The GAIAN Flame of Australia
The Sacred Flame of Goddess
Written by Jodie Danaan and Tricia Szirom (2010-11 Co-Presidents of GAIA Inc.)
The GAIAN Flame of Australia was lit at the point of Spring Equinox 2011 by creating a spark directly from the sun. This sacred flame was nurtured in the heat of the Australian bush, using eucalypt leaves and twigs in a ceremony conducted by the GAIA Inc. committee. As the spark struck and became light, butcher birds, currawongs, crows and cockatoos all came near. We chanted Pele, Bridget, Kali… Pele Bridget Kali and the flame grew strong.
The GAIAN Flame of Australia was then merged with the Flame of Bridget from Kildare and the Flame of Iberia from Spain, brought here in 2011.
We brought the flame to the GAIA community to breathe it into life. The creation of the Flame was guided by the advice of several Indigenous Elders. After many discussions we were asked not to create a young new flame in this country, but rather reach back to the ancient wisdom already held by the ancestors of this land and bring that wisdom forward with respect to join with this GAIAN Flame. We were asked to hold an ancestor ceremony at the Goddess Conference 2011 and to welcome the ancestors into this place and to the Flame. Elders would conduct ceremony at the same time we did ours. Our ceremony was to be done respectfully and in silence. I was told it would probably rain that night.
Against all my instinct to chant and dance to the power of fire, I held a fire ceremony in silence. Nearly 100 people sat in silence in a circle at the Goddess Conference, welcoming the ancestors into the Flame and giving respect for Elders today and Elders of the past who have taken care of this great ancient Mother since the beginning of time. During the ceremony, Elder Bilawara Lee used her clap sticks to walk me around the circle and each person whispered a world of love into the Flame.
 Then Kathy Jones of the Glastonbury Goddess Temple brought the Lady of Avalon into our presence. In profound ceremony she merged the water, the air, the earth, the fire and the spacious essence of Avalon, with these elements here in Australia. Kathy opened a container sharing the air of Avalon with ours, she poured the sacred waters of Avalon into a bowl of rich Australian earth. Adding Australian water, she then mixed earth from the Sacred Isles into our earth. Then she added the beautiful flame of Avalon to the GAIAN Flame of Australia and took another candle to light, to take our Flame home to the British Isles, to add to the Avalon Flame in Glastonbury.
The ceremony deeply and significantly linked our two countries, by bringing the sacred light of Avalon and the ancestral Goddess to this land, and taking our unique Australian Flame with its ancient traditions and beauty to share with respect in Avalon. A beautiful and ancient tradition of sharing sacred flames brought into the modern day.
We sung together as we each touched our skin to this beautiful alchemy of earthy elements. Each person received a candle and lit our own sacred Flame from the combined GAIAN Flame of Australia, to take home and back out into the world. Torrential rain poured all that night.
The creation of the GAIAN Flame of Australia and the merging with the Flame of Avalon unites the energy and light from many other Sacred Flames.
The light of the Flame of Avalon is created from;
Ø The 2004 Goddess Conference flame- from the central altar that burned though-out the conference.
Ø Brigit's Flame-Brought from Kildare in Ireland.
Ø The Hiroshima Peace Flame-Originally lit by a woman survivor from the burning embers of the nuclear aftermath.
Ø Bridie's Flame -From the Isle of Lewis in the Hebrides
Ø The Children's Flame - From the United States
Ø The Madonna Ministry Flame - From the United States.
The GAIAN Flame of Australia represents the diversity and sacredness of life in this land, the respect for our Goddess traditions, and respect for the ancient Dreaming that is the lifeblood of this landscape.
Each member of the current Committee holds the Flame and many of our members tend the flame in their own sacred spaces and circles, and continue to share this sacred flame with people of Goddess.
Since the creation of the GAIAN Flame of Australia a number of members have held special ceremonies to share this Flame with friends and family members.
We would love to hear the stories of people who have shared the Flame of Australia. Many have already sent us beautiful photos of the flame alive in their workshops, circles and sacred space.
The GAIAN Flame of Australia represents Goddess in this country and draws from traditions of our ancestors across the world, joined with the sun and plants of this sacred county. It holds the dreams and visions of thousands who love life, honour Goddess and cherish our Earth Mother.
May the light of the Mother continue to burn brightly in our hearts and lives.
How do I connect with the GAIAN Flame of Australia and how do I tend the flame?
If you would like to become connected to the GAIAN Flame of Australia please join us at the Australian Goddess Conference in October to light your candle. If you would like it for a particular event please
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
and we can send you a tea light that has been lit from the flame.
Each tea light is a descendant of the original Flame and is connected to other sacred Flames of Goddess around the world. When people light a candle from a sacred flame, it is believed that the essence of the flame is still held within the candle, in the wick, even after it is blown out. This allows sacred flames to be shared around the world, be tended and then lit again to bring in Her light.
It is customary to transfer the sacred flame from the tea light onto your main candle and let it burn dusk till dusk. Keep or tend the Mother flame in whatever way you wish. If you cannot tend a flame for this length of time, then just spend whatever time you can tending the sacred flame and feeling the light of Goddess. There is no right or wrong way of tending the flame. Do ritual, sing, meditate…or simply sit and feel the light of the Mother spreading around the world.
In choosing to tend the sacred Flame you play a part in holding and experiencing the energy of the GAIAN Flame of Australia. You are taking part in a truly ancient Goddess tradition, She will reach you and She will change you.
As you tend the flame, know many others around the world are also tending the sacred flame of the Earth Mother, and the more the flame is shared, the more Her light and love grows. Sharing the wisdom and light of the flame has been practised for tens of thousands of years. With the light of the GAIAN Flame of Australia now being shared and kept alive, may the respect of the Dreaming Law of this land and all Her people, and the ancient resonance and love of the Goddess continue to grow in us all.
|
