Myrrhophores
Carriers of Right-Brain Wisdom
The Magic Circle & Cycles
Cultivate "a sense of time as experienced, and not merely measured,
by living in tune with our own felt rhythms…
to expand our notion of clock time with an appreciation for cosmic time.
Where am I in my own daily, monthly, and yearly cycles?
Is this the time to make endings or to dare beginnings?
If we live our lives according to a mechanical clock,
then our lives necessarily have a mechanical tone."
~ Thomas Moore, The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life
Wise and ancient civilizations that revered nature and inhabited the Earth during the Golden Age tracked the sun and heavens. These ancestors created huge monolithic sites all over the world, some quite famous, some still hidden from and others more recently discovered and controversial like the Bosnian Pyramid project in Visoko, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Besides these ancestors being keen observers of the stars, many of them followed matriarchal principals. This is in sharp contrast to today’s modern culture, which is locked in a patriarchal system focused on gross matter and separation.
Both PhD Carmen Boulter and Dr. Leonard Shlain have examined Goddess based civilizations revealing that they lived in balance, with each other and nature.
A society based on matriarchal principals, coinciding with the way of the Goddess, doesn't shun men, rather encourages equanimity. The focus is on harmony and community, where everyone strives for their highest self, in contrast to being in a constant state of competition. Are you a Star Trek fan? There was an episode in the Next Generation version where Captain Picard, with Counselor Deanna Troi, share something about their purpose was to explore, learn, and constantly strive to be better than they currently are.
According to the Yugas from Hindu cosmology, there are vast epochs of time that humanity passes through, it is a great cycle of spiritual evolution and decline. Those who have dived into this topic of the Yugas, including Swami Sri Yukteswa, have various points of view as the exact dates. Some of them state that we are currently headed in an upward motion, out of the period known as Kali, the Iron Age, and that in 2025 we officially entered the new Golden Age, often referred to as The Age of Aquarius. In this upward cycle, it is believed that we rise out of the durge and that the Goddess will reclaim her throne once more bringing enlightened.
In Dr. Leonard Shlain’s book, The Alphabet Versus the Goddess, he presents us with a hypothesis that parallels the descent from Satya Yuga to Kali Yuga—a journey from wholeness and divinity toward fragmentation and materialism. The rise of alphabetic literacy, patriarchy, and rationalism mirrors the energetic decline into the Iron Age. As the left hemisphere overtook the right, and the logos suppressed the mythos, the sacred feminine—the intuitive, holistic, and mystical—was marginalized.
Myrrhophores
The term Myrrhophores comes from the Greek words myrra (myrrh) and pherein (to bear or to carry) hence myrrh-bearer. A reference to women in ancient cultures who anointed bodies with sacred oils, often during funerary or ritual occasions. From the research I’ve done, there is no definitive archaeological evidence to the word "Myrrhophore(s)" appearing in ancient texts, temple walls, papyrus or stone tablets. We do have other accounts, and historical references to ancient Egyptian practices involving the use of myrrh in anointing rituals.
In ancient Egypt there are references to priestesses working with myrrh and other oils connected with the Hathor(s) and the Seven Sisters at the Temple of Dendera. The Goddess Hathor is called The Lady of Punt, the area from which myrrh was gathered. Long before Hathors name was supplanted by Isis, much later in the history, she was called HetHert (the House or Womb Above), which later became Hat-Hor (the House or Womb of Horus). In the Handbook of Egyptian Mythology, Geraldine Pinch provides us with a description of Hathors role:
“Hathor was the golden goddess who helped women to give birth, the dead to be reborn, and the cosmos to be renewed. This complex deity could function as the mother, consort, and daughter of the creator sun god. As Lady of the Stars, Hathor was associated with the nocturnal sky. As the Eye of Ra, she could be identified with the solar disk or the morning or evening star (Venus). By the Greco-Roman Period, Hathor was honored as a moon deity. She was the goddess of all precious metals, gemstones, and materials that shared the radiant qualities of celestial bodies, such as gold, silver, copper, turquoise, lapis-lazuli, and faience.”
Inspired by research and a relationship I’ve been cultivating with Hathor, I presented insights in the development of a ritual perfume made in her honor back in May 2023.
