January 30, 2026February 1, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

Why the World Needs Matriversal Archetypes? by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang

[Author’s Note: This essay is a revised version of my presentation to the She Rises Salon, “Poets Lead Goddess Feminist Activist Spirituality Movement” held on April 12, 2025.] Without the Read More …

January 29, 2026January 31, 2026 RTM Co-Editor M SaracinoLeave a comment

(Nine Poets Speak) The Laurel by Maria Famà

[Editors’ Note: Learn about how the “Nine Poets Speak” series came to be in place here.] Laurel tree: https://stockadobe.com I don’t know what I miss more the running or the singingYet, I Read More …

January 28, 2026November 26, 2025 Mago WorkLeave a comment

(Art Essay) The Water Coven: Memory of the Great Sea by Sanna Pöyhönen

This work is called The Water Coven. I have always loved to swim in wild waters. My favorite places both in Finland and in the Netherlands are next to a Read More …

January 27, 2026February 26, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

(Nine-Sister-Networks News-Update) #1 January 2026

Submit your update to be included in the forthcoming News Update by the 15th here. [Editorial: Return to Mago E-Magazine (RTME)’s News Update begins to promote networks among organizational representatives Read More …

January 26, 2026December 19, 2025 RTM Co-Editor M Saracino1 Comment

(Poem) How Do We End the Madness of War by Mary Saracino

Pace (Peace) sign, Rome, Italy 2004, photo by Mary Saracino How do we end the madness of war?Do we take up arms to disarm the armed nations?Or do we wrap Read More …

January 24, 2026January 28, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

(Search) Volunteer Opportunity with Nine-Sister Networks News-Update Project

Go to the first issue of the Nine-Sister Networks News-Update here. Return to Mago E-Magazine (RTME) is seeking a team of volunteers to assist in the movement of Matriversal Feminism (formerly Read More …

January 23, 2026January 18, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

(S/HE V4 N1-2 Book Review) Kaarina Kailo’s Sauna Culture, Sweat and Spirituality by Elizabeth Ann Bartlett, Ph.D.

[Editor’s Note: This was included in the journal, S/HE: An International Journal of Goddess Studies (Vol 4 No 1-2, 2025).] Sauna Culture, Sweat and Spirituality: On the Architectonics and Cosmology of Sacred Read More …

January 22, 2026January 24, 2026 RTM Co-Editor M Saracino1 Comment

(Nine Poets Speak) Daughter of the Cranes by Sara Wright

[Editors’ Note: Learn about how the “Nine Poets Speak” series came to be in place here.] Photo: Cranes in the Fog by Sara Wright When I see themI enter the Dreaming.In Read More …

January 21, 2026February 25, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

Budoji, the Principal Text of Ceto-Magoism, English Translation Available by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang

The Budoji is the principal text of Ceto-Magoism (the Whale-guided Way of Mago, the Creatrix). Comprising a total of 33 chapters, Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang provides her 25 year-painstaking English Read More …

January 20, 2026January 21, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

(Nine Sister Networks E-Interview) Freia Serafina Titland and The Divine Feminine Film Festival by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, Ph.D.

[Editor’s Note: Return to Mago E-Magazine (RTME) introduces Sister Organizations under the banner of the Nine Sister Networks as a way of consolidating Matriversal Feminism previously known as Goddess Feminist Activist Spirituality. Read More …

January 19, 2026December 24, 2025 Mago WorkLeave a comment

(Book Excerpt 4) Asherah: Roots of the Mother Tree ed. by Trista Hendren Et Al

[Editor’s Note: This excerpt series is from Asherah: Roots of the Mother Tree ed by Claire Dorey, Janet Rudolph, Pat Daly, and Trista Hendren (Girl God Books, 2025).] Asherah: High Read More …

January 17, 2026January 19, 2026 Mago WorkLeave a comment

Call for Poems for Nine Poets Speak: Forging New Visions and Hopes

Return To Mago E-Magazine (RTME) is a platform that values poets who witness the arrival of AI waves and sing for the Way of Life that values human creativity. We are Read More …

January 16, 2026December 15, 2025 RTM Co-Editor M Saracino1 Comment

(Poem) Grief and Other Types of Love by Mary Saracino

Photo by Mary Saracino The troubled world wailslet’s loose a blood-curdling dirge.My ears ring with the sound of sorrow.My heart is heavy with grief.So much evil everywhere.My eyes weep as Read More …

(Audio) Crone Quality/Aspect of Great Goddess by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

This is an edited recording of a radio program, from a twelve part series named Re-membering the Great Mother, authored and put to air by Glenys Livingstone in 1994, for 2BLU-FM 89.1, community radio in the Blue Mountains, Australia. I created this radio series after a personal shattering and underworld journey, as I re-created myself and embarked more fully on the path of Goddess. In this series, I have used the terms “Virgin”, “Mother”, and “Crone”, to speak of the three qualities/aspects of Goddess/Dea, which may not be understood in these times, and which I have since re-storied in my work over the years, described in my books, and also re-named as the “Urge to Be”/She Who Will Be, the “Place of Being”/She Who Is, and “She who Creates the Space to Be”/She Who Returns Us to All, respectively. I have come to understand these qualities as resonant with the three qualities of Cosmogenesis as described by Thomas Berry and Brian Swimme: characteristic of a triplicity that runs through every part of the universe, as author Caitlin Matthews describes, and identified by Celtic peoples as the Triskele. Notes: Please forgive my nervousness: I was very new at radio, and doing it all by myself. It was originally recorded on audio tape, and converted to digital on home equipment some 10 years later. All of the sponsorship advertisements have been edited out, and also most of the music, for copyright reasons mostly, though some remnants remain for artistic purpose. Those remnants are a few to several seconds of each of: Hymn to Her, by The Pretenders Cymbeline, by Loreena McKennitt Ship of Fools, and Song of the Soul, by Chris Williamson Elemental Healing, and Bold Woman, by Sister Magick, which is no longer available. I also edited out the interview with Joan McCarthy which had been part of the program. References for most of the text may now be found in my books: the first one being PaGaian Cosmology: Re-inventing Earth-based Goddess Religion (NE: iUniverse, 2005), which was an outcome of my doctoral work completed in 2002 at the University of Western Sydney, and the second book being A Poiesis of the Creative Cosmos: Celebrating Her within PaGaian Sacred Ceremony (Bergen: Girl God Books, 2023), which is a documentation of the emergent poetic ceremonial process practiced over decades. Image credit: Kali Ma 1700 C.E. India. Hallie Iglehart Austen, The Heart of the Goddess (Berkeley: Wingbow, 1990), 78.
A Response to Rabbi David Wolpe’s The Atlantic article “The Return of the Pagans” by Francesca Tronetti

Wikimedia Commons image I recently learned about this article via the Pagan Studies email list from the American Academy of Religion. Chas Clifton, Pagan scholar and editor of The Pomegranate posted a link to the article as well as other responses to Rabbi Wolpe. In his response to the criticism, Rabbi Wolpe claimed he was talking about ancient paganism; however, the claim seems to fall flat for several reasons. In the second paragraph of the article, he writes, “Most ancient pagan belief systems were built around ritual and magic, coercive practices intended to achieve a beneficial result.” Coercive practices? Most anthropologists classify shamanic magic and healing rituals as sympathetic magic, rituals or spells performed on an object that will reflect on the patient. Rituals include offering food or drink or objects and petitioning for intervention from the Divine. I do not understand how ancient magical practices could be labeled as coercive when the deity was understood to hold power. Wolpe titles his article “The Return of the Pagans,” implying that he is referring to contemporary Paganism, big P, as it is written in the literature. Throughout the article, Wolpe uses pagan and paganism; the lowercase versions are often utilized to identify ancient pagan practices, placing them under a kind of academic umbrella. Here, I will use the lowercase pagan when referring to Wolpe’s examples and Pagan or Paganism when referring to actual contemporary Pagan philosophy and practices. Wikimedia Commons image It appears that everything negative and wrong with our current culture Wolpe identifies as being pagan. He identifies aspects of people’s personalities as being Pagan, aspects which many Pagans would find offensive. While it is true that Heathenry has become popular among Neo-Nazi and white nationalist groups, the Q-Anon Shaman cited as an example in the article, Wolpe mentioning anti-Semitic tropes as being pagan is offensive to many. Judith Bulter, a well-known Jewish theologian, was a frequent co-author of Goddess follower Carol Christ. This blanket identification of anti-Semitism and Paganism is, in my view, patently untrue. “Hug a tree or a dollar bill, and the pagan in you shines through,” Wolpe writes. I will ignore the hug a tree comment because, yes, that is a kind of Pagan. But when Wolpe writes about hugging a dollar bill, he references Donald Trump and Elon Musk, citing their greed and ego. While I agree that commercialism has definitely dug its claws into Paganism, and this should be addressed in academic and popular circles, many Pagan teachings are anti-consumerism. Not because Pagans do not like to purchase items for their craft but because they are aware of the effects of consumerism on the planet and developing nations. Wolpe writes, “This worship of the body—of beauty, which is another form of power—is a pagan inheritance.” This is true; acceptance of all body shapes and forms is part of contemporary Paganism, especially for people whose bodies don’t conform to conventional standards of beauty, such as those who are disabled. However, Wolpe doesn’t write about this veneration of the body in all its forms. Instead, he admonishes and blames paganism for the Instagramization of culture, the plethora of cosmetic surgeries, drugs, and a glut of beauty products to reach a level of physical perfection. All this being a precursor, he claims, to the eventual development of “designer babies.” I must say I hadn’t heard or read that term in years; the last time being in an article on gene therapy and removing predispositions for cancers or genetic diseases. Wolpe also takes issue with some parts of Pagan theology and philosophy, which place humans as part of the animal kingdom and not above it. Most Pagan authors I have read do this to underscore humanity’s role as a steward of the Earth and not as its master. However, Wolpe takes this idea to say that pagans are for treating people the way we do animals when they are injured. That we shoot horses when they are injured so why would we view a sick child with more compassion? He takes a small part of an interview with Peter Singer, writing that, For those who believe that the pagan outlook has no consequences, Singer illustrated the radical difference between believing that human beings are created in the image of God and believing that they are animals like other animals. Wolpe is referring to a part of an interview where Singer discussed allowing life support to be removed from a child. However, there is no context to this, which I believe is by design. Wolpe implies that pagans believe that parents should be allowed to end their child’s life if it “is not one that is going to be a benefit for the child or for their family.” This is clearly a strawman argument, much like that of Republicans when discussing late-term abortions. The parent is presented as someone lazy and heartless rather than someone who is learning their child may never live without pain, nor will they ever wake up after an accident. They must then consider what is the best option for the mental and emotional health of the child and the family. The few times Wolpe does discuss ancient paganism, he again fundamentally misunderstands how it was practiced in the ancient world. He writes, “The virtue that falls furthest in the pagan pantheon of traits is humility,” stating that when people embraced humility and sexual restraint, Rome fell. These paragraphs make me question whether Wolpe has ever read Greek mythology, which contains many cautionary tales of what befalls those who claim to be better than the gods or turn their backs on the people. As the slave said to Caeser, “You’re only human.” Wolpe ends his article by stating that “Monotheism, at its best, acknowledges genuine humility about our inability to know what God is and what God wishes.” I could only wonder where he got that idea; having been raised Catholic, I was told for years that we knew exactly what God thought was …
How do you say what The Mago Work is? by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang & Mago Circle Members

