The Solar Hero Perseus
Perseus was the son of the god Zeus-Jupiter and Danae, the daughter of the king of Argos. When Perseus was grown, another king named Polydectes wanted to marry Danae, and in order to get her protective son Perseus out of the way he sent him to accomplish an impossible task: bring him the head of Medusa.
The solar hero is a universal archetype that is celebrated in all cultures and religions. The invincible man or woman of light that goes on a dangerous mission- to travel to far away lands, to fight monsters and demons, to enter into hell itself, all for the ultimate good of the people.
The solar hero is something everyone has within, a particular part of intimate Being called the Christ. The mission of this internal hero is to enter into their own egoic darkness, to battle the interior monsters and demons, and emerge triumphant in the light, for the good of humanity.
Medusa
Medusa was one of three sisters, called the gorgons, monstrous beings with snakes covering their heads, turning whoever looked directly at them into stone. Medusa was once a beautiful maiden and a chaste priestess of Athena. But she was pursued by the god Neptune-Poseidon and renounced her vows of chastity to be with him. Her punishment from the gods was to be turned into a gorgon, although Medusa was different from the others in that she was mortal.
The fate of Medusa may seem extreme, but it is a warning about neglecting the vows that we make to divinity, and forgetting the Being-Partkdolg-Duty, the cosmic duty to our inner Being.
When Medusa is cursed with snakes instead of hair, she is suffering from the loss of her sexual force, which hair symbolizes. The snakes represents the Kundalini, the spiritual-sexual force, which can either rise in the spine as Devi Shakti Kundalini or become externalized as the Kundartiguator organ, connecting us to more materiality and suffering. Medusa’s curse represents the damage caused by the negative use of the sexual energy.
Assistance from the Divine Mother
Perseus begged the goddess Athena and the god Hermes-Mercury for help, and was given the gifts of winged sandals, a winged cap that grants invisibility, a sword, and a highly polished shield. Perseus was able to fly to the abode of Medusa, approach her without being seen, and using the shield as a mirror, attack her without looking directly at her and being turned to stone.
Perseus was able to cut off the head of Medusa and because she was mortal, to destroy her. When the drops of her blood fell on the ground two magical creatures appeared: Pegasus, a winged horse, and Chrysaor, a winged boar. These two were the offspring of Medusa and Poseidon. Perseus’ task was accomplished and he returned the head of Medusa to Athena to place on her shield.
Overcoming the Ego
When we are identified with the ego, our consciousness is petrified, turned into stone. It is only with the fluidity of the sexual waters, the Mercury, that we can grow the wings of the spirit, which allow us to travel in all the worlds and dimensions. The polished mirror is the awakened consciousness, and acts as a shield from sinister and egoic forces.
The sword is the fiery Kundalini, active and upright within our spine. Therefore, with the help of the gods and goddesses, the power of the intelligence of the sexual waters, the Divine Mother active within, and the awakened consciousness, the defeat of the ego is possible. And within the ego is the magic of the essence, just as beautiful and powerful creatures like Pegasus may be latent within the darkest of monsters.