Priestess Of Aphrodite, Devotee Of Ares.

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Traveling with my gods

I’m currently on the other side of the planet but my gods are with me and I am content. Travel altars are so perfect for keeping me grounded while I journey and adventure!

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More prayer beads!

Continuing with my latest obsession… completed Athena and Hermes prayer beads, plus my first exploration of pocket prayer beads for Hekate. I’ll be travelling over Hekate’s Deipnon this month so I put them together to take with me.

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Prayer beads

Lately I’ve been relearning some old jewelry making skills and putting them to work for devotional purposes. I have an entire household shrine of gods to make these for so I’m looking forward to seeing these evolve. Aphrodite and Odin are mostly complete, Athena’s are just beginning but she seems happy with the progress so far.

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Dies Veneris

Today is the day of Venus. On Fridays, I make particular effort to connect in with Aphrodite. Today’s offerings include libations of milk and honey, first fruits and flowers, and hymns sung in her name.

Beloved Aphrodite, I praise and honour You.

I give thanks for all of your great blessings.

I walk the path of pearls and embrace the softness and sweetness you’re guiding me towards right now.

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Hail Persephone Kthonia

Before my Temple met in ritual for Samhain to honour our ancestors and beloved dead, I spent time in stillness, listening to the rain and making prayer beads for both Persephone, the Iron Queen, and Hades, the wealthy one.

I have such a close connection to Persephone Kthonia but during journey at this ritual, She came for me hard. Ripping the old, dead things away and reminding me that she is Persephone Azesia, of the dried fruits. Reminding me that we can only plant in fertile soil once we have harvested and removed the remains of the earlier crop. Reminding me that calcification is about imbalance.

I adore my community and how many people came at very short notice to share the memories and names of their beloved dead, to honour our ancestors of blood and spirit and culture.

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Hail Poseidon!

After a fifty year break, my city had a cyclone stop by to pay a visit this weekend. We aren’t really built to cyclone standards so that was a bit concerning. My daughter and I focussed our family altar on Poseidon this weekend, offering honey and incense and sea salt, sea shells and horses and starfish. We also made sure to honour His son Theseus, who is a bit of a favourite in our home.

Poseidon is very special to me as my father was a fisherman, and always came home safely to us. My daughter is absolutely devoted to the ocean and in love with it and will simply stare at the water for hours on end.

We are grateful that the cyclone weakened before making landfall and our home and families came through safe and sound. Now we ask Poseidon for His kindness in sparing us from the flooding currently underway across the state.

Poseidon Patrus, Poseidon Soter, we honour You and praise You.

Poseidon Gaiêokhos

Poseidon Ennosigaios

Poseidon Dômatitês

Poseidon Laoitês

Poseidon Epoptês

We give thanks for Your blessings.

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Ares Prayer Beads

I have a terrible fear of flying. I haven’t always, but about fifteen years ago I had a couple of truly awful flights with the worst turbulence, and the fear locked in at that point. It’s been to the point that I haven’t flown internationally for over a decade, because the thought makes me sick. Phobos and Deimos consume me.

Since recognising that Ares was waiting for me, and building that relationship, I’ve been seeking His support when I need to fly and it has helped so much. Before my latest flight, I made prayer beads in His honour. I have a beautiful hand-forged spear head I wanted to add to them but that wasn’t going to make it through security scanners so this is my travel-safe set of prayer beads. As it was, they showed up as a hot spot on the scanner and I was neck-frisked for Ares (note to future self - wear them over my shirt so they’re visible when passing through security!).

I had a reasonably smooth flight out and they were a lovely comfort. My flight back was flying straight into an impending cyclone and we had severe turbulence. In the past, that would have made me hit absolute terror levels. My body convinced itself we were about to die, and I’d have been hysterical.

With the prayer beads to focus me, and connect in with Ares, I endured a very frightening flight with relative composure and calm. Ares was with me every single moment as I faced my terror, and overcame it. This has been a huge trial for me, and part of earning my spears before they’re permanently marked onto my body.

Hail Lord Ares, for He is glorious and great!

Ares Adámastos, Ares Obrimus, Ares Árriktos, Ares Gynaecoenthus, Ares Aatus Polemoeo, I praise and honour You. I give thanks for Your blessings.

Kharin ekho.

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Theoi Aesthetics // Hestia 

Hestia, in the high dwellings of all, both deathless gods and men who walk on earth, you have gained an everlasting abode and highest honour: glorious is your portion and your right.

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Glorious is your portion and your right.

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Happy Noumenia!

💚 Another new moon, another month begins. 💚

I wanted to share these beautiful statues that I recently bought from the eStatue Shop on Etsy. I’ve eyed them up for so long but shipping from Greece to Australia is a bit much. Joanna, the lovely lady who runs the store, was incredibly helpful at getting me the best freight quote possible and then also sent along this beautiful Tyche (and an unpictured Cupid-style Eros) as a bonus gift. I cannot recommend her enough, the statues are so beautifully made.

