Triple Goddess Symbol

While many Neopagans are not Wiccan, and within Neopaganism the practices and theology vary widely, many Wiccans and other neopagans worship the "Triple Goddess" of maiden, mother, and crone, a practice going back to mid-twentieth-century England. In their view, sexuality, pregnancy, breastfeeding — and other female reproductive processes — are ways that women may embody the Goddess, making the physical body sacred.

* The Maiden represents enchantment, inception, expansion, the promise of new beginnings, birth, youth and youthful enthusiasm, represented by the waxing moon;

* The Mother represents ripeness, fertility, sexuality, fulfillment, stability, power and life represented by the full moon;

* The Crone represents wisdom, repose, death, and endings represented by the waning moon.

The triple goddess sign is identified with Greek moon goddesses:

* Artemis - the Maiden, because she was the virgin goddess of the hunt;

* Selene - the Mother, for she was the mother of Endymion's children and loved him;

* Hecate - the Crone, as she was associated with the underworld and magic, and so considered to be "Queen of Witches".