Discovering Your Enlightenment Spiritual Learning Series Healing the Goddess - recovery from women's trauma, By Tina Michelle The following information is for students of the Discovering Your Enlightenment Spiritual Learning Series. If you have purchased the Healing the Goddess CD, please feel free to use the worksheets below for self-examination. If you have not purchased and listened to the workshop on CD, most of this will not make sense to you. If you have not and are interested in learning more please see the Introduction Page. If you have not purchased and listened to the workshop on CD, most of this will not make sense to you. If you would like to print out a copy of this worksheet click this PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION. Just as The first part of this continuing education worksheet refers to the Goddess selection required on the CD for the purpose of the Assimilation Meditation. Following the directions on the CD, choose three Goddesses for Assimilation. Consider them carefully. This listing below is a formation of my interpretation of the Goddess Oracle Cards, as well as other references. I have added brief thoughts of my own to them, via the guidance I was receiving. Remember Healing The Goddess within you allows you to draw strengths and character traits necessary to make the healing successful. With the correct tools you can allow your spirit to draw upon them. All of the following traits reside within each woman (and more, as this is only a sampling). According the mythology these traits came to be reconciled with various ideologies, primarily Gods and Goddesses. I realize each Goddess was endowed with many facets and the listing below is only a generalization of traits for our purpose of healing. Let's see what each have to say. As this work was being developed, I came to realize that there is a bit of every one of the Goddesses within us all. And if we could just tap into the one's we need to expand up, needed to strengthen, then we could provide some avenue for healing. GODDESS SELECTION Aida-Wedo - Intragration The bridge between one place or person and another. Allowing yourself to adapt to another person or place and being as centered there as you are in your comfort zone. Are you seeking to intergraded into a new life? Amaterasu Omi Kami - Beauty Light is beauty. Are you needing to feel more beautiful? Do you feel your beauty has been a handicap to you? Can you begin to see the beauty you possess? If you do not, how then can anyone else? Are you aware of the old modeling trick before entering the walkway? They repeat a mantra saying "I am beauty, I am beautiful." Anat - Sacrifice You cannot serve yourself if you are giving all of yourself away. Remember the rules of the airlines "if oxygen masks drop, place one upon yourself before moving to assist another." Do you not think you are worthy to come first for a change? If not, please address "why". Aphrodite - Love The ability to love another must first be revealed in loving yourself. Are you missing love in your life? Are you aware of what type of love you need. Tenderness is always available to you, and human beings need it and mostly deserve it. Please call Aphrodite to assist you in your search for love. It may come from where you least expect it, never limit the Universe. Arianrhod - Childbirth & Fertility During the mothering phases of the Goddess, a woman can begin to crave children. Or perhaps circumstances interrupted childbirth plans. Whatever the case may be, Arianrhod can assist the mother to be and the mother that has lost. Artemis - Selfhood Artemis is an energetic and athletic goddess, personifying the wild feminine spirit, independent and active and able to defend herself. This is the sense of impendence that has come into our modern woman's world. Athene - War There is a time for war, a time to fight. Some say war is evil, does this hold true if it offers freedom to others? Including yourself. The warrior, however, needs to temper their sword with wisdom. Are you too aggressive and ready for war? Baba Yaga - Wild Woman Shake up your life, let down your hair. A woman's passion for living can be as great as any man's. Showing this strength is oftentimes frightening to others, and often to herself. Bast - Play Too much work and no play not only makes Jane a dull girl, but also starves her soul of wholeness. Do you need more play in your life? Or, are you too playful and need a more serious edge? Blodeuwedd - Betrayal As all betrayal stems from self-betrayal, you would need to look into this Goddess aspect and see how you can change this in yourself. Thus forgoing bringing untrustworthy types into your life. Brigid - Inspiration Yearnings without clarity of one's path can be enlightened with inspiration. Celtic triple goddess of smith craft, medicine, and poetry. When there needs to be something new into your life, call this Goddess to assist. Cerridwen - Death and Rebirth Death and rebirth are merely part of the process of progression and evolution. When looking back on your life you can see where one door had to close and another door would open. This is the Goddess of Transformation. Just as a butterfly is first a caterpillar, then it dies a death within a cocoon. Only to be reborn in beauty. Changing Woman - Cycles Just as the earth lives throughout various cycles, so