Creation of Adam(ah)

The Jahwist or Yahwist is one of the most widely recognized sources of the Torah, the Jewish Holy Book. It is so named because of its characteristic use of the word Yahweh. It dates to around 597-529 BCE. In the Jahwist's account of creation, the first man is called Adam because he is taken from the adamah. What is adamah? Interesting question...let's digress a bit and come back to it.

I recently ordered Barbara Walker's Women's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, after reading an excerpt online. From her book, "Indians of South America said all mankind was made of 'moon blood' in the beginning. The same idea prevailed in ancient Mesopotamia, where the Great Goddess Ninhursag made mankind out of clay and infused with her "blood of life." Under her alternate name of Mammetun or Aruru the Great, the Potter, she taught women to form clay dolls and smear them with menstrual blood as a conception-charm, a piece of magic that underlay the name of Adam, from the feminine adamah, meaning "bloody clay," though scholars more delicately translated it "red earth."

Adamah - clay infused with the blood of life

Creation of Adam original painting and fine art prints available through Saatchi Art. Stickers and other merch available in shop or through RedBubble or Fine Art America.

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Sophia and the Apocryphon of John

In 1945, thirteen leather-bound papyrus codices buried in a sealed jar were found by an Egyptian farmer near the town of Nag Hammadi, Egypt. These early Christian texts date from the 3rd century CE, and include writings attributed to John the Baptist. The writings of John became known as the Secret Book of John, or the Apocryphon of John. A translation by Frederik Wisse can be read online . In the Apocryphon, there is a female counterpart to the Father - the holy Mother, Barbelo. "She is the forethought of the All - her light shines like his light - the perfect power... The first power, the glory of Barbelo, the perfect glory in the aeons, the glory of the revelation... she became the womb of everything, for it is she who is prior to them all, the Mother-Father." I became aware of the Apocryphon of John after reading a graphic novel by Marisa Acocella, The Big She-Bang, The Herstory of the Universe According to God the Mother (highly recommended, by ...

Asherah

An inscription from Khirbet El-Qôm (near Jerusalem) dated to the 700s BCE and translated by archaeologist Judith Hadley reads, "Uriyahu the Rich wrote it. Blessed be Uriyahu by Yahweh for from his enemies by his Asherah he has saved him by Oniyahu by his Asherah and by his A[she]rah.” ( Source ) Asherah was the Great Goddess of the Ancient Near East. From this inscription and other evidence, it is surmised that Yahweh, the God of the Jews, once had a wife - Asherah. Asherah was also sometimes known as Astarte and was associated with lions and the planet Venus, like her relative, Ishtar/Inanna. Asherah's symbol was the tree of life, and her worship involved sacred groves and asherah poles. Asherah original painting available through Saatchi Art . Stickers, prints, and other merch available in shop or through RedBubble or Fine Art America. All of the Asherahs in my painting are based on figurines housed in the Isra...

Jowangsin

Jowangsin is a Korean Goddess of fire and the hearth. An offering to Jowangsin in the form of a bowl of fresh water would be placed on an altar above the hearth. Jowangsin had rules for the kitchen. Do not curse while in the hearth. Do not sit on the hearth. Do not place your feet on the hearth. Maintain the cleanliness of the kitchen. You may worship other deities in the kitchen. ( source ) Throw your muddy shoes inside or put them on the hearth, and you will experience her vengeance. She was believed to keep track of household activities and communicate with the heavens. Jowangsin helping with the cooking in a traditional Korean kitchen, circa 1950. Original painting, prints, and merch available in shop or via Fine Art America or Saatchi Art . Left: Women in a kitchen in Korea in 1950. Right: An example of a traditional kitchen in hanok (traditional Korean-style homes) during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). [National Archives of Korea, N...

Morningstar Entering the Underworld through Orcus's Mouth

Many goddesses have been associated with the morning star, the planet Venus. Venus is unique in that she is the morning star for 263 days, disappears behind the Sun for 50 days, reappears as the evening star, which she embodies for another 263 days, and finally, disappears again between the Earth and the Sun for 8 days, before finally rising once again as the morning star. ( diagram here ) Where does she go? Sometimes, she visits the underworld. Morningstar Entering the Underworld original painting, prints, and merch available in shop or through RedBubble or Fine Art America . Entrances to the underworld punctuate the countryside of the ancient world, often associated with caves, rivers, or hot springs. Underworld dieties varied from culture to culture as well. This entrance to the underworld is based on Orcus's mouth in the Gardens of Bomarzo. Orcus was a god of the underworld, a punisher of broken oaths in Italic and Roman mythology. ...

Leftover Paint Unicorn

When a painting is finished, I often have a little bit of paint leftover on the palette. I hate to waste anything, so I'll usually have a leftover painting in progress that I add to, little by little. I recently finished a leftover unicorn and phoenix. Slightly abstract. I like their colors. Unicorn and phoenix original, prints, and merch available via shop link above or through Redbubble or Fine Art America .

Branwen and Bran

Branwen and Bran were siblings. Branwen was good, kind, and loving. Her brother, a giant and the King of Britain, gave her in marriage to the King of Ireland. Sadly, he was not kind and she was badly mistreated until she managed to train a starling to send a message to Bran, telling him of her plight. He came to her rescue, but he had also given the evil Irish king a magic cauldron that could resurrect dead soldiers as a wedding gift. Bad move. Here we see the result. After all but seven of his soldiers were defeated by the zombie army, Bran escaped by having the last of his men cut his head off his dying body to carry home. Bran loved to tell stories, so at least he still had that. Things did not go so well for Branwen, who we see dead on the shores of Wales, where she succumbs to a broken heart on the way home after the slaying of her son. The white raven, her spirit animal, guards her body. Bran and Branwen original pa...

Echoing Multiverse

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