© 2013 by Joyce Mason
All Rights Reserved
Sky patterns have been imbued with mythology since time
immemorial. Our constellations and stars—and the signs of the zodiac—are
primarily named after mythical figures. Thus, the relationship between
astrology and mythology is as old as people looking up at the sky and talking
about it. The link to divine wisdom in “the heavens” has always been there,
too, and the first religions involved Sun worship. Many of us still see the vast
reverence of All Creation in the stars and space. Some of us still see gods and
goddesses doing their work in how the planets influence us Down Below.
To understand the sign of Virgo more deeply, I wanted to
research the Virgo myth and ponder its connection to our modern times. The
constellation of Virgo has been a cosmic stage with many mythical characters,
but they all reflect the same themes of maidens,
purity and fertility. In India Virgo was Kauni, the mother of the great god
Krishna. The Babylonians linked her with the goddess Ishtar. You’ll recognize
the Greek parallel: When Ishtar descended into the Underworld to reclaim her
husband Tammuz, god of the Harvest, the earth went dark. Nothing grew.
It’s the same idea as the Greek Persephone, daughter of Zeus
and Demeter, abducted by Hades. To avenge the abduction of Persephone, Demeter
(in Roman myth, Ceres) ruined the harvests and left the earth barren. Only when Demeter struck a deal with Hades (Pluto in astrology) did she relent and release her hold on crop growth,
initiating the first rebirth of nature. Because of her mother's negotiation with
Hades/Pluto, Persephone remains in the Underworld part of the year, during which the crops
die. Nature resumes its course every spring, the natural New Year, when
Persephone returns.
Gods and Monsters has long been one of my favorite websites
on mythology, even more so once I read an interpretation of the Virgo myth from
this source. [2] It focuses on what I have long written about as the core
energy of the Virgo archetype, instead of a ridiculous limitation of the term
to literal, physical virginity (intact hymen). Self-contained and self-sufficient
are the keywords this site advocates along with the concept that s/he who can
find fulfillment in herself can help others create it because she knows what it
is and how to make it so. My favorite line from this article is truly quotable:
" The virgo myth should not be interpreted as a woman who is
a virgin, but rather a nurturing woman who is a mother to all of the earth. "
Gods and Monsters (G&M), a site title which certainly
takes into account the extremes of the characters in mythology, advocates
Virgo as representing The Great Goddess. Also noted by this source: In
early Babylonian mythology, the grain goddess Nidoba was often considered to be
the first incarnation of Virgo. This particular myth is consistent with the
view of Virgo “being the self-sustaining, life-giving caretaker that most Virgo
mythology follows.”
Most of the goddesses linked to Virgo like Demeter and Ceres
were fertility goddesses or goddesses of the harvest.
This view captures Virgo as caring for humankind through
her fertility, which in my humble opinion, is more than literal. Because Virgo is a
Mercury-ruled sign, this also includes caretaking through her fertile mind.
In the constellation Virgo, a woman is said to be holding a
spike of corn, punctuating the myth of the Harvest Goddess.
These are just the first hints that Virgo is preparing us
for the next sign, Libra. She finds fulfillment in self-containment and teaches
us the ropes to get to wholeness and harvest. As stated in
Wholeness
and the Inner Marriage, s/he who learns self-containment first is unlikely
to lose him- or herself in the Sign of Other, the downside of Libra. Learning
the lessons of Virgo, first, helps us to make the most of the partnership sign.
It leads to more realistic, supportive relationships between two whole people,
not broken souls seeking partners to make them whole—a terrible burden to place
on any human being.
Other mythical women believed to represent Virgo were Dike
(Greek), Astrea (Greek) and Erigone (Roman). They all represented Justice,
another hint that Virgo sets us up for the sign of Libra.
I urge anyone interested in Virgo mythology to read this
source material on G&M in its entirety. It is unbelievably rich. The author
(uncredited) muses on how it evolved that so many goddesses were considered
virgins in the physical way and how that interpretation narrows knowing the
true meaning of Virgo. Mentioned as one of those goddesses is Artemis, who was
the hunter goddess and Chiron’s foster mother. She has been portrayed in some
places as having 50 breasts, ironically the number of years of a full Chiron
cycle. She was also written up as a physical virgin. Also noted is the fact
that many of the “virgins” in mythology are more tied to the Virgo myth via
their mothers, including both Ceres and Demeter. Score another point for the
Earth mothering aspects of the sign.
In the end, three archetypes evolve out of the various Virgo
myths: “the Harvest Mothers, the Ladies of Justice and the Youthful Virgins.”
Of all of them, the writer(s) on the G&M site nominate
Astrea as the
strongest contender for embodying the Virgo myth. The art on the link to Astrea
in the previous sentence looks like the epitome of a Radical Virgo—plus one of
her names is the Star Maiden, bringing in that radical Uranian flavor to the
other aspects of her persona that are Virgoan (virgin) and Libran (goddess of
justice).
Astrea was the last of the celestial beings to leave Earth.
She did so only because she was tired of taking care of a humanity bent on
destroying itself.
From this bit of
mythology, I can’t help but conclude that my contention in the original
article,
The
Radical Virgo, was spot-on about the Virgo archetype’s assignment to help save
us during our current, critical turning-point. In the musical Kiss Me Kate,
we’re advised to
Brush Up
Your Shakespeare. (Supposedly it will even wow women to quote him.) My song
is Brush up Your Virgo—start mirroring her now. Her skills are crucial to these
times and could make or break us. Especially important is looking within for
fulfillment, which redirects the responsibility for your happiness to the only
person who can create it for you—you. This shift in consciousness alone would
create a chain reaction of wholeness capable of changing the world. Imagine humanity
with minimal guilt and blame.
Some other interesting tidbits about Virgo from sky lore: I
never realized it before, but Virgo is the second largest constellation in the
sky and one of the oldest, originally known as Ishtar. [3] While most of its
stars are inconspicuous, Spica stands out as the brightest star in the region.
Spica is the ear of Virgo’s wheat in the sky, lighting up the concepts of
harvest and separating the wheat from the chaff, Virgo’s sifting and
integrating skill. [4] I don’t know if Virgo’s second largest position accents
her importance, but it sure says she owns a lot of real estate in the sky. Like
most real estate moguls, I think we can at least color her influential. Hydra,
the water serpent, is the largest. [5]
I hope this journey into mythology supports your continued look
at the evolution of the sign of Virgo. This blog was born to bring that new
look to light and to encourage all the possibilities for planetary healing
encompassed within the Cosmic Earth Mother archetype I call the Radical Virgo.
~~~
Photo Credit: © LenaPics - Fotolia.com
NOTES
[2] Gods and Monsters –http://www.gods-and-monsters.com/virgo-myth.html
[3] The Radical Virgo suggests you pass on the movie of the
same name,
Ishtar
(1987). My inner movie critic cringed, but maybe I wasn’t having a funny day.
Still, 3.9 stars out of 10 on IMBD does not suggest a blockbuster.
[5] Many of you know Hydra from the Chiron myth. It was the
many-headed serpent Hercules encountered. The poison he made from its venom was
used on an arrow he shot during a skirmish that ended up accidentally piercing
Chiron’s leg and causing his incurable wound.
