Shekhinah Mountainwater (October 24, 1938 - August 11, 2007[1]) was a musician, author, teacher, priestess of Aphrodite,[2] and a key figure in the Goddess movement.

She is well known on the west coast of the United States, but has a significant following throughout America and abroad for her music, writing, teaching, WomanRunes, Moonwheels, Goddess ritual, and spiritual and social activism.

Mountainwater was a pioneer of what is now referred to in some circles as “Pagan music;” her unique melding of folk and spiritual, ritualistic themes eventually led to her passion for the Goddess.

She began folksinging during the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 60's, and played in the same coffee houses in the Village in New York as Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell.

Mountainwater was one of the first musicians in the early 60's folk movement to start re-tuning the guitar to simple chords, creating a unique and resonant sound that was reminiscent of the organ, or sometimes even the bag-pipe.

She was able to communicate stories from the protagonist's perspective, allowing the listener to delve into the psyche of her characters—to feel the pain and joy of an icon personified.