You can’t tell it by the weather, but the Spring Equinox is around the corner.  The temperature is rising and it is causing our Mother Earth to wake up and stretch her limbs. We see the grass turning green, the branches of the trees budding into lush, green leaves. Seeds, blanketed by the Earth’s soil, fight their way up to the Sun, transforming a barren landscape into a rainbow of colors. It’s a time for birth and rebirth, a time for the Fertility Gods to shine. And on March 18, we celebrate them, Goddess of Fertility Day.

Let us meet a few of the ‘Fertility Gods and Goddesses’

• Aido Quedo (Ayida-Weddo) is the Haitian Loa (Goddess) of fertility in Vodou.
• Ala is the Goddess of the Ibo (Igbo) people in the southeastern part of Nigeria. She gives fertility to the crops, and to the people. You can find shrines to her all over the Ibo region.
• Allāt is the pre-Islam Goddess of fertility. Her worshippers had a stone cube at Ṭāʾif (near Mecca).
• Anahita is an Iranian Goddess of fertility. She also represents healing and wisdom.
• Aphrodite, who hasn’t heard of her? She is an ancient Greek Goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, and fertility. She is known in Turkey as Aphrodisias.  There is an archaeological site in Anatolia, Turkey, inside the borders of the Caria region in southwestern Turkey.  The ancient city is called Aphrodisias, after the Greek Goddess Aphrodite.
• Bes is the ancient Egyptian deity of fertility, along with sexuality, humor, and childbirth. He is not a god like the ones we know from Egypt, but what they consider a demon. No, not like the Christian demons. Here, a ‘demon’ can be good or bad. He is depicted as a dwarf with a bushy tail and a crown of feathers.
• Birrahgnooloo, Kamilaroi is the Aboriginal Goddess of fertility.
• Cernunnos is the Celtic God of fertility. He is seen as the Horned God of Animals, and the leaf-covered Green Man.
• Freyja is the Norse Goddesses of fertility, and she does not rule alone.
• Freyr (Frey, Yngvi) is the Norse God of fertility and brother to Freyja. He was known in Sweden, Norway, and Iceland.
• Kokopelli is a Native American Hopi God for fertility. He is also a prankster and storyteller.
• Lono is a Hawaiian God of fertility. He took on many forms; such as black rain clouds.
• Maa Shashthi is the Hindu Goddess of fertility.  She is worshiped every sixth day.
• Min is the Egyptian God of fertility. He could give men the ability to father a child.  He is also the god of male sexuality.
• Oshun (Osun) is the Goddess (deity) of the Yoruba people in the southwestern part of Nigeria. She is associated with fertility and love.  It is believed the first interaction with the Goddess Oshun took place in Oshogbo (Osogbo), Nigeria is protected by her.
• Sobek is the Egyptian God of fertility and rebirth.  He is depicted with a crocodile’s head and is the God of the Nile.
• Venus the Roman Goddess of fertility. She is equivalent to the Greek Goddess Aphrodite.
• Xochiquetzal is the Aztec Goddess of fertility. She is also the patroness of lovers and prostitutes.

To celebrate the day, spend time with your other half. Set up a romantic mood with flowers, soft music, and candlelight.  Or, you can also celebrate the rebirth of Mother Nature by getting your flowers ready. You can go to the store and get starter kits and start them inside your home until the weather warms up. Then you can transplant them outside.

If you live in Fort Dodge, Iowa. The Eagles Ballroom is having a Goddess of Fertility Day party on March 16.

You can also celebrate a rebirth of yourself. A new year, a new spring, and a new you.

How will you celebrate?

Featured Image:  “Goddess Of Fertility: Ankara.” By Zigomar  [GFDL or CC BY-SA 3.0 ], via Wikimedia Commons