Fortuna

[Anonymous]

Greetings All~
I am new here. Although I do not have a particular interest in Roman Paganism I am an Eclectic Paganism and have been trying to accumulate information on Fortuna. Most texts either neglect her or only give a limited amount of information.

Since my early years of studying Witchcraft I read a book of Female Deities and even know I can recall the feeling that was evoked within me when I read about Fortuna. It was a pocket-sized book and yet the picture and her stature still stay with me. For several years I have practiced and studied the wider aspects of Paganism and yet I still have a curiosity in her. I feel that she has something to show me.

I am not eve sure that my interpretation of her is correct. The picture in the book pictured a tiger lazing on a green hillside overlooking a Roman structure. So since then I have called her the Tiger Lady and this is how I address her. I would be honoured if anyone could help me with Fortuna and her life. I am very interested.

Blessed Be and Namaste, Gede...

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salva sis Gede

Some Roman authors sarcasticly noticed that Fortuna was the "most important" goddess, because She was so often invoked. You can read a little on about Fortuna in Pliny the Elder's "Natural History" 2.22-25. The image of Fortuna is generally that of a young woman holding a cornucupia. During the Renaissance She was depicted wearing a blindfold but raised from one eye, and standing precariously with one foot on a triangular block and the other wobbling on a sphere. The Renaissance portrait was based on Roman texts. The other way She is portrayed is bearing a sword and standing near Her attribute of the Wheel of Fortune.

The Romans recognized a few different Fortunae. Fortuna Redux is She that brings people home safely from travel. Another was recognized for women, for young boys, and there was even a temple dediicated to Ill Fortune, appeasing Her so that She would not visit Rome. Roman Fortuna's counterpart in the Eastern Empire was Tyche. Each major city was thought to have its own Fortuna or Tyche. Rome's Fortuna was simply the greatest of these. The Fortuna of each city had Her own attributes and therefore each was depicted differently. No tigers though.

Vale

[Anonymous]

Hello~
I appreciate your reply Horati. Something rang a bell to me in your Renaissance description of Fortuna. This afternoon I was lead (rather hurriedly) through an Inner Journey in which I called Fortuna to me. She appeared to me as a young girl (late teens, early twenties) with dark hair. She wore a blue ty-died blue, loose dress and when she arrived and sat in front of me she began to scold me. She continuously motioned to a triangular shape on her hand and on mine that was bent on one side. Then she sent a vibration along that side and fixed it. I do not understand this symbolism in Fortuna's context. What is the significance of the Triangle to her? It would help me a lot to know this...Perhaps there is something in my Life I need to pay more attention to.

Namaste *

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salva sis Gede

A young woman trying to balance herself atop a stone sphere represents the viscitudes of uncertain Fortuna. In contrast a similar figure atop a stone cube represents Wisdom. Some Renaissance depictions of Fortuna has Her with one foot on the sphere, the other either on a cube or a stone block with a triangular surface on top and bottom, but it is not a pyramid, it lies flat and steady on the ground as does a cube. This triangular block represented the better part of wisdom that is attained by cultivating three virtues in oneself. The symbolism probably developed from Ficino's translation of the Enneads into Latin. The particular passage I would guess is in the second tractate of the First Ennead. Plotinus wrote, "As the Soul is evil by being interfused with the body, and by coming to share the body's states and to think the body's thoughts, so it would be good, it would be possessed of virtue, if it threw off the body's moods and devoted itself to its own Act, that is, the state of intellection and Wisdom. Never allowed the passions of the body to affect it, this is called the virtue of Temperance. Knew no fear of parting from the body, the virtue of Fortitude. And if reason and the Intectual Principle ruled, in which state is Righteousness or Justice. Such a disposition in the Soul, become thus intellective and immune to passion, it would not be wrong to call Likeness to God; for the Divine, too, is pure and the Divine Act is such that Likeness to it is Wisdom."

Now about "Gede", did you draw this name from the lascivious companion of Baron Samedi, lord of the dead, in voodoo traditions?

Vale

[Anonymous]

Merry Meet~
Actually no I didn't. That is my real name. However it is not linked to the Voudoun family of 'Gede' spirits. It is a Balinese name usually applied to exclusively males and means 'first born'. My father is Balinese...

Blessed Be and thank you for you help!

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salve Primus Gede

That is even more interesting to learn. Benedictum sis.

