Anxiety is a very tricky and pervasive condition. It is marked by excessive worry and fear that can be accompanied by physical symptoms such as a change in heart rate or breathing, sweating, disturbances in mood, and it can affect sleep and digestion, to name a few. This sounds a lot like stress, right? But the difference is that with anxiety, these feelings continue even if a stressor is removed. For example, it’s pretty normal to feel stressed by an upcoming exam, but when the feelings described above persist well after the exam is over, that would be anxiety. Because I work with clients from all over the world, I can attest that anxiety is heightened globally. Let’s explore how to approach anxiety like a goddess by transmuting it and reclaiming a sense of calm.
One of the best ways to beat anxiety is through the use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or CBT. This is a clinical approach therapists use to help break erroneous thought patterns and support behavioral changes. It is extremely effective. For anyone struggling with chronic anxiety, working with a skilled therapist can successfully lead to overcoming the condition. However, even when you are doing so, benefitting from a little extra help can go a long way in reinforcing the work you are doing in therapy. Below is an approach that can supplement your clinical work with Divine intervention.
The Sumerian Goddess Inanna is known as both the Goddess of Love and War. My interpretation of her epitaph of Goddess of War is as a spiritual warrior who is equipped with tools to help dissolve aggression, anger, fear, separation, and all that is not in alignment with the vibration of love. In the Sumerian pantheon of gods and goddesses, Inanna is one of the seven who can decree fate, which positions her as being deeply connected to supporting humanity and able to positively intervene when called upon for help. You can ask her to assist you in achieving a life free of anxiety. Seven is a sacred number for Inanna and figures prominently in her mythology. In the story of Inanna’s descent, she goes into the underworld but must first pass through seven gates. Let us imagine the seven gates as levels of healing. (Note, there are many goddesses who can help so feel free to apply the following suggestion to any goddess with whom you feel a resonant connection).
Below is a ritual to assist you in beating anxiety like a goddess. Find a time wherein you can commit to this short ritual for seven days in a row, preferably at the same time each day. Every session will represent a level of your healing, progressively moving to a deeper layer, allowing you to experience your healing as a process. Doing so assists you in gently acclimating while engaging the commitment necessary to concretize this new inner experience of peace.
Ritual for Transmuting Anxiety with the Goddess
- Find a quiet space to sit for a few minutes undisturbed. Close your eyes and call on Inanna and your Divine team to surround you in a protective embrace of love and light. Imagine your root chakra (at your tailbone), reaching down into the ground beneath you.
- In your mind’s eye, see Inanna standing before you, looking at you with pure unconditional love. Ask her to gently transform your anxiety through her command. Inanna possesses the divine ability to consecrate an individual to reflect the purity of their heart. She is doing this with you now.
- As the Goddess of War, Inanna carries her protective instruments on her back. She reaches for her measuring rod and gently waves it in front of your heart and solar plexus, pulling out your fear, worry, concern, and anxiety. She alchemizes all that she removes, into love and redirects this love into the world wherever it is needed.
- She then brings her hands together in prayer above your heart and declares, “May your heart and soul be soothed with peace and calm, and may all the worry you have long carried continue to be transformed into love.”
- Reaching again into the collection of warrior instruments on her back, Inanna takes her protective shield which she places in front of your heart and solar plexus.
- Allow yourself to feel the completion of this act and express your gratitude with confidence in Inanna’s power to assist you.
You have just allowed the Goddess of Love to help you transform your anxiety. Commit to this practice for a total of seven days as she supports you in your desire to be free, full of peace and calm, and to vibrate at the frequency of love. Expect this to have profound positive effects. May it be so.
*Inspired by the wisdom of the Sumerian Goddess Inanna, this blog is an invitation to live as she does, like an Unapologetic Heroine.
Seana Zelazo, LICSW is a psychotherapist, spiritual coach and intuitive channel committed to helping us live unapologetically, by restoring balance within and without through the wisdom of the Sumerian Goddess Inanna. Look for her upcoming book The Return of Inanna: The Unapologetic Heroine in 2022. seanazelazo.com
