Apr 7, 2023 8 min read Olympian Goddesses and Gods Community

Selene Goddess of the Moon. Protector of Humanity

Our moon is an essential part of the delicate, complex eco-balance. Goddess Selene is responsible for planet-and-moon dynamics.

Festival day - 26 March

Selene in Mythology

Goddess Selene is listed by Hesiod as the daughter of Titans Hyperion and Theia though other sources named Zeus as her father.

The most famous legend of Selene features her love for the mortal Endymion.

One night, as the goddess drove her silver-wheeled chariot across the sky, she saw him asleep in the forest. So handsome was he, she reined in, stepped down to earth and kissed him.

After Selene’s romantic stops became a nightly event, the handsome hunter asked Zeus to make him immortal so he could be with Selene for ever. 'As you wish,' Zeus replied but added one condition:

'You will not be awake to enjoy it. Take the deal or leave it.'

Endymion accepted Zeus’ offer, so the story told.

Some legends claimed three goddesses represented its different phases: Hecate the dark moon; Diana, the crescent, and Selene the full moon.

Goddess Selene Mythological references

Goddesses, Gods and You

What kind of Heaven do you expect. Soft fluffy paradise of eternity, or oblivion of nothingness? Out-of-body survival expert Margo Williams discovered a surprisingly simple system of management and afterlife recycling.

There are many goddesses and gods in the community. Speaking their name aloud evidently sends a signal; creates a link to wherever they are at any given moment. If it works for you as it worked for Margo, and they respond, be respectful but be yourself. Honesty and thoughtfulness are appreciated.

Sacrifice nothing but your time. Most of them seemed approachable and appreciated being remembered.

The ancient temples that still can be found in some places, although mostly broken, are huge monumental structures; impressive sacred spaces, their scale designed to impress, to be worthy of divine visitation.

However, it is not the size and splendour of any sacred space but the sincerity of the person seeking contact.

Photo image of Margo Williams in Africa — Margo Williams in Africa

"How many goddesses of the Moon are there?" Nick Hammond asked out-of-body survivalist Margo Williams.

Selene Arrival and Appearance

"Only one, so far as I discovered.

A spotlight beam of silver blue light shone down through the air.

A figure formed, dressed in a silver-white off-one-shoulder gown. Silver-blue eyes, high cheekbones. Palest of pale blonde hair as a halo of curls around her face.

"As my presence enters I bring blessings," she said. "Tonight you have paid homage to me in the traditional way, with wine. This I appreciate. And you honour me at a time when I know you have suffered."

Calm, perfect tranquillity, her voice soft as silk.

"You are but mortal and have to experience indisposition at times. It saddens me. Keep warm tonight when a god of the wind is strong and active."

She beckoned. "But first, come."

Moon Goddess

I arrived on a beach in the dark of night. Sounds of ocean wave-break upon shore, air felt warm. I had been feeling unwell due to a bout of common-cold but the warmth dispelled the fever-chill.

Couldn’t see much of the ocean beyond the wide circle of radiance Selene cast around us.

"I will part the clouds." She gestured, instantly the cloud cover responded, it shredded and faded to reveal a night sky bright with a full moon.

But not like any moon I ever saw before.

It radiated thin and glistening beams of light, shining down into the ocean though a single wide spotlight beam shone directly on Selene.

"Sit and appreciate the beauty," she said.

Moonlight reflection on the water sparkled like jewels in the ever-shifting sea.

I thought of the diamonds I saw attached to the golden objects displayed among the Crown Jewels collection in the Tower of London. A sight-seeing tour several days before, that resulted in a caught cold virus.

The cause of my indisposition that night.

"You saw priceless objects made by mortals," she said, though I had made no mention of the trip, only that thought.

"Natural stones taken from the ground, subjected to polishing, chipping and carving." She gestured. "Is this not more beautiful?"

"Yes," I replied.

"These are my jewels. Natural minerals taken. No," she corrected, "Stolen from the ground and tortured, are valueless to me."

Weird Properties of Moonlight

The beams of light shining from the moon’s silvered orb were not all of identical thickness. And they weren’t solely light.

I sensed each possessed a quality I couldn’t quite understand.

An answer came to me. Each individual beam possessed personality. One beam emitted sparks, and somehow I knew with certainty its power surpassed all others.

Another thin beam of light I sensed, no, I knew, somehow, crazy though it seemed at the time. It shone a quality of compassion. ‘How can light have compassion?’

Another beam, more blue than silver, felt loving.

Each unique. I stared astonished by that crazy conclusion. Beams of light were simultaneously illumination and emotion.

"Do not think of yourself as 'crazy' with these thoughts. It is knowledge, given a little at a time. Accept it," said Selene.

Her platinum hair glistened as if every strand had a life of its own, too.

"There is so much beauty in your world." As if on cue, silver flashed in the ocean, followed by a splash.

A pod of dolphins appeared leaping and playing, six in display. Moonlight turned them silver. A fleeting movement past my feet, a small crab silvered by the moonlight, scuttled across the sand.

I watched the moonbeam display. Like searchlights across the sky, the beams moved and changed in intricate pattern; some beams penetrated deep into the ocean.

