Goddess isnta4

 Goddess Ishtar 

The Goddess Ishtar is the personification of the words of The Great Goddess, "All acts of love and  pleasure are my rituals."   She is the Goddess of love, sexuality, war, creation, guardianship, healing, abundance, fertility and justice. Her name means “Star of Heaven”.  She is the Queen of Heaven, the morning star, the evening star, the shining star of Venus.  She is also the Queen of Earth, the fertility and the abundance of life. 

  

Like Persephone, Ishtar descended into the Underworld giving up Her worldly possessions and magickal powers.  Ishtar’s beloved husband Tammuz died when they were both very young.  After a time Ishtar fell love with the great king Giglamesh, who rejected Her.  Ishtar decided to descend to the Underworld to be with Tammuz, so dressed in Her finest garments, jewellery and crown, Ishtar entered the cave that leads into the Underworld. The Underworld was surrounded by seven walls, each with its own gate that had to be passed to get to the dark place where the dead resided. At each gate Ishtar was required to give up one of Her possessions. 

  

At the First Gate, She gave up Her crown. 

At the Second Gate, She gave up Her necklace, the eight-pointed star. 

At the Third Gate, She gave up Her golden bracelets. 

At the Fourth Gate, She gave up Her shoes. 

At the Fifth Gate, She gave up Her veil. 

At the Sixth Gate, She gave up Her outer robe. 

At the Seventh Gate, She gave up Her dress. 

  

Ishtar entered the Underworld naked and powerless, Her love for Tammuz and Her previous life was forgotten and She was covered in feathers and dust.  The light of the world was completely gone, and Ishtar was in darkness. 

  

As soon as Ishtar entered the Underworld, life on Earth began to change. Love and desire, birdsong, animal procreation and love-making between husbands and wives stopped, and the Gods were unhappy.  The Great God Ea created a creature that was fearless and sent it to the Underworld to rescue Ishtar. The Goddess was returned to Earth and was even stronger than before. 

  

Call on the Goddess Ishtar to guide you in your personal journey to understand and assimilate your Shadow Self.  She will support you with Her radiance and give you the courage to face down your hidden demons. She will help you to strip away the veils of illusion so that you may see the truth and allow the light to enter. 

  

To honour Ishtar give Her offerings of food and drink, make love, sing joyful songs and surround yourself with beauty. If you have moon or star jewellery, wear it in honour of Ishtar.  Wear your loveliest clothes; apply make-up and perfumes to align yourself with the Goddess.  Find and download a colouring picture of an eight-pointed star or mandala and as you colour, meditate on the aspects of Ishtar. 

  

PLANET – Venus 

EMBLEM – Eight-Pointed Star 

SACRED ANIMALS – Dolphins, lions, snakes, scorpions, hedgehogs, hunting dogs, lions, dragons 

NUMBERS – 7, 15 

BIRD – Dove 

STONE – Lapis Lazuli 

TREE – Fig 

OFFERINGS – Incense, wine, beer and sweet cakes.

Babylonians give Ishtar offerings of food and drink on this day. They then joined in ritual acts of lovemaking, which in turn invoked Ishtar’s favor on the region and its people to promote continued health and fruitfulness. If you’d like to connect with this fertile energy but have no bed partner, a magical alternative is using symbolism. Place a knife (or athame, a ritual dagger often representing the masculine divine or the two-edged sword of magic) in a cup filled with water. This represents the union of yin and yang. Leave this is a spot where it will remain undisturbed all day to dray Ishtar’s loving warmth to your home and heart. 

If you have any clothes, jewellery or towels that have a star or moon on them, take them out and use them today. Ishtar abides in that symbolism. As you don the item, likewise accept Ishtar’s mantle of passion for whatever tasks you have to undertake all day.” 

Pantheon: Sumerian 

Element: Air 

Sphere of Influence: Love and fertility 

Preferred Colors: Gold and blue 

Associated Symbol: 8 pointed star, reed bundle 

Best Day to Work With: Friday 

Suitable Offerings: Lapus Lazuli 

Associated Planet: Venus    [2] 

Gemstones: Carnelian, coral, agate, brown jasper (orange stones), quartz crystal, moonstone, garnet  [3]

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Dates, Alcohol, Sweets (not too sweet), tea, fruit, homemade food. Red berries, hemp, seeds, gunpowder, ash, honey, milk, Hibiscus, rose. 

Herbal water mixture for ground as offering. 

Begin with simple soap bath for image. (Can be statue, picture, etc) second bath after--using herbs, florals and oils. First bath gets rid of pollutants, second spiritual pollutants. After, wash the mouth of image with honey or juniper oil to 'open mouth' as a spiritual Awakening. 

Food and drink meal- grains, cereal, fruit, veg, nut, berry, meat. 

Offerings are anything as long as it is honorable. It can be song, dance, inspired items, etc.