For thousands of years, the Western image of God became increasingly male. Anne Baring has spent much of her life studying what we lost when the feminine disappeared from our understanding of the divine.
This is Part 1 of my eight-part series of conversations with Anne Baring, recorded across September 2026. Over the course of the series, we’ll explore the work Anne has spent much of her life devoted to, from the ancient Goddess and the Western wisdom traditions to Mary Magdalene, the Divine Feminine and the sacred marriage. This first conversation introduces Anne and many of the ideas we’ll return to in much greater depth throughout the series.
Born in 1931, Anne is an Oxford-educated historian, Jungian analyst and co-author with Jules Cashford of The Myth of the Goddess. We begin with the ancient Great Mother and the work of Marija Gimbutas, before moving into Anne’s account of how Western religion gradually separated spirit from nature. She takes us through Asherah and Sophia, the feminine Holy Spirit, Mary Magdalene and the Christian traditions she believes preserved an older teaching of love and wisdom. We also talk about power, self-deification, the body, and why Anne believes the loss of the feminine divine changed the way Western culture came to treat the Earth and one another.
Anne is 95, and this is the first in a series of conversations we’ll be recording together. Future episodes will give us time to stay with subjects we only scratch the surface of here, including Mary Magdalene and the Beloved Companion, the Essenes, the Cathars and the sacred marriage. This first conversation ends with Anne speaking personally about prayer, service and how her understanding of God has changed over the course of her life.
Explore Anne Baring’s Work
Official website: https://www.annebaring.com/
Books by Anne Baring
Divine Wisdom and the Holy Spirit: The Forgotten Feminine Face of God
The Myth of the Goddess: Evolution of an Image by Anne Baring and Jules Cashford
The Dream of the Cosmos: A Quest for the Soul
Books and Writers Mentioned
Marija Gimbutas: The Civilization of the Goddess
Marija Gimbutas: The Language of the Goddess
Erich Neumann: The Great Mother
Riane Eisler: The Chalice and the Blade
Margaret Barker
Elaine Pagels
The Gospel of the Beloved Companion, translated by Jehanne de Quillan
Related Episodes
My episode on Gnosticism, Sophia and the Gnostic creation myth
My previous episode on Mary Magdalene
House of Cards: In this episode, I mention my ongoing tarot series, House of Cards, during this conversation. We’re studying the cards one by one through mythology, religious history, occult philosophy and the Western wisdom traditions that regularly appear on the podcast. Join the Patreon and listen to House of Cards at patreon.com/backfromtheborderline
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