A: The Heroine with 1,001 Faces
Q: Who is THE RADICAL BADDIE?
Who is
? She is the Heroine with 1,001 Faces.Last week we hit 30 issues here (🥹🙏🏽) and I wanted to return back to the idea that began it all, THE RADICAL BADDIE as an archetype.
![[0.1] THE RADICAL BADDIE](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!EnYw!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F57382603-0a5a-4434-b267-ca93d08f85dc_2000x1600.png)
I’ve recorded a voiceover of today’s edition which you can find at the top of the post. It includes some BTS commentary of the evolution of this Substack over the last 8 months, voicing over the figures in the collages shared, and how I personally relate to the story arc/framework of the Heroine’s Journey, which you’ll find below.
You might enjoy reading and listening to today’s issue in the Substack App:
There is no one way to be radical, there’s no one way to be a baddie. THE RADICAL BADDIE as an archetype can be seen in an infinite number of unique expressions and manifestations as the Dark Feminine, the Heroine, the Wise Wild Woman throughout history and mythology. She is a Healer, a Mystic, a Subversive Creative, a Crone. She is everything, everywhere all at once.
"The Heroine with 1,001 Faces" by Maria Tatar explores the role of heroines in myth and folklore, examining how female protagonists have been portrayed in stories across cultures and time periods.
The Multiplicity of 1,001♾️
In many Eastern cultures, the number 1,001 signifies an unending source of knowledge and narratives.
In Hinduism and Buddhism, large numbers like 1,001 are often used to symbolize abundance and the boundless nature of the universe. They represent the idea that there are countless paths to enlightenment and innumerable manifestations of the divine.
The famous Middle Eastern collection of tales, "One Thousand and One Nights" (also known as "Arabian Nights"), embodies this concept. Scheherazade marries a bloodthirsty king after he catches his beloved first wife cheating and then develops a penchant for marrying and assassinating young brides. The daughter of one of the King’s most wise and trusted confidantes, Scheherazade, marries the King and to evade her own execution, deftly spins unending stories within story for the King, leaving them on a cliffhanger as dawn rises, so the King has no choice but to spare her life and continue to hear her mesmerizing tale (i.e. 1,001 Nights).1
The number 1,001 can also be seen as a metaphor for the ongoing quest for knowledge and understanding. It suggests that there is always more to learn and explore, reflecting the philosophical idea that the journey itself is as important as the destination.
THE RADICAL BADDIE as an Archetype
In the Heroine with 1,001 Faces, Tatar cheekily references Joseph Campbell’s prolific The Hero with Thousand Faces.
The Hero’s Journey had long been an archetypal mythology that reflected the path of Man’s ego development, and wove its way through the mythology of Colonial and Capitalist conquests before Joseph Campbell named it and popularized even further into mainstream media and culture. His body of work took an optimistic and humanistic view to this archetypal story.
Here at THE RADICAL BADDIE, we love Joseph Campbell's work on archetypes and collective unconscious. But his framework of the hero’s journey has for far too long been held up as a monomyth model, often seen as a universal blueprint for human development but largely centering on male protagonists - their adventures, conquests, and exploits.2 Those who fell outside of this pattern simply served to further this main character’s plot, women often playing the role of damsels-in-distress.
Examining The Heroine's Journey
The Heroine's Journey, as outlined by various scholars and authors like Maria Tatar and Maureen Murdock, often differs from the traditional Hero's Journey by focusing on themes of self-discovery, community, and spiritual transformation. While there are a multitude of heroines each with a path, personality, trials and tribulations uniquely her own, the Heroine’s Journey marks a common archetypal pattern that is reflected in our own psyches and lives.
In my voiceover of today’s newsletter, I share how my personal story maps onto this framework. It’s interesting! Scroll back up to the top for the listen
1. Separation from the Feminine
The heroine begins her journey by separating from her feminine qualities or traditional roles. This may involve leaving home, rejecting societal expectations, or embarking on a quest for independence.
2. Identification with the Masculine and Gathering Allies
She adopts masculine traits and behaviors to survive or succeed in a patriarchal world. During this phase, she gathers allies, learns new skills, and faces challenges that test her strength and resolve.
3. Road of Trials and Challenges
The heroine encounters various trials and obstacles that force her to confront her fears, limitations, and internal conflicts. These challenges help her grow and develop a deeper understanding of herself.