It took many years for me to pronounce the communal nature of the Mago Work. Defining the Mago Work necessarily endows us with the bird’s eye view of the Great Goddess, the primordial consciousness of WE in S/HE. Early this year, I asked people to define the Mago Work and their definitions are illuminating about what this book ultimately seeks to achieve.[1]
(Meet Mago Contributor) Tamara Wyndham

I have been making art all my life; encouraged by my mother, an artist. My mother died of cancer when I was almost 9 years old: the trauma catalyzed my journey into art making. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, I studied traditional drawing and painting at California State University, Long Beach; and more experimental drawing, book works, and performance at the University of California at Irvine.I moved to New York City upon graduation; a difficult time for me to find my way in the world. But I became active in various feminist, political, and arts communities. I traveled through Mexico and Central America by myself for one year in 1984-1985, painting and learning about the places I visited. I then became trained as a technical illustrator for archaeologists. I worked on seven excavations in Egypt, as well as excavations in Turkey, Spain, Belize, and California. Making accurate line drawings of artifacts. 1995-2013. These experiences, and my own study of ancient cultures and mythology have informed my personal art. I continued to work on my personal art during this time. I have been awarded artist residencies at the Henry Street Settlement, the Kate Millett Art Colony, the Vermont Studio Center, the Maříž Ceramic Workshop in the Czech Republic, Fundación Valparaíso in Mojácar, Spain, and an artist’s fellowship from Earthwatch to work in Orce, Spain.
(Essay) The Revolution Remembered – A Spiritual Quest in Egypt by Harita Meenee

January, 25 is the anniversary of the Egyptian revolution of 2011, which had a profound impact on many parts of the world. This article explores my own journey to Egypt, highlighting the interplay between activism, radical politics, and spirituality. Life is full of contradictions, isn’t it? Yet sometimes these contradictions provide the most fertile ground for growth. I live in Greece, a country that has powerful Goddess traditions, yet Goddess spirituality here is hard to find. Even the feminist movement has been virtually non-existent for long and only in recent years it has been rising from its ashes. For a long time, I’ve been facing a challenge how could I be a Goddess activist in a part of the world without any Goddess activism I had no other choice but to turn to the movements unfolding right before my eyes. “Walking the talk” has taken a very literal meaning for me. I’ve marched countless miles protesting against wars, austerity measures, racism, fascism, homophobia, transphobia, etc. My activist work has taken me beyond Greek borders at times. Surprising as it may sound, my most profound experiences were connected not to Greece but to Egypt. These two countries may seem very different at first glance, yet they’re close in many ways. They share the same sea, the Mediterranean, which facilitates the contact between diverse peoples and cultures. Over the centuries, Greece and Egypt became a part of the same empires. They were conquered by Alexander the Great at first and later on were taken over by the Romans, the Byzantines, and the Ottomans. Greeks flourished in Egypt in the 19th and 20th centuries. Nowadays, there’s a Hellenic minority living there while an Egyptian one has settled in Greece. My personal connection to Kemet, the “Black Land,” as her ancient inhabitants used to call Egypt, goes way back in the past. My first visit there—a profoundly spiritual experience—was in my early twenties. This mysterious country became ever-present in my thoughts from the time of the revolution in January 2011. By a strange coincidence (or maybe I should say synchronicity), a gift arrived at my hands those very days: Horus, the falcon-headed son of Isis (or Aset, as they called her in times past), a replica of an ancient figurine brought to me by an Egyptian friend. Who would have thought that my life would change that day? Maybe it was the magic of Isis or the awe-inspiring beauty of the “Black Land.” Perhaps it was the earth-shaking energy of the Revolution or all of these combined. As a result of the strange events happening those days, I set out on a quest. I was struggling with a huge workload at the time, yet I closely followed Egyptian politics while also reading about ancient myths and rituals. I remember myself lying in a hospital bed—I had just woken up after an operation. The first thing I did was to open Plutarch’s Isis and Osiris, a rich source on Egyptian Mysteries through the eyes of a Greek who lived in Roman times. Isis, Osiris, Sekhmet, and Horus receiving offerings. National Archaeological Museum of Athens. © Harita Meenee Plutarch wrote that Isis embodied the fertile parts of Egypt while her sister, Nephthys, represented its barren places.[1] Isis and Egypt became one in my mind, personifying the archetypal Divine Mother. The myth about Isis discovering Osiris’ scattered members felt alarming real. Parts of myself were missing and I had to go to the ancient land of Kemet to search for them. My Journey to Revolutionary Egypt Much as my friends were trying to dissuade me from visiting a country in revolutionary turmoil, I decided to travel to Egypt again, hoping to find an answer to the riddles in my mind. It was November of 2011. The country was ruled by SCAF, the military council that had taken over after the dictator Hosni Mubarak had been ousted. The spirit of the revolution was alive and well, so once again the people of Egypt organized massive mobilizations. I was aware of the dangers in protesting in Egypt. For months I had been in touch with activists and had read lots of horror stories. Questions were pounding on my mind. What if the demonstration was attacked by security forces, armed thugs, and snipers, as had happened during the revolution What if I got arrested and ended up in one of the country’s notorious jails where political prisoners were routinely raped and tortured But I couldn’t miss the opportunity to join the rally in Cairo, thus I decided to take the risk. So, there I was, in Tahrir, whose name means “Liberation,” the iconic square of the January revolution. I had been there just a few days earlier to visit the world-famous Museum of Cairo. That first visit was a pilgrimage to the treasures of the past that have kept me under their spell for so long. Isis and Osiris were there, staring at me with their inlaid eyes, holding the key to secret longings. The second visit to Tahrir was a pilgrimage too but of a different nature. Demonstrating side by side with Egyptian revolutionaries felt like a dream come true. The place was overflowing with protesters, many of them women wearing the hijab, the Muslim scarf, on their heads. They were key figures, just like they had played a leading role during the January revolution. The author demonstrating on the streets around Tahrir, November, 2011. © Harita Meenee The march was huge, just like the rallies organized in other parts of the country. It was reported that three million people demonstrated that day all over Egypt. The atmosphere was almost festive. Protesters seemed proud and strong. The energy of the revolution was palpable—and there’s nothing like a revolution if you want to raise energy! Sameh Naguib, an Egyptian sociologist at the American University in Cairo, gives his own eyewitness account of what Tahrir was like during the days of January and February 2011: Tahrir Square was turning into a massive …
(NSN Highlight) Creatrix Studies Lifetime Education Certificate Program

[Editor’s Note: Nine Sister Networks (NSN) is the Return to Mago E-Magazine’s project undertaken to lead the movement of Matriversal Feminism, formerly called Goddess Feminist Activist Spirituality.] Mago Academy offers the Lifetime Education Certificate in Creatrix Studies (a non-degree track program), which operates in conjunction with the degree-track programs (MA, Ph.D., and MA/Ph.D. tracks). This Certificate Program operates by Mago Academy interdependently with Ubiquity University, which partners only for the degree-track programs (Students do not have to go through the requirements of Ubiquity University to attain the Creatrix Studies Lifetime Education Certificate until they decide to redeem the coursework toward the degree-track programs).Students may enroll courses with the concentration in one area of her preference. Designated areas of concentration include: Ceto-Magoism (Advisor: Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang), Great Goddesses (Advisor: Dr. Helen Benigni), Motherhood (Advisor: Dr. Nane Jordan), Matristic Korea (Advisor: Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang), and others. You may choose your advisor from Creatrix Studies Instructors upon the agreement with her. Who can apply: Anyone regardless of prior educational credentials (Bachelors’ degree is not required) Required Coursework: 17 credits (16 credits and the one credit course, Research Paper Writing, taught by your advisor) Tuition: US$100 per course (you are regarded as an auditor for all registered courses) Concentration Areas: Ceto-Magoism (Advisor: Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang), Great Goddesses (Advisor: Dr. Helen Benigni), Motherhood (Advisor: Dr. Nane Jordan), Matristic Korea (Advisor: Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang), Healing & Solidarity (tentative), Indigenous Spirituality (tentative), Decolonialism (tentative), Matricentric Shamanism (tentative), Matricentric Myths (tentative), Art, Poetry & Rituals (tentative), Eco-feminism (tentative), Intercosmic Consciousness (tentative), Matristic History (tentative), and others. Coursework Outcomes: Have learned about Embodied Knowing that transforms one’s state of being/living/doing from within. Have discovered the Great Unity of ALL (including inorganic entities) in the Matriverse. Have developed your expertise in demonstrating how the consciousness of the Cosmic Mother has shaped a particular manifestation of modern civilization through the mythic, cultural, and historical texts across cultures. Have found a wide and deep connection in a tangible manner with the likely-minded community of researchers, scholars, and advocates as well as non-human species.Find details here: Creatrix Studies Lifetime Education Certificate
(Announcement) Mago Wickedary of Goddess Feminist Activism, 4 Year Projects

