Ninsar is the Sumerian Goddess of plants. She is the daughter of Ninhursag, Goddess of fertility, and Enki, God of the waters. She was impregnated by her father Enki and bore Ninkurra, also a Goddess of plants. Ninsar’s name means “lady greenery,” and she was also known as Ninmu (lady who brings forth) or Ninshar (lady herb).

I’m back from a fantastic vacation in Hawaii, so I wanted to return with a Hawaiian Goddess. We went to see Madame Pele, but alas, she seems to have been on vacation too—no lava! Ah well, we danced with Laka and reveled in the beauty of Hi’iaka. No sign of this Goddess, but maybe that’s a good thing—not sure that’s something I want my kids to see flying around!

Kapo is the Hawaiian Goddess of magic. She is the sister of Pele, Goddess of volcanoes, and mother of Laka, Goddess of the hula. Kapo was able to change her shape at will, but she is mostly known for another talent—she was able to detach her vagina from her body and send it where she liked. One time, she used her kohe lele (flying vagina) to save her sister Pele from being raped. Pele, wandering near her home at Kilauea on Hawaii’s Big Island, was being stalked by Kamapua’a, a God who was half man and half pig. Just as he was about to force himself on Pele, Kapo sensed her sister’s plight and threw her vagina past Kamapua’a’s face. He immediately forgot about Pele and started to chase Kapo’s vagina, following it all the way to the island of Oahu where it landed, forming the Koholepelepe Crater (more commonly known as Koko Crater) next to Hanauma Bay. The kohe lele then returned itself to Kapo, leaving Kamapua’a alone on the rocks. Kapo’s name, which means “darkness,” is also seen as Kapo-’ula-kina’u (red-spotted Kapo), Kapo-kohe-lele (Kapo of the flying vagina), and Kapo-ma’i-lele (Kapo of the flying genitals).

Takotsi Nakawe is the Huichol Goddess of the earth. She is the mother of all of the other Gods and of all plant and animal life on the earth. Her children include Tatevali, God of fire, and the four rain serpent Goddesses, Tate Hautse Kupuri, Tate Kyewimoka, Tate Naaliwami, and Tate Rapawiyama. Takotsi Nakawe’s name means “grandmother growth.”

Chekechani is the Anyanja Goddess of the morning star. The Anyanja people of Malawi say that she is one of the wives of the moon God—his other wife, Puikani, is the Goddess of the evening star (although sources disagree over which is the morning star and which is the evening star). The moon God lives with Chekechani for two weeks, during which time she neglects to feed him and he wastes away to nothing. When he goes to live with Puikani for the following two weeks, she feeds him very well and he grows back to his full self.

Happy New Year to all! May this lovely full blue moon bring you light and happiness that will stay with you throughout the year!

Alahtin is the Chumash Goddess of the moon. The Chumash of southern California say that her light serves to purify the world. Alahtin lives in the Upper World, which is held up by the wings of Slo’w, the Great Eagle. At some times of the month, her light is obscured by Slo’w stretching out his wings. Alahtin also governs health, particularly women’s menses.

Rhea is the Greek Goddess of fertility and motherhood. She is one of the Titans, daughter of Uranus and Gaia, and after she helped her brother Kronos to overthrow their parents, she became his queen. Just as Kronos had supplanted his father Uranus, it was foretold that Kronos would be supplanted by his own child, so whenever Rhea had a child, Kronos would swallow the baby. One by one, he devoured their children—Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon. When Rhea gave birth a sixth time, she managed to hide the child away in a cave and gave her husband a stone wrapped in blankets. The baby grew to be Zeus, and he did indeed overthrow Kronos and made him spit out the other Gods, as well as the stone which had fooled him.

With Kronos overthrown, most of the Gods moved to Mount Olympus, where Zeus became the king of the Gods with Hera as his queen. Rhea decided to stay on the island of Crete, where she had given birth to Zeus. She would sometimes journey to Mount Olympus for celebrations in a chariot pulled by two lions, one of her sacred animals. When the cult of the Phrygian Mother Goddess Cybele spread to Greece, the Greeks saw her as Rhea, who they said had fled to Phrygia to escape from Kronos’s wrath over her tricking him with Zeus. Rhea’s name, which means “flow,” is also seen as Rheia, and her epithets include Meter Megale (great mother), Meter Theon (mother of the Gods), and Meter Panton (mother of all).

