Princess Märtha Louise of Norway explains quirky meanings behind her new 'non-royal' monogram with bisexual fiancé Shaman Durek Verrett ahead of their August wedding

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Princess Märtha Louise of Norway has revealed the new monogram that has been created ahead of her wedding to Shaman Durek Verrett - but revealed that the cipher is 'not official'.

The piece, which which was created by an agency called Anti Hamar, was described by the royal as 'a wonderful emblem embedded with important symbolism for both [Shaman Durek] and myself embracing our love'.

It features both of the couple's initials, alongside hieroglyphics and Egyptian symbols which have meanings that are specific and symbolic to them.

Royal houses customarily release ciphers when couples tie the knot, with the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex among those with their own monogram. 

But as Märtha Louise, 52, pointed out, her cipher is 'not official'. Sharing the image on Instagram, she wrote: 'This is not an official monogram, as I no longer represent the Royal family at official functions.'

Princess Märtha Louise of Norway (pictured, right) will wed her fiance Shaman Durek Verrett (pictured, left) in August

The couple recently revealed they have had a cipher (pictured) designed - however, it is not official as the princess no longer represents the Royal Family at official events

MEANINGFUL: The princess revealed the meanings behind the different symbols included in the cipher (pictured)

The princess, who is King Harald V and Queen Sonja's only daughter, renounced her royal duties in 2022, with reports saying she was  forced to step down due to her partner's controversial views, including that childhood cancer is caused by unhappiness. 

Their union, which she revealed in an Instagram post in May 2019, has always been considered by some to be controversial. Märtha Louise describes herself as 'spiritual' and claims to be a clairvoyant, while Durek Verrett, who is bisexual, calls himself a 'shaman'. 

However, despite the controversy surrounding the partnership, in July of 2022, she and Durek announced their engagement. 

They revealed their wedding plans more than a year later in September 2023, revealing that they intended to tie the knot in August of this year at Hotell Union in Geiranger, Norway.

Speaking more about the monogram in her recent Instagram post, Märtha Louise said: 'Thank you so much to the amazing team @anti_hamar for embracing both of our souls into this representation of the two of us. You have done such a great job in capturing both of our essence into one symbol.'

Explaining the meaning behind the cipher, she continued: 'Honoring our past life together in Egypt, the monogram embraces the hieroglyphs and...Egyptian symbols.'

The hieroglyph M stands for Märtha, and according to the royal, it represents 'the wise owl, a guardian of souls navigating between worlds. The owl represents the protector, guiding humans through the passage from the earthly existence to the spirit world'. 

Meanwhile, the D stands for Durek. The hieroglyph for D, Märtha explained 'manifests as the hand - a symbol of actions performed with grace, opening doors and dancing through life'.

 

The princess went into great detail about the symbolism behind the monogram

Continuing to list the meanings of the cipher's symbols, she wrote: ' The Eye of Horus representing healing and knowledge. A symbol of protection from evil. Egyptian texts say Horus right eye was the sun and his left eye was the moon. Representing the masculine and the feminine energies. The beginning and the end. The rising sun of day and the rising star at night.'

Next, she explained the inclusion of a symbol representing horses, noting that they 'have been a central animal through both our lives. Honouring their sensitivity, their strength and their majestic powers'.

Meanwhile, the heart symbolises the 'unconditional love that flows between' the couple, the owl also represents wisdom and 'the ability to see through darkness'.

The inclusion of the infinity symbol was to show the couple's 'eternal bond', and the diamond, she wrote, represents 'the portal between the physical and the metaphysical realms'.

Märtha concluded: 'This monogram truly speaks to our cores, representing us and our love, and we are truly grateful and honoured that it signifies our unity to the world.'

When the couple announced their engagement, they received well wishes from members of the Royal House of Norway.

Her parents shared a statement saying: 'The Queen and I are delighted that Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett have announced their wedding plans today. We are happy to include Durek Verret in our family and look forward to celebrating the big day with them. We wish Märtha and Durek all the best.'

Meanwhile, Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit said: 'We congratulate Princess Märtha and Durek Verrett on their wedding in August next year. We are happy for them and look forward to celebrating with them in Geiranger. We wish Märtha, Durek and the girls all the best for the future.'

The union will mark the royal's second marriage. She and her former husband Ari Behn split in 2016, after being married for 14 years, and welcoming three daughters, Maud Angelica, 21, Leah Isadora, 19, and Emma Tallulah, 15.

