as Isis the Ass Kicker. Or She may give you a glimpse of Her fierceness or Her fire.

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But it is when Isis is at Her Most Primordial, Most Ancient, Most—ENORMOUS—that is when we are truly greeting Iset Nerit. In Her presence, my belly thrills, my spine shivers, my hair stands on end. The numinous, the holy, the strange, and the powerful is with me, before me, around me. I kneel and kiss the ground before Her beautiful face.

For some, this experience may be somewhat unsettling. I am reminded of some folks of my acquaintance who apparently thought we were playing at magic, pretending about the Goddesses and Gods. Then magic actually happened and the Goddess was really there and they were done.

If you are in the early days of your relationship with Isis, I suggest that you not to seek out Iset Nerit. Not yet. Unless, of course, you like the feeling of sacred fright before the Divine. Some of us do (she admits sheepishly).

What about you? Do you know the awe-full-ness of Isis?

*For Coptic fans, Nerit is Noure (noor-ray), which is rather beautiful in the same soft way that Coptic Ise (Ee-say) is: Ise Noure.

She Will Hear You

It has now been about a month that we’ve been under a stay-at-home directive here in Oregon. And it’s working. Even though the Pacific NW had the first case of Covid-19 in the US, total cases here put us in the lower half of affected states. May that continue to be the case.

But perhaps you are wondering, “where is Isis in all this?”

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She is here.

As She has always been.

And She is listening.

In fact, Isis is one of the Deities particularly known to hear our human cries, to hear our prayers. She is called the One Who Listens. In ancient texts and on temple walls, Isis is She Who Hears Petitions; Who Hears the Petitions of Millions. She is particularly known to come at the invocation of Her devotees: Isis is She Who Comes to the Calling; people Call to Her in Every Place. A graffito from Thebes says, “O you of all lands, call to Isis, the Great Goddess, She listens at every moment!”

[image error]An Egyptian votive stela asking for the Deity to hear.

Why then does She not snap Her magical fingers and make it all go away? Because that’s not how it works. This is our problem to solve and we will solve it. But She reminds us that we are each a feather in Her Wings, the blood in Her veins, the extension of the magic in Her hands.

This is a time not to neglect our connection with Her. Meditate, make offerings, chant. She invites us to let our souls fly to Her and be enfolded in Her Wings. “Bring your heart to Me,” She says. “Speak pain. Speak truth.” She will take us as we are right now.

For She listens. And She hears.

Isis & Sakhmet or Isis-Sakhmet?

[image error]I absolutely adore this beautiful modern Sakhmet by Desiree Isphording. See the artist’s statement here.

A friend was asking about Sakhmet today, and so here’s a little something about Isis and Sakhmet…

Many are the modern devotees who are attracted to Sakhmet, ancient Egypt’s fierce Lioness Goddess. Her name means The Powerful One, the Mighty One, or the Female Power. And She is powerful indeed.

Quite a few images of the Goddess remain to us, for hundreds of them were set up at the Temple of Mut at Karnak. The Vatican Museum has about a half dozen of these and has created a semi-circle of the bigger-than-human-sized Sakhmet images in an outdoor area that is part of the “profane” section of the museum. (Yes, of course, I headed straight to the profane section.) I have also been fortunate to have seen several of these beautiful statues here in Portland as part of traveling museum shows.

But it was a smaller image of Sakhmet in one of these shows that literally blew my astral hair back. All that was left was the head, about eight inches high. It was made of a yellow, semi-translucent stone and it quite simply hummed with magical power. After all these years. Still. Powerful. I was mesmerized. It’s probably a good thing the image was behind glass because I certainly would have touched it—and probably gotten tossed out on my tushie as I had already been tut-tutted at for almost touching one of the larger Sakhmets. Such is Her power.

[image error] One of the classic Sakhmet images in granite from Karnak, now in the Metropolitan Museum

If you’ve been following along, you’ll already have noted that Isis has Her fierce aspects, too. And in the typical fluid way of the ancient Egyptian Deities, Isis and Sakhmet can become One. One of the places where this is true is in the Isis temple at Philae where Isis and Sakhmet are specifically identified. Here’s one of the hymns to Isis from that temple, translated by Louis Zabkar:

Giver of Life, Lady of the Sacred Mound,

Lady and Mistress of Philae,

August and mighty one,

Lady of the southern lands;

Sakhmet, the fiery one, who destroys the enemies of her brother,

Those disaffected of heart, the enemies of Hor-ankhti;

Princess, Mistress of Upper and Lower Egypt,

Mighty one, foremost of the Goddesses;

Ruler in Heaven, queen on earth,

Sun-goddess in the circuit of the sun-disc;

Mistress of battle, Montu of combat,

One to whom one cries out on the day of encounter;

Mighty protectress without her equal,

Who saves all those she loves on the battlefield;

Whatever comes forth from her mouth is accomplished immediately,

All the gods are under her command;

Great of magic, when she is in the palace,

Great one upon whose command the king gloriously appears on the throne.

