Ishtar
It was Rodin who stated that “Man never invented anything new, only discovered things.” Although it’s correct to say that certain symbols have been man-made for a particular purpose, it’s just as correct to argue that everything is somehow inspired by the natural world around us, by the forms of nature, plants, animals, the elements. Even a reaction against the fluid forms of nature is usually inspired by a desire to offer an alternative. Occasionally...
ilmarinen finnish folklore
An enigmatic depiction of the golden fleece quest: an Athenian Red-figure cup discovered in 1834 and attributed to the Athenian painter Douris (c. 480 BC) shows in its interior the goddess Athena who watches as a huge serpent disgorges a man, alive. Behind them is a tree with a ram’s skin in its branches. These clues assure us that the hero is Jason. The artist has also taken care to label him (the name is...
Gundestrup
Occult knowledge and ancient wisdom. What was Parsifal seeking in Wolfram Eschenbach’s poem that was referred to as “the Grail”? A stone ? The Lapsis exillis? It is also said that a pagan astrologer read the mystery of the Grail in the stars: ” Flegetanis, the heathen saw with his own eyes in the constellations things He was shy to talk about, Hidden mysteries that trembling revealed it: He said there was a thing called the Gral. Whose name he […]...
Birgid cross
  To fully grasp a Deity, you need to make an effort to understand the heritage and characteristics of the very first people to worship that Deity. Brigid the Celtic goddess Brigid originated in the pantheon of the Celtic people—the inhabitants of Ireland and the British Isles. Similar to Brigid, the history of these folks is mysterious and multifaceted. You can somewhat decipher what’s going on, but a large amount of the heritage is lost....
The Palladium
Legend tells us that one day Ilias, founder of the city of Troy, was asleep and had an extraordinary dream that the gods were communicating with him. When he woke up he found nearby a statue of a woman holding a shield and carrying a spear. It was the sacred statue of Pallas Athena, the Palladium. We know from Plutarch that in antiquity Isis was identified with Athena, the Greek goddess of Wisdom. Athena got...
Mythical Ireland
For those of you who are reading the Maier files series probably already recognized the Hyperborean thread or layer and the Grail’s link with Ireland and Scotland throughout the story. Now, the legendary history of Ireland draws on the events of races that later on invaded it and also dominated it, originating from a puzzling Northern-Atlantic center, to which they occasionally returned. The Historia Britorum frequently gives to this center the name Hiberia, however in reality this kind of a term is […]...
Gudrun's sacred woods
The German forest is immense, vast, dense, dark, and impenetrable. It is the refuge of the exiled and of outlaws. A site of lairs for terrifying and often monstrous animals. The dwelling place for brigands and marginal individuals. The woods thereby forms a natural frontier. The Bohemian Forest (or Nemus Boemicum) to the south connects with the Bavarian Forest and the Austrian Nordwald; the forest of Falster separates Denmark from Saxony and has always been...
funeral
The crime that finally turned the gods against Loki was his role in the death of Balder, however this event is also one of the great puzzles of northern mythology. Why were Odin and Frigg, with all their knowledge, not able to prevent the disaster? What did Odin say -before he climbed on bale-fire- into the ear of his son? This is maybe the greatest secret of the North that only two know. Snorri lets...
Medea witch potion
For those who are into the multi-level and the different themes of the Maier Files already noted that one of the themes associates with the Grail Quest, the hidden knowledge and the search for this power. The quest of the Golden Fleece and the Argonauts has always been in connection with the quest of the Holy Grail. And yes, also this tale has plenty layers or levels. In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece (Greek: χρυσόμαλλον δέρας chrysómallon déras) is the […]...
Emerald. Above all, the glitter of gems has enchanted us and held us hostage. Despite their secret birth underground, they live a rather public life among us, admired, bought, sold, and hoarded. They have become ours in a way a hunk of raw granite never can. Gems have studded ears, adorned fingers, encircled arms, and emblazoned belly buttons. Bits of compressed carbon no larger than a match head have transmogrified themselves into emblems of undying...
The number 12 symbolizes masculine solar rationality; 13 is very much connected with the Moon and old Goddess/feminine principle and intuition. The moon is by nature linked with womanhood as the length of the menstrual cycles are synced up with the waxing and waning of the moon, occurring around every 28 days. In the ancient times when people were more aware of nature, many women were synced up with the moon’s cycle, menstruating around the...
Horselberg
Grimm writes that the Hörselberg of Thuringia was still considered in the 10th through 14th centuries to be the residence of the German goddess Holda and her host. He cited legends of night-women in the service of dame Holda.  Those women rove through the air on appointed nights, mounted on beasts. He asserted that they were originally dæmonic elvish beings, who appeared in woman’s shape and did men kindnesses. Grimm asserted that the identity of Venus with the German goddess […]...
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