4. Experiencing the Illusion of Success
At this stage, the heroine may achieve a sense of success or accomplishment by conforming to external expectations. However, this success often feels hollow or unfulfilling, leading to a sense of disillusionment.
5. Descent and Initiation
The heroine undergoes a period of introspection, often facing a significant crisis or dark night of the soul. This descent allows her to confront her shadow self and unresolved emotions, leading to profound self-awareness and healing.
See The Year I Learned to Dance with Darkness:
![[4.1] Part One: The Year I Learned to Dance with DARKNESS](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5KpW!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fcab320c9-2fdb-40b6-b186-758c308a5986_1456x1941.png)
6. Yearning for the Feminine and Healing the Mother/Daughter Split
She begins to reclaim her feminine qualities and seeks to integrate them with her newfound strength. This often involves healing relationships with other women, particularly the mother figure, and embracing her authentic self.
7. Spiritual Awakening and Integration
The heroine experiences a spiritual awakening, realizing her true power and purpose. She integrates her masculine and feminine aspects, achieving a sense of wholeness and balance.
8. Return to the Community
The heroine returns to her community, not as a conqueror but as a healer and guide. She uses her wisdom and experience to help others, fostering connection, empowerment, and transformation.
9. Sharing the Boon
The final stage involves sharing the gifts and insights gained from the journey with the larger world. The heroine's journey inspires others and contributes to collective healing and growth.
Does this resonate with you? Do you see your story mapping onto this archetypal framework? I want to hear!!!
One of the things Claudia Pinkola Estes emphasizes in Women Who Run with the Wolves is that in these archetypal journeys of the heroine one cannot rush any of the stages of development. She shares in the story of Vasalisa and Baba Yaga, the young girl is learning from the crone witch Baba Yaga and is thirsty for knowledge. She asks more and more questions about the mysterious happenings at Baba Yaga’s witchy home. Estes writes,
“By warning Vasalisa away from the question, Yaga cautions Vasalisa about calling upon too much … ‘to know too much can make one old too soon.’ Yaga here alludes to the cycles of a woman’s life. As a woman lives them she will understand more and more of these interior feminine rhythms of solitude, of play, of rest, of sexuality, and of the hunt. One need not push it, the understanding will come.”
Each of these stages of the Heroine’s Journey has pleasures, pains, new fronteirs and hard-earned lessons that must be experienced at the pace of life. By situating ourselves in the Heroine’s Journey, we begin to see how we too are the Heroine, the Dark Goddess embodied, and can begin to move through our own story not only in a more empowered way, but also in a way deeply connected to the larger context we exist in.
The Contemporaries
In the continued iteration and evolution of this project, I’m committed to exploring the many, many faces of THE RADICAL BADDIE and unveiling my own 👹
In Awakening Shakti, Sally Kempton writes the Goddesses are “not only figures of myth… [They] are powerful, palpable real. When many [people] invoke a particular cosmic energy, they create a channel that makes it easier for that energy to show up in the world.” YES! This is why I relate to the Goddess.
We, you and me and all our baddie friends, bring the Goddess to life and into the real world.
Go learn more from more Radical Baddies who are also walking this path -
provides you with step-by-step how to unveil the Godself. I’ve also been loving ’s dreamy podcast, spinning affirmations and meditations on embodied/spiritual creativity. I am endlessly moved to continue on this path of writing and creating because of my peers who are also boldly contributing to and shaping collective consciousness.This Substack is a devotional to the Dark Feminine, in Her many varied forms, and Her decolonial feminist calls-to-action. It is a study of Indigenous Wisdom and collection of spells & rituals (practice) that heals us mind-body-spirit, self-collective-planet.
Here at the Substack I muse and opine, but at yogawitharohi.com 🌸 I bring this work to life, set to music, guide you through dark goddess yoga aka tantric yoga 🧘🏽♀️
I blend meditation, breathwork, asana, intuitive movement, dance. I’d love to see you on the mat, first three classes are free with code THREEFREE.
I just finished this fictional modern re-telling of Schaherazade’s story (Every Rising Sun by Jamila Ahmed) and it was SO SO SO GOOD y’all. I couldn’t put it down. I’m sharing this note from the author in the afterword.
If you remember, it is actually the emergence of the Hero conquering the chaotic monster of mother nature (see Medusa, Serpents/Lilith, etc.) that was the bedrock upon which patriarchy would follow. Learn more at one of my original posts here Solar Eclipse: Descent of the Divine Masculine