The Sphinx is an ancient moon goddess, the goddess of birth and death. Part animal, part human, she remains connected to her deep instinctual nature. < ?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

 Most stories emphasize her aspect as a death goddess who carries the dead to the underworld. Often portrayed as a lion, she shares in the solar and regal symbolism of that animal. Her role as an oracular deity, given to enigma and riddles, points to her as a keeper of the great mystery.

 A symbol of strength, wisdom, and royal power, she reminds us that nothing comes to creation without some destruction and that sometimes to solve a mystery we must enter the darkness. This image reminds us that there is beauty even in the heart of that which terrifies.