As we see here, Isis is specifically called Sakhmet, as well as being described as “mighty,” and “the mighty one,” the very meaning of Sakhmet’s name. You’ll also recall that in the Jumilhac papyrus, Isis is said to have transformed Herself “into Her mother Sakhmet.”

In this hymn, Isis appears as a strong battle leader, destroying enemies, protecting Her people and their king through Her powerful magic. For the Egyptians, this type of power was often expressed using fiery imagery. Thus, in the hymn above, Isis-Sakhmet is “the fiery one.” Elsewhere at Philae, Isis is called Lady of Flame. She is also the fiery Sun Goddess. And She is one of the fire-spitting Uraeus Goddesses Who sits on the brow of Re as one of His Eyes. As the Eye of Re, She is the fiery Power That Goes Forth and “slays Apophis in an instant,” according to another Philae hymn.

At Her great temple at Philae, we see many sides of the Great Goddess Isis. She is at once the beautiful Cow Mother, watering the sarcophagus of Osiris so that new life sprouts from His dead body, and the fierce-faced Isis-Sakhmet, Isis the Powerful One, the Great Female Power. May Her strength always protect you.

[image error] Sakhmet & Isis, together again

The Lamentations of Isis

One of the rituals that will be part of our local (Pacific NW) 2020 Fall Equinox Isia Festival is the “Lamentations of Isis.”

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This rite is an adaptation of the lamentations ritual in Isis Magic.

Our festival version is non-gendered and changes have been made to allow for a larger group of participants.

If you think that you’d like to be a part of this rite, please read on so you’ll know how to prepare. For additional reading, here’s a post about Isis and lamentation.

About the Rite: Lamentation has always been a part of the honoring of Isis. We even have some of the actual scripts of the laments for Osiris that were performed in the temples, though all the surviving records date from the later Ptolemaic period. They are evocative and, in some cases, quite heartbreaking. In Imperial Rome, where Isis became enormously popular, the Isis religion was notorious for its large, highly emotional, public enactments of the lamentations of the Goddess. The cathartic value of this emotional release was one of the attractive features of the religion for worshippers who found the Roman state religion too sterile.

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I have not felt the need for this rite for many years. But that has changed. And I have the feeling that I am not alone. If you would like to not be alone in your own laments, please join us for this afternoon ritual. Know that if you participate in this rite, you may face your innermost pain. Be sure that you are ready and that your heart fully consents to this Work.

This rite of lamentation allows for an emotional release that is intended to ease the pain in our souls, freeing us from that pain so that we are able, once again, to take action. During the course of the rite, we lament societal, personal, and spiritual wounds, each followed by a cleansing with water to make the catharsis tangible.

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The “Lamentations of Isis” are just one part of the greater Isia Festival. This rite takes place on Friday afternoon, giving us time to lament, but also giving us time to move into a place of rebirth and renewal through the other rites and activities of The Isia.

Ritual Preparation: Sometime before you arrive at the Festival, take time to read or remember the myth of Isis and Osiris. Attempt to identify with the sufferings of Isis as She endures the murder of Her Beloved and searches for His dismembered body. Let your own sufferings rise in your mind in response to reading about the sufferings of Isis. Feel them, but do not try to analyze them to any extent.

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Please arrive for the rite wearing blue or white, the colors often worn by Egyptian mourners, or come in black, the Hellenistic color of mourning and a color also worn often here in the US. Black robes came to be particularly associated with Isis as Her religion spread throughout the Greco-Roman world; She was called Melanophoros, the “Wearer of the Black,” and in at least one place, Her devotees were also called Melanophoroi. (You may wear a full-length robe or simply blue, white, or black clothing, as you see fit.) You should also bind your hair tightly to your head. If you have short hair or no hair, bind your head with cloth or scarves, turban-style. The point is to arrive at the ritual with a feeling of tightness about your head. We will be unbinding ourselves as part of the rite.

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In addition, bring with you a chalice and a black Isis band (a blindfold; i.e. a strip of black cloth; it would be ideal to bless this cloth in the name of Isis before you come). Finally, also bring a white votive candle or tealight in a container.

