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| Greek Goddess of freedom, Bear, the Moon, the wild natural realm & maidens |
Artemis was a multidimensional Goddess who represented all aspects
of femininity. She was reduced by the patriarchal Greeks to the domain of moon, virgin, huntress & childbirth.
When Artemis was a little girl, her father, Zeus, asked her what she desired for a gift. She replied, 'I want to run
forever wild & free in the woods & never ever marry.'
| Temple of Artemis (rendition) |
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| original temple destroyed by conquering Roman army |
Artemis is a diety of the Moon, Bear and the realm of
all that is wild and natural. She inspires the young maidens. In classical Greece at Brauron, near Athens,
it was required as a precondition of marriage that girls be initiated in a rite called arkteia. The tradition required
the girls to undergo a period of seclusion outside the city, in the isolated sanctuary of Artemis. During their segregation
thegirls were called arktoi, or "she-bears", and it is said that they behaved like bears. The "neither washed nor cared
for themselves in any way, spoke roughtly and were called bear cubs." The girls also participated in a feast dedicated
to Artemis, when they danced the arkteuein, "acting the she-bear." They started the dance wearing orange-yellow
robes called krokaton (at one time they may have worn bearskins).
 and they mimicked bears walking on their hind legs. Later they
removed their robes and danced nude. Small illustrated pottery jars found in the excavations of the temple show the
girls holding torches and wreaths, dancing either naked or wearing the short chiton. The foundation myth for the ritual
explains that at one time a she-bear lived at the temple of the goddess. Attic youths killed it and unleashed the wrath
of Artemis. A terrible pestilence - famine followed. Apollo (Artemis' twin brother) ordered that a girl had
to be sacrificed to "the bear Artemis" before the disaster would end. A man volunteered to sacrifice his daughter, but
instead he had her hid in the temple, dressed a goat to look like her, and sacrificed it to the goddess. According to
the myth, Artemis accepted the sacrifice, and the epidemic ended. From then on the local people regularly sacrificed
a goat to Artemis, and girls hid themselves in the temple and danced as she-bears that once lived there.
text from Giving Voice to Bear.
| MUSKWA (bear) protecting Mother Earth |
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Full Moon. January 2003. Saskatchewan Womyn's Peace Summit.
We convened to offer prayers for World Peace. The US government was on the brink of war in Iraq. Our ceremony
took the form of a Bear Medicine Lodge. A vision was given >>>-------> Earth is protectively embraced
by Muskwa, the Bear.
The Cree people of northern Saskatchewan have two ancestral spirits
who are now helping Bear. These two tricktsers are brought into the image of Bear protecting Mother Earth from
violence. One is Okinipochosqanisiwak, the elbows sharpened women. The other is Omimibedisiwak, the furry heart. Only
one generation ago, the Cree were living in their traditional camps in the wild bush country of northern Saskatchewan,
Canada. They hunted moose, fished in the deep rivers and lakes. The elder who tells about the Bear's helping spirits
did not even see a whiteman until she was 7 years old. She's now in her mid-60's. Occassionally, the trickster
spirits would show up to challenge the people when their lives had become out of alignment with the sacred ways. The
sharp elbows women, Okinipochosquanisiwak, were blind. They threw babies into the fire. Furry heart, Omimibedisiwak,
worked his way into thoughts & persuaded someone to hurt a relative. Whenever the mean tricksters showed up,
the medicine people would be called upon to offer teachings and protection. According to the vision, Muskwa
is now assisted by Okinipochosqanisiwak and Omimibedisiwak to protect Earth from the demons.
| OKINIPOCHOSQANISIWAK |
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| 'Elbows Sharpened Women' pictograph in northern Saskatchewan |
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| Cree wisdom keeper of the Bear Lodge |
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