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The The Crone
Crone
The Crone is the final aspect of the Goddess. The Crone is most often depicted as a
Grandmother, a SageWoman, or a Midwife. She is the keeper of Occult Knowledge,
the Mysteries and the Queen of the Underworld. It is through the Crone that
knowledge of magick, the Dark, and other secrets of the ages are passed down.
The Crone is, in some ways, a Triple Goddess herself. She has lived through the
tender, sensual age of Maidenhood, suffered the birth pains of Motherhood, and now
carries with her the memories of these passages into her old age. But though she has
experienced these events, these are not the things she represents, and therefore she is
not revered for these traits. Nevertheless, having endured these experiences makes
her the wise woman that she is, and enables her to guide us through the dark.
Her role as Midwife is both symbolic as well as actual. Traditionally, it is always the
older women of the tribe who facilitate the birth of children, most likely because
they themselves had gone through, but also because the role of midwife was a sacred
position, and thus suitable for an older tribeswoman. Certainly the Crone fulfills this
aspect in that she is the midwife to the Queen of Heaven when she gives birth to the
Oak King at Yule.
But symbolically she is the midwife in our lives as well, guiding us from one phase of
life to the next. If you see progression from one phase of life to the next and can see it
as a rebirth process, then envision the Crone as the aspect of the goddess that guides
you through that time. Transition is very difficult, and for most people it is a time of
darkness. It is a time where we have to rely on our intuition, because we are
unfamiliar with the territory. But according to the myths and ancient lore, we receive
our intuition from the Crone. It is she who guides us, and it is she who facilitates our
birth.
The Crone Goddess is often times the least seen, because she does represent death,
and with death comes fear: fear of the unknown, fear of losing our loved ones, and
fear of being alone. But we must remember that with death always comes rebirth.
The Crone always brings with her promises of the Maiden, and the cycle never ends.
The Mother aspect of the Goddess is discussed as being a Warrior Goddess, but the
Crone can be a Warrior Goddess as well. Where the Mother Goddess is the blood of
battle, the War Cry incarnate, the fighting Amazon, the Crone is the Strategy, the
ability to see what cannot be seen. She is the seer, the General. The Crone Goddess
does not don the face of the warrior to shed blood, but she will provide the courage to
walk through the dark, the ability to seek and destroy the enemy, whether the enemy
is actual, or internal.