must our various experiences cycle through. Many times you will find that your relationships can run in cycles, i.e. 6 months of harmony, 6 months of strife. Coatlicue - Grief Are you experiencing grief? Perhaps an old relationship has died and you are still grieving from it. Perhaps you are grieving your lost childhood years? Or, perhaps, there are issues of your life that are still so raw you grieve them. This is a true and honorable emotion. Coatlicue can understand this. Corn Woman - Nourishment Nourishment can include body as well as mind and spirit. Does your body cry out for proper nutrition? Perhaps it is your mind that needs to be fed with furthering your education? Maybe your spirit is starving for something more than you are feeding it. Demeter - Feeling & Emotions Oftentimes our own feelings and emotions are some of the most foreign things to us. Are you in touch with yours? What can you do to evoke your truest feelings to the surface? Durga - Boundaries Our comfort zone is created within our boundaries, but one must be careful not to let their comfort zone become a prison. Are you limiting yourself within your own boundaries? Do you need to instill some sort of boundaries? Eostre - Growth Without pain there can be no growth. It is very common to go through the dark night of the soul prior to a growth spurt. Are you prepared to grow beyond what you know yourself as today? Erzulie - Deep Passion Do you have the need to bring deep passions into you life? With passion comes the other basic emotions held within the root chakra: anger, jealousy, survival, lust, and more. Are you operating too often in this passion play? If so, you may want to ask for a lessoning of this energy. Erinyes - Crises Crises is always among us. We merely have to turn on the news to see this is true. It is true however in every cloud there CAN BE a silver lining. Are you within a crises now and seeking a way out? Eurynome - Ecstasy To be in the arms of unbridled joy. So many times we have used the word ecstasy to describe sexual heights. Truest ecstasy, however, can be achieved when one joins with the Light for completion. Many report of ecstasy while meditating, and falling into a "white light" experience. Are you needing more ecstasy in your life? If so, further your connection with Spirit. Freya - Sexuality Sexuality was given to us to remind us of the union and totality. However, when one is out of balance with the universal energy, sex can often take on various aspects that do not include union at all. Has someone taken your sexual joy? Are you ready to reclaim it? Or, are you finding that you are using your sexuality against your fellow man, and even against yourself? Hathor - Pleasure Pleasure can be found in the simplistic of places. The easiest place to find it, however, is within yourself once you have accepted your own perfection. Most often people refuse to allow themselves to experience pleasure because they do not feel complete yet. They do not feel "clean enough", "thin enough", "smart enough". To fully enjoy pleasure you must realize you ARE enough. Hecate - Crossroads Decision making is always difficult. But in the words of the prophet Yoga Bear, "Wherever you go, there you are." If you are making no decision at all you are leaving it to Universe. You will still get to the destination, the journey, however, may leave a bit to be desired. Hera - Marriage Hera was fiercely protective of her marriage with Zeus. Although she sometimes reverted to less than compassionate tactics, she was known as "the wife". If your marriage is in need of strengthening this may just be where to look. Hesta - Hearth & Home Sometimes when we have had a lifetime of insecurity with constantly moving about, we crave the roots of hearth and home. Perhaps to find peace in your home you need a bit of assistance. Ask yourself if your home is your "safe place". If not, ask yourself why you allow this to be so. Inanna - Embracing The Shadow No matter what how good you try to be, how honest, how respectful of God and man, there is still another side to you. A dark side. Ignoring it does not make it go away, in fact it empowers it. Accepting that this is also a part of you is a key here. If there are things about yourself that you do not like, you gossip, you lie occasionally, you steal from your job. All of these things are considered bad, so they are never addressed by the good people who hide them as a skeleton in their closets. Address the "whys' and accept the behaviors of your shadow self as an alert system. Isis - Mothering Were you mothered the way you wish you would have been? Perhaps your own mothering skills left a bit to be desired by you. Just as Mother Nature cannot be understood most of the time, the same is true of some mother's hearts. Do you need to seek forgiveness from your own off spring here? Or do you need to give forgiveness to your own mother? Ix Chel -Creativity The artist paints, the writers writes... unless they are being blocked by fear of some sort. Allow your creativity to open and flow with the creation of the Light. Kali - Fear Fears can take a hold of us to the point that our lives are no longer our own. These fears can act out in ways we never thought possible. They are illusionary cuffs that are meant to hold your progress in place. Perhaps you find that you use fear