Isis

 By MoonDancer


 

Isis is a goddess from the Egyptian Pantheon who is about as old as the history of Egypt itself.
She is a goddess of all things, known as the goddess of 10,000 names.  Throughout history She
has been worshipped by thousands of people all over the globe.  She has appeared to many of her
followers-answering their prayers, requests, and questions.

While it would be impossible to list all prayers to Isis, or all rituals, accounts of her appearances,
all her followers, what I will attempt to do here is give some of her history, prayers, and rituals.
 I will list her sacred holidays, some accounts of her appearances, and list some of her known
followers from both the past and the present.  While some of this material is historical in nature,
I just want to point out that most rituals and prayers I got from recently published authors.
 Come now and meet the magnificent and beloved goddess revered for centuries-the goddess Isis.

For those of you who know nothing of the Goddess, her myth, her sacred symbols,
or animals, please click here.  I hope the condensed explanations found there will help you understand
her better.  For those of you already acquainted with the goddess and her family, please continue on.

Isis has been worshipped in thousands of countries by thousands of names by thousands of people
since the spread of Her worship from Egypt during the Greco-Roman times.  In DeTraci Regula's book
Mysteries of Isis, she lists some of the followers found inscribed on temple walls.  Here is a brief list
taken from that source (p. 79 Regula):

Personal Names of Priestesses, Priests, and Devotees
Alexandra (f)
Anthia (f)
Antonius (m)
Appollodorus (m)
Cleopatra (f)
Diodora (f)
Harpocrates (m)
Isidora (f)
Lucius (m)
Parthena (f)
Serapion (m)
Tryphaena (f)

Perhaps one of the most famous from this list is the pharaoh Cleopatra.  It is said that Cleopatra
dressed occasionally as the Goddess Isis Herself for meetings and sacred rites.  She is known to
have been a devout follower of Isis.  Another famous follower of Isis is Isidora Duncan, a Latvian born
dancer who shocked the world by being the first woman to cast off her Pointe shoes and dance barefoot.
Much of her repertoire explored dances of ancient civilizations-Egypt included.  Her name in and of
itself means "Gift of Isis."

Currently, an organization called the Fellowship of Isis exists with its members spanning several
countries.  This organization has its own manifesto, several programs of learning, and its own worship
centers all over the globe.  The organization can be joined simply by going to www.fellowshipofisis.com,
reading the manifesto and following the appropriate links.  Also links regarding correspondence courses,
groups, and ordination can also be found on this web site.

Famous Accounts
As stated earlier, it would be impossible to list all the places and people Isis has appeared, list whose
prayers She's answered, or even the types of prayers She is famous for answering, for indeed they run
the gamut.  But I will give you a snippet of an account (the full text of which can be found in DeTraci
Regula's Mysteries of Isis) of a man by the name of Lucius (p. 70-71 Regula).

Apuleius' Adoration of Isis
...I decided to address in prayer the sacred image of the goddess now present in my person...I gladly
and eagerly arose...to purify myself, I went to bathe in the sea.  Seven times I plunged my head under
the waves, since the divine Pythagoras pronounced that number to be very specially suitable in sacred
rites.  The with a tear-stained face I prayed to the all powerful goddess...

He then prays, knowing not whom he is about to encounter.  He asks that whoever it is to please help
him get out of his trouble, "strengthen [his] crushed fortune, grant [him] respite and peace after the
endurance of dire ills; restore [him] to the site of his loved ones."

Isis then appeared and said "Lo, I am with you Lucius, moved by our prayers, I who am the mother of
the universe...Queen Isis.  I am here taking pity on your ills; I am here to give you aid and solace."

Isian Holidays
Almost everyday in ancient Egypt was a holiday, but no other was greater than the celebration of the
Mysteries of Isis and Osiris, which was celebrated in the fall. In preparation for the Mysteries, the
festival of Lamentation was held, when a priestess with the goddess’ hieroglyph tattooed on her arm
enacted the part of the mourning Isis.  This festival had three days devoted to Isis’ loss and quest.
Each day marked a specific part of the Goddess’ quest for her lover; the first day She sought Osiris,
the second day She grieved His loss, the third day She found His body (163 Monaghan).

Her birthday was celebrated in the summer, and was called Night of the Cradle.  Her mother Nut was
also acknowledged on this day because "the mother gives birth to the daughter, and the daughter gives
birth to the Mother" (163 Monaghan).  The next day was also an Isian feast-which was Osiris’ birthday.
Osiris was connected with the annual rising of the Nile River, celebrated as New Year’s Day.
The Egyptian version of New Year’s Eve was Night of the Drop, when the grieving Isis was imagined to
swell the Nile with her tears (163 Monaghan).

A fall festival celebrated the motherhood of Isis who was fertile enough to be able to conceive through
an artificial phallus.  Woman’s sexuality and fertility were at the center of a feast called Opening the
Bosom of Women, celebrated with appropriate orgiastic behavior.  This festival was a part of religious
and civic duty for many thousands of years from the 3rd millennium BCE to the first of the Common Era
(164 Monaghan).

In the spring a festival was celebrated as Isidis Navigatum, or the Blessing of the Fleets.  This was a
feast that celebrated Isis as ruler of the seas.  It was said that Isis opened the Mediterranean to
navigation.  The celebration began with a statue of the Goddess being carried to the water, where
flower-wreathed women offered her mirrors so that She could see Her beauty.  Priests poured milk on
the sands from a pitcher shaped like a breast, and then sprinkled the statue with precious perfumes.
As the final part of the ritual, a crewless boat, whose prow was shaped like a water bird was filled with
spices and sent out to the sea as an offering to the Goddess (164 Monaghan).

