The divine feminine is the counterpart of the divine masculine and the other half of the universal energy. Everyone has both energy forms, irrespective of gender or sex. The divine feminine refers to nurturing, empathetic, and intuitive energy. The yin or shakti is soft and gentle yet highly empowering. Divine feminine symbols include the Venus symbol, trees, water, bees, and serpents. Many cultures have symbols like Duafe, lotus, cherry blossoms, moon, and the spiral goddess.
What Does Divine Feminine Mean?
The divine feminine has been present since ancient times. It embodies the powers and force of feminine qualities that make this earth a loving and nourishing place. Divine masculine and divine feminine balance each other to maintain the order of the universe.
From ancient Egyptians to Greeks, Celts, Hindus, and other pagan cultures, every one of them revered this energy. They worshiped goddesses, had priestesses in significant roles, and gave the utmost importance to mother earth. Earth is called the Great Mother and is a symbol of femininity.
In tarot, the Empress, a major arcana card, represents earth and symbolizes divine feminine. She stands for nurturing, intuition, fertility, healing, empowerment, and feminine strength. The Empress represents the element earth.
What Is a Symbol of Female Power?
A woman’s power is linked to the earth, an epitome of the sacred feminine. It keeps her grounded and confident. The feminine energy is connected to the inner world, and several symbols represent this concept.
Lotus Flower
The lotus is a sacred symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism. It is associated with purity, clarity, and perfection. The bloom of a lotus flower in muddy waters symbolizes the empowering divine feminine and represents childbirth.
Triquetra
Also known as the triple goddess, this ancient Celtic symbol represents the cycle of life. The maiden, mother, and crone are the three moon goddesses denoting the three triangles in the Triquetra. Celts and Wiccans consider this a divine feminine symbol.
Ichthys
This pagan symbol became associated with Christianity and is also known as the Jesus Fish. It is a feminine symbol from the 1st century AD in Greece. The words for fish and womb are similar in the ancient Greek language. Thus, the Ichthys represents fertility and female sexual organs. They symbolize Aphrodite and the pagan Great Mother.
Tree of Life
The Tree of Life is a perfect example of how the divine masculine and divine feminine energies come together. This ancient symbol is associated with humility, individuality, strength, oneness, prosperity, wisdom, growth, and family.
Venus Symbol
The Venus symbol represents the female gender. It has a circle with a cross underneath it. The symbol comes from the Greek alphabet used for Venus. Two interlocked Venus symbols represent lesbianism.
Asase Yu Duru
This is an Adinkra symbol belonging to the African tribes. It is associated with a divine mother or mother earth and denotes feminine energy, protection, providence, power, and sustenance.
Star of Lakshmi
The Star of Lakshmi is a female symbol in Hinduism and represents the eight different aspects of feminine energy. It is associated with Ashta Lakshmi (ashta is eight), where the points denote- new beginnings, courage, nourishment, influence, fertility, victory, knowledge, and prosperity.
Moon
Various cultures connect the moon to different goddesses in different cultures. The waxing and waning of the moon each month represents the female menstrual cycle and womanhood.
Star of Lada
Lada is a Slavic goddess of love. Her symbol is the Star of Lada and is used to keep darkness/ negativity at bay. She also represents fertility and oversees the harvest season.
Cats
Cats have since long been associated with women. The unpredictable nature of cats is used as a parallel to show the mysterious attitude of women. Cats became popular symbols of women (especially witches) during the 300 years of witch trials across Europe. Even today, cats are considered witch familiars.
Elephants
Elephants are gentle and nurturing, representing the softer aspects of feminine energy. Their compassionate and protective nature symbolizes how women instinctively protect their young.
Which Goddess Is the Divine Feminine?
There is no single goddess symbol to represent the divine feminine.
Wiccan Goddess Symbolism
Triple Moon Goddess
The triple moon goddess symbolizes wisdom, feminine energy, power, fertility, and the life cycle. A full moon (mother) has two crescent moons on each side (waxing- maiden and waning- crone).
Spiral Goddess
The spiral goddess is a Celtic symbol of feminine energy. The spiral in her belly denotes fertility and the changes her body goes through to give birth to a new life.
Greek Goddess Symbolism
Gaia
Gaia is the great mother earth, the first Greek deity born from Chaos. She represents fertility and influences all elements in this world. According to Greek mythology, everything else is born from her.
Athena
Athena is the Greek goddess of wisdom and war. She stands for feminine power in the patriarchal society by negating the archetype that women are overly emotional. Her calm is a personification of confident, feminine strength.
Hindu Goddess Symbolism
Goddess Durga
Goddess Durga has fierce and powerfully feminine energy. She represents protection, strength, control, and triumph of good over evil. The Sri Chakra (Sri Yantra) represents divine feminine energy in all forms. It is a mandala, a perfect design, and one of the sacred geometry symbols. The Shakti Yantra is also a symbol of the divine feminine.
Ways To Leverage the Divine Feminine in Your Life
You can harness the power of the divine feminine in your life to balance and ground your energies. Here’s how to do it:
- Spend time with nature (walk barefoot in the grass, meditate in the forest, etc.)
- Use your heart as much as your head (everything doesn’t have to be rational/ logical)
- Value silence, stillness, and rest (give your body the rest it deserves)
- Be more compassionate (towards yourself and others)
- Listen to your intuition (trust your gut feelings)