This post is written for The Conscious Goddess Festival - the many faces of the Goddess, in Squamish this June 24 - 26.
As women, we embody different aspects of the Goddess at different times, in certain situations, as we cycle through the month, and phases of life. We have the sweet maiden self, the fierce warrior, a nurturing mothering side, hot sexy vixen, wise, wise crone, so many! There are times we plunge so deep into darkness we fear being lost forever, and times so filled with love and light it bursts from our bodies that simply can't contain it all.

The medicine wheel is a powerful and rich teaching. A compass to orient and guide us. One culturally inclusive wheel that easily demonstrates this wisdom, is of our seasons. It is always the same. Repeating. From the dark, inward stillness of Winter always comes the sweet birthing Spring with an expanse of possibilities.  The heat and activity of full Summer action gently shifts into the harvests of Autumn, where the inward focus returns to us with the shortening days. Looking at these energies at play around the wheel of the year, the many faces of the Goddess can be harmoniously placed.

I invite you to explore the Goddesses of your cultural heritage, and the feminine deities or archetypes you are drawn to and create your own personal medicine wheel of the Goddess. Let's begin together:

1. On a piece of paper draw a big circle and mark off North at the top, East on the right, South on the bottom and West on the left.
2. In the place of the North, let your mind wander to the aspects of winter - stormy, cold, dark, the plants have all returned to the earth, the people have all returned into their homes against the elements. The old and the frail may die. Animals hibernate. We dream. We rest. There is an inward focus. Now we can look at Goddesses that embody these qualities and find one that resonates within you. This is a great opportunity to "slow cook" this sacred work. Take your time to identify who holds these aspects best for you. Here are a few to get the inspiration flowing....
   ~ Kali is a Hindu Goddess of power, destruction, and she is associated with darkness. A definite warrior unafraid to purge what is no longer supporting her.
   ~ An Cailleach is a Celtic deity. She is a crone who rules during winter. She also has a destroyer aspect to make way for new beginnings or patterns.
   ~ Hel is a Norse Goddess of death and rules the realm of the dead. When it is time for something to die in your life, the North holds this space for you.
   ~ Breksta from Lithuania protects people from sunset to sunrise and is the Goddess of dreams. The long nights of winter can be perilous yet is the place of the very first inspirations of manifestation. The dream realm.
3. The East is often associated with spring. New projects, fresh air, births, clear thinking, the dawn after the long night. What else comes to mind when you imagine yourself in spring? How do you feel? Now seek out feminine deities that hold those qualities such as...
   ~ Persephone of Greek mythology who is associated with spring as well as the fertility of vegetation. She is young and each year emerges from the depths of hardship into the light.
   ~ Bridgit is a Patron Saint and Celtic Goddess who takes over from An Cailleach in the death/rebirth cycle. She is called on by midwives, poets, and smiths for her healing skills and creative inspiration.
   ~ Ostara is also a Celtic Goddess of Spring with her symbols being incorporated into Easter celebrations. Coloured eggs and white rabbits are sacred representations of fertility, birth and Springtime.
4. In the place of the South we find Summer in full swing. Everyone is out of doors, full of action, doing and adventuring. It's hot, passionate, and so very uplifting to our spirits. The Sun is charging our gardens and our bodies with vitality. Which Goddesses fit this exuberance?
   ~ Áine is an Irish Goddess of Summer, wealth, love and sovereignty, with rule over the crops and the power to grant and remove a man's right to rule the land.
   ~ Athena from Greek mythology is a Goddess of wisdom, courage, law and justice, strength, strategy, and is highly skilled in the arts.
   ~ Malina comes to us from the Inuit and is known for her passion, great courage and immense beauty.
5. The West is where we find the elements of Autumn, a time when the last harvest is brought in, we look back and take stock of lessons we learned from, and those we didn't. We begin to ready for the energy to spiral inward again and let go of/let die the elements in life that don't support us. This is a time for "reaping what has been sown"
   ~ Autumnus a Roman personification of autumn, representing the abundance of nature and the time of harvest.
   ~ The Corn Mother of the First Nations who brings abundance and healing.
   ~ Demeter, the Greek counterpart to Persephone, is a harvest Goddess in charge of growing, preserving and harvesting of grain.
   ~ Pachamama, the Inkan earth mother most certainly looks after the nourishment of the natural realm
   ~ Isis from Egypt taught women to grind corn and was associated with floods that brought nutrients, nourishment and provisions.
   
6. On your paper you may wish to write in the qualities of the directions, you might draw or print & paste images of the Goddesses you choose. You might find symbols representing each speaks best to you. Find a way to visually represent your medicine wheel.
   
7. Feel out where you are on the wheel. Who are you embodying? Who is bringing medicine to continue around the wheel? This is an excellent tool while moving through a challenge or spiritual process.
   

