Introduction
The view of the cosmos as a living being of which we are a part dedicated to preserving life and loving all offspring whether animal or vegetable is a powerful one. It leads us to see the importance of nature and a respect for the role of women.
Starhawk, Miriam Simos, is a leader in the Goddess movement. She categorizes herself as a Pagan and a Witch. Her book The Spiral Dance is a handbook for her religion. In her introduction she outlines her philosophy and the book describes the ritual and practice of goddess worship. In the epic poem Devi, we see also the goddess as interior guide and champion of women. However, hers is a more militant stance as the poem has her defeating the devils who make war and pollute nature. To me Starhawk’s vision is more immediate and relevant to my life.
Main text
The importance of the Goddess symbol is even more important now than it was when The Spiral Dance was first written. With the dual threats of global warming and overpopulation hovering over us we must look to the preservation and unity of all the earth’s systems. As she says, “We must create the culture we want to live in.” (p. 5). In order to do this we need to mobilize the inner strength and energize ourselves into action. The power of the goddess movement is that it engages strong emotions, focuses our deep energies and gives us a sense of purpose and place. It is also necessary to relate our “magic to political action” (p. 6) in order to protect and renew our natural resources.
For the past hundred years few women have sought the political power of national leadership. Men who have ruled have largely ignored the intellectual, spiritual and creative power of women. It is important that women recognize their importance as leaders in the preservation of freedom of choice and of the evolving dynamic of the interconnectedness of life. In order to become the leaders that women can and must be they must be strengthened by the realization of the goddess within them. Starhawk in her book stresses that structure, ethics, politics, and theology are united and focused upon political action. To help bind women together she advocates magical training and exercise.
Magic as she sees it is the focus of will upon conscious perception. The image of woman as goddess/magician is empowering. Realizing her role to change the path of the mechanization and industrialization in order to preserve what is natural and life-giving rather than life-destroying is critical to the future of this rich and evolving earth.
The ritual practice of witchcraft as given in The Spiral Dance focuses upon the value of nature, the love of the young, and the interconnectedness of all things.
One thing which Starhawk makes very clear is that men, who rule in a patriarchal society are equally oppressed as the women they are forced to oppress. With an equal partner, the men can share responsibility and duty, and the best talents of both can be focused on resolving the problems. In a patriarchal society, the woman is subjugated and the man must “take care” of her. He is not any more free than she is, as he must shoulder all the responsibility and make all the decisions alone.
Summary
Men and women were meant to work together as equal partners. Hiding the existence of the goddess and raising a patriarchal church to power was a mistake that has hurt civilization and is still hurting it. Woman needs man to provide support and power while man needs woman to provide wisdom and care. Man protects: woman inspects. Civilization will never be civilized until man and woman, god and goddess are once again paired as a team, for the good of the human race and the planet.