Who is the Goddess Artemis?
The Greek Goddess Artemis holds an incredibly special place in my heart.
She is a goddess and an archetype that has played a huge role in my life and it is my privilege to get to share her with you today.
In this post we are going to discuss:
Who is the Goddess Artemis/her mythology
Artemis as an Archetype
Artemis in the Modern Woman
How to connect more deeply to Artemis
Even if you don’t understand why, if you feel a kinship with the Goddess of the Moon and the Hunt, this information is for you…
Who is the Greek Goddess Artemis?
Like the other Olympians, Artemis has a unique origin story.
Artemis is the daughter of Zeus (the King of Olympus) and the lesser known goddess Leto.
Later accounts of Greek Mythology (and the one most widely recognized today) share that the wife and consort of Zeus, the Goddess Hera, was extremely jealous and upset by Leto’s pregnancy. Hera chased Leto away and ordered all neighboring lands to deny Leto shelter, forcing her to take refuge on the island of Delos to give birth to her twins.
Artemis, Goddess of the Moon and the Hunt was born first.
Legend says that Hera’s vengeance didn’t stop with chasing Leto away and that her wrath continued by prolonging the birth of Apollo, God of the Sun.
Artemis was the one who assisted her mother in birthing her twin brother, cementing her as one of the goddesses that women called upon in childbirth.
As a young girl, Artemis went to visit her father on Mt. Olympus. Zeus was so taken with his daughter that he couldn’t deny her any wish. Artemis asked him for eternal chastity, a short tunic that she could roam the mountainside in, and a pack of hounds of her choosing.
Zeus granted her these wishes and Artemis became known as the fierce huntress who never married and was never victimized by another god or man.
In addition to being the Goddess of the Moon and the Hunt, she was also known as the protectress of young children (especially young girls) and women in childbirth.
She had a few romantic interests, but this was never her primary interest. Instead, Artemis preferred more solitary pursuits of hunting with her hounds and being surrounded by other women.
Artemis as an Archetype
There are three ways that we can look at any God or Goddess figure:
1) As a divine entity (real or imagined)
2) As an archetypal construct
3) As both
I will leave it to your sensibilities to decide which ones you believe in, but for the women I work with, understanding themselves through the archetypal lens of the Goddess is one of the most profound healing tools there is.
If you’re not familiar with the term, archetypes refer to patterns of instinctual behavior that exist in the collective unconscious. It is a term first coined by Carl Jung and it has become increasingly popular in the modern vernacular.
Put another way, archetypes are patterns of energy that we all have access to subconsciously. They are modes of being that affect the way we think, feel, and behave.
Archetypes also help explain our inner drives, our desires, strengths, and weaknesses.
When I work with clients individually, we dive deep into the archetypes that are active within them and we use these patterns to help them understand things like their sense of purpose, how they behave in relationships, and to make sense of the challenges they have faced in life.
Artemis is an extremely powerful archetype that can strongly influence a woman in relationships, work, and her sense of purpose. Much of what I have learned about Artemis comes from Jean Shinoda Bolen’s incredible book Goddesses in Everywoman and my own experience of having her as a dominant archetype.
Archetypally, Artemis "is the personification of an independent feminine spirit" (Shinoda Bolen).
She is the woman who follows her instincts and the goals of her choosing (as evidenced by her list of wishes for her father and desire to roam and hunt the mountainside as she pleased).
The Artemis aspect of a woman’s psyche is not interested in love or relationships and she feels very complete without a man.
While this can be empowering for a woman, it can also present challenges if you have an active Hera, the Queen Goddess who desires a committed partnership or an active Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love.
Artemis women prefer the company of a group of close girlfriends, otherwise they prefer to be alone. Solitary pursuits aren’t considered weak or undesirable; she enjoys them.
She is an archetype that has the power of intense focus and concentration. When she sets her eyes on a goal, she goes for it with all of her might.
