Day 24 and Day 1 of Art Novena

The Suit of Roses in the Mysteries of Mary deck
is inextricably woven through with the elements
of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Mary, Queen of Earth and Heaven,
 manifests miracles,
opening the gateway from the world of light,
merges with your own heart,
infusing your vision and senses
with divine purpose.

Her divine presence is at one with springs,
 rivers and entire valleys  and the earth is filled with the 

vibration of holiness and sacredness.

At Lourdes Mary created a sanctuary where we can touch 
and be touched by  

a force beyond our comprehension : a doorway into pure love.

The sanctuary of Lourdes is set  in the ancient

symbol of Pisces Vesica, the shape of the primordial egg

and the divine womb and yoni through which all of creation is born.

Here is an extract from Mysteries of Mary tarot deck :

We also know the fairy tale of the goose that lays the golden egg.  

The egg has always carried the meaning of life and rebirth in ancient traditions.  

It also symbolises new life and transformation.  

The shape of the egg also has connotations as it is similar to the vesica pisces. 

Goose is a partial anagram of goddess and Mother Goose hides the word mother goddess. 

The mother aspect of the goddess is still present today in Mother Mary.  

Mother Goose is seen as the magical author of all the fairy tales, 

reminiscent of our understanding of the Shekinah or Sophia.

Pilgrim shrine made by myself after my first visit to Lourdes

Initiation into priestesshood by the Lady


One of the three fairy tale groups
is 'The Abundance-giving women in the Other World'.
In these fairy tales the 'goddess-heroine' initiates
a young girl into priestesshood.

St Bernadette in the Mysteries of Mary deck

The story line of these type of fairy tales follow the
following outline :
The young girl leaves her family, as well as ordinary time

and place and then enters the Otherworld - which she does so either

through travel or visions.

In the Otherworld she meets the goddess whom

initiates her, turning her into an ordained priestess

and then grants her with gifts to take back to the world.
When the young girl or princess returns to the world
she is no longer the same innocent.
She returns with a deeper knowledge and with
the gifts of vision and compassion amongst other things,
which was granted to her.

This is the basic structure of this type of fairy tale
and we can see how the story of Bernadette and
Our Lady of Lourdes fit into this archetype.
Bernadette's story also has many other elements in common with
classic myth and fairy tale and we will explore those
in the upcoming days.  I am thinking of the challenges that Bernadette faced
and the sacred tasks (as in the case of the myth of Psyche)
that she has to complete.

Some of the young girls who were initiated into
the priestesshood of the sacred feminine

The grotto of Massabielles was known to be sacred to the
goddess Persephone in Roman times.  The sacred feminine
has manifested in these grounds through the ages
and today Our Lady of Lourdes, the Immaculate Conception,
fills this valley and its rocks and waters with
a sacred feminine presence..
This is a mystical understanding that not everyone is open to
and especially in religious circles there are many
disagreements on what exactly is taking place here.
But for million of pilgrims (religious and non-religious)
the supernatural and loving presence at Lourdes
is undeniable.

Bernadette stepped into priestesshood of the sacred feminine
and returned to the world with unwavering faith in the
miraculous and the manifest presence of the deity in this world.
Through Bernadette's initiation into priestesshood
of belief and faith in the supernatural and miracles,
thousands of people are daily entering
the Otherworld at Lourdes.
A world where miracles do take place
and where healings take place daily.

Light procession at Lourdes

Prayer for today :

I open myself to your presence, o Great Mother;
I commit myself to your priestesshood of miracle thinking
and the practise of faith in the extraordinary.
I am willing for my eyes and heart to be broken open
by your divine and radiant presence;
as I priestess your love and compassion in the world.

Om jai mata Mary ma

jai jai ma

blessings

Hettienne