Welcome to 2020 (5917 Magoma Era) Nine Day Mago Celebration! See Words of Invitation by Dr. Helen Hye-Sook Hwang and other details here or continue to read.
II. Days 4, 5, 6 (August 1, 2, 3)
The Cornerstones: Mago, Magoism, and Magoists
4. What is Mago and Magoism?
5. Who is Goma, the Heavenly Shaman Queen Mother, and the Danguk Confederacy of Nine States?
6. Who is Chiu, the Shaman Warrior Queen Mother?
Day 4: What is Mago and Magoism? “Mago” refers to the Great Mother or the Creatrix. It is not the particular name of a female divine. When the reality of the Great Mother became unavailable in patriarchy, “Mago” was mistakenly taken to refer to a historical woman. In that case, “Mago” indicates a Magoist shaman/priestess/teacher. “Mago” as the Great Mother or the Creatrix is NOT an anthropomorphic mother. S/HE is no symbol for a human woman per sei or exclusively. The giant crone (the Great Mother) is a favored metaphor for Mago in folklore. S/HE is the Origin/Source of all terrestrial beings, organic and inorganic. S/HE is the MOTHER of All. When I indicate Mago as S/HE or the Female, “S/HE” or “the Female” is no sex indicator, a woman in distinction to a man but a quality of the Mother who gives birth to the young across the species (note the uppercase F). Accordingly, Mago transcends the human quality (whether to be emotional or mental). S/HE is the Cosmic Mother. “Mago” acts on the structural level of the Earth in harmony with the solar system according to the principle of causality.
It is unknown how old the word “Mago” is, possibly from time immemorial. Intriguingly, however, both syllables “ma” and “go” prove to be universal, referring to the female divine across cultures. “Ma” stands for both “a mother” and “the Great Mother.” We have many “names” of the Goddess that has the root “ma” or the like (“m” plus a vowel). Amaterasu, Xiwangmu, Maat, and Muse are a few examples. “Ma-Gaia” and “Ma-Gwaneum (Ma-Guanyin)” closely resemble “Mago.” “Go” alone refers to Mago or Goma, the Shaman Queen founder of the Danguk confederacy of Nine Hans (pre-patriarchal Magoist Peoples). Goma is deified as the great divine, the Heavenly Queen Mother, born of a woman on earth. We will focus on Goma on Day 5, tomorrow.
Broadly, Magoists refer to the Mago Descent, all beings on earth. In a narrow sense, Magoists are represented as two groups, Mu Magoists (Shamans or the officiated leader) and Seon Magoists (“Immortals” or the non-officiated leader). Both Mus and Seons are traced to the divine/human community of Mago Stronghold in origin, the world center.
Below is from Chapter One of Dr. Hwang’s book, The Mago Way: Re-discovering Mago, the Great Goddess from East Asia Volume 1 (Mago Books, 2015):
The Great Goddess is known to all peoples throughout history. Under patriarchy, S/HE is either temporarily forgotten or disguised as another name or form. The knowing of the Great Goddess goes beyond any human language, more precisely, patriarchal languages. S/HE is rooted in the unconsciousness or the collective consciousness. For our discussion, I call HER S/HE, the Female. East Asians have called HER Mago. Mago signifies the Female, another name for the Creatrix of the universe. Throughout East Asian history, Mago has manifested as S/HE (One) AND HER representatives (many). S/HE is the All, WE, the entirety of the earthly eco-system. Magoism refers to the Way of the Great Goddess, the gynocentric reality of all beings on the Earth. The word “Mago” is salvific, codifying the ultimate reality.
The Great Goddess, Mago, symbolizes the power of genesis on macro- and micro-cosmic levels. Here is the gynocentric narrative: Mago is supreme as the progenitor, cosmogonist, and ultimate sovereign of the Earth. S/HE is not only the First Mother of humans but also the Originator of all species on Earth. As the Goddess of the Earth, Mago mediates the earthly community to the universe. Thus, S/HE is called the Heavenly Goddess. Note that Heaven and Earth are not deemed dualistic. Mago is addressed by many names. Among them are the Triad Deity (三神, Samsin), Grandmother or Crone (Halmi), Auspicious Goddess (瑞姑, Seogo), Evil (Magui), Immortal Goddess (仙姑, Seongo) and Old Goddess (老姑, Nogo), all of which have roots in Korean/East Asian traditional culture.
