INTERNATIONAL GODDESS CONFERENCE

INTERNATIONAL GODDESS CONFERENCE

FULL MOON HARVEST FESTIVAL OF THE GREAT MOTHER

Friday 21 March to Sunday 23 March 2008

(Autumn Equinox/Full Moon/Mabon/Easter)



Taking place on the farm Artemis, in the cauldron of the Franschhoek Valley. The Conference will honour Goddess as the Mother Spirit within everything and within all of us. A celebration of the Feminine Spirit expressed through nature, sacred art, myth, sacred drama, sacred dance and song. We will showcase the power of art, myth and ritual as powerful tools of transformation and empowerment. We will make our pilgrimage to the Mother in Her many splendid forms as Table Mountain, the Full Moon, the spiral of the Labyrinth, circle dance, Moon dance, weaving of ceremonial girdles, playshops, sacred sexuality, delicious food. Journey with us through playshops, art exhibitions, participate in powerful ritual, re-enact sacred myths and women's stories, to restore Her to our consciousness.

ONE DAY FULL CONFERENCE TICKET : R400 PER DAY

THREE DAY FULL CONFERENCE TICKET : R1000

New exciting workshops, talks and installations added to a full program!!!

At play with the Sacred Feminine – by Sara Matchett and Dr Makgathi Mokwena of Mothertongue; The Woman of Light, The Mother of Enlightenment – the Sophian Gnostic Tradition by Sophia Suzette Shuttleworth; Initiation into Unity Consciousness with Quantum Goddess by Yanietsche Megun and One in Herself by award winning film maker Kali van der Merwe.

FULL DETAILS ON PROGRAM, CONTRIBUTORS, ACCOMMODATION AND BOOKINGS VISIT
www.goddesstemple.co.za

phone
0828038821

e-mail
hettienne@goddesstemple.co.za

Bellydance - Tribal Fusion & Gothic

We pleased to announce that we will be hosting our first tribal Fusion & Gothic Bellydance Workshop on the 5th April, from 1:30pm through to 3pm.

This will be hosted in the "Tantra Lounge" of Shakti Gardens, 17 Anreith Street, Franklin Roosevelt Park.

For more details on these workshops and the dance, you can call:
Allison - 083 450 8508

For directions you can call:
Don - 082 961 5454

Tantric Wisdom - The face of Kali

Unbridled! Kali scours her nails down your back
sinking her teeth into the softness of your inner thigh
And as you look at her, into the face of the Star Girl
then turns to the fiery glaze of the Sorceress!
She straddles you until the pleasure becomes so exquisite
that your spirit leaves your body to witness and be bliss, all in one

Christa Shakti

Tantric Wisdom - Pleasures and Blessings

Losing yourself in sex is a pleasure
Finding yourself in sex is a blessing

submitted by Christa Shakti

To you sweet Shakti, to your loved one, and others on this journey : May you continue to enjoy the pleasure, may you continue to have abundant blessings, may you continue to experience life's joys and life's riches, and may your physical healing manifest in a deeper spiritual understanding and enlightenment!

Don Dreaming Eagle

Tantric Wisdom - What a strange pair!

Where does the body end and where does the spirit begin?
They are reflections of each other but not the same!
When the spirit feels pain the body trembles,
When the body feels ecstacy the spirit quivers!
Oh what a strange pair!

submitted by Roelf, beloved of Christa Shakti

Models required for art workshops

Our Wednesday evening art workshops have grown, it is a fun event, but we will require additional models soon.

If you are comfortable to model in the nude, that will be great, but nudity is not a prerequisite, nor enforced - you may use your imagination and drape loose materials over the body, and expose only what you comfortable with.

If you would like to be a part of this project please feel free to call me or send e-mail

Don
082 961 5454
info@shaktigardens.com

Tantric Wisdom - Tell me

Tell me who you really are,
as I see glimpses of your magnificence.
Sometimes I feel the soft touch
of your fingertips brushing my soul.

You are friend and stranger, both at once,
may I know myself through you.
May you kiss yourself in the reflection of my mirror
may the soft breeze of spirit kiss your skin.

May the unbridled lust of Kali scour control out of your hands,
and in all those moments recognize yourself with love!

Christa Shakti

International Goddess Conference 2008

HER TEMPLE - www.goddesstemple.co.za

This temple website is dedicated to Her

ISIS-SHEKINAH-MARES -SOPHIA-MAWU-

Maiden, Mother, Crone,

the Great Mother Spirit,

GODDESS

and embodiment of Her Sacred Mystery.



International Goddess Conference 2008
www.goddesstemple.co.za

Harvest Festival of the Great Mother of the Earth

We, as human beings, are faced with healing the feminine wound and with a return to balance, both within and without. Those on the goddess path of consciousness find our healing through a feminine spiritual experience, mirrored back at us in the symbol and image of the Feminine Face of God. As women and men, living in a patriarchal society, we have been confronted with God in only a male body. Through the years of patriarchy, women's bodies did not belong to themselves, but to their husband or king or church. We learned to hate our bodies unless it conformed to a male ideal. We learnt to 'curse' our female body cycles and our experiences became steeped in shame and guilt. We were effectively cut off from our bodies, separated from a Divine Feminine Model, who could lead us as inner guide and teacher. We reclaim our feminine souls and the sanctity of our inner lives through recognition of the goddess as a symbol of holiness of the immanent world, the physical, the here and now and the passion of the soul.

