The Danube, River of Danu Searles Fri Jan 22 19:18:28 1999 I received this as a reply to a message I'd posted on alt.religion.druid. It describes exactly how Danu is the Mother Goddess as manifested in the Danube River.*p*****p*Searles wrote <<.. I also have a relationship with*br*Danu through the Trinity River,>>*br*** Then let me relate a true event to you.*p*I lived in Germany for seven years, touring Pagan sites throughout Europe. I*br*had an opportunity to follow the Danube through all its names. From Germany*br*(Donau) thru Hungary & Romania (Dunarea), until it emerged at the Black Sea,*br*the Mouth of the Mother.*p*While in Regensburg, Germany we were pic-nicking on her banks - husband & two*br*teens. As I was looking at the water I had this overwhelming urge to get in, to*br*immerse myself. My husband then reminded me that the Donau is one of the most*br*polluted bodies of water in Europe. Regardless, I could control this*br*compulsion no longer. I waded in, fully clothed. *p*There I was standing waste deep & loving it. The water was warm yet cool; very*br*dark yet comforting somehow. I found myself going Within, towards the*br*Stillness. I heard voices in old tongues, saw scenes not in current time. My*br*husband said I was perfectly still, arms gently floating on the waters surface*br*for about 10 minutes before he called my name. "Niwalen! Snake in the water! *br*Wake up! You need to get out."*p*I opened my eyes & saw an electric eel, swimming towards me. She was about 20'*br*away. I Knew it was a 'her', just as sure as I Knew it was the Goddess. I was*br*not afraid, but instead laughed & said aloud "Come to me!" My husband about*br*had a coronary. He yelled "Niwalen! Get out now ... this isnt funny! Damit*br*if you dont get out I'm coming in!" The eel kept swimming closer still;*br*picking up his anxiety I then yelled "Stop!" ... to both of them. Hubby &*br*serpent both became still. I told him that I did not feel danger & that he had*br*to trust me. I never took my eyes off the snake. I then spoke to Her ... "I*br*am not afraid. I Know you." She then swam closer. She finally stopped at*br*arms distance. Her shining body rippling with each gentle wave; Her eyes like*br*black gemstones. She sang to me; Her voice was clear like water, like soft*br*chimes carried across a breeze. *p*I started to cry & was very aware of my tears dropping into the water. Of*br*those tears not becoming the water but *being* the water - the Donau. I felt I*br*was moving (but knew I was standing still). I was moving through a vast*br*expance of water - I was a current, a wave. I was moving towards 'a' sea (not*br*just 'the' sea) - the Sea of Consciousness. I felt 'one' with not just my*br*surroundings, but beyond that. I felt a Oneness with All That Lives, a*br*profound sense of connection. I Knew, at that moment, I was a shimmering*br*ripple upon the water, a reflection of a Greater Spirit - that I was Divine. *br*Then I 'woke up'; I found myself back where I had started - in the water - the*br*eel still in front of me. A smile lit up my entire body; all I could say was*br*"Thank you!" No sooner did the words leave my lips than the serpent swam away.*p*My life was changed that day.*p*All total I was in the water for about 20 minutes. I had my husband (who was*br*visibly shaken) hand me our glass water bottles, which I filled with water from*br*where I stood. *p*My husband told he he had never been more afraid; yet a few days later, he*br*related something he saw, but did not understand. He said as I stood in the*br*water, the serpent before me, a "glow" came off the eel & surrounded me. This*br*was in broad daylight so he rationalized it was the sun's reflection on the*br*water. He said as he walked back & forth across the bank, "waiting for that*br*snake to make a move towards you", this aura of light never changed. *p*I will never forget this encounter with Danu.*p*heart in hand ...*br*nGilcach*br*