If taking a compliment from a beautiful man or woman makes you uncomfortable, please read this post.
If wearing beautiful lingerie beneath your daily attire seems superfluous and vulgar, please read this post.
If you are unable to stand, naked, in front a mirror.period., please read this post.
If you believe you, as a person, are unworthy of ceremony, praise and holy sacrament, please read this post.
If you believe that sexual freedom is only for "those girls," please read this post.
If the word "femininity" makes you uncomfortable, please read this post.
If you believe makeup is shallow, vain and unnecessary, please read this post.
If you believe sacred self-care of the feminine is a luxury you can't afford, please read this post.
If you believe that The Red Tent is a prophecy of false teachings, please read this post.
This post might make you feel squirmy, uncomfortable, even, dare I say...blasphemous. It might allow for a sigh of relief. It might make you cry. It might send you running for the hills. And, that's exactly why I'd like you to read it.
So, join me. Pour yourself some hot Rose tea; maybe a glass of wine if you're so inclined. Squirrel yourself up on the couch, cozied beneath a blanket. Light some candles, dim the lights. Create this lush space for yourself. I'd like to tell you a story and if, at any point, you are made to feel uncomfortable, My Sweet Reader, please know you are not alone. I got you.
We all do.
Now. Take a deep breath, let it go. Take a sip of your beverage of choice and let's get in this...
Real shadow work does not leave us intact; it is not some neat and tidy process, but rather an inherently messy one, as vital and unpredictably alive as birth. The ass it kicks is the one upon which we are sitting; the pain it brings up is the pain we’ve been fleeing most of our life; the psychoemotional breakdowns it catalyzes are the precursors to hugely relevant breakthroughs; the doors it opens are doors that have shown up year after year in our dreams, awaiting our entry. Real shadow work not only breaks us down, but breaks us open.
- Sera Beak Red Hot and Holy
I have, indeed, broken apart. Wide open. It's not pretty, I'll tell you that. Sort of like a carcass on the side of the road...the kind you shield your eyes from, partly for fear of seeing something so horrific and partly for the sorrow it brings and still, in the same space in which you just can't pry your eyes away from all that blood. But this break isn't something I can afford to look away from. It's uncomfortable and really messy. It's scary and it's also a time in which I see the Beauty that exists in me.
If you know me, you know that I've lived a pretty beautiful life. Never needing for a thing. I've accomplished goals, traveled, explored, earned a degree, an advanced degree, survived (and escaped) Corporate America, earned my Yoga Teacher certification and a pile of other great things.
If you know me, you also know there's been some real shit I've waded through. No one wants to hear about that...so let's get to the part where that sip of wine might come in handy.
I am a woman.
That should be obvious if you've ever seen a photo of me...or if you know me, personally.
I am a woman who's accomplished a lot. I am a woman who has an amazing family. I am a woman who has the best support system, in friends, one could ask for. I am a woman who has loved madly, passionately and fiercely.
What you don't know about me...is that being a woman has scared the shit out me for most of my life.
I am also a woman who's spent most of my life hiding who I am from most of you reading this.
See, the thing is, in many places throughout the globe, a woman has the freedom to be anything she wants. This is a good problem to have, yes. She is a powerhouse. A Corporate leader, an artist. She is a stay-at-home-mom, an architect. She wears a lot of make-up, or none at all. She spends money on high-end shoes or cheap flip flops at Payless Shoe Source. She is a mother, a lover, a prostitute and a chaste Saint. She is a Savior and a Demon.
I'm not sure about you, but all these options were too much.
And they were too much because I literally felt ALL of these women.
ALL OF THEM.
I felt their breath, their pain, their love their fear, their successes and challenges. I felt them all at once and when I couldn't discern this gift to feel, I crashed and burned.
I couldn't choose to be just one- so I chose to be none.