By reclaiming the Lost Feminine and Her sanctity, we restore the sanctity of women and womanly values.

The goddess forces us to embrace the natural cycles of birth, death and rebirth with its inevitable rhythm. She does not allow us to escape, nor do we need to run away; She liberates us into a new life in which we are free to experience every moment in its fullest, without fear of failure.

The goddess is so much more than mere myth or archetype in the feminine psyche. The Divine Mother is a living experience of love, nurture and compassion. She can be experienced in a direct and personal way.

The Shalom of the Holy; the disclosure of the gracious Shekinah;

Divine Wisdom; the empowering Matrix;

She, in whom we live and move and have our being - She comes; She is here!!!

Rosemary Radford Ruether

The image of goddess as a feminine image of the Divine, evokes the web of life that connects every living being to both nature and the supernatural. The image of deity as feminine Goddess is the oldest known religious image. Religion refers here to the internal understanding of that which binds us to a greater power and not the external authority of dogma and structure. And indeed, that is what Goddess 'religion' epitomizes for me : a holistic world view and an embodied understanding of the world and our place in it.

A feminine image of the Divine, alongside a masculine image, brings balance back to our world view. It restores to our consciousness the value of women and their womanly ways of doing things. It gives power to the feminine aspects of our being, both men and women.

The symbols and rituals of a goddess practice bring the original understanding of our connectedness and interrelatedness to one another and the Divine, back to our consciousness. Goddess practice implies embodied love as the ground of all being. Nature is a living, conscious, intelligent being and all those who live on her, share in this interdependent relationship. Thus the Goddess path calls for the incorporation and development of greener and holistic practices of thriving on her soil. Goddess is indeed the body of the earth. She is also nature, natural and Divine.

She is the One that gives birth to all life; She is also the One that ends life.

It is to have the freedom and understanding to call God both Mother and Father.


THE FIRST EVER INTERNATIONAL GODDESS CONFERENCE

IN SOUTH AFRICA IN 2008

DAY TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE AT R400,00 PER DAY

EXCITING NEW WORKSHOPS, TALKS AND ART INSTALLATIONS ADDED

www.goddesstemple.co.za

The Conference will honour Goddess as the Mother Spirit within everything and within all of us.

It is a celebration of the Sacred Feminine expressed in Her many aspects.

This Conference will showcase the power of art, myth and ritual as powerful tools of transformation and empowerment.

A celebration of the Feminine Spirit expressed through nature, sacred art, myth, sacred drama, sacred dance and song.

We will make our pilgrimage to the Mother in

Her many splendid

forms as Table Mountain, the Full Moon, the spiral of the Labyrinth,

a sacred circle of cypress trees, and crystal clear mountain waters.

Journey with us through playshops, art exhibitions, participate in powerful ritual, re-enact sacred myths and women's stories, to restore Her to our consciousness.

www.goddesstemple.co.za

The Aphrodisiac of Imagination

Einstein once said that "imagination is more important than knowledge" - we need to dream dreams, we have to have visions, and these stem from the imagination. Too often we get bogged down with knowledge, being caught up with what we are taught on how to do things. Take off the blinkers, step out of the box, have a look to what is on your left and right and you will be amazed.

The same can be said for lovers and couples, too often people get stuck in a rut, their love life becomes boring, stale and has no spark. They fail to use their imagination, they forget to try new positions, or re-awaken courtship. Sometimes they read a self-help article in a magazine on foreplay or courtship, please note that some of these articles are just guidelines, you still have to discover what works for you and your loved one, what fits in with your unique lifestyle. We are all unique beings, each with different sets of rules, different levels of sensitivity, and different levels of arousal. Communication is so vital in courtship, marriage and life. Guide your partner in a caring loving manner during foreplay, dont bombard them with phrases like : "dont do that!", "I dont like that!" etc. If something really appeals to you, tell them - for example : "go back to what you did earlier, I really liked that" or "wow that was really amazing".

The mind is the greatest Aphrodisiac you could wish to find! Many people have told me that they fantasize about their loved one and have gotten really turned on - I then encourage them to tell their loved one what it was in the fantasy. It could possibly get their loved one motivated to make that fantasy a reality. You dont need lotions, potions or pills, you have your mind, you have your imagination, and your loved one should be the center of that, allow that person to arouse you in mind, body and spirit.

How many of us often engage in erotic play and intimacy in the dark, for some it adds to the mystique. I once heard a theory that, to me seemed over-critical - the person I was speaking to said the following, "people only make love in the dark if they have something to hide, they are obviously thinking or fatasizing about someone else, not their partner", a very harsh comment, not something we would encourage. Could it be that some people might not be comfortable with having all the lights on, could it be that the mood becomes more romantic using candles or soft lighting? We are not here to judge others, find what works for you, and use it with great abandon.