Rites of Isis
As Her worship spread into the Greco-Roman world, with its complex panoply of public rites festivals,
and high holy days, even more dates because associated with Isis.  Many rites of Isis were nocturnal,
and colored lights (Possibly candles in glass containers or lamps of colored translucent stone filled
with salt and oil) decorated temples and private homes the length of Egypt, much as Christmas lights
decorate some parts of the world today (101 Regula).

Many pagans do devotionals or meditations honoring different gods.  In ancient times, any time there
was a significant change in the daylight/moonlight, this was considered to be a sacred time to honor
Isis-such as sunrise, noontime, sunset, and mid-night when the moon rose.  Please find below rites to
honor these sacred hours taken from DeTraci Regula’s Mysteries of Isis.

Morning Rite-Prayer of Awakening (4 Regula)
Awake, awake, awake,
Awake in peace,
Lady of peace,
Rise thou in peace,
Rise thou in beauty,
Goddess of Life
Beautiful in heaven.
Heaven is in peace
Earth is in peace
O Goddess!
Daughter of Nut
Daughter of Geb
Beloved of Osiris
Goddess rich in names!
All praise to You
All praise to You
I adore You
I adore You
Lady Isis!

Noontime Rite (86 Regula)
From the land of morning I hail you Isis
I thank You for Your guidance
Through the hours between night and noon
Welcome to the softer sky of afternoon
Look ahead to the respite of dusk and evening

An Evening Orison of Isis – The Evening Rite (198 Regula)
Hail Isis, glorious Goddess,
Day is done and the night is come,
The sun is set and the stars emerge
This is the Evening Rite,
The rite to end the day of light.
Let your instrument sound Your name,
Hailing You with all homage,
Isis glorious Goddess.
To the candle which the match I rise
On the altar set to You, Isis, glorious Goddess,
And the nighttime incense rises, sweetly mixed,
To put me in the mind of perceiving You
Isis, glorious Goddess
Who rises behind me like a flame of gold
And brushes my back with deft wings.
I make open the nape of my neck to You.
Let your portal welcome You, O Isis,
Great and glorious Goddess.
Up my hands rise and hold
The curved bow of exaltation,
And rise once more
To the sharp angle of invocation.
Come, oh great and glorious Goddess,
Come into the fullness of force and love,
Let your garment for a moment clothe You,
O Isis, Goddess great and glorious.

Rite of Night – A Nighttime Prayer (105 Regula)
I hail You and praise You,
Glorious Goddess,
At the end of this day which You granted me.
May my actions within its hours be
judged to be justified,
And my words within its hours found to be true.
Drain from me all ill intent and action;
I offer to You all energy I have locked
In unworthy action or reaction
May tomorrow by Your grace find me
Wiser and my joy in the Universe still greater.
I ask Your welcome now in the Temple;
Accept me this night for rest, for study, and for worship;
Grant me dreams of meaning and the memory to recall them.
Hail to You, Goddess of the Starry pathways,
Hail to You, Goddess of the Deep Black,
Hail to You, Goddess of the Shining Sun at Midnight,
May I partake of Your glory forever.

Monthly Observances
The Full Moon is especially a sacred time to worship Isis, who is also considered a lunar deity.
Below is a ritual from DJ Conway’s Moon Magick, which is slightly altered by myself.

Astrological Time: Full Moon
Supplies: Bowl of water, a light flower that can be floated (or just get a floating flower candle),
1 white candle, flowery incense, fresh flowers (or artificial ones) of your choice

Ritual:
Cast circle as usual.  Set up your altar as you see fit, putting the bowl of water in the center.
Light the incense.  Put the flower or floating candle in the bowl of water.  When the Full Moon is up
light the candle.  Sit in the darkness with only the candlelight.  Look at the floating flower and think
about the wonderful powers of Nature that brings flowers back year after year.  Contemplate the way
this power touches your own life.  Feel yourself rooting into the Earth, from which you can draw
sustaining energy.  Feel the energy being fed back to you.  Now, reach your arms upward toward the
Moon.  Feel its energies adding to those of the Earth.  Let these energies swirl around you, cleansing,
healing, balancing.  To break the flow, place both hands on the floor.  Let the energies sink back into
the Earth.

Thank Deities.
Open Circle

It is my hope that you have enjoyed the journey to Isis.  Isis has been called upon for all kinds of
reasons.  She assists anyone with any need.  You can call upon her for healing, protection, good
fortune, for helping in love, the arts, and any other thing you can possibly imagine.  What follows is a
prayer that I wrote which I use when healing others.

Great and Holy Isis,
I ask Your assistance tonight (this day) in healing (name of person).
You who are compassionate and loving,
You who breathed life into the dead
You the Great Healer,
Please wrap your wings around (name of person).
Take away all (name of person’s) (sickness, negative thoughts, etc.)
Fill (her/him) with your love
Fill (her/him) with your light
I thank you Isis!
All hail the holy mender!
All hail Goddess Isis!

Picture her embracing the person and filling them up with white light until they glow with it all
around them.  Give thanks in your own appropriate method.
 

Bibliography
Conway, DJ. Moon Magick: Myth and Magick, Crafts and Recipes, Rituals and Spells. Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, MN1995.
Monaghan, Patricia. The Goddess Path: Myths, Invocations, and Rituals. Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, MN 1999.
Regula, DeTraci.  The Mysteries of Isis: Her Worship and Magick. Llewellyn Publications,St. Paul, MN 1999.
 

All Material Here Is The Intellectual Property of MoonDancer
                             Copyright 2001


Back to Goddess Gallery
Back to Goddess School