Month: December 2014

Aset Luminous, Auset Luminous, Isis Luminous, Aset, Auset, Isis, Navigation of Aset, Navigation of Isis, Oracles, Poems, Poetry,

Navigation of Aset-Take 2

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The Romans celebrated Isis as the goddess of seafaring and the ocean. They honored Her on this day with boats filled with candles, flowers and offerings that they sent out to sea. She was the goddess of ships, the harbor and the sea.

For those who want to add more Kemetic things to this festival, Aset had navigation festivals (via the Nubian pilgrims during the Roman period and some Egyptian ones) who would make a procession of the Goddess to visit Her husband Wesir at His shrine on the island of Biggeh. Her statue in Her Barque would be taken to his shrine on a boat (with torches to help guide the way). Priests would give offerings of water and milk as libations for Wesir (I’m assuming Aset as well). Oracles would be given by the Goddess via the statue in Her Barque. It is believed by scholars that sistra and a situla, a curved libation jug were used during this festival. (1 and 2)

Within the Kemetic and Philae Calendar (Pilgrims left notes), this festival is called either:

*Festival of Entry (weekly by the Egyptians)
*Dedication Feast of Aset (4th Peret Day 29, by the Nubians)

And within the Greek or Roman calendars, this is:

*Navigation of Aset/Ploiphesia/Navigium Isidis (March 5-6)
*Navigation of Aset/Navigium Isidis (January 1-2) (3)

I can’t help shake the feeling that this festival in its Kemetic version was very much like the Aset Luminous celebration. They all have to do with Aset searching for Wesir (or going to His Temple), torches for guiding the way, boats traveling on water and giving offerings to the Goddess. Navigation Festivals sometimes had oracles.

So for today’s devotees of the Goddess, you could:

*Light candles or lamps or electric ones if open flame is an issue
*Offer water and/or milk
*Offer water libations (libating milk is not too feasible for most people)
*Offer food and drink to the Goddess (and also Her husband if you wish)
*Do divination or oracles for Aset
*Shake a sistrum for Aset

Sources

(1) Donalson, Malcolm. The Cult of Isis in the Roman Empire. Edwin Mellen Pr, 2003. Page 67-68.

(2) Rutherford, Ian. “Island of the Extremity: Space, Language and Power in the Pilgrimage Traditions of Philae.” In Pilgrimage and Holy Space in Late Antique Egypt, edited by David Frankfurter. Leiden; Boston: Brill, 1998, pp. 230.

Bumbaugh, Solange. “Meroitic Worship of Isis at Philae”. in Egypt in its African Context: Proceedings of the conference held at The Manchester Museum, University of Manchester, 2-4 October 2009. edited by Karen Exell. (Archaeopress, 2011), 67-69.

Griffith, F. Ll. Catalogue of the Demotic Graffiti of the Dodecaschoenus. (Oxford University Press, 1937), 75.

(3) Donalson, Malcolm Drew. The Cult of Isis in the Roman Empire: Isis Invicta. (New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 2003), 73.

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Aset, Auset, Isis, Festivals, Isis-Aphrodite, Rhodophoria, Sobek, Sebek

Reminder: Festivals of Aset for January

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2 Peret/Mechir/January

1 to 30-Sacred Month to Aset
1 to 8-Feast of Aset
2 of January-Advent of Isis from Phoenicia
3 of January-Vota Publica
6-Feast of Aset, the Mourning Cow/Black Cow
12 to 25-Festival of Roses/Rhodophoria
16-Awakening of Aset by the Majesty of Ra
20-Procession of the Goddess of Heaven Goes South to the Road
26-Aset Sees the Beautiful Face

Here is my previous post about the Festival of Roses/Rhodophoria: Rhodophoria/Rosalia Festival

Aset, Auset, Isis, Calendar, Festivals, Links, Nut, Nuit, Sekhmet, Sekhmet-Mut, Tamara Siuda

Link: Distant Goddess and Celestial Cow

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Tamara Siuda, author, Egyptologist and founder of Kemetic Orthodoxy, wrote a post about the Myth of the Distant Goddess for the Winter Solstice and the Establishment of the Celestial Cow for the festival of the same name on Dec 25.

