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Daughters of the Goddess: The Women Saints of India
DAUGHTERS OF THE GODDESS is a personal investigation of the contemporary women saints of India. Stories, interviews, and reflections focus on women who are considered by Indian devotees to be incarnations of the Goddess.
- GenresReligionSpirituality
128 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1994
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 16, 2017
Lots of hagiography, but a quick worthy read.
One important subtext is that several of these saints had mental health issues, visions, episodes, etc., that many might call psychotic breaks, issues that eventually resolved in mystical union, and the women's enlightenment.
Madness preceding divine illumination is an old trope in religious literature (a meeting with the devil in the desert may have been thought by some to be madness), but these women bring a contemporary twist to the narrative -- and one of the biggest takeaways may be how we in the west pejoratively look on difference, in this case, so-called mental health issues, when all of history seems to say it's these extraordinary outliers who bring change, creativity, insight.
A world where fear and ignorance stigmatize brilliance. --imagine that -- in this case, an untrained and immediately available spiritual understanding of the world, that is, where the visible recedes behind other realities, and the call to experience a world beyond its materiality.
Mozarts of spirituality.
Since reading this book well over a decade plus ago, I've studied with, chanted with, or received darshan from three of these women.
The biggest in-person takeaway was how utterly human saints are, and how silly we are to go looking outside ourselves for that vision.
But as this book documents, there's something palpable and extraordinary in the presence of a singularly devoted individual who has come through the other side.
Worthwhile, a fast read easily set down and returned to. Useful as we continue shedding useless narratives for stronger, bolder visions, including embracing the divine feminine.
One important subtext is that several of these saints had mental health issues, visions, episodes, etc., that many might call psychotic breaks, issues that eventually resolved in mystical union, and the women's enlightenment.
Madness preceding divine illumination is an old trope in religious literature (a meeting with the devil in the desert may have been thought by some to be madness), but these women bring a contemporary twist to the narrative -- and one of the biggest takeaways may be how we in the west pejoratively look on difference, in this case, so-called mental health issues, when all of history seems to say it's these extraordinary outliers who bring change, creativity, insight.
A world where fear and ignorance stigmatize brilliance. --imagine that -- in this case, an untrained and immediately available spiritual understanding of the world, that is, where the visible recedes behind other realities, and the call to experience a world beyond its materiality.
Mozarts of spirituality.
Since reading this book well over a decade plus ago, I've studied with, chanted with, or received darshan from three of these women.
The biggest in-person takeaway was how utterly human saints are, and how silly we are to go looking outside ourselves for that vision.
But as this book documents, there's something palpable and extraordinary in the presence of a singularly devoted individual who has come through the other side.
Worthwhile, a fast read easily set down and returned to. Useful as we continue shedding useless narratives for stronger, bolder visions, including embracing the divine feminine.
March 10, 2020
A thought provoking read that I think depends on very personal tastes. The biggest realisation for me was the stark differences between how women and men saints explore and express religiosity. While men saints have been known to take bring their views to a large public more readily, I think female spirituality expresses itself in a more subdued and personal manner. A unique look at how a society and the power of the voices within it frame the religious conversations. I wonder what would happen if a larger percentage of women saints felt compelled to be religious gurus, appeared in media, vouched for politicians and participated in the commerce of religion.
October 26, 2009
highly recommend to anyone interested in learning about feminine leadership in spirituality in india!! very thin yet highly educational book, full of wisdom!
November 4, 2018
I got a pirated copy of this book from a dubious store in Ubud. Outside the store was a sign that proclaimed “We are the daughters of the witches you tried to burn”. Inside were tarot cards being sold for $50, an assortment of essential oils and bracelets and a modest collection of pirated — photocopied and cheaply bound — books going for an overpriced $18 each. I spotted a book I’d read earlier this year, Women Who Run with the Wolves, alongside other titles on yoga, meditation and female wellness. It was ~that~ kind of store.
This short read started out like a banal collection of eminent women saints in India, but the last 30% of the book was more eye opening. The author is an academic who confessed to holding up her intellect and her scepticism — things we are taught to cherish from young in our society — in the face of empirical evidence of miracles performed and feelings felt. There was also some explanation of Hindu theology (or what others might label “mysticism”; the labels we use carry their connotation) which I found very charming and wise metaphors, ego and the amorphous self-delusion fighting against Durga, the Divine Consciousness. I have always been taken by the image of two selves fighting against each other, one the superego or the ego against the id (in Freudian terms), but in this case the axis slightly differs — the universal unconsciousness and formlessness against the desire to define, to individualize.