"What you are seeing is not just a pretty pattern. It is a plan. This is how it is," she gestured.

I watched the lightshow, tried to figure out if a sequence but found it too complicated to follow.

Circle of Living Things

Philosophers say the tale of Selene and Endymion is a metaphor for the Moon’s special relationship with us mortals. Others claim it is a fragment of the political fossil record from former moon-worshipping communities, known now as 'myths'.

Selene said nothing to me of that story but shared other information about humans and the moon, when she returned one week later.

"Come to a sacred place." She took my hand.

I stepped onto cold hard ground under a clear night sky, a sheen of winter frost glossed the grass.

Selene’s radiance illuminated a large lozenge-shaped rock part-buried in the ground, it stood twice my height. Distinct beams of moonlight spotlighted other frosted giant megaliths arranged in an enormous circle.

Selene stood nearly as tall as the lozenge stone. I felt energy flood from her light and from somewhere else too.

"Power and love, this is special," she gestured. "Do you know the stones are living things?’ She did not wait for my answer. "The stone gives off so much power the ground around it is powerful."

I felt a pulse even several paces away. Moonlight beams touched stones, others seemed to penetrate the ground; delivering their mysterious plan to the earth.

A cool wind blew.

"Since stones were first placed here, mortals have prayed to the sun and the moon. They still do," she continued. "The moon has much power. And so do I. The crescent moon is as important as the full moon."

The giant stone glowed in Selene's light. "It brings 'luck'. That is what mortals call it." Momentarily that word amused her.

She gestured me to follow. Each stone reflected her light as we passed, each stone unique in surface contour though I sensed two shared characteristics. Half were roughly column shaped, the others lozenge.

"Some gods and goddesses you pay homage to were not honoured in the past," Selene continued. "Neither were the monsters. To honour them is courageous, and since doing this you are more powerful in many ways."

She stopped and turned to me. "You may not realise this."

Selene is Sole Goddess of Our Moon

Each Monday whether the moon was dark, crescent or full, Selene responded to our invitation. Not Diana or Hecate. And so I assumed she alone is patron goddess of our only moon.

But not only our moon. She informed me others are her responsibility too, among them planet Mars’ pair Phobos and Demos. How many of the many other moons out there, she did not say.

Selene expressed dismay at the junk that litters our world and already the space beyond, even now so far as the moon.

Often her question was why, when our own home planet is so rare and precious, so much money is wasted on useless space exploration. And not on sharing and solving the problems of our own kind suffering in poverty and distress.

She showed me the astonishing beauty of planet earth. Places where humankind had not overwhelmed. Deep in the deserts, high mountaintops; the perfect peace snowscapes of Arctic and Antarctic.

But it was to the ocean’s edge she took me most often, and I came to appreciate how wide is her love and how profound is her influence in the water.

Though her patience even with me was not limitless.

Reprimand in the Room of Perfect Peace

"This is a room of peace," she said. There truly is something 'other-worldly” to Selene's beauty.

I entered a small domed room with silver, blues and tinges of pink mottled clouds as decoration on the ceiling. In the centre stood a facing pair of crescent moon-shaped couches upholstered in the same unusual colours.

Between them stood a round silver table, perfectly circular. Selene gestured for me to sit.

I noticed a display by the wall. A series of pedestals on which stood four stone statues, carved heads. One definitely was Zeus but I didn’t recognise the others. One looked male, the other female. Couldn’t see the fourth from where I sat.

Selene sat on the couch opposite. "There are many mortals in the world who would willingly change places with you," she said.

I sensed irritation in her tone. Soft calm as always but a ripple disturbance of displeasure. It was gentle rebuke but nonetheless a rebuke and I deserved it.

I had a bad day, an unhappy one in daily life. Lots of things gone wrong. A day of whining and grumbling about my lot.

Selene wasn’t impressed.

"Always remember this when you have troubled mind, as you appear to have, today. It may not be easy but remain on the path," she said.

"The pattern of your life has considerably changed," she conceded. "You have adapted and work well. The pattern will improve."

I felt chastened.

"My gift to you is that I will always listen to your problems," Selene continued. "Come to me and I will try to help. Whether the moon is full, or if no moon shows at all in your sky, I am always near. Remember this."

Selene's Blessing

Selene seemed aware of what happened in my life, and everyday life was fraught with challenges and difficulties. As is everyone else’s.

Mostly things going wrong, as they do. And as much as I would like to say I always felt the privilege of contact with the Gods raised me above petty ill-disposition, sometimes human life did cause unhappiness.

"You never ask us for anything. You may do so, you know," she added. "I do not promise you will always get what you ask for, but we do listen and sometimes will grant wishes."

She paused, as if waiting for a request but as usual I didn’t know what to say.

"Now it is time to return." Selene rose from the couch. Towered over me but shrank to my size as she stepped close. "I embrace and kiss you as a token of my love, as you take my blessing." She hugged me.

Selene’s work, so far as I understood includes light and emotion. The moon-deflected delivery and diffusion of sunlight. Part of a plan.

I didn’t ever see Selene drive a chariot.

Thank you for your company on this introduction to goddess Selene. If you would like to know more about Margo Williams' experiences and suggestions for how to survive the hereafter, read this book. Now available from Amazon.