In the presentation, I shared insights in the development of the formulation and had attendees smell different essences loosely based on a perfume called ti-Sps (likely pronounced ti-shepes), a recipe inscribed at the laboratory of the temple of Edfu from the Ptolemaic Period. The inscription notes that it is the “perfume for Hathor, lady of Dendera”. ☥ ☥ ☥
The ritual perfume was never launched, due to epic life events and other projects getting in the way. Despite that, those who received samples have been asking for its release. Stay tuned, more on that in another post.
Hymn of the Seven Hathors
We play the tambourine for your ka,
We dance for your majesty
We exalt you – to the height of heaven.
You are the Mistress of Sekhem, the menat and the sistrum
The Mistress of Music for whose ka one lays
We praise your majesty every day
From dusk until the Earth grows light,
We rejoice in your countenance, O Mistress of Dendera.
We praise you with song.
You are the lady of Jubilation, the Mistress of the Iba dance,
The Lady of Music, the Mistress of Harp playing,
The Lady of Dancing, the Mistress of Tying on Garlands,
The Lady of Myrrh and the Mistress of Leaping.
We glorify your majesty – we give praise before your face.
We exalt your power over the Gods and Goddesses.
You are the Lady of Hymns,
The Mistress of the Library – the Great Seshat.
At the head of the Mansion of Records,
We propitiate your majesty every day.
Your heart rejoices at hearing our songs.
We rejoice when we see you, day by day.
Our hearts are jubilant when we see your majesty,
You are the Lady of Garlands, the Mistress of Dance
The Lady of Unending Drunkenness.
We rejoice before your face, we play for your ka.
Your heart rejoices over our performance.
Ancient Egyptians viewed death as a holy portal, crossed in reverence to a new cycle. The Myrrhophores, in their priestess roles, assisted in crossing that threshold and ensuring one's passage into the divine realm, where rejuvenation awaited.
The rituals performed by the Myrrhophores were not solely focused on death transitions, but rather on the transformative potential of life's sacred moments. Like the ouroboros, the serpent eating its own tail in the alchemical text Chrysopoeia of Cleopatra. This symbol represents infinity, cyclical renewal, and unity of all things. Through anointing, the Myrrhophores sought to invoke the energy of the ouroborus, where individuals shed layers of the past emerging into their true selves.
The most well known Myrrhophore were the women mentioned in the Bible, including the “Marys”, who anointed the body of Jesus/Yeshua. The archetype reaches deep into ancient goddess traditions with Hathor (Isis) and Inanna, where the myrrh-bearing women played roles in death-and-rebirth rites, temple healing, and ecstatic rituals.
The Myrrhophores embodied, right-brain, feminine wisdom working within sensory, nonlinear, sacred, and cyclical themes. They represent a mode of knowing that likely predates the alphabet, rooted in ritual, scent, memory, and the mystery of transformation.
As with the disappearance of the midwives during the witch hunts, the Myrrhophores were likely executed or, like the alchemists, practiced their craft secretly. This group represent a part of the larger cultural shift away from goddess-based, image-rich, intuitive ways of knowing that were buried in the psychological and physical mud floods that took place world wide.
The myrrh they carried, resin from wounded trees, symbolizes a sacrificial healing, much like the forgotten wisdom of the feminine that must be resurrected to bring balance to our earth.
Modern-day Myrrhophores recognize the importance of self-care and nurturing the divine feminine within. They create sacred spaces for women to gather, explore their inner landscapes, and work with plants and their anointing gifts. These priestesses empower others to connect with their intuition, reclaim their personal power, and cultivate self-love and self-acceptance. These womb-an are guardians of sacred feminine mysteries. holding knowledge of the cycles of life, death, and rebirth. In today’s culture we find aspects of them in our midwives, birth and death doulas, pastors, bee guardians, spiritual guides, writers, artists, natural perfumers and more. The archetype of the Myrrhophore lives on in those mentioned above, she is here on earth and in the ethers connecting us with the very essence of femininity.
Myrrhophore Anointing oil
Myrrhophore is the name of the anointing oil I have been working on with my brilliant collaborator Shiva Rose, who is responsible for bringing her idea to me and the naming of this luxurious potion. The scent is inspired by Mary Magdalene, decreed as Apostolorum Apostola (Apostle of the Apostles) by Pope Francis. In 2016, he made a major symbolic and liturgical move by elevating her feast day to a Liturgical Feast, previously July 22nd was only a memorial in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar.
