San Diego Therapist Blog: Regina Huelsenbeck, PhD

Like the story of so many individual experiences with cancer, the myth of Inanna is a tale of both loss and transformation. The myth begins with Inanna, the Sumerian goddess as she learns that a sister goddess is suffering in the underworld and in need of help. Inanna, beautiful, powerful, giving and gracious resolves to descend into the underworld to help her friend. Inanna is the queen of heaven and earth, brilliant and strong but she truly has no knowledge, no lived experience in the underworld. She believes that the journey to the underworld will be challenging, but she will competently navigate the course and return to the upper world.
Inanna begins her descent and before long she arrives at the first gate to the underworld. The gate is dark and enormous, towering seven feet above Innana's head. At the first gate also stands a gatekeeper, he asks Inanna to first remove the red, blue, purple and green jeweled headdress she proudly dons in order for her to pass beyond his gate. Inanna is slightly reluctant but feels it is necessary to let it go for the time being, so she removes her headdress and continues through the gate. She travels a bit further down the path and reaches another gate. This gatekeeper asks Inanna to remove the magnificent necklace clanking around her long neck. Inanna calmly removes her necklace for the gatekeeper and is allowed to pass through the gate. She continues down the path and before long, she reaches a third gate. Then the third gatekeeper requests her breastplate for passage; this breastplate is textured gold beaten brass. It is handmade and simply stunning! Inanna loves it, but gives up yet another piece of power, another piece symbolizing herself, for admission further into the underworld.

The path continues to get darker; it becomes more cool and damp. She arrives at a fourth gate and here she removes her girdle. These losses continue for a total of seven gates; at each one Inanna leaves another symbol of her "upperworld" power behind. She finally enters the underworld stripped of most everything that defined her; she enters the underworld hovering close to the ground, hunched over and naked...

I tell this story because it reminds me of the passage into the world of cancer which is plagued with loss after loss. The re-telling of legend and myth have a unique ability to help us understand human suffering. (See any work by Joseph Cambell, Carl Jung, or "Tracking the Gods" by James Hollis) Our lives and specific challenges may be different from the Gods, but the pain is the same. The suffering is not unique.

Love and Light,

Regina