The Mother within the Crone, How we are continually birthed into our new selves

Vasilisa being given the intuitive doll by her mother, from the story of Vasilisa and Baba Yaga, by artist Sasha Taran

This month in Maiden, Mother Crone, Death we are talking about the Mother archetype. What that means is we are looking at the idea of what it means to be a mother, from many different perspectives. From the personal-what our experiences of being a mother have been, whether this means a mother to children we have birthed or a mother to those with whom we have a mothering relationship, even if we are not related. This means also the Divine Mother, an ancient presence that we all know, even if we don't have the words for it. A presence who watches over us-she could be Mother Earth, or maybe she inhabits the endless ocean or the starry skies. We have also been looking at mothers in myth, fairy tales and other stories. 

One of the stories we have been following throughout the course is that of Baba Yaga, a Slavic folk tale. It is a story where there is a maiden, mother and crone. Though there is a mother in the Baba Yaga story, she doesn't show up as often in illustrations of the story. I did manage to find this moving image (above), a powerful representation of a mother passing on her knowledge, wisdom and intuition to her daughter in the form of a small doll.
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In the Baba Yaga story, Vasilisa must face many challenges, in a way that resembles the Cinderella story, a story more familiar to those of us in the US. On Vasilisa's mother's deathbed, she passes on a sacred doll to her daughter. I love the way this doll is depicted here, with glowing light around her. It seems to show the way the doll is blessed by the mother. This doll enables Vasilisa to overcome many challenges set forth at home for her by her unfriendly stepmother and stepsisters. And then to face challenges set by the crone figure, Baba Yaga, a witch-like figure who lives in a chicken legged house in the woods.

With the help of this doll, Vasilisa is able to take on challenges set by Baba Yaga, such as separating grains of rotten corn from sound corn, and separating poppy seeds from grains of soil. The doll also guides Vasilisa as to when to ask questions of Baba Yaga and when to remain silent. Thus, not only is Vasilisa allowed to live, unlike most visitors to Baba Yaga's hut, but she is also rewarded for her bravery and restraint. Because Vasilisa overcomes the challenges,  Baba Yaga gives her a flaming skull, a symbol of truth and fierce righteous anger. This skull ultimately kills her wicked step mother and step sisters. In this way, the maiden, having first received the wisdom and guidance from the mother in the form of the intuitive doll, now receives the protection and assistance from the crone, in the form of the flaming skull.
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There are so many layers of symbolism to this story, including the scene depicted in this painting. In class we talked about how the transitions from maiden to mother, from mother to crone and crone to death can all be seen as a kind of birth into a new self. We are born anew as different women many times in our lives. This cycle of renewal mirrors the cycle of life death and rebirth that our ancestors would have known and trusted in. For our ancestors, who lived closer to the earth, there would have been a visceral connection to the changing seasons, each bringing its challenges and rewards. The transitions in life, becoming a woman, marriage, even dying, would have been recognized with ritual close to the home and amongst family. In revisiting these stories, we can reconnect to the deep meaning of life's transitions, large and small. 

In class, we also talked about how the maiden, mother crone and death are truly not separate from each other. Like nesting dolls, they each live within the other. As mothers, we know the face of the newborn baby girl, who seems to hold the wisdom of the wise crone. The mother within the maiden guides and protects her. The mother within the crone allows us to birth into new experiences and identities. ​And for those of us in the crone years, we hold both the maiden and mother within us. The maiden gives us the energy and fire to continue to take on new experiences and live fully. The mother within our crone self is a loving presence holding us, blessing us and enveloping us in her love. May we be blessed with these stories and connections as we reflect on these powerful ancient stories and on the stories of our own lives as well. 

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