Here is her great post: And there were stars: How a time out turned into the nighttime sky

Aset, Auset, Isis, Links, Nut, Nuit, Tamara Siuda

Link: Winter Holidays: This One Goes Up to Eleven

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Tamara Siuda, the founder of Kemetic Orthodoxy, author and Egyptologist wrote a blog entry about the Establishment of the Celestial Cow holiday celebrated on December 25.

Here is the blog entry: Winter holidays: This one goes up to eleven.

Since Aset is also the Celestial Cow (Aset-Mehet Weret), you could also incorporate Her into this holiday. Or as the syncretic goddess Aset-Nut.

Aset, Auset, Isis, Oracles, Poems, Poetry,

Work and Their Gods

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I am getting ready for ritual and I had a thought. I saw a Goddess in my mind. She was robed in white with black flowing hair as dark as night. She was the star goddess come dawn.

And I asked Her simple thing. “Do Gods want us to succeed because you are Our parents?”

“You are not tools. You each have a job to do. We have many devotees. Some result in devotees who live their lives with Us in the periphery, but they live their lives according to their own wants and needs and offer to Us. And this is fine. They are Our flock and Our children. They are Our people. And this is fine.

Yet others, including you, have a job to do. When We find devotees who also love to do Our Work, We jump at the chance to help them. Why not? They are already doing Our work. They have the means and the skill-set to to Our work. Why not help them? They do Our work in the world.

You love what you do. They love what they do. This is a win-win situation. We get what We need. You get what you need. And all work is fulfilled.

And, child, We want each person to succeed. You are Our children. All parents want their children to succeed. We want you to succeed because you are Our children. Not a tool. Not a replaceable object. You are a person and only you can do the work you do. No one can do it like you would. No one is replaceable. No one is expendable.

Yes, the work would still get done by someone else. But not like you would.

So do not cast Us aside. So do not cast Us adrift.

We have work for you. We have work for you.

Let Us help you get it done.”

From a Goddess of the Egyptian persuasion

Aset, Auset, Isis, Books, Calendar, Kiya Nicoll, Links, Musings

Aset’s Yearly Cycle

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Kiya Nicoll, author of The Traveller’s Guide to the Duat: Amenti on Two Deben a Week, wrote a post on her blog which inspired the musings below: Calendric Rhythms

After reading her post, I had these thoughts about Aset’s Yearly Cycle. So here are my musings.

And now I’m thinking of my own Aset Yearly Post where Akhet is Her in Mourning and Change (Transformation is a type of change). I am also reminded that Her Marriage Festival and the Mysteries are right next to each other. Peret is where Aset and Heru avenge Wesir and Heru is established at King. Aset here is the King-Maker and Avenging Goddess. Shomu are the months of the Heat of the Eye of Ra, the solar and stellar brightness permeate all of creation from both the Seen and Unseen realms (Aset has a lot of fire festivals here both solar and stellar ones). And the Days Upon the Year bring renewal, dissolution of the old and rebirth for Aset is born on Her Day and on New Year’s as the Star Sopdet bringing the power of the flood to being again.

Thank you for such a great post! I’m having thoughts!

Here are links to Kiya Nicoll’s book.

From Megalithica Books: Traveller’s Guide to the Duat

From Amazon (Paperback): Traveller’s Guide to the Duat

Ebook: Traveller’s Guide to the Duat

Oracles, Poems, Poetry,, Polytheism, Shrine

We Love You

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During a divination session, a group of Netjeru decided to give me this. So I share it in hopes that it will remind us how much They love us.

We are here.
We love you.
We love you.
Why do you doubt this, dear child?
Why do you doubt this?
We are your Parents.
You are Our children.
We love you.
Nothing you can do or will do can take away that love.
Nothing.
We love you.
No matter what.
We want to help you.
We want to see you succeed in all your dreams.
in all your hopes and ambitions.
We want you to succeed.
We love you.
All you need to do is ask.
And We will do Our best to help you.
We love you.
We love you.
And nothing, nothing can take that away.
You are always good enough.
You are always pure enough.
We love you.
We love you.
And nothing, nothing can take that away.