|
Knowing the Goddess Through Her Sacred Symbols
Llewellyn Worldwide 2005 ISBN #0-7387-0705-8 M. Isidora Forrest is an initiated prophetess of the House of Isis, a priestess of the international Fellowship of Isis, a maenad ("sacred madwoman") for Dionysos, and is co-founder of the Hermetic Fellowship, a non-profit organization devoted to the Western Esoteric Tradition. In Offering To Isis, she discusses the role that making an offering has in developing a strong connection with, and paying homage to, the Egyptian Goddess Isis. Forrest makes note that this same system can also be used to honor other Gods and Goddesses, and form meaningful relationships with them, using their sacred symbols and personal associations. I would carry this thought one step further - you do not need to be Pagan, Wiccan, interested in Hermetics, or a practitioner of High Magick to use the tool of offering for spiritual growth and sacred magic. Anyone, from any background or culture, once they understand the power that lies in making an offering, can follow the same process in honoring what they consider to be sacred in their lives. The act of making an offering can be part of ritual or meditation (or a ritual or meditation on its own), it can be a giving of thanks, it can take the form of a petition, and can also be considered a form of prayer. It connects the practitioner with their own creativity, with the power within themselves, and with the creative nature of the world around them. In the first section, entitled "Ancient Offerings", Forrest goes into the history behind the role of offerings in Egyptian mythology and life, and how they were seen as playing a key role in the functioning of the universe. She discusses the manner in which the offerings were made (often placed on small, woven reed mats), and the different types of offerings (often items of food or drink, votive statues, flowers and incense). Ritual words were used as a sacred form of power and magic. In the second section, "The Magic of Making Offering Today", Forrest speaks of the role that making an offering plays in our lives - that of making connection with the universe. She talks about the different formats in which an offering can be made (as devotion, as communion, as thanksgiving, as meditation, as prayer, and as a path to openness), and how to use this book as a guide in the offering process. She addresses the actual physical offering itself, how it needs to reflect the qualities of Isis (or the God or Goddess it is being offered to), and ways in which the practitioner can hand-make their own offering. The use of hieroglyphics (whether on paper, or on the offering item itself) is encouraged, as it adds power to the "magic" of the offering. Creating an "offering card" to go with your offering is also encouraged. Forrest discusses how the offering can be purified, as well as how to use invocation and ritual as means of actually "giving" the offering to Isis (or the God or Goddess you are making the offering to). Several pages are devoted to choosing the purpose for the offering, which can range from a specific purpose, a theme, communion with a specific aspect of the Goddess, celebration, to chance. Gestures of giving, invocation, and adoration are presented, as well as complete templates for offerings ranging from the simple to the complex. Section 3, "The Offerings", consists of a series of seventy-two offerings to Isis, each containing the applicable Egyptian hieroglyph, a short section describing how the offering applies to the Goddess Isis, and a written invocation for each symbol. The offerings range from the Acacia (a type of tree), to birthing bricks, boats, the Philosophers Stone, the rose, tears, water, and wings. Each has a connotation to and relevance for the Goddess Isis. From the book (invocation for the Philosopher's Stone):
En Iset, Iner en Rekbu This is a gift the priest/ess brings to Isis the Divine, the Lady of Transformations: an invocation offering of the Stone of the Wise. I offer You this Mystery, Isis. I offer You the dark stone that hides the Divine gold. I offer You Potential waiting to come forth in the light of Your love and wisdom - for in that Divine light all things must be revealed. O, Isis, in this stone I offer to You my Becoming. I hear Your beautiful voice. I quell the unbalanced and unhealed within. I transmute and transform them as You transmuted and transformed the Beloved One. You are the alchemist, O Isis! Before your black and beautiful face, I offer this stone, this egg, this heart of mine. Wrap it in the wings of Your red magic. Knit together all my natures. Temper me in the athanoor of the wise. Then the long-sought secret shall be revealed. I offer my knowledge of it to You - You Who already possess it. Listen, O Isis, to the words of the Stone of the Wise: "I am offered unto Isis for I am the Distillation of Her Art. I am the Black. I am the Red. I am the White. I am the spreading of the Tail of the Peacock. I am the Double Lion, Red and Green. I am the Finding of That Which is Sought. I am the bedmate of Wisdom. I am the Stone of the Wise." Unto You, Isis, I offer the Stone of the Wise and all things beautiful and pure. M'den, Iset. Accept it, Isis. At the end of the book there is an Appendix with a listing of all of the offerings, their hieroglyphics, their Egyptian and English names, and a short description of their nature. This book is a very compelling work, easily comprehended, and lends itself well to either individual or group study. If you are interested in working with or honoring the Goddess Isis, there is a great deal of material here that will be of interest to you.
Bonnie Cehovet
 View My Guestbook Sign My Guestbook
Graphics by Art for the web |
