She of Ten Thousand Names

Tracing the Threads of the Divine Feminine

A woman kneels beside a still, candlelit pool at dusk, looking into the water where a luminous feminine presence reflects back at her, suggesting a moment of recognition and connection with the Divine within.

I grew up in a patriarchal-based religion (Mormonism) and was taught the divine was distant, something to approach with fear, and whom I must prove myself worthy of his love. Even as a child, something about that didn’t sit right with me. I was asked to reach toward something that never quite reached back. I didn’t have words for it then, but if I had, it might have sounded like this: Why does god feel so distant from me?

I tried to believe the way I was taught, but I sensed this wasn’t the full story of the divine. An essential piece was missing—the feminine. Like many women, the patriarchal religion left me carrying a kind of spiritual trauma rather than drawing me closer to my spiritual center. I started asking questions my parents couldn’t—wouldn’t—answer.

Where was the divine who looked like me, a woman?
Where was the Mother in Heaven?
Was there an aspect of Source that loved unconditionally, who didn’t make me feel unworthy of love?

I couldn’t let go of those questions.

A serene feminine face surrounded by leaves and flowers, with soft golden light glowing at her forehead and heart, symbolizing connection to the Divine Feminine within nature and self.

Finding the Feminine Divine

In my search for answers, I found the Goddess, the Divine Feminine.

As I connected with her, I realized she wasn’t distant, unreachable—somewhere out there. She felt close. Approachable. My connection with her deepened into a personal and intimate relationship. I learned that she loves us deeply and unconditionally. She is our mother, our sister, our auntie, our friend. We can call on her, talk to her, and she will be there when we need her. For the first time, I felt like I knew how to connect with the Divine in a way that was real to me.

As a presence in my life, she guided me, inspired me, challenged me, and supported me in becoming who I was beneath all the conditioning. And as that relationship deepened, it began to change what I believed to be true.

The more I aligned my energy with the Goddess’s, other truths revealed themselves, and the teachings I’d been taught unraveled further.

A woman reaches upward toward a distant glowing light while a radiant light emerges from her chest, reflecting the tension between seeking the Divine outside and sensing it within.

Distance from the Divine

We’ve been taught a wide chasm exists between us, as humans, and the Divine, with god above us, judging us, and dispassionately watching us. And because of the myth of “original sin,” our mortality widens that gap even more—especially for women. This teaches us that we are unworthy, imperfect, destined to continually strive for acceptance. I held that belief for a long time. It creates a relationship with the Divine where worth always feels just out of reach.

Over the years, as I connected with the Goddess, I learned another way—another truth.

The Goddess Within

The Goddess lives within us. She resides in our hearts and is a part of us. She is the spark of the Divine which animates us and gives us life. We are her, and she is us.

A woman stands beside a still, candlelit pool, looking down at a luminous feminine reflection in the water, symbolizing the realization of the Divine within herself.

When I understood this, it changed how I saw myself and what I believed I’m allowed to be. If I am divine, like the Goddess, then I no longer have to earn my worth. I can see my mistakes, not as failures or “sins”, but as lessons and growing experiences. It opens me to the idea that I can strive to become the best version of myself without the fear of punishment if I miss the mark. But understanding that wasn’t enough on its own.

In my studies of the Goddess, I learned the qualities and attributes each Goddess embodies. Living and embodying them, though, was different. It took intention, practice, and conscious choice to align my energy with hers. Over time, I began to emulate and embody those qualities. Through her example, she shows us what we’re capable of being and doing. That led me to a deeper understanding of who the Goddess is and the qualities she embodies.

Many Names, One Presence

The more I explored, the more I realized she couldn’t be defined in a single way. Unlike with patriarchy and the concept of a “one-god”, the Goddess has many names—and no name. She is knowable by her many names and yet unknowable in her entirety. In many writings, the Goddess has been called, “She with ten thousand names.” No matter what name we use to call upon the Goddess, underneath all the names and faces is the Feminine Divine energy of Source.

