Aphrodite and Ecology: The Goddess of Love as Nature Archetype

In earlier times, Venus was the vegetation goddess of gardens, vineyards, animals and April-babies, associated with the arrival of spring. She represented fertility, domesticity and prosperity. Venus meant ‘charm’ and grass and flowers sprang up wherever her feet touched the earth. Venus was also the patrones of food and wine. When Roman culture spread, the early Latin goddess became deliberately mingled with the sexualized Aphrodite, and thus took on aspects of her Greek counterpart (as well as of the Etruscan Deity Turan). Her name is also linked to the tiny pre-historic Goddesses found throughout Europe including the famous Venus of Willendorf.

The Goddess of Love’s archetypal resonance (used here in a Jungian sense, representing a collective, inherited, unconscious pattern of behavior, thought, or image) evokes themes vital to ecopsychology. Aphrodite’s myths and ancient rituals promoted new life and regeneration.

*Planet: Venus

*Alchemy: Copper

Aphrodite, 1902. Oil on canvas. Briton Riviere.

There clad herself in garments beautiful
The laughter loving goddess. Gold-adorned
She hasted on her way down Ida’s Mount,
Ida, the many-rilled, mother of wild beasts
And in her train, the grey wolf and the bear,
the keen eyed lion and the swift footed pard,
that hungers for the kind, all fawning came.

Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite

Initially venerated as a vegetation goddess of vines and gardens, also a fertility spring (the maiden) goddess, and thus, her offspring coming in the form of ideas, crafts, etc., a deity of beauty, eternal love, blissful laughter and youth, a goddess of home and hearth, wild nature and beasts (Mylitta, Tabiti...), she was later perverted into a pagan matroness of lust, sex and promiscuity by the Roman Catholic Church.

Ostara Full Moon. 
Romans celebrated the festival of Veneralia on April 1, and subsequent resurrection three days later.

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Ritual Botanica

21 de noviembre de 2017 ·

An alchemist and her instruments. ✨ Copper is associated with Venus energy, typically known as love, romance, charm, beauty. Venus is also about values, sensuality, harmony, softening, self-love and unconditional caring for all. I think a copper still adds it’s own Venus magic into the hydrosol.... Rose distilled in copper is absolutely lovely. This makes the hydrosols the slightest bit “heavier” energetically, but quite worth it for many reasons or if you follow a specific lineage. Copper also helps to relieve the sulfur plants initial stink. ✨ I’m the type who throws myself deep into what grabs my interest. I’ve been distilling years still remain infatuated and intrigued.#distilling #hydrosols

Today in the apothecary - lots of new music and distilling with the copper goddess. I typically only use the copper alembic on Fridays for a little extra Venus energy......