The Goddess Fauna is sometimes linked with Faunus a God of fertility, said to be her father. Fauna was generally honoured under the name Bona Dea and women held festivals at the beginning of December, forbidden to men. In this sense Fauna was connected in the Roman mind with female fertility.
    However, Fauna has less to do with human conception and much more to do with the care and well-being of wild creatures.

The Goddess Fauna chooses to appear a little older than Flora - in her mid 30s. She has brown hair and hazel-coloured eyes. Whereas Flora radiates tranquil beauty, Fauna has large strong hands and feet and an altogether determined disposition.
    Encounters with Fauna always take place in the wild, a forest or jungle and team-members are shown how she works. It is an amazing experience...  

'...The temple glowed with a brown and orange light and I heard a soft voice, very sweet:
    "You welcome me, the Goddess Fauna, into your temple. It is full of silver, everywhere I look and you two mortals are covered in it. I know you have been blessed by many Gods and Goddesses. For these few moments I am pleased to be here. 
    Come priestess, see the wildlife at its best. Unfortunately it is not always like this." A figure appeared aged I would say in her mid thirties. Brown hair and hazel-coloured eyes, large strong hands and feet. But quite different to Diana. 
    No arrows, I noticed, with relief.
    She led me, very gently into woodland. I saw fields and meadows in the countryside and we were walking along a leaf-strewn path. I saw all sorts of wild animals: rabbits, wild cats, foxes, weasels, stoats, a whole community and every single one of them looked in such fine health. 

In a clearing ahead I saw a herd of deer with young fawns, suckling; and nearby a rabbit munched and watched the activity while the herd grazed nonchalantly. I saw another vixen hurry across a field toward us.
    I watched as the vixen ran to Fauna and it allowed her to scoop it up in her arms. She tickled it under the chin and I swear the creature was smiling. We walked on. She carried the vixen in her arms for a little way and then set her down.
    We walked on through the woodland and between some undergrowth a rabbit lay in a snare, dead and bleeding. She simply tore open the snare and gently cradled the young rabbit in her hands. All the rabbit's body was enveloped in a ball of golden light. First it was dead, then it wasn't. It stirred in her hands and she let it down. The rabbit hopped off toward a field where other rabbits were playing. Fauna watched it run. She held the snare in her hand and another golden ball of light rolled over it and the thing simply disappeared. She seemed really angry: 
    "I shall see that the mortal who set this trap shall die an agonizing death.  
    Through mortals' greed there is much cruelty in your world, much suffering of animals, whether wild, farm or domestic. Innocent animals are hunted by men and women who have more money than they have sense. They shall pay dearly. 

Mortals who take part in cruel sports involving animals have either been trapped on your plane, the earth, or have gone to spend some time with the mighty God Hades. Not one will escape punishment."
    Again I thought of Hades' cages. It was bad enough to pay a quick visit into those realms. To be there as work-in-progress. It is better to be good than to ever have to face his fury, and that scornful laugh while you suffer. No thanks, a few moments on a Wednesday evening is enough for me. Fauna was smiling at me, serious, but smiling. Could she read my thoughts? 
    Some can.
    "I am making my influence felt around your world. There is cruelty in every country; yet more mortals are protesting, but much work still needs to be done. There will be laws that no animal will ever be ill-treated in any way; but I fear this will not be for quite a while."

As we walked through the woodland the vegetation seemed to thicken and the atmosphere more damp and heavy and hot. The leaves were no longer those of a temperate wood but jungle rainforest. She brushed aside a huge tree branch and we were standing on a river bank. A great wash of browny green water. The waterway was wide and there were river craft passing in both directions. A boat chugged below us, stacked high with cages. Inside I saw animals: rats, dogs and cats and all kinds of furry creatures. Cages too small to allow the creatures to stand.
    "Wicked mortals make money from selling these defenceless creatures for food."
    One end of the boat was piled high with nets and empty cages. It passed on upriver, then another boat of caged animals came along.
    "Unfortunately there are many mortals who do not have compassion for animals."

She led me back into the jungle and next she pulled me, she was running through the jungle at lightning speed, through dense vegetation as if it wasn't there.
    One time we stopped beside a rock to see, all curled up, a snake and the sunshine reflected all different colours. It was beautiful.
    "In south America and Africa my voice now is heard. There is not as much shooting and trapping of the wild creatures as there has been.
    Now I will show you one of my dwellings."
    And again we ran through the jungle.
    At the foot of a mountain I saw a huge cave and all around the entrance were grazing animals. Large animals like elephants and giraffes, but there were also horses and bears and stags; perhaps two or three of each kind of animal. Fauna walked among them and each momentarily looked up from its grazing. And I swear an elephant raised its trunk and bellowed as she entered the cave.

Inside was just as amazing. It was alive with much smaller animals. Cats and dogs and stoats and weasels and a fox with her cubs. There were masses of animals all over the place, the floor was covered with straw and animal food.
    Deeper into the cave I saw a small stone wall about a metre and a half high, behind which stood a comfortable looking couch and a table with a large bowl of fruit. Set around the table were several stools. But nothing overtly luxurious about the comforts. The interior of the cave seemed to be illuminated with a silvery light. 
    Fauna stroked several of the animals as she passed among them.
    "Every animal you see here has been hurt and injured by a cruel mortal. But all have recovered. When strong enough they will return to the wilds. 
    The time will come when there are less animals here."
    I couldn't help but smile. As I looked back at the entrance of the cave a group of animals had gathered and several were looking inside. Fauna emerged with a great bundle of hay.
    "I bless all wildlife and domestic animals. So be compassionate to all creatures whether domestic or wild. Be compassionate to the whales and the seals. Work for the rights of all creatures and animals. If the animals are happy, I am happy."

Festival of Fauna - May 27th