I invite you to dive in and read the stories of these Goddesses listed here and also those who call to you. We find kinship and resonance when we can identify with the experiences and characteristics of another. By following the medicine wheel we can see which elements are coming next. What natural energies the seasons bring us through the cycle of a year. Using the wheel we can feel supported in leaving aspects of ourselves behind while inviting in the next. We can honour the many faces of the Goddess within us as we move into different phases of life, cycles of the month, and rise to meet the adventures life brings to us.
If you would like more support around how to use your medicine wheel, more can be found HERE
I hope you will join us at The Conscious Goddess Festival this June! I will be holding the Saturday morning ceremony and leading us through a heart centered exercise of connecting with the energies written about in this article. Find information and tickets HERE!

Healers of the soul, bean feasa, medicine people. western shamanists, animists and certain energy workers often speak of “medicine” in ways that are sometimes confusing to us. Usually when we think of medicine we think of a prescription a doctor gives us or an over the counter pharmaceutical to ingest. So what does it mean when we hear our alternative health practitioner speak of the medicine of a cherry blossom or of a garden snake? What healing alchemy could they possibly mean?

Many alternative health and spiritual practitioners work with energetic fields and spiritual consciousness, bringing harmony and balance to our lives with the aid of our natural world. Examples of disharmony in these realms would be the tension one can feel in a room after an argument has taken place or a sense the person we are talking to isn’t being “present”, or has a jittery nervous energy. In these cases, the medicine is not drawing on a chemical compound interacting with our physical body as with medical medicines, but instead it draws on the energetic and spiritual qualities for an ability to restore a healthy balance within our emotional, spiritual and then in turn, sometimes our physical health improves as well.

Let’s think of some of the qualities cherry blossoms bring us. Softness. Beauty. Sweetness. Gentleness. They are delicate and uplift our spirits after a long hard winter. These qualities make for a sweet remedy to any residual hard feelings after an argument. A shamanist when seeking to bring balance may have the spirit of cherry blossom come through to be applied in a variety of ways. We can bring a bouquet of cherry blossoms into our home, swish them in our water cup to create a flower essence, we can sit under a tree while the breeze snows petals around us on the wind or even visit the spirit of cherry blossoms in a meditation or shamanic journey.

Now what about a garden snake? What healing qualities might be found here for the ungrounded, anxious person? Let’s think about snakes for a minute. They are belly to the earth grounded, their skin shedding makes them experts at releasing what they have outgrown, they are acutely aware of their surroundings with a tendency to rest in complete stillness and without wasting energy on useless movement. These aspects all would help balance out an ungrounded person. If a garden snake came to the shamanic practitioner in their journey and brought these medicines, they could be integrated over time by practicing these qualities, perhaps by walking barefoot or lying on the earth, finding ways to release and let go of situations that bring anxiety, and taking time to be still in the sun.

Other times we may hear spiritual healers speak about “being in the medicine” and again this has a different meaning. In this case it is usually a reference to undergoing a process of deconstruction followed by growth that is being supported by a conscious personal spiritual practice. A sort of “what doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger” type experience. Outwardly it may look like a personal crisis such as the end of a relationship, loss of a job, death of a loved one, maybe mental or physical illness. Inwardly, there is an element of mindfully moving through it, drawing on all the spiritual and energetic supports one has available. Prayer, meditation, energy healing, plant medicines, journeys, vision quests, yoga, dance, making offerings, dream work, journaling, intention setting, following our cultural spirituality, all the aspects of our personal practice - this is being in the medicine. When balance has been restored and health regained, we often find we have reached a better place than previously imagined, stronger, and having learned valuable life lessons. A new and healthier relationship has been found, or a more satisfying job, even renewed physical health and strength.

A lovely exercise to try is to identify an area where you feel out of balance, or that you could use some support with. It might be a weary heart, a difficult relationship with a co-worker or racing thoughts at bedtime. Find your symptom situation, and set an intention to notice a natural remedy of energetic or spiritual medicine as you go for a nature walk, sit in a garden or meditate. See what catches your eye, stands out or appears in a dream or meditation. It may be an animal, plant, stone, clouds, wind, warm sunshine, rain drops, bird song - be open to the many forms it may come to you. Then relax and sit with the idea of the remedy until the medicinal qualities become apparent. You could journal stream of conscious style or research information, or simply tap into your inner knowing. Then allow a method of connecting to this medicine come to you. If you need some support in this area, here are 7 ways to cultivate a relationship with spiritual medicine, in this article or you may choose to book a soul restoration session with me. To learn more about my practice and how we can facilitate well-being together, visit www.3foldbalance.com for sessions & journey circle information and www.returntoreverence.ca for our year long immersion programs

​* Edited in 2022 to update language and links.