What Is A Priestess And Do You Have This Soul Template?



Shani holds a mirror to your soul, so you can…
The title “Priestess” is edging into mainstream spirituality, but what exactly is a Priestess, or High Priestess, and how do you know if your soul has this template?
The first time I encountered the word Priestess was at my Yoga Teacher Training in Koh Phangan, Thailand. It was the end of the program, and I was deep in conversation with one of my teachers, Johanna. Seemingly out of the blue, she asked me, “Have you done a Priestess initiation?”
The answer was no, I hadn’t, but something within me lit up at the mere mention of Priestess. Only now can I look back with greater wisdom and understand that something within Johanna witnessed something within me, and my soul was remembering.
I’ve always felt I have a calling to serve and empower other women. I’ve always been highly sensitive and intuitive and have recently enjoyed embarking on a path to reclaim and radiate my feminine essence. But it wasn’t until I started remembering and walking the Priestess path that I discovered this template is deeply coded in my soul. And if you found your way here, it might be coded in yours, too.
A brief history of the priestess
Thousands of years ago, before the rise of the Church and patriarchy, the Goddess religion—an earth-based religion—reigned, and the Great Mother was honored.
We lived in harmony with nature’s natural cycles and the wheel of the year. Women embraced roles as teachers, healers, mothers, temple keepers, and guides and were respected for what they uniquely brought to their communities. They were the weavers and Creatrixes of life. Their innately feminine gifts of nurturing, receptivity, intuition, sensuality, and being in the unknown were powerful, desirable qualities.
Later on, in Egyptian, Greek, and Roman times, Priestesses still resided in holy temples, worshiped the Mother, counseled Kings, and were highly regarded. But over time, their power became feared by men. As patriarchy rose, they twisted Priestess’s spiritual practices and gifts into an evil, dark force that must be stopped.
Many sex Priestesses were turned into prostitutes. Women began to conceal their gifts and cease practicing magic. Their temples were destroyed or built over with other religious sites, which can still be seen today in the old, abandoned wells and springs at holy sites. The ones who managed to escape left their temples and hid out of fear for their lives. And we carry this internal fear, this witch wound, with us as women today in our ancestral lines.
What is a priestess?
When pondering on the most concise Priestess definition to share with you, I came across a very brief description on the web, which states that a Priestess is “a woman who officiates in sacred rites.” Another definition says a Priestess is “a female Priest of a non-Christian religion.”
Bullshit.
Priestesses came long before Priests. And they are not a female version of the Priests you’ll find plucked and plopped into churches today.
A Priestess is a woman who walks the bridge between the seen and unseen worlds. She represents mystery, fertility, and the divine feminine. She is highly intuitive and in sync with Earth’s natural cycles.
She is a seeker, a keeper, and a mystic. And she is both a peacemaker and a warrior of the world. She leads with her heart and trusts that she is always held. She walks the path of her soul, daring to journey into the wild.
The Priestess has long been banished and dishonored, but we are now in a time of remembering. Women remember their ancient roles as leaders, healers, and sacred wisdom keepers. They remember what it feels like to live their lives guided by intuition. We are healing our feminine wounds and ditching the distorted masculine way to run the feminine template. By doing so, we encourage other women to remember.
This is the path of the Priestess.
What is a high priestess?
A High Priestess is a Priestess who has completed her initiation and training and undertaken a period of learning and growth to lead and mentor other Priestesses.
What are the signs that you carry the priestess template within?
Here are some of the core gifts of the Priestess template, which I have witnessed in my life growing up and had confirmed to me while doing my Priestess training with Violetta Pleshakova.
If you resonate with the Priestess template and want to delve deeper, I highly recommend Violetta’s Cosmic Femme program. It has been a mystical and transformational experience I will carry and cherish forever.
1. The word “priestess” unravels something within you
For many women, simply hearing the word Priestess evokes something within them from a parallel life in which they were leading, being of service, offering guidance, leading rituals, and tending to their temple.
This was true for me. I couldn’t quite explain why I was drawn to this word, this idea, this archetype, without having any present understanding of what it was or symbolized, but I was.
If you feel some resonance now, I encourage you to follow this thread and see where it takes you.
2. You are a bridge between the worlds
A Priestess has an innate ability to have one foot in the physical world and another in the spiritual realm at all times. This is why if you embody the Priestess template, you might feel as though you don’t truly belong to this world or like you’re from a different planet or galaxy (and you might be).
