Rewilding the Divine Feminine

Welcome, dear reader, to my very first blog post,

I am honoured that you found me and are taking the time to read my words. I hope you find here a sense of meaning, belonging and empowerment.

My mission on Earth is to humbly contribute to break down old patriarchal and colonialist systems so we can see a new collective story emerge. Although the details of this story are shaped through the interweaving of our individual journeys, the center themes have to do with deepening our connection with ourself and others (including the more-than-human realm) in acknowledgement of the dignity of all life. In this story, the power structures shift from power over to power with, and our governance systems come back to smaller and circular structures. Our decision-making allows everyone’s voices to be heard and is consensual. Connection and well-being are emphasized over productivity, and our contribution is related to our inherent gifts. We understand that unity doesn’t mean homogeneity, and we consider our diversity as a strength. And I’m not saying that this new way of being and relating does not present challenges by the way, they’re just dealt with differently. Conflicts can be generative when they are approached with openness and curiosity. Problems lead to creativity when we are confident in our capacity to solve them.

Excited? So am I. And this deep transformative process is already happening. It’s just not showed in the mainstream medias. Furthermore, what seems like an increase of violence and chaos is not contradictory to the process. According to Barbara Marx Hubbard, the global crisis we are facing is a collective birth-giving to a new species (you can watch the full video here). And before releasing a brand new baby full of promises, we all know that a body goes through contractions and pain, and that this process can be messy.

And what does it have to do with rewilding the Divine Feminine anyway? First of all, saying that rewilding something is desirable is a statement in itself, in a world where the ‘’wild’’ has been labelled as chaotic, dangerous and based on competition and the survival of the strongest. Here are some definitions of ’’wild’’ as stated in Oxford Dictionary (2023) :

1. (of an animal or plant) living or growing in the natural environment; not domesticated or cultivated ;

2. (of a place or region) uninhabited, uncultivated, or inhospitable ;

• (of sea or the weather) rough and stormy ;

• (of people) not civilized; primitive. Synonyms : uncivilized, uncultured ;

• (of a look, appearance, etc.) indicating distraction or strong emotion ;

3. lacking discipline or restraint. Synonyms : uncontrolled, unrestrained, out of control, chaotic ;

4. not based on sound reasoning or probability. Synonyms : ridiculous, foolish, stupid.

It seems inherently wrong to me to put under the same label beings that are in their natural state with ‘’out of control’’, ‘’uncultured’’ and ‘’stupid’’. Beside depreciating the incredible intelligence and harmony of nature herself, there is also in there the implicit affirmation that tribal cultures are somehow retarded. Can I remind us that the ‘’uncivilized ones’’ lived in balance with the natural world for thousands of years, whereas euro-descendant ‘’civilizations’’ have set the tone for the current Anthropocene era, which is qualified by massive destruction of the ecosystems we depend on for our survival? Furthermore, the weaving of these definitions makes associations between wild and qualities like strong emotions, chaotic, lack of discipline and unintelligent. We’ve got, in a few dictionary lines, the entire flawed logic that justified the past centuries of domination and exploitation over nature, women and indigenous people from all over the world. If nature is chaotic and inhospitable, and women are unable of reasoning because they belong to the realm of stormy emotions, we’re better controlling them, right?

This false belief of separation between humankind and nature, men and women, ‘’civilized’’ and ‘’uncivilized’’ is obviously only creating destruction and suffering. This is where acknowledging the vital role of the Feminine energy and its embodiment in nature is instructive. When we widen our perspective beyond the very limited and incomplete theory of evolution of Darwin, we find tones of evidences about high levels of intelligence, order and cooperation in nature. Starting in our very own bodies. What we perceive as being an individual ‘’me’’ is actually made up of billions of micro-beings working together in very cooperative and complex ways. The crucial role of our microbiome is quite mainstream nowadays, and illustrates that perfectly. And this principle applies at a larger scale as well. The Gaia theory states that the Earth would be in fact one super-organism, in which all organic and non-organic forms of life are cooperative actors, co-creating something greater than the only sum of their individual part (P. J. Boston, 2008). By extracting ourselves from nature and considering her as an object we can use for profit more than a living, sentient entity, we’re definitely denying the interconnectedness of all life and disrupting her (our) fragile balance.

