"I felt like I had been possessed by some magic and luckily for me, I have been miraculously and continuously possessed by some kind of magic." Madonna 2008
What the years 1988 and 1989 possibly mean for Our Lady.
"Just Like a Dream, You Are Not What You Seem" - Like a Prayer
"Just Like a Dream, You Are Not What You Seem" - Like a Prayer
In the midst of her Saturn Return, we discover that underneath The Artiste, in all her glorious artifice, is the natural woman showcased in Lee Friedlander's 1979 photographs. Perhaps, what we also have is a ritualistic pagan who called upon September's Muse to guide her. We hear, more often than not, that Madonna is The Muse, and yes she is for many - but who guides her?
With Like a Prayer, we get that once in a lifetime gift from a Goddess. Truth. If we do take the Saturn Return into consideration, then with Like a Prayer, lyrically we have Madonna shedding or purging her past but at the same time gaining the vision of where she will be going. According to astrologers, with Saturn Return, the 30th birthday indicates a major rite of passage because it marks the true beginning of adulthood, self-evaluation, independence, ambition, and self actualization. Madonna's 30 year mark on planet Earth was 1988 when the album was written, although released to mortals in 1989.Woven throughout the Like a Prayer album, we have tremendous lyrical associations with mythology, history, sacred symbols and objects. Everything from the muse, the midnight hour, magic lanterns, luck, elephants, candles, tears, leprechauns, flying, mermaids, death, marriage, divorce, resurrection, angels, cupid, fairies, wishes, dreams, power, feet, hair, transformation, and even on the song that didn't make the final cut, we have Supernatural - all about the incubus.
It was my impression upon the release of Like a Prayer, and even more so 21 years later, that Madonna was at her most dynamic female - a universal woman - Eve. Some call it Wiccan, Pagan, or witch but really Catholicism plucked all its rituals from the Pagans. So, who's zoomin' who? From our perspective, with what she has chosen to share, it's all completely organic and really the Kabbalah seems perfectly natural in her personal evolution.
Madonna has alluded to magic throughout her career, beginning with her sacrilegious habit of adorning herself in crucifixes, amulets, stars, clovers, hearts and other voodoo. In the La Isla Bonita video kneeling at her altar while lighting incense and clutching a rosary, she transforms herself from a high up blue recluse into a fire red flamenco dancer that descends among the plebeians, casts her spell and then dances off into unknown territory. In the Like a Prayer video she makes the Saint Martin statue come to life. In Secret, we see a Santería baptismal ceremony with more altars, candles and a sunflower submerged in water - long believed to deliver true love.
Since her career began it has been drenched with Pagan rituals, and Madonna has been the inspirational seductress, with millions under her spell. For me, there has always been something very bruja about Madonna. My first thought at 13 years old when I saw the 7" 45 of Borderline in 1984 was, "ooh - she looks like a sexy witch". I always imagined there was a cauldron underneath her hands in this photo:
Let's not forget the original pressing of the Like a Prayer album was scented with patchouli, a long time traditional ingredient in love potions.
I melt your heart as I melt this wax...