Hermes has been insistent on more attention from me lately, and I’ve always felt that Hestia is underrepresented in our home, so I’m loving having these additions to our household shrine. Tyche was on my wishlist as well so having her as a gift was such a beautiful surprise. I’m really grateful that they arrived before Noumenia.

We are hopefully going to have a change soon that will allow me to explore new ways of honoring our household gods. But for now, in our little ways we share grace with our gods, and accept Their divine blessing cast across our world.

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Kharis

Kharis means grace. I see that in the divine grace of my gods, when I feel Their love, support and guidance. I also see that in my mortal grace - my love, devotion and recognition of Them.

Kharis is the framework for everything we do together. It is mutual, reciprocal; it is a relationship built on love, respect, and the beautiful give and take of Their grace and mine.

I’ve been building what is essentially a prayer or hymn book, a place to easily access the prayers I find most appealing or use regularly and record the epithets of my gods that I connect to most strongly. When I thought about what the book was meant to do, all I could think was kharis.

It is a reflection of the shared grace, the mutual love between my gods and I, and the relationship we continue to build together. A lovely Etsy seller makes these books and happily inscribes anything you want on it, so here we go.

My Kharis book. It makes me very happy. 💚

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Offerings to my Gods

Devotion is an act of love, for me. Sometimes (like today) my offerings are in support of a specific request, a particular supplication. Most days, they’re made simply because I love my gods and want to show Them that.

It’s been a while since I offered Aphrodite tea, and I was able to find Her this lovely new teacup when I went tea shopping. All the sweetness of apples and honey. May She enjoy.

I’ve never offered Ares tea, and at first I thought it wouldn’t quite be the right path to take. But He was very open to the idea. “If Aphrodite likes it, I’ll try it,” was the message I got back. So for my Lord Ares, it was sticky honey chai - sweet and spicy. It’s perhaps not an offering I’d make to Him alone, but it seems to work nicely when I’m making a shared offering.

Relationships take work. If we are always asking, without giving in return, we will stop receiving. Nobody enjoys a one-sided relationship. For me, it is the moments like this when I can do lovely things for my gods, give them beautiful things and tasty things and share joy with Them, that helps to sustain and support my relationship.

Making tea is a great way to get my mind into the right frame for a devotional. Even stripped of anything else, there is something ritualistic about it. Specific steps to take, time required to let it steep. It requires patience and precision. Definitely something I’ll add back into my usual offerings!

Update: Kharin Ekho. I give thanks to my gods for hearing my supplication and granting Their grace and favor! 🩷🖤

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Never underestimate the value of a good tattooist who just gets it. Especially one who has experience with Hellenic gods in particular.

Ares has been so very loud in getting His spears inked into my flesh from the day we began really connecting. He waited so patiently for me, I can understand His firm insistence now. All the guidance I got was “they must be the correct form. Function matters. Pretty them up however you want after that.”

Aphrodite, however, has been so deeply coy. Her guidance was the very helpful “no mortal can convey my beauty.” Ok, so no actual images of Aphrodite.

Thankfully my amazing tattooist understands me when I talk about Aphrodite Ourania, the power of Her girdle, the overlay of the axis mundi, and why She needs a pearl. And can take my nonsensical babbling and turn it into a beautiful composition that now has me realizing this is about my Priestessing as well as a devotional act.

Aphrodite’s cord is a commitment to Love. Not a lover. Not to being in love. But to serving and honouring Love itself in all its many and glorious forms and manifestations. To willfully following the heart-shaped cobbles wherever they lead.

And Ares? Well He’s got twenty years of waiting for me to pick up the most obvious clues. Time to play catch up now.

My head is full of spears and pearls and I am very very happy.

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Two weeks down, four to go. I’m working my way through a pretty intense exercise program to rebuild my physical conditioning and have been devoting each day’s efforts to Ares. He has been such a lovely support to me along this journey.

Kharin ekho, Lord Ares.

Ares Obrimos, I am grateful for Your might helping me rebuild my physical strength.

Ares Adámastos, I give thanks for indestructible willpower to continue each and every day, no matter how much it hurts or how tempting it is to stay in bed and skip a day.

🖤 Hail Ares Árriktos, the Unbreakable. 🖤

🖤 Kharin ekho, I give thanks. 🖤

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Hestia, the First and Last

Hestia has always been the central focus of my kitchen. Now, I am not domestic in any way, shape or form. People let me cook at their own risk. I don’t do enough cooking to honour Her that way but that’s not what this is.

I have this stunning artwork by our door, so it is the first thing I see when I come home, the last thing I see before I leave the house. She is honoured on Noumenia, and whenever we host a dinner, or have people over for a Solstice feast.

