Neo's Pagan Blog @hestiasherald - Tumblr Blog

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hi there! im neo. im a hellenic polytheist and occasional magical dabbler. i primarily worship hestia, dionysus, hermes, aphrodite, athena, apollo, artemis and zeus, with occasional prayers and continuous research to them and others.

if you're a racist, transphobe (terfs and gender critical included), antisemetic, zionist, ed blog, or any other nasty shit you will be blocked.

i probably won't post my own stuff, just reblogs :) thanks for checking out my blog, have a nice day

greekmythcomix

Had some surgery lately and anxiety made me make these: Olympian vintage band tee homages. They’re on my Classics Nerds Redbubble if you like them!

#dionysus #hades #artemis #art #hellenic polytheism

awanqi

"Hermes Psychopompos"; the guide of souls to the Underworld.

Process, speedpaint, hi-res vers., etc. on my Patreon.

Prints

I also make pins! This month's pin (Feb) has 1 week left to get, so don't miss out.

Bluesky | Instagram | Artstation | Twitter | Website

#hellenic polytheism #hermes #art

thequeer07puss

The cosmological functions of Hera

I’ve been thinking a lot about Hera these past few weeks, and while reading “The Hera of Zeus: Intimate Enemy, Ultimate Spouse”, a new thought and association emerged about the goddess, leading me to analyse and interpret her role in the cosmos, both as a standalone goddess, and as the wife of Zeus.

[This analysis might contain UPG]

The gods as personifications: Zeus’s family as an extension of his power

Many of the gods we know and love have specific functions when they are in relation to Zeus. Hermes delivers his messages to gods and heroes, Apollo is his voice in the mortal world, and Athena is the personification of Zeus’s racing mind. Let me explain my thoughts

Athena is born from the head of Zeus himself, from Metis (which we translate as “wisdom” or “craft”) that he has in himself. As such, she would be one of the few beings in the universe to know and understand Zeus’s grand plans. For example, in the Iliad, Zeus’s grand plan is the destruction of Troy, which Athena was in firm favour of, despite the apparent opposition from her father, who had to restrain her from enacting his plan too soon.

“How is it relevant?” One may ask. “And how does that relate to Hera?” Put a pin in that thought dear reader.

Zeus did not create the universe: the cosmological role of Zeus and his marriages

Based on the interpretation above, many of Zeus’s family members are extensions of the reach he has over the universe, but only some of them could claim to be or have been his wife. Hesiod cites 7 goddesses as having been his wives, namely Metis, Themis, Eurynome, Demeter, Mnemosyne, Leto, and finally Hera. Since we have established the notion that Zeus’s family mean something in relation to him, my theory is that older goddesses, such as the Titans and early Olympians Zeus takes as wives are personifications of abstract concepts and concrete principles from which Zeus orders the universe.

[I would like to preface this next part by explaining a bit about the Ancient Greek view of marriage and sexuality. Marriage’s main function was the accomplishment of one’s personhood as well as creating new life who would contribute positively towards society. Additionally, sex was all about power dynamics, making the dominant partner (the man) the one in control of the submissive partner (the woman), making sex a sort of “subduing” of the other person.]

