Chthonic AF: Rooting into Myths of Pleasure,
Monstrous Fertility, and the Ecstatic Earth Body
An online course led by Mariola Rosario
To be chthonic is to be of the earth, to belong to it. To come from the muck, the dark, the damp, the decomposing. It is also a point of connection, a mouth, a site of feeding, the above and the below intertwined. From this root, the flower blooms, and the fruit eventually touches our tongue. A place of fertility, a place of life.
It is no surprise, then, that chthonic deities (also called death deities) often relegated to the shadows of the underworld, have also always been linked to agriculture, fertility rites, birth and ecstatic body/earth rituals.
Six months ago, in Scorpio season, we descended. We sat with the dead. We unraveled the monstrous and the abject. But descents are never endings when you live in cyclical time. Now, in Taurus season, we find ourselves on the other side of the wheel, holding what has survived the underworld, what pulses with new life, what rises up, wild, unruly, ready to see the light.
The chthonic is not just death and decay, it is also the body remembering itself, the land bursting forth, the ecstatic rites of spring. It is Persephone returning, it is Demeter’s rage, it is Venus ruling both beauty and putrefaction. It is the body as a chthonic archive, holding trauma, pleasure, memory, and the wisdom of survival.
I invite you into this Taurus season course, a dive into the lush, fertile, deities, spirits, monsters, and archetypes that dwell in the body of the earth. We will root into these figures as mythic symbols, engaging them as sources of creative, embodied, and spiritual curiousity. As we move through Taurus season, a time ruled by Venus, a planet of sensuality, pleasure, and earth-bound wisdom, we will connect with these archetypes through a modern lens, weaving together mythology, visual culture, feminist thought, monster theory, astrology, tarot, and embodied creative practices.
This course is an experimental offering that invites you into the rich and tangled world of the chthonic, through the lens of Taurus.
Through a series of live Zoom gatherings, experimental lectures, lunar rituals, guided meditations, creative exercises and contemplative invitations, we will examine how these chthonic archetypes have been represented, misunderstood, and reimagined across history and culture. This is not a lecture series; it is a collaborative, immersive space where dialogue, storytelling, and creative interpretation are encouraged. You will have opportunities for artistic engagement, personal reflection, and collective meaning-making as we explore the myths that continue to shape us. You will also have the opportunity to engage with the material in the way that feels most comfortable to you. All Zoom gatherings will be recorded. Attendance is not mandatory. In fact, none of the material is mandatory. Enter as you wish, play as you want. All course material will be yours to use as you wish.
What Makes This Taurus-Season Chthonic AF Different?
If Scorpio-season Chthonic AF was the descent into the underworld: shedding skins, confronting the monstrous, and embracing the abyss, then Taurus-season Chthonic AF is about what happens next. This is the slow burn, the fertile decay, the rich compost of what was left behind.
This iteration unearths new monstrosities, new figures, and new ways of seeing. We expand the lens beyond death and shadow, into embodiment, pleasure, and the chthonic as a generative force. We explore ritual, the voice as spellwork, and the deep ties between monstrosity and fertility, horror and ecstasy, through the Dionysian Mysteries, the Thesmophoria, and different rites of spring.
Expect new myths, new monsters, fresh artist highlights, and an expanded framework for thinking about the chthonic in the body, in the earth, in sound, in movement. This course is a love letter to the Taurus-Scorpio axis.
The Body as a Chthonic Archive
The body remembers.
In this offering, we will explore the body as an archive of the chthonic: a site where trauma, pleasure, monstrosity, and transformation are encoded in flesh. The land is not the only place where things decay and bloom again. The body, too, is a compost heap of experience, of wounds and healing, of histories both personal and ancestral.
Taurus season offers us an opportunity to reclaim a different kind of time: one that is sensual, slow, and cyclical.
In medical astrology, Taurus rules the throat, the site of speech, song, and breath, while Scorpio governs the reproductive organs, the spaces of release, surrender, and transformation. Together, they mark the thresholds of the body, the places where something enters or exits, the openings where we take in and give back.
The Rites of Spring: Ecstasy, Fertility, and the Body
Spring is a season of rites. Across cultures and histories, the arrival of spring has been marked by festivals of excess, of mourning and revelry, of sacred ecstasy and release. From the Dionysian Mysteries to the Eleusinian initiations, from the Thesmophoria to the wild festivals of Bacchic trance, the rhythms of the earth have long been honored through ritual, dance, and embodied transformation.
To align with Taurus season is to enter this space, to listen to the body's deep knowing, to recognize pleasure as sacred, to reclaim ritual as a human necessity and as an act of presence.
What does it mean to engage in rites of renewal now? In a time when attention is fragmented, when the senses are dulled by overexposure of information, when desire is so often commodified? In this offering, we will explore the intersection of monstrosity, fertility, and ritual, asking how ancient rites can inform the ways we move, create, and reconnect today.
Creative Practices & Artist Highlights
Throughout our time together, we will engage with artistic practices that bring these concepts into form. We will explore: Contemporary and historical artists whose work engages with the chthonic, monstrosity, and embodiment.
Creative exercises that allow us to work with the themes of the course through writing, movement, and visual exploration. Sound and voice as expressions of the chthonic: how the throat (Taurus) and release (Scorpio) interact in both ancient rites and modern practices.