Make-up scared me. Receiving compliments made me highly uncomfortable and receiving the attention of men? That was unbearable. Lace panties scared me. Sexuality scared me. Showing cleavage scared me. Marriage and children scared me.
It wasn't until I met Narcissism that I finally realized what it was about being a woman that truly scared me...just when I needed Her most.
She is called the Divine Feminine.
And She doesn't take shit.
She is Queen of Light and Dark. She is the Creator and the Destroyer. She is our History. She is the story left of the Bible and a a pile of other Sacred texts, She is Eve, Kali, Lilith and Persephone. She is the Protector and Harbor of Mysteries and long-forgotten Ceremonies. She is the mother of Community. She is YOU.
And, She is ME.
Enter the Divine Feminine. She tore me from a situation by setting me on fire. And, when She picked me up against my will and pushed me out the door, I realized that at some point, She rises with a profound fury when we are unable to do so and when She's had enough. We may not even we see it happening. I can't even begin to imagine what others see when She's graced them with Her presence...in me.
Go ahead. Take a swig of that wine.
You'll need it for this next part.
See, the Divine Feminine is strong in me. She's brazen. Emotional. She is kind and fiercely angry. She is beautiful, damaged and fiercely protective. She is warmth and She is Grace. She's my Mama Bear. And she's PISSED OFF that it took me so long to see that she is in ME as much as she is in YOU.
Women are magic. I mean, really, we are. And if you're a man who happens to be very much in touch with your own Divine Feminine, this include you, My Darlings. If you're a man who sees this and agrees with me and you remind your woman or partner of their mysterious and sacred grace, I'd like to kiss you, on the cheek...take it easy...and say thank you.
Why have so many of us FORGOTTEN this?
We live in a world that shames women for nearly every thought she has about Herself. If She proclaims her beauty, she's arrogant. If she's afraid of Her beauty or diminishes Herself, She is weak, insecure and small. If she exposes Her cleavage, She's a whore. And if She never exposes Her cleavage, She's a prude. If a woman is married, She's given in and submitted to a man. If She's single, She's a cast-away and unwanted. If She's career-oriented, She's too masculine and if She's a stay-at-home mom, She's given up her right to be educated and empowered.
my Gawd...
No wonder we're such a shit show.
Why is it that so many of us are afraid of our own Shadow? Afraid of the beautiful and perfectly sacred body standing before us in the mirror? Why are we afraid to wear red lipstick and why are we ashamed our bra size? Why do we pick the wrong partners? The ones we know will never stay? Why do we subject ourselves to careers that don't fulfill us? Why do we fear our financial status? Why do we fear being too powerful or not powerful enough? Our relationship status? Why do we fear our sexuality, our emotions and suppress our rage or find balance in our display of those emotions?
If you don't see this fear as palpable or, even real, I urge you to visit a bookstore and check out the "Women's Studies" section or the "Self-Transformation" section. Bookshelves are littered with "self-help" books that help guide women along what has been a deep-seated albeit overlooked Sacred Path back to the Divine Feminine. Most of the books on the shelves discuss our fear of success and how to combat that fear, or touch on our fear of our own sexuality, or "How to Be Happy and Single" or "How To Not Lose Yourself In Your Marriage."
We don't need books on manners or tips on how to "please a man bed."
F@*K that.
Good manners, in and outside of the bedroom, aren't something a woman needs to learn from a damn manual. She'll earn those badges with the right partner (yup, I just said that) or when She decides She's good 'n'ready.
