“Know thyself.” These words are still inscribed on the pediment of the ruined Temple of Apollo at Delphi, Greece, built in the 4th Century BCE. It was constructed on the foundations of at least two previous temples. The first having been built in the 7th Century BCE, and constructed on a site used for sacred rites – particularly those associated with ecstatic states and visions inspired by the Earth Goddess, Gaia– as far back as 1,600 BCE.
While the Temple was dedicated to Apollo, most people associate it not with the Sun God, but with His Priestess and Oracle, the Pythia.
The Pythia
The Pythia was chosen from the Priestesses of the Temple, and she served from the time of her elevation until her death. One day per month, for nine months of the year, male petitioners who sought her council were admitted to the Temple to ask her questions that ranged from the very personal – whether to get married or to have children – to decisions of state that could lead to war.
Most people believed that the Pythia either sat over a fissure in the Earth which emitted gases (which put her into an ecstatic trance state), or that she ingested Oleander to bring about her visions. No matter how she entered an altered state of consciousness, the accuracy of her guidance was trusted throughout much of the ancient world. The oracular Priestesses at Delphi served until the year 390 CE, when the Roman Emperor Theodosius I ended their service by destroying the temple in order to eradicate Pagan worship.
Removal of The Pythia & Oracles
Caesar may have removed the seat of the Pythia, but he could not silence oracles who served as a voice for the Divine. In the centuries since the destruction of the Delphi temple, oracles have not disappeared. Instead, we have often been driven underground, ridiculed and doubted, accused of witchcraft and demonic possession. Fear of guidance not controlled by the uniform message of the most prevalent institutional religion has often made it dangerous to allow others to know that we are in direct communication with enlightened and Divine beings.
People have sought out oracles for many reasons, but for most, it was, in some capacity, to seek a greater understanding of why they are here and what they are meant to do with their lives. Indeed, seekers look to follow the direction of that engraving at Delphi – to know thyself.
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The Oracles of Delphi
I have been thinking about the Oracles of Delphi a lot in the last few weeks. The world today is very different from the world that they lived in. Priestesses in ancient Greece were revered and respected. In that time, to be a Priestess, particularly the Pythia, was considered to be an honor and privilege, and they were acknowledged as servants of, and often the embodiment of, the Divine.
Being a Priestess
Today, people frequently have no idea what I mean when I tell them that I am a Priestess. I am a minister, but because I serve expressions of the Divine that would have been understood by earlier cultures, though usually not my own, I have hidden behind the term “life coach” because it was the best modern explanation of some of the ways that I assist others.
In using a term that limited the full understanding of my work, I have also limited the ways that I can serve. Because it was hard, and because I was worried about not being accepted or respected or hired, I put the metaphorical sacred veil that I inherited from my spiritual sisters, the Pythia, in the back of my closet. I whispered my calling only to those that I believed might understand.
When I was a very young Priestess, I offered up a prayer to the Goddess. It is a prayer that I have repeated every day for nearly 30 years:
May my hands be yours, may my voice be yours, may I walk the sacred path that you have laid out for me to follow.
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I have meant every word, every day. Often over the years, perhaps like you, I have experienced wisdom and guidance coming out of my mouth that was not my own. I have felt the Grace of being able to create that connection between the people I serve and the Divine. I have been grateful that the right words came at the right time, and that I was living up to what I offered in my prayer.
But I also held myself back. I have been afraid to admit that I have heard and felt and seen more than an occasional powerful intuitive download. I worried that people would think that I was crazy, that I was lying, if I told the truth – that I have been clearly receiving direct communication for as long as I can remember.
Receiving Communication
A few years ago, that communication’s volume turned up dramatically, and recently, became impossible to ignore, or to keep from others. What I had referred to quietly, and only amongst my closest friends as “my guides” asked that I introduce them to you. They are taking me up on that offer that I’ve been making for years, to be the voice of Divine beings.
The time of allowing our voices to be silenced has passed. In this time of turmoil and fear, it has never been more important for Priestesses of all callings to rise to service. For those of us who were born to serve as the voice of our communities and the Divine that has called us, it is time to clear our throats so that the Truth can be heard.
Now is the time for us to lead the way into the New Paradigm, and to assist others in the societal shifts that are taking place all over the planet. It is time to help those who suffer, those who are confused and scared, those who pray for guidance.
It is time to be the conduit for that guidance.
If you are my oracular Sister or Brother, I urge you to offer your voice. Join in the tradition of the Pythia, those sacred Oracles at Delphi. Let us offer guidance that will allow others to shift, change, and shape a healthier, just, sustainable, and Soul-full world.
For those who seek that guidance, please ask for it. You may not have a temple to visit, but connection has never been so easy. Knock at the oracle’s virtual door – knock at my door. To you, I offer up the service of my voice to be the conduit for what you seek. If, like the petitioners at Delphi, you seek to Know Yourself, come in. May we all be blessed through this experience.
For those who have ears to hear, let them hear. So be it. Amen. And so it is.
Sarah Familar-Ragsdale is a High Priestess and Teacher of the Divine Feminine. She assists women in discovering and pursuing their Soul calling through 1:1 mentorship and coaching sessions, intuitive readings, workshops and courses on Priestesshood and the Divine Feminine,
and spiritual retreats. Along with her wife, Mina, she is co-founder of Seva Body Mind Soul, a whole Self wellness center located in Charleston, South Carolina.
