Bona Dea

In Ancient Rome, the goddess Bona Dea, literally translating to The Good Goddess, was worshipped as the Earth goddess and protector of women. Women worshipped her exclusively and Bona Dea was said to watch over the virgins and matrons. She is a fertility goddess, blessing both women and the Earth, alike. SHe is seen as a pure virgin, chaste and inviolate. 

Snakes and wine are sacred to the Goddess and she was known to be well versed in healing and herb-lore. She is often linked to Faunus, the fertility God of the fields, woods and animals. This could be the tale behind the goddess’ true, and never-uttered, name, Fauna. When associated with Faunus, she is believed to be an animal goddess.

Men are specifically excluded from her secret festivals and are even prohibited from uttering her names. Sacred items to the goddess, such as wine or myrtle, should never be mentioned by name at her festivals due to the powerful connection she has to them.

One legend used to explain the dis-allowance of certain words is as follows: She had been married to the god Faunus (later famously renamed Pan). He returned to their stead one evening to discover that she had consumed an entire jar of wine. To punish her for her drunkenness, he beat her to death with a myrtle spurge (An almost succulent like ornamental plant with poisonous sap). Due to this, the words ‘wine’ and ‘myrtle’ must never be uttered when honoring the goddess.