Shiva first came on my radar during my studies of natural perfume, I longed to meet her but the opportunity was not quite ready to manifest. Then, as if the Goddess heard my prayer, she contacted me via email and attended the opening of my perfumery when it was in Agoura Hills, CA with her daughter. She then reached out to do a feature on her blog The Local Rose.
Shiva and I have a shared philosophy that celebrates the harmony of art, alchemy, and nature in everyday ritual. She effortlessly blends authentic healing, deep spirituality, and natural beauty with a storyteller’s voice and a mystic’s presence. Her work feels like an invitation to slow down, reconnect with nature, and reawaken the sacred in everyday life. I feel very blessed to be collaborating with her on this very special scent and upcoming event.
When Shiva contacted me to collaborate on a scent based on Mary Magdalene, I loved the idea and was completely onboard, I had no idea that Mary was having a resurgence. I became conscious of her, as more than the “sinner”, when I read the book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail in 1982. Then in the mid 90’s, around the same time that all those other epic downloads came through, like aromatherapy, rebirth work, becoming an initiate with a Shaman, etc., I started coming across more and more information. Meeting the author Glen Craney of The Fire and the Light, added even more details to her very rich story.
During the alchemizing process of the fragrance, musical composer Marcello De Francisci came by the perfumery to meet with Greg. I brought him upstairs and anointed him with Myrrhophore. He absolutely adored it and asked that I put more on him, then shared that he had composed a piece as a tribute to Mary Magdalene. I have shared a link below so that you can hear it. Also, good to know that this is a fragrance that men like to wear as well.
Myrrhophore, in her guise as an anointing oil, is composed of sixteen essences which began with frankincense, myrrh, rose and spikenard as the basic backbone of the intended symphony. After several sketches the formula finally hit its mark when labdanum was added to the orchestration providing a rich warmth to the rosey incense base. The fragrance category ranges in the amber + incense range.
I knew a water component was important to convey in both the scent and the illuminated image that Greg Spalenka was creating for the fragrance. There are only a few essences in my scent palette which evoke the element of water, myrrh happens to be one of them, another is Indian vetiver, both are contained in Myrrhosphore. I know, you might be thinking, vetiver = water, what? Well, when I go up to my favorite natural mineral springs here in New Mexico, I smell vetiver in the water. Since Mary Magdalene is equated with the fluid realms→ elemental water feels right, having a correspondence with the dream time, divine flow, feminine, emotions and intuition.
While working on the fragrance, I remembered the wisdom Veda Austin has been sharing through her mind full research with water. I now see water as the embodiment of the Goddess, especially with her threefold aspects: fluid like rain, crystalline like snow and more rigid like ice.
From a shamanistic perspective, elemental water in our physical body, finds its home in the belly, the place of emotion, desires and the ability to circulate. The archetype is the Feminine, the Mother and the Moon. The spirit medicine is fluid and in the circular realm, in keen inner awareness and flowing in harmony.
The intention with this fragrance is that you immerse yourself in the alluring symphony of notes, designed to awaken your senses and unleash your inner goddess.
The act of anointing each other and our selves, is a simple ritual in bringing us into the present moment, connecting with the divine, while encouraging us to let go and transform, so that the gold, "the christos" (the anointed one) may be reborn within us.
At the core of true plant perfume is well being for both the planet and all her beings, supporting organic agriculture and small sustainable businesses. We become more illuminated by breathing in plant molecules. Like the butterfly effect, small vibrations can affect our entire cosmos.
Save the date, Myrrhophore Anointing oil debuts July 22nd at Illuminated Perfume
RESOURCES
→ Mary Magdalene Music by Marcello De Francisci & Hila Pitman
→ The Pyramid Code by Canadian PhD Carmen Boulter
→ The Great Year, a compelling documentary that explores the fall of ancient civilizations around the globe, and the rise of modern civilization, might be related to our Suns motion around a companion star. The film examines evidence that ancient civilizations may have known of this celestial cycle and that our Sun may indeed display the characteristics of binary motion.
→ Veda Austin
Thank you for this contemplation weaving together so many inspiring details of both human and cosmic origins. Deeply grateful for this thread ✨ 🌹 ✨
Another exquisite offering, Roxana, full of depth, beauty, magnificence! Just like your essence. Bless you.