The lamentations are guided by nine ritualists. There are three Priestesses or Priests of the Circle, who facilitate the first lament, three Priest/esses of the Triangle, who facilitate the second lament, and three Priest/esses of the Point, who facilitate the third lament. In addition to other ritual responsibilities, the Priest/esses of the Circle 3, Triangle 3, and Point 3 lead the purifications with water and the Priest/ess of the Point 1 will take on the kheper or Goddessform of Isis for the resolution of the third lament.

If you have questions about this ritual, please feel free to leave them in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer. May She keep you well and Under Her Wings, as always.

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Are You there, Isis? It’s me, Isidora.

In these days of “self-isolating,” are you perhaps feeling a bit disconnected; not only from others, but from Her?

[image error]The Lotus Temple. In March…weird.

It’s pretty weird out there right now, folks. For one thing, I’m in Portland Oregon and it’s snowing. In mid-March. Politics? Don’t get me started. Oh, and then there’s the fact that every grocery store in town is out of just about everything because people are preparing to be “self-isolating” at home for a good long while. Of course, it’s not that we shouldn’t be taking this pandemic seriously. We should. And we are.

But all the crazy out there can make us feel a little, well, crazy. Which is not very conducive to experiencing our connection with Isis. It might even make us panic. Is She still there? Was She ever there? Am I “losing my faith”? What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with Her?

If you’ve been missing Isis (or perhaps She’s been missing you?) there are things you can do about it. Without adding to your crazy.

First, give yourself a break. Have you been trying too hard, pushing too much? While having a daily practice is wonderful, if you’re doing the same thing every day, that once-lovely little ritual can become routine, even boring. Consider taking a break. If you do a daily rite, cut back to once a week. Or try a different ritual. It could be that a rite that hadn’t caught your attention before would be just right now.

[image error]This amazing Isis is by Yliade. Prints available for sale here.

On the other hand (hey, these aren’t one-size-fits-all suggestions), a boring ritual might be just what you need. If you haven’t been doing ritual, pick one and do it. At least once a week. Pour a libation. Offer flowers. Perform the “Lotus Wand of Isis” or the “Opening of the Ways” (both in Isis Magic). Oh, and don’t expect any spiritual fireworks. You might get them. Or you might not. Either way, it’s okay.

Take a trip down memory lane. Think back on what first got you excited about Isis. What was that like for you? Reminisce. Perhaps there was a particular book that inspired you? Re-read it. Was there an experience you could recreate?

Give yourself a magical task. You can define this any way you wish. You might try something like this: every time you pass through a doorway/see a hawk/wake up in the morning, say to yourself, “Isis is all things, and all things are Isis” or “I open myself to Isis” or whatever seems right to you. By thinking of Her and speaking Her name, you will reweave your connection with Her.

[image error]And this powerful Isis is by sanio. See the art here. You can buy a copy of it, too.

Don’t feel guilty about it. This happens to every person who has ever been on a spiritual journey. If it has never happened to you before, you’ve beaten the odds. But it has now, and chances are, it will happen again. And that’s okay, too. That’s why we have to be kind to ourselves during these times of spiritual emptiness. We haven’t failed because we have doubts or have fallen away from awareness or practice. We’re just a normal human person and this is just part of the path. And She will be waiting there for us when we’re ready.

Nevertheless, persist. Always take the next step on that path. Sometimes a spiritual project is a great way to reconnect with Isis. If you’re solitary, you might create an artwork for Her/of Her. Write an invocation. Choreograph a dance. Cook an Isis feast and invite Pagan friendlies to join you in eating it and honoring Her. Are you a ritualist? Create a new rite for Her. If you’re fortunate enough to have a community, gather some fellow Isiacs and come up with something together.

Pick any one of these things to try. You’ll see. Oh. And now the sun’s out here in Portland. The snow is melting. And spring is coming.

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Are You there, Isis? It's me, Isidora.

In these days of “self-isolating,” are you perhaps feeling a bit disconnected; not only from others, but from Her?

[image error]The Lotus Temple. In March…weird.

It’s pretty weird out there right now, folks. For one thing, I’m in Portland Oregon and it’s snowing. In mid-March. Politics? Don’t get me started. Oh, and then there’s the fact that every grocery store in town is out of just about everything because people are preparing to be “self-isolating” at home for a good long while. Of course, it’s not that we shouldn’t be taking this pandemic seriously. We should. And we are.

But all the crazy out there can make us feel a little, well, crazy. Which is not very conducive to experiencing our connection with Isis. It might even make us panic. Is She still there? Was She ever there? Am I “losing my faith”? What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with Her?

If you’ve been missing Isis (or perhaps She’s been missing you?) there are things you can do about it. Without adding to your crazy.