[Anonymous]

Merry Meet~
Even more interesting is that it is pronounced G'day and I live in Australia where that term is a colloquial greeting. Can you just imagine the torment? LOL

As I am foreign to Religio Roma, could you please give me an overview of your individual practices and what your name means?

Thank you~

Blessed Be, Gede...

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salve Gede

The meaning of my name? Well the one I use in SVR refers to different things about me. Marcus because I was born in March, Piscinus because I spend much of my time reading next to my fish pond, which in Latin is called a piscina. My real name, or the name I was first called in my family, is Giovangelo which means something like "the True Gospel" only by that my family did not refer to the Christian gospel. Actually they meant quite the opposite. I was sent off to a Catholic school for a while, where the Polish nuns were unable to pronounce my name, and then became infuriated when they learned its meaning. That proved a little difficult. Generally though, growing up in a pagan tradition in the US has generally amused me with the reactions I have received.

My practises are many and varied. Central to my family's tradition, and similar to the Religio Romana is the cultus geniale that primarily involves ancestor worship. As a child I was brought out into field and wood, foraging for fruits of the forest, and thus we paid much attention to showing our respects to the spirits of those places. At the age of four I was presented to the ana of my teota Orazio (thus Horatius btw), or what would be called the matriarch of our clan, and from thence placed under instruction to become a soldier. Thus when I was very young our counterpart to Mars became my patron. Over the years as I matured and took on other roles of life I have also acquired other patron deities. The family tradition focuses on the family's patron deity, or what you could call the Lar familiaris. She is Ferentina, otherwise known as Ceres. So I keep a shrine for Her on my property, an octagonal garden with a omphalus at its center and an altar. Another shrine for Ferentina is placed in my kitchen, and much of my annual routine revolves around Ferentina in the garden or kitchen. There are other shrines and altars throughout my yard and house at which to greet various deities upon whom I may call, and also I often visit other sites around my city and in the countryside, to maintain my relationship with various geni loci. In comparison, I think my family tradition is somewhat like Shintoism. It is not quite the same as the Religio Romana but very close, so my practices include both the family tradition as my particular cultus geniale and then over that I practice the Religio Romana as well.

Vale optime

[Anonymous]

MM Again~
I have read that Fortuna was originally a fertility Goddess and controlled the fertilisation of life in all forms of life human, animal and plant...Also her links with fertility and fruits and crops harvested in fields thereof. Did Fortuna have connections with the strawberry plant (or was it of any significance to the Romans) and what of clear Sapphire...Are the Roman Gods said to come from Olympus as well?

Blessed Be, Gede...

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salve Gede

Certain plants were associated with various deities. I can try to look for some information on strawberrys. The Romans did have strawberries but off hand I can't think of any special significance. Correspondance of deities with gems or semiprecious stones? There is something like that with the Romans, but it is more a practicce of Greco-Egyptian magic than anything Roman. The Roman gods did not come from Olympus, although those assimilated with Greek deities were said to live at Olympus.

What you read about Fortuna, where did you read this? None of it sounds familar really. I suppose She might be called upon in matters of fertility but it not particularly her providence as such matters concern other goddesses.

Valete

[Anonymous]

MM~
This came from my second interaction with Fortuna. I was hesitant to tell you the origins of the information because of this...I have a feeling that I am not speaking with the familiar deity of chance and luck...It is as if she has been forgotten but still exists...

Blessed Be, Gede...

[Horatius Piscinus]

Salve Gede

The first part, fertility of humans, plants, and animals reminded me more of Venus. She was called upon to bring the joy of children into a marriage, and I recall Her being mentioned in being a cause for the increase in herds as well. Venus did begin at Rome as Mucia, a garden goddess, and Venus retained an association with sweet scented and especially colourful flowers. But She was not known so well as an agricultural goddess as you seem to describe. Venus as a Bona Fortuna Amoris perhaps.

The names we give to deities are more like titles than names, and do not necessarily mean the same deity always. At times Ceres is indistinguishable from Her daughters Proserpina, Flora, or the Bona Dea. Juno is a title born by many different goddess. Juno Caeleste is not really the same as Juno Regina, and so forth. And there are quite a few goddesses called Fortuna. These are often recognized as being distinctly different goddesses of a given locale. Often Fortuna is a title applied to the patron goddess of a city. Were Venus the patron goddess of your city She, too, might be referred to as Fortuna. I think that as you work with Her more you will learn more about Her and how She will prefer to be addressed.