We need books on Sacred ceremonies, how to please OUR-EFFING-SELVES in bed and how to not feel badly about this...and how to choose a relationship that ignites our fire and a partner who fans that fire, who holds the space for us to break and to re-build, to grow and to fall apart. We should have books that remind us of our Sacred selves and the men who believe in us. We should have books that remind us that it's totally great and empowering to wear ridiculous and superfluous black lace bras under our bland grey sweatshirt, on a random Tuesday, when no one under the sun will ever see it...because we like it and it makes us feel freaking beautiful and mysterious! We need books that remind us that just because a man (or woman) tells us that we're beautiful...sometimes that's all it is. It doesn't mean that person's trying to hop in the sack with us- there's no need to panic or brace yourself for WWIII. Sometimes someone pays us a compliment and we should just smile and say "thank you." We need books that teach us that we deserve to be with partners who compliment us despite the shame we feel in that space and who cherish the lumps and bumps on our bodies and who constantly ask us to show more...do you realize how lucky you are to have a man who worships the being and the body you have? If he tells you you're beautiful...if she tells you your body is the most precious thing she's ever laid eyes on...DAMNIT SISTER, take it in. Breath in that compliment and let it swim in your insides, filling your cells and pouring wisdom in to all the places and empty spaces you forgot about. And say "thank you, my Beloved, for always reminding me."
And never, ever, EVER choose to stay with a partner who punishes you by refraining from showering you with the compliments and love you so deserve and then, twists your head all around by informing you that you're insecure. Never be with anyone who makes you feel that you are difficult to love. Run like hell from that one. Trust me.
Look, I'm not angry...exactly...
I just...really love you. And I want you to acknowledge your worth and your prowess and the mystery that you are, deep inside, even in the darkest, most forgotten and lonely places.
If you forgot you were the Divine Feminine, I just want to remind you that you ARE Her.
And if you live in fear of Her, I want you to know that you aren't alone.
She's a wild one, that beautiful Creature and if you've not yet met Her, when you do, She will turn your world upside down, twist your insides all about and hopefully break you in to the Light.
You are a beautiful creature made from Divinity. And you are worthy of walking the Sacred Path, just as Mary, Kali, Jesus, Mother Theresa, Buddha and the Queen of Sheba did...it is your Divine right to dig in deep, to the depths of the darkest spaces and be reminded of the mystery of this beautiful divine energy that exists in each of us, regardless of your religion, belief system, upbringing, sexual orientation, relationship status...none of that shit matters.
At your worst. And, at your best, I believe that you are a powerful, mysterious, Divine and illuminating Creature- and I love you for all of those pieces.
Take the compliment from that beautiful man or woman and say "thank you."
Wear beautiful lingerie beneath your daily attire- even if it's just for YOU.
Stand naked before a mirror and cherish the Temple that you have been given to house your Soul.
Offer yourself ceremony, praise and holy sacrament, regularly.
Come to see your sexuality as part of who you are and be totally cool with it. If you struggle with this, read A Woman On Fire by Amy Jo Goddard because daaaang...she's good.
Dissect the word femininity and create your own definition that defines the way this speaks to YOU.
Don't fear the mascara, lip gloss and red lipstick...seriously.
Realize that sacred self-care of the feminine is a luxury you can't afford NOT to perform for Yourself.
Read The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. And if you've already read it...read it again.
And if you believe you are not worth being cherished as a Divine and Glorious being by your partner or cannot seem to find one who values this Divinity, visit Mr. Amari Soul's page on Facebook. And then, read his book Reflections of A Man because even though he doesn't know you from Eve or Lilith, he'll remind you of your worth and it will blow your mind...
I love you,
Brett
"I don't know about you, but personally, I want to learn about the Divine Feminine from someone who dares to speak Her. The good news is it doesn't take fancy techniques to speak Her. When you connect more consciously with your soul, it will naturally start to affect your human voice.
If wearing beautiful lingerie beneath your daily attire seems superfluous and vulgar, please read this post.
If you are unable to stand, naked, in front a mirror.period., please read this post.
If you believe you, as a person, are unworthy of ceremony, praise and holy sacrament, please read this post.
If you believe that sexual freedom is only for "those girls," please read this post.
If the word "femininity" makes you uncomfortable, please read this post.
If you believe makeup is shallow, vain and unnecessary, please read this post.
If you believe sacred self-care of the feminine is a luxury you can't afford, please read this post.
