The Goddess of Love: Aphrodite

The heavens roared as the power of fertilization was released upon the world; Zeus, the prodigal son, had severed father, Cronus’s vital organ. It fell through the heavens and splashed into the sea.

Aphrodite, the last progeny of Cronus (Saturn), arose from its foam mounted upon a chariot fashioned from shell and drawn by a team of dolphins. She rides across the cresting waves of bliss and blesses lovers with fulfilling sensuality.

Aphrodite is one of the most celebrated of the twelve Olympians. Her beauty is incomparable and she is the “mother of love, queen of laughter, mistress of the graces,” patroness of courtesans and the joy of the pleasures. (J.E. Zimmerman)

Shells are a symbol of Aphrodite and with their crescent opening and evocative shape, they resemble the female sexual flower, the Yoni. The Romans called the Cowry shell, Matriculus, little matrix or womb. It was also known as porcella meaning “vulva” and hence our word porcelain arises. The Greek word kteis also meant vulva, shell and comb. (Woman’s Dictionary, Walker)

A waning dogma of religious belief has regarded sex as animalistic, as something dirty—another chore in the production of offspring, hence its inherent virtues and pleasures were oft ignored and forbidden. The late Alain Danielou defined two forms of sexuality; the first of which leads to birth and strengthens our bond to the material world, both in the manner of the family responsibilities that a new birth necessitates and the genetic remainder that must again participate in the wheel of Karma. The second form of sexuality draws us away from worldly concerns and closer to liberation. Its basis is the timeless and god-like experience of ecstasy.

One form does indeed compliment and balance the other. However, the moral straight jackets, stitched with the cultural yarn of indignant persecution, confines and badgers our collective psyche. It is ultimately guilt and fear that leads to self immolation, stress and finally death. Let us be tolerant and not bury what has become uncomfortable beneath the pretense of ignorance and again claim the beauty and true compassion that is present in all the postures of existence.

Aphrodite inspires blissful sexuality. She helps us confront our own short-comings and transmute them into sovereign blessings. All that she touches is infused with fertile creativity.  Her heritage stretches deep into the dark depths of the sea of time; the famous Venus De-milo and the Bablio-Sumerian Ishatar are but a few of her ancient antecedents. Ishatar was the courtesan of the gods and sacred prostitution was practiced in her temples.

She appears in the Gilgamesh epic where she is shunned and cursed. Her bitter rebuttal was to eventually culminate in the hero’s death. Although Ishatar preempted the down fall of many a man, her favors could also elevate one to great places. Sargon, King of Akkad (about 2370-2284 B.C.), related the following account.

“My mother was a priestess, I did not know my father. The priestess, my mother, conceived me and gave birth to me in hiding. She placed me in a basket made of reeds and closed the lid with pitch. She put the basket in the river which was not too high. The river carried me away and brought me to Akki who was a man responsible for libations. Akki looked upon me with kindness and drew me from the river. He adopted me as his child and brought me up. He made me his gardener. It was while I was his gardener that the Goddess Ishatar loved me. Then I became King” (Dhome’s Translation, Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology, Pg.60

The parallels between Sargon and Moses are indeed extensive. Too much so, to be gone into in this short essay. The Pearl, the treasure of Aphrodite and the moon, not only carries the luster of love and the beauty of purity, but also represents the perfection of wisdom.