The Dark Goddess: Dancing with the Shadow

This book is an incredible look into the stereo-typically misunderstood and villanized shadow side of women. It approaches each archetype with detailed history, story evolutions, and the psychology inherent in each of the so-called dark personifications. It is a book that shows, very effectively, how unification and embracing all of an individual's characterisitcs allows for healthy, creative healing & expression as a more well rounded being. Our shadow sides are our friends... like recognizing all of Freud's parts of the mind...Id, Ego and Super Ego... all must be recognized and embraced to be fully whole. This book also gives individual experiences from the authors and exercises to help the reader find internal unity and understanding themselves. I've read this book over and over and have purchased many copies given as gifts. Every woman should be given the opportunity to experience this book!!!

Starck and Stern (isn't that a wonderful pair of names for this topic?)offer an interesting introduction to Dark Goddess mysteries, an element in women's psychology that is often unacceptable in traditional societies and religions. They provide a chapter by chapter summary of the most powerful of these goddesses--Kali, Lilith, Pele, Hecate--and suggest rituals in which to connect with their energies. The book's weak point is the too-frequent interjections of the authors' personal impressions, which gives the book somewhat of a "vanity" feel. But it is overall a very worthwhile reference and workbook for the Dark Goddess mysteries.