If you believe that The Red Tent is a prophecy of false teachings, please read this post.
This post might make you feel squirmy, uncomfortable, even, dare I say...blasphemous. It might allow for a sigh of relief. It might make you cry. It might send you running for the hills. And, that's exactly why I'd like you to read it.
So, join me. Pour yourself some hot Rose tea; maybe a glass of wine if you're so inclined. Squirrel yourself up on the couch, cozied beneath a blanket. Light some candles, dim the lights. Create this lush space for yourself. I'd like to tell you a story and if, at any point, you are made to feel uncomfortable, My Sweet Reader, please know you are not alone. I got you.
We all do.
Now. Take a deep breath, let it go. Take a sip of your beverage of choice and let's get in this...
Real shadow work does not leave us intact; it is not some neat and tidy process, but rather an inherently messy one, as vital and unpredictably alive as birth. The ass it kicks is the one upon which we are sitting; the pain it brings up is the pain we’ve been fleeing most of our life; the psychoemotional breakdowns it catalyzes are the precursors to hugely relevant breakthroughs; the doors it opens are doors that have shown up year after year in our dreams, awaiting our entry. Real shadow work not only breaks us down, but breaks us open.
- Sera Beak Red Hot and Holy
I have, indeed, broken apart. Wide open. It's not pretty, I'll tell you that. Sort of like a carcass on the side of the road...the kind you shield your eyes from, partly for fear of seeing something so horrific and partly for the sorrow it brings and still, in the same space in which you just can't pry your eyes away from all that blood. But this break isn't something I can afford to look away from. It's uncomfortable and really messy. It's scary and it's also a time in which I see the Beauty that exists in me.
If you know me, you know that I've lived a pretty beautiful life. Never needing for a thing. I've accomplished goals, traveled, explored, earned a degree, an advanced degree, survived (and escaped) Corporate America, earned my Yoga Teacher certification and a pile of other great things.
If you know me, you also know there's been some real shit I've waded through. No one wants to hear about that...so let's get to the part where that sip of wine might come in handy.
I am a woman.
That should be obvious if you've ever seen a photo of me...or if you know me, personally.
I am a woman who's accomplished a lot. I am a woman who has an amazing family. I am a woman who has the best support system, in friends, one could ask for. I am a woman who has loved madly, passionately and fiercely.
What you don't know about me...is that being a woman has scared the shit out me for most of my life.
I am also a woman who's spent most of my life hiding who I am from most of you reading this.
See, the thing is, in many places throughout the globe, a woman has the freedom to be anything she wants. This is a good problem to have, yes. She is a powerhouse. A Corporate leader, an artist. She is a stay-at-home-mom, an architect. She wears a lot of make-up, or none at all. She spends money on high-end shoes or cheap flip flops at Payless Shoe Source. She is a mother, a lover, a prostitute and a chaste Saint. She is a Savior and a Demon.
I'm not sure about you, but all these options were too much.
And they were too much because I literally felt ALL of these women.
ALL OF THEM.
I felt their breath, their pain, their love their fear, their successes and challenges. I felt them all at once and when I couldn't discern this gift to feel, I crashed and burned.
I couldn't choose to be just one- so I chose to be none.
Make-up scared me. Receiving compliments made me highly uncomfortable and receiving the attention of men? That was unbearable. Lace panties scared me. Sexuality scared me. Showing cleavage scared me. Marriage and children scared me.
It wasn't until I met Narcissism that I finally realized what it was about being a woman that truly scared me...just when I needed Her most.
She is called the Divine Feminine.
And She doesn't take shit.
She is Queen of Light and Dark. She is the Creator and the Destroyer. She is our History. She is the story left of the Bible and a a pile of other Sacred texts, She is Eve, Kali, Lilith and Persephone. She is the Protector and Harbor of Mysteries and long-forgotten Ceremonies. She is the mother of Community. She is YOU.
