EVERYTHING IS MALE AND FEMALE IN NATURE

The Hindus teach us that the Divine essence of All That Is, is the creative summary of both male and female principle. And so do the Taoists, who show us the feminine and the masculine principle that feed one another and make up the whole in the symbol of Yin/Yang. Tibetan Buddhist do the same with their most sacred objects — the dorje and the bell. The bell represents the feminine and the dorje is the male principle. No worship service is ever conducted without use of each, together, one held in each hand. The Gods and Goddesses personified in many traditions also have opposite sex consorts and cohorts who are considered "complements."

In fact, in many systems of belief, you cannot have one without the other. Just as you can’t have day without the night, you can’t have man without woman, or masculine without feminine.

When we really understand that the Divine nature of all that is contains both the masculine and the feminine principles, it begins to make sense that men and women each contain those Divine characteristics; that the energy of the Goddess exists within all of us. From the highest place of knowing, we do not have to assign a gender to the divine and we do not have to put a name and face on energy so sacred. But in our lives as human beings, with human personalities and beliefs, I truly believe that considering both God and Goddess helps us identify the dual (and multifaceted) nature of divinity.

TOWARD BALANCE AND PEACE

As we desperately seek balance and peace on our planet, and in these times of deeply disturbing and frightening world events, many of us are searching for what’s been missing in modern life. Could it be we have been bereft of our spiritual link to the Sacred Feminine — not instead of, but in addition to the Sacred Male? We are at a time in history where both women and men are crying out for their divine "Mother" and seeking a spirituality that brings both divine parents to the table, not just one, or the other.

Historically and in the Goddess-friendly religions, The Divine Mother does not discriminate or love only those who worship in Her name. Her energy, presence and possibility are available to anyone, — of any religion, race, sex, culture, background, or belief system. One of the historical hallmarks of the Divine Mother is that by honoring ourselves, our earth and all living things, we honor Her. This kind of reverence does not need to be sorted into a religion or a particular belief system. It is more of a philosophy for living that can inspire us to a spiritual path of balance and peace.

Perhaps the Goddess is re-emerging to show us another side of ourselves. Many agree that we need her help to midwife this new point in history. She brings to our world, and our lives, those qualities that even some traditional and most mystical religions assign as feminine qualities Wisdom and the expression of the Soul, along with nurturing and love. When we tap into wisdom and follow the call of our souls we can then forgive, be tolerant, appreciate everyone’s individual evolution, and love without conditions. The energy of the Divine Feminine also balances the energy of the male; without it, the qualities traditionally associated with male energy — which include warring and aggression — can get out of hand.