The Flowering Wand
Rewilding the Sacred Masculine
Sophie Strand’s insightful spirituality book The Flowering Wand gives men an alternative to toxic masculinity by mining the myths and legends of the past.
Strand notes that the treatment of masculinity in contemporary society is flawed. The patriarchy, she writes, devastated the environment and left men with a very limited way to live in the world. To fix the problem, her book examines the different faces that men have worn throughout time, celebrating masculine energy that leads to diversity and relationship building.
The book uncovers alternative masculinity narratives in ancient myths, legends, and symbols. It includes tantalizing hints of other masculinity models that enable men to be lovers, dancers, and dream-makers. These old stories, Strand says, are a path for men to become whole once again.
Each chapter presents a new vision of what a man might become if they are willing to explore a different path. Here, Dionysus shows that men might be lovers first, instead of killers. Conversely, Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey model is dismissed as a limited idea whose time has come and gone. In its place, a new quest is introduced, drawing on “Sleeping Beauty”; its goal is to wake up the sleeping world and allow dreams to become reality. These are fascinating explorations of the alternative paths available to men—echoes of what’s been considered possible in the past. And, Strand suggests, should men take up these different approaches to life: the world and the environment might benefit.
The Flowering Wand is a hopeful spirituality text whose mythic models of masculinity have the power to free men from painful cultural mindsets by embracing old narratives anew.
Reviewed by
Jeremiah Rood
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