In lore, S/HE is thought to have come from the Seven Stars (the Big Dipper). The serpent that symbolizes the Seven Stars was deemed sacred, a reminder of Mago’s Abode. As Samsin Halmi (Triad Grandmother/Goddess), Mago oversees the birth, death, and illness (especially chickenpox) of a child. She is also depicted as the Giant Crone who shapes natural and cultural topography such as mountains, rivers, villages, stone walls, and megalithic structures. Although having been favored, revered, and celebrated by East Asians in the course of history, Mago was largely forgotten in the public domain up to the 1980s in Korea. She re-emerged to the public, as the principal text of Magoism, the Budoji (Epic of the Emblem City), was made available in the Korean language in the mid-1980s.
The term “Mago” itself manifests universally as the notion of the Great Goddess. The root “Ma,” which means both the Mother and the Goddess, is found in many names of the Goddess for the world. “Go” in “Mago” is used as a modifier indicating Mago, as in “Seon-go (Transcendent/Immortal Goddess),” “No-go (Ancient Goddess),” and “Seo-go (Auspicious Goddess),” to name a few. “Go” is also related with if not derived from Goddess “Gom” or “Goma,” the She-Bear Sovereign of Danguk, the nine-state confederacy of the remote past. The Japanese term “Kami (Deity)” is derived from “Goma.” “Go” appears linguistically and mythologically related with “Gaia” and “Guanyin.” As such, “Ma-ga (Ma Gaia)” in Mycenaean Greek and “Ma Guanyin,” the Magoist Goddess commonly known through Buddhism, all can be seen as the derivatives of “Mago.”
The Magoist Cosmogony highlights the sonic movement of cosmic elements as the Creatrix. In the beginning, there was light. The movement/vibration of light (cosmic music) in the universe caused creation to take place over eons. Stars were born in the previous cosmic era. In due time, Mago was born together with the Earth (the Stronghold of Mago) with her moons. Her (self-)emergence marks the beginning of earthly history. Mago listened to and acted in tune with the cyclic movement of the cosmic music. In further due time, S/HE bore two daughters, Gunghui (Goddess Gung) and Sohui (Goddess So) parthenogenetically. This Primordial Triad laid the foundation for the earthly environment for all species. Mago, assisted by HER two daughters, orchestrated the terrestrial plan to bring acoustic balance in harmony with the cosmic music/sound/vibration. S/HE delegated HER descendants to cultivate and manage the sonic equilibrium of the Earth.
Like the word “Mago,” “Magoism” manifests as One Culture AND many cultures of the world that venerate the Great Goddess. In a broad sense, “Magoism” refers to the entirety of gynocentric civilization. It is pre- and meta-patriarchal. It is the Source of patriarchal cultures. In a narrow sense, it indicates the one that has shaped East Asian histories and cultures. The very naming of “Magoism” restores the nature of East Asian civilization as gynocentric, contrary to the standard Sinocentric [read ethnocentrically patriarchal] view that ancient China is the origin of East Asian civilizations. Magoism is the golden measurement.
Mago’s manifestations, varying from nature-shaper to Daoist Goddess, are so multivalent that they appear to be unrelated to one another. As such, it is not surprising to note that scholars including Daoist scholars and Korean folklorists have respectively focused on some particular manifestations in China and Korea. They either treat Mago as a Daoist Goddess of unknown origin or conclude that the Mago known in Korea is not the same Goddess known in China.
