Mary Our Lady of Lourdes, the suit of Vessels (water)
and the archetype of the Virgin-Mother, Prophetess and
Priestess of the Mysteries
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| Ace of Vessels The Woman as vessel of the Divine Feminine |
During this stage of the Mysteries we mystically enter the alchemical process of the miraculous
conception within our soul and we prepare to birth the Sacred One in our own psyche.
In the Mysteries of Mary tarot deck the suit of Vessels (traditionally Cups) is
dedicated to this archetype. Here we encounter her as the element of water.
Mary is a derivative from the Latin ‘Maria” which means waters.
In French the word ‘mare’ means water.
Water has the power to drown us or to quench our thirst.
In the Mysteries we know Mary as the loving comforting mother, but also as
the Mater Dolorosa, the grieving mother consumed with bitter grief at the loss
of her son. She is also the Black Madonna, the mysterious shadowy Black Virgin who is known to
maim and even kill those who act against her.
In Lourdes you will hundreds of pilgrims carrying large containers of water from the sacred
spring every day to be used for food and bathing at home. Her healing waters has
miraculous powers to heal and cure.
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| I added the shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes to my altar |
Mary is called a Vessel of Spirit, a Vessel of Honour and in Lourdes she is the
Vessel of the Sacred Waters. She represents the oceans of consciousness as well as the
energetic flow of the soul and her powerful emotions. Vessels also relate to the
metaphor of the Cosmic womb of the soul and the dark void of the Source of all creation.
We see the element of water represented in the blue robes of Mary.
During this stage of the Mysteries we mystically enter the alchemical process
of the miraculous conception within our soul and we prepare to birth
the Sacred One in our own psyche.
In alchemy the vessel is the container in which the various ingredients are mixed and
transformed by each other. It was believed that the alchemists were looking for a way
to turn lead into gold, but it is also the belief that it is actually a metaphorical journey
of transforming ignorance (symbolised by darkness)
into light (symbolising gnosis or knowledge) as well as a
journey of finding joy and peace amidst sorrow and hardships
as we live in a world of holy paradox.
Mary is a metaphor for the spiritual vessel
in which opposites combine : both human and divine.
The Immaculate Practise – Day three
Daily Prayer
When you have said the prayer with intent and focus, pick up your rosary and repeat the daily mantra.
Please complete the rosary at least twice and a 108 bead mala at least once.
As you become more comfortable, or if you are already a seasoned meditator,
then repeat this mantra up to 6 times around the rosary.
For a mantra we use the rosary in the same way as we do a mala or prayer beads :
you move the beads one by one through your fingers, repeating the line of the mantra on each bead.
This mantra is to be repeated daily for seven days. The more we work with a mantra, the more
it vibrates through our cells and energy and transforms our mind and energy bodies.
Om Jai Mata Mary Ma
Sit quietly for a few minutes, just allowing yourself absorb the energy you have invoked.
Enjoy it …… feel the presence of the Sacred embracing you, flowing all around you.
We rejoice in our physical nature, appreciating this time to pause and remember the holy
purpose of our lives. We feel gratitude for those travelling with us on this path of love
and freedom. Feel a smile forming on your face. You are happy to be here in this
peaceful inner place. Let there be peace. Gently refocus on the outer world and carry this peace
with you into the world.
and when you have completed your mantra, write down any
Day 3 of Art Novena to Our Lady of Lourdes
Kurt Seligmann
In many a fairy tale the protagonist is a young girl. Think of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Rumpelstilskin and Snow White. Sometimes she is a princess and at
other times she is a poor servant girl. But the focus
in the fairy tale is always on the young girl, the mother and
step mother and the fairy godmother or the thirteenth fairy
or some interaction with a supernatural Blessing Lady.
The miraculous story of Lourdes is as much about Bernadette Soubirous
The young Bernadette is the daughter of a poor family.
As in the Handless Maiden, Bernadette is the daughter
of a miller
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| The Miller’s Daughter in the Mysteries of Mary Tarot Deck |
We do not know that much about her parents but we know that she spends her
time in the forest collecting wood for kindling the fire.
Her story shares these elements of the fairy tale
with Cinderella, the Young Goose girl and Hansel and Gretel
as you can see.
Bernadette also looks after the family’s few sheep, She
is a shepherdess of a tiny flock of sheep, similar to the
tradition of the Divine Feminine and Blessed Mary
as the Divine Shepherdess of the Earth and
her creatures.
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| www.hergracesacredart.com |
The young girl Bernadette grew up poor and almost destitute. She lived in an old broken down
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| The Holy Servant and Handmaiden shrine from the Mysteries of Mary tarot deck VIII of Roses (pentacles) The fairy tale of Cinderella |
Novena for day three :
Close your communion with repeating the prayer again.
As you feel your heart filled with peace and gratitude to the blessings received from
Mary, the Rose of the World, you can scatter some of your fresh flower petals, or sprinkle some
of your blessed water, over her image.
thank you
thank you
thank you
And so it is.