If the illusion of being separate is the problem, a good question to ask ourselves would be ‘’How do I recreate union within myself and in my relationships, including the more-than-human world ? Interestingly enough, the word healing originally means ‘’to make whole’’. One answer that I found true to me and observed a lot around me is relearning how to relate with our feminine side - present in all of us no matter the gender we identify with. Patriarchy brought us to deny pretty much all the qualities associated with it : emotionality, stillness, intuition, creativity, mysticism… From the perspective that it’s not ‘’either/or’’, but in fact ‘’yes, and’’, nature and culture, creativity and practicality, spirituality and sciences are not oppositions, but 2 ends of the same spectrum that we can dynamically navigate for increased richness in our lives. In order to be able to reclaim this intrinsic and vital part of us, we have to recognize how we’ve denied it and repressed it. Some signs can be a difficulty to rest, avoiding or being afraid of our feelings, hiding our vulnerability… The best way to bust out those tendencies is to pay close attention to our self-talk. When we are not allowing that intrinsic part of us, it usually gets quite harsh and judgmental, labelling us as weak, lazy, too sensitive. It takes time to unravel, considering that these patterns are deeply ingrained in our psyche. However, there is no harmony without if there is no harmony within, and this excavation work is very little compared to all the pain caused by the false belief that something is wrong about about our feminine side. Without counting all the gifts we miss out when we cut ourself off from her (our) blessings.

Bringing back a connection with the transcendent forces of the universe is also key in the equation. And I’m not talking about a judgmental bearded white man who will decide at the end of our life if we deserve absolute reward or punishment. Before the rising of monotheist religions, the cult of the Goddess and all kind of pagan customs based on the feminine rhythms of nature were widely spread. I remember reading a story about the birth of patriarchy. It said that men used the revere women for the mystery surrounding their capacity to give birth. At some point, they understood the role of their seeds in the equation, and they felt like they had given their power away. They also perceived that they could bring a rational explanation to the mysteries of Creation. They suddenly felt they had been controlled by women, and they started to control them back out of fear. The nurturing body of women being associated with the nurturing body of the Earth, it also justified dominating and exploiting nature. No matter if it’s the actual reason of how it came to be, we all know that this turning point happened. And we can all assess now that this superiority complex is destructive for everybody, considering that this feminine nature is also part of the male psyche.

The Earth we once revered with a sense of wonder and magic was then squished into a mechanistic and materialistic paradigm where her sensitivity and consciousness were excluded from the equation, for unmeasurable. In a vain attempt to find a sense of safety through control, we fell into the mind trap of excluding any worldview that could not be validated through the lens of materialism, closing ourselves off to the mysteries of Creation. Even though we came up with very advanced and sophisticated science in the attempt to mentally explain the world, we all know it is a never ending rabbit hole, that there will always be something else to explain… It is way bigger and wiser than what we can grasp, and it’s what gives us our breath of life and sustenance to keep it rolling. And I am not rejecting the importance of science by the way. I’m just suggesting that giving it its right place in a holistic life, in which opening ourselves again to hear the voice of Spirit would most definitely help us to find our way back to balance. The realm of mysteries belongs to the Feminine, and yes there is something scary in navigating the unknown. But we can surrender in trust that we are held and guided even through the darkest nights, where we can rest and restore. Ultimately, the incredibly-intelligent-feminine-nurturing body of the Earth is the substance of our own, and she provides all the gifts we need to thrive. How can we not see her as an embodiment of the Divine Mother? And yes, her storms and creatures and immensity can seem scary, but we can find comfort in the knowing that there is an underlying order and balance. We once knew how to gracefully partake in that dance, and we have the capacity to remember. And for the sake of a sustainable future, we have to.

Wild is intelligent.

Wild is beautifully sensitive and raw.

Wild is the embodiment of the mysterious Source of all life.

This is where we belong.

Barbara Marx Hubbard - Awakening the New Species in You