Gnosticism was a philosophical movement of the 2nd Century Christian Church, one with very uncertain origins and most likely originated in ancient Rome and Persia. Christians, much like today, worshipped one God while Gnostics worshipped two and sometimes more deities. According to Gnostic teachings, Christ was conceived as having two aspects: a male half, the Son of God, and a female half, Sophia. Sophia, the Greek goddess whose name means ‘wisdom,’ represented the Divine Feminine, the essence of feminine principle. The Apocryphon of John, one of the main Gnostic texts dating to circa 180, describes the creation story of Sophia.
"And the Sophia of the Epinoia, being an aeon, conceived a thought from herself and the conception of the invisible Spirit and foreknowledge. She wanted to bring forth a likeness out of herself without the consent of the Spirit, - he had not approved - and without her consort, and without his consideration. And though the person of her maleness had not approved, and she had not found her agreement, and she had thought without the consent of the Spirit and the knowledge of her agreement, (yet) she brought forth. And because of the invincible power which is in her, her thought did not remain idle, and something came out of her which was imperfect and different from her appearance, because she had created it without her consort. And it was dissimilar to the likeness of its mother, for it has another form."
Yaltabaoth, her son, was born with the face of a lion and the body of a serpent, his eyes like lightening. He became the first archon, the nine chief magistrates in ancient Athens, and used Sophia’s power to create the material world. “And he placed seven kings – each corresponding to the firmaments of heaven – over the seven heavens, and five over the depth of the abyss, that they may reign. And he shared his fire with them, but he did not send forth from the power of the light which he had taken from his mother, for he is ignorant darkness.” Yaltabaoth became arrogant and jealous, claiming himself to be the one and only God. The light of Sophia dimmed.
Ruled by the moon, the High Priestess is this living symbol of a chalice and represents Sophia, the mother to the universe as she is often referred. She is Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and desire. She is Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom and war. She is Tara, the Buddhist goddess of compassion who teaches the wisdom of non-attachment. She is Inanna, the ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, beauty, war, and fertility. She is the Egyptian Black Isis, also known as Aset, the Queen of the Throne. Like the moon, watery and receptive, the High Priestess invites us to go on an inward journey, one that brings us into an autonomous relationship to our own intuition. ‘My inner knowledge is my best guide now,’ she says. You already know the answers you are seeking. You simply need to create the environment in which to hear them.
The essence of your soul path is unique only to you. You will not find it in the texts and teachings of others, because it is a core spiritual truth one can only find within.
Anthon St. Maarten
The High Priestess represents vessel work, the deep understanding that can occur when we offer ourselves the time and space to listen. She is the depicted embodiment of the soul/spirit connection, one that asks that we attend to the sacred feminine inside of us all. She is the keeper of this knowledge, reminding us that we have access to this whole span of different wisdoms, this wisdom that lives inside of us all. She is the guardian of the subconscious mind and the teacher of sacred knowledge and hidden mysteries. Only when this veil is penetrated by conscious thought desires can creativity be actualized. The more you listen to your intuition, the more it will flow.
God gave women intuition and femininity. Used properly, the combination easily jumbles the brain of any man I’ve ever met.
Farrah Fawcett
The world out there is extremely loud, and very masculine. We have to learn how to drop in and quiet the self, to be open and lean in more, to honor the tides within ourselves. There is an inner patience of one who waits for knowledge from within. We must stay with it even during those times when we don’t know the answers, especially during those times. I have found that there are often more profound influences at play. Give yourself the gift of discovering who you really are, and then shout it to the world.
Mad love, Jenna
deck credit: Rider-Waite Tarot Deck, drawn in 1909 by Pamela Colman Smith under direction of Arthur Edward Waite