Zeus did not create the universe at all. He merely inherited it. It was established in Hesiod’s Theogony that all elements in the cosmos existed prior to his existence, albeit in a state of disarray and chaos. Zeus, as a god of structure, therefore inherited this disorderly world and created order from its constituents. In order to do so, he would need to be wise or crafty, which is the reason for his marriage to (and subsequent absorption of) Metis. After doing so he would need to determine the functionings and happening of the world, hence why he marries the Titan (natural force) responsible for establishing universal laws, Themis, from whom he creates goddesses who regulate the happenings of nature and human life, the Horae (Seasons or Hours). After establishing the functionings of the world and determining the best course of action for its happenings, Zeus had to think of what the world would look like, hence he took Eurynome, and from her made the Charites to make the world beautiful and full of delight. But the world was rough and unforgiving, yielding nothing of substance to that which Zeus would make, hence he married Demeter for her treasure of bounty and vegetation, and made Persephone. Then, after the world was beatiful, fruitful and plenty, there had to be intelligent creatures to inhabit it, so Zeus married Mnemosyne to create intelligence, learning, art and the delight of music, in the form of the Muses. Next, when intelligence had been created, it was time for the beings to proliferate in colonies, which is why Zeus married the fertile Leto, who produced Apollo and Artemis, representing the divide between civilisation and the savage wilderness. Lastly, when all had been made in good order, Zeus, whose hymn calls the most Excellent and Great, took in a wife, a final wife, the most beautiful goddess in existence, most excellent of birth, power and status: his sister-wife Hera, an equal to He who is Excellent.

The marriages of Zeus therefore represent a sequence of events that allow Zeus to structure the universe according to his will as the Divine Craftsman or Demiurge. His marriage to Hera therefore represents the completion of this ordering, the state of perfection in which all things exist under the order established by Zeus.

Hera the goddess of perfection

In “The Hera of Zeus”, Pirenne-Delforge and Pironti analyse the role of Hera as a goddess who pushes beings to their fullest potential. This is why, she is the mother of Hebe, which is the goddess of youth, a state where one reaches the full potential and power they will ever be capable of in life. This is also why in the story of the daughters of Pandareus, Hera gives the young women beauty and intellect above all other women. Therefore, it might come as no surprise that the goddess who grants perfection and loves excellence would be seen and worshipped as the goddess in charge of determining which deities are suitable to enter Olympus (see here), of initiating young people into greater society, and finding the most excellent match befitting of one’s status in marriage. However, as many of us know, perfection can not be achieved without a certain level of conflict, whether internal (like an artist willing to improve their craft) or external (a teacher giving students tough exercises to test their knowledge), and Hera being a lover of perfect things, thrives in this state of conflict or discomfort, which is exemplified in her relationship with her husband Zeus, with whom she argues quite a bit, with the goal to spur him on to consider and reconsider the way he rules the cosmos, and reestablish his supremacy among the gods. In the Iliad, Zeus seems to be used, or even expect to conflict and opposition from Hera, and even goes to her for advice on whether he should save Sarpedon from the war or not. In another story, Hera creates Typhon as the biggest challenge to Zeus’s reign, a challenge Zeus wins, reinforcing his superiority. Hera, in her role as wife of Zeus, is both a representation of the completion of Zeus’s reshaping of the universe, the goddess that reinforces her husband’s supremacy, as well as the goddess that forces Zeus to stay perfect to keep ruling and ordering the universe by constantly opposing and arguing with him to make him consider and reconsider courses of action to accomplish his plans.

Analysis of the Orphic hymn to Hera: the goddess of essences

Now that it was established that Hera is the goddess of excellence, and that she represents the state of completion that the universe exists in, a little question remains: why is the world so imperfect then?

Well, my friend, let me introduce you to the Platonic concept of “essences”. Plato saw essences as the universal, most basic, most condensed, most recognisable form of a thing or concept. They are essentially the “soul” of things or concepts. What is a cat? What makes a cat a cat? If you have a basic idea of what a cat is, it is because you are using the essence of “Cat” to produce a mental image of “cat”. Plato then proceeds to explain that we can not know these essences or experience them because we live in the material world, which is imperfect, which then alters the perfection of essences to make them appear to us in diverse forms.

“Then where are the essences?” One may ask. I answer: in Hera

The Orphic hymn to Hera calls her ψυχοτρόφους (psūchotróphous), which is translated as mother or nurse of souls, then proceeds to call her παντογένεθλε (pantogénthle), the source of everything, and say that she is in everything. Such a description is befitting of the goddess of essences.

