What is it about?
Why are there so many books and workshops today encouraging people to "find their inner goddess"? Goddess spirituality focuses on life creation, protection, and transformation, and has grown in the 20th and 21st centuries. This interest goes back to the 19th century, when ideas from academics and esoteric thinkers combined. As traditional views of science and religion were questioned during the Enlightenment, people started exploring new ways to understand life, the universe, and human connection to the divine and nature. The idea of a “Great Goddess” emerged, inspired by interpretations of ancient myths, particularly from symbolist, romantic, and occult traditions. Early writers like Friedrich Creuzer, Eduard Gerhard, and Jakob Bachofen explored these themes. Later, Helena Blavatsky emphasized female deities, especially the Egyptian goddess Isis, promoting ideas of a universal wisdom centered on feminine principles. These early influences have shaped modern Goddess spirituality, leading to today's popular books and guides, such as *Find Your Goddess* (2018).
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Why is it important?
Work on this is important because it traces the academic and esoteric roots of modern Goddess spirituality, showing how ideas about feminine divinity have evolved over centuries. It connects 19th-century thinkers and writers with today’s self-help and spiritual movements, offering a deeper understanding of why concepts like the “inner goddess” resonate now. By linking ancient myth interpretations with changes in science, religion, and views on gender, it reveals how modern spirituality reflects both a search for personal empowerment and a response to historical shifts in how people relate to the divine, nature, and themselves.
Perspectives
From my perspective, work like this one is particularly fascinating because it connects historical intellectual movements with contemporary spiritual practices, demonstrating how deeply interconnected our ideas about the divine and gender really are. The exploration of the 19th-century ‘Great Goddess’ concept and its evolution sheds light on how people have used spirituality as a means of exploring deeper connections with life, nature, and self. It’s interesting to see how ancient myths and modern concepts of gender and the divine have influenced contemporary practices, such as empowerment workshops and self-help books. I wrote this article because I find the subject matter genuinely fascinating. I find it particularly compelling to highlight the tension between academic, esoteric, and popular discourses. The way these ideas transitioned from academic research to mainstream spirituality suggests a broadening of the spiritual landscape, where personal empowerment and historical traditions intersect. This article not only informs us about the past but also provides insight into the cultural context behind current spiritual trends, shedding light on why themes like female divinity are so prevalent today.
Almut-Barbara Renger
Universitat Basel
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Find Your Goddess – Friedrich Creuzer, Helena Blavatsky und die Genese der Göttinnen-Spiritualität aus esoterischen und wissenschaftlichen Diskursen des 19. Jahrhunderts, October 2024, Brill Deutschland GmbH,
DOI: 10.30965/9783657796922_004.
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