yourself to produce results you are seeking? This is the time to realize there is only Love and Fear. You are working from one aspect of the yin yang or another. Kamrusepas - Release Are you binding someone to tightly too you and need to release them? Or perhaps, you are finding yourself bound too tightly to another? Follow the proverb, "Turn it loose, if it returns to you, it is yours. If it does not, it never was." Kuan Yin - Compassion What is true compassion? This is a most difficult question. Perhaps it is as simple as understanding. To see one, including yourself, with compassion, knowing the motives behind actions can change and alter the amount of emotion we can feel. To naturalize anger, resentment or fear, compassion is needed. Do you often mix pity with compassion? It is a misunderstanding that they are the same. Lady of the Beasts - Relationships Every woman at one time or another has had relationship problems. And, more often than not, they are the same problems with mates as with friends, if you look closely enough. Relationships are souls coming together to learn from one another, and in the process uniting in the essence of love. Lakshmi- Abundance Most people automatically ask for abundance without a full understanding of the meaning. Abundance clearly means, MORE. If you do not clarify more of "what" you will just get more of what you already have. If it is poverty that you have, you will receive more poverty, if it is lack of love you have now, it will be retuned to you abundantly. Laverna - Thievery Who has taken from you what is yours? A rightful claim gives you the the ability to call out to the Universe and ask for return of your property, and even yourself. Have you fallen into the trap of taking from others to seek challenge for yourself? Ask to be released from this pattern as it will only spin you out of center. Lilith - Power Who hasn't needed a power surge before? Many of us that felt out of control, and unable to confront can certainly see where this aspect would be effective. Remember to always temper power with compassion, as absolute power, corrupts absolutely. Maat- Justice Justice is indeed blind, and she carries a duel edged sword. It is always the wise woman who knows she is seeing the situation with half of an eye. Only the Universe which is overseeing the entire event of your life knows the truest form of justice. One's own heart must be pure and hands clean before the sword of justice is called for to cut down one's enemy. For that sword will swing back to it's starting place, make sure it can pass you up. He who has not sinned, cast the first stone. This is the message of justice. Karma is the divine hand of the Universal justice. Maeve - Responsibility Too much responsibility can lead to a down trodden experience. Too little can lead to ruin. The perfect mix lies somewhere in the middle. One would need to take care with responsibility as it is often used as a mask for control. Maya - Illusion The game of pretend as a child opened the doors to creativity and oftentimes acted as an anchor for sanity. It can, however, lead one down the path of knowing-un-knowing. Most often when one is wrapped within illusion's arms it is with consent and complacency. Minerva - Beliefs To know is to believe. And beliefs are rarely allowed the permission to free float and evolve. Be careful not to ground yourself in dogma rather than to allow yourself to release beliefs and hold on to ideas instead. Morgan La Feye - Rhythms Life has a perfect rhythms and synchronicity. It is adjusted within a woman every 28 days during her menses. Just as the tides flow, and the seasons change, so does a woman with her delicate rhythms of life. Nu Kua -Order Often we seek order in the midst of chaos to establish a lead rope as on a bucking horse. This is a great way to get ones balance, to center and regroup. Do not let order become a hitching post, however, that binds you into stunted growth. Nut - Mystery There is no greater mystery than WOMAN. So much so, that few of us are even aware of the very depths that we are and can be. To explore this essence is to respect the woman you carry, the Goddess within. Oshun - Sexuality Have you lost the gift of sexuality that was given to you as a physical being? Perhaps someone took this great joy from you? You can retrieve it, as it is rightfully yours! The Universe tells us of ecstasy that is shared between two consenting lovers coming together to form the perfect union of totality. Do you seek to use your sexuality as a weapon of destruction and harm? If even, only to yourself? Call upon Oshun to send you the healing of Sexuality and allow you to reclaim your womanly treasure. Oya - Change Change is never easy to creatures of habit. It is, however, usually necessary so that they do not grow sedimentary. You can lesson the fear of change by relying on yourself as the co-creator of your divine plan. Accept that things will be alright. This includes if you have to make necessary changes to make them this way. It takes responsibility, it takes courage, and mostly it takes effort. It is never easy to enter change, but it is much harder to fight it. Pachamama - Healing What part of you need healed? Your mind from the worries of never feeling good enough? Your body from the pains you have chosen for yourself? Or perhaps, it is your spirit