[Here is part of a prayer I have written to Hera after a meditation on that aspect:

“Your hymn calls you the mother of souls, the Ψυχοτρόφος, the nurse of clouds, the source of all, my lady, wife and bedmate of Zeus, whose hymn calls him ἀρχὴ πάντων and πάντων τε τελευτή, the beginning and end of all things. In yourself you have held and mixed all things, and have mingled your essence in them. All things are from you, all things are in you, you are in all things, and in the act of breathing we inhale your essence. You are queen, you are παμβασίλεια, for you are the blessed creator of the universe, who makes all things alongside Zeus, whose head contains the knowledge of all things.”]

Conclusion: tl;dr

In summary, Hera, the final wife of Zeus, does not only represent a simple marriage if you think about it on a cosmological scale. She represents the state of completion our universe exists in after a series of restructuring by Zeus, she is the goddess that makes both people and gods suitable and perfect, and she contains in her the essences of everything in the universe. She is a complex goddess whose interactions with other beings in myth and cult are often brushed off as being “simplistic” or “dramatic”, but reveal a very interesting story once they are given more thought.

Thank you for reading <3

[P.S: please feel free to add any thoughts or opinions to this discussion. It will fuel the voices]

ombrokharis

HUGE EMPHASIS on the fact that Hera is a goddess who makes things (specifically Zeus) perfect!!!!!!!

The epithets "Teleios" and "Teleia" denote perfection, but not in the sense that most modern people think when they hear the word "perfect."

Rather than indicating that something is perfect by virtue of its beauty or by the fact that it is the 'best' possible instantiation of itself, "τέλος" indicates perfection in the sense that something is whole.

Zeus Teleios and Hera Teleia are, in essence, gods who are made perfectly whole in their marriage to one another. Said another way, their union brings about the finishing or completion of the parties involved.

At the risk of reading into the Theogony beyond the intention of its author, I believe this is why Hesiod describes Hera as Zeus's final wife—literally, describing her as "the last of all" (line 901). Zeus doesn't need a wife beyond Hera because she makes him "Teleios"—perfectly complete in marriage to her.

hekateanwitchcraft

Additionally, the Orphic hymn to Hera describes Hera as both the air and as the winds. She is thus named as the primary vehicle by which Zeus’ power over storms and lightning would travel. Hera’s cosmic role being the means by which Zeus rule is sustained, brought into final order, and distributed unto the world.

#hera #zeus #hellenic polytheism

beatingdrumspouringwine

Prayer to Hermes for Winter Travels

I call to You, o Hermes, God of long journeys and safe arrivals home, Who could not stop His feet from wandering from the moment of His birth. I pray You give me safe travels on my own journeys. May my feet never fail me on icy ground, May my car [or train, bus, however you travel] never lose control, May snow never hinder my path. And, o blessed God, Send messages up to Your Father Zeus, And ask of Him that the snow never fall too hard, The rain never turn to ice, And that the sun always shines, but not too bright. With You I trust my travels will be safe.

#hermes #prayers #hellenic polytheism

beatingdrumspouringwine

Prayer of Thanks to Hermes for Safe Travels

To blessed Hermes, kindly God of wanderers and travelers, For safe walks on dangerous and unknown roads, For safe journeys in places always known to me, And for safe journeys in new ones, For kind strangers assisting me, Or for peace journeying with me, Do I give my thanks. With Your guidance I am at the end of my journey, With Your help I am safe again.

#hermes #prayers #hellenic polytheism

1five1two

Clay Statuette of Aphrodite from Asia Minor, (Turkey). 2nd Century BCE. Altes Museum, Berlin, Germany.

#aphrodite #art #statues #hellenic polytheism

hekateanwitchcraft

Happy Lesser Mysteries!

Today marks the second day of my observance of the Lesser Mysteries of Eleusis. What exactly went on at these rites remains mostly just that, a mystery, but many believe that there were preparatory rites of purification that prepared someone for the Greater Mysteries.