Artemis women also tend to be competitive and physically strong. They enjoy feeling their strength through their bodies and they can tend to find a lot of their confidence through athletic endeavors.
Again, this can be extremely empowering for a woman, but she must be careful because this can also tip over the edge and into the realm of disordered eating and exercise.
Finally, Artemis women are deeply connected to the moon and to the wilderness.
They have a deep love of the outdoors and feel most at home and emotionally stable when they have adequate time in nature.
Artemis in the Modern Woman
So how do you know if you have an active Artemis archetype? If you’ve read this far, it’s likely that you do.
You’ll know that you have an active archetype by the inexplicable resonance you have with a goddess, her symbols, and her mythology. The understanding of her archetypal significance and how she might show up in the modern woman will only be further confirmation.
It’s also important to remember that we all have several archetypes that exist within us as potentials or energies. This means that you might not see yourself in every single characteristic of one archetype, but you see yourself in enough of them that you know that particular goddess resonates.
Some women might also find that some of these archetypes are dormant in their youth and active as adults or vice versa.
As a child, Artemis often reveals herself as a tomboy.
She enjoys sports or physical activities, she can often be found playing with the boys at recess, though she might also love being in Girl Scouts or other activities that allow her to be in nature and/or be surrounded by other like-minded young girls.
Artemis girls are independent and have an adventurous spirit. They may show interest in travel and other cultures as they get older.
While often solitary, they may find their “tribe” in team sports, later in college, or in women’s groups.
Like Athena, Artemis is more focused on what is personally meaningful rather than being in romantic relationships. In university, she is more focused on a degree than getting her MRS.
She will gravitate towards a career that is related to her inner values and what is important to her.
Given her love of nature, she may find herself working in fields related to protecting the environment, such as conservation, law, or politics.
As a protector of women, she might also find herself in positions where she is guiding, caring for, or defending the rights of women.
Mentally and emotionally, the Artemis woman needs time alone and needs time in nature. While nature can be healing for all, it has a special effect on the Artemis woman.
Time spent hiking, biking, walking, running, or skiing in the mountains will help clear her mind and heal her heart. Whenever the Artemis woman feels disconnected from herself, all she needs is time spent in nature or the moonlight to come back home to who she really is.
As we discussed before, Artemis needs to have a healthy relationship with exercise in order to maintain optimal mental health.
Too little engagement with her physical body will leave her feeling weak, but over-identification with her body and athletic strength might leave her with obsession.
The ideal goal for Artemis is to find consistency in movement that brings her joy and boosts her confidence.
And finally, the journey of the Artemis woman is about making sure that she doesn’t use her independence as armor.
Because of her solitary nature, it is easy for her to forget that she is still human and still needs contact. She must learn how to exist in relationships and how to balance any other relational goddess archetypes that live within her.
Modern day examples of Artemis can be seen in characters like Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games) and Merida (Brave).
How to Connect More Deeply to Artemis
If you are interested in understanding Artemis on a deeper level, I highly recommend the book Goddesses in Everywoman by Jean Shinoda Bolen.
Shinoda Bolen also has another book entitled Artemis: The Indomitable Spirit in Everywoman, in which she shares more modern and ancient examples of Artemis women. I recommend getting the first book if you are just going to read one, because it’s helpful to know which other archetypes might be present for you.
If you already know that Artemis plays a strong role in your life, spend more time getting to know her (and by extension, yourself) by spending time in nature.
Artemis energy exists more strongly around trees, so choosing mountains or forests is a great place to start.
I recommend getting out in nature as often as you can, because not only will it help you calm your nervous system and feel more regulated, but you will start to build more emotional resilience and confidence as well.
And finally, spend time in the moonlight.
Whether you’re moon-gazing, journaling in the moonlight, or you prefer to do New/Full Moon ceremonies, any time you spend in the moon will help strengthen your connection to Artemis, to your intuition, and to the divine.
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