I wonder if anyone can help me with the identity of a goddess who appeared to me last night whilst I was drifting off to sleep.

I've never really believed in deity, but have been curious and have asked if there is a goddess would she show herself to me.

I was in the fields near where I live and I walked into the land, within the land I encountered a lady whose appearance I couldn't quite make out, she was holding a red rose and said she was the rose queen, she gave it to me as a gift and the next thing I was in the field again.

Has anyone ever encountered her before and any thoughts of who she is, I've googled Rose queen and red rose and can't find any such suggestions.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

HI

Well I did some googling too and the red rose is associated with Aphrodite:
According to Greek and Roman mythology, the red rose was strongly associated with the Goddess of Love, Aphrodite/Venus.



I think that red roses are also associated with Mary Magdalen and Isis.

Sorry, that's all I managed to find.

Thanks for that Athena!

I've just got back from my morning walk in the woods and thought on about the red rose. Lancashire is known by the symbol of the red rose, I strongly feel it is the goddess of this area where I live in Lancashire, as I do pass the hills where I ventured into everyday when I go on my walks.

The rose marks entry into the otherworldly realms. I think she was telling you about this - and that you will know why.

Thanks Tas Mania!

When she gave me the rose, she also gave me a symbol of use as a instant protection and sphere around me, well it looks like i'll be off travelling soon!

You might find Googling for stuff about the Rosicrucians and also the rosy cross and also the rose cross (sometimes called rose croix) will throw up information. (Don't be put off by the Christian aspects either!)

If you do this search, it may be an idea to also do it for Images - who knows what the pictures might trigger?

If you choose to explore this more deeply through meditative visualisation, how about using rose oil or a fresh rose (not a shop bought one though - they have no scent) to make a connection. I don't know where you are, but a walk in the countryside should be rewarding, rose-wise. The wild Dog Roses are in full bloom ATM, and their scent is delicious!

Ah - just read your profile - explains a lot! Take Toby on that walk round the reserve. Dogs are interesting creatures...

And a final thought - ask permission and collect some rose petals for making incense. You'll know when and why to use it.

Thanks for all that!

Yeah the dog roses have come out in abundance round the nature reserve, deep pink and white ones.

Not really done much inner work or journeying before maybe its the kick start I need!

Cheers!

Dosen't sound Rosicrutian to me, Sorry

The rose is the flower of Venus and the symbol of love in all its delicious variety. It is symbolically linked to Adonis, Aphrodite, Dionysus and Eros. According to mythology, Aphrodite trod on the thorns of a white rose-bush when she rushed to succour her mortally-wounded lover Adonis. Her blood stained the petals red, and this is how the red rose came to be. The red rose is sacred to Venus and Aphrodite, who rule over love, life, creation, fertility, creation, beauty and virginity. The open rose is a symbol of the feminine.

The Rosicrucian thing popped into my head, and I'm a great believer in going with the flow, so to speak!

Like I said, the Christian and Reformatory aspects are offputing, but the modern day thinkers within the order are quite philosophical, and maybe there could be some of those coincidental "clicks" come from browsing the WWW stuff on them.

"Some modern Rosicrucians claim that the rosy cross predates Christianity, where "the cross represents the human body and the rose represents the individual's unfolding consciousness." springs to mind...

I found this article interesting,
http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewArticle.asp?id=30708

Again, the symbol of love and womanhood as J.O. says.

well when i first read your post i first thought of the vergin mary she is sometimes refered to as the queen of the rose , she was suposed to have made the first rosery out of rose heads as a gift to a saint ( cant remember who) its intersting to see that the rose is sacred isis as it is my opinion that the vergin mary is the roman archetype for isis.


try looking to see if you can find out some roman celtic or nors history about lancashire see if there is a patren goddess for your area. hope that helps with any ideas.

Er, you've lost me a little here. Isis came before Christianity, so how can the Virgin Mary be an archetype for Isis?

And would there not need to be a pre-existing archetype for either of them? e.g. the virgin goddess

well isis was a popularly worshiped goddess by the romans and its my opinion that when the romans became xtian they assimilated her into the image of merry. Just an idea. i will see if i can find the site that discuses it.

pantheon of the greekswww.theoi.com/Pantheon.html

on here it menchens athina , artemis , hesta and hecate as vergin goddesses.

wikipiedia

here is a brief article on the link between isis and mery.

bbc religion and ethics

here is one discussion by the bbc religion and ethics site

i know its probably a massive generalization made by me or the people writing the article but its fascinating to read. and to some extent i accept it. especially as isis is one of my patrons.

cutting edge


here is another one that debates it not that its really that important but hey. sorry to take over your post btw .

I've read quite a few times that Isis was converted by Christianity into the Black Madonna :Black Madonna

If you read the last paragraph, it says that there are many plausible explanations for the Black Madonna, but the most likely is that Christianity adopted and assimilated a variety of customs and cultures it converted.

This interested me because I've had 2 rose oriented dreams in the past that felt quite significant. One was during the preparations for my wedding. I should add that this was a very simple affair attended only by myself, Mr S and our witnesses. I am not comfortable in girl's clothes so wore a long black embroidered coat. No flowers, food or all that malarkey. Anyhoo in the dream I was making my "love" for Mr S from three different coloured roses, pink, white and red which I was dipping into milk, white and dark chocolate. I'm not a very visual person but the dream was full of a benign loving female presence who had given me these materials, and the gorgeous smell of chocolate and roses combined.

The second dream was a while ago and involved a great long story about two warring deities, one a thin, stark, ascetic man and the other a big artistic voluptuous woman. We were preparing for a festival and I was the woman's helper, although I was like a double agent and secretly helping the man as well. At the festival folk came around with little baskets, You had to choose to be showered with rose petals (from the female deity's followers) which bestowed beauty and sensuality, or with salt and herbs (from the male deity's followers) which made you sensible and true. I answered with kind of a formula saying "As in life I'll be a good wife!" choosing the salt & herbs which angered the female deity as it was kind of a betrayal. I thought this was just more of the usual crap going on in my head about my gender issues, but maybe it was some kind of message ?

I think it is much simpler when presented and arriving in this way, it is just you, saying hi to yourself. God/dess is an often misunderstood being. In my experience of traditional witchcraft this kind of sign is archetypical and it is possibly showing you the opposite to what you asked, in other words - you want a goddess? you are the goddess! Roses are sexual rather than just feminine alone, sexuality awakening in magick is the rising of inner power (not just sex by a long way).

I believe you are being shown and offered your own empowerment and I would not look further for a dety to worship. All that stuff is not very witchy and can in fact lessen your growth. Witches are very wary of worship.

It is OK to research your roots and the area you live in, there will be something in that for you to grow with, but do not sublimate yourself into worship of a deity, it is not witchcraft. I know you didn't say you were looking to be a witch, in fact quite the opposite, you were looking to be a follower. This is a choice shown for you that is important, awaken to your own power, then when you come across deity, if ever you do, you will stand up and deal, not bow or kneel.