There is a point here for everyone to pay attention. The deities one will usually run into are geni loci. You will find in Roman prayers at times a deity like Venus being called upon, then with a formulaic expression of "or by whatever other name it pleases You to be called by." That is because the superior gods can work through lower echelons of divinity, as would be the geni loci. It is more proper to address a geni loci by their own epitaphs . The Romans would adopt a native deity, identified with an aspect of one of their other gods. So you find many different Mercuries in Gaulish provinces, each a variant form of the local Teutates, worshipped with a local cultus. Or in the case of any Gaullic oracle, the local deity would be referred to by Romans as Apollo, and then "by whatever name it is permitted to call You." Sometimes we who live in the Americas or Australia do well to learn about and understand the native cultures because the geni loci we will come upon are native to the land. The higher deities we know in the Roman tradition will still be working through them. You approach a local god or goddess through your own tradition, which in our case is the Religio Romana, and then if the local deity expects something a little different then they will let you know. So in my case, in Ohio where I would assume the geni loci to be native - Shawnee, Miami, or some other local tribe - then I might include tobacco as an offering or use copal or sage as an incense. When in Rome do as the Romans, and when Romans were away to Gaul or Syria they added in local customs to their tradition, paying due respect to the native deities. Only by working with and building your relationship with the deity that you have come into contact will you begin to know what is proper.

Di deaeque te ament

[Anonymous]

I think you may be tapping into some sort of past life thing here. What is was exactly is really up to you to decide. As above there is nothing that links strawberries and Fortuna, but there is something that links sapphires with Mercury. As you can see under my entry for Rosmerta both Fortuna and Rosmerta were consorts of Mercury. This particular threesome comes from Bon Marche and is in the museum at Gloucester, England. Perhaps this sculpture was used magically to turn bad fortune into good. This is quite exciting. Sometimes the 2 Goddesses were pictured together without Mercury. In an impressive relief from Corstopitum, Northumberland there is a pair of stately Goddesses, one seated, one standing. The Goddess to the right of the slab is clearly supposed to represent Fortuna while the second has a regal appearance stressed by the large sceptre she grasps in her left hand.

Sapphires have been much used in healing. They are used to remove all fears and nervous and mental disorders. They are also used to help ine find one's true vocation. Sometimes the sapphire would have been powdered and mixed with milk, another link to Rosemerta, the sapphire would then have been used in healing. Do you think that such a cure may have been administered to you in a previous incarnation? Mixed with milk they were used to cure ulcers. The "female" sapphire is lighter in colour and was used to remove all forms of fear.

Witches and wizards used sapphires to fix enchantments and spells and to understand divinations. The art of divining is linked to Fortuna. We have her wheel of Fortune in the Tarot, in some of the older decks this card is actually called Fortuna. Indeed the name Fortuna is descended from Vortumna, she who turns the year, the celestial wheel of stars and also the karmic wheel of fate. The plough, the rudder and the globe are her symbols. Perhaps life was seen as a voyage from birth to death and those implements are supposed to steer one past the rocky patches one may encounter. But like Justice she is blindfolded so she cannot see the rocks. Saphire are also said to cure eye diseases.

The white or clear sapphire though is a stone of Venus, not Fortuna. It comes from Sri Lanka and encourages one to be good to oneself and not so critical and demanding. The history of the use of sapphire can be traced to the Etruscans in the 7th century BCE.

Most sapphires were associated with Apollo by the Greeks, possibly because their blue colour reminded the Greeks of the sky that surrounds the sun. The Celtic symbol for the Sun is a wheel and some soruces say that Fortuna's wheel shows that she is the Sun Goddess. So there could be some sort of association with Apollo there. But then I tend to think that most Celtic Goddesses are Sun Goddesses in some shape or form anyway. This gives it another link to divination and the wheel of the year, of course, except all his sapphires are said to have been blue. Ancient Persians said that sapphires were created from the last drops of the elixir of immortality, the amrita. THis substance was known as the life giving milk of the Goddess. In France the stone was carried to ward off poverty.

Thinking about the Venus link there is a Fortuna Muliebris. She is the Goddess of women.

Sorry that is all I know about sapphires, strawberries and Fortuna.

Danielle