The Muse, the Poem and the White Goddess.
Did you know that long ago, poetry was used to cast magic?
According to Robert Graves, author of The White Goddess, it was used as such by the ancients of Ireland, Wales and the Highlands. If you can find copies of these ancient poetry books, you can actually decode the magic cast through poetry by these ancient masters.
Poets today are often dismissed as unnecessary and fanciful. Few take them seriously unless they are searching for a romantic creative getaway nowadays. There is much truth to be found in the words of poets of old.
I was inspired to discover recently how magical poetry truly is, and that my very own ancestors used it in such a way. Poetic prose ignites a light within those who read it. Its very purpose is to turn on the higher conscious mind and enhance ones’ intellect. To keep one’s focus on the alpha state of thought so that other areas of the brain are illuminated that normally while in beta state are not.
Poetry holds combinations of words, sounds and lyrical ease that allows this transformation of being. Masters of the art could use this power to cure or curse. Over time, establishments in power edited, banned and controlled the use of this skill by diminishing its true purpose.
There was an extensive campaign centuries ago to hide the true power of poetry and how it could be used to access all levels of mind.
Enter the Muse.
What does it mean to have a muse? To be musing on something? Someone? All the great masters of poetry had a muse. Some found it in love, politics, social consciousness, the rights and wrongs of the world, life. Sometimes the muse was found in tragedy, be it death or otherwise. Heartbreak inspired as many as being in love.
There was a time when the magic of poetry would speak prophecy. Written while in a trance state, the words cast by the master poet would be laid on paper, invoking everything behind the meaning of what was written, while pure intention poured over it all like spiritual honey.
The very act of this kind of creation would wake the White Goddess. According to Robert Graves, “The Goddess is a lovely, slender woman with a hooked nose, deathly pale face, lips red as rowan-berries, startlingly blue eyes and long fair hair; she will suddenly transform herself into sow, mare, bitch, vixen, she-ass, weasel, serpent, owl, she-wolf, tigress, mermaid or loathsome hag.”
What could be more musing then a muse who embodies all of that?
Graves continues to describe the art of poetry and why this is so:
“The test of a poet’s vision, one might say, is the accuracy of his portrayal of the White Goddess and of the island over which she rules.
The reason why the hair stands on end, the eyes water, the throat is constricted, the skin crawls and a shiver runs down the spine when one writes or reads a true poem is that a true poem is necessarily an invocation of the White Goddess, or muse, the Mother of All Living, the ancient power of fright and lust — the female spider or queen-bee whose embrace is death.”
Whatever you choose as your muse, may it be powerful. Substantial in its ability to reach deep inside you to stir the far reaches of your inner universe. May it sway the deep end of your ocean, and illuminate you in all your splendid greatness. For that is the Divine Feminine’s domain.
When you enter her this way, be honorable in your time together, be grateful for what is revealed, and be humble in your ability to stir her muse in return. You will awaken her in ways creation needs her to waken. This is no small task, and takes great skill.
Whether you choose a landscape or memory as a muse, may it fill you with love. May this love in return ignite and strengthen your resolve to continue on your path towards your fate. True poems speak a deeper language. Penetrating your most protective boundaries, revealing your raw self as is without any tainted stories. Stripping you of your coverings, and beholding your true identity as a divine being of light.
Should you attempt to invoke her, be forewarned that you will never be the same. What you invoke rises within you, transmuting from the inside out. Be prepared to meet yourself coming and going. She will test every facade you present, to see if your heart is worthy of her full power. Should she choose you as a muse in return, surely you will know it.
Honor all of her manifestations and trust the emergence of each. They bring treasure and hold the true meaning of the divine grace.
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Hillary Raimo is an award-winning photographer and artist, founder of Love, Breathe for Earth (a project dedicated to aligning human love, art and meditation), author of Life According to An Unknown, eternal Earth Advocate, and Lover of Life. You could contact her via her website.