Entrance to the shrine of the Magna Mater, Great Mother Earth, Gaia, Terra,

Magna Mater
- The Great Mother

In almost every ancient mythology,
there is a female Mothergoddess at the beginning of time
who either is the earth or bears the planet and beings out of herself.
In the stoneage she was the only known and worshipped Goddess
who represented life itself and the whole earth as a holy being.
Fertility was known as a female power.

You are about to enter the shrine of the Mother of Old.
(Entrance at the bottom of this page)

First you shall have and read some information on this goddess of old,
so that you approach her in the appropriate way.

Her stoneage-names are forgotten, but we know many names of the later ancient cultures.
But even today, we personalize nature as female and call Her Mother Nature or Mother Earth.

Picture by Susan Boulet
"Mother Earth"

"The Mother of all" is mostly portrayed as a (maybe pregnant) corpulent female person with large breasts and broad hips. Sometimes she carries a horn of plenty and is shown with fruits or children. (click on the thumb to see detailed picture)

She represents the fruitfulness and fertility of nature itself. Therefore her corpulent figure, the large breasts and her -sometimes shown- immense vulva must be seen as a sign of these aspects of nature. Also it speaks of another female stereotype than the twiggy of our days. The female sex itself is sacred and holy. The act of birth a mysterium and wonder of itself.

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Mothergoddess from Catal Huyuk

Venus of Willendorf

"The Great Mother" was the only known and worshipped Goddess of the stoneages. In almost all creation myths of all cultures she appears to be the eternal, not born, just existing Beginning of time. She gives the earth the shape it is in. She is the bearer of the world and the population of this planet (plants, animals and humans). Tales of Her are forgotten, but everyone can get a glimpse of Her important role, when reading ancient creation myths of what religion soever.

Ancient Egyptian Image

France

THE MOTHER is all we are,
SHE, who is all, is within us,
SHE, who is all, is with us every day.
From her we are and to her we go.

It is my believe and religion to worship the greatness of Mother Earth, and the many other goddesses of old as aspects and incarnations of Her.

Of course the Great Mother had many symbols and signs. On the wallpaintings and engraving of the stoneages symbols can be seen, which must represent the goddess. Some look like shields, others are just a triangle, the vulva of the goddess.

It is certain, that the stoneage people did sacrifice and made offerings to the Mother. Not so sure is, what the sacrifices and offerings actually were: From everything grown out of nature, flowers, corn, milk, honey, seeds to parts of the hunted dear, animals or even humans. Today the idea of human sacrifice is a horror in our eyes, but one could assume that in the stoneages maybe it was a great honour to be sacrificed to the goddess in order to guarantee the survival of the whole group.

Personally I don't believe the pink-glasses wearing spiritual people of today that have the opinion in the older ages everything had to be love and loveliness. Human sacrifice just dosen't seem to fit in their thoughts of how the dawn of mankind must have been. But trying to imagine what the stoneages people thought, I would think, that giving the most precious gift -life itself- to the goddess must have been an offering, which was made only for very special purposes and reasons.

Alas, maybe the thoughts on death were much different from today's: Returning to the mother and promised rebirth.

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Temples in the "modern" meaning of the word were unknown to the people of the stoneages. The Goddess was worshipped where nature itself was felt the strongest : This could be almost everywhere under the free heaven: At a waterflow, in the woods, on hills or mountains or especially in caves, which symbolised the womb of Mother Earth.

Malta

Catal Huyuk (today Turkey)

There was also a cultcenter in Catal Huyuk (today Turkey).

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	Gaia, Ga or Ge (greek: Mother Earth read article) Terra (latin) Gatumdu (sumerian name) Magna Mater	Picture from Laussel/France