Persephone Rising: Awakening the Heroine Within

337 Pages·2015·1.75 MB·English

by  Carol S. Pearson

Contents
Dedication
INTRODUCTION
THE POWER OF STORY IN THE IN-BETWEEN
The Story of Demeter and Persephone
The Eleusinian Mysteries and the Power of Collective Transformation
Why Me? How This Tradition Changed My Life
Why You? Awakening Your Capacities and Potential
Why Now? Thriving in an Unfinished Revolution
PART ONE
DEMETER
Demeter and the Way of the Heart
Demeter Lesson One: Living a Life of Connected Consciousness
Demeter Lesson Two: Demonstrating Brave-Hearted Resilience
Demeter Lesson Three: Valuing the Generous Heart
Demeter Lesson Four: Voting with Your Feet
Demeter Lesson Five: Standing Up for What You Care About
Capstone Exercise: Dialogue with Demeter
PART TWO
ZEUS
Zeus and the Way of Power
Zeus Lesson One: Overcoming the Fear That Fuels a Driven Life
Zeus Lesson Two: Declaring Your Independence
Zeus Lesson Three: Unleashing Your Passion, Focusing Your Actions
Zeus Lesson Four: Regrouping and Rethinking as You Know More
Zeus Lesson Five: Moving from Power Over to Power With
Capstone Exercise: Dialogue with Zeus
PART THREE
PERSEPHONE
Persephone and the Way of Transformation
Persephone Lesson One: Responding to the Call of Eros
Persephone Lesson Two: Claiming Your Love Rights
Persephone Lesson Three: Doing Life a Simpler Way
Persephone Lesson Four: Making Choices to Realize Your Destiny
Persephone Lesson Five: Experiencing Radical Belonging
Capstone Exercise: Dialogue with Persephone
PART FOUR
DIONYSUS
Dionysus and the Gift of Joy
Dionysus Lesson One: Realizing the Eleusinian Promise
Dionysus Lesson Two: Celebrating Life’s Great Beauty
Dionysus Lesson Three: Dancing Collective Joy
Dionysus Lesson Four: Directing Your Inner Theater Company
Capstone Exercise: Dialogue with Dionysus
Integrative Capstone Exercise: Your Personal Eleusinian Mandala
CONCLUSION
The Power of Story to Transform Your Life
Who’s Who
Bibliography
Acknowledgments
Notes
Reading Group Discussion Guide
About the Author
Also by Carol S. Pearson
Credits
Back Ad
Copyright
About the Publisher
Dedication
To Shanna—with love and gratitude
Introduction
The Power of Story in the In-Between
The Story of Demeter and Persephone
L
ONG AGO AND FAR AWAY, there was an island with an advanced
civilization where art and beauty were primary, civility and peace reigned, and
men and women lived as equals. But after many ages had passed, people from
the nearby mainland—where men ruled and war and violence were common—
crossed the sea in their boats and invaded this island, defeating its people.
Among the spoils of war they took home with them were some of the island’s
gods and goddesses.
These gods and goddesses retained knowledge of where they had come from
and yearned to return, yet as time passed, their memories of the island and of life
as they had once known it grew fainter and fainter. Finally, their recall of the
island was like the ghostly writing in a palimpsest, just traces beneath the surface
of newer inscriptions, as the deities became more and more what the new
mortals they served wanted and understood.
Many ages later, one of these goddesses was luxuriating in the beauty of a
verdant field. Her hair was golden, like corn silk, and she moved with the grace
of grain blowing in a soft, warm wind. Her eyes were the color of a clear, sky-
blue lake. While her body was voluptuous, she also seemed to emerge from the
land, with the feel of someone solid and trustworthy. Her very name, Demeter,
came from the Greek root word meaning “the mother,” and she embodied the
compassion and nurturance this name implies.
From his throne high on Mount Olympus, Zeus, the god of all the gods, saw
her. Zeus was as muscular as a bull and had the courage of a warrior. Clad from
his head to his feet in armor, he inspired the respect of the other gods and terror
in the hearts of his people, who knew they must worship him and make
sacrifices to him or suffer the consequences. In his role as a sky god, he was
known—when crossed—to hurl down lightning bolts, bellow as loud as thunder,
and create winds so strong that few could withstand their force.
But on this day, everything had gone his way, and he was feeling secure in
his power and happy with his lot. Then he happened to spy Demeter and, filled
with lust, he descended from on high to seduce her. Flattered by his attentions,
Demeter enjoyed their lovemaking. After they had rested together contentedly,
he explained, with some regret, that he had to return to his duties. After all, he
was responsible for maintaining the social order of gods and mortals, as well as
for quieting the anger of the Titans he had conquered, and soon he would marry
the Titan beauty Hera, the goddess of marriage.
Zeus reminded himself that being the chief god, and consequently the king of
