The goddess has been worshiped thought history as the great creatress. 20 000 to 30 00 years ago she stood for cooperation, unity, and participation. The male gods however, represented dissociation, separation from nature, and dominion over nature. But the perception of the goddess so changed after the patriarchal conquests. Soon the goddess began to lose her importance in mankind’s hearts.
But some of the pagan beliefs stayed with the people, and began to take its place back in society. Thus came the belief of the triple goddess. The holy trinity and the magickal three. Through the years this belief remained hidden, as it was borrowed by other religion such as the Christian trinity of "the father, the son, and the holy ghost", and the Hindu trinity of "Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.
By the 20th century many began to return to the old, but newly discovered belief that was dug up through those who wished to seek something else. Those who felt that something was missing in the lives. She was found in almost every culture and was represented in her triple form. Maiden, mother, and crone.
The goddess is everything and anything. She is the beginning and the end. She is life and death. Up and down, right and left. She is everything that is within us, and everything that is around us. Understand that the goddess is both a single archetypal entity and a trinity of aspects, may be rather difficult. But knowing that the goddess just is, gives you a clearer picture into the triple aspect of the goddess.
The number three is a very sacred number in all religion. Ex. Christ rose from the dead on the third day. It is said that we live in the third dimension. It is found in folk saying and beliefs. What you send out come back three fold, etc, etc.
The goddess can also be compared to the harvest. "First you have the planting, the growing, and than the harvest itself." It can be compared to the stages of life, "Youth and puberty, parenthood and maturity, old age and wisdom." The three phases of the moon, "Waxing, full, and waning." It is also thought of is a wide verity of other ways depending of the religion and background.
We as humans are made in the image of the goddess, thus explain the reason of the triple faces of the goddess. And if you can accept the goddess is modeled after us, it becomes easier to see the explanation of life and the growth cycle.
The maiden represents the youthful aspect and anticipation of life. The beginning after the end The part of life that still needs time to ripen and become fruitful.
The mother aspect is the parent and the middle line of life. It is the physical desire, mental willingness, and spiritual love.
And finally, the crone. The most feared aspect of the goddess. This is death and dissolution. But will be renewed again by the maiden. Death is a part of life. A contract we sign when we are born. There is no avoiding it, and there is no beating it. The hardest part is accepting it. Knowing that is not the end, because with every end there is a beginning that follows. Even scientist says the nothing is wasted. Everything is recycled. The atoms simply appear in another form.
By looking at, studying and understanding the three faces of the goddess, lets us have a better knowledge and relationship with ourselves, the goddess and with all life. A better relationship with the goddess opens up new opportunities and allows you to grasp what you could not grasp before.