Symbol Dictionary G
Gaea: See Earth.
Ganges: See Water.
Garlic: This Christian talisman of protection against vampires and werewolves, like the crucifix stems from pagan belief that one could obtain immortality by drinking the blood of gods (similar to transubstantiation). Garlic was taboo in Greco-Roman Goddess temples, probably because sweet-smelling breath was required for “group contact and sexual worship,” according to Barbara Walker in her book, The Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (1983). However, as Rowena and Rupert Shepherd in their book 1000 Symbols: What Shapes Mean In Art And Myth (2002), explains, “In antiquity garlic was associated with the moon and magic,” and believed to protect against the evil eye, snakes, scorpions, spirits, vampires, werewolves, magic, and illness.
Gemini: See Zodiac Signs.
Ghost: Originally meaning the spirit of an ancestor, a ghost was a “guest” (from the same Germanic root) invited to festivals and feasts such as Samhain and All Hallows Eve. Barbara Walker in her book, The Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (1983) states, a ghost is “originally a spirit of a dead ancestor invited to tribal feasts.” It was a European custom to preserve, decorate, and consult the skulls of dead ancestors; however the Christian doctrine of the resurrection required burial of full bodies. It is believed in folklore that ghosts are angered when not honored and tend to revisit places from their past, especially the scenes of their death.
Giants: Giants appear in mythology as one of the earliest races of people. The most obvious origins of the mythology of the giant come from a child’s perception of the adult world: that a bigger being is more powerful and knowledgeable. Barbara Walker in her book, The Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets, (1983) states, “Like grownups seen through the eye of the toddler, giants tended to be fearsome, sometimes bloodthirsty but sometimes benevolent; possessors of an arcane ancient wisdom; and adepts of magic.” Within mythology this Giant archetype symbolizes a primal Elder Race. The Bible classifies Giants with other Saviors and Divine beings with earthly mothers and divine fathers. Walker asserts, “Semitic tradition held that all the biblical patriarchs were of enormous size. Abraham was seventy times as big as a modern man.” Non-formally educated Arabs and Hindus still assert that the ancient peoples of the Golden Age of humanity, who built megalithic structures, were giants. Walker paraphrases them as “like parent figures, the earliest races were gigantic, sinless, wise, and long-lived” and with an understanding of reincarnation through a matriarchal family. Ancient legends of Thor and legends from Greece tell of traveling to a giant land via crossing rivers of menstrual blood, called the Styx in Greece. The Titans of Greece were also a giant race, children of Mother Earth and Father Sky. Many Oedipus like legends evolved out of this primal giant beginning. The Irish still believe that Giants inhabit “the chambered undergrounds of Tara who dwell the fourth race of gods who settled Ireland” (Walker, 1983). These people were called the Tuatha De’ Danann, after their Goddess Dana, who became Titania, the Fairy Queen of folk legends. It was believed that as awareness and belief in Giants diminished, so too did their size and power until they were “little people” such as elves or fairies, and the religious myths become children’s “fairy-tales.”
Goat: See Animals.
Gold: See Metal.
Golden Calf: See Animals.
Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” is the essence of the Golden Rule. Originally the foundation of the Tantric karmic law as “do good to other beings as if they were his own self,” yogis brought the law to the Middle East. The Buddhist version, “What ye sow, that shall ye reap,” was copied by Christianity 500 years later. Akkadia, Egypt, Greece, Jewish all had similar proverbs. Although this law has been attributed to masculine heroes and Gods, it was originally sacred to the Goddess in such forms as Hillel, Dike, and Maat.
Goose: See Animals.
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Grail, Holy: The Holy Grail is a prime example of the combining of pagan and Christian symbolism. The Holy Grail is the chalice or cup used by Christ during the last supper, when he said that infamous line, “this is my blood.” After the Resurrection, Joseph of Arimathea brought the Grail to Glastonbury for safekeeping, but it disappeared. It became a symbol of gallantry and chivalry to go on Grail Quests to find the Holy Grail during the Renaissance. Zillions of Grail stories, all complex with symbolism and Christian dogma were written and continue to be created, some based loosely on historical figures such as the Knights Templars and King Arthur and the Round Table, whose origins are still being explored by historians. |
However, as Barbara Walker in her book, The Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (1983) states, “The real origins of the Holy Grail were not Christian but pagan.” The Grail didn’t become Christian until the poet Robert de Borron, of Burgundi wrote a poem about how the cup had been given to the devil by angels, and upon being outcast, it fell from to earth, were is was made into a cup and given to Jesus by Joseph of Arimathea and it, predictably became the cup of doom.