all, meant that his responsibilities had to supersede his personal happiness, and
that Demeter would be fine. Her satisfaction came less from sex or romance than
from being a mother, and likely she would gain a child from this union. And he
was right in this surmise.
Their resulting daughter was known as Kore, the maiden; it was not yet clear
what she would be the goddess of, hence her generic name. She had hair as dark
and luminous as the night sky, but a disposition so light and joyful that it seemed
as if she had stars dancing as a halo around her. Her skin was honey golden, and
her nature was similarly sweet. Her eyes were sea-foam green, the color of the
Mediterranean, and those looking into them often felt a subtle call to adventure
that caused them to yearn for something far away and as yet unknown.
Demeter loved her daughter more than anything or anyone, cherishing her
and doing everything she could to keep her safe. But one day while Kore was off
picking flowers in a meadow with her friends, Demeter left to take care of some
business with other goddesses. She returned after a short time, only to learn that
Kore was nowhere to be found. Her playmates told Demeter that Kore had
wandered off and had not been seen since. Demeter asked everyone in the
vicinity if they had seen Kore or knew where she was, but no one would admit to
any knowledge of what had happened. Distraught and worried, as any parent
would be, Demeter feared that Kore had been killed, raped, or kidnapped. For
days, Demeter did not sleep or eat or bathe as she searched frantically for Kore,
following ever-widening paths that led her further and further from home.
Finally, Demeter encountered Hekate, the goddess of the crossroads, who
was known for the depth of her wisdom, which was especially relevant in times
of choice or when someone was at a loss for where to go or what to do. A very
ancient goddess, Hekate was one of the few who (along with the Fates) appeared
to other gods and to humans in the guise of an old woman. Closely associated
with the moon and its phases, she saw better at night, like an owl or a cat. Her
hearing, however, was always acute, even catching whispered secrets that
traveled to her in the wind. When Hekate recognized the depth of Demeter’s
maternal grief, her own heart was touched, and she told Demeter that she had
heard Kore cry out, and she believed that Kore might have been abducted.
Hekate suggested that she and Demeter visit Apollo, the blazing sun god,
who, from his position in the sky, may have seen what transpired. Gratefully,
Demeter accompanied Hekate up into the sky to see Apollo. Now, Apollo was a
favored son of Zeus, and often served as his emissary. He dutifully explained to
Demeter that she need not worry. Kore had become the wife of a prestigious
god, Hades, who ruled one of the three major realms of the world. Of course,
Demeter well knew that Zeus ruled the sky and the surface of the earth;
Poseidon, the seas; and Hades, the Underworld, where the dead reside. But she
listened politely, so as not to offend. Apollo went on to assure her that all was
well: Hades had asked Zeus for Kore’s hand in marriage, and after all, Zeus was
her father and had the right to decide whom she married.
Hades was a dark and handsome god, rich beyond measure, with a
mischievous turn of his lips that women adored. He had loved Kore since he first
saw her, but had repressed his growing desire until she was pubescent, and thus
of age. When Hades appeared before Zeus, he was lit with passion and trembling
with eagerness to hold his beloved. Zeus thought it better to have Hades marry
Kore than ravish her unwed, as he feared might happen given what he was
seeing. If that were not enough, Zeus knew that Hades had always resented how
he, Hades’s younger brother, had become chief of the gods, supplanting his older
sibling. Zeus had to manage Hades carefully so that he would not stage a
rebellion. So all in all, Apollo continued, it was a wise decision for Zeus to bless
the marriage then and there.
“So when was this marriage ceremony?” Hekate asked, a bit provocatively,
since all the gods should have been invited. Ignoring that question, Apollo
explained that Hades had convinced Aphrodite of the depth of his love for Kore
and asked her to help him woo her. Aphrodite placed the most beautiful flower
anyone had ever seen near the meadow where Kore was playing with her friends.
Kore saw this flower in the distance and became so entranced by it that she
wandered away from them. She bent over to pick it but found that she had to pull
it hard, and when she did so, the earth opened up, and Hades, on his chariot,
bounded out of the depths, swept her up in his arms, and carried her back to his
underworld kingdom.
Learning this, Demeter feared that, though Kore was alive, she would be
scared, upset, even traumatized. Certainly, she was unprepared for sex,