Anna Nicole Smith - Goddess of Love and War?
By Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway
This culture has come to know 'goddess' as the title bestowed on models, movie stars, and women who embody an astounding physical beauty that most of us could never emulate. From that perspective, you can see how people would call Anna Nicole Smith a Goddess.
I just finished writing an online course, Discover the Goddess, and got to thinking how Anna Nicole actually represented many Goddess archetypes that people seem to relate to -- the sex goddess, the clown goddess and the warrior goddess. In the end she was Innana of ancient Babylon. Queen of Heaven, and the goddess of love and war, she ruled Mesopotamia, the Cradle of Civilization now known as Iraq.
From the perspective of goddess mythology, Anna Nicole lived out several archetypes.
*She was the sex goddess aspect of Venus, who loved to be admired and seen. Venus carried a mirror and loved to look at herself. She wanted to be famous and be known. As much as Anna Nicole was hounded and seemed trapped by her fame in her last months, she used TV as her high tech mirror, able to see herself and reflect her image to the masses.
*She also evoked Uzume, the shaman goddess of Japan, known for being somewhat of a clown and flashing her privates to stir controversy and get a laugh from the other gods and goddesses. Anna Nicole flashed her life--and body parts--for all to see. She didn't seem to care what people thought of her.
* She showed aspects of Durga, the Hindu Warrior goddess with eight arms who rides a tiger. For better or for worse, Anna Nicole was a tenacious fighter and although in the end we saw the depth of her vulnerability, she survived plenty of slings, arrows and loss and always seemed to at least be able to pretend to walk proudly.
* In the end, she was Innana of ancient Babylon, goddess of Love and War. The mythology is hauntingly similar. There is even an Interesting similarity in names - InnANA and Anna.
When Innana's lover/son Tammuz (or Dumuzi) was killed suddenly she had to go to the underworld to save him.
Innana had to travel down seven layers, through seven gates, and was asked questions at each. She was made to “strip” - remove parts of her being -- as she passed through each gate. She stripped off her divine office and all its trimmings ... her earthly possessions ... clothes ... jewels ... and ego as she went. By the time she reached the bottom she was naked. There she met her dark twin and had to face her -- and face her own dark side -- before she could save the soul of her beloved son/lover and rise again.
Many spiritual schools teach us that when someone dies suddenly, the soul is in shock. Could it be that with such a sudden, unexpected death Daniel's soul was un-free, confused, unable to find his way home to God?
Anna Nicole sobbed in an interview after his death, "I feel like he's calling me." Her bodyguard said on television that she would sleep long hours, just to be with Daniel in her dream state.
Just as Innana could not bear the pain of losing Tammuz, Anna Nicole could not bear losing her son Daniel. Perhaps she found a way to release her soul from its human container so she could be with him again.
© 2007, Reverend Laurie Sue Brockway
Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway is a leading interfaith and non-denominational wedding officiant. She creates unique ceremonies for couples of all backgrounds and faiths, and is also widely recognized as a relationship coach, bridal stress expert and columnist. She is author of WEDDING GODDESS: A Divine Guide To Transforming Wedding Stress into Wedding Bliss (Perigee Books, May 2005) and the new online course, Discover the Goddess. Visit Rev. Laurie Sue Brockway at www.WeddingGoddessWisdom.com.
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