Where is it? They're based in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, "and created in partnership with energy healer and artist Elyssa Jakim, the Temple is an interactive altar celebrating our community, the power of love, and the energies of the divine feminine,” Warrington explains. "And the CRAZY serendipity leading up to the launch makes us feel like Venus herself basically MADE US DO IT."
Vibes. The community is housed in a private residence, and open to all. According to Warrington, the group is "inviting healers, seekers and modern mystics to contribute their offerings and wisdom” in order to create “an ever-evolving container charged with positive vibes."
What it’s like. Now that you get the basic gist of the community — what’s it actually like? Reporting for Broadly, Gabby Bess, who attended the project’s headquarters, begins her article by stating: “If a nude drum circle isn’t part of your feminist practice, you might want to reconsider.”
Inner Goddess. "On the eve of the full moon in Aquarius, I'm headed to an event that was billed to me as a 'ceremonial invocation of Venus,' meant to celebrate the Goddess of beauty, desire, abundance, sexuality, and love,” Bess writes. “ have no idea what to expect--only that I need to be 'ready to go deep,' per the woman-only event description, in order to get intimate with my inner Goddess.”
Venus’ altar. Bess notes that the event description asked that attendees bring items to “lay upon Venus’ altar,” a “vessel” for water and something to write with. "So, I arrive laden with my sacred offerings to the eponymous Goddess (my pink vibrator and a matchbox pastiched with a portrait of Frida Kahlo in which I keep my weed); my water vessel, a mason jar; a pen; and open chakras,” she states. Bess then describes her unique surroundings: a line of women that winds out from a “temple,” a hallway framed with tea lights and a unique-looking red-headed woman in a white dress who finally leads her into “the room.”
Women everywhere. According to the journalist, women are basically everywhere in this residence. "Some are socializing in the kitchen, drinking Lambrusco and eating plums, blueberries, whole carrots that appear freshly pulled from the dirt, and creamy cheeses that seem sensually rustic," Bess recalls. "Others are sitting in the main room on the mattresses and blankets that cover floor, forming tableaux that strongly resembles the set of a Petra Collins shoot.”
Wardrobe. Sweating uncomfortably in all black, Bess explains that female attendees are “dressed like literally goddesses,” wearing sheer gowns, silk robes, golds and an overwhelming amount of draping jewelry. Of her decision to participate in full-on goth attire, she writes: “I start to deeply regret my all-black outfit, which, before now, I thought was very witchy.”
Offerings. "There's a girl kneeling reverently in front of the carefully placed offerings--candles, gold jewelry, pearls, and flowers--meditating," Bess explains. "In context, the items I brought start to seem like a joke that the serious practitioners in the room wouldn't exactly appreciate.”
Things take a turn. Soon after, things took a slightly unpredictable turn when Bess notices one woman had taken her top off. Wondering if she had accidentally attended an orgy, it turns out that, well, she actually sort of did.
Tantric ritual. "The room temperature alone was reason enough for everyone to follow Kat's lead and throw off their clothing, but the evening was much more than that,” Bess explains. It wasn't just about the heat in terms of comfort, though. "It was also more than the tantric ritual that involved blindfolds and consensual touching, and an hour-long nude massage train. It was essentially a rare night to feel comfortable as woman.”
Creator. Speaking to Reiki healer and witch by trade Elyssa Jakim, who opened the Temple of Venus in collaboration with The Numinous, Bess states: "When Jakim's roommate moved out of their shared apartment, she knew that she wanted to do something special with the extra space and so she turned to the Akashic records for guidance. Those who consider the spiritual world a truth believe that the Akashic records contain all the knowledge of everything that has ever existed in the astral plane.”
Sexual healing. The Akashic records aren’t actual records, however. "When I tell people about [the Akashic records] they ask if it's actual records, but it's not. It's a way to tap into the energy of the history of everything that's ever happened," Jakim told Bess of the book. "You can open it for a space, too, so, I opened it for the apartment. When I asked, What does this room need? it was very clear that it needed some kind of sexual healing."
Ritual room. Today, the empty room serves as the community’s “ritual room.” "At the invocation of Venus, while we were massaging each other with avocado oil and ice cubes in the adjoining area, we were herded into groups of six to enter the ritual space for a tantric exercise,” Bess states, adding they were in a pitch-dark room and blindfolded. “Harrington instructed us to place one of our hands on our own heart and the other on our sister's. We were then told to ask permission to touch a part of our partner's body until we felt comfortable enough to let our hands roam freely.”
Conclusion. Afterwards, the women returned to the same seating configuration in which they began to conclude the night’s activities with an open dialogue. Of her night, Bess writes: "In the absence of light, we were asked to say a prayer for women into the bouquets of flowers that were being passed around the room. This struck me.”
Positively affirming women. "It dawned on me that I had just spent four straight hours positively affirming women,” she continues, adding, "These witches just might be onto something; if everyone--men included and especially--could do this every day, maybe the world would become a more hospitable place for us."
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