On a lighter note, when I was much younger, my wife and I were cuddling in a softly lit bedroom, she looked up at me lovingly, and with sparkles in her eyes, she said, "you look gorgeous in the dark!". Needless to say there was much embarrassment and much apologising, the "make-up sex" was very rewarding.

Tantric Wisdom - Without judgement

When bodies can create without judgement,
souls take flight beyond perceived limits.
In that moment we create with others,
but also re-invent ourselves!
Christa Shakti

Yoni Massage

I recently had a young couple enquire about Sensual Healing Massage, Sensual Chakra Balancing and Yoni Massage. After a long discussion we set a time to help them with their healing process. As usual, the massage was done in a nurturing environment, great care was giving to releasing stress after which there was an application of Hot Stones, only then were the different Chakras activated by use of various gem stones, crystals, my breathwork and visualization of energy shifts. By focussing mainly on the Base Chakra and causing Kundalini energy to awaken and flow freely, the client experienced a deep sense of pure spiritual and physical arousal.

There had to be much body work and healing, only then was permission (asked by me) and given for the Yoni Massage - during this stage an intense energy shift was experienced. Yoni Massage must never be compared to a "pelvic massage" or sexual massage offered by some studios. This is a deep balancing of mind, body and spirit. The receiver must want to receive this healing, and then during therapy give thanks for her unique creation. Some go through a spiritual healing or awakening during this process. It is always done with deep reverence and the utmost respect for womanhood. As the energies became more aroused and moved with greater intensity, the receiver was then guided to focus on and practice breathwork to enhance the move of energies, her focus was channelled away from the pelvic area as she visualized the energies moving upward enveloping her entire body, and within a short space of time she experienced the Expanded Full Body Orgasm.


Her husband was present at all times during this healing process, and he received instruction from me on how to achieve similar results at home with her.

If this is the healing you would like to experience, but would prefer to talk about it first, you are most welcome to e-mail me, phone, or meet for coffee and a chat. Your needs will be adressed with an open heart. The path you wish to travel on will be respected.

We are all uniue beings, each with our own different likes, needs, wants, and desires!

Give thanks, you are blessed, you have life. Enjoy what you have!

Don

Shakti who has Blessed me

Shakti who has blessed me
Shakti who has excited me
Shakti who has filled me with anticipation and desire
Shakti who has blessed me, has revealed pure passion and fire

I humbly kneel before thee
unable to stare at intensity of your auric energies
Shakti, you stand tall and proud
in the knowledge of releasing pleasures unbound

a dancer in the twilight
arms lifted to universe, drawing power, energizing
your soft shimmering gown
hides little of the veiled beauty so becoming

Nervously I lift my eyes feasting upon your Gateway of Pleasure
it's pure curves, smooth, a divine symbol of womanhood
with trepidation I open my mouth to taste of the sweet nectar
your Jade Pearl, now revealed, no longer hooded

glistening, swollen, throbbing
transfering its sexual powers and energies
I feed hungrily upon it and eagerly
knowing it to cast a spell so powerful so bewitching

Still kneeling, with your beauty I am overcome
my gaze transfixed upon your bejewelled breasts
heaving, as you pant with anticipation
hot sweat glides and glistens, steam rises

I rise slowly, clasping you, sharing kunadlini
our bodies slide, melting together enveloped by a spell of desire
our tongues dance and flicker, we become one in passion
we experience our union of pure energies, Shakti power, universal eros

dance dance dance in the twilight fulfilling our fantasies

Tantric Wisdom - Shakti

Shakti represents the female divinity, her power based in creativity and sexuality.

Shakti means “power” both latent and manifested. Shaktism is the religion which reveres Shakti. They believe that the truth unveils itself spiritually through the female aspect.The highest form of Shakti is Chit Shakti – pure spirit and consciousness.

Shakti is represented by a circle, representing the universe in its true aspect. When we touch her there is no mind, no matter, just herself.

In this religion three aspects stand out that differs form other hindu practices:

No castes are respected in this religion.
They eat meat and drink wine
Women play an important role sharing rituals with men in the festivals. In one of them there would be eating of fish, meat,corn and drinking wine, which is followed by sexual union between male and female in celebration of Shakti.

The goddess is full of opposites being fierce and compassionate at once.

Shakti is especially revered in the month after the summer /winter solstice.

Shakta’s use chants, real magic, holy diagrams, yoga, rituals to call forth cosmic forces and awaken the kundalini energies. Shakti is the manifestation of psychic energy and to invoke her energies must be done with care and a proper teacher as cases have been documented of people going insane due to her overwhelming energy.

Faust said: “the eternal female is raising us”

Tantric Wisdom - embracing change

Until you have truly learned to be alone with yourself, until all that is dear to you is taken away from you, until you have gone into the deepest recesses of your soul and found God within you, you lack the understanding, the discovery that the one thing that is constant is change and change is who you are.

Fighting this natural evolution is the human way of creating an undersirable evolution.

Embracing this is the creation of Nirvana.

I am change- are you?
Shakti