THE GODDESS PROJECT: Made in Her Image
FLORA
“All girls are flowers” my 2 year old son told his older brother the other day. Not sure where that came from but he is right; all different colors, all different shapes and all different sized females make up the beautiful, bountiful bouquet of this wild world.
Flowers have always been popular baby girls’ names: Lily, Rose, Poppy, Daisy, Iris, Ivy, Jasmine, Marguerite, Violet, Zinnia and even Flora. Flowers are the SECOND most photographed subject matter, beaten out ONLY by female models. Georgia O’Keefe’s flower paintings were considered EROTIC and compared to the female GENITALIA. And is there a more romantic or better “I’m sorry” gift YET than flowers?
FLORA (Latin for “flower”) is the Roman Goddess of flowers, Springtime and fertility. We’re used to hearing the word “Flora” when referred to the flowering plants of a region. You’ve seen Flora before in Botticelli’s famous painting “Primavera” (see pic below) but probably didn’t know it.
There were once HUGE YEARLY FESTIVALS, called FLORALIA, that celebrated the Goddess. “At the chariot-races and circus games of the Floralia it was traditional to let goats and hares loose, and lupines, bean-flowers and vetch (all of which have similarly-shaped blossoms and are a sort of showier version of wheat in bloom) were scattered, symbolic of fertility. Brightly colored clothes were a must, as were wreaths of flowers, especially roses; and the celebrations drew great crowds.”
–http://thaliatook.com/OGOD/flora.php (Is this where the original flower crowned “festival girls” came from?)
“In one story, Flora was said to have provided Juno with a MAGIC FLOWER that would allow Her to conceive with no help from a man; from this virgin-birth MARS was born.” -Wikipedia
Joseph Campbell taught that the Divine Feminine is the GARDEN and the Divine Masculine the gardner. The more He tended to Her needs, the more She flourished and bloomed.
May everyone see the girls and women and drag queens of the world as fabulously, colorfully unique reflections of Flora.
Special thanks to our returning Goddess Project model, Gina. Your poise, enthusiasm and tenacity inspire us. See her also as the Art Goddess: https://plus.google.com/107287050579003737566/posts/anaMiHuXU9J
And thanks to our magical photographer and graphic genius, David Clanton of DavidClanton.com.
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Flowers flourish with the tenderness and care of others nourishing them with life itself. Thus I NEVER get CUT flowers for gifting, I much rather offer potted ones. Plants/flowers hurt and die when you cut them! They however flourish if you give them as a whole for someoe new to hold dear and cherish!
]]>This is a marvelous–the picture and the writing! I love your beginning with a quote from Nikko and then listing all the girls’ names that are flowers. You pack a lot of wonderful information in this post.
]]>You’re so right, Franz! Thanks for sharing. Thank you, Jann!! 🌸🌻🌼💐🥀🌹🌱🌺🌷🌹
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