First, give yourself a break. Have you been trying too hard, pushing too much? While having a daily practice is wonderful, if you’re doing the same thing every day, that once-lovely little ritual can become routine, even boring. Consider taking a break. If you do a daily rite, cut back to once a week. Or try a different ritual. It could be that a rite that hadn’t caught your attention before would be just right now.

[image error]This amazing Isis is by Yliade. Prints available for sale here.

On the other hand (hey, these aren’t one-size-fits-all suggestions), a boring ritual might be just what you need. If you haven’t been doing ritual, pick one and do it. At least once a week. Pour a libation. Offer flowers. Perform the “Lotus Wand of Isis” or the “Opening of the Ways” (both in Isis Magic). Oh, and don’t expect any spiritual fireworks. You might get them. Or you might not. Either way, it’s okay.

Take a trip down memory lane. Think back on what first got you excited about Isis. What was that like for you? Reminisce. Perhaps there was a particular book that inspired you? Re-read it. Was there an experience you could recreate?

Give yourself a magical task. You can define this any way you wish. You might try something like this: every time you pass through a doorway/see a hawk/wake up in the morning, say to yourself, “Isis is all things, and all things are Isis” or “I open myself to Isis” or whatever seems right to you. By thinking of Her and speaking Her name, you will reweave your connection with Her.

[image error]And this powerful Isis is by sanio. See the art here. You can buy a copy of it, too.

Don’t feel guilty about it. This happens to every person who has ever been on a spiritual journey. If it has never happened to you before, you’ve beaten the odds. But it has now, and chances are, it will happen again. And that’s okay, too. That’s why we have to be kind to ourselves during these times of spiritual emptiness. We haven’t failed because we have doubts or have fallen away from awareness or practice. We’re just a normal human person and this is just part of the path. And She will be waiting there for us when we’re ready.

Nevertheless, persist. Always take the next step on that path. Sometimes a spiritual project is a great way to reconnect with Isis. If you’re solitary, you might create an artwork for Her/of Her. Write an invocation. Choreograph a dance. Cook an Isis feast and invite Pagan friendlies to join you in eating it and honoring Her. Are you a ritualist? Create a new rite for Her. If you’re fortunate enough to have a community, gather some fellow Isiacs and come up with something together.

Pick any one of these things to try. You’ll see. Oh. And now the sun’s out here in Portland. The snow is melting. And spring is coming.

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Join Us for the Isia Festival, Fall Equinox, 2020

[image error]Isis protecting Osiris

Well. We have a date, so that’s official.

We have a dozen incredible ritualists—so far—so that’s official.

I shall begin losing my mind any minute now, so that’s decidedly official.

What am I talking about? The Pacific NW Fall Equinox Festival at Ffynnon, Oregon.

If you are within reasonable distance of the area, do mark your calendars for Sept. 17-20, 2020. We will be celebrating the Festival of the Isia, a festival of the Lamentations of Isis and the Renewal of Osiris Beneath Her Wings. (And the renewal of all of us as well. I know I could use a little renewal right now. And more so as we get closer to November. You, too?)

If you are in the Portland area and would like to help, get in touch with me. Comment here, message on FB, or email me if you already have my address.

[image error]This powerful Isis is by artist Thalia Took. You can purchase prints of this art. I did.

Fall equinox is (roughly) the time of the ancient festival of Khoiak, from Egyptian ka-her-ka, “sustenance upon sustenance.” It is one of the best-attested ancient Egyptian festivals. The festival revolved around the most well-known of the myths of Isis and Osiris: the story of His death, Her mourning, and Her resurrection of Him—along with the resurrection of the grain that would be the next year’s food stores, hence “sustenance.”

The 2020 Isia Festival will be our version of these ancient rites.

We will participate in the Lamentations of Isis—and have the opportunity to make our own personal laments. We will join the Goddesses and Gods in the Search for Osiris. We will participate in the Raising of Osiris and, with Him, be renewed Under Her Wings. Each day we will open Her shrine with beautiful rites, each night we will close it. There will will be meditations, offerings, and workshops throughout the festival that we can all take part in.

This blog started 10 years ago when we celebrated the Radiant Isis festival. I am so pleased to be able to celebrate another community-wide festival for Her this year. I hope you will join me Under Her Wings.

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Perfumes for Isis

At this present moment, our home is filled with flowers. Yes, I know. It’s February. That’s why it’s filled with flowers. And since oriental lilies are some of our favorites, right now, I’m smelling the sweet-dark scent of those wonderful lilies throughout the living room.

And all this leads me to think of the perfumes of ancient Egypt and, of course, the perfumes of Isis particularly. For the Goddesses and Gods of Egypt were always associated with scent. Beautiful scents have always been connected with the Divine, but in Egypt particularly, you knew that a Deity had arrived when you smelled Her or His perfume in the temple air.

