Drawing on myth, religious beliefs, and iconography from the Paleolithic Venus of Willendorf to medieval Madonnas to contemporary Hindu goddess images, psychotherapist and folklorist Shahrukh Husain offers a comprehensive, cross-cultural panorama of goddess worship through the ages. She documents the historic rivalry between the followers of male and female deities and the Goddess's new vitality today after centuries of suppression. The book includes examples from every era and tradition, vivid full-color illustrations, and dozens of informative sidebars.