Spider Grandmother is a creator deity in many of the Southwest Native American cultures, most notably from the Hopi and Navajo. She is depicted either as a wise old woman weaving a web or in the form of a spider who lives underground. She is seen as being an Earth Goddess who’s connected to fertility, creation, beauty and wisdom.
She is said to have created the universe and passed down the art of weaving, pottery and agriculture to her people. She weaves her web to connect everything together and to teach people about the interconnectedness of all things. Spider Grandmother is known from the myth with Tawa, the Sun God, who she created the world and all the people with. Together they are said to have formed people out of clay, breathed life into them and then gave them souls.
She’s also a guide and protector who teaches people how to live their lives in harmony with the universe and the ebbs and flows of life. She guides people to create balance in their lives by accepting and understanding the roles they’ve been selected to play. She teaches us that actions have consequences, the effects of which can reach far and wide, reminding us that everything is connected.
Signs that Spider Grandmother is Calling You
Spider Grandmother will show up in your life when you’re in need of higher wisdom, divine guidance and understanding. She can also bring you the inspiration to create something or just to get in touch with your own natural creative abilities. She is the spiritual teacher who will appear in your life when you’re ready to attain more knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment.
Some well-known symbols associated with her are spiders and spider webs along with the act of weaving. She is said to have taught the Navajo people how to weave beautiful, intricate patterns onto their colorful fabrics. Another symbol connected to her is the spiral which represents the cycles of life and the inner journey of transformation. If you see these symbols showing up in your life a lot, it may be a sign that she’s communicating with you.
Spider Grandmother can help you to create more balance in your life by teaching you about the body-mind connection. How taking care of your needs in a holistic way, body, mind and spirit, can create inner harmony. She can also help you to create more beauty and harmony in your life by teaching you to weave the web of your life in a way that aligns with your authentic self.
Working with Spider Grandmother
There are many ways to work with Spider Grandmother and as with any Goddess or deity creating some kind of altar no matter how simple or elaborate is a great place to start. For your altar you can add statues, artwork and/or items such as southwestern patterns, spiders and spider webs, symbols of the spiral, etc. This is your way of creating a sacred space to connect with her energy.
You can also call to her by saying a simple prayer like “Spider Grandmother, Goddess of Creation, please help to create a life for myself that aligns with heart, mind and soul.” You can create your own unique prayer or invocation to her as well, whatever feels right to you. Once you have called out to her allow yourself to sit in quiet meditation for a few minutes so that you can start to feel and connect with her energy.
Pay attention to any messages, feelings or sensations that come through at this time and over time you will start to become more familiar with her energy. If you feel so inclined you can even write these things down in a journal which you can refer back to while you’re learning how to connect with Goddess energy. Always be sure to leave some kind of offering when working with any deity and with Spider Grandmother you can leave things like cornmeal, an intricately woven piece of fabric, jewelry, art, flowers or even something you make yourself.
You can even do things like learn how to weave or carefully release spiders back outside. Whatever is available to you and whatever you feel most called to in order to honor her energy. These are simple ways that you can begin connecting with Spider Grandmother and with time and practice you’ll be able to recognize her energy more easily.
For more information about Goddesses and working with Goddess energy, check out my Goddess Guide Sheets or book a Goddess Message Reading with me.
THE AWAKENED SAGE 