Yes, it’s been a while since I posted. Sometimes life just gets a little too hectic and I need to let a couple of things slide until I get it back together. No guarantees, but I’ll try for at least a few new Goddesses each week. This one’s for you, Thalia, for the reminder of the immensity of the tasks we’ve set ourselves!

Hauhet is the Egyptian Goddess of infinity. She, along with her brother/consort Heh, were one of the four pairs of deities known as the Ogdoad, the eight Gods who represented the primal beginning, before the world had been created. Hauhet and Heh were depicted as either frogs or as humans with frog heads, although the Goddesses of the Ogdoad could also be depicted as snakes or as humans with snake heads. Hauhet’s name, which means “endlessness,” is also seen as Hehet.

Mania is the Roman Goddess of the dead. Not to be confused with the Greek Goddess of madness (also named Mania), she is called the mother of the Manes, the souls of the dead, who became her children when they descended to the Underworld. She was also later said to be the mother of the Lares, the household Gods. Mania rules over the Underworld along with Mantus, God of the dead. Her image was hung over doors to frighten away evil spirits. Mania’s name is also seen as Manea and Mania della Notte (”Mania of the night”).

Macha (pronounced MOCK-uh) is the Irish goddess of war. Along with her sisters Badb and Anu, she forms the triple Goddess known as the Morrigan. All three could take the form of crows or ravens, and would fly over battlefields, choosing who would die and who would live. They would then take the souls of the deceased in their black wings, flying them off to the Otherworld.

Macha, Badb, and Anu are the daughters of Ernmas, an Irish mother Goddess, and Delbaeth, High King of Ireland. They are also the sisters of another triplicity of Goddesses: Banba, Eriu, and Fodla, Goddesses of Irish sovereignty. Where the latter three Goddesses embodied the sovereignty of Ireland, the former three protected it, through war but also through life. There are actually three Irish mythological figures named Macha, and only one is warlike: Macha Mong Ruadh (Macha of the red hair), who fought to become queen after her father the king had died. Another Macha, the wife of Nemed, who led the Nemedians into Ireland, died shortly after their arrival, but not before prophesying the arrival of the third Macha. This third Macha appeared one day at the home of a widowed farmer and became his wife, and he soon became very prosperous. When he wanted to attend the Assembly of Ulster, Macha did not want him to go, but relented on the condition that he not mention her name. Unfortunately, the farmer boasted to the King of Ulster that his wife was faster than the king’s horses, and she was dragged to Ulster to race against the horses. Macha was heavily pregnant with twins at the time, but she still managed to beat the horses. After crossing the finish line, she went into labor, delivered the twins, and then died. As her dying words, she cursed the men of Ulster, saying that in the time of their greatest difficulty, they too would suffer the pains of labor and childbirth.

Macha’s name, which means “plain” (as in flat land), resounds throughout Irish mythology and history. The first Macha, wife of Nemed, was buried at Ard Macha (hill of Macha), now known as Armagh. The place where the third Macha gave birth became the capital of Ulster, Emain Macha (Macha’s twins). The hero Cuchulainn is given a horse by Anu named Liath Macha (gray of Macha).

Satene is the Seram Goddess of the Underworld. The Seram people of Indonesia say that she was born from an unripe banana. When another Goddess, Hainuwele, was killed as a witch, the man who found her body, Ameta, took her arms to Satene. She created a spiral gate on the dancing ground where Hainuwele had been killed and stood in the center of it. Satene told the people that she was leaving the world and they would have to pass through the gate to see her again. The gate became the doorway to the Underworld, and those who were able to pass through when they died were reborn as people. Those who were unable to pass through were instead reincarnated as animals or remained on earth as spirits. When people did pass through, Satene would hit them with Hainuwele’s arms, and those who passed to her left formed one tribe, and those who passed to her right formed another. Satene’s name, which means “judgment,” is also seen as Mulua Satene.