Taurus as the Chthonic:
The Monstrous as Earthly, Embodied, and Sustaining
Taurus is often spoken of as gentle, sensual, indulgent. But beneath that is something raw, something untamed. Taurus is not just the placid pasture, it is the bull, the charging force, the instinctual drive of the body.
Taurus is the chthonic. It is the earth that feeds but also consumes. It is the field that must be burned for new crops to grow. It is the fecundity that emerges because of death.
It is also the beast in the labyrinth.
The Minotaur, half man, half bull, dwells in the heart of the maze, a figure both monstrous and tragic, trapped in a space designed to contain him. His story is one of exile, of the body made unfit for the world above. And yet, he is also Taurus: powerful, visceral, and sacred in his monstrosity. What happens when we stop fearing the Minotaur? What if we allow ourselves to get closer to its wild eyes and savage stench. Would we be able to recognize ourselves in its hybrid eyes?
The friends we will meet along the way
In this course, we will encounter figures who embody the chthonic in different ways, gods, monsters, spirits, plants, artists and archetypes that shape our understanding of power, fertility, and transformation. Here are just a few:
Venus – Ruler of Taurus and Libra, goddess of love, beauty, and decay. She reminds us that fertility and destruction go hand in hand.
Demeter – Goddess of agriculture, harvest, grain, rage, and grief. She who stops the world when her daughter is taken.
Persephone – Queen of the underworld, goddess of cyclical return, both maiden and death-bringer. In many ways, she is the embodiment of Spring.
Dionysus – God of ecstasy, madness, and the body unbound. A chthonic deity of pleasure and dissolution.
The Minotaur – The beast in the labyrinth, the monstrous body made sacred and exiled at once.
Hekate – Guardian of the crossroads, torchbearer of the underworld, a goddess of liminality and thresholds.
and so many more!
Why Now? Spring is here, Taurus is calling
We are living in a time of rupture, disembodiment, and grief. The world demands speed, extraction, and productivity, yet the body has its own time, the earth has its own rhythms. To root into Taurus season is to reclaim a different pace, one that is slow and regenerative.
This offering hopes to be a humble yet powerful counterspell to disconnection. In a world that pulls us further from the land, from our bodies, from ritual, from cyclical time, we return to the chthonic as a space of remembrance.
Who Is This For?
This offering is for those who are drawn to myth, mystery, and embodied explorations. For those who feel an affinity with the monstrous, the exiled, and the unruly. It is for artists, seekers, and scholars who want to engage with the chthonic through creative and reflective practices. It is for those who feel disconnected from their bodies and long to return. For those who see power in slowness, in cyclical time, in rituals that bring us back to the earth.
No prior knowledge of astrology, mythology or art is required. This is an open space for curiosity, exploration, and engagement. You do not need to be an alumni of the previous Chthonic AF course I led during Scorpio season. This course will be engaging to people that have alreading been in the Chthonic universe with me, as well as people that are brand new to these topics.
Logistics & Exchange
Course Duration: Taurus Season (April 19th – May 20th, 2025)
Format & What is Included:
Three Live Zoom Gatherings on Wednesdays
Audio recordings and PDFs released weekly for self-paced engagement
Two lunar rituals: one for the New Moon in Taurus, one for the Full Moon in Scorpio
Guided contemplations and creative exercises
Artist highlights
Explorations of mythology, astrology, and visual culture
Tarot spreads and invitations for reflection
A curated bibliography with resources on chthonic myths, embodiment, and artistic interpretations
Bonus material and collaborators
A Community to engage with
Tuition for the course:
$80 USD | €76 EUR
$80 USD | €76 EUR
Calendar:
*Subject to changes due to me being a human.
*More dates will be added soon but these are the most important for now
-ALL 3 live meetups will take place on Wednesdays at12:30pm ET/11:30AM CT/9:30am PT/18:30 CET
-ALL 3 live meetups will take place over ZOOM
-All live sessions are recorded for those that cannot attend live, those that want to watch again or those that wish to do the course as a self-paced experience. (All options are welcomed)
- Opening ritual: Saturday, April 19th (1st day Taurus season) -no live meet up/self-paced recorded material
- 1st live meetup: Wednesday, April 23rd
- Sunday, April 27th- The New Moon Ritual, Recording will be sent the week before
- 2nd live meetup: Wednesday, May 7th
-Monday, May 12th- Full Moon ritual, recording will be sent the week before
- 3rd and final live meetup: Wednesday, May 14th
-no live meet up/self-paced recorded material
-You can sign up HERE Once you sign up, I will send you a link for payment. All other details such as zoom links will be forthcoming.
This course is an invitation to engage with chthonic mythology, visual culture, and creative practices in a way that is both personal and transformative. Whether you are drawn to the power of these ancient myths, the call of Taurus season, or simply curious about it all, Chthonic AF is designed to offer a space for deep exploration, contemplation, play, reflection, and creative growth.
Note: This course is open to everyone: all genders are welcome, and no prior knowledge of mythology or astrology is required. This is a space of inclusivity and collaboration, where the archetypes we explore transcend gender and speak to the human condition.