The Descent into the Underworld; or The Feminine Journey
Some notes and thoughts on the Feminine Journey, as it relates to the myths of Inanna and Persephone.
The Mythology of the Descent
The heroine’s journey into the underworld has been a theme in traditional mythology for thousands of years. Two examples are the myths of the Goddesses Inanna (worshipped in Sumer, 4000-3100 BCE) and her Greek counterpart Persephone (begins to appear in the 6th century BCE).
Both goddesses journey into the Underworld, experience a “death” and a subsequent “rebirth”. In reading about these two myths and their significance, I’ve learned more about myself than I expected; below are some of my notes and thoughts.
The myth of Inanna, or the Inner Journey
On Valentine’s day, my favourite podcast Gatherings released an episode on Venus, Inanna, and Modern Perspectives. In this episode, Béa and Jay explore the Sumerian myth of Inanna. In the myth, the Sumerian goddess descends into the underworld to visit her sister, is stripped of her royal garments, and condemned to death upon her arrival.
This episode caught me at a turning point in my life (specifically, a little bit of a downturn), and listening to it shifted my perspective quite significantly.
The meaning of Inanna’s Descent
This idea of descent, or inner journey to the “underworld” is related to the feminine journey as opposed to the archetypal masculine journey, which is more oriented toward the outer world.
Béa quotes Sylvia Perera’s Descent to the Goddess:
Inanna shows us this way. And she is the first to sacrifice herself for deep feminine wisdom and for atonement. She descends, submits, and dies. This openness to being acted upon is the essence of the experience of the human soul faced with trans personal. It is not based upon passivity but open active willingness to receive.
The willingness to embrace this undertaking which ends in a death (and a rebirth); this is the essence of the feminine journey. So often we resist the journey or try to fight against a “descent”, as its darkness can feel wrong. The myth of Inanna tells us that it is an act of courage to embark on this journey, whatever form it may take. Only after facing a “death” will we experience a true feminine rebirth.
Persephone, Queen of the Underworld
Persephone, “The Maiden and Queen of the Underworld, Receptive Woman and Mother’s Daughter”, as described by Jean Shinoda Bolen (author of Goddesses in Everywoman), is my new favourite Greek Goddess.
I had long associated the idea of the “maiden” or “damsel in distress” with weakness and self-victimization, and could of course never identify myself with those traits. After reading the chapter in Goddesses in Everywoman devoted to the Queen of the Underworld, I realized I may relate to the myth of Persephone more than I expected.
The Abduction of Persephone: brief recap
Persephone is the daughter of Demeter, Goddess of Harvest and Agriculture.
She is abducted by the King of the Underworld, Hades (he emerges from the earth in a chariot as she is picking flowers, and simply grabs her and takes her with him back to the abyss). Demeter learns from Helios, God of the Sun, that Persephone’s own father, Zeus, had permitted the abduction. In her depression and fury, she boycotts her duties as Goddess of Agriculture, causing a period of drought and famine until Zeus finally takes notice. Zeus sends Hermes, the Messenger God, to bring Persephone back home. Persephone of course is overjoyed to be able to reunite with her mother, but indulges in a handful of sweet pomegranate seeds offered to her by her captor before she returns home.
Upon Persephone’s return, Demeter is elated but immediately inquires whether Persephone had eaten anything while in Hades’ possession. The irresistible pomegranate seeds proved to have been a trap; Persephone would now need to spend one third of the year back in the underworld with Hades. She becomes Queen of the Underworld during her months with Hades; guiding and accompanying heroes and heroines to the underworld in other Greek myths.
Jean Shinoda Bolen writes:
Persephone, the Queen and Guide of the Underworld, represents the ability to move back and forth between the ego-based reality of the “real” world and the unconscious or archetypal reality of the psyche. When the Persephone archetype is active, it is possible for a woman to mediate between the two levels and to integrate both into her personality. A Persephone woman who has been to the underworld and back can also be a therapist-guide who can connect others with their own depths, guiding them to find symbolic meaning and understanding of what they find there.
Embracing the Feminine Journey
The myths of Inanna and Persephone spoke to me deeply. The stories are not simply about a descent and a death, they are about a rebirth and transformation. The periods of life where we feel we are experiencing a psychological descent are difficult and may seem hopeless, but Persephone and Inanna show us the value in taking this descent in stride. Only after being in the “depths of hell” are we able to experience a transformative rebirth, one that lets us shed old layers of ourselves and opens us up to new perspectives.
Now whenever I find myself in the midst of a “descent” (whether it’s just a moody few days or a more significant life event), I approach it with open curiosity; let’s see where this journey will lead me.