The Descent of the Goddess

One of the oldest stories that mankind knows is the account of how Divinity, immortal by nature, came to understand Death. The story is one of loss and bereavement, and its core structure is The Descent. This structure occurs in many permutations, and each culture relates the tale in its own way.

Perhaps each version is just one perspective on the same core story, and among them all is one original tale from which all others are drawn. Or perhaps Truth itself is wound in cycles, and every story is as true and pure as the others, each in its own time and place. In any event, this is how it happened once...

In the early dawn of the world, before the year-wheel had ever turned, The Goddess and Her consort lived in perpetual summer. The fields were ever-green, and each day was long and easy for all that lived.

But one day, while the Goddess had turned attention elsewhere, the young Lord was whisked away from their sunlight world. The Goddess sought him across the whole earth and could not find him. In distress, She wept and sank into despair.

While the Goddess mourned, Her spirit withdrew from Her duties. All that She loved suffered, the green fields withered and browned. The animals of the forest went hungry and the Earth itself grew cold

At last the Goddess decided that she would find her lover even if it meant leaving the world she knew behind. She steeled herself for a journey away from life itself. She prepared to carry her search to the very darkness of the Underworld.

The Goddess prepared for Her journey by gathering Her Divine powers to Herself. She gathered seven symbols and carried Her power in them.

She placed Her crown of stars upon her head, thus carrying Her power as the Queen of Heaven.

She clasped Her golden ring about her wrist, thus carrying Her power to make oaths binding

She hung Her strand of precious stones from her neck, thus carrying Her power to persuade with sweetened words

She wrapped Her girdle about her waist, thus carrying Her power to arouse and attract Her consort

She lay upon Her breast two rare beads, thus carrying Her power to bring forth life within Her womb

She took to hand Her measuring rod, thus carrying Her power to render true judgment

She covered herself with her protective cloak, thus carrying Her power to preserve life against hardships

Thus arrayed, The Goddess left the world She had known. She left behind the protection and certainty of the upper world where She was powerful and safe. She set out on a journey with no assurance of return. Dare we follow Her?

-1-
At the farthest reaches of Her influence, at the edge of Her circle of power, the Goddess found the outermost gate of the underworld. She approached but she was met, and Her way barred, by a guardian cloaked in darkness.

"Come no further Lady," the guardian entreated. "This path is not for you and what lies beyond this gate will only bring you suffering"

"I will pass this gate," the Lady responded. "This path leads to where I will find my lover and no power shall bar my way"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your crown, there are no queens where this path leads"

"So be it," the Goddess said and removed her crown. And so the Goddess gave up her power of Queenship to the guardian and passed the first gate.

-2-
Downward the path led, and the Goddess followed. In time, She came to another gate, and another guardian.

"Come no further Lady," the guardian said. "This path is not for you and what lies beyond this gate will only bring you suffering"

"I will pass this gate," the Lady responded. "This path leads to where I will find my lover and no power shall bar my way"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your golden ring, there are no binding oaths where this path leads"

"So be it," the Goddess said and removed her ring. And so the Goddess gave up her power of oathbinding to the guardian and passed the second gate.

-3-
Downward still the path led, and the Goddess followed. In time, She came to another gate, and another guardian.

"Come no further Lady," the guardian said. "This path is not for you and what lies beyond this gate will only bring you suffering"

"I will pass this gate," the Lady responded. "This path leads to where I will find my lover and no power shall bar my way"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your precious stones, there are no sweet words where this path leads"

"So be it," the Goddess said and removed her necklace. And so the Goddess gave up her power of persuasive speech to the guardian and passed the third gate.

-4-
Downward still the path led, and the Goddess followed. In time, She came to another gate, and another guardian.

"Come no further Lady," the guardian said. "This path is not for you and what lies beyond this gate will only bring you suffering"

"I will pass this gate," the Lady responded. "This path leads to where I will find my lover and no power shall bar my way"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your girdle, no allure can rouse those who dwell along this path"

"So be it," the Goddess said and removed her girdle. And so the Goddess gave up her allure and power to arouse to the guardian and passed the fourth gate.

-5-
Downward still the path led, and the Goddess followed. In time, She came to another gate, and another guardian.

"Come no further Lady," the guardian said. "This path is not for you and what lies beyond this gate will only bring you suffering"

"I will pass this gate," the Lady responded. "This path leads to where I will find my lover and no power shall bar my way"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your two rare beads, no new life arises along this path"

"So be it," the Goddess said and removed her beads. And so the Goddess gave up her power to create new life to the guardian and passed the fifth gate.

-6-
Downward still the path led, and the Goddess followed. In time, She came to another gate, and another guardian.

"Come no further Lady," the guardian said. "This path is not for you and what lies beyond this gate will only bring you suffering"

"I will pass this gate," the Lady responded. "This path leads to where I will find my lover and no power shall bar my way"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your measuring rod, where this path leads is beyond the authority of judgment"

"So be it," the Goddess said and lay down her rod. And so the Goddess gave up her power of judgment to the guardian and passed the sixth gate.

-7-
Down to the deepest,coldest depths the path led, and the Goddess gathered her cloak around Her, but still followed. In time, She came to another gate, darker and older than any before, and here too was a dark guardian.

"I beg you, Come no further Lady," the guardian said. "The end of the path lies ahead, and it ends in suffering. Turn back and leave this mystery intact"

"I tell you I will pass this gate," the Lady said. "This path leads to my lover, and if He suffers, so shall I. No power shall bar my way or turn me aside. I will know all Mysteries"

"Pass if you must, but you shall not continue as you are. You must set aside your protective cloak, though it cost your life. No one reaches the end of this path intact, and you must die to go further"

"So be it," the Goddess said and removed her cloak. Without its protection she succumbed to the cold darkness and Her life fled Her body. And so the Goddess gave up her life and the guardian led her corpse past the seventh and final gate.

As a corpse She came to the path's end. As a corpse she stood before the final power of the Underworld. As a corpse she addressed Him, saying..

"Who are you that sets guardians and gates along this path?"

"My Lady, Nothing can be hidden from you here, for you have passed all gates and followed the path to the end"

As he spoke, the figure pulled back His hood and at last the Goddess saw His true form. He was Her own consort!

"My Lady, the path you have walked is not only the path of death. It is also the path of rebirth, and through its spirals of down and up again, the world we both love will change and grow. It will wind through light and dark, waxing and waning, and those we lead along it will learn more with each cycle. This is the mystery of Life, Death and Rebirth. With the opening of this mystery, the wheel of the world begins to turn, and our children to grow into their own power."

The Goddess laughed and embraced her lover, saying "So mote it be! Let every turn of the wheel be blessed, and let us together guide the world along the path of dark and light, forever.

And that is the story of how the year-wheel first turned, and how Life's cycles started.

copyright (c) 2009 NC Piedmont Church of Wicca