And, She is ME.
Narcissism is a tough pill to swallow...and it's very tricky to recognize.
It's especially challenging to really see Narcissism when you're an Empath.
Enter the Divine Feminine. She tore me from a situation by setting me on fire. And, when She picked me up against my will and pushed me out the door, I realized that at some point, She rises with a profound fury when we are unable to do so and when She's had enough. We may not even we see it happening. I can't even begin to imagine what others see when She's graced them with Her presence...in me.
You'll need it for this next part.
See, the Divine Feminine is strong in me. She's brazen. Emotional. She is kind and fiercely angry. She is beautiful, damaged and fiercely protective. She is warmth and She is Grace. She's my Mama Bear. And she's PISSED OFF that it took me so long to see that she is in ME as much as she is in YOU.
Women are magic. I mean, really, we are. And if you're a man who happens to be very much in touch with your own Divine Feminine, this include you, My Darlings. If you're a man who sees this and agrees with me and you remind your woman or partner of their mysterious and sacred grace, I'd like to kiss you, on the cheek...take it easy...and say thank you.
Why have so many of us FORGOTTEN this?
We live in a world that shames women for nearly every thought she has about Herself. If She proclaims her beauty, she's arrogant. If she's afraid of Her beauty or diminishes Herself, She is weak, insecure and small. If she exposes Her cleavage, She's a whore. And if She never exposes Her cleavage, She's a prude. If a woman is married, She's given in and submitted to a man. If She's single, She's a cast-away and unwanted. If She's career-oriented, She's too masculine and if She's a stay-at-home mom, She's given up her right to be educated and empowered.
my Gawd...
No wonder we're such a shit show.
Why is it that so many of us are afraid of our own Shadow? Afraid of the beautiful and perfectly sacred body standing before us in the mirror? Why are we afraid to wear red lipstick and why are we ashamed our bra size? Why do we pick the wrong partners? The ones we know will never stay? Why do we subject ourselves to careers that don't fulfill us? Why do we fear our financial status? Why do we fear being too powerful or not powerful enough? Our relationship status? Why do we fear our sexuality, our emotions and suppress our rage or find balance in our display of those emotions?
If you don't see this fear as palpable or, even real, I urge you to visit a bookstore and check out the "Women's Studies" section or the "Self-Transformation" section. Bookshelves are littered with "self-help" books that help guide women along what has been a deep-seated albeit overlooked Sacred Path back to the Divine Feminine. Most of the books on the shelves discuss our fear of success and how to combat that fear, or touch on our fear of our own sexuality, or "How to Be Happy and Single" or "How To Not Lose Yourself In Your Marriage."
We don't need books on manners or tips on how to "please a man bed."
F@*K that.
Good manners, in and outside of the bedroom, aren't something a woman needs to learn from a damn manual. She'll earn those badges with the right partner (yup, I just said that) or when She decides She's good 'n'ready.
We need books on Sacred ceremonies, how to please OUR-EFFING-SELVES in bed and how to not feel badly about this...and how to choose a relationship that ignites our fire and a partner who fans that fire, who holds the space for us to break and to re-build, to grow and to fall apart. We should have books that remind us of our Sacred selves and the men who believe in us. We should have books that remind us that it's totally great and empowering to wear ridiculous and superfluous black lace bras under our bland grey sweatshirt, on a random Tuesday, when no one under the sun will ever see it...because we like it and it makes us feel freaking beautiful and mysterious! We need books that remind us that just because a man (or woman) tells us that we're beautiful...sometimes that's all it is. It doesn't mean that person's trying to hop in the sack with us- there's no need to panic or brace yourself for WWIII. Sometimes someone pays us a compliment and we should just smile and say "thank you." We need books that teach us that we deserve to be with partners who compliment us despite the shame we feel in that space and who cherish the lumps and bumps on our bodies and who constantly ask us to show more...do you realize how lucky you are to have a man who worships the being and the body you have? If he tells you you're beautiful...if she tells you your body is the most precious thing she's ever laid eyes on...DAMNIT SISTER, take it in. Breath in that compliment and let it swim in your insides, filling your cells and pouring wisdom in to all the places and empty spaces you forgot about. And say "thank you, my Beloved, for always reminding me."
