Scan barcode
A review by kyouma
Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine by Joseph Campbell, Safron Rossi
5.0
Fantastic. Campbell goes through the history of goddess worship dating back to 4000 BC, and details the types of societies and environments that lead to goddess worship.
That discussion leads to an overview of the broad history of European religion, from the polytheistic "indo-europeans" (who would become Greek and Hindu), and the monotheistic Semites. The discussion of Christianity as a hybrid of those two groups (Christ being a Greek-style hero in a Hebrew tradition) is thrilling, as is the idea Mary represents a rebirth in the Christian tradition of Goddess worship.
A core insight is that peaceful, agricultural, and/or foraging societies are more likely to worship Goddesses. Warring, hunting, and/or dessert societies, on the other hand, are more likely to worship Gods. Campbell draws a clear divide between indo-European religions and Semitic ones, where the former incorporates local Gods and Goddesses into its ideology, and the latter overwrites them with a single male God figure.
Politically, this is a story about the history of the rape and oppression of women by invading societies, and their gradual re-assertion as Europe settled.
But more importantly, this is a book about the dangers to our collective psyche of papering-over the stories of people we live alongside. It's a very sympathetic telling of the stories of Goddesses that places more hope in the future of women than their past.
That discussion leads to an overview of the broad history of European religion, from the polytheistic "indo-europeans" (who would become Greek and Hindu), and the monotheistic Semites. The discussion of Christianity as a hybrid of those two groups (Christ being a Greek-style hero in a Hebrew tradition) is thrilling, as is the idea Mary represents a rebirth in the Christian tradition of Goddess worship.
A core insight is that peaceful, agricultural, and/or foraging societies are more likely to worship Goddesses. Warring, hunting, and/or dessert societies, on the other hand, are more likely to worship Gods. Campbell draws a clear divide between indo-European religions and Semitic ones, where the former incorporates local Gods and Goddesses into its ideology, and the latter overwrites them with a single male God figure.
Politically, this is a story about the history of the rape and oppression of women by invading societies, and their gradual re-assertion as Europe settled.
But more importantly, this is a book about the dangers to our collective psyche of papering-over the stories of people we live alongside. It's a very sympathetic telling of the stories of Goddesses that places more hope in the future of women than their past.