Maiden

Goddess History dates back to the earliest civilizations.  It’s well documented that ancient societies worshiped feminine forms of Divine - typically as mother, Earth and nature, or as Deities who personified feminine attributes.  In common Neopagan usage, the three female figures are frequently described as the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone (Triple Goddess).  For some Pagans, there is a fourth Goddess aspect, the Dark Goddess.  Each Goddess symbolizes both a separate stage in the female life cycle and a phase of the moon and often ruling one of the realms of Earth, underworld and heavens.  And this is just a snippet of what can be found in, 'Who Are Your Divine Friends?'

The Maiden represents youth and innocence, magic and new beginnings, and the thrill of discovery.  The innocent being who still lives inside all of us, who needs and deserves love and care.  And whom we sometimes have to channel to learn self-compassion.  She is not yet mated but is on the threshold of her sexuality.  In this aspect, she symbolizes innocence, hope, joy, curiosity, flexibility, courage, and enthusiasm.  Greco-Roman mythology expressed this phase of the Goddess as Luna, the chaste Moon Goddess.  Diana, Artemis, Skadi, Eos, Idunn, Bast and Persephone also characterize the Maiden aspect of the Divine Feminine.

There are cultural and religious traditions that place particular value and significance in this state, especially in the case of unmarried females, associated with notions of personal purity, honor, and worth.  Like chastity, the concept of virginity has traditionally involved sexual abstinence before marriage and then to engage in sexual acts only with the wedding partner.  The state of virginity has no legal consequences in most societies today though it may have social implications.  It did have significant legal and social effects in some communities in the past and still in some cultures to this day.

The women of the Ancient Norse Lore are not known for being quiet or submissive.  Norse women had rights that didn’t exist in other parts of Europe, such as the right to divorce their husbands and own land.  Viking girls had to help with cooking, farming, spinning, weaving, making cheese and sewing clothes.  They were expected to keep their fingers busy all day long: sewing and weaving, but most of all spinning wool.  In Ancient Norse culture there were female Skalds (poets), Shield Maidens (female warriors) and Priestesses.  They also had the knowledge of herbs in order to make medicine and to care for the wounded.  And the Seidr, a type of Norse magic that was most commonly performed by women.  Any future trades would have been chosen at a young age in-order to have time to train.

The Maiden is the youngest aspect of the Goddess energy.  Sometimes called the Hunter Goddess, she is the innocence and lack of worries, the joy of living.  The Maiden is usually associated with the waxing moon, the spring season, the colors white and pink, flowers, and wild animals, especially young or white ones.  She represents purity and the innocence of childhood, where the soul’s dreams, magic and make believe still prevail.  She is often called on for coming of age and handfasting rites.

Age isn't a matter of body, but mind,
For years that bring wisdom, they also bring grief.
A child's day's eternal; an old mind will find
Every year flying faster, the days all too brief.

Age's felt and not counted, as Memory and Thought
Sit with heavier weight on your shoulders each day.
The blossoms have wilted, the autumn has brought
Bareness to branches, and leaves' decay.

But the apples remain, and in each golden orb
Is the sunshine of bliss and the sweetness of youth;
The joy and the zeal of your childhood, absorbed,
The taste of your springtime, untouched by time's tooth.

For this is my gift to Gods and to men:
I'm saving life's savor in fruit that makes whole.
An apple each day, I will grant you again
Not youth of the body, but youth of the soul.

~Michaela Macha

Dearest Maiden, Goddess of Spring,
Please bring illumination in early morning.
As you awaken at your hour,
Let me feel your energy and power.

Spring is Coming
Michaela Macha ,Tune: "Are you sleeping, Brother John?" 

Spring is coming full of flowers,
Freya smiles, Freya smiles.
Idunn and her apples, Idunn and her apples,
All is young. All is young.

Summertime, the corn is golden,
hair of Sif, hair of Sif.
Thor is making thunder, Thor is making thunder,
Rain pours down. Rain pours down.

Autumn brings us fruits and bounty,
gifts of Frey, gifts of Frey.
Frigg's hearth and fire, Frigg's hearth and fire,
Safe and warm. Safe and warm.

Wintertide has come upon us,
Skadhi skis, Skadhi skis.
Uller goes a-hunting, Uller goes a-hunting,
Ravens cry. Ravens cry.

Maiden,
New beginnings sprout in feminine Earth.
Legs rooted in blossoming
Spring.
Newborn innocence cultivates in
raw purity.

Coming of Age

Divine Friends

Elements Table

Freya

Handfasting

Idunn

Love

Maiden Goddess

Sexuality

Spring is Coming

Thor the Bride

Valkyries

Who Are Your Divine Friends?