Bride in Waiting

 

 

 

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?”

-       Mary Oliver

 

 

This is my calaca,

every stitch sewn by hand,

a tiny world created in a box

a

metaphor

for

the

unlived

life

 

 

a calaca a day for the month of October

at

 

http://corazon.typepad.com/recuerda_mi_corazon/2012/10/la-calaca-love-white-flowers.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

blessings

 

 

Mary, Grace of the Miraculous Medal

Earlier this year I visited Paris and as, always, seeked out the sacred sites.

One such place is the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal, 

tucked away, opposite

a huge departmental store, in a side street of Paris.

Catherine Laboure, a young nun at the 

Daughters of Charity Chapel in Paris

received a visitation from divine Mary, the first of many.

In more than one visitation she received the image 

and instruction about the miraculous medal. 

Mary made it clear that this medal can be worn by anyone 

and everyone, regardless of religion. 

The only requisite was faith in 'when you ask, you will receive'. 

The chapel is incredibly beautiful, and as soon as you enter you feel the incredible Presence. 

I started a new series of sacred shrines to the Divine Mother

and

Mary, Grace of the Miraculous Medal 

is the first one.

When Mary appeared to St Catherine Laboure in 1830, 

in the chapel in Paris, 

Her hands were covered in jewels. 

From some of the jewels, rays of light shown which she said were 

symbols of the graces that would be given to all who asked for them. 

The jewels that had no rays were symbols of unclaimed graces. 

An oval frame outlined the figure bearing in gold letters the words 

'O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee'. 

This chapel is still used for worship in Paris and the most beautiful statue 

of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal was placed 

over the main altar in the chapel where Mary appeared. 

I was so inspired by the beauty of the artworks and the chapel itself : t

o mosaics, the statues, everything glittered 

and shone with gold and reflecting mosaics 

and rays of gold - 

and this is what I tried to capture in this small shrine to Her Grace.

I molded and sculptured a statue of Mary Our Lady of Grace

in clay by hand, as well as a Miraculous Medal.

I used gold leaf, gold paint and German glass glitter in

a mix of pale pink and gold 

to try and capture the feeling of the Light

in the Chapel.

I also added a silver Miraculous Medal which I bought at the

small shop at the Chapel in Paris.

I added bookbinding tape that had definitions of the words

'love', 'bliss' and 'daughter' on it.

I lined the entire shrine with vintage hymn paper.

When I visited this chapel I wrote about my wonderful experience, bathing in Mary's Love while sitting there. 

Soon the images seen by my eyes disappear and only a brilliant golden light is visible. The light has a silver rim to it and it is alive and palpable with wisdom and knowledge which cannot be translated into words. This is the Presence of Divine Mary. The light translates into my physical body and energetically there is deep movement in and through my body. Then my heart fills with a feeling that seems physical. Everything and everyone around me is bathed in this beautiful light and they all glow in love. The Light becomes stronger and more powerful and I see the intense Light at the centre of it all and also at the centre of each and every person. And the quality of this Light is Good and only Good - pure and beautiful and innocent! And it does not matter what happens on the exterior : nothing can corrupt or diminish that Light which is you and me. 

Blessings

Jai Mata Di Jai Durga Maa

Prem Se Bolo Jai Mata Di!

This is a salutation and prayer to Durga Maa.

Durga Maa is a Hindu deity known for her courage and strength.

She rides a tiger or a lion and she assists one on the inner levels

in slaying the demons of the mind.

She is the fierce aspect of Shakty, the Divine Feminine.

I made this mala in the same pattern as the Rosary of the Holy Mother.

She is one and the same, by whatever name you call Her.

I used freshwater pearls in four different shades of white, pale pink, bronze and cream, interspaced

with swarovski crystals and

 beautiful bronze rose beads and a glass heart foil in the centre.

The pendant I bought from one of the traders outside the temple at

Haridwar, India and it is stamped with the OHM on the back.

Here is a beautiful mantra to Durga Maa

to use with the rosary

Ya Devi Sarva Bhutesu Maa rupena samsthita 

Ya Devi Sarva Bhutesu Shakti rupena samsthita 

Ya Devi Sarva Bhutesu Buddhi rupena samsthita 

Ya Devi Sarva Bhutesu Laxmi rupena samsthita 

Namestasyai II Namestasyai II Namestasyai 

Namo Namah 

To the Divine Goddess who resides in all existence in the form of universal mother

To the Divine Goddess who resides in all existence in the form of energy

To the Divine Goddess who resides in all existence in the form of intellegence

To the Divine Goddess who resides in all existence in the form of true wealth

We bow to her, we bow to her, continually we bow to her

blessings

Postcards from Paradise - SoulCollage(R)

Freedom 

is the expanse 

within

As I stand on my own

in the vastness

which is I

The clutter of the mind

dissolves

All ties unfurl

the echo of

emotional noise

recedes 

Freeing me

into 

Love

which is you and I

On this cold Sunday afternoon, with snow still on the peaks of the mountains, the scent of the first jasmine blossoms wafting in through the window, I share my SoulCollage(R) card with you and others

as Postcards from Paradise at Recuerda mi Corazon.  I invite you to play along and visit other Postcards from Paradise.