[image error] Egyptian women making perfume

The Egyptians apparently blended scents appropriate for their Deities; for instance, there is a record of an unguent called “Aroma of Horus.” Surely, there was an “Aroma of Isis,” too, but alas, we have no record of it to date. Today’s magical perfumers, on the other hand, almost always have a scent for Her. Isis’ association with scent remained part of Her manifestation even after Her worship spread beyond Egypt. In Apuleius’ account of initiation into the Mysteries of Isis, his protagonist sees Isis in a vision and remarks that She breathed forth the “blessed fragrance of Arabia.”

My personal favorite scent for Isis is stargazer lily. With its deep pink, engorged-looking blossoms, stargazers are downright sexual in their showiness. Of course that is exactly what any flower is; sexual. As you may know, flowers are the sex organs of plants, which they display for all the world to see, marvel at, and enjoy. No wonder we have always given flowers as a love gift.

[image error] The stargazer lily; thus do we offer unto Isis that which is Hers

I like the blatant, vulva-pink sexual display of the stargazer to be sure. And the flower’s name reminds me of Isis’ own starry connections. But the main reason I associate them with Isis, and give them in offering to Her, is the scent. The stargazer’s soft, sweet perfume is deepened with a dark, funky musk that is almost animal-like in its pungency. The stargazer is my “jitterbug perfume.” (If you have not read Tom Robbin’s Jitterbug Perfume, oh please do!) The mixture of sweet and strange all wrapped up in an audacious package seems to me a perfect floral resumé for Isis. She offers us the sweet love of a mother one moment, then freaks us out completely with some weirdly magical happening the next. Like the flower, She is not shy; never shy. She will always tell you what you need to hear even when you don’t particularly want to hear it. Thus do I offer unto Isis that which is Hers: the beautiful stargazer lily.

The ancient Egyptians had no stargazers, alas. But they did associate a variety of other scents with Isis as well as with other Deities.

Expeditions to Punt for cinnamon, frankincense, myrrh, and other precious resins, were common throughout Egyptian history. The huge gardens attached to the temple complexes also supplied vast quantities of herbs and flowers for the creation of the gallons of scent, pounds of incense, and thousands of bouquets offered in Egyptian temples. Many temples, such as those at Edfu and Denderah, even had special laboratories for making perfume and incense. Perfume was, after all, one of Egypt’s most lucrative exports.

[image error] Egyptian women enjoying perfume

Cleopatra VII, the queen who styled herself “the New Isis,” was reputed to use a different perfume for every part of her body and was credited with writing a book on the subject. But Cleo’s perfumes would not have been the clear, alcohol-based liquids we think of as perfume today. Egyptian perfumes were oil and fat-based; similar to our solid perfumes that liquefy as they are rubbed into the skin. A number of Egyptian perfumes were quite famous, the name brands of their day.

Lily was the dominant scent in Susinon, a perfume that seems to have been made exclusively by women. Perhaps this was because the lily was connected with female sensuality and spirituality and lily oil was a common treatment for “female complaints.” Lotus oil, from the sacred blue lotus (actually a blue water lily), was a favorite essential oil and associated with rebirth. It was the fragrance most favored by Egyptian priestesses. Other Egyptian perfumes include Magaleion, a complicated, difficult-to-make scent; Mendesian, known simply as “The Egyptian,” which was a spicy, resinous perfume; Metopion, a mixture of resins, herbs, sweet wine, and honey; and Sampsuchum, a marjoram-based scent sweetened with herbs and nasturtium flowers.

And then there was Kyphi, both an incense and perfume.

Recipes for Kyphi perfume are engraved on the walls of the temple of Isis’ son, Horus, at Edfu and at Philae, Isis’ own great temple in Upper Egypt. Kyphi was used especially to welcome the Deities to Their temples. Wine-based, Kyphi also includes sweet flag, rushes, cinnamon, juniper, raisins, myrrh, frankincense, cardamom, and gum mastic. In his essay “On Isis and Osiris,” Plutarch reports 16 ingredients and says that Kyphi calms, soothes, and can lull to sleep. It is also said to sharpen the intuition and promote dreams.

A priestess friend and I once made a ridiculously huge batch of Kyphi from Plutarch’s recipe, bits of which I am still burning to this day. It has a warm smell; like spicy raisin cookies. In fact, you could eat it without harm—and I believe the Egyptians did, medicinally. Luckily for me, it seems to get better with age.

What scents do you associate with Isis? There are no wrong answers. This is a personal thing. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

[image error] A beautiful piece of stargazer lily art