Dear RTM Contributors and Readers, Upon our 5th anniversary on August 15, 2015, Mago Books is pleased to announce a practice of Maternal/Gynocentric Gift Economy in the form of Gynapedia/Mago Wickedary of Goddess Feminist Activism. Mago Books seeks encyclopedic articles on (1) persons/organizations, (2) feminist/gynocentric notions, (3) animals/plants/nature. These articles will be first published in Gynapedia, Online Gynocentric Encyclopedia. We aim at publishing them as three books in the form of E-Books and/or Print Books within the coming 4 years by Sept. Equinox of 2021. On a perennial basis, one can become Author for Gynapedia and create pages. Please find the proposal form below and submit it accordingly. What is the Gynapedia/Mago Wickedary Project about? It is one of the things that we CAN do in the face of ever-accelerating patriarchal assaults. We trust that the speed of our minds/hearts/souls runs faster than that of the former. The project is conceived as an extension and continuation of the Mago Gift Work aligned with Maternal/Gynocentric Gift Economy. Ultimately, we do this to give ourselves, communities, and the terrestrial eco-community what we are universally given by our mothers, ancestors, and the Cosmic Mother. Advocating the Gift Economy, Genevieve Vaughan writes, “We are born into a Gift Economy practiced by those who mother us, enabling us to survive. The economy of exchange, quid pro quo, separates us from each other and makes us adversarial, while gift giving and receiving creates mutuality and trust.” The project of Gynapedia/Mago Wickedary of Goddess feminist activism aims at channeling the Sisterly dynamic (Inter-cosmic Sisterhood) in which one’s self-motivated giving/sharing for the cause of ALL in WE empowers both the receiver and the giver, the Original Dynamic of the Creatrix. Simply put, we aspire to host the Metamorphic Nature of the Gift Economy; our giving/sharing of gifts/talents/resources transforms us all and saves the inter-specieal terrestrial community (Yes, we humans are responsible for the survival of animals, plants and nature as well). Outcome of such dynamic is Sisterly trust and bond that animate all in WE. In this mechanism, we experience the divine providence of our giving and receiving, which guides us into an ever-deepening commitment to look after the Whole. The term, Wickedary, is borrowed from Mary Daly’s Websters’ First New Intergalactic Wickedary of the English Language in Cahoots with Jane Caputi. As the title suggests, Mago Wickedary is propelled by the vision of Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, advocate of Magoism who was immensely influenced by Mary Daly. Gynapedia/Mago Wickedary of Goddess Feminist Activism is perceived as the third type of the collective writing project that the Mago Work has undertaken after She Rises series and Celebrating the Goddess series. Project Categories (not in priority order): (1) Persons and organizations (writers, researchers, advocates, poets, artists, musicians, and others) (2) Feminist/gynocentric notions (3) Animals, plants and nature Publishing Media: Gynapedia (Free Online Gynocentric Encyclopedia), E-books, and/or Print Books Deadline: Ongoing till Jan. 31, 2021. Primary Deadline Jan. 31, 2018. The Persons and Organizations Category: This book will build on the bio data of Mago Work collective writing projects’ contributors including She Rises Volume 1 and She Rises Volume 2, Celebrating Seasons of the Goddess Volume 1, Return to Mago E-Magazine, Mago Pool Circle and Gynapedia but does NOT exclude other Goddess feminist activist writers, artists, poets, researchers, advocates, musicians, educators, and others. Proposal Form for all three categories: 1. Your name, country/state/city of residence 2. Contact email, and/or website(s) 3. Categories of your articles (one may write for multiple categories): (1) Persons and organizations (writers, researchers, advocates, poets, artists, musicians, and others) (2) Feminist/gynocentric notions (3) Animals, plants and nature 4. List of your accomplishments (briefly describe them in the spirit of Gift Economy, if appropriate) 5. Please indicate if you can create page(s) in Gynapedia directly. If so, list your online article(s) instead of below. If you do not wish to become a Gynapedia Author, please refer to below: Proposed entry word count: up to 2000 words (include URLs for interlinking) Font: Times New Roman (12 font size, 1 spaced) Style: Chicago Style, footnotes (if applicable) Illustrations: As attachment of jpg files (must be 300 dpi) Submission: Email submission only, to Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang magopoolcircle@gmail.com (State “Gynapedia/Mago Wickedary Proposal” in the subject line of your email. Proposal Form for Persons and organizations: Write the summary of your biography (no more than 100 words strictly) AND answer the proposal form below (all together 1000 words). Attach your self-photo image and/or a couple of other images in your email. Please use the following proposal form (you may answer them selectively). 1. Your name, country/state/city of residence 2. Contact email, and/or website(s) 3. Your area of specialty (research, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, prose, art, photography, advocacy, social movement) 4. List of your accomplishments (briefly describe them in the spirit of Gift Economy, if appropriate) 5. What makes you become a Goddessian, feminist, and/or activist? 6. How did you come to arrive at where/what you are as a Goddessian, feminist, and/or activist? 7. As a Goddessian, feminist, and/or activist, what do you aspire for yourself, the young, and/or the world? 8. Something that you want to give/share with the Goddess feminist activism community and/or the world. 9. Please indicate if you can create page(s) in Gynapedia directly. If so, list your online article(s) instead of below. If you do not wish to become a Gynapedia Author, please refer to below: Proposed entry word count: up to 2000 words (include URLs for interlinking) Font: Times New Roman (12 font size, 1 spaced) Style: Chicago Style, footnotes (if applicable) Illustrations: As attachment of jpg files (must be 300 dpi) Submission: Email submission only, to Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang (magopoolcircle@gmail.com) (State “Gynapedia/Mago Wickedary Proposal” in the subject line of your email.) Mago Books is seeking volunteer Authors and Coeditors for these books as well as Gynapedia. Please contact Dr. Hwang (magoism@gmail.com). In gratitude of RTM Editorial Volunteers! Support The Mago Work/The Mago Pod!
(Poem) My Female Body by Mary Saracino

a drawing I made, Vibrant Life, photo credit: Mary Saracino My body is the home of my soul the house of my desires it has known chaos and violation it has known joy and jubilation it knows the insults of all that would not honor it which is to say our culture that devalues all that is female even as society denies that reality this body is my home, my house, my sanctuary this body is inviolable, innately holy the home of my soul my sacred cells, my blessed blood my tears, my laughter, my eyes that see, my tongue that names my heart that knows my mind that refuses to forget my hands that resist the chains my legs, strong and free that dance and jump and run home, run home, run home to me https://www.magoism.net/2013/05/meet-mago-contributor-mary-saracino
(Essay) Conceiving, Imagining the New at Samhain by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

It is the Season of Samhain/Deep Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere at this time. In the PaGaian version of Samhain/Deep Autumn ceremony participants journey to the “Luminous World Egg” … a term taken from Starhawk in her book The Spiral Dance[i], where she also names that place as the “Shining Isle”, which is of course, the Seed of conception, a metaphor for the origins of all and/or the female egg: it is the place for rebirth. Artist: Bundeluk, Blue Mountains, Australia. The “luminous world egg” is a numinous place within, the MotherStar of conception: that is, a place of unfolding/becoming. The journey to this numinous place within requires first a journey back, through some of each one’s transformations, however each may wish to name those transformations at this time. The transformations for each and every being are infinite in their number, for there is “nothing we have not been” as has been told by Celts and others of Old, and also by Western science in the evolutionary story (a story told so well by evolutionary biologist Elisabet Sahtouris, particularly in her video Journey of a Silica Atom.) Ceremonial participants may choose selves from biological, present historical self, or may choose selves from the mythic with whom they feel connection; from any lineage – biological or otherwise. Selves may also be chosen from Gaia’s evolutionary story – earlier creatures, winged or scaled ones … with whom one wishes to identify at this time. Each participant is praised for their “becoming” for each self they share. When all have completed these journeys/stories of transformation, the circle is lauded dramatically by the celebrant for their courage to transform; and she likens them all to Gaia Herself who has made such transitions for eons. The celebrant awards each with a gingerbread snake, “Gaian totems of life renewed”[ii]. gingerbread snakes Participants sit and consume these gingerbread snakes in three parts: (i) as all the “old shapes” of self that were named; and (ii) remembering the ancestors, those whose lives have been harvested, whose lives have fed our own, remembering that we too are the ancestors, that we will be consumed; and (iii) remembering and consuming the stories of our world that they desire to change, the stories that fire their wrath or sympathy: in the consuming, absorbing them (as we do), each may transform them by thoughts and actions – “in our own bodyminds”. When all that is consumed “wasting no part”, it is said that “we are then free to radiate whatever we conceive”, to “exclaim the strongest natural fibre known” – our creative selves, “into such art, such architecture, as can house a world made sacred” by our building[iii]. This “natural fibre” is a reference to the spider’s thread from within her own body, with which she weaves her web, her home; and Spider has frequently been felt in indigenous cultures around the globe as Weaver and Creator of the Cosmos. Spider the Creatrix, North America, C. 1300 C.E., Hallie Iglehart Austen, The Heart of the Goddess, p.13 In the ceremony, participants linked with a thread that they weave around the circle, may sail together for a new world “across the vast sunless sea between endings and beginnings, across the Womb of magic and transformation, to the “Not-Yet” who beckons”[iv]: to the Luminous World Egg whereupon the new may be conceived and dreamed up. Samhain/Deep Autumn ceremony is an excellent place for co-creating ourselves, for imaginingthe More that we may become, and wish to become. This is where creation and co-creation happens … in the Womb of Space[v], in which we are immersed – at all times: and Samhain is a good season for feeling it. References: Livingstone, Glenys. PaGaian Cosmology: Re-inventing Earth-based Goddess Religion. NE: iUniverse, 2005 Sahtouris, Elisabet. Earthdance: Living Systems in Evolution. Lincoln NE:iUniversity Press, 2000. Starhawk, The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Great Goddess. NY: Harper and Row, 1999. Swimme, Brian. The Earth’s Imagination.DVD series 1998. NOTES: [i]p.210 [ii]a version of this Samhain script is offered in Chapter 7 PaGaian Cosmology [iii]These quoted phrases are from Robin Morgan, “The Network of the Imaginary Mother”, in Lady of the Beasts, p.84. This poem is a core inspiration of the ceremony. [iv]“Not-Yet” is a term used by Brian Swimme, The Earth’s Imagination, video 8 “The Surprise of Cosmogenesis”. [v]note that creation does not happen at the point of some god’s index finger, as imagined in the Sistine Chapel – what a takeover that is!

