My latest guest, H. Byron Ballard, joins me on this episode for her second visit to the Home to Her podcast. Byron is a ritualist, teacher, gardener, and author of multiple books, including "Staubs and Ditchwater: A Friendly and Useful Introduction to Hillfolks’ Hoodoo;" "Earthworks: Ceremonies in Tower Time;" "Seasons of a Magical Life;" and the forthcoming "Feral Church." Known as Asheville, North Carolina’s village witch, Byron specializes in folk magic and folkways of the surrounding Appalachian Mountains where she and her family have hailed from for four generations. Byron is also a senior priestess and co-founder of the Mother Grove Goddess Temple, a nonprofit church with a focus on the many forms of the divine feminine.

On this episode we discuss:

• What it means to live in deep relationship to place - both the gifts and the challenges
• How the work and the death of the late thealogian Dr. Carol P. Christ inspired Byron's forthcoming book, Feral Church, and why she feels it's so important that we have new books of thealogy (spelling intentional) that celebrate the Goddess
• Why it's important that we understand that the Goddess and her many incarnations represent much more than patriarchally lauded values such as softness and femininity, but also ferocity and immense power.
• The linkage between the concept of begin feral and the Divine Feminine.
• The need for "hearth church" and other homegrown, emergent practices for engaging with the sacred that can continue to exist and flourish as patriarchal systems crumble around us

Notes related to this episode:

• You can learn more about Byron at her website, https://www.myvillagewitch.com/.
• You can also find her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/byron.ballar..., and on Instagram: @byronballard5789
• Byron discussed the late Carol P. Christ, and the importance of her work. Her essay "Why Women Need the Goddess" is an excellent introduction to her work: https://www.goddessariadne.org/why-wo...
• Byron mentioned the Unitarian Universalist curriculum, "Cakes for the Queen of Heaven"
• Here's my first interview with Byron from 2022: https://youtu.be/H1uIFHqH00U?si=T5XMk...

And here are a few more details about this show and my work:

• If you’d like to know whose ancestral tribal lands you currently reside on, you can look up your address here:

On the latest episode I'm joined by Dr. Annalisa Derr, a goddess educator, Sacred Feminine embodiment teacher, and ritual theatre creatrix. Annalisa completed her doctorate in Mythological Studies with Emphasis in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. She also holds a BA in Theater with specialized training in masked and physical theater from international master teachers in Italy, India, and NYC. Annalisa's work explores the impact that negative cultural menstrual “myths” have on women, which her forthcoming book will explore in more detail. Annalisa offers an affirming alternative in the form of an ancient myth, “The Descent of Inanna,” which she re-visions as a sacred menstrual narrative and ritual rite-of-passage.

During this episode we discuss:

• Annalisa's experience growing up in a Lutheran church, including the connection she made later between devotional Christian hymns and the Bhakti yoga tradition
• The near total erasure of the Sacred Feminine in Protestantism, and why discovering Her can feel like such a revelation for many of us
• How discovering Mary Magdalene sparked Annalisa's ongoing journey to the Goddess and led her to her current research
• What Annalisa refers to as the menstrual mysteries, and how the Inanna myth teaches us about them and the nature of the Goddess Herself - as a gateway through the lessons of birth, death, and rebirth
• Annalisa's pending move to Greece and her vision for supporting the reemergence of the Sacred Feminine in patriarchal strongholds
• And a bonus - Annalisa becomes the third guest in the history of the show to bring me to tears (in a really good way)! Tune in to find out why.

Notes related to this episode:

• You can see past episodes of Journey to the Goddess TV on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/journeytothegoddesstv
• You can also learn more about Annalisa here: https://www.journeytothegoddess.voyage/
• Be sure to check out the From the Goddess 6-part docuseries from Womenbodiment Films! This series includes interviews with 38 Sacred Feminine experts and wisdom keepers from around the world, including some amazing women you may have heard right here, like Max Dashu, Giovanni Washington, Vicki Noble, and Joan Marler. You can watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=heTo15Fw9fU&t=10s. And you can access all six episodes here: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/fromthegoddessdocuseries/

And here are a few more details about this show and my work:

• If you’d like to know whose ancestral tribal lands you currently reside on, you can look up your address here: https://native-land.ca/
• You can also visit the Coalition of Natives and Allies for more helpful educational resources about Indigenous rights and history.
• Please – if you love this podcast and/or have read my book, please consider leaving me a review, and thank you for supporting my work!
• You can also watch episodes on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@hometoher
• For more Sacred Feminine goodness and to stay up to date on all episodes, please follow me on Instagram: @hometoher.
• To dive into conversation about the Sacred Feminine, join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/hometoher
• To go deeper in your Sacred Feminine...

On this episode I'm so honored to be joined by the poet Chelan Harkin. Chelan's poetry journey began at age 21 on the heels of a traumatic event, a mystical event and an unparalleled creative opening where inspired verse started to pour through her with very little need for editing. Her experience with channeling the muse was profound and intimate but also quite private. It took Chelan 12 years to find the courage to share her poetry with the world through her first self-published book, "Susceptible to Light". This publishing journey that began at the end of 2020 has been something of a magic carpet ride characterized by prayer experiments gone right and has included some of the most awe-inspiring events that have completely shifted Chelan’s way of relating to herself and the world. Her current published books include "Susceptible to Light", "Let Us Dance: The Stumble and Whirl with The Beloved", "Wild Grace" and "The Prophetess: The Return of The Prophet from The Voice of The Divine Feminine".

On the latest episode we discuss:

* How a brain tumor and a subsequent pilgrimage inspired by her Baha'i faith led to a spiritual awakening for Chelan at age 21, which included an influx of divinely inspired poetry

* How Chelan experiences her creative inspiration as a flow of energy that offers tremendous insight and wisdom

* The generative nature of suffering, and why she feels like suffering is simply "energy that hasn't been brought back into the fold of love"

* Chelan's incredible publishing journey, which was presided over by two of her favorite dead poets, Hafez and Khalil Gibran

* Plus, she reads the first poem that ever flowed through her, "Say Wow"

Here are a few notes related to this episode:

* You can follow Chelan on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chani.harkin/. You can also find more information about her at her website, www.chelanharkin.com, and follow her on instagram @chelan-harkin

* You can pre-order Chelan's new book, The Prophetess: The Return of the Prophet from the Voice of the Divine Feminine, here: https://www.amazon.com/Prophetess-Return-Prophet-Divine-Feminine/dp/1401977561

* Chelan discussed her experience growing up within the Baha'i faith.

* She also referenced the work of two poets: Hafez, and Khalil Gibran.

And here are a few more details about this show and my work:

*If you’d like to know whose ancestral tribal lands you currently reside on, you can look up your address here: https://native-land.ca/

*You can also visit the Coalition of Natives and Allies for more helpful educational resources about Indigenous rights and history.

* Please – if you love this podcast and/or have read my book, please consider leaving me a review, and thank you for supporting my work!

* You can listen to this and other episodes wherever you access your audio podcasts

*For more Sacred Feminine goodness and to stay up to date on all episodes, please follow me on Instagram: @hometoher.

*To dive into conversation about the Sacred Feminine, join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/hometoher

*To go deeper in your Sacred Feminine explorations, check out the course offerings via Home to Her Academy: www.hometoheracademy.com

* And to read about the Sacred Feminine, check out my award-winning book Home to Her: Walking the Transformative Path of the Sacred Feminine (Womancraft Publishing), available wherever you buy your books!. If you've read it, your reviews on Goodreads and Amazon are greatly appreciated!

Mentioned in this episode:

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