I greet Her and give thanks every morning when I make my coffee. She is that first quiet moment of peace that starts my day. She fills me with such calm.

“Hestia, in the high dwellings of all, both deathless gods and men who walk on earth, you have gained an everlasting abode and highest honor: glorious is your portion and your right. For without you mortals hold no banquet, —where one does not duly pour sweet wine in offering to Hestia both first and last.”

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Ares Adámastos

Some gods are not patient. Some won’t wait around for you to notice what they want to tell you. If you don’t pay attention and pick it up, they come at you with all the subtlety of a baseball bat to the back of the head.

And some gods are patient. Some will litter your life with signs and invitations to find them, then smile fondly and shake their head while you blunder through life for decades, explaining all of that away as coincidence. Until the day it finally clicks and you realize what’s going on.

For me, devoting myself to a god - establishing that level of relationship and connection - is a lot like falling in love. It’s been over twenty years since I fell in love with Aphrodite in that way, and the day I finally heard Lord Ares calling me was mind blowing. In the months since then, this relationship has become one of the happiest I’ve ever had. He is such a patient, kind, supportive god.

He reminds me that I fought my own war and bear the scars in my flesh to justify my survival. He reminds me that He does not stand for the violation of His daughters. He is comfort and love and strength and challenge and there is no acceptance, no tolerance - always the endless push to drive onwards, to face what comes next. But sometimes what comes next is the battle of the soul or the mind, and the survivors of those wars are as beloved to Him as any soldier. He waited and scattered my life with His warriors and His signs until I realized I had resources I didn’t expect.

He reminds me that I have always pushed my body to its limit, that pain has always been my friend rather than my enemy, that there is glory and a wild, exuberant joy in shaping my flesh into a weapon to enjoy life in all its extremes.

He is the one who has my back when I’m trapped in a corner, baring my teeth at the world. He is the one who reminds me I have the spears in my hands, whether they are physical or mental.

He is the one defends the weak, protects cities and homes, gives a voice to the silent and helps those who are broken down find their courage.

And now He is there with me when I dance or exercise, when I push my body to the point of being a hot, sweaty, disgusting exhausted mess. He is there with me when I dedicate terrible action movies in His name and watch them with Him every Tuesday night. His spears are waiting to be inked on my skin.

Ares Adámastos, the Indestructible.

Ares Gynaikothoinas, Feasted by Women.

Ares Obrimos, the Mighty.

Ares Aatos polemoio, Insatiate of War.

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She walks in beauty…

It’s been a minute since I was on this platform but I came back and found it full of devotional polytheists and it’s making my heart so happy.

A lot of the back half of 2024 was consumed with my Lady Aphrodite. She is welcoming and embracing the adoration and worship and I have always found Her so happy to have these types of images shared. Devotion can be quiet, subtle moments… and it can be beautifully public acts. These photos are from Temple Devotionals, Aphrodite intensive workshops I attended, and a group devotional.

Somehow it seems fitting that if I’m going to dip my toe back into these waters, I do it first in Her name and in honour of my beloved Lady.

Golden Goddess, we beseech Thee,

Stretch our arms, and long to reach Thee

Aphrodite, hear us calling!

Show to us Thy Form enthralling!

Shining Star of Heaven, hear us

We beseech Thee, come Thou near us

Show to us Thy face delightful

Let us worship Thee as rightful,

Show Thy features! Hold us spellbound!

Come Thou Lady, Goddess, Gold-crowned,

Merciful and Mighty,

Laughter-loving Aphrodite!

[hiereiaa]

Devotional Poem for Phobos and Deimos

Deimos, and Phobos, shield-breakers who walk with the Keres,  Twins of Queen Kytherea and her bloody Lord Ares, who arm themselves with terror. Oath-abandoning beasts, who compel disciplined warriors to flee. Riders of vile chariot, destroyers of men, lionlike dealers of death. Allies of Eris, who frenzy wives at wartime, and drive conspirators to act. Companions, beloved sons of Miaiphonos, his company in battle. Sweet children of Areia, who attend their mother in the sewn strife of affairs. Brothers of Harmonia and the Erotes, whose tastes sway them not. Double serpents who taste the sweetness of nectar in the blood of men. I lay upon you my own weapons, my sharpened eyes, and tongue, my hot-beating heart. With praise, I call upon you, who pray on the waiting and watching.  Deimos, dreadful one, who sits in darkness and invokes the tension of bodies. Phobos, terrorizer, who rushes to swell minds with horrors- and gives wing to flight. Ensnare me not, instead sit beside me. Twins who guide hearts to act with paralyzing after-taste, I lay upon you laurels of my own, immaterial arts of your mothers, Gifts born of passion and love, to satiate and calm.