(Special Post 6) Why Goddess Feminism, Activism, or Spirituality? A Collective Writing

[Editor’s Note: This was first proposed in The Mago Circle, Facebook Group, on March 6, 2014. We have our voices together below and publish them in sequels. It is an ongoing project and we encourage our reader to join us! Submit yours today to Helen Hwang (magoism@gmail.com). Or visit and contact someone in Return to Mago’s Partner Organizations.] Esther Essinger “Why Goddess, when “GD” is perpetrating so much grief? 1) First, it’s vital to know that Goddess is NOT “GD” in a skirt. It is demanded of NO one that they “believe” or “have faith”, so there can be no guilt (and no punishment! (No Hell below us, thank you John) in NOT choosing to interest oneself in these particular Stories, myths, legends and tales which center the Cosmic Female, the Universal Mother, Mother Earth /Mother Nature at their core. No evangelism happening here!
(Special Post 2) Multi-linguistic Resemblances of “Mago” by Mago Circle Members

Artwork, “The-great-mother” by Julie Stewart Helen Hye-Sook Hwang: On the word, Magi/Magus, from Magi – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Magi (/ˈmeɪdʒaɪ/; singular magus /ˈmeɪɡəs/; from Latin magus) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word magi is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius the Great, known as the Behistun Inscription. Old Persian texts, predating the Hellenistic period, refer to a magus as a Zurvanic, and presumably Zoroastrian, priest. Pervasive throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia until late antiquity and beyond, mágos was influenced by (and eventually displaced) Greek goēs (γόης), the older word for a practitioner of magic, to include astronomy/astrology, alchemy and other forms of esoteric knowledge. This association was in turn the product of the Hellenistic fascination for (Pseudo‑)Zoroaster, who was perceived by the Greeks to be the Chaldean founder of the Magi and inventor of both astrology and magic, a meaning that still survives in the modern-day words “magic” and “magician”. In the Gospel of Matthew, “μάγοι” (magoi) from the east do homage to the newborn Jesus, and the transliterated plural “magi” entered English from Latin in this context around 1200 (this particular use is also commonly rendered in English as “kings” and more often in recent times as “wise men”).[1] The singular “magus” appears considerably later, when it was borrowed from Old French in the late 14th century with the meaning magician. … An unrelated term, but previously assumed to be related, appears in the older Gathic Avestan language texts. This word, adjectival magavan meaning “possessing maga-“, was once the premise that Avestan maga- and Median (i.e. Old Persian) magu- were co-eval (and also that both these were cognates of Vedic Sanskrit magha-). While “in the Gathas the word seems to mean both the teaching of Zoroaster and the community that accepted that teaching”, and it seems that Avestan maga- is related to Sanskrit magha-, “there is no reason to suppose that the western Iranian form magu (Magus) has exactly the same meaning”[4] as well. But it “may be, however”, that Avestan moghu (which is not the same as Avestan maga-) “and Medean magu were the same word in origin, a common Iranian term for ‘member of the tribe’ having developed among the Medes the special sense of ‘member of the (priestly) tribe’, hence a priest.”[2]cf[3] Helen Hye-Sook Hwang: On the word, Gaia, from Gaia (mythology) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia In Greek mythology, Gaia (/ˈɡaɪə, ˈɡeɪə/ GHY-ə, GAY-ə;[1] from Ancient Greek Γαῖα, a poetical form of Γῆ Gē, “land” or “earth”),[2] also spelled Gaea (/ˈdʒiːə/ JEE-ə),[1] is the personification of the Earth[3] and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother of all life: the primal Mother Earth goddess. She is the mother of Uranus (the sky), from whose sexual union she bore the Titans (themselves parents of many of the Olympian gods) and the Giants, and of Pontus (the sea), from whose union she bore the primordial sea gods. Her equivalent in the Roman pantheon was Terra.[4] … The Greek name Γαῖα (Gaĩa)[5] is a mostly epic, collateral form of Attic Γῆ[6] (Gê), Doric Γᾶ (Gã, perhaps identical to Δᾶ Dã)[7] meaning “Earth”, a word of uncertain origin.[8] Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin.[9] In Mycenean Greek Ma-ka (transliterated as Ma-ga, “Mother Gaia”) also contains the root ga-.[9][10] Helen Hye-Sook Hwang: Greek mythology of Gaia’s family tree is remotely evocative of the Magoist genealogy written in the Budoji (Epic of the Emblem City), the principale text of Magoism. In Korean, “Mama” is also an honorary title referring to the royal family including ruler, ruler’s mother, father, grandmother and so on. This suggests that “ma” means “mother,” “ruler,” and “Goddess” all at once in gynocentric/gynocratic (Magoist/Magocratic) societies, pre-patriarchal in origin. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang: I came to search the etymology of “montgomery” in relation to Mt. Mago or Mt. Goya and am led to such related terms as Gomer, Gog, Magog. Montgomery (name) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Montgomery or Montgomerie is a surname from a place name in Normandy.[1] Although there are many stories of its origin,[2][3][4][5] An old theory explains that the name is a corruption of “Gomer’s Mount” or “Gomer’s Hill” (Latin: Mons Gomeris), any of a number of hills in Europe named in attribution to the biblical patriarch Gomer,[2] but it does not explain the final -y or -ie (the phonetical evolution would have been *Montgomers) and it does not correspond to the old mentions of the place name Montgommery in Normandie : Monte Gomeri in 1032 – 1035, de Monte Gomerico in 1040 and de Monte Gumbri in 1046 – 1048.[6] More relevant is the explanation by the Germanic first name Gumarik,[7] a compound of guma “man” (see bridegroom) and rik “powerful”, that regularly gives the final -ry (-ri) in the French first names and surnames (Thierry, Amaury, Henry, etc.). Moreover, the name is still used as a surname in France as Gommery,[8] from the older first name Gomeri.[9] Helen Hye-Sook Hwang: On the word, Gomer below from Wikipedia. Gomer (גֹּמֶר, Standard Hebrew Gómer, Tiberian Hebrew Gōmer, pronounced [ɡoˈmeʁ]) was the eldest son of Japheth (and of the Japhetic line), and father of Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah, according to the “Table of Nations” in the Hebrew Bible, (Genesis 10). The eponymous Gomer, “standing for the whole family,” as the compilers of the Jewish Encyclopedia expressed it,[1] is also mentioned in Book of Ezekiel 38:6 as the ally of Gog, the chief of the land of Magog. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang: On the word, Gog and Magog from Wikipedia. Gog and Magog: They are depicted as monsters and barbarians from the East/Eurasia. Gog and Magog (/ɡɒɡ/; /ˈmeɪɡɒɡ/; Hebrew: גּוֹג וּמָגוֹג Gog u-Magog; Arabic: يَأْجُوج وَمَأْجُوج Yaʾjūj wa-Maʾjūj) are names that appear in the Hebrew bible (Old Testament), the Book of Revelation and the Qur’an, sometimes indicating individuals and sometimes lands and peoples. Sometimes, but not always, they are connected with the “end times”, and the passages from the book of Ezekiel and Revelation in particular have attracted attention for this reason. From ancient times to the late Middle Ages Gog and Magog were identified with Eurasian nomads such as the Khazars, Huns and Mongols (this was true also for Islam, where they were identified first with Turkic tribes of Central Asia and later with the Mongols). Throughout this period they were conflated with various other legends, notably those concerning Alexander the Great, the Amazons, Red Jews, and the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel, and became the subject of much fanciful literature. In modern times they remain associated with apocalyptic thinking, especially in the United States and the Muslim world. Helen […]
(Special Post Mother Teresa 2) A Role Model for Women? by Mago Circle Members

