The triple Goddess of fate. Lady luck. The unknown power of
all coincidence and synchronicity; the mysterious mind of the universe that
somehow decides the fortunes of all humanity. From the dawn of time humans
have sought to influence the apparent whims of the physical reality which
surrounds us; magick, religion and science have all taken their turn. Need
to get lucky? Need some good fortuner to enter your life? Feel jinxed and
want the universe to smile on you again? Call upon The Goddess Fortuna, Lady
Luck!
The power of fate, personified as the Goddess, has many
names: Wyrd to the Northern peoples of Europe and Tyche to the Greeks, and
to the Romans she was Fortuna; her name may be derived from Vortumna, ‘she
who turns the year’.
While many aspects of the Goddess appear universal and thus
impersonal, it seems that Fortuna was in some ways recognized as having a
more intimate connection with men, each having his own spirit of luck to
guide him through life
In Rome the consort of Fortuna was serpentine Agathodaimon, the
good genius who guided humans in life, in the jargon of modern magick, the
guardian angel. Among the titles of this Goddess she lists are Fortuna
Primigeneia, the firstborn; Fortuna Muliebris, Goddess of Women; Fortuna
Scribunda, the fate who writes; Fortuna Regia, Goddess of Rulership; Bona
Fortuna or Mala Fortuna, good and bad fate. She speaks also of Fortuna
Augusti or Fortuna Regia, personification of the emperor’s rulership; a
golden statue of her accompanied them at all times and was passed along to
their successors. To the Greeks she was Tyche basileos. Another name still
common was Agatha, ‘kindly fortune’.
In ancient times, on calendar wheels, even numbers were male
and odd, female; and that the odd-numbered days were thus considered more
favorable for festivals. They survive as the red and the black on roulette
wheels.
Technology, the wheel (on carts or for pottery) changed and
quite vastly accelerated the whole course of human civilization. On a more
common level, the carnival wheels of the merry-go-round, the Ferris-wheel,
and of course the ever-popular roulette wheel indicate the element of chance
and of pleasure inherent in life in the world, however much of a gamble it
may seem. It should be noted that early games were often teaching tools as
well as instruments for determining the fates or the will of the gods. The
Tarot itself may be seen as a wheel. Taro = Rota (wheel)
Fortune is the Goddess who personifies the power of the
universe as fortune or, some would say, Karma. Fortuna reminds us that we
are not separate from the natural cycles, but are a very important part of
the cycles of life. She reminds us that every action we take on the planet
has many effects that last a long time. Thus we invoke her, to help us
understand these cycles, gain good fortune and to help the fortunes of
others.