The former royal, 52 will wed Durek Verrett, who is bisexual and calls himself a 'shaman', on August 31 (pictured together)

Princess Martha and Durek have announced that they will have both a reverend and a spiritual guru leading the ceremony

Ari died by suicide in 2019, aged just 47, with his tragic death sparking depression in his former spouse.

However, after finding love again, she will wed on August 31 in a four-day celebration which will see guests take a three-hour boat trip to the ceremony at UNESCO site Geirangerfjord, while a brunch the next day will allegedly see performances by the Black Eyed Peas and Stevie Wonder. 

The couple have announced that they will have both a reverend and a spiritual guru leading the ceremony. 

Martha Louise wrote on Instagram: 'We are so happy to announce that parish priest Margit Lovise Holte will ordain Durek and me in Geiranger on the 31st. august after the Norwegian church's ordination liturgy. 

'Pastor Michael Beckwith will also participate in the wedding ceremony with a greeting. This will be a big day that we are very much looking forward to.'

Beckwith is the founder and spiritual director of New Thought at the Agape International Spiritual Center in Beverly Hills. 

The 'mind healing' New Thought movement originated in the US in the early 19th century and followers believe it is the successor of ancient thought, including the Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Egyptian, Hindu and Buddhist cultures.  

For the nuptial celebrations, guests will arrive on the Thursday for a 'Meet and Greet' party in the courtyard of the Hotel 1904 in the centre of Alesund. 

They will then attend 'pre-wedding' on the eve of the ceremony, including cocktails and dinner at the Hotel Union. 

A three-hour boat ride will take passengers to the actual wedding ceremony, which will conclude with a banquet and party at the Hotel Union. 

Princess Martha Louise stepped down as a working royal in 2022. Pictured ahead of a state banquet in November 2021

On Sunday the newly-weds will host a three-hour brunch, which will reportedly see performances by the Black Eyed Peas and Stevie Wonder. 

It appears to be a happy ending for the couple, who raised some eyebrows when they started dating, due to Durek holding some controversial and pseudoscientific views - most notably the belief that cancer in children can be caused by 'being unhappy'. 

In January, he was slammed for saying suicidal people and naughty children are 'possessed by evil spirits'.  

The US-born bisexual celebrity healer took to Instagram to share a video about the 'suicide spirit' in Shamanism. 

Durek said: 'In shamanism, we believe that there is a suicide spirit - a spirit that gets into your consciousness and plays off of your emotions from the burdens that you feel, that other people are going through by you living, by the things you feel that you cannot overcome, from the pain of any situation or anything that you’ve done that you cannot forgive yourself'. 

The comments were particularly controversial given that Martha Louise's first husband Ari Behn died by suicide. 

Martha Louise has  discussed how her fiancé's controversial 'views' had contributed to how the public viewed her position in the royal family.

She said: 'The Norwegian people I guess... have decided it's best for me to step down because of his views about things.

The couple (pictured in June 2022) have had a tumultuous few years after the princess, who claims to be a clairvoyant, stepped down from royal duties over Verrett's pseudoscientific views

Durek, who describes himself as a 'Shaman', was dropped by his publisher shortly after the couple announced their engagement in June 2022 over pseudoscientific claims he made in his book 'Spirit Hacking'.

Among the claims were that children 'can get cancer from being unhappy'. 

Durek has also claimed he once came back from the dead, recovering from a month-long coma, by letting his soul 'burn' and he has also spoken of having to undergo a kidney transplant from his sister as a child.

It is unclear why he needed the kidney or how he became wheelchair bound, as he has described. The illness which sent him into a coma is also undisclosed.

After giving up her position in the royal family, the Princess revealed she has had to deal with 'lots of scrutiny' - particularly when she takes on new roles.

'Everything you do that's a first, that goes out of the box that you're put in,' she said, adding that press scrutiny has 'continued'.

She added that, in Norway, spiritual beliefs like the ones she holds are 'taboo'.

The couple are set to tie the knot at Hotel Union in Geirangerfjord (pictured, file image) in Norway next month

However, she has complimented her family for how they treated her while making arrangements for her to step away from royal duties.

In an interview with the BBC last year, Martha-Louise praised her parents King Harald an Queen Sonja, for keeping the dialogue open while she made her decision and they worked out the details about how the arrangements would work.  

When asked about her decision in comparison with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who also stepped down as senior royals, she spoke about her 'amazing' family, including King Harald and Queen Sonja, and how the dialogue between them has always remained open.

'What I think has been amazing through this whole cycle has been the conversations we have had through it all,' she said.

'From a very young age I remember my mum and dad saying (the King and Queen saying) that we always have to stick together. We always have to talk things through even if it's hard, we have to put all the cards on the table because we are family and we have to work things through.'