The Pagan symbol of the Grail is synonymous with the Chalice and Cauldron. It represents the womb of the Goddess, the power of creation. Pagan myths of Cauldrons, Chalices, and Grails frequently include them being filled with unending, life-sustaining blood or wine, an illusion to the menses. The Pagan myth is of the Grail being kept by a holy harlot-queen, Repanse de Joie (Dispenser of Joy), possibly in the Spanish Pyrenees, at a temple topped with a giant Ruby titled Holy Rose, on the Montsalvatch (Mount of Salvation). The Nights Templars, as described by Walker were, “a group of warriors dedicated to the Grail temple and the defense of women,” and went around rescuing damsels in distress. True to the mythological tale, they waited for the coming of a Mahdi, or Desired Knight who would end tyranny and create a peaceful kingdom under the law of the Grail, which is a symbolic way of saying the law of the Goddess. King Arthur was that Knight, and his Knights of the Round Table were all Knights Templars, and of course Gwenhwyfar, also called Guinevere and Cunneware (meaning “female wisdom” and a name for the Triple Goddess) was his Queen, the earthly manifestation of the Grail. Early Grail legends claim the Grail battle cry is Amor, or Love, and with banners sporting triple lilies, symbols of the Goddess. During the early part of the second decade there was a rebirth of paganism and Goddess worshiping which is evident in the building of such churches as the Norte Dame (Our Lady, with Lady being an analogy to the Goddess), the reverence of Courtesans, and the notion of Courtly Love. The Pagan version of the Grail stories was to restore the balance of femininity and a time of peace and co-operation, or union between the promised, benevolent leader and his Divine partner. Unfortunately the Church responded with the Inquisition and Burning Times. French Christians transformed the Grail story from Pagan to Christian with such works as L’Estoire del Saint Graal by Vulgate Cycle (1230) and La Queste del Saint Graal by a Cistercian monk later in the century. With the removal of the emphasis of the Divine Feminine on the Grail, it simply became an object that held the Blood of Christ and the Grail stories were rewritten to disempower women and promote Christian Values. See Lily and Triple Goddess.
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Great Architect: The eye in the triangle (on the U.S. dollar bill and elsewhere) originates from the freemason symbol of the Great Architect of the Universe. According to Rowena and Rupert Shepherd in 1000 Symbols: What Shapes Mean In Art And Myth (2002), this symbol “represents the main governing principle at work in the physical universe, the builder of all—God… The Great Architect is usually depicted as the all-seeing eye of God.” See Freemason. |
Great Yantra: See Hexagram.
Griffin: See Animals.
Grotesques: The tradition of the Grotesques or “Creatures of the Grotto” of paintings and figures of demons in churches was created by the Catholic attempt to convert pagans. Barbara Walker in her book, The Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (1983) explains, “Early churches were built right over the heathen ‘grotto’ and the same deities were worshipped side by side with Christian ones, so the people would continue to come to the church by force of habit, finding their familiar idols there.” Pope Gregory the Great ordered his missionaries to “accommodate the ceremonies of the Christian worship as much as possible to those of the heathen, that the people may not be much startled at the change” (as quoted in Walker, 1983). Pagan Gods such as animal gods, sirens, masques, gorgons, the Green Man, satyrs, serpent deities, and more were all depicted in painting and statue. The Church eventually declared these Grotesques Demons, but they remained within church walls and people continued to pay homage to them, making offerings, praying to them, and touching them for luck. According to Walker, “Sometimes a porch, a facade, or a whole church presents a symbolic meaning entirely foreign to worship, even inimical to the Church.” Later this tradition evolved into the fashioning of secret symbols and symbolic meanings to church art by artists, masons, and smiths who may have been part of secret societies dedicated to keeping the tradition of the old religion alive.
Gunas: See Goddess.