She can commune with the Universe, hear guidance, and understand that there is always more than what meets the eye. She recognizes that being and inner work are equally important as doing in the outer world.
As within, so without.
3. You are called to the feminine
Society is led by the distorted masculine, and on some level, this way of living and leading just doesn’t serve or suit you. Even if you’ve found your way to incredible external success in your work, this do more, be more, have more approach leaves you feeling exhausted and empty.
You know there’s a different way, which has led you toward the feminine. Walking the Venus path, healing your personal wounds around the feminine, and daring to run the feminine template and trust that this is enough.
You’ve found yourself drawn back to the way women used to ground themselves through the seasons of the year and live by the cycles of the moon. You’ve connected on a deeper level to your menstrual cycle and moon blood and choose to flow with it rather than push against it.
4. You choose authenticity above all
A Priestess knows who she is on a soul level and chooses to honor that regardless of whether society or the people around her support this.
She tunes into her heart and commits to walking her soul path, and she’s more than willing to walk in the dark. It’s more important to her to be authentic and stay true to herself than to gain outward approval and validation.
5. You are a pillar of light
Priestesses incarnate on Earth to rescue it from darkness and bring the light. Imagine a stream of light pouring down from Source through the crown of your head, running down your body like a pillar, through your womb space, and down into the core of Earth.
You are a walking pillar of light, often sent here with a mission to bring light to your family, community, students, friends, romantic partners, or clients. As long as you keep your channel clear, people can feel your light and presence when you’re around.
6. You are here to be of service
Whether it’s mothering her children, leading a local moon circle, writing a poem, helping women birth babies, teaching yoga, or speaking on stage in front of thousands, a Priestess is dedicated to being of service.
Priestesses have a deep desire to do meaningful work in the world which serves those around them. She naturally takes on the role of a leader or teacher. She works as a vessel for the divine and bridges people with their highest truth. And she always offers loving guidance and support to the women she steps into a circle with and serves.
7. You have psychic gifts
Everyone has psychic gifts, but Priestesses will often be more tuned in to theirs from an early age, whether it’s being hyper-sensitive, hearing your intuition and following that guidance, feeling into the collective energy of a room, receiving messages in dreams, or simply knowing something without being able to explain the how.
You use practices like meditation, yoga, journaling, embodied movement, and tarot readings to harness and strengthen your psychic gifts. Because you know that the more you tune into them, the more powerful they become.
8. You are a natural space holder
A Priestess has an innate ability to hold space for others to show up as their authentic selves. You might notice this through other people turning to you for guidance or support or seeing you as a leader of some kind.
Holding space isn’t something you do; it’s a way of being. It’s about being fully present in the moment, being an active listener, and tuning into the vibration of the person or group. You won’t know what you’ll say or do until the moment comes. You trust that you’ll receive the inner guidance and follow it with faith.
Being a space holder is a powerful gift for everyday conversations and facilitating circles or leading classes. It allows the people in your presence to feel supported, seen, and heard.
9. You make ritual, spellwork & ceremony a part of your life
A ritual turns something ordinary into something magical and sacred, fuelled with your deepest intentions. This is why Priestesses are drawn to making and tending to altars around their home.
Maybe you take a healing bath to wash away the day, light a candle before you journal or some incense before yoga, cast a spell with your choice of words, give thanks before you eat a meal in sweet silence, or pray to the Universe for guidance on where to go next.
Rituals and ceremonies are a beautiful way to honor a specific occasion or intention, help you work through a particular shadow or block, and manifest your deepest soul desires. They have the power to transform and heal you in the most unexpected of ways.
Do you feel the Priestess template within you? Are you remembering? Share your thoughts, comments, and questions with me below.
Thank you for this article! It resonates deeply. I’m not sure when I’ll feel “good enough” to use “priestess” and especially “pleasure priestess” but it is who I am. I just need to walk into it, into HER. Thanks!!
Emily
Thank you for reading and sharing this Emily ✨ if you resonate with the word Priestess, it’s because you were one in a past life. This is your lineage and you are here to reclaim it.
Own it, Priestess 💃🏼
Shani x
My guides told me a few weeks ago that I was a priestess.. I had no idea what it truly means but I recognized myself through everything you describe here. Thank you for sharing
Love this ❤✨ thank you for reading!
Shani x
I so believe in karma, good vibes and the ways of a High Priestess and want to become one and interact with different people from the seen and unseen
I love this Tamara! There are lots of amazing Priestess initiations you can do to immerse yourself in this work more deeply, but following the steps in this article will really help you embody her day to day ✨
Shani x