Uadjet

by Jezibell

Ancient Cobra of the Delta,
Rising warm and wondrous
From mud and flood and blood.
You sway stately beside the lotus,
Spreading your hood in the Nile breeze.

Your tongue is flame -
Hiss, crackle, snap!
Breath of animation
Illuminates, empowers.
Sensual energy,
Searing pleasure.
Lethal sting,
Sharp and silent.

You are guardian and guide,
Clever and cunning,
With mysteries in your coils
And magick in your eyes.
You stare -
Steady, kindly, deadly.
Quick to see,
Quick to soar,
Quick to strike.

Red Serpent Mother,
Tail in the soil,
Curling fertile over the Black Land,
Dancing in the shadow of the river,
Spiral of wisdom.

About This Poem

In ancient Egyptian mythology, Uadjet was the cobra goddess of justice, time, heaven, and hell. Her cult center was in the Nile delta region. She was the uraeus (cobra-shaped symbol of sovereignty) that appeared on the headdresses of Egyptian sovereigns. For more information about Uadjet, see The Goddesses Of Ancient Egypt elsewhere on this web site.

About The Poet

Jezibell is a poet, actress, bellydancer, teacher, and Wiccan High Priestess who lives and works in New York City.

As a dancer, she has studied for many years at the Serena Studio, where she now teaches. With an exciting repertoire of American bellydance, Middle-Eastern folkloric elements, and Goddess/ritual dance, Jezibell is in demand for performances at clubs, restaurants, nursing homes, and festivals, as well as private parties. She also performs with the Serena Dance Theater and has danced with the Egyptian/American Folkloric Troupe.

Jezibell has been writing poetry for most of her life as a form of both catharsis and creative expression. Her insights and imagery flow out of her spiritual life, her dance, and her wide-ranging studies of ancient history, culture and mythology, especially of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Greece. Her work has appeared in such diverse publications as Nomad's Choir, Perceptions, Xenophilia, Our Pagan Times, and Circle Network News.

Special events have given Jezibell opportunities to combine her multi-faceted interests in poetry, dance, and spirituality. Her dance performances sometimes include brief introductions with poetry to set the mood for the flowing movements of her innovative choreography. For example, she has done readings of her Isis poems, Invocation Of The Priestess and The Utterance Of Isis [both also on this web site], followed by a sublime dance using ethereal, life-size golden wings. She also dances with a sword, demonstrating extraordinary balance, and does a haunting performance in a darkened room while holding candles that cast an exotic glow on her every gesture and motion. Further, she uses her dance and poetry skills in ritual and Goddess circles, as well as in her role as a teacher of Paganism at Enchantments, a well-known source of Goddess information and materials.

For further information about any aspect of her work or upcoming performances, she can be contacted at Jezibell@earthlink.net.
Beautiful Photograph Of Jezibell, The Poet