[Editorial Note: The following is an edited version of the discussion that took place spontaneously on Mago Circle from March 1, 2013 for about two weeks. It was an extensive, heated, yet reflective discussion, now broken into four parts to fit the format of the blog. We thank each and all of the participants for your openness, generosity, and courage to stand up for what you believe and think! Some are marked as anonymous. As someone stated, something may have been “written in the heat of the moment” and some might like to change it at a later time. So we inform our readers that nothing is written in stone. As a matter of fact, the discussion is ongoing, now with Magoism Blog readers. Please comment and respond as you wish.] Part II: We Disagree! Stand up for what you believe but be open-minded! Naa Ayele Kumari: I am going to step away from the common responses and say this… Binary is only no in betweens if you choose sides and can’t see the whole. I have been a part of black consciousness movements and women’s movements and both have the capacity for progress as well as extreme viewpoints. Both have the capacity to become so hypercritical that the movement itself transcends common human compassion and understanding. Mother Teresa was a human being with flaws and goodness. She had a public image and private fears and insecurities.. l like all of us. She lived her life the best way she knew how.. Like all of us. She made mistakes.. misjudgments.. Like all of us. But she also DID help and inspire others to help too. It is this dualistic thinking that forces people to feel like they have to assign the label of good or bad and no in between. None of us are all good or all bad.. so it seems to me that to label her has an evil traitor who let people die is no better than labeling her an Angel of god who did no wrong. She was a woman who lived her life and managed to come to worldwide fame and inspire others to love at a time and in an institution that was highly patriarchal and women were not raised up at all. Mother Goddesses in Africa were known for great nurturing and care symbolized by carrying a baby and also carried a machete on the other side for justice. This was the fine balance of wholeness…she was the gentle rain and the storm.. This was binary, but not one or the other but both.. Opposite ends of the same pole. [H]: I’m having a powerful visceral effect from this conversation. I feel as if I’m going to vomit violently. Mother Teresa comes to me in dreams and meditations. Makes me wonder what kind of person I’m seen as if I attract her energy. I have always felt so much love for her. Naa Ayele Kumari: If she comes in your dreams and it has been healing for you… Allow it/ her to continue to be healing for you. Its all about love and anything that is not love… Leave it be.. Vomiting is rejecting something that doesn’t belong with you. Embrace love my sister. Antonia McGuire: I think we may all agree that all belief systems initially began to promote a sense of goodness or fairness to some degree, but over time they are corrupted and produce both advantages and disadvantages. Donna Snyder: Yes, Gandhi, too. Back in the 90’s when I was in a band/performance art troupe called Central Nervous System, I shocked all the guys in the band coming out with an improv in response to a melody played on a banjo tuned like a sitar, called exactly that-Yes, Gandhi. Now make no mistake, he is one of my heroes, devoid of the falsified sentimentality that clings to MT. Gandhi’s work was for the world, for the masses, not for the appropriately humbled. Yet I spoke out about his sexual practices, his use of female bodies. Telling the truth about a hero requires courage. Retreating into a blind defense of a myth is a form of ethical cowardice. Anne Wilkerson Allen: Strangely I had a discussion with someone about the “hero’s journey” moving from metaphorical to physical being part of the problem…..when the “demons” are human instead of our own flaws, there seems to be a tendency to point the finger (and gun barrel) elsewhere. [B]: Fascinating & thought-provoking conversation, all. I think the biggest stumbling block I have with MT is how her acceptance of the dogma of the Catholic church blinded her to seeing and then being moved by the suffering of others enough to do something to alleviate & not vicariously celebrate it. No wonder she “suffered a lack of connection with the Divine”. This crisis with her spirituality seems to have been divorced from her and others’ body wisdom. Self-abnegation (perhaps not the same as “sacrifice”) ultimately backfires because some small part of us insists, “I am worthy!” To which I say, “We are all worthy!” [H]: I do not see or feel that she vicariously celebrated the suffering of others. I feel that she devoted her life to deeply loving and serving the poorest of the poor. I have not been to Calcutta and I have also seen some unimaginable poverty in India that is not like anything that I’ve been exposed to before. I truly believe that she had a very deep way of working with suffering that is not necessarily visible to those more accustomed to modern medical intervention and the resources available for such. I have participated in a very small amount of poverty medicine and the resources that we take for granted are just not readily available to MANY. I learned very powerfully from my experience how blessed and fortunate and often very careless we really are with our precious resources. This discussion has been a learning experience for me. I am trying to not take the critical comments […]

(Video) Autumn Equinox/Mabon Poetry by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

The Autumnal Equinox occurs each year in the range of March 20-23 in the Southern Hemisphere, and in the range of September 20 -23 in the Northern Hemisphere. Autumn Equinox is a point of sacred balance: it is the point of balance in the dark part of Earth’s annual cycle. Sun is equidistant between North and South as it was/is at Spring Equinox, but in this dark phase of the cycle, the trend is toward increasing dark. Henceforth the dark part of the day will exceed the light part: thus it is a Moment of certain descent … and a sacred Moment for feeling and contemplating the grief and power of loss, for ceremoniously joining personal and collective grief and loss with the larger Self in whom we are. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcZflKLkvP8 Below is the text of the video. It is based on the traditional poetry for PaGaian Autumn Equinox/Mabon ceremony[i]. This is the Moment of the Autumnal Equinox in our Hemisphere – the moment of balance of light and dark in the dark part of the cycle. The light and dark parts of the day in the South and in the North of our planet, are of equal length at this time. We feel for the balance in this moment – Earth as She is poised in relationship with the Sun … breathing in the light, swelling with it, letting our breath go to the dark, staying with it. In our part of Earth, the balance is tipping into the dark. We remember the coolness of it. This is the time when we give thanks for our harvests – all that we have gained. And we remember too the sorrows, losses involved. The story of Old tells us that Persephone, Beloved Daughter, is given the wheat from Her Mother – the Mystery, knowledge of life and death. She receives it graciously. But she sets forth into the darkness – both Mother and Daughter grieve that it is so. Demeter, the Mother, says: “You are offered the wheat in every moment … I let you go as Child, most loved of Mine: you descend to Wisdom, to Sovereignty. You will return as Mother, co-Creator with me. You are the Seed in the Fruit, becoming the Fruit in the Seed. Inner Wisdom guides your path.” We give thanks for our harvests – our lives they are blessed. We are Daughters and Sons of the Mother. Yet we take our Wisdom and all that we have gained, and remember the sorrows – the losses involved. We remember the grief of the Mother, of mothers and lovers everywhere, our grief. Persephone descends. The Beloved One is lost. Persephone goes forth into the darkness to become Queen of that world. She tends the sorrows. The Seed represents our Persephones, who tends the sorrows – we are the Persephones, who may tend the sorrows. We go out into the night with Her and plant our seeds. Persephone blesses us with her fertile promise: “You have waxed into the fullness of life, And waned into darkness; May you be renewed in tranquility and wisdom[ii].” These represent our hope. The Seed of life never fades away. She is always present. Blessed be the Mother of all life. Blessed be the life that comes from Her and returns to Her. We tie red threads on each other: we participate in the Vision of the Seed – of the continuity of Life, that continues beneath the visible. The Mother knowledge grows within us. Our hope is in the Sacred Balance of the Cosmos – the Thread of Life, the Seed that never fades away: it is the Balance of Grief and Joy, the Care that we may feel in our Hearts. NOTES: [i] Glenys Livingstone, PaGaian Cosmology, p. 239-247. [ii] Charlene Spretrnak, Lost Goddesses of Early Greece, p. 116. REFERENCES: Livingstone, Glenys. PaGaian Cosmology: Re-inventing Earth-based Goddess Religion. NE: iUniverse, 2005. Spretnak, Charlene. Lost Goddesses of Early Greece: a Collection of Pre-Hellenic Myths. Boston: Beacon Press, 1992/1978.
Lammas/Late Summer in PaGaian tradition By Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

This essay is an edited excerpt from Chapter 5 of the author’s book PaGaian Cosmology: Re-inventing Earth-based Goddess Religion. Traditionally the dates for this Seasonal Moment are: Southern Hemisphere – Feb. 1st/2nd Northern Hemisphere – August 1st/2nd however the actual astronomical date varies. See archaeoastronomy.com for the actual moment. Lammas table/altar Lammas, as it is often called[1], is the meridian point of the first dark quarter of the year, between Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox; it is after the light phase has peaked and is complete, and as such, I choose it as a special celebration of the Crone/Old One. Within the Celtic tradition, it is the wake of Lugh, the Sun King, and it is the Crone that reaps him. But within earlier Goddess traditions, all the transformations were Hers[2]; and the community reflected on the reality that the Mother aspect of the Goddess, having come to fruition, from Lammas on would enter the Earth and slowly become transformed into the Old Woman-Hecate-Cailleach aspect …[3] I dedicate Lammas to the face of the Old One, just as Imbolc, its polar opposite on the Wheel in Old European tradition, is dedicated to the Virgin/Maiden face. The Old One, the Dark and Shining One, has been much maligned, so to celebrate Her can be more of a challenge in our present cultural context. Lammas may be an opportunity to re-aquaint ourselves with the Crone in her purity, to fall in love with Her again. I state the purpose of the seasonal gathering thus: This is the season of the waxing dark. The seed of darkness born at the Summer Solstice now grows … the dark part of the days grows visibly longer. Earth’s tilt is taking us back away from the Sun. This is the time when we celebrate dissolution; each unique self lets go, to the Darkness. It is the time of ending, when the grain, the fruit, is harvested. We meet to remember the Dark Sentience, the All-Nourishing Abyss, She from whom we arise, in whom we are immersed, and to whom we return. This is the time of the Crone, the Wise Dark One, who accepts and receives our harvest, who grinds the grain, who dismantles what has gone before. She is Hecate, Lillith, Medusa, Kali, Erishkagel,Chamunda, Coatlique – Divine Compassionate One, She Who Creates the Space to Be. We meet to accept Her transformative embrace, trusting Her knowing, which is beyond all knowledge. Lammas is the seasonal moment for recognizing that we dissolve into the “night” of the Larger Organism of whom we are part – Gaia. It is She who is immortal, from whom we arise, and into whom we dissolve. This celebration is a development of what was born in the transition of Summer Solstice; the dark sentient Source of Creativity is honoured. The autopoietic space in us recognizes Her, is comforted by Her, desires Her self-transcendence and self-dissolution; Lammas is an opportunity to be with our organism’s love of Larger Self – this Native Place. We have been taught to fear Her, but at this Seasonal Moment we may remember that She is the compassionate One, deeply committed to transformation, which is actually innate to us. Whereas at Imbolc/Early Spring, we shone forth as individual, multiforms of Her; at Lammas, we small individual selves remember that we are She and dissolve back into Her. We are the Promise of Lifeas was affirmed at Imbolc, but we are the Promise of Her- it is not ours to hold. We identify as the sacred Harvest at Lammas; our individual harvest isHer Harvest. We are the process itself – we are Gaia’s Process. Wedo not breathe (though of course we do), we borrow the breath, for a while. It is like a relay: we pick the breath up, create what we do during our time with it, and pass it on. The harvest we reap in our individual lives is important, andit is for us only short term; it belongs to the Cosmos in the long term. Lammas is a time for “making sacred” – as “sacrifice” may be understood; we may “make sacred” ourselves. As Imbolc was a time for dedication, so is Lammas. This is the wisdom of the phase of the Old One. She is the aspect that finds the “yes” to letting go, to loving the Larger Self, beyond all knowledge, and steps into the power of the Abyss; encouraged and nourished by the harvest, She will gradually move into the balance of Autumn Equinox/Mabon, the next Sesaonal Moment on the year’s cycle. References: Durdin-Robertson, Lawrence. The Year of the Goddess.Wellingborough: Aquarian Press, 1990. Gray, Susan. The Woman’s Book of Runes.New York: Barnes and Noble, 1999. Livingstone, Glenys. PaGaian Cosmology: Re-inventing Earth-based Goddess Religion. NE: iUniverse, 2005. McLean, Adam. The Four Fire Festivals. Edinburgh: Megalithic Research Publications, 1979. Notes: [1]See note 3. [2]Susan Gray, The Woman’s Book of Runes,p. 18. This is also to say that the transformations are within each being, not elsewhere, that is the “sacrifice” is not carried out by another external to the self, as could be and have been interpreted from stories of Lugh or Jesus. [3]Lawrence Durdin-Robertson, The Year of the Goddess, p.143, quoting Adam McLean, Fire Festivals,p.20-22. Another indication of the earlier tradition beneath “Lughnasad” is the other name for it in Ireland of “Tailltean Games”. Taillte was said to be Lugh’s foster-mother, and it was her death that was being commemmorated (Mike Nichols, “The First Harvest”, Pagan Alliance Newsletter NSW Australia). The name “Tailtunasad” has been suggested for this Seasonal Moment, by Cheryl Straffon editor of Goddess Alive! I prefer the name of Lammas, although some think it is a Christian term: however some sources say that Lammas means “feast of the bread” which is how I have understood it, and surely such a feast pre-dates Christianity. It is my opinion that the incoming Christians preferred “Lammas” to “Lughnasad”: the term itself is not Christian in origin. The evolution of all these things is complex, and we may evolve them further with our careful thoughts and experience.
(Video) Winter Solstice Breath Meditation by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