I consider her as the Feminine Avatar of Source, allowing us to connect more deeply with the divine than we can as a complex concept. When we connect to the Goddess through one of her many names or faces, the vague ideal of the Divine becomes real, approachable, and understandable. We’re able to see Her in ourselves in our journey of self-discovery and improvement.

Illustrated figures of goddesses from different cultures, including Isis, Athena, Saraswati, and others, representing the many names and forms of the Divine Feminine around the world.

Goddesses Across Cultures

The Feminine Divine isn’t limited to one place or area of the world. If you begin to look for her, you can find her in almost every culture in the world, whether she is called a goddess, deity, or something else. She is known by many names:

Kuan Yin in Buddhist traditions
Athena and Aphrodite in Greece
Isis and Bast in Egypt
Oshun and Yemaya in African traditions
Lakshmi and Saraswati in Hindu culture

A woman writes in a journal at a small altar in a forest setting, while a luminous feminine presence forms beside her, suggesting an ongoing, personal relationship with the Goddess.

A Living Relationship

These are no longer simply names to me. They are presences I connect consciously with every day—relationships I’ve built over time. In my work with the Goddess, I’ve found a Goddess to help me with any problem, challenge, or need I have. Whenever I’m at a crossroads in my life and face multiple decisions, I call upon Hecate to guide me to make the right decision for me. In my writing, especially my fantasy stories, I ask Brigid or Inanna to help my words flow onto the page. Minerva is the Goddess I turn to when I need wisdom and discernment, especially for my business.

These connections became something more than moments of asking for help. Working with the Goddess, I’ve developed a personal, intimate relationship with her. I’ve become more whole—more myself—than I thought I could be before. Lakshmi has helped me understand that abundance is more than money. Connecting with Lilith taught me to be bold and unapologetic in living my authentic truth. The Japanese Goddess Uzume allowed me to embrace my feminine power.

A woman stands in stillness within a sacred space, light radiating from her chest as scattered objects surround her, symbolizing release of striving and recognition of her own inner divinity.

Remembering Who I Am

The greatest gift the Goddess has given me is knowing that I am divine, just as I am. Not perfect in the way I was taught to strive for—but whole. I can see myself differently now. Not as someone trying to become worthy, but as someone who already is. I can now accept myself more fully—all my strengths, my flaws, and everything in between. They feel like part of my becoming.

In finding the Goddess, I found what I’d been searching for all along: the divine who loves me unconditionally and who looks like me. She isn’t somewhere outside of me—but someone I can feel and be in a relationship with.

Note about cultural appropriation: I recognize the past cultural appropriation found in modern Wicca. I do my best to practice cultural appreciation. I approach connecting with the Goddess from worldwide cultures with deep reverence and respect, learning about the culture where the individual Goddess originates as much as possible.

If you recognized something in this, even if you can’t fully name it yet—you don’t need to rush past it. You don’t need to define it or make sense of it right away. You can simply stay with what you felt as you read, and let that be enough for now.

1. Is there a part of me that has always questioned what I was taught about the Divine, even if I didn’t have words for it at the time?

2. If there were a version of the Divine that reflected me—my experiences, my way of being—what might that look or feel like?

3. Where have I felt distance between myself and the Divine—and how has that shaped the way I see myself?

Learn More

If something in this resonated with you—if it touched something you’ve been sensing but haven’t fully trusted—there is a way to go deeper.

Lakshmi’s Sacred Abundance Guide isn’t about learning how to “have more.” It is about returning to a different relationship with abundance, receiving, and thriving.

It’s a space to unravel old patterns and beliefs that shaped how you relate to worth, receiving, and what you’re allowed to have. Through reflection, journaling, embodiment practices, meditation, a simple ritual, affirmations, and EFT tapping scripts, it opens a different experience of abundance—one that isn’t built on effort, depletion, or proving.