that may have been broken like an angels wing. Wings can be repaired, wings can be repaired. So can you. Pele - Awakening Is it time to open yourself to the greatness that you are? Call upon the great Pele to open your senses (all six of them) and open your heart to love and new beginnings. Rhiannon - Doubt I can always recall being filled with doubt. When is doubt first instilled? When someone you trusted violated you? Or perhaps when the one to protect you failed? Or maybe even when faced with truth, you were taught doubt by those that did not truly believe you. Doubt is healthy as long as it is limited and not allowed to overtake your sweet nature, causing cynicism. Sedna - Victim When we fully move from blame into the understanding that we have co-created a Divine path, we can move from being a victim. A survivor is much different than a victim, as a victim indicates they are still being victimized. A survivor indicates they are surviving. Choose which you wish to be. It is that simple, choice. Sekhmet - Anger & Rage Whomever said workers of the Light never got angry surely had never been on earth. Earth is the playground of emotions, to explore, to feel to experience. Anger and Rage are very big parts of this experience. It is learning that feeling, allowing it to happen and processing it. Retained anger can result in delayed explosions, causing unnecessary pain. Perhaps you are aware the anger is there, just not sure where it is buried or how deep. Sekhmet can assist you in purging it through process. Shakti - Energy Often times we can feel as though everyone wants a piece of us, until there is nothing left. You are allowed energy breaks. When was the last time you filled your gas-tank in your car? When was the last time you laid on the sofa and watched movies all day? Whatever your idea of gathering energy is, this is the time to do it! Sheila na Gig - Opening Are you awaiting new openings in your life at this time? Or are you wanting to create them? Shelia Na Gig holds the answers for you. Even when you feel there is no way out, she will open a pathway for you. Sophia - Wisdom In a woman's heart lay the ancient wisdom. It is always within you, one needs to only tap into it. It is most beneficial to seek your own answers. Most often the deepest desire can the wisest way. Do not discount your powerful mind. Sphinx - Challange Have you grown bored, dear Goddess and in need of a challenge? Or perhaps, are you being overwhelmed by life's challenges now? Do you understand no challenge comes against you that you cannot overcome. The amount of resistance you face is exactly equal to your power to over come it. This is the simplicity of the Tai Chi, the yin-yang. Sulis - Illness & Wellness Do you seek wellness for your body? Does your mind only respond to the body when it is ill? Does your body demand to be heard at this time, creating a dis-ease of some sort? If so, this is the time to learn to talk to your body without it resorting to such extreme measures. Sibyl - The Prophet Your intuition is always strong. It is an in-built mechanism that is guaranteed each woman. This intuition can be strengthened as it is a muscle and spiritual in nature. Unlike physical muscles that are strengthened with might of force, the mighty third eye is strengthened with compassion and combating doubt and fear. Tara - Centering Without center there is no peace. A woman must have her peace. Find yourself a "sacred space" even if it is just within your meditations. Use this as your re-grouping power place. Allow yourself lengthy as well as brief stays. The more often you are centered, the more intuitive you are. The more intuitive the more in line with the Universal plan and thought. Uzume - Laughter Many people often tell me they cry for release. Are you aware that laughter can also be a release? It is a spontaneous reaction to a situation or stimuli. Have you lost your ability to laugh? Laughter will reconnect you with the light very quickly and allow you to shed unwanted negative "hangers on" energies. Vila - Shapeshifting To shape shift is to align yourself to the energies surrounding you. Have you ever met a person who was most comfortable in almost any situation? Could it be that they "shift" their energies to those surrounding them? Try this "hiding" game. The next time you want to be invisible say again and again to yourself "don't see me". And, if hiding from a person, do not look their direction as you are casting energy. If you are against a tree, think "I am the tree, don't see me". Perhaps you are against a wall, "I am the wall, that is all. Don't see me." Yemaya - Surrender I have found it very true that with surrender comes release and progress. When one is swimming upstream, more than likely they are wearing themselves out. Are you fighting that diet? Are you going against what you know to be true in your life? Surrender and go with the flow for a while. Now that you have chosen your three Goddesses, you will want to consider the picture below. Note the healing rays, each representing various Goddess aspects. See yourself catching them one by one until you have all three. Let's now move on to the CD and the tract entitled Meditation for Assimilation. You may return at a later time to finish the worksheet provided below. YOUR PRIVATE GODDESS TEMPLE Let's take a moment to discuss a