Winter Solstice/Yule Southern Hemisphere – June 20 – 23. Northern Hemisphere – December 20 – 23 Winter Solstice is a celebration of the Mother/Creator aspect of the Triple Goddess in particular – as both Solstices may be, as dark or light come to fullness. Winter Solstice Moment celebrates the ripe fullness of the Dark Womb, and the gateway from that fullness back into new growing light. It is a Birthing Place – into differentiated being, and Her birthing happens in every moment in the breath, and is seamlessly connected with all layers of being – of self, Earth and Cosmos. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDsVZzXtoyM The Text in the Meditation[i] Take a deep breath and let it go. Notice the Void at the bottom of emptying your breath … feeling it, and feeling the Urge to breathe as it arises. And again … feeling it over and over – this breath that arises out of the full emptiness in every moment, birthing you in every moment. – Recall some of the birthings in your life, your actual birth – see it there in your mind’s eye … you coming into being – your Nativity, your Nativity. Recall projects you have brought into being, new beings within yourself, perhaps children, new beings in others, how you have been Creator and Created – even at the same time … who was birthing who? Staying for a while with the many, many birthings in your life. – recalling now Earth-Gaia’s many birthings out of the Dark everyday … the dawn is constant as She turns. See Her in your mind’s eye – the constant dawning around the globe, the constant birthing. Recall Earth’s many births right now of all beings – as day breaks around the globe – the physical, emotional, spiritual births. Her many, many birthings everyday, and throughout the eons. recalling now Universe-Gaia’s many birthings – happening in every moment – right now in real time and space … supernovas right now, stars and planets being born right now. Her many, many birthings in every moment and throughout the eons. – recalling now Universe-Gaia’s many birthings – happening in every moment – right now in real time and space … supernovas right now, stars and planets being born right now. Her many, many birthings in every moment and throughout the eons. Come back to your breath – this wonder – none of it separate … the Origin Ever-Present, birthing you in every moment – out of Her Fertile Dark, in real time and space. Feeling this breath, Her breath. NOTES: [i] Glenys Livingstone, PaGaian Cosmology, Winter Solstice ceremonial script, p. 195-196. Reference: Glenys Livingstone, PaGaian Cosmology. Music: Fish Nite Moon by Tim Wheater, permission generously given Images: – Birth of the Goddess, Erich Neumann, The Great Mother, pl. 155. See https://pagaian.org/book/cover-goddess-image/ – Winter Solstice window, MoonCourt Australia 2016 – some sources unknown
(Essay) The Emergence celebrated at Spring Equinox by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

The Spring Equinox Moment occurs September 21-23 Southern Hemisphere, March 21-23 Northern Hemisphere. The full story of Spring Equinox is expressed in the full flower connected to the seed fresh from the earth; that is, it is a story of emergence from the dark, from a journey, perhaps long, perhaps short, through challenging places. The joy of the blossoming is rooted in the journey through the dark, and an acknowledgement of the dark’s fertile gift, as well as of great achievement in having made it, of having returned. Both Equinoxes, Spring and Autumn, celebrate this sacred balance of grief and joy, light and dark, and they are both celebrations of the mystery of the seed. The seed is essentially the deep Creativity within – that manifests in the Spring as flower, or green emerged One. the full story: the root and the flower As the new young light continues to grow at this time of Spring, it comes into balance with the dark at Spring Equinox, or ‘Eostar’ as it may be named; about to tip further into light when light will dominate the day. The trend at this Equinox is toward increasing hours of light: and thus it is about the power of being – life is stepping into it. Earth in this region is tilting further toward the Sun. Traditionally it may be storied as the joyful celebration of a Lost Beloved One, who may be represented by the Persephone story: She is a shamanic figure who is known for Her journey to the Underworld, and who at this time of Spring Equinox returns. Her Mother Demeter who has waited and longed for Her in deep grief, rejoices and so do all: warmth and growth return to the land. Persephone, the Beloved Daughter, the Seed, has navigated the darkness successfully, has enriched it with Her presence and also gained its riches. Eostar/Spring Equinox is the magic of the unexpected, yet long awaited, green emergence from under the ground, and then the flower: this emergence is especially profound as it is from a seed that has lain dormant for months or longer – much like the magic of desert blooms after long periods of drought. The name of “Eostar” comes from the Saxon Goddess Eostre/Ostara, the northern form of the Sumerian Astarte[i]. The Christian festival in the Spring, was named “Easter” as of the Middle Ages, appropriating Goddess/Earth tradition. The date of Easter, which is set for Northern Hemispheric seasons, is still based on the lunar/menstrual calendar; that is, the 1st Sunday after the first full Moon after Spring Equinox. In Australia where I am, “Easter” is celebrated in Autumn (!) by mainstream culture, so we have the spectacle of fluffy chickens, chocolate eggs and rabbits in the shops at that time. There are other names for “Eostar” in other places …the Welsh name for the Spring Equinox celebration is Eilir, meaning ‘regeneration’ or ‘spring’ – or ‘earth’[ii]. In my own PaGaian tradition, the Spring Equinox celebration is based on the Demeter and Persephone story, the version that is understand as pre-patriarchal, from Old Europe. In the oldest stories, Persephone has agency in Her descent: She descends to the underworld voluntarily as a courageous seeker of wisdom, and a compassionate receiver of the dead. She represents, and IS, the Seed of Life that never fades away. Spring Equinox is a celebration of Her return, Life’s continual return, and thus also our personal and collective emergences/returns.We may contemplate the collective emergence/returns especially in our times. I describe Persephone as a “hera”, which of old was a term for any courageous One. “Hera” was a pre-Hellenic name for the Goddess in general[iii]. “Hera” was the indigenous Queen Goddess of pre-Olympic Greece, before She was married off to Zeus. “Hero” was a term for the brave male Heracles who carried out tasks for his Goddess Hera: “The derivative form ‘heroine’ is therefore completely unnecessary”[iv]. “Hera” may be used as a term for any courageous individual: and participants in PaGaian Spring Equinox ceremony have named themselves this way. The pre-“Olympic” games of Greece were Hera’s games, held at Her Heraion/temple[v]. The winners were “heras” – gaining the status of being like Her[vi]. At the time of Spring Equinox, we may celebrate the Persephone, the Hera, the Courageous One, who steps with new wisdom, into power of being: the organic power that all beings must have, Gaian power, the power of the Cosmos. This Seasonal ceremony may be a rejoicing in how we have made it through great challenges and loss, faced our fears and our demise (in its various forms), had ‘close shaves’ – perhaps physically as well as psychicly and emotionally. It is a time to welcome back that which was lost, and step into the strength of being. Spring Equinox/Eostar is the time for enjoying the fruits of the descent, of the journey taken into the darkness: return is now certain, not tentative as it was in the Early Spring/Imbolc. Demeter, the Mother, receives the Persephones, Lost Beloved Ones, joyously. This may be understood as an individual experience, but also as a collective experience – as we emerge into a new Era as a species. Thomas Berry and Brian Swimme speak of the ending of the sixty-five million year geological Era – the Cenozoic Era – in our times, and our possible emergence into an Ecozoic Era. They describe the Ecozoic Era as a time when “the curvature of the universe, the curvature of the earth, and the curvature of the human are once more in their proper relation”[vii]. Joanna Macy speaks of the “Great Turning” of our times[viii]. Collectively we have been away from the Mother for some time and there is a lot of pain. At this time we may contemplate not only our own individual lost wanderings, but also that of the human species. We are part of a much bigger Return that is happening. The Beloved One may be understood as returning on a collective level: …
Summer Solstice Poiesis by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

