Does anyone know what DC stands for? Yep that’s right The District of Columbia.

In fact, when the original founders of this country built the ‘District of Columbia’, they called it the Holy City, & envisioned it as a Temple to this Goddess. But who is she? And how is it that we as a nation have come to forget her, despite her ubiquitous presence atop the nation’s most prominent institutions of power?

Columbia comes from the word “Columba” meaning “dove”. From the beginning, when Columbia was first revealed as the Goddess of this land, she was seen by the native peoples as an Indian Queen, a guardian of Liberty, freedom & a generous provider of plenty.

After the colonists came to America seeking freedom from oppression, Columbia changes, she is then pictured wearing the cap of freedom, later seen in the French revolution, & holds a cornucopia. The eagle & the rattlesnake are sacred to Her.

She is known as a guardian spirit. In the terminology of Anthroposophy she is The Archangel, or Folk Spirit of the American People.  This spirit is called by various names: sometimes referred to as Liberty, as in the Sons of Liberty, or the Statue of Liberty; other times Independence, as in the Declaration of Independence; and Columbia, as in the City of Washington, DC. & You have heard of the South American country Colombia; & there is a British Columbia in Canada as well.

The name Columbia is borne by many other beings: a great river, towns & counties, business & cultural organizations, ships, & songs. But, the Folk Spirit Columbia of the Original Native Peoples, perceived also by the American Revolutionaries as an Indian goddess, has been usurped by Uncle Sam, her opposite in every way.

 The true Spirit of America is a strong & beautiful peer of all the other national cultures, interestingly enough all personified by the Divine Feminine.

The American Revolution later inspired the French Revolution, which became the catalyst for their gift of the Statue of Liberty.

And did you know that the song ‘Hail Columbia’ was actually the National Anthem, until it was changed in 1931 to the Star-Spangled banner?, a song glorifying war.

As the authentic potential of the American People, Columbia has hardly manifested. Her destiny, if ‘We the People’ will it, is to take back Her divine power, to manifest a true Land of the Dove. For many immigrants who end their long journey to freedom at Her feet, justice & hope are personified in Her form. America’s true folk spirit welcomes everyone into New York harbor with the promise of ‘life, liberty & the pursuit of happiness’. She offers these gifts to the world’s downtrodden as they enter the New World seeking a New Life; asking the world to give Her their ‘tired, poor & huddled masses’.

Have you ever really looked at the symbolism in the statue? The seven points of her crown represent the Pleiades star cluster, also known as the Seven Sisters.

And These words, from the sonnet “The New Colossus” written by Emma Lazarus, are engraved inside the statue of Liberty. Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand – A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame – Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name – Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand – Glows world-wide welcome; “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Can we renew this conception in our thinking now? Let us reclaim our past; this will give us the courage to love the world that we are in. Then we can envision & co-create a future of hope & light, in Love & Freedom!