On my recent trip into Morocco I had a chance to chat with our Berber or Amazigh guide about the role of women in his country. There are still arranged marriages and although most men have only one wife, and this has been dictated by the King to be so, they can still (nevertheless) have four, as countenanced by the Koran.
I told our guide that when in Jordan last year I had picked up an amulet of Al Uzza and asked him if he was familiar with her. Al Uzza was one of the three chief Goddesses in pre-Islamic times. She is equated with Venus and Aphrodite and is known as a "Daughter of Allah." I wear her amulet quite often.
"Wasn't a figurine of Al Uzza found by the Prophet along with 360 other "idols" in the area now known as the Kaaba where Islam's most sacred pilgrimages occur?"
"They were idols", he said tersely.
"No, they were representatives of the Goddess who the people worshiped before the arrival of the Prophet", I said. "In fact, there were also figurines of Mary from the Christian tradition and Jeshua as well. They are certainly not idols."
I knew that Mary was mentioned in the Koran 14 times, more than any other woman, and that Jesus was venerated as a sacred messenger.
We started talking about the changing role of women in historically patriarchal societies and how the march towards balance between male and female cannot be stopped now.
"We must have time," he said, almost pleading, "we need time to incorporate these changes into our society.
"But wouldn't the fact that you once venerated the Great Mother provide a point of conciliation and a way for you to move forward?"
He nodded, and then we changed the subject to other things.
I told our guide that when in Jordan last year I had picked up an amulet of Al Uzza and asked him if he was familiar with her. Al Uzza was one of the three chief Goddesses in pre-Islamic times. She is equated with Venus and Aphrodite and is known as a "Daughter of Allah." I wear her amulet quite often.
"Wasn't a figurine of Al Uzza found by the Prophet along with 360 other "idols" in the area now known as the Kaaba where Islam's most sacred pilgrimages occur?"
"They were idols", he said tersely.
"No, they were representatives of the Goddess who the people worshiped before the arrival of the Prophet", I said. "In fact, there were also figurines of Mary from the Christian tradition and Jeshua as well. They are certainly not idols."
I knew that Mary was mentioned in the Koran 14 times, more than any other woman, and that Jesus was venerated as a sacred messenger.
We started talking about the changing role of women in historically patriarchal societies and how the march towards balance between male and female cannot be stopped now.
"We must have time," he said, almost pleading, "we need time to incorporate these changes into our society.
"But wouldn't the fact that you once venerated the Great Mother provide a point of conciliation and a way for you to move forward?"
He nodded, and then we changed the subject to other things.