There were some ideas I enjoyed in this book, ideas which I shared with a few friends. One of which is the seeming injustice of death and violence; yet such categories and feelings rise from differentiation — in the great formlessness, these events simply “are” or “be” and get absorbed alongside everything else. The other idea is that one need not renounce the world in order to be spiritually pure and of a high moral rectitude; one can train the mind to live in this world but not be of these world. Participating in worldly affairs is something I’ve always strongly believed in; not everything is about renunciation in its literal form and pure theory/ discourse. The final idea is how all encompassing this Hindu theology is, that in order to penetrate or understand this Divine, Higher Self, it is necessary for different forms of the divine mother to exist — an explanation offered to the different forms of religion, and even false self-aggrandizing teachers to exist (you can reach the true path even with a less than perfect teacher), explaining the existence of many denominations.
Clearly I still do not grasp this philosophy/ theology, but I’m thankful for Chinese philosophy classes in the Tao/ Dao for providing a preview of this idea of the One (or not?).
Ending off with a quote: “Liberation is not intellectual. The intellect is helper and intellect is barrier also. One is bound by nothing else but his own mind. It is the quality of your mind that makes you feel bound or liberated. Body, mind and spirit should be in harmony with each other. The spirit should speak through your intelligence and intelligence should direct your actions. It is all one.”
This short read started out like a banal collection of eminent women saints in India, but the last 30% of the book was more eye opening. The author is an academic who confessed to holding up her intellect and her scepticism — things we are taught to cherish from young in our society — in the face of empirical evidence of miracles performed and feelings felt. There was also some explanation of Hindu theology (or what others might label “mysticism”; the labels we use carry their connotation) which I found very charming and wise metaphors, ego and the amorphous self-delusion fighting against Durga, the Divine Consciousness. I have always been taken by the image of two selves fighting against each other, one the superego or the ego against the id (in Freudian terms), but in this case the axis slightly differs — the universal unconsciousness and formlessness against the desire to define, to individualize.
There were some ideas I enjoyed in this book, ideas which I shared with a few friends. One of which is the seeming injustice of death and violence; yet such categories and feelings rise from differentiation — in the great formlessness, these events simply “are” or “be” and get absorbed alongside everything else. The other idea is that one need not renounce the world in order to be spiritually pure and of a high moral rectitude; one can train the mind to live in this world but not be of these world. Participating in worldly affairs is something I’ve always strongly believed in; not everything is about renunciation in its literal form and pure theory/ discourse. The final idea is how all encompassing this Hindu theology is, that in order to penetrate or understand this Divine, Higher Self, it is necessary for different forms of the divine mother to exist — an explanation offered to the different forms of religion, and even false self-aggrandizing teachers to exist (you can reach the true path even with a less than perfect teacher), explaining the existence of many denominations.
Clearly I still do not grasp this philosophy/ theology, but I’m thankful for Chinese philosophy classes in the Tao/ Dao for providing a preview of this idea of the One (or not?).
Ending off with a quote: “Liberation is not intellectual. The intellect is helper and intellect is barrier also. One is bound by nothing else but his own mind. It is the quality of your mind that makes you feel bound or liberated. Body, mind and spirit should be in harmony with each other. The spirit should speak through your intelligence and intelligence should direct your actions. It is all one.”
February 27, 2023
Lovely book by Johnsen, specifically focusing on the different women saints throughout India. Inspiring.
December 29, 2015
My bachelor's degree is in religious studies and I had a wonderful education, however, one area I feel my education lacked was in women in religious, especially women saints. I have to say this is a fabulous book to help fill that void. It focuses on women saints of India in modern times. It focuses on women that are still living or have just recently passed. It is filled with interesting stories and information about the women and their religions.
The only reason I did not rate this a 5-star is because the author makes herself known at strange times. Rather than just letting the story tell itself she randomly includes her own thoughts and feelings that I don't feel are truly necessary nor do they aid the story in anyway.
The only reason I did not rate this a 5-star is because the author makes herself known at strange times. Rather than just letting the story tell itself she randomly includes her own thoughts and feelings that I don't feel are truly necessary nor do they aid the story in anyway.
August 12, 2011
I thought personal stories with female spiritual matriarchs of India was going to be more engrossing, but oddly, it wasn't. The stories are oddly homogeneous, and perhaps this is less of a flaw than a characteristic of the experience with these women. After all, the author stresses that the interaction with these women are, at least to some extent, transcendent of entirely rational evaluation.
July 31, 2012
She has one of the best books on the female saints of India. Very conversational, very well researched and very interesting for the reader. I use her book as a reference book for my blog the feminine & Hinduism. The spelling of her name is Johnsen.
November 27, 2011
Well written and inspiring. Very good introduction to women saints of India!
May 18, 2015
It was a great glimpse into the life of Women Saints of India, servants of the Goddess.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews