An Awakened Aphrodite
by Gretchen Blycker
An Awakened Aphrodite
Brings wisdom to the wild
Sacred to the sexy
Dharma to all drama
An Awakened Aphrodite knows
Nirvana and ecstasy
And is not beguiled by the trappings of
Delusion, illusion, or fantasy
An Awakened Aphrodite does not use sexuality to exploit another
Sexual expression is informed by compassion and is free of manipulation
Sexuality is offered as a gift to be shared
Not as a commodity to be paid for, sold…or taken
An Awakened Aphrodite honors others’ boundaries and commitments
She doesn't tease, push, or play in ways that may create harm
She is honest
She has a purity of light and heart that informs her playful wildness
She is generous
She delights in the shining of other goddesses
She is not poisoned by the spirit of competition or comparison
She does not take from others
An Awakened Aphrodite allows the erotic
To move through her
She radiates love
She speaks truth from her heart
She directs light to choice and freedom
For the out of control or enslaved
She demands a safe and loving play space
And presence is the key to access the garden of pleasure
She is intimately familiar with the landscape of her body
Yet, she continues her discovery of pathways of pleasure
Again and again and again
With each new experience
She finds bliss in the dance of giving and receiving
She is masculine and feminine
She is power and grace
An Awakened Aphrodite is Love
Interpretation of “An Awakened Aphrodite”:
An Awakened Aphrodite exemplifies an enlightened, confident, compassionate, bright, self-respecting female. She knows how to embody the sacred feminine. She is emotionally intelligent and clear-seeing into the individual and shared human experience, the personal and universal. She is attuned to herself and to others. She knows how to love herself, so she is not needy, dependent, greedy, or willing to sacrifice or give up her worthiness to the belief that outside sources determine her lovability, value, (and she certainly is not concerned with what some determine as her “hot or not” factor!), etc.
Since an Awakened Aphrodite respects her whole self, she respects her sexuality. She loves her authentic sexual self, and with that love and respect comes a reverence for the sensual experiences of erotic energy within. She is wholeheartedly honest with herself and practices that truth-telling with others, too. She acknowledges that doing so is a practice of respect for herself and others. It’s also a way for her to thoroughly enjoy the pleasure of erotic energy within her because her integrity and honesty keeps her sexuality conscious and light-filled, and therefore shame-free.
An Awakened Aphrodite uses her heart, her eyes, her mind - her everything - to discern truth and reality from distortion and illusion. She is wise to the allure of how seductive fantasy and escape can be and knows what a temporary and short-term relief it provides. She, instead, mindfully practices clear-seeing to inform her decisions to co-create a reality from which she does not wish to escape. She knows how empowering and satisfying that feels in the long term. She is connected to her inherent power and brings insight and awareness to draw upon the right use of that energy, which assures freedom from exploiting others with it, as well as managing her freedom from the possibility of being exploited by others.
Her understanding and discernment brings the light of awareness to the raw, automatic, unfiltered, primal emergence of impulses, desires, and cravings, and the voracious hunger of the unchecked egocentric aspect of our humanity. This is a natural part of our brain and personality, so it’s important that we not view or believe this is an aspect that is intrinsically problematic or is a part to eradicate or disown. It does not serve ourselves or others to put this part on a high pedestal of importance nor to seek to knock it down for subjugation or control. An Awakened Aphrodite knows the healthiest way to coexist peacefully (rather than live in a power struggle between body and mind) with this aspect of ourselves is to get to know, understand and create boundaries here. This part does not represent the whole of who we are nor does it represent our highest or best self. However, it is wise to not have this part in charge of our information-gathering and decision-making, because it naturally distorts perceptions and beliefs. This part is particularly proficient in co-creating drama. So, let’s learn from the Awakened Aphrodite and train our mindfulness awareness here. If we do, we actively live in a more empowering way - organically and naturally with more peace and ease.
When we direct our awareness within, we most likely are familiar with this part of our personality that might seek reassurance, comfort, and validation from others or outside sources. These outsides sources might include family members, partners, perceptions from social media, professional or financial accomplishments, etc. We can think of this aspect of self as our image-management focus. An Awakened Aphrodite understands that there is a risk in external dependency if she seeks outside signs as a promise of some sort of primary source of nourishment, self-esteem or safety management. When we give that much of our perceived power outside and then seek to depend on those sources in return for what our core needs, we set ourselves up to feel powerless and to experience a bottomless hole of hunger that no outside source can ever truly satiate.
An Awakened Aphrodite does not use sexuality as a commodity, nor does she consider sexual attention from others as a determinant of her self-worth. Therefore, she is not in competition with other females for sexual attention in a way that creates barriers that interfere with healthy female friendships. Healthy female friendships are based on mutual respect, support, kindness, and compassionate love. She also does not fall prey to the quicksand of comparison. Much of our advertising and current culture invites us to be lulled into this comparative way of thinking about ourselves, which can trigger a sinking self-esteem feeling. We might react to this with thoughts or impulses that we “need” what is being sold, be it a product or belief, to get us out of our downward spiral and feeling better about ourselves. That is a kind of a trap for our self-esteem and personal use of power, however. It is said that “comparison is the thief of all happiness,” and when we get entangled in this web, what we are essentially doing is giving away our power. Seeking outside ourselves for happiness or validation of worthiness can disconnect us from our inner resources and divinely sourced well of energy, worthiness, power, peace, and direct experiences of happiness/contentment.
An Awakened Aphrodite is attuned to her sensual self and practices healthy habits of self-care. She is adept with her attention and focus while mindfully managing and caring for her body’s needs. Because she is present in her body, she utilizes the information she finds within to enjoy the process of responding to her body’s messages and the pleasure she experiences with her senses. In light of her practice of connecting to her authentic sexual self and mindfully managing the dynamic flow of erotic energy within, she skillfully integrates this felt experience of energy throughout her whole being. She knows how to embody her desire and manage boundaries that assures respect and safety with her consciously directed sexual energy. For an Awakened Aphrodite, sexual expression feels best when filtered through her positive vibes. Truth and honesty feel best expressed in this way, too.
An Awakened Aphrodite positions herself from a place of internal power by seeing available choices, recognizing for what she is responsible, and participating in healthy dialog, while seeking mutual understanding in relationships. She acknowledges others’ voices in negotiation and conflict resolution and accepts what and when she cannot control or influence. She practices the art of inner freedom.
An Awakened Aphrodite renews pleasure and passion by being present and experiencing herself and others anew in each mindful moment. She is fully alive and directly encounters what is inherently fresh, new, and NOW. She just as gracefully opens to receive as she powerfully takes over to give. Her mind and body are not constrained by cultural dictations of appropriating gendered limitations to energy polarities of masculine/feminine, yin/yang, or anima/animus. She pauses her automatic searching when she remembers her knowing. Through her mindful practice of awakening, she assesses balance for all else, by aligning with the organizing principle and truth, that she IS LOVE.
An Awakened Aphrodite
Gretchen Blycker