And never, ever, EVER choose to stay with a partner who punishes you by refraining from showering you with the compliments and love you so deserve and then, twists your head all around by informing you that you're insecure. Never be with anyone who makes you feel that you are difficult to love. Run like hell from that one. Trust me.
Look, I'm not angry...exactly...
I just...really love you. And I want you to acknowledge your worth and your prowess and the mystery that you are, deep inside, even in the darkest, most forgotten and lonely places.
If you forgot you were the Divine Feminine, I just want to remind you that you ARE Her.
And if you live in fear of Her, I want you to know that you aren't alone.
She's a wild one, that beautiful Creature and if you've not yet met Her, when you do, She will turn your world upside down, twist your insides all about and hopefully break you in to the Light.
You are a beautiful creature made from Divinity. And you are worthy of walking the Sacred Path, just as Mary, Kali, Jesus, Mother Theresa, Buddha and the Queen of Sheba did...it is your Divine right to dig in deep, to the depths of the darkest spaces and be reminded of the mystery of this beautiful divine energy that exists in each of us, regardless of your religion, belief system, upbringing, sexual orientation, relationship status...none of that shit matters.
At your worst. And, at your best, I believe that you are a powerful, mysterious, Divine and illuminating Creature- and I love you for all of those pieces.
Take the compliment from that beautiful man or woman and say "thank you."
Wear beautiful lingerie beneath your daily attire- even if it's just for YOU.
Stand naked before a mirror and cherish the Temple that you have been given to house your Soul.
Offer yourself ceremony, praise and holy sacrament, regularly.
Come to see your sexuality as part of who you are and be totally cool with it. If you struggle with this, read A Woman On Fire by Amy Jo Goddard because daaaang...she's good.
Dissect the word femininity and create your own definition that defines the way this speaks to YOU.
Don't fear the mascara, lip gloss and red lipstick...seriously.
Realize that sacred self-care of the feminine is a luxury you can't afford NOT to perform for Yourself.
Read The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. And if you've already read it...read it again.
And if you believe you are not worth being cherished as a Divine and Glorious being by your partner or cannot seem to find one who values this Divinity, visit Mr. Amari Soul's page on Facebook. And then, read his book Reflections of A Man because even though he doesn't know you from Eve or Lilith, he'll remind you of your worth and it will blow your mind...
I love you,
Brett
"I don't know about you, but personally, I want to learn about the Divine Feminine from someone who dares to speak Her. The good news is it doesn't take fancy techniques to speak Her. When you connect more consciously with your soul, it will naturally start to affect your human voice.
Your soul's voice isn't just a voice "from the divine"; it's also how the Divine communicates through and as you. You mix and match together. Therefore, your soul might not always sound mystically poetic. She might speak some other sort of spiritual street slang or swear like a sailor or sing like an angel. She might bubble beliefs like a valley girl with a wad of gum in her mouth, or twang truths like a kinky cowgirl riding through the Wild West of reality, or bleep blessings like an "alien" from the fifth dimension, or float ideas like a planetary body that orbits just left of everything you think you know.
This is how She Speaks.
This isn't the only way the Divine Feminine speaks, but this is a coive that most of us have shut up because we have not been taught to respect or value it. We have been schooled out of it. This is the voice that doesn't give a shit about being literary or witty or pretty or remarkable or "spiritual."
Why is it so important to unleash your soul's voice? Well, because for women, finding their authentic voice is almost, if not quite, the equivalent to finding their true identity.
Every time you speak your truth, a Goddess tattoos your name across Her belly."
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