blessings

Drinking from the Waters that truly quench thirst ..... From Paris

I am writing to you from Paris. It is still early and quiet - the sun has been up for a while and is shining softly on the very Parisienne facade of the building across from me. What a busy city and probably not the best time to visit as it is peak season. I have spent a week in London with my teenage daughter who absolutely loved the shopping and the vibe and the crowds. I have been looking forward to the Paris leg of our trip as when I was here the previous time (pregnant with my now travel companion) I could not do many of the places I intended to this time. I love to travel and each time is different. This trip I often contemplated on the material world and people's obsession with the physical and physical appearance. I mused about the necessity of a spiritual path, be it religion or a more free way of embracing the idea that the Divine is in everything. And as the Divine is in everything, then those who lead a life focused only on the material is not separated from the Divine in any way. These were merely gentle musings on my part as I do know that it hinges on consciousness and one's awareness, but I am always very interested in others' ways of experiencing life and the profane. Yesterday we visited the Sacre Couer in Montmartre along with hundreds of tourists. The beautiful and sacred atmosphere of the church was virtually non-existent with tourists disobeying the instructions not to take photographs, children touching everything, you get the picture. However, my daughter and I was determined to immerse ourselves in the energies and we were not disappointed. We both felt the light humming in our hands and arms as we approached the beautiful golden statue of Mother and Child. It felt like a door opened in my chest and throat and a million birds flew out, suffusing myself with the Love that includes everyone and everything. Next we entered the Virgin chapel. The walls were covered in images of the sacred woman in Her different roles and aspects. The compassionate and nurturing energy was intense and palpable. The air here was cool and soothing and it felt like an expanse of space. We stayed as long as we could. The earth has chakras or energy centers that has higher vibrational energy than other spaces. We are aware of the restorative power of water and the ancients knew about wells. Mares is Latin for oceans of water and Marie is the French derivative and Mary of course the english. Ma mere means my mother and la mer means the sea. I have walked the Mary and Michael leylines over two continents and the Mary line follows the rivers and the sacred points are always at a well. We can survive without food but we cannot survive without water. The Divine as our sacred mother is the ability to nurture and nourish ourselves on all levels, physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. Our Divine Mother is here, present with us, in our physicality (70% of our body is water, a small ocean by itself). She is in our cells, hearing every thought, every word, witnessing every act of self-care and self-acceptance. In Hindu Tantra the divine mother is known as Shakty, the active force and power of Shiva, (the male god) in this world. Mary, the blessed Mother, is the active nurturing and creative principle of God, the heavenly Father, in this world. Everywhere in Paris she is depicted with a child on her hip - such a typical stance of a mother. She is holding her divine Son, He whom She has given birth to; the mother of a new life. In the same way we daily and even hourly, give birth to a new life We create through every thought, with our attitude and through actions. Every thought resonates and vibrates in the waters of your body and sponsors an entire creation. As we repeat Her name in Love, She responds. Ave Maria Yesterday we visited the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal. What an incredible and wonderful experience! I will share with you as soon as I have found the right plug adaptor today. I will also try my best to figure out how to upload pictures from my iPad that I have with me. Till tomorrow Blessings Hettienne

Goddess Festival and Retreat in South Africa

In 2008 I organised the first international Goddess Conference in South Africa.  The feminine values of beauty, nurturing, story telling, mothering, art, wisdom, creativity and taking care of our own Mother Earth, are very important to me.  It has been an integral part of my life as spiritual healer and guide and later as artist, to increase our awareness of the power of the feminine.

The word Goddess has strong Pagan ties and often people immediately refer to it as the 'old religion' and thereby labeling it and filing it away.  The Feminine has many faces and aspects and She is our Mother, spiritually, physically, emotionally and mentally.  Positive feminine values have been buried in our materialistic lifestyles and everyone suffers for it including the land and her animals.

A group of like-minded women friends and soul sisters have come together in Cape Town, South Africa and we are having another Goddess Celebration next month during the Full Moon of Wesak.

We are coming together in a beautiful retreat in a nature reserve called The Blue Butterfly

www.thebluebutterfly.co.za

We will celebrate our variety of roots and our common love for the spiritual

in shamanic journeying, drumming, creating a beautiful sacred temple space, honouring the four elements, sacred dance and more.

We are honoured to have the story of La Loba in sacred puppetry

We will walk in the beautiful  Sacred Heart energies of Mother Mary

Honour the African Goddesses and lineage of which so little is recorded with the wonderful voice of

sacred singer Nobuhle Ketelo and ceremonies to Mamawattee of the Rivers.

If you would like to read more and maybe join us next year, please visit http://goddessfestivalsa.blogspot.com

blessings

Hettienne

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Versatile Blogger Award

Thank you to Rox for passing the Versatile Blogger Award on to The Path of Divine Love.  It is a wonderful way of introducing our favourite blogs to one another.

I do not have 11 new blogs to introduce to you, but the ones that I do list here, are worthwhile visiting.

Crafting the Sacred at http://www.craftingthesacred.com/blog/ is a blog rich with guidance and inspiration;

Julie-Ann Bowden's blog is filled with gorgeous angel art :  http://julieannbowden.blogspot.com/

The Spirit that Moves Me at http://thespiritthatmovesme.blogspot.com is one of my favourite blogspots at the moment.

And have a look at this wonderfully creative blog at The Magpie Hollow :  http://magpiehollow.blogspot.com/

happy travels

blessings

Hettienne