Daddy's Girls Have All the Luck

Remember that 80's song by Rod Stewart "Some guys have all the luck" ... well some girls do too. During Valentine's Day I read an interesting statistic from Rabbi Shmuley Boteach that one in three American women are experiencing clinical depression, often caused by the primary man in their life. The Rabbi had also previously written about the importance of fathers on their daughters choices in a man. As I get older the more this is the case in everyday life. Jungian psychoanalyst and psychiatrist Dr. Jean Shinoda Bolen of San Francisco talks about the Athena archetype personified by the father's daughter. In my observation the Athena woman represents the kind of woman that Rabbi Boteach talks about when exploring the results of a positive emotionally healthy father-daughter relationship.

Athena was the ancient Greek Goddess of Justice, Wisdom, and Strategy. As an archetype she is represented by Margaret Thatcher, Indira Gandhi, Oprah Winfrey, Golda Meir, and any woman who uses the fortitude of her social and intellectual intelligence to navigate the world and claim a leadership position. The Athena archetype is the cool-headed woman, whose ability to nail the true character of a person requires objectivity and higher reason that paves the way for keen intuitive impressions.

Athena in the psyche is activated when a woman's vulnerability and life circumstances requires a strength play. Athena is also born when a woman is raised by a strong father whose influence stimulates her intellectual prowess. Athena removes the hijacks of emotional negative patterns and creates a laser like focus to accomplish necessary objectives. A woman's greatest gift is her intuition. In order to access high wisdom through the intuitive faculties, it is imperative to have Athena working on your behalf, when you are cool and logic is your intuitive ally ... the truth is obvious and your gut instinct will tell you how to operate in the world. Athena was the original Girl Power Goddess.