The transnational occurrence of the term “Mago (麻姑)” should not be dismissed or treated as anomalous. Likewise, HER seemingly heterogeneous manifestations should not be taken selectively for scholarly investigation. In understanding the multivalent and transnational manifestations of the Great Goddess, we need a new theological lens of the Great Goddess, which I would call Magoist theism. Water is a good metaphor for the Great Goddess. Rivers and lakes cannot be said to be the nature of water by taking into consideration only bodies of water. Magoist theism is NOT compatible with the binary scheme of monotheism or polytheism. The Great Goddess is not measured by the number of Goddessheads. S/HE is NOT either One or many but One AND many. S/HE is like water in bodies of water. Magoist theism is even different from henotheism, which refers to the worship of a particular deity among multiple deities. The Great Goddess (Mago) is inseparable from HER other multiple manifestations (Magos). She is the All. She is the whole AND the particular at once. By extension, the term “Mago” is sometimes used to mean Magoism, the matrix of the Great Goddess. When “Mago” is invoked by poets or devotees with a nostalgic emotion, it means the gynocentric bygone antiquity or Old Magoism, which is equated with the paradisiacal home/womb/tomb of All. The term “Mago” also means “the Reign of Mago,” the gynocentric mytho-history of grand peace.
The provenance of Mago is as old as the concept of mother. “Ma” in “Mago” refers to both “mother” and “the Goddess.” It is difficult to date the earliest evidence of Magoism simply because we do not have written records of pre-patriarchal times. HER supreme nature is written out of history.
Please address your comments and questions as comments below or in the FB group, Nine Mago Celebrations. If convenient, email is available (magoacademy@gmail.com). I will respond and discuss the point with you.
Resources
Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, “Mago, the Creatrix from East Asia, and the Mytho-History of Magoism” in Goddesses in Myth, History and Culture (Mago Books, 2018).
(Special Post 2) Multi-linguistic Resemblances of “Mago” by Mago Circle Members
(Special Post 3) Multi-linguistic Resemblances of “Mago” by Mago Circle Members
(Special Post 4) Multi-Linguistic Resemblances of “Mago” by Mago Circle Members
The Mago Way: Re-discovering Mago, the Great Goddess from East Asia Volume 1 (Mago Books, 2015), pp. 9-13.
2020 (5917 Magoma Era) Year 3 Nine Mago Celebrations
Dates July 29-August 6 PST (the 9th month the 9th day according to the Magoist Calendar, given the variation of time zones)
Theme Embrace the Dragon, the Messenger of the Cetacean Divine
Words of Invitation by Helen Hye-Sook Hwang, Ph.D.
Mago Academy announces this year’s event of Nine Day Mago Celebrations! It has been a blessed journey since last year’s Nine-Nine Day (the ninth month and the ninth day) according to the Mago Almanac (13 month 28 day Magoist Calendar)! We will be thanking for the blessings that we are given for nine days! Join us in the nine-fold litany of our love and gratitude to Mago, the Great Mother!
It is the 9th year since we Magoists found each other and voiced out to the world in the Mago Circle, the Facebook Group, and the Return to Mago E-Magazine (https://www.magoism.net) in 2012. And today we are witnessing in pain and suffering that the whole world is undergoing a massive change by the yet-expanding course of the Covid19 pandemic on a global scale, which may be seen as nature’s due response to patriarchal advancements. You may have seen me as a writer/advocate/indie-publisher of the topic of Goddess feminist activist spirituality for the last few years. Thus far, thanks to our Mago Work volunteers and authors, we have planned and published four collective writing books (the She Rises trilogy and the Celebrating Seasons of the Goddess). You are correct, if you understood what Magoism is about through these collective books and venues. However, I must say that what you have seen is only the broad implication of Magoism, the Way of the Great Mother/Creatrix.
The focused or core implication of Magoism is yet to come! From early this year, I began to speak up on the core implication of Magoism. The monthly Magoist Studies salon meetings were launched from January of this year. Soon after, I began to offer Reading the Budoji (Epic of the Emblem Capital City) online course. The Budoji, the principal text of Magoism, is essential for us to assess the core implication of Magoism. As I said, what I have said and written for the last 20 years is only footnotes of the Budoji!
Here is a sign of the time for us. Timing is marvelous, as if my focus on the direct implication of Magoism that began in January of this year was designed to cope with the forthcoming Covid19 pandemic. Almost all schools are closed down and teachers teach students online. Economic activities have slowed down. People shop online. People don’t travel or even don’t talk to each other in the manner we used to for fear of spreading the virus. People stay home and do home-related projects. These are the kind of unprecedented changes that we did not foresee coming. As a whole, the Mago Work was designed to be carried out through online activities, while connecting people and the natural world as the Mago Descent in the first place. I am thankful for this unintentional but time-brought readiness. The mode of my advocacy for Magoism (public and online, based on the free social media tools) is ready for the Covid19 pandemic time and thereafter. It is my hope that the physical place for The Mago Academy Center and the Magoist Cetaceanism Research Center here where I live in Southern California, USA, can serve our post-Covid19 person-to-person meetings.
