The Priestess of the Fire Temple follows Princess Aislinn, red-haired wild child of the High King of the Central Kingdom, as she makes her way in a world increasingly hostile to those who are not Christian. Raised in a community that observed both Pagani and Cristaidi mores, Druid-trained Aislinn is married off at age fourteen to a prince from Irardacht, the Northern Kingdom. Escaping her unhappy marriage, Aislinn finds herself engaged in a series of dangerous adventures and fateful encounters on her quest for true love. This uniquely Pagan novel explores the basic beliefs of the Indo-European Celts and the Druid path in an engaging and powerful way.
Someone is killing the nuns of Ireland.The grisly discovery of an elderly sister of Saint Brigid’s monastery strangled, bled dry, and thrown into a bog is just the beginning. Soon a beautiful young nun is found decapitated and hung from a barren tree. It doesn’t take long before the members of the struggling monastic community of Kildare realize that not only are the nuns being hunted by a serial killer, but the murderer is preforming the gruesome slayings in the manner of the ancient druid sacrifices.Set in the turmoil of sixth-century Ireland, where ruthless tribal kings wage constant war for survival and the powerful religious order of the druids is threatened by the newly-arrived Christian church, the desperate task of finding the killer falls to Sister Deirdre, a young women torn between the world of the monastery and her own druidic heritage. Unless Deirdre can find the killer before the cycle of sacrifices is complete, more of her friends will die, the monastery will face destruction, and the whole of Ireland may be plunged into civil war.
Captain Vidarian Rulorat's great-grandfather gave up an imperial commission to commit social catastrophe by marrying a fire priestess. For love, he unwittingly doomed his family to generations of a rare genetic disease that follows families who cross elemental boundaries. Now Vidarian, the last surviving member of the Rulorat family, struggles to uphold his family legacy, and finds himself chained to a task as a result of the bride price his great-grandfather paid: The priestess Endera has called upon Vidarian to fulfill his family's obligation by transporting a young fire priestess named Ariadel to a water temple far to the south, through dangerous pirate-controlled territory. Vidarian finds himself at the intersection not only of the world's most volatile elements, but of the ancient and alien powers that lurk between them...
Visit a temple in the Nevada desert and live vicariously through Dr. Anne Key as she shares her experience of living as a 21st century priestess. After years spent as a college administrator, Anne followed her heart to the Temple of Goddess Spirituality Dedicated to Sekhmet, outside of Las Vegas, Nevada. In this memoir, she shares the journey: the exhilaration she felt upon discovering Sekhmet's powerful presence in an unlikely location; the uncertainties she mastered in order to become a respected temple leader; and all the day to day activities - good, bad, funny, and frustrating - that go into maintaining a spiritual retreat. You'll laugh, you'll cry, but most of all you'll be inspired by Anne's real account of spiritual growth -inspired to seek your own.
Ferral is wounded. Allisia is safe. The sorcerer-king's hold on winter is loosening, but can Kristian rest when there are so many depending upon him? The demon controls the Deathmarch Army, Ferral searches for the power to destroy his enemies, and the devastated survivors of Erinia look to Kristian for help. The group that rescued Allisia must now separate and search for the key to winning the war against Ferral, ending his plans to dominate Erinia through sorcery and evil religion. Cairn wants peace and to forget the past, but he also wants revenge. Allisia must accept her new powers and learn to control the visions without losing her sanity. Mikhal must set out on a fateful journey to discover who the demon is and why he is connected to her. And the demon-woman is at the center of all of the devastation. Neope. She is powerful and cunning and she will destroy anyone that stands in her way. Neope's War, the stunning conclusion to Langley's Erinia Saga.
In this sumptuously illustrated book, Joan Breton Connelly gives us the first comprehensive cultural history of priestesses in the ancient Greek world. Connelly presents the fullest and most vivid picture yet of how priestesses lived and worked, from the most famous and sacred of them--the Delphic Oracle and the priestess of Athena Polias--to basket bearers and handmaidens. Along the way, she challenges long-held beliefs to show that priestesses played far more significant public roles in ancient Greece than previously acknowledged. Connelly builds this history through a pioneering examination of archaeological evidence in the broader context of literary sources, inscriptions, sculpture, and vase painting. Ranging from southern Italy to Asia Minor, and from the late Bronze Age to the fifth century A.D., she brings the priestesses to life--their social origins, how they progressed through many sacred roles on the path to priesthood, and even how they dressed. She sheds light on the rituals they performed, the political power they wielded, their systems of patronage and compensation, and how they were honored, including in death. Connelly shows that understanding the complexity of priestesses' lives requires us to look past the simple lines we draw today between public and private, sacred and secular. The remarkable picture that emerges reveals that women in religious office were not as secluded and marginalized as we have thought--that religious office was one arena in ancient Greece where women enjoyed privileges and authority comparable to that of men. Connelly concludes by examining women's roles in early Christianity, taking on the larger issue of the exclusion of women from the Christian priesthood. This paperback edition includes additional maps and a glossary for student use.
Deepen Your Tarot Practice, Heal Spiritual Wounds, and Rise as a Daughter of the Goddess Become a modern-day priestess with this book on using tarot cards as both devotional and divinatory tools. Tarot Priestess presents a spiritual framework—organized around the court cards, major arcana, and minor arcana—through which you'll heal the wounds of the sacred feminine and expand your practice with an open heart and dedicated mind. Leeza Robertson brings you closer than ever to your tarot cards, showing you how to unite your daily practice with goddess energy. She cleverly ties the four stages of your initiation to the court cards, links goddess temples to the four suits of the minor arcana, and organizes the major arcana into three priestess gateways that you pass through on your journey. Whatever your skill level is, this book shows you how to serve with purpose and spiritual fulfillment.
Renowned as the founder of Spanish borderlands studies, Herbert Eugene Bolton was the first U.S. historian to build his research on Spanish archives and other forgotten archives in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Mexico, and Cuba. Yet before that, from 1906 to 1908, Bolton studied the Hasinai Indians of Louisiana and Texas. Russell Magnaghi has edited Bolton's previously unpublished examination of the Hasinais, a settled, agricultural American Indian tribe in East Texas and one of the two major branches of the Caddoan Indians. Bolton's ethnohistorical analysis' includes chapters on the Hasinai interaction with the Spanish and the French; their economic life and social and political organization; their housing, hardware, and handicrafts; their dress and adornment; their religious beliefs and customs; and their war customs and ceremonials.
In 'Fishes, Flowers, & Fire as Elements and Deities in the Phallic Faiths', Anonymous explores the symbolic significance of these elements within various phallic faith traditions, shedding new light on the spiritual practices of these ancient cultures. The book delves into the interconnectedness of nature and fertility rituals, providing readers with a comprehensive analysis of the role these elements play in religious ceremonies and belief systems. Through a blend of scholarly research and poetic prose, Anonymous invites readers to contemplate the deeper meanings behind seemingly mundane aspects of the natural world. This book is a valuable resource for those interested in anthropology, religious studies, and symbolism. The author's insightful analysis of these elements offers a unique perspective on the intersection of nature and spirituality, making it a compelling read for scholars and enthusiasts alike.