Goddess Temple for your inner Goddess. One important aspect of healing the Goddess is to honor the sacred space you have worked so hard to create with the work you have done thus far. Locate a place within your home. A room is wonderful, but if space is a problem, a small section of a room is more than adequate. This will be your temple. If you share a home with others, make them aware that this is YOUR space, and it is not to be disturbed. Many times when I tell others of the Personal Temple they ask what they should include. Now this is entirely a personal preference, I can merely offer some suggestions. If you can, paint the walls your favorite shade of color. This is a huge first step. As each of us are based on color, and each of us radiate a frequency of color, there are certain colors that allow us to feel better than others. Choose yours. If you are having trouble, get a box of crayons and a paper. Choose several shades you are comfortable with and play with the color on the paper. Then choose a few you may have been frightened to try, perhaps they are too bold, or even too somber. This is just a moment of play and your entire life isn't built on it. And, if you play for a while you may find you align with a new color you would have never considered before. What if you cannot do something as extreme as painting the walls? Use you new color in different ways. Perhaps you are setting yourself up a little area for your special things. How about using your special colors as a scarf window dressing, or even a table covering? There are many ways to incorporate these colors into your life. Maybe using colored bottles for display. Whatever your choice, just indulge yourself in color. Now what about scent. Many of us that have been traumatized have body memories of some sort involving scent. I won't go into it here, as you know what I am speaking of if you have this problem. There are several ways to surround you with scent. The one I must often suggest is to use pure essential oils in a burner, or even wear them on the skin as you would any perfume. Just as certain scents can bring up negative thoughts and memories, other scents can calm, entice and even stir energy. We rarely invigorate our sense of smell with pure true beneficial oils, as most fragrance products on the market are based with synthetic scents. Although they smell good, rarely do you get the aromatherapy you do when using natural essential oils. You may find a link on my site to send you to sites that will include this information. When looking for your scent, you are seeking something that makes you comfortable, calming and that produces feelings of comfort and ease. Now that you have found your scent, you will want to incorporate this into your Goddess Gallery with your color. Music of course is our next step. Some find music too distracting to be able to relax entirely. I am aware that each of us that need this Goddess Healing all have various backgrounds, so if anything suggested here causes you stress or worry, then pass it up and move on to the next suggestion. Perhaps music does not relax or even stimulate you. Perhaps nature or ocean sounds might just do the trick. Whatever the case, you can find your own sound. I highly suggest working with sounds that attune your individual vibrational levels. Many of the New Age sound therapists incorporate a large amount of frequency development for the alignment of your energies. In fact, one sound therapist I know makes personal individual meditation music (if you are interested he will be on my web site under my links.) Once your perfect sound is achieved, in your sacred space with your perfect color and scent, you can see the energy of your private temple growing. One of the last things you may need to do is to surround your eyes with beautiful art, any art. Perhaps it is a drawing one of your children drew for you, or even a nice photo you tore from a magazine. Whatever the case, put them in nice frames. (Some ladies even decorate their frames with old pieces of jewelry). I think you are starting to get the idea here. You are building your temple. You want it beautiful, peaceful and healing. This can be your 'safe place'. Put some of your color around in splashes. Perhaps over stuffed pillows, coverlets, or candles. Now that we have our sacred place, what do we do with it? Enjoy it. Here is where the Goddess is in her most natural state. Here she does not have to have a guard up against her fears; here she can just indulge in being a woman. I hope you have enjoyed your continuing education with the Soul Mates & Twin Flames Learning Series. Please view the links below to view further continuing education worksheets. If you are a tuition based student looking for the private virtual classroom - (tina_michelles_newsletter@yahoo.com) email me for directions. If you would be interested in carrying these products in your store, or as a tool for your clients, please visit my wholesale page of DISTRIBUTION Self- Enriching Worksheets to accompany the CD's WORKSHEETS AVAILABLE NOW: Soul Mates &Twin Flame Worksheet Angelic Communication Worksheet Healing The Goddess Worksheet CD'S AVAILABLE NOW Soul Mates & Twin Flames CD (order now!) Angelic Communication: Establishing Daily Contact CD - Double Set (order now!) Healing The Goddess: Recovery From A Woman's Trauma (order now!)