When I saw that there was going to be a talk about Persephone, I was especially drawn to it because I have always loved reading mythology. Mythology was how cultures described what was happening within the world. Usually, each culture had a creation myth, a flood myth, a season’s myth, basically any kind of myth to explain how we got here and why things happen within the world. So, for ancient Greeks, Persephone was the goddess of Spring, and her story was their way for them to understand how the seasons occurred.
As the story goes, Hades longed for a female companion. Zeus decided his daughter, Persephone, would be a great match for him 1. So Hades kidnapped Persephone and made her his queen 2. Demeter, the goddess of harvest, was heartbroken and, while searching for her daughter, neglected the crops, and the people starved 3. Zeus had to do something, so he asked Hades to return Persephone to her mother, only if she had not eaten anything from the underworld 4. Hades didn’t want Persephone to leave, so he gave her a ripe pomegranate, and she ate a few seeds 5. So Zeus came up with a plan that Persephone would spend four months in the underworld and eight months with Demeter on earth 6. Hence, the changing of the seasons on Earth.
So, going back to the seminar, I wanted to see how this gal would tell her tale, but also what she would say about Persephone. After the speaker told Persephone’s story, she described how symbolic the underworld was. Facing darkness is difficult, but it is necessary. If we don’t, then we become stagnant and dysfunctional, and it can cause us further pain. In this gal’s experience, she suggested that we need to take the plunge and embrace the darkness within us, and with Persephone’s help, promote inner healing and regain our personal power. The speaker suggested that we can do this with Persephone by reading and re-reading her myths, seeing what parts of the story resonate with one's life. This can also be achieved through dream work and what the speaker referred to as gardening, which involves mirroring the outer world and the inner work we are doing. Weeding in the fallow months and planting/manifesting during the light half of the year.
The Truth of the Matter:
So, this seminar was a lot! You have a gal who is actively worshiping Persephone, saying that to achieve personal healing is to embrace her story, actively read about her, and use her to confront the darkness within our lives, coming out stronger and healed.
One of the key issues here is the worship of Persephone and a gal encouraging the attendees to worship Persephone. The Bible states:
Psalm 135:15-18, “The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; they have ears, but do not hear, nor is there any breath in their mouths. Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.”
Isaiah 44:9-11, “All who fashion idols are nothing, and the things they delight in do not profit. Their witnesses neither see nor know, that they may be put to shame. Who fashions a god or casts an idol that is profitable for nothing? Behold, all his companions shall be put to shame, and the craftsmen are only human. Let them all assemble, let them stand forth. They shall be terrified; they shall be put to shame together.”
2 Kings 17:35b “Do not worship other gods or bow down to them; do not serve them or sacrifice to them.”
And of course, Exodus 20:3-4 states, “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.”
According to the scriptures, Persephone is a god who is carved by man and cannot see, hear, or speak to anyone. With that in mind, she would also be unable to help with inner healing. Knowing this, logically, why continue down a path that is biblically known as a dead end?
John 14:6 states, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 3:16 states, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” The way through Jesus is life, not through Persephone.
One of the other problems within this seminar is the suggestion of using Persephone to take the plunge and embrace the darkness within us, which promotes inner healing. According to the Bible (as mentioned above), Persephone cannot hear or see, so she cannot assist with inner healing. Matthew 11:28-30 states, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” There are days when life feels overwhelming, unbearable, and we struggle to figure out what to do next. God says to come to him and he will give rest. 1 Peter 5:7 states, “casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” We do this by praying and telling God what is bothering us. Philippians 4:6-7 states, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” This is a peace that only God can give.
Sometimes we have deep scars that resurface from someone who has hurt us in the past. The right thing to do would be to forgive them. Matthew 6:14-15 states, "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses". Colossians 3:13 “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you". God forgives us for our sins, and even when it’s hard, when someone has wronged us, we still should forgive and let things go.
Isaiah 43:18-19 states, "Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert".
Philippians 3:13-14, "Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus".
So don’t look back, keep moving forward, trusting him, because God has a plan, and with him will bring inner healing in you.
1. Bryant, Megan E. Mythlopedia: Oh my gods!: A look-it-up guide to the gods of mythology. New York, NY: Scholastic : Franklin Watts, 2010.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.