Juno by Moreau
Originally published on June 11, 2009
“May you, O blessed Goddess and many named Queen of all, come with kindness and joy on your lovely face.” –The Orphic Hymns, translated by Apostoious N. Athanassakis
She’s been given many names. Juno Fortuna, Goddess of Fate. Juno Sospita, the Preserver. Juno Regina, Queen of Heaven. Juno Lucina, Goddess of Celestial Light. Juno Moneta, Advisor and Admonisher. Juno Martialis, the virgin mother of Mars. Juno Caprotina, or Februa, the Goddess of erotic love. Juno Populonia, Mother of the People. And so on, through many other Junos.
In classical mythology, Juno was the goddess of marriage and she presided over all rites and arrangements of legal marriage. Her sacred month of June honored her as such, which is why June is still the traditional time for weddings.
Sunday’s Full Moon in Sagittarius at 18 degrees got me thinking about the goddess Juno (Roman), also known as Hera (Greek). This archetypal feminine energy holds a prominent placement in my natal chart, represented by her asteroid at 18 Sagittarius, one degree away from my natal Moon. This month’s full moon shining its energy on this important goddess in my life, is activating a new relationship with her.
As I ponder Juno more deeply, several questions arise. Who was she in her archaic form? How is she represented in classical mythology? What are Juno’s modern implications in our psyches? How does she express herself individually through me?
In pre-Hellenic times Hera, known as The Great Goddess, reigned alone in many religious centers – Argos, Samos, Euboea, Tiryns and Mycenae, and had no consort. She was worshiped in a variety of forms by indigenous goddess cults, and early sculptures portrayed her as beautiful, poised, and vibrant. During the Age of Taurus (roughly 4,000-2,000 BC), Hera was worshiped as the cow-eyed sky queen who presided over all phases of feminine existence, as an embodiment of the triple moon goddess: child-maiden, fulfilled bride and solitary widow.
With the invasion of the Indo-Europeans into Greece, it became necessary to incorporate the previously existing religious customs and rituals into the new system, so the indigenous people would be less resistant. Many of the gods were ritually married to one or another aspect of the Goddess, in order to merge the two systems. Thus, Hera was merged with the new ruler of the gods, Zeus. When he claimed her as his wife, he was not simply taking a marriage partner, but incorporating within his ruling domain, the entire matriarchal world, previously headed by his new bride.
The strife between the divine couple as told in myth literally describes the conflict between the invading tribes, followers of Zeus, and the worshipers of Hera. Homer, the Greek poet and author credited with writing the epics the Iliad and the Odyssey, traditionally portrayed Hera as the jealous and quarrelsome wife. But seen through the lens of this conflict, she is the image of what archetypal astrologer Demetra George calls, “the turbulent nation princess coerced, but never really subdued, by an alien conqueror.”
In the human social sphere, this union also corresponds to the custom of arranged marriages, those of convenience in which two powerful families, nations, or political opponents agree to a political or social alliance by merging their families and future heirs. This tradition has been repeated for centuries, especially among royalty and powerful families, as a way to increase their power and holdings.
Hera, a sovereign goddess in her own right, now merges into a new expression: the wife and partner, the Divine Consort. A future post will explore Juno’s new archetypal role and how we relate to her through this mythic lens.
Sources:
“The Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets,” Barbara G. Walker.
“Asteroid Goddesses,” Demetra George.
“Mythic Astrology, Archetypal Powers in the Horoscope,” Ariel Guttman & Kenneth Johnson.
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