Sunday 19 April 2020

Pagan Eye: Flame of Avalon Burning for the Goddess


Jane Mortimer, who like me loves candle magic, sent me this photo of her Flame of Avalon burning on her altar. She wrote:
"I have been lighting my Flame of Avalon candles each month and meditating on different aspects of the Goddess. This time I kept an open mind about who to meditate on and just let something come into my head, and I found I was looking at a lady in a blue uniform, wearing a mask and gloves.  Just as our goddesses can be our heroes, I realised our heroes can be our goddesses in the strange times we find ourselves in.  My goddess didn't have a name - she had the names of all the nurses out there on the front line, so I will name her Legiona."
I too will be lighting a candle to the Goddess of Nurses, and do believe that new goddesses can appear to us in contemporary times, in the face of contemporary problems. In the past I have thought of Hygieia as the Goddess of Nurses. In Greek and Roman mythology, she is one of the Asclepiadae - children of the God of Medicine, Asclepius, and his wife Epione. Hygieia actually personifies health, cleanliness, and sanitation. She has four sisters. Panacea represents universal remedy; Iaso is responsible for recuperation from illness; Aceso is the deity of the process of healing; while Aglaïa represents beauty.

The Flame of Avalon is a sacred flame, the original of which was started at the 2004 Glastonbury Goddess Festival and was then held by the Glastonbury Goddess Temple. Every month, priestesses at that temple hold vigils when the flame is lit. Any candle lit by that flame is considered to carry its light and blessings, and people can contact the temple to find out more about it, get a candle, and join in the vigils in their own homes each month. Here is the link: https://goddesstemple.co.uk/the-flame-of-avalon/

On each Pagan Eye post, I show a photo that I find interesting, with a few words about it - it could be a seasonal image, a pagan site, an event, or just a pretty picture. If you want to send me a photo for a Pagan Eye post, please email it to badwitch1234@gmail.com Let me know what the photo shows and whether you want your name mentioned or not. For copyright reasons, the photo must be one you have taken yourself and you must confirm that you are submitting it for A Bad Witch's Blog.

The photo is copyright Jane Mortimer.

Links and previous related posts
https://goddesstemple.co.uk/
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2016/03/witchy-days-out-shopping-in-glastonbury.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2018/05/dragons-of-summer-winter-battle-in.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/07/pagan-eye-glastonbury-tor-on-summer.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/05/glastonbury-experiencing-red-white.html

2 comments:

Elsa Lucia said...

This is so interesting, I have always felt a connection to paganism, but didn't have the chance to practice it until now. I am new to all this, and this post on The Flame of Avalon has helped me in my research. I want to expand my knowledge on this and I am so happy I came across your blog. I am already following you on bloglovin' and would appreciate it much if you followed my blog too. Have a great day!

Rayne Hall said...

Hygieia strikes me as the right goddess to pray to during the pandemic, for all the concepts (and people) she represents. I think I may light a candle to her tomorrow. Thanks for the inspiration.