Moon Dance

“Libya! Aren’t there lions in Libya?”

Elishat’s passengers were gathered in the market square to hear the plans for the final leg of the voyage. The comforts of their shore leave in lively Kommos left them less than eager to return to life aboard the ships.

“There are dangers everywhere,” came Bitias’s impatient reply. “We will call at Motye and from there we will sail for Atiq.”

            “Why don’t we just sail directly for Atiq?”

            “At Motye we will take on last-minute supplies and livestock. I don’t think you’ll want to travel any longer than necessary with sheep and goats and chickens.”

            A woman shouted, “Bad enough to have to travel with all these sailors!”

A nearby mariner pulled her giggling into a bear hug.

             “How long is the voyage?” someone called out.

“In a week or two we should have landed at Motye, but Yamm can hold us back or thrust us forward on a whim. Make yourselves useful and the time will pass more quickly.”

The passengers groaned.

“Report first thing in the morning to load cargo. In the meantime, enjoy your last night in the city.”

That evening, the women of Kommos flocked to the temple of Ariadne, Mistress of the Labyrinth, for the hallowed full moon ceremony. As invited guests, the women of Elishat’s fleet brought pots of honey for the goddess who, it was said, loved nothing better. Amaal and Uru made their way with the others along the torch-lit street filled with the sound of drums, rattles and gourd pipes, toward the temple ringed with billowing censors, and into its large, central courtyard. They followed a stone pathway that surrounded the courtyard’s main feature: a huge, circular labyrinth. Elishat and the Priestess sat on an elevated dais, Elishat in her sparkling diadem and the Priestess in her white make-up and high conical hat. Amaal and Uru stood near them at the front of the crowd.

The rose yellow moon peeked over the horizon, signaling the start of the ceremony. The high priestess of Ariadne, robed in shimmering silver, descended the temple steps. She carried a terra cotta disc for all to see. Amaal caught a glimpse of it as she passed. It was etched with a circular pathway exactly like the labyrinth in the courtyard, but, unlike the labyrinth, it was decorated with images: a bird and eggs, a dancer in a long gown, a stem of wheat, an eight-petaled flower. There were more, but the priestess passed by before Amaal could see them all.

The priestess entered the labyrinth and made her way step-by-step along the path as the moon continued its slow transit upward. She placed the disc on a stone pedestal at the center of the labyrinth and raised her arms as if to open a space for something or someone to enter. One-by-one, the temple maidens processed past Amaal, and, as they did, the meaning of the disc became clear. Each carried a sacred offering—a sheath of wheat, a caged dove and eggs, an armful of flowers—exactly like the ones depicted on the disc. The last of the maidens approached Noam and invited her to join them. Noam looked first to the Priestess, who nodded her consent, then followed the others into the labyrinth. Waving, flowing, turning, she danced her way gracefully along the path. The maidens reached the center of the labyrinth just as the moon came full face into the sky, bathing everything in glowing moonlight. Amaal and the other visitors watched, mesmerized.

The maidens left their offerings at the center of the labyrinth and danced one full turn in a circle. They bowed to one another and returned, one-by-one, the same way they had come. Ariadne’s priestess came last, carrying the sacred disc up the steps and into the temple. The moonrise ceremony ended, and the crowd, enthralled by the beauty of it all, had just started to leave the courtyard when, out of nowhere, Noam rushed up the steps and onto the dais. Amaal watched and listened as the dancer knelt breathless before the Priestess.

“What is it, daughter?” the Priestess said.

“Blessed Priestess…” Noam gushed.

“Calm down.”

“Blessed Priestess, my voyage is over.”

“Come, now, you’re swept up in the moment. The moon is full, and…”

“Respectfully, Priestess, this is no childish whim.” Noam turned to Elishat. “Forgive me, Queen. There is no other place for me. My place is here. My dance, my prayer, my life must be a dedication to the Mistress of the Labyrinth.”

Elishat replied, “Are you certain?”

“I have never felt so sure about anything.”

The Priestess looked to Elishat who gave a reluctant nod, silently subtracting the dancer from the number of female passengers in her fleet. Amaal watched the Queen look longingly up at the moon as if she hoped the glowing face of the goddess might show her how to bring an end to the constant changes.

“I bless your decision, daughter,” the Priestess said, “but not without exacting a promise from you first.”

“Oh, yes, Priestess, anything.”

“You must bring Ashtart to Kommos.”

“Ashtart to Kommos? I don’t understand.”

“You must oversee the building of a shrine, however modest, to Goddess—here in Kommos.”

“Oh!” Noam blushed with pride. “Yes, yes, I’d be honored.” She looked again to Elishat for reassurance.

Elishat came back from the moon. Whatever she had been contemplating, it was clear to Amaal that she had found something there. “You must stay,” Elishat said definitively.

The Priestess and Noam looked to her for an explanation.

“On my wedding day, a seer spoke of a giant web crossing the Great Sea. I have often wondered what he meant. Now, the meaning of his vision is clear to me. You will be no less one of my people if you remain here in Kommos than you would be if you were to come with us to the new city. Your presence here will form a point on the giant web. It will be a blessing for all.”

The Priestess nodded and laid her hand on Noam’s head. “May your devotion please the goddess, and may she bless you and this sacred dancing ground for an eternity of full moon nights.” Amaal listened to the conversation. Just like that, with one moon dance, Noam had found her purpose and place. Something about it seemed unfair. She walked back with Uru and the others through the city bathed in moonlight, took the shore boat to the Phoenix and stood on the deck looking out over the water. The moonlight glittered on the sea, illuminated the lavender mountains, and outshone the constellations in the celestial dome. Amaal’s emotions took her far away from the view. Everything she admired about Noam was making her angry: her grace, her sensitivity, her honesty, but mostly, her discovery. How the temple maiden had arrived at it, Amaal couldn’t say. She only understood that she, too, wanted whatever it was that had taken Noam into its all-powerful embrace.

← Chapter 30 | Chapter 32 →