Friday the 13th: Reclaiming the Sacred Feminine
Friday the 13th. Say it aloud, and you might feel a ripple of unease, a shadow of superstition passed down for generations. But have you ever stopped to ask why? Why a day so steeped in ancient rhythms and sacred cycles—so deeply tied to the divine feminine—has been reduced to whispers of fear and bad luck?
This isn’t just a story about a date. It’s a story about power. About who holds it, who fears it, and who decides what we should fear. To truly understand Friday the 13th, we have to unearth the roots of this story, to peel back the layers of distortion and reconnect with its original meaning.
Because Friday the 13th isn’t a curse. It’s an altar.
The Sacred Origins of 13 and Fridays
Long before 13 was seen as ominous, it was a number of profound spiritual significance. Across cultures, it represented the cycles of life, death, and rebirth. Thirteen lunar cycles shape the year, and many women’s menstrual cycles mirror the moon’s rhythm. In this way, the number 13 became a symbol of the feminine divine—creation, transformation, and renewal.
In ancient African and Indigenous traditions, this number was celebrated. It reflected nature’s harmony, the movement of the moon, and the wisdom of the earth. The Yoruba goddess Oshun, for example, embodies these same cyclical energies. Her waters are sweet and fertile, yet fierce and cleansing, reminding us that life flows in rhythms of growth, destruction, and rebirth.
Fridays, too, were sacred. Named after Venus (or Freya in Norse mythology), Fridays were dedicated to goddesses of love, beauty, and fertility. It was a day to celebrate the sensual and creative forces of life, a time to honor the divine feminine in her fullness.
I think of Fridays as invitations—a soft reminder to pause, adorn yourself, and honor the beauty of simply existing. When I learned about their deeper connection to feminine energy, I began using Fridays to lean into my creativity, my sensuality, and the magnetic energy that comes with being fully present in my body.
For centuries, 13 and Fridays carried no stigma—only reverence. So, what happened?
The Rise of Fear: How Friday the 13th Became “Unlucky”
As patriarchal systems rose to power, what couldn’t be controlled was often reframed as dangerous. The cycles of the moon, the mysteries of the feminine, the power of creation—these were forces that couldn’t be tamed. And so, they were suppressed, demonized, and cast as “other.”
The Number 13
With the rise of Christianity, the number 13 took on a new meaning. At the Last Supper, there were 13 attendees: Jesus and his 12 apostles. Judas, the betrayer, was the 13th to sit at the table. Over time, this association cemented the idea of 13 as a harbinger of betrayal and misfortune.
In Tarot, the 13th card is Death. But this card isn’t about endings alone—it’s about transformation, clearing the old to make way for the new. The original meaning of 13 as a number of renewal was distorted, and what was once sacred became feared.
Fridays
Fridays, tied so intimately to the feminine through Venus and Freya, also fell victim to this reframing. In Christian tradition, Friday became the day of the crucifixion—a day of mourning and misfortune. This shifted the narrative of Fridays from celebration to sorrow, adding to the eventual stigma of Friday the 13th.
Witches and Friday the 13th
By the Middle Ages, Fridays and the number 13 were further entwined with fear through the persecution of women labeled as witches. It was said that witches gathered in covens of 13 and performed rituals on Fridays. These gatherings weren’t malicious—they were celebrations of the cycles of nature, moonlit rituals honoring the sacred feminine.
But to the powers of the time, these women’s autonomy, their connection to the earth, and their reverence for the feminine were threatening. The sacred became sinister, and Friday the 13th became a scapegoat for fear of the unknown.
The Dark Feminine: Beauty in Shadow
To reclaim Friday the 13th is to step into the realm of the dark feminine—the part of the divine feminine that is transformative, unapologetic, and untamed. The dark feminine is not evil; it is the force of truth, the clearing of what no longer serves, the power of destruction that makes creation possible.
For Black women, this energy is ancestral. It is Oshun in her wrathful state, when her waters flood to cleanse and transform. It is the wisdom of the Black Madonna, holding both grief and grace. It is the resilience of generations who turned pain into power and shadow into light.
I’ve personally learned that stepping into the dark feminine isn’t about becoming someone new—it’s about meeting the parts of myself I’ve been taught to hide. There was a time when I thought my softness was a liability, that my boldness was too much. But working with the cycles of life, the moon, and ancestral wisdom has taught me that these contradictions are sacred. They are my power.
Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés writes, “The doors to the world of the wild Self are few but precious. If you have a deep scar, that is a door. If you have an old, old story, that is a door.” Friday the 13th is one of those doors—a chance to reclaim the parts of ourselves that have been buried, feared, or misunderstood.
Friday the 13th: A Sacred Invitation
This day, steeped in cycles and mystery, isn’t about bad luck. It’s an invitation to remember. To honor the rhythms of your life, to embrace the shadow as sacred, and to step into the fullness of your power.
Ask yourself:
• What parts of my power have I been taught to fear?
• How can I honor the cycles of my life—the endings, beginnings, and the spaces in between?
• Am I willing to reclaim the wild, untamed parts of myself?
Friday the 13th isn’t a curse. It’s an altar. A day to rewrite the story, to reconnect with the divine feminine in all her forms, and to remember that even in shadow, there is beauty.
