It’s the Procession of Aset/Isis today! Honor to Aset, the Great, Mother of God, Mistress of Magic, Sovereign, Queen of the Gods and Goddesses, Sun Goddess, Fiercely Bright One, Eye of Ra, Lady of the West; Lady of Heaven, Earth and the Underworld.
This is the 4th Extra Day within the Kemetic Orthodox calendar! Happy Birthday to the Fiercely Bright One; Mother of God; Clever of Tongue; Lady of Heaven, Earth and the Underworld! Happy Birthday to Aset!
I published a poem in a quarterly ezine called Isian News! Isian News is the ezine of the Fellowship of Isis, an international, inter-religious goddess-spirituality organization. So I download the PDF to see my poem and read other people’s works and I find…a section about me.
They had a list of my books and my book banner from my website on there! And they had such kind words to say about my work!
“FOI Co-Founders Lawrence Durdin-Robertson was a scholar; his sister FOI Co-Founder Olivia Robertson was an artist. Both were authors. They encouraged members to continue their studies, via psychic questing, scholarly research, and activities within the arts. Chelsea’s work is a fine example of what they
envisioned our members of Aset Shemsu to accomplish. Many members have written saying how much they have enjoyed her contributions to Isian News, and many more have written to say how much they enjoy and value her books. They
are a wonderful resource.”
–Isian News
Lughnasadh 2019
The “Overview of Books” section is on page 13 and my contribution of a poem to Isian News is on page 41.
Thank you for including my work in this wonderful issue of Isian News! And thank you for your kind words.
Festival Names: Procession of Aset, the Bright One, Mother of God a.k.a. Aset Luminous
Day: 4th Shomu, Day 2
This festival commemorates Aset’s nightly search by torchlight for Her husband Wesir. In modern times, paper boats are made (with written petitions on them) and they are placed in water with a tealight on top.
Aset is a goddess of sovereignty, kingship, magic of all kinds, life-power, personal power and authority, writing, words, gaining knowledge, honoring one’s ancestors, ancestral lineage and traditions, dreams, family relationships, self-love, alignment of the souls and healing. She is also a goddess of Heaven, starlight, the night sky and the star Sopdet (Sirius).
What will you do today for the Fiercely Bright One?
Light candles or lamps? Sing a hymn? Perform ritual before Her shrine? What will you offer to the Lady?
What will you do today for the Mother of God? The one who gave birth to Heru in the Marshes? The sole Mother who took care of Her son?
What will you do for Aset, the Fiercely Bright One? The One who leads the way in the darkness, dispelling shadows with Her light? The stellar and solar goddess of the dawn.
What will you do today? What will you accomplish? What will you profess?
What will you ask Me in your letter? What prayers and hopes will the boats carry on the water, with My light guiding the way?
What will you ask Me to dispel in your lives? What will you ask Me to cultivate?
What will you do for the Fiercely Bright One? What will you ask of the Brightest of Stars? What will you ask of the Solar Goddess?
I am the Mistress of Magic. I am the Goddess Who Knows Her Spells. What I speak comes to pass.
Do not worry, child. I will take care of you.
Who am I? Am I not the Goddess who knows Ra’s Name? Am I not the wisest and cleverest of Gods? Am I not the Goddess of all magic, all heka, all life-power, all kau?
So what will you ask Me on My festival day?
The words you speak and write have power. What I speak comes to pass. What you write is your heart’s desire.
For what you do, what you say and what you write will become.
Roses themselves were introduced to Egypt via the Greeks and Romans. The Goddess Aphrodite (or Venus) was born from the sea-foam and during her birth; a white rose was formed from the waves. This is why it is associated with Aphrodite. When Aphrodite’s lover Adonis died, she cried and the white rose became red with his blood. And this is why red roses are associated with the Goddess.[1]
Aset’s worship became greatly linked to Aphrodite so much so that there was a syncretic deity Isis-Aphrodite within the Ptolemaic period. Aset as a mourning Goddess would also be associated with the red rose.