In my worship, the Lesser Mysteries are commemorated by offerings made to Demeter, Persephone, and Hekate over the seven days of the festival. For seven days I will fast from sun up to sun down, honoring the ritual fasting believed to be part of these rites and to mirror Demeter’s refusal of food and drink while she sought for Her daughter.

Each day I will give the goddesses libations, incense, barley grain, and various fruits, along with offerings of various candles made of beeswax or filled with sacred oils and the holy herbs of Demeter. As I do so, I will recite a section of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, reading 1/7th of it each day.

I ask the goddesses for the gift of purification and renewal, both spiritual and physical, and for abundance and prosperity in the Spring. May Demeter, Kore, and Hekate look upon us with favor in these dark and cold times.

#demeter #persephone #hekate #hellenic polytheism

templehyacinthus

Hestia

Hestia’s posture is impeccable.

She is neither tall nor short - and round in figure.

Her hips are wide - perfect for holding the children that she never birthed, but cares for anyway.

Her belly is round, from good food and a good family - and it bounces slightly when she laughs.

She has a mothers face, and a mothers hands, and auburn hair that falls in curls.

She wears dresses in muted oranges and reds, or browns - and her apron is off-white.

She hums when she cooks in the kitchen and grows her own herbs in the back garden.

She keeps a cleaning rag in her pocket, and always has a salve ready in case of scraped knees or burnt hands.

She does not yell, no - her honey brown eyes give a harsh enough stare to silence unruly children and self-indulgent adults.

Her doors are always open, to the forgotten and the lost - to the wandering and the wanting.

She always cooks enough for extra company and second helpings.

Her hearth is always burning, her love is never ending.

Hestia, Goddess of Hearth and Home,

Lead my way - and light my path. 🕯️

- Hestia’s Hearth; An original hymn

#hestia #prayers #hellenic polytheism

pagansprite

i think that just inviting the gods into your life, even just learning about them, is enough to change your life.

i have made like two offerings to athena, and only one to herakles, but just thinking of them makes me more confident in my own abilities. makes me hold myself to a higher standard. makes me get up and Do things.

my worship of hestia is so incredibly casual. but just lighting her candle in my kitchen today took me from 'i have to do the dishes' to 'you know what, while im here, let me clean my fridge too'

and to be clear: i dont think it's their presence. i don't think the gods are just hanging around now bc of a few offerings. i dont think they Gave me this motivation.

this is 100% me going 'They would like if i did this' or 'They would be proud of me for this'

it is 100% me connecting things to deities, and then doing that thing out of adoration of them.

gildedmagician

Unown Divination

in the second generation of pokemon, unown were introduced as strange, letter shaped psychic-types with 26 forms corresponding to each letter of the alphabet. in the third generation, forms corresponding to "!" and "?" were introduced, with a total of 28 unown currently existing. as you caught each form, you were given an "unown mode" in your pokedex to catalogue the letters, alongside a word starting with that letter.

not much is known about the pokemon, but what we do know is quite bizarre. unown have some connection to Arceus, the divine creator of the pokemon world, and the dimension unown originate from seems to be linked quite closely to our own. when multiple unown are near each other, an "odd power" emerges, causing wishes and dreams to become a reality.

taking all of these aspects, i feel that using the unown forms for divination is an easy leap.

below, i've categorized my personal correspondences to each phrase:

(A)ngry - rage, emotions, losing focus

(B)ear - animals, nature, fighting, strength

(C)hase - action, searching for something, running, going for a goal

(D)irect - focus, channeling your energy

(E)ngage - encountering something, facing head on, address the problem

(F)ind - reaching a goal, learning information

(G)ive - charity, generosity, put others first

(H)elp - getting help for yourself/others, aid, self-care, selflessness

(I)ncrease - continue, becoming stronger, intensity

(J)oin - coming together, family, teamwork, groups

(K)eep - holding onto something, keeping something close, cherishing

(L)augh - laughter, joy, happiness,

(M)ake - creation, art, self-expression

(N)uzzle - affection, companionship/relationships, connection, friendship

(O)bserve - watching, seeing the bigger picture,

(P)erform - putting on a show, falsehoods, hiding intentions

(Q)uicken - increasing your pace, going faster, continue

(R)eassure - comforting, giving aid

(S)earch - learning more, finding something new, looking for something

(T)ell - talking, communication, expressing ideas, speaking your mind

(U)ndo - reversal, re-do, going back, revisiting something

(V)anish - hiding, obfuscation, retreating

(W)ant - desire, interest, jealousy

(X)XXXX - null, nothing, denial, redacted

(Y)ield - stop, do not continue, blocked roads, unable to go on

(Z)oom - looking further, examining closely, learning something

(!)!!!! - shock, excitement, unexpected results

(?)???? - confusion, unanswered questions, ask again

these are by no means the only ways to interpret the unown phrases, and i implore you to find your own meanings if you disagree with these. divination is different for everyone!

HOW?

ingame, find a location where unown spawn. this varies depending on the generation you are playing, but i suggest starting with the Ruins of Alph if possible, as it is the first place unown were shown to gather en masse. in most games, a specific group of unown will spawn in a given room, so chose whichever room you are drawn to meditate on your question, and encounter the pokemon. if you have multiple questions, or are using a divination spread, leave and enter a different room, and repeat until you are satisfied.

in the physical world, i suggest creating a set of your own runes. this can be done multiple ways, but i chose to create them with wooden discs found at a local craft store. create the runes and consecrate them however you see fit. casting runes can involve multiple techniques, so you may use whatever you feel will work best for you. for a simple question, place your runes into a bag and mix them around, meditate on your question, and pull out a rune.

for my own set, i chose to paint the wooden discs blue and paint the forms in silver paint. not only because unown's shiny is blue, but because i associate the color blue heavily with magic and spirituality. this isn't a requirement, though, so take artistic liberty with your own set.

if you have any questions, feel free to send me an ask and i will aid you as best as i can.

have fun with divination!

#pop culture witchcraft #divination

honeyandhestia

Flameless Hearths & Devotions

Ideas for Hestia devotees/worshippers who are unable to use a fireplace or flames in their worship. Welcome for all who find this helpful!

Using flames safely and/or discreetly:

(For the occasional need)

Use a tea light or lighter outside; on a fire-safe surface such as concrete or gravel.

Burn objects over your sink or a bowl of water.

Outdoor fire pits or grills.

Creating your hearth:

Your hearth should feel like a central, focused place that represents your home. Someplace where you feel calm and safe. Traditionally, this was often in the kitchen; but it can be anywhere in your home. It can also be in multiple places, or small and contained.

My shelf altar. I keep it clean and tidy. It contains items that remind me of home, and offerings to Hestia. It represents hearth and home, and is a space I can visit when I wish to feel connected to her.

My dedication wall. I used to have a wall with a dried marigold garland, soothing poetry, devotional poetry, artwork and prayers on it. This is an excellent way to have a discreet (if you so choose) dedicated space that doesn’t take up much surface area.

My stovetop. Each time I put the kettle on for tea, I feel connected to Hestia. I offer the first sip to her. I simmer pots of water with herbs, spices or other scented things (such as orange peels) to spread a beautiful aroma around my home.

Don’t have a stove? An electric kettle and microwave will do!

My oven. Each time I bake (both the preparation and the baking itself) I feel connected to her and give a portion as an offering.

My woodstove or outdoor firepit. It is worth noting that because I have these things (and use my woodstove as a primary heating source) I do often use these as my hearth and burn offerings here.

Flame and candle alternatives:

What feels right to you? What matches the energy/warmth of fire and flame?

Electric candles, especially ones that flicker and have warmer colors.

Electric tealights in candle holders.

Dollhouse fireplace

Solar charged lanterns

Fairy lights in a jar

Himalayan salt lamp

Wax or oil warmers (with heat bulbs).

Electric fireplace

Flame ambiance videos

Scents: