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The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads,

Triplicities, and Trinities
 NOVEMBER 13, 2014 BY JOHN HALSTEAD
(HTTPS://WWW.PATHEOS.COM/BLOGS/ALLERGICPAGAN/AUTHOR/ALLERGICPAGAN/)

13 COMMENTS (HTTPS://WWW.PATHEOS.COM/BLOGS/ALLERGICPAGAN/2014/11/13/THE-SECRET-HISTORY-OF-THE-
TRIPLE-GODDESS-PART-1-TRIADS-TRIPLICITIES-AND-TRINITIES/#DISQUS_THREAD)

A Previously Untranslated Text Revealed

The origin of the Robert Graves’ Triple Goddess has been hidden from us,
because the text on which Graves most likely relied upon was never translated
into English … until now.  (I actually paid a Latin scholar to translate it.  No, I’m
not made of money; I’m just obsessed.)

Unfortunately for you, I will not be revealing this wonderful text until Part 3 of
this series.  (Hey, I paid for it, and now I get to decide when to do the big reveal.)

I’ve been wanting to write this essay for about 7 years.  What finally gave me the
much needed kick was two things: First, I got the chance to chat with Jason
Mankey about Robert Graves recently when Jason had me as his guest on the
Raise the Horns Radio show
(http://www.blogtalkradio.com/witchschool/2014/11/12/ptrn-presents-
circle-craft-study-raise-the-horns).  Second, Christopher Scott Thompson
published a guest post at Sermons from the Mound

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/allergicpagan/2014/11/13/the-secret-history-of-the-triple-goddess-part-1-triads-triplicities-and-trinities/ 1/17
8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

(https://www.patheos.com/blogs/sermonsfromthemound/2014/11/the-
three-brigits-of-the-ulster-cycle-and-the-forgotten-origins-of-
neopagan-theology/), where he theorizes that Graves’ Triple Goddess is
derived from Nora Chesson’s Three Brigits of the Ulster Cycle.  It’s a wonderful
article, especially if you’re interested in Celtic myth.

(https://wp-media.patheos.com/blogs/sites/363/2014/11/the-triple-
goddess-moon.jpg)
The Triple Goddess is manifest in the changing faces of the moon, which are three-in-one.

Two things stood out to me about Thompson’s article though.  First, while he
makes a good case that Graves Triple Goddess was influenced by the Celtic
Brigids, this cannot be the only source.  For one thing, the Brigids were not
associated with the moon or its changing face.  What makes the Triple Goddess
unique is not that there are three of them, but that She is three-in-one.  (More
on this below.)  Second, Thompson writes this in conclusion: “Although many
Wiccans and other neopagans accept the theology of the Triple Goddess as
Maiden, Mother and Crone without question, this trinity actually has no clear
precedent in ancient myth.”  This is patently false, as I will proceed to
demonstrate over the next 5 posts.  (Are you ready?)

Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/allergicpagan/2014/11/13/the-secret-history-of-the-triple-goddess-part-1-triads-triplicities-and-trinities/ 2/17
8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

It has been observed that many modern Pagans have a tendency to uncritically
relate every instance of the number three in ancient myth or iconography to the
symbol of the Triple Goddess, causing them to syncretize goddesses who do not
fit the pattern. In the same way that Freud (and Hargrave Jennings) have been
accused of seeing phallic symbols everywhere, many modern Pagans see triple
goddesses everywhere. Even a cursory perusal Pagan books available at any
bookstore confirms this.  This is not a new phenomenon. G.W. Bowerstick
(Hellenism in Late Antiquity) has drawn attention to the fondness of late pagan
authors for identifying “trinities”.  During the Renaissance, humanists Pico and
Ficino also searched for trinities among pagan myths.  And the authors of the
Greek Magical Papyri seemed to think that tripling deities just made them
better:

“Triple-headed, triple-voiced Selene

Triple-pointed, triple-faced, triple-necked,
And goddess of the triple ways, who hold
Untiring flaming fire in triple baskets,
And you who oft frequent the triple way
And rule the triple decades …” (Hans Dieter Betz, Greek Magical Papyri in
Translation)

(https://wp-media.patheos.com/blogs/sites/363/2014/11/strudwick11.jpg)
The Moirae (Fates) in “A Golden Thread” by John Melhuish Strudwick — an example of a “triad”

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/allergicpagan/2014/11/13/the-secret-history-of-the-triple-goddess-part-1-triads-triplicities-and-trinities/ 3/17
8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

However, the Neopagan Triple Goddess is unique in that She is a trinity, or tri-
unity, being three-in-one.  There are in fact three ways that so-called “triple
goddesses” (or “triple gods”) may appear in myth and iconography: triads,
triplicities, and truinities (or trinities).  A “triad” refers to three separate beings
who are united in some relationship.  Examples include Zeus, Neptune, and
Hades, who are related by their dominion over the three realms of the cosmos:
sky, sea, underworld.  Together, the triad expresses some limited sense of
completeness or perfection, but not unity.  The individuality of the members of
the triad remains dominant.  Another example is the Celtic Brigids, who were
patrons of poetry, smithcraft, and healing … as well as, Chesson’s story of “The
Three Brigits”.  Georges Dumezil’s trifunctional gods/goddesses of sovereignty
would be another example.

(https://wp-media.patheos.com/blogs/sites/363/2014/11/garden-of-the-
hesperides-sir-edward-burne-jones.jpg)
“The Garden of the Hesperides” by Sir Edward Burne-Jones — an example of a “triplicity”

A “triplicity” refers to one being who has three forms.  Examples include the
triplicate goddesses (Matres) found in continental Celtic iconography, which
appear as three identical maidens (alluded to by Thompson in his conclusion).
 Another example is early versions of the goddess Hecate, who appeared in early
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8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

Greek art as three identical maidens standing around a pillar.  In a triplicity, the
membership in the group overshadows the individuality of the members of the
group.  The individual members of a triplicity have lost almost all of their
individuality in the group identity, thus they appear identical or nearly-
identical.

Triads and triplicities are two ends of a spectrum which ranges from complete
individuality to complete unity, respectively.  Between these two poles is the
“triunity”, or trinity, the three-in-one.  (To avoid confusion with the Christian
concept of trinity, I will use the term “triunity”.)  A triunity refers to one being
with three distinguishable “persons” or aspects.  A triunity differs from a triad
in that the whole of a triunity is greater than the sum of its parts, while it differs
from a triplicity in that the identity of the whole (the triunity) does not subsume
the identity of the parts.  In other words, the unity of the whole could not be
expressed in the absence of the individuality of the parts.

Obviously, the best example of a triunity is the Christian “Trinity”: Father, Son,
and Holy Ghost.  Another example is the Hindu Trimurti, the three aspects of
the ultimate unknowable reality, Brahman – Brahma (creator), Vishnu
(preserver), and Shiva (destroyer).  While there are many examples of triads and
triplicities in ancient art and myth, true triunities are rare.  Graves’ Triple
Goddess is an example of a triunity, the paradox of three goddesses in one and
one goddess in three.

Robert Graves’ Triple Goddess

Graves’s Triple Goddess is not a static tri-form goddess, but a living process,
related to the phases of the moon, the seasons, and the human life cycle.  Graves
had his epiphany about the Triple Goddess while writing Hercules, My Shipmate, or
The Golden Fleece, which describes the ascendancy of the Olympian gods over the
Triple Goddess.  The Golden Fleece was published in 1944, just four years before
The White Goddess. There Graves described the Triple Goddess as follows:

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8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

“Maiden, Nymph and Mother are the eternal royal Trinity of the island, and the
Goddess, who is worshipped there in each of these aspects, as New Moon, Full
Moon, and Old Moon, is the sovereign deity.” Noticeably absent from this
description of the Triple Goddess is the dark “phase” of the goddess, the crone.
 Graves’ association of the Mother-aspect of the Goddess with the Old Moon and
the absence of a dark goddess suggests he had not fully worked out the Triple
Goddess motif at this point.

In 1946, Graves published King Jesus. There he described a “Great Triple Moon-
goddess”, who he identified as the tri-form goddess of birth, love, and death. In
the narrative, these take the form of Miriam (Jesus’ mother), Mary of Cleopas
(Jesus’ potential wife), and Mary Magdalene (a witch who is a disciple of the old
goddess religion).

Then, in 1948, Graves published The White Goddess.  Many Pagans don’t realize
this, but Graves described the Triple Goddess in a number of ways in The White
Goddess, including:

Mother/Bride/Layer-out
Maiden/Nymph/Hag
Maiden/Mother/Crone

(Note that the terms “Nymph” and “Bride” are synonyms for Graves.)  It is worth
noting that it is the first of these trinities (Mother/Bride/Layer-out) which
primarily concerns Graves in The White Goddess, but it is the last
(Maiden/Mother/Crone) which ultimately became the popularized version of
the Triple Goddess in Neo-Pagan myth.  The poetic “Theme” which is the subject
of The White Goddess Graves (or one of them) is “the birth, life, death and
resurrection of the God of thee Waxing Year; the central chapters concern the
God’s losing battle with the God of the Waning Year for love of the capricious
and all-powerful Threefold Goddess, their mother, bride and layer-out.”  Graves’
most elaborate description of the Tripe Goddess is as follows:

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8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

“As Goddess of the Underworld she was concerned with Birth,

Procreation and Death. As Goddess of the Earth she was concerned with
the three season of Spring, Summer and Winter: she animated trees and
plants and ruled all living creatures. As Goddess of the Sky she was the
Moon, in her three phases of New Moon, Full Moon, and Waning Moon.
[…] As the New Moon or Spring she was a girl; as the Full Moon or
Summer she was woman; as the Old Moon or Winter she was hag.”

Here we see that Graves’ Triple Goddess was neither a triad, nor a triplicity, but
a triunity to rival the Christian Trinity: She is three-in-one, always in process,
and manifest in the heavens (moon) and earth (seasons) and in us (the human
life cycle).  In the following posts, I will trace the evolution of the Greco-Roman
goddesses Hecate/Diana until they reach the form that inspired Robert Graves’
Triple Goddess.

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Li Kane • 7 years ago

My first initiator has proposed a 4th aspect of the Goddess: that of Queen. This recognizes
th t t l 't d t it b th fi id d b th d k
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8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead
that post-menopausal women aren't ready to sit by the fireside and embrace the dark
mysteries. We are in the prime of life. Those who were mothers have their children leaving
the nest, but all of us are vibrant beings, with much to offer. Just as JenniWest stated, the
period between mother and crone is a place to shine.
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JenniWest • 7 years ago

Great article. In relation to the contrived desire to "trinitize," I have never super loved the
maiden, mother, crone concept. There are at least four stages. Every amazing woman in my
family and family tree were maidens, some mothers, and all made it to true crone-ism with
the blessing of longevity. But between mother and crone, is where they really shone. As I am
now in middle age, I cannot call myself a crone, but I was never a mother in any sense of the
word. SO what does that make me?
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JenniWest > JenniWest • 7 years ago

I definitely relate to "warrior" ism. I think that is my calling, not with brute force but
with dedication to causes. Good find!
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juno lucinda > JenniWest • 7 years ago • edited

The triple goddess mother aspect can also be lived as a mature extension of the
virgin aspect (virgin, here meaning “belonging to no man.”) I call it the
mother/warrior aspect. And as women birth/channel many things besides children:
information, justice, healing energy, & art for instance, a woman without children
can be a warrior for mother earth and all women, children, & animal - all life.
Athena is an example of the warrior goddess. She is not an offensive warrior but she
defends Her people.

I did have a child when I was young and was still young when he left home, not even
40 and still menstruating. But I was a single mother and so very much a warrior at
the same time. As I left the “active” mothering behind I slipped into a full blown
warrior. It was very natural. I was still “caring” for, not just for one dependent child,
but for everyone in my life and the natural world. I have continued this into my
cronehood.

Yes patriarchal society does not appreciate crone power, but I do not see anything
like “repose” in my life now. In fact, now that I have survived so many decades and
learned so much along the way, I am a proud, grey-haired carrier of wisdom. I use
what I have gained as a survivor (Athena) to support other women and to teach.

I have found so much freedom at this stage that I consider this the happiest time in
my life - I have grown into my freedom, wisdom & strength without the yoke of
estrogen desires (male approval.) I enjoy being a crone very much. It has released
me from most of the societal restrictions/expectations forced on women.

Viewed this way, I maintain the active/living triple goddess and as I have lived all
three at this point I can call up whichever aspect I need at the time I have left no
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three at this point I can call up whichever aspect I need at the time. I have left no
aspect of HER/myself behind but carry all within me, ALL Her blessings.

It will be interesting to read further installments of this article but I must say that I
appreciate all three aspect of the Goddess as living with Her in my life has not only
given me strength but it has set me free.
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Kae > JenniWest • 7 years ago

Very interesting! Granted, I am a history buff ; )

Jenni, as a childfree by choice pagan woman, I too struggled with trying to relate the
triple goddess concept to my own identity and experience. Then, on my 33rd
birthday, I had one of those spontaneous initiation experiences that tranforms your
life. I was initiated into "Mother" hood and I understood what it meant for me. As a
Mother, this is the phase of my life in which I will fulfill my creative potential. I
realized that what I would birth would not be a human child, it would be my life's
work as a historian, researcher and writer. I am 40 now and still working on it. I am
in graduate school learning the skills I need to fulfill my potential and my impulse to
create something of meaning for the world. I figure I have until I am 66, when I will
probably be spontaneously initiated into crone-hood as a distinguished,
accomplished scholar!
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John H Halstead > JenniWest • 7 years ago

Thanks. Little known fact: Graves created a Quintuple Goddess: Mother (Birth),
Maiden (Initiation), Bride/Nymph (Consummation), Hag/Crone (Repose), Layer-
out (Death). Not much help if you are looking to create a Goddess women can
identify with, though. Graves was writing primarily from the male perspective (and a
particular one at that), not the female perspective -- so the Mother comes first, and
he apparently had no use for women after "consummation", hence the unflattering
terms "Hag" and "Crone" (although the latter has been reclaimed by feminists).
More on this in the next post.
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Jason Mankey Mod • 7 years ago

So good! Thank you!
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John H Halstead > Jason Mankey • 7 years ago

Thanks! Only a history buff could truly appreciate.
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Genevieve • 7 years ago

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8/2/2021 The Secret History of the Triple Goddess, Part 1: Triads, Triplicities, and Trinities | John Halstead

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