Longing of Salomé

A Ritual Descent Into Forbidden Longing and Feminine Individuation

When: Lion’s Gate Portal
Live on Zoom on August 8, 2025, at 7 PM EST

The myth that has haunted the feminine psyche for centuries.

You might know Salomé as the woman who danced for the head of John the Baptist.

She’s been painted as a temptress, a femme fatale, a cautionary tale of feminine desire. Yet beneath that story lies an archetypal truth: Salomé embodies the wild hunger, the forbidden longing, and the shadow feminine that society fears and represses.

Salomé is the face of longing, the parts of you that ache for what is not yet yours.
She represents what you’ve been told to silence, bury, or deny.

But your longing never truly dies. It becomes shadow and hunger. It calls your soul forward toward individuation, toward wholeness, toward the woman you’re meant to become.

In the biblical story, Salomé danced before King Herod, and when offered anything she desired, asked for the head of John the Baptist on a silver platter.

Oscar Wilde reimagined her as a woman possessed by forbidden desire, her longing so fierce that she chose death over denial. Wilde’s Salomé kissed the severed head of the prophet, a symbolic act of claiming the desire that society had forbidden her.

Throughout centuries of paintings, plays, operas, and films, Salomé has symbolized both the danger and power of feminine longing.

I. Oscar Wilde, “Salomé”: “The mystery of love is greater than the mystery of death.”

II. Carl Jung, “The Red Book”: “She is Salomé, who loved the Baptist and whose love was rejected. She is the daughter of Elijah. She is both the primal and the childlike.”

Salomé isn’t simply a historical figure; she’s an archetype, alive in the unconscious of every woman who has ever desired something deemed “too much.”

A detailed painting of a regal scene inside a grand, ornate hall with gilded and decorative architecture. A central figure sits on a throne, surrounded by attendants, one woman offers flowers while another stands to the side. The scene is illuminated by soft, natural light filtering through the windows.

Carl Jung encountered Salomé as an essential figure in his personal visionary journey, documented in The Red Book. She appeared as his anima: the embodiment of longing, desire, Eros, and shadow.

I. Jung described Salomé as blind, symbolizing unconscious desire and primal feminine hunger.

II. She is the feminine soul who leads us into the dark toward transformation.

III. Jung saw Salomé not as a seductress to fear but as an essential figure guiding the psyche toward individuation, becoming whole by integrating desire and shadow.

“Salomé is the soul, who leads us into the dark, into death and transformation.” — Carl Jung, The Red Book

This workshop is deeply informed by Jungian insight, showing you how the Salomé archetype can help you reclaim your own forbidden longing, shadowed desire, and feminine power.

A woman with long, dark hair wearing a cream-colored dress and gold accessories, holding a silver plate, posing against a dark background.

Longing is not lack.

Longing is your soul’s hunger for what is forbidden, forgotten, or buried.

Society tells you longing is evidence of deficiency, that wanting means you’re not grateful enough, not manifesting correctly, not moving quickly enough. So you bury your longing, turning it inward as shame. You act as if you already have it all together. But deep inside, the hunger never fades.

Salomé shows you another way:

Longing as holy hunger, not shame

Longing as the voice of the shadow feminine: powerful, wild, unapologetic

Longing as a guide toward wholeness and authenticity

As you reclaim longing, you reclaim the lost parts of yourself.

“She is desire, she is hunger, she is the dance that breaks the chains of the old.”

Christina Zayas, Founder

A painting of a woman with dark hair holding a bowl with a bearded man’s head. The woman wears a yellowish dress, and the background is dark.
A woman with dark, curly hair sitting on a decorated wooden box, wearing a gold and pink dress, holds a tray with jewelry and other items. The background is a yellow curtain and the floor has patterned rugs.
Painting of a woman dressed in exotic jewelry and a peacock feathered skirt, kneeling on the ground with a lion's head on a shield nearby, set against a dark background.

Inside this live 90-minute archetypal exploration, you’ll journey deeply through the myth of Salomé to discover your own sacred longing.

You’ll receive:

  • Immersive Storytelling: Explore Salomé’s myth through art, poetry, history, and Jungian psychology.

  • Jungian Teachings: Understand longing, shadow, hunger, and how these archetypes guide you toward individuation.

  • Guided Reflection: Engage in deep personal inquiry, exploring your own forbidden longing and shadow desires.

  • Integration Ritual: A powerful practice to anchor your transformation, guided by Christina.

  • Replay Access: Revisit this experience anytime.

You will leave knowing how to:

  • Honor longing as sacred, not shameful

  • Integrate shadow desires into your authentic self

  • Move beyond cultural conditioning to reclaim feminine power

  • Use longing and hunger as pathways to wholeness

A painting of a woman in historical attire, sitting beside a stone wall, with dark curly hair, wearing a gold and white dress with red accents, a necklace, and a veil with a pink flower, gazing at the viewer.

The invitation is yours if…

  • You feel a deep hunger or longing and are ready to understand its true meaning

  • You’ve sensed there’s more to you than you’ve been allowed to express

  • You resonate with the archetypes of the dark feminine, shadow, and Eros

  • You want a rich, experiential journey, not surface-level spirituality

  • You’re ready to reclaim what society has silenced or denied in you

A painting depicting a woman dressed as a queen, pointing towards a divine, glowing figure in a church or cathedral setting with ornate architectural details and a guard holding a spear.

Date: Friday, August 8, 2025
Time: 7 PM EST
Location: Live on Zoom (Replay Included)

Details & Investment

FULL PRICE OFFER

$67

Lifetime access included

ABOUT CHRISTINA

Christina Zayas is the founder of Cultesh, devoted to guiding women through shadow alchemy, embodied archetypal wisdom, and Jungian depth work. Her work blends myth, ritual, and Jungian teachings to help women reclaim their full feminine power, shadow, and longing, walking the path of true individuation.

A woman with dyed blonde hair and tattoos holds a large geode with a dark background.

Christina Zayas, Founder of Cultesh

Your hunger is not something to fear; it’s a sacred calling. Your longing isn’t shame; it’s your truth.

Salomé waits at the threshold, offering you the keys to your becoming.