Seasonal Wheel of Stones Both Summer and Winter Solstices may be understood as particular celebrations of the Mother/Creator aspect of the Creative Triplicity of the Cosmos (often named as the Triple Goddess). The Solstices are Gateways between the dark and the light parts of the annual cycle of our orbit around Sun; they are both sacred interchanges, celebrating deep relationship, communion, with the peaking of fullness of either dark or light, and the turning into the other. The story is that the Young One/Virgin aspect of Spring has matured and now at Summer Solstice her face changes into the Mother of Summer. Summer Solstice may be understood as a birthing place, as Winter Solstice may also be, but at this time the transiton is from light back into dark, returning to larger self, from whence we come: it is the full opening, the “Great Om”, the Omega. I represent the Summer Solstice on my altar wheel of stones with the Omega-yonic shape of the horseshoe. I take this inspiration from Barbara Walker’s description of the horseshoe in her Woman’s Encyclopaedia of Myths and Secrets, as “Goddess’s symbol of ‘Great Gate’[i]”; and her later connection of it with the Sheil-na-gig yoni display[ii]. Sri Yantra. Ref: A.T. Mann & Jane Lyle, p.75 Summer Solstice is traditonally understood as a celebration of Union between Lover and Beloved, and the deep meaning of that is essentially a Re-Union: of sensed manifest form (the Lover) with All-That-Is (the Beloved). This may be understood as a fullness of expression of this manifest form, the small selves that we are, being all that we may be, and giving of this fullness of being in every moment: that would be a blissful thing, like a Summerland as it was understood to be. The boundaries of the self are broken, they merge: all is given away – all is poured forth, the deep rich dark stream of life flows out. It is a Radiance, the shining forth of the self which is at the same time a give-away, a consuming of the self.In traditional PaGaian Summer ceremony each participant is affirmed as “Gift”[iii]; and that is understood to mean that we are both given and received – all at the same time. The breath is given and life is received. We receive the Gift with each breath in, and we are the Gift with each breath out. As we fulfill our purpose, as we give ourselves over, we dissolve, as the Sun is actually doing in every moment. The “moment of grace”[iv]that is Summer Solstice, marks the stillpoint in the height of Summer, when light reaches its peak, and Earth’s tilt causes the Sun to begin its “decline”: that is, its movement back to the South in the Northern Hemisphere (in June), and back to the North in the Southern Hemisphere (in December). Whereas at Winter Solstice when out of the darkness it is light that is “born”, as it may be expressed: at the peak of Summer, in the warmth of expansion, it is the dark that is “born”. Insofar as Winter Solstice is about birth, then Summer Solstice is about death, the passing into the harvest. It is a celebration of profound mystical significance, which may be confronting in a culture where the dark is not valued for its creative telios; and it is noteworthy that Summer Solstice has not gained any popularity of the kind that Winter Solstice has globally (as ‘Christmas’). The re-union with All-That-Is is not generally considered a jolly affair, though when understood it may actually be blissful. Full Flowers to the Flames Summer is a time when many grains ripen, deciduous trees peak in their greenery, lots of bugs and creatures are bursting with business and creativity: yet in that ripening, is the turning, the fulfilment of creativity, and it is given away. Like the Sun and the wheat and the fruit, we find the purpose of our Creativity in the releasing of it; just as our breath must be released for its purpose of life. The symbolism used to express this in ceremony has been the giving of a full rose/flower to the flames. Summer is like the rose, as it says in this tradition[v]– blossom and thorn … beautiful, fragrant, full – yet it comes with thorns that open the skin. All is given over. All is given over: the feast is for enjoying With the daily giving of ourselves in our everyday acts, we each feed the world with our lives: we do participate in creating the cosmos, as many indigenous traditions still recognise. Just as our everyday lives are built on the fabric of the work/creativity of all who went before us, so the future, as well as the present, is built on ours, no matter how humble we may think our contribution is. We may celebrate the blossoming of our creativity then, which is Creativity, and the bliss of that blossoming, at a time when Earth and Sun are pouring forth their abundance, giving it away. In this Earth-based cosmology, what is given is the self fully realized and celebrated, not a self that is abnegated – just as the fruit gives its full self: as Starhawk says, “Oneness is attained not through losing the self, but through realizing it fully”[vi]. Everyday tasks can be joyful, if valued, and graciously received: I think of Eastern European women singing as they work in the fields – it is a common practice still for many. We are the Bread of Life Summer Solstice celebrates Mother Sun coming to fullness in Her creative engagement with Earth, and we are the Sun. Solstice Moment is a celebration of communion, the feast of life – which is for the enjoying, not for the holding onto. We do desire to be received, to be consumed – it is our joy and our grief. Brian Swimme says: “Every moment of our lives disappears into the ongoing story of the Universe. Our creativity is energising the whole[vii]”. As it may be ceremoniously affirmed: we are (each is) …
(Essay) Contemplating How Her Creativity Proceeds by Glenys Livingstone Ph.D.

This essay is an edited excerpt from the conclusion of chapter 5 of the author’s book, PaGaian Cosmology: Re-inventing Earth-based Goddess Religion. It is a chapter on the process of the Wheel of the Year. for the Northern Hemisphere version: https://pagaian.org/pagaian-wheel-of-the-year/ It seems to me that the main agenda of the Cosmos is ongoing Creativity, “never-ending renewal” it may be termed, and that this is expressed in Earth’s Seasonal Wheel through the transitions of Autumn,Winter, Spring, Summer; and in the ubiquitous process of a Cosmic Triplicity of Space to Be, Urge to Be and this Place of Being, a dynamic that has often been imagined as the Triple Goddess. In the flow of the PaGaian Wheel of the Year, the Seasonal transitions of the Wheel and the Triplicity of the Cosmos come together. There are two celebrations of the Old One/Crone or the Cosmogenetic quality of autopoiesis creating the Space to Be; and they are Lammas/Late Summer and Samhain/Deep Autumn, which are the meridian points of the two quarters of the waxing dark phase. At Lammas, the first in the dark phase, we may identify with the dark and ancient Wise One – dissolve into Her; at Samhain, we may consciously participate in Her process of the transformation of death/the passing of all. The whole dark part of the cycle is about dissolving/dying/letting go of being – becoming – nurturing it (the midwifing of Lammas/Late Summer), stepping into the power of it (the certain departure of Autumn Equinox/Mabon), the fertility (of Samhain/Deep Autumn), the peaking of it (at Winter Solstice). The meridian points of the two quarters of the waxing light phase then are celebrations of the Young One/Virgin or the Cosmogenetic quality of differentiation, the new continually emerging, the Urge to Be; and they are Imbolc/Early Spring and Beltaine/High Spring. At Imbolc, the first in the light phase, we may identify with She who is shining and new – as we take her form; at Beltaine, we may consciously participate in Her process of the dance of life. The whole light part of the cycle is about coming into being: nurturing it (the midwifing of Imbolc/Early Spring), stepping into the power of it (the certain return of Spring Equinox/Eostar), the fertility (of Beltaine/High Spring), the peaking of it (at Summer Solstice). In the PaGaian wheel of ceremony there are two particular celebrations of the Mother, the Cosmogenetic quality of communion; and they are the Solstices. If one imagines the light part of the cycle as a celebration of the ‘Productions of Time’, and the dark part of the cycle as a celebration of ‘Eternity’, the Solstices then are meeting points, points of interchange, and are celebrations of the communion/relational field of Eternity with the Productions of Time. This is a relationship which does happen in this Place, in this Web. This Place of Being, this Web, is a Communion – it is the Mother; the Solstices mark Her birthings, Her gateways. The Equinoxes then – both Spring and Autumn – are two celebrations wherein the balance of all three Faces/Creative qualities is particularly present: in the PaGaian wheel, the Equinoxes have been special celebrations of Demeter and Persephone – echoing the ancient tradition of Mother-Daughter Mysteries that celebrate the awesomeness of the continuity of life, its creative tension/balance. Both Equinoxes then are celebrations and contemplations of empowerment through deep Wisdom – one contemplation during the dark phase and one during the light phase. The Autumn Equinox is a descent to Wisdom, the Spring Equinox is an emergence with Wisdom gained. I like to think of the Equinoxes, and of the ancient icons of Demeter and Persephone, as celebrations of the delicate ‘curvature of space-time’, the fertile balance of tensions which enables it all. Her Creative Place The Mother aspect then may be understood to be particularly present at four of the Seasonal Moments, which are also regarded traditionally as the Solar festivals; and in this cosmology Sun is felt as Mother. I recognize these four as points of interchange: at Autumn Equinox, Mother is present primarily as Giver – She is letting Persephone go, at Spring Equinox, She is present primarily as Receiver – welcoming the Daughter back, at Winter Solstice the Mother gives birth, creates form, at Summer Solstice, She opens again full of radiance, and disperses form. The Mother is Agent/Actor at the Solstices. She is Participant/Witness at the Equinoxes, where it is then really Persephone who is Agent/Actor, embodying an inseparable Young One and Old One. The Old One is often named as Hecate, who completes the Trio – all seamlessly within each other. Another possible way to visual it, or to tell the story, is this: The Mother – Demeter – is always there, at the Centre if you like. Persephone cycles around. She is the Daughter who returns in the Spring as flower, who will become fruit/grain of the Summer, who at Lammas assents to the dissolution – the consumption. At Autumn Equinox She returns to the underworld as seed – Her harvest is rejoiced in, Her loss is grieved, as She becomes Sovereign of the Underworld – Her face changes to the Dark One, Crone (Hecate). As the wheel turns into the light part of the cycle She becomes Young One/Virgin again. Persephone (as Seed) is that part of Demeter that can be all three aspects – can move through the complete cycle. The Mother and Daughter are really One, and embody the immortal process of creation and destruction. Demeter hands Persephone the wheat, the Mystery, and the thread of life is unbroken – it goes on forever. It is immortal, it is eternal. Even though it is true that all will be lost, and all is lost – Being always arises again: within this field of time there is never-ending renewal, eternity. This is what is revealed in the ubiquitous three faces of the Creative Dynamic/ She of Old, the Triplicity that runs through the Cosmos. The Seed of Life never …

(Essay 1) Magos, Muses, and Matrikas: The Magoist Cosmogony and Gynocentric Unity by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, Ph.D.

