THE BURNING TIMES

Isis, Astarte, Diana, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inana (X4)

In the cool of the evening, they used to gather,
‘Neath the stars in the meadow, circled near an old oak tree.
At the times appointed by the seasons of the earth
and the phases of the moon.
In the centre, often stood a woman,
Equal with the others and respected for her worth.
One of the many we call the witches,
The healers and the teachers of the wisdom of the earth.
And the people grew in the knowledge she gave them:
Herbs to heal their bodies; spells to make their spirits whole.
Hear them chanting healing incantations;
Calling for the wise ones, celebrating in dance and song.

Isis, Astarte …

There were those who came to power through domination,
And they were bonded in their worship of a dead man on a cross.
They sought control of the common people,
By demanding allegiance to the Church of Rome.
And the Pope declared the inquisition
To cause a war against the women whose powers they feared
In this holocaust against the nature people,
One million European women died.
And the tale is told of those who, by the hundreds,
Holding together, chose their deaths in the sea
While chanting the praises of the mother goddess
A refusal of betrayal, women were dying to be free.

Isis, Astarte …

Now the earth is a witch and the men still burn her
Stripping her down with mining and the poisons of their wars.
Still to us the earth is a healer, a teacher, a mother.
She’s the weaver of a web of life that keeps us all alive.
She gives us the vision to see through the chaos.
She gives us the courage, it is our will to survive.

Isis, Astarte …