Rhodophoria “Bearer of Roses” or Rosalia festivals were ancient Greek and Roman festivals to honor the dead, the military dead and various deities. It was also a spring festival about fertility and flowers, especially roses so many Goddesses were honored during this time such as Aphrodite, Venus, Hethert (Hathor), Aset, Isis and Isis-Aphrodite.
Some scholars think that a garland of roses may have been religiously associated with the Crown of Victory given to Wesir after his victory over death in the afterlife. Even though this was initially given to Heru, it was transferred to Wesir. Other gods associated with this festival are Heru and Ra. Other ways this occasion was celebrated was victory triumphing over enemies or protecting from harmful forces. During the Ptolemaic Period and later, the festival became more affiliated with Wesir’s mythos.[2]
A long Rhodophoria festival (lasting 13 days) is listed on the Temple Festival Calendar of Soknopaiou Nesos which was dedicated to the crocodile God Sobek and Aset as both Aset Neferset/Isis Nepherses (with the Beautiful Throne) and Nephremmis (of the Beautiful Arms).[3]
This festival for Aset comes from the Ptolemaic period. It is obviously Greek in origin, but was adapted to ancient Egyptian religion.
Roses were the flowers which were left on graves. Aset is honored here as the Lady of Beauty, Fertility of the Land and Abundance, Queen of the Land of the Dead (Amenti), Queen of the Ancestors and the Mourner of Wesir.
Make offerings to Aset and some family members such as Sobek and Wesir
Offer red roses in a vase or rose petals in a bowl
Make or buy garlands of roses to put in your hair or drape around the shrine
Offer red roses and other offerings to the dead in a separate ancestor shrine or at a graveyard
Sources
[1] J. Gwyn Griffiths, Apuleius of Madaurus: The Isis-Book: (Metamorphoses, Book XI) (Brill, 1975), pp 39; 159–161.
Forrest, M. Isidora. Offering to Isis: Knowing the Goddess Through Her Sacred Symbols. St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 2005. (Rose entry: page 258-259)
[2] J. Gwyn Griffiths. Apuleius of Madaurus: The Isis-Book: (Metamorphoses, Book XI) (Brill, 1975), pp 159–161.
[3] Capron, Laurent. “Déclarations fiscales du Temple de Soknopaiou Nêsos: éléments nouveaux,” in Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik. Bd. 165, Dr. Rudolf Habelt GmbH, Bonn (Germany). (2008), pp. 142. 13 days.
Perpillou-Thomas, Francoise. Fêtes d’Egypte ptolémaïque et romaine, d’après la documentation papyrologique grecque. (Studia Hellenistica Series 31). (Peeters Publishers, 1993),127. From the Papyrus of Oxyrhynchos LII 3694. 12 day festival.
[4]Capron, Laurent. “Déclarations fiscales du Temple de Soknopaiou Nêsos: éléments nouveaux,” in Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik. Bd. 165, Dr. Rudolf Habelt GmbH, Bonn (Germany). (2008), pp. 142. 13 days.
Perpillou-Thomas, Francoise. Fêtes d’Egypte ptolémaïque et romaine, d’après la documentation papyrologique grecque. (Studia Hellenistica Series 31). (Peeters Publishers, 1993),127. From the Papyrus of Oxyrhynchos LII 3694. 12 day festival. Hekster, Olivier. Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. (Edinburgh University Press, 2008), 128. From the Feridale Duranum Calendar from the reign of Severus Alexander.
My Poem “The Charge of the Goddess Aset” was published in Isian News: the Journal of the Fellowship of Isis. Here is the link to the 10th Anniversary issue: Isian News Brigantia 2019.
Another poem of mine was published in Isis-Seshat: Quarterly Journal of the Fellowship of Isis. Here is the link to that: Isis-Seshat Winter 2018/19.
Mother of Magic is now available for purchase in Paperback and PDF formats from Lulu. Amazon Kindle will take up to 72 hours to be available. And the paperback on Amazon will take even longer.
Fiercely Bright One 