[Author’s note: This paper is published in the journal, the Gukhak yeonguronchong 국학연구론총 (Issue 14, December 2014). Here it will appear in five sequels including the response by Dr. Glenys Livingstone.] Magos, Muses, and Matrikas: The Magoist Cosmogony and Gynocentric Unity[1] Abstract: This paper discusses the gynocentric principle in the Magoist cosmogony embodied in Cosmic Music and compares it with the traditions of Muses in ancient Greco-Roman culture and Matrikas in Hindu cultures. Methodologically, being the first research of its own kind, my study of Magoism takes a path led by the peculiarities of primary sources from Korea, China, and Japan. As a result, a feminist, transnational, multi-disciplinary, and comparative approach is employed to dis-cover otherwise irrelevant or isolated materials that include written texts, folktales, art, literary and place-names. The Magoist cosmogony characterized by Cosmic Music as ultimate creativity and Mago lineage of the first three generations known as Gurang (Nine Goddesses), the Mago Triad (Mgo and Her two daughters) and eight granddaughters strikes a strong resonance in Muses and Matrikas. In the latter two traditions, not only linguistic and numerical evidence but also the gynocentric (read female-centered) principle represented by parthenogenesis, matri-lineage, and cultural manifestations appear akin to the Magoist cosmogony. From the perspective of Magoism, such multifaceted unity is not surprising. Precisely, traditional Magoists self-proclaim as the memory-bearer of the original narrative of the Primordial Mother. Keywords: Mago, Mago Stronghold, Budoji, Parthenogenesis, Muse, Matrika, Goddess, Cosmic Music, Music of the Universe, Nine Goddesses, Triad, Matrilineal, Korean Goddess, Mago lineage, Greek Goddess, Indian Goddess, Hinduism
(Goma Article Excerpt 4) Goma, the Shaman Ruler of Old Magoist East Asia/Korea and Her Mythology by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang

[Author’s Note: This essay was first included in Goddesses in Myth, History and Culture, published in 2018 by Mago Books.] Sample Narratives of the Goma Myth Narratives Narrative A (Source Group 1) The Samguk Yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms), written by Iryon (1206–1289): The Gogi (Old Records) reads: Long ago, Hanin[1] had an heir, Hanung, who was from Seoja. Hanung was interested in the human world and willed to save it. Hanin, learning about her will,[2] peered into Mount Samwi (Trinity) and Mount Taebaek (Great Resplendence) to benefit the human world widely. She gave Hanung the Heavenly Emblem of Three Seals and sent her down to govern people. Leading the three thousand people, Hanung descended to Divine Goma Tree (神壇樹 Sindansu) atop Mount Taebaek. The place was called Sinsi (神市 Divine City). And she was called Heavenly Ruler Hanung. She appointed Wind Minister, Rain Master, and Cloud Master and administrated over grains, life, disease, judiciary, and the-good-and-the-evil. Directing about 360 human affairs, she governed the created world to run its own course according to the principle. At the time, the tiger clan and the bear clan lived in the same cave. They ceaselessly prayed to Sinung (神雄) to attain human nature. The Divine gave them a bundle of mugwort and twenty pieces of wild garlic and said, “Eat these and stay without seeing the sunlight for one hundred days. And you will acquire the human nature.” The bear and the tiger received and ate them. In three seven days, the bear gained the female body. The tiger was unable to endure and therefore did not attain the human body. The queen of the bear clan had no one to marry. Thus, she came to the Divine Tree daily and prayed for conception. Ung was tentatively transformed and married. She conceived and begot a child who was known as Dangun Wanggeom.[3] Narratives B and C (Source Group 2) The Handan Gogi, “Sinsi Bongi (Prime Chronicle of Sinsi)” in Taebaek Ilsa, written by Maek Yi (1455-1528): According to the Samseong Milgi (Esoteric Records of the Three Sages), at the end of the Hanguk period, there rose a recalcitrant tribe. Concerning this, Hanung established the teaching of the Triad Divine. And she gathered people and had them vow to observe the covenant. This was her secret plan to remove this unruly clan in the end. At that time, clan names grew indifferent and their customs drifted apart from each other. The indigenous was the tiger clan (the Ho) and the immigrant was the bear clan (the Ung). The Ho was greedy and cruel. They made a living by raiding and plundering others. The Ung were single-minded and did not mingle with others. They were too proud to reconcile. The two clans lived in the same cave. However, they grew ever apart. Neither they lent things to each other. Nor they married. They opposed every single matter and never walked on the same road. Facing such conflict, the queen of the bear clan learned about Hanung’s divine virtue. She, leading her people, came to visit Hanung and said, “May you grant us a cave hall (穴廛 Hyeoljeon) and allow us to become the people of the divine covenant.” Ung granted it [a cave hall] and had herself decide the administrative territory. She conceived and gave birth to a child. The Ho did not change until the end and was expelled to the land outside Four Seas (the territory of Old Magoist East Asia). Thereupon, the Han clan began to prosper from this time on. The Jodaegi (Book of the Early Period) reads: There were many people but not enough resources, which made livelihood difficult. Hanung, the great person of Seojabu (Branch of Seoja), was concerned about this. She listened to the affairs of the world widely and determined herself to descend the Heavenly Realm and open the one world of resplendent luminescence. Thereupon, Anpagyeon [Hanin] peered down Mount Geumak (Metal Mountain), Mount Samwi (Trinity), and Mount Taebaek (Great Resplendence) and deemed Mount Taebaek a suitable place to benefit the human world widely. She commanded Hanung and said to her, “Now humans and all things are brought to stability. Take lead of people and descend to the world. Open the will of Heaven and teach people. Administer rituals to the Heavenly Deity. Establish the right of fathers, support the elderly, and guide children. Bring peace among them. Instate the way of teaching to govern the created world to run its own course by the principle. Set it as an exemplar for the generations to come.” And she gave her the Heavenly Emblem of Three Seals and sent her to the world to govern. Leading the three thousand people, Hanung descended to the Divine Tree. This is called Sinsi (Divine City). Assisted by Wind Minister, Rain Master, and Cloud Master, she had grains, life, judiciary, disease, and the-good-and-the-evil administered. She administered about 360 affairs and benefited the human world widely by governing the created world to run its own course according to the principle. She was named Heavenly Ruler Hanung. At that time, the tiger clan and the bear clan lived in close proximity. They went to pray at the Divine Tree and requested of Hanung, “Grant us to become the people of the divine covenant.” Hanung transformed them by reciting holy mantras to have them attain the divine power. Giving them a bundle of mugwort and twenty pieces of chive,[4] she said warningly, “Eat these and pray for one hundred days in a place where there is no sunlight. And you will become a great human being who realizes the self and save all beings.” Both the tiger clan and the bear clan ate them and trained themselves refraining from the sunlight for three seven days. The Ung endured the pain of hunger and coldness and observed the heavenly covenant. They kept the vow of Hanung and attained the female feature. The Ho, deceptive and neglectful, broke the heavenly covenant. They were not …
(Essay 3) Making the Gynocentric Case: Mago, the Great Goddess of East Asia, and Her Tradition Magoism by Helen Hwang

[Editor’s note: Numbers of endnotes differ from the original ones in the article] Claiming the Budoji (Epic of the Emblem City) as a Principal Text of Magoism The Budoji (Epic of the Emblem City) stands out from other sources for its systemic and refined mytho-historical account of Old Magoism. Alleged to have been written in between the late fourth and early fifth century of Silla Korea (57 BCE-918 CE), the Budoji is the Sillan testimony to the history of Budo (Emblem City), a replica of Mago’s Citadel. It is a book that summons ancient Koreans to remember the glorious history of their Magoist ancestors particularly Budo, better known as Dangun Choson Korea (2333 BEC-232 BEC). Budo’s construction and administration in East Asia for nearly two millennia are attributed to the leadership of Imgeom or Dangun. She is the third of the triad sovereigns of Old Magoism after Hanin and Hanung. Designating the civilization of Budo as a direct successor of its previous civilization Sinsi (Divine Market) attributed to the leadership of Hanung, the Budoji traces the Magoist pedigree of pre-patriarchal civilizations ultimately back to Mago and her paradisiacal community, Mago’s Citadel.[i] Composed of thirty-three chapters, its epical narrative is replete with unheard but resonant concepts and symbols such as cosmic music, triad, parthenogenesis, mountain paradisiacal community, genealogy, and so on. Among others, the Budoji unleashes one most fascinating cosmogonic account yet-to-be-known, the story of Mago’s beginning.[ii] Mago, emerged by the cosmic music alongside the stars in the primordial time, began her procreation. Then she initiates the natural process of self-creation. She had her offspring to procreate and asked them to administer the paradisiacal community in Mago’s Citadel. She is the cosmic being who listens to the rise and fall of the cosmic music. The primary task of Mago’s community was to produce Earthly musical resonance that corresponds with the music of the universe. The sonic balance between the universe and the Earth is absolutely essential to the survival and prosperity of the earthly community.[iii] The Budoji not only makes it possible to recognize a large corpus of transnational primary sources as coherent within the context of Magoism but also enables the researcher to understand erosion, variation, and mutation wrought on individual data in the course of history. Budoji’s mytho-historical framework is particularly crucial in assessing the large number of folkloric and topological data that are otherwise seen anomalous or corrupted. For example, the stories that Mago lived in a rock or Mago carried large boulders on her limbs and built megalithic structures find resonance in Budoji’s narratives. Its accounts concerning rocks and landmasses are too complex to present here. Some examples are: Mago began her act of creation by moving and dropping a heavenly landmass and into heavenly water; Magoist sovereigns became rocks that made resonating sounds upon death. In short, Magoism animates pre-Chinese history of East Asia otherwise labeled as “primitive societies.” It entertains the idea that animism and shamanism are not isolated practices but the older religious forms of Magoism.

Month: January 2026

Why the World Needs Matriversal Archetypes? by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang

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(Art Essay) The Water Coven: Memory of the Great Sea by Sanna Pöyhönen

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(Nine-Sister-Networks News-Update) #1 January 2026

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(Poem) How Do We End the Madness of War by Mary Saracino

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(Search) Volunteer Opportunity with Nine-Sister Networks News-Update Project

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(S/HE V4 N1-2 Book Review) Kaarina Kailo’s Sauna Culture, Sweat and Spirituality by Elizabeth Ann Bartlett, Ph.D.

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(Nine Poets Speak) Daughter of the Cranes by Sara Wright

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Budoji, the Principal Text of Ceto-Magoism, English Translation Available by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang

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(Nine Sister Networks E-Interview) Freia Serafina Titland and The Divine Feminine Film Festival by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, Ph.D.

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(Book Excerpt 4) Asherah: Roots of the Mother Tree ed. by Trista Hendren Et Al

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Call for Poems for Nine Poets Speak: Forging New Visions and Hopes

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(Poem) Grief and Other Types of Love by Mary Saracino

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Mago Almanac Year 9 Monthly Wheels

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Program Booklets

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