The Mysteries of Demeter: Rebirth of the Pagan Way by Jennifer Reif
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(Paperback)
- Pub. Date: November 2000
- 344pp
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Product Details
- Pub. Date: November 2000
- Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser
- Format: Paperback, 344pp
- ISBN-13: 9781578631414
- ISBN: 1578631416
Synopsis
Jennifer Reif has created a practical manual for experiencing the Rites and Mysteries of Demeter and Persephone. Her presentation depicts Demeter as the many-faceted Great Mother who gives birth to all life; Persephone is the light-giving and loving force that helps transform Plouton and the spirits of the Underworld. This book sings the song of the transcendent power of love and eternal renewal in the cycle of life and death. Reif provides a good deal of historical information to lay the ground for the Demetrian Wheel of the Year. Like the Wheel of the Year in Celtic Wicca, Demetrian Paganism contains a cycle of seasonal rituals. The Holy Mother and Daughter are the focus, and lead us into the center of the Mysteries. The Mysteries of Demeter tell us that Earth and all life are sacred. In this lovely book, Reif clearly describes the rituals and provides sacred prayers, chants, and recipes for sacred food. She even gives guidance for establishing a Temple of Demeter and Persephone, whether you are worshiping alone or with a group, and includes information on ritual garments, oil lamps and other ritual accouterments. As the penultimate offering to the Great Mother and a practice of Demetrian spirituality, Reif teaches you how to raise and harvest grain. Through the myth and rituals of Demetrian Paganism, the beauty of self-divinity rises within the soul. In this striking presentation of power and beauty, Demeter's ancient festivals and mysteries are available to us once again.
About the Author:
Jennifer Reif, artist, poet, and musician, has studied the relationships between nature, ancient cultures and their mythologies since 1983. In 1986 she began teaching classes on the Wiccan religion and founded the Elkgrove Circle in Los Angeles. She served the Los Angeles Pagan community through her business Memosyne Arts and Studies, has taught classes through Long Beach WomanSpirit and the Pallas Society. She also foundee the Temple of Demeter and its newsletter Mystica. In 1992 she released an album of original Goddess-Pagan songs called Mysteries of Earth, distributed by Serpentine Music. She lives in Venice, California.
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Mysteries of Demeter: Rebirth of the Pagan Wayby Anonymous
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March 28, 2008: If you're looking for Demeter mythos rituals then this is the book for you. Its got lots of background info including separate chapters on Demeter and Persephone. Persephone isn't the 'abductee' that prior versions see her as, she's got a much more powerful role here. The rituals, representing the Mediterranean seasons, beautifully capture this myth. They contain lots of prayers and invocations. I like the combination of the Sacred Marriage between Persephone and Plouton, with the Sacred Mother-Daughter Relationship, that all revolve around the seasons. It made me get much more deeply into the complex archetypes of Demeter and Persephone. There are lots of prayers such as prayers to Demeter in her various aspects: Panagia, Chloaia, Thesmophoros, Chthonia, Dea Mystica, and Evalosia. This is a really unique and excellent book, particularly if you are interested in inquiring into the Greek Mysteries.
Mysteries of Demeter: Rebirth of the Pagan Wayby Anonymous
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August 29, 2003: With a wealth of background information, Reif presents a reconstruction of the yearly seasonal festivals of Demeter and Persephone of Eleusis, Greece. In the realm of Pagan books this is a wonderful area of exploration, very different from Wicca, yet still very Pagan. Sublime esoteric meanings of each of the Holy Days of the Greek Wheel of the Year are given, along with complete and easy to use liturgy for the rites. The poetic aspects of the rites are lovely and a pleasure to not only read, but to perform. The Greater and Lesser Mysteries (also reconstructions) are brilliantly done, and to date I and several friends have performed the Lesser Mysteries which were powerful, and very moving and uplifting for the soul. The Appendices are also very interesting, and include summaries of many ancient writers who wrote varying tales of Demeter and Persephone: Homer, Clement of Alexandria, Ovid, Apollodorus and Callimachus. Its amazing to see how differently these ancient authors view this subject. Just a note, the reviewer below who has a complaint about this work not containing any dark aspects totally missed the Dark Demeter element (Demeter Melaina) that is woven into the barren part of the yearly cycle. There is even a Holy Day to bring her out of this dark state (called 'Stenia.') It seems to me that the reviewer is simply complaining that the myth is told without a rape. However, Persephone does have a fearful descent to the Underworld. The chapter on Persephone brilliantly explains why the author made this choice in her retelling of the myth. Highly recommended for those who love Goddess Religion, Mystery Religions, Earth-based Religions, and Greco-Roman Studies.
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