PEGI EYERS
I was inspired by a recent re-reading of Riane Eisler's classic "The Chalice and the Blade" to compile a chart comparing matriarchal and patriarchal values. By delving into archaeology and feminist scholarship, Eisler documents the global shift from egalitarian to patriarchal societies. She examines how social cooperation within Goddess-worshipping cultures was overcome by the patriarchal reliance on violence, hierarchy and authoritarianism. |
The challenge in our time is to create images and stories of the Sacred more in sync with a partnership model than that of a dominator model. This book truly has the ability to transform us and initiate fundamental change in the world, and as a powerful treatise on matriarchal values, proves that the dream of peace is not an impossible utopia.

Female ~ The Chalice ~ Matriarchy

Male ~ The Blade ~ Patriarchy

Partnership Model of Social Organization.
Gynocentric.
Gylany (Eisler’s Terminology).

Dominator Model of Social Organization.
Phallocentric.
Androcracy (Eisler’s Terminology).

Actualization Instead of Power.
Peaceful and Egalitarian Society.
Identification with the Mother.

Male Supremacy.
Hierarchic and Authoritarian Rule.
Identification with the Father.

Venerate the Feminine ~ Worship The Goddess.
Highest Value on the Life-Generating and Nurturing Powers of the Female.

Venerate the Masculine ~Worship the God.
Highest Value on the Power to Take rather than Give Life, Aligned with Destruction.
Highest Value on the Power to Take rather than Give Life, Aligned with Destruction.

Focus on Linking and Love.
Leadership Inspired by Responsibility to Society.
Wisdom of the Mother Honored Above All.

Focus on Hierarchy and Rank.
Power is Equated with "Dominance Over".
Dictatorial, Autocratic, Rule by Warlord.

Focus on the Sacredness and Unity of All Life.
Values of Compassion, Non-Violence.
Sexually Equalitarian.

High Degree of Male Violence and Warfare.
Values of Brutality, Oppression.
Sexually Repressive.

No Separation between Sacred and Secular.
Lands Held and Worked Communally.
Both Men & Women are Children of the Goddess.

Separation of Sacred and Secular.
Social Stratification Based on Private Property with Dominance Over Women.

Focus on Nurturing and Sharing.
Gift Economy not Conquest or Hoarding.

Acquire Material Wealth by using more effective Technologies of Destruction.

Worship the Sacred Chalice or Grail ~ Symbol
of the Womb & Feminine Generative Powers of the Universe in Birth, Nurture, Death and Rebirth.

Worship the Power of the Blade ~ Symbol of Masculine Power, Competition, Dominance, Control and Destruction.

“The whole of life is pervaded by an ardent faith in the Goddess Nature, the source of all creation and harmony.” Riane Eisler

Rigid roles for Men in Patriarchal Society.
Man the Warrior ~ Man the Hunter.
Maladaptive, Massive Regression.
Pegi Eyers is also the author of Ancient Spirit Rising: Reclaiming Your Roots & Restoring Earth Community, an award-winning book that explores social justice, nature spirituality, the ancestral arts, and resilience in times of massive change. www.stonecirclepress.com |