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Sisters
of the Burning Branch
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Part A
Choosing a Goddess.
Congratulations! You've made it half-way through Level I. Now the time
has come to start researching for you final Level I project: a web page
dedicated to the Goddess of your choice. Don't worry, no web skills are
necessary. All you need to do is submit your material to me and I will
package it for you. (If you do possess web skills, however, I will ask
you to design your own page, and I will host it here.)
It will be your choice whether you would like to display your
project by name real or magickal name.
So let's get started! The first step is to choose a Goddess you would
like to research. Hopefully our studies to date in 365 Goddess
and in Once and Future Goddess have brought your attention to
at least one Goddess you would like to learn more about. If you are
deliberating between a few Goddesses, you might want to start on Part B
to see what information is available. This may help you decide.
Part B
Researching Your Goddess.
You won't need more than 5 - 7 paragraphs of material. That may sound
like a lot, but once you read each part of this assignment, you'll see
that your project will fill up quickly. You will probably have more
than enough material to use rather than too little. This is good -- it
allows you to choose the very best information for your page. (Read
Part D before you begin your research.)
Your research can take place in at least 3 ways, and you should explore
every avenue available to you: books, the web, and people you know.
Books.
Start with the books you have at home. Both 365 Goddess and Once
and Future Goddess contain an index at the back. Search for your
Goddess there. Next, start pulling books off your shelves. Any luck?
Finally try the library. A university library would be the best bet.
Even if you don't have borrowing privileges there, you can skim, take
notes, and photocopy pages of interest.
The Web.
A good place to start searching for information about your Goddess is
on the Links page of our school site. A search through Yahoo or one of
the other search engines is bound to turn up a lot of pages as well --
the real task will be wading through the junk to find worthwhile
material.
People You Know.
Hey, start with your sister students! We represent a wealth of
information! Feel free to request information/assistance from women on
the GoddessSchool list, only ask them to contact you with the info OFF
LIST please. And ask any Goddess-friends who live near you as well.
That way you can sneak a peak at their books too!
Part C
What should your project include?
Your project should include: background information about your Goddess,
what is sacred to her, a ritual dedicated to her, 1-3 images of her,
and some
original art that you've created. (Don't panic! Read on.) You
may also want to include some links to related sites on the web, but
this is optional.
Background Information.
You should mention the culture and era your Goddess originated in, any
other Goddesses she's associated with, any particular influences she's
had on culture or art or religion, how she was worshiped in her time,
any festivals associated with her, and so forth.
Sacred to Her.
Mention any foods, colors, elements, seasons, aspects of human life
(birth, death, marriages), animals, stones, regions (and so forth) that
are associated with her or sacred to her.
Ritual.
Either find or write a ritual dedicated to her. Be sure to state the
purpose of the ritual, any materials needed, the best time for it to be
performed, and at least one chant to use. If you write this ritual
yourself, this can be counted as your "original art." Just let me know
when you submit your material. If your ritual is not original, be sure
to credit the author.
Images.
Sacred Source, formerly JBL Statues, has (clearly) given permission for
their images to be used on our webpages. So borrow at will! You may
find other images on the web, either on "free graphics" pages or on
someone else's site. As with everything here, be sure to credit your
sources AND be sure to get permission to use any images from someone
else's website. Offer to link their page under the image.
If you are creating a tangible art piece (see next section), you will
need to include an image of that as well. If you have access to a
scanner, you can scan your art. Or you can take a picture and have it
developed onto disk. If neither of these options is available, you can
take a picture, send it to me, and I will scan it for you.
If you are skilled at creating graphics, your original Goddess graphic
can count as your "original art."
Your Original Art.
Your original art can be anything that you create: a garden patch
dedicated to your Goddess, a dish that you bake, an altar, a drawing, a
poster, a statue, a wallhanging, a dress, a chant, a poem, a ritual, a
blessing. If your art is not written, you will need to provide a
photograph or a scanned image so that it can be included in your page.
Just let me know, when you submit your material, which part is your
original contribution. And be sure to relate your creation to the rest
of your material. You may need to write a paragraph describing your
project.
Links (optional).
If you include a list of links on your page, make sure they are quality
links. Select them carefully, and direct readers to the exact URL that
contains the relevant info, not just to the main page. Be sure you
include the title of the site and a brief description with each URL,
and please be sure you copy the URLs correctly.
Part D
Crediting Sources.
I cannot over-emphasize the need to credit your sources. It is of
utmost importance to follow the guidelines listed below when
researching and presenting your material. Be sure to take careful notes
on which sources your info comes from, and on which information is a
direct quote, so you can credit the source on your page!
Any words taken directly from a source must be marked with quotation
marks AND credited to that source directly following the quote. For
example: "Inanna is one of the most ancient Goddess es in recorded
history," according to Gadon in The Once and Future Goddess.
(If this gets cumbersome, you can use footnotes to refer to your
sources rather than writing out the source each time.)
Minimize the amount of direct quotes you use. Instead, put the
information into your own words. But please note that FACTS and IDEAS
also need to be cited by source, unless you've found the same fact or
idea in at least 3 places. For example: Although scholars debate the
date of Inanna's origin, in The Once and Future Goddess, Gadon
states that she is one of the earliest known Goddesses.
You MUST obtain permission to use any material (written or visual) from
someone else's website. Look for the email addresses of the webmaster,
and write for permission. State the nature of this project and who will
be able to view it (school members only or the public), and offer to
include a link back to their page directly by the material you use.
Start early, because if you can't obtain permission in time, you can't
use the material. Graphics obtained from a "free site" are the only
exception to this rule.
Part E
Submitting your material.
Feel free to contact me with any questions you have along the way. I am
happy to offer suggestions and advice. When you are ready to submit
your material, please follow these guidelines.
Electronic format.
Submit as much of your material in electronic format as possible
(images and words.) Please send in text or html format!
E-mail is better than snail mail. If you do need to send
something by snail mail, send it early.
Proofreading.
Check it once, check it twice, SPELL CHECK!!!!! After you spell check,
set your page aside and read it again the next day to spot any errors
you missed. Also, please, please put plenty of space between your
paragraphs -- do not send one long page of text without any breaks!
Whew! I think that about wraps it up. When you're ready, mark your
files as "final project" and send them in.
END
Namaste' My Dear Sister!
Please e-mail me with any concerns or questions!
Hugs!
Please
send your all of your lessons directly to GoddessSchoolLessons@yahoo.com
