I discussed much about the Virgin or Virgo constellation being a symbol for the Great Mother and Priestess archetype.
Additionally, there is a more in-depth understanding of this archetype. To be The Priestess is to be a Virgin. Let’s look deeper into this word Virgin.
In our modern times, we understand “Virgin” to mean a person, particularly a female, who has not experienced any sexual activity. It also denotes to one’s purity and sexual chastity.
This version of the word is exasperated by the rise of Christianity and the spreading of its folklore myth of the Virgin Mary’s birth of a child. She was portrayed as a woman who never had sex, yet birthed a child.
Barbara G. Walker in The Woman’s Encyclopaedia of Myths and Secrets, suggests that Mary was a young, unmarried woman, and that’s what made her a “virgin.” But Christian translators have promotes otherwise.
The Great Cosmic Mother: Rediscovering the Religion of the Earth, claims that in the name of chastity, the Christian Church didn’t want a sexually independent woman to be worshipped. So for her to be seen as favorable to “God,” her womb had to be “pure” and untouched.
However, the term Virgin was used in antiquity to denote a woman’s spiritual practice and status among society. To be a Virgin is to be sovereign. The term was usurped by patriarchy as a slur to demean and demote the spiritual authority and societal role that women had in the community.
By reclaiming the origins of this word unlocks long awaited mysteries of our past. In taking ownership of reclaiming virginity, we find Strength in truth and freedom in our liberation. Virginity is something that we may not give away, now that we understand the link it carries with our past
