Someone recently directed me to the book, The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant. This book really struck a cord with me – giving the silent, feminine perspective of an ancient time period. Though fictional, it spoke of a universal truth. It spoke of the eternal mother.
Of course part of the story focussed on Rachel’s famous transgression against her father, in stealing her father’s teraphim, the objects thought to bestow blessings on his house.
Vivid images of these objects were conjured in my mind. Perhaps they were made of clay, but if they were handled as much as suggested in the story, they would necessarily be of wood.
The power of belief in these objects fascinates me. Like lucky totems, but something deeper, something shared with others, passed through many hands. Imagine all the emotional energy imbued in these objects.
meandertect 