Amidst the colossal change that we are undergoing, we are having this year’s Nine Day Mago Celebration. And it is the ninth year of the Mago Work. I hope we can reflect back the path of Magoism in public and revisit major themes and accomplishments through a post per day for nine days. The invitation was there for you and is here again!
Check out the theme: Embrace the Dragon, the Messenger of the Cetacean Divine. We are tying knots with Magoists, the dragon, and whales among us. I have laid out nine messages for nine days. And on the last day, we will open the Mago Bookstore for 48 hours for you to download some books for free.
Contents for Nine Day Celebrations may include the below. I will utilize the materials that I have written, published, and archived, some of which have never been shared yet. I would appreciate your interests if you indicate as comments.
1. What is the Nine-Nine according to the Mago Almanac (13 months 28 days calendar)?
2. What is the Budoji (Epic of the Emblem Capital City)?
3. What is the Magoist Cosmogony?
4. What is Mago and Magoism?
5. Who is Goma, the Heavenly Shaman Queen Mother, and the Danguk Confederacy of Nine States?
6. Who is Chiu, the Shaman Warrior Queen Mother?
7. What is Magoist Cetaceanism?
8. Dragons and Sea-Mustards: How does Magoist Cetaceanism manifests?
9. Magoist Cetacean Totemism as the ultimate alliance between humans and the natural world.
Where are you at with the above themes? These themes represent a sum of my 20 years research and advocacy. It is just a beginning step for us to take collectively this year and I want you to be with us all in WE/HERE/NOW. Mago blessings to all in WE!
How Receive the nine daily posts from the Mago Books website or the Mago Work social media. In these daily posts, you will be invited to various sources including Dr. Hwang’s unpublished works. You may incorporate daily themes into your readings, workshops, or prayers as you find appropriate. Dr. Hwang will be available for your questions and connections via email and social media networks during these nine days personally. If you find a particular theme interesting, please let me know what, why and how you would like to apply to you together with an introduction of yourself (your residence, work and website etc). I can be reached magoacademy@gmail.com.
Free of charge for daily posts and personal discussions via social media or email. If this helps you, you may consider supporting the Mago Work by (1) donating any amount (Donation available below), (2) purchasing the PDF book or a print book on Magoism by Dr. Hwang (see below Resources), (3) submitting your contributions to Mago Books anthologies and Return to Mago E-Magazine, and/or (4) taking an online class, Reading the Budoji, or participating in the Magoist Studies Online Salon that Dr. Hwang facilitates.
Venue Social Media Networks (WordPress, Twitter, and Facebook)
https://twitter.com/magoism?lang=en (The Mago Web)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/353059021788526/ (Nine Mago Festivals)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/magoism (The Mago Circle)
https://www.magoacademy.org (Mago Academy)
Daily themes
I. Days 1, 2, 3 (July 29, 30, 31)
The metamorphic force of Sonic Numerology (the comic music and nine-numerology)
1. What is the Nine-Nine according to the Mago Almanac (13 months 28 days calendar)?
2. What is the Budoji (Epic of the Emblem Capital City)?
3. What is the Magoist Cosmogony?
II. Days 4, 5, 6 (August 1, 2, 3)
The Cornerstones: Mago, Magoism, and Magoists
4. What is Mago and Magoism?
5. Who is Goma, the Heavenly Shaman Queen Mother, and the Danguk Confederacy of Nine States?
6. Who is Chiu, the Shaman Warrior Queen Mother?
III. Days 7, 8, 9 (August 4, 5, 6)
The Matricentric Alliance of Humans and the Natural World
7. What is Magoist Cetaceanism?
8. Dragons and Sea-Mustards: How does Magoist Cetaceanism manifest?
9. Magoist Cetacean Totemism as the ultimate alliance between humans and the natural world.