No title available
styofa doing anything
"I'm Dorothy Gale from Kansas"
Claire Keane
TVSTRANGERTHINGS
Xuebing Du
titsay
No title available
Kaledo Art
roma★
PUT YOUR BEARD IN MY MOUTH
⁂
dirt enthusiast
Love Begins
KIROKAZE
PR's Tumblrdome
Origami Around
taylor price
YOU ARE THE REASON
Three Goblin Art
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from United States
@ofdaisychainsandpeninkstains
haiiii call me holly, she they he. this is a bit of a dumpzone for both helpol things, and also things generally related to my craft as a baby witch & psychic sensetive.
i want to look into worshipping Hestia, but I don't really know what I'm doing so idk man
people who actually know what theyre doing, feel free to come into the ask box and say things, or reblog posts with info.
new skill to learn time: anybody know anything about tea leaf reading? (tasseomancy? i believe?)
that moment when you go looking for black for protection things and realise the only thing you have thats vaguely veil ajacent are a shitty velvet scrunchy or an old find raiser bandana with paw prints all over it
tarot spread for a soul who feels lost:
feel free to save, share (please tag me), and to use this for your own purposes 🖤 i used this spread with a client today and it was a beautiful and insightful message.
hey does anyone have advice or ideas for low effort worship that would still be recognised or appreciated by the gods?
i have been wanting to connect with lady hestia for a while, I made an altar not long ago, but since I made it, its just, sat there, because I've been wanting to connect and worship and all that, but Ive been going through a bunch of mental health stuff for a while and its been hard to do anything that isn't an afterthought, and by that point it feels like I just shouldn't do anything because I feel bad always making things the afterthought, but its been really hard trying to do things properly and to be honest I don't really even feel like I should be doing this because I'm not putting in the effort I should and I don't really know what I'm doing
so anyway, anyone got advice?
I’m a chronically ill worshipper so I’ve actually made a couple posts on the topic! I’ll link them below 🧡 I was drawn to Hestia in the height of mental and physical health challenges and find that any effort made is meaningful—especially so when everything is so hard.
Most days I simply plug in the wax warmer on Hestia’s altar and make sure the glass of water is full, maybe say a quick prayer or even simply “for Lady Hestia”. If I make a cup of tea for myself I make one for the altar as well as an offering. So much of what I need to do to survive and take care of myself are also things I associate with Hestia.
Hestia small devotional acts
Bedridden devotion to Hestia
Flameless hearths and devotions
Altar ideas
Resources for Hestia devotees
I feel connected with Hestia when I do basic domestic upkeep tasks with a special scented candle. My favorite for this is a bonfire-scented one from IKEA (called ENSTAKA)
I’m so tired of the demonization of Aphrodite. So often I see people, especially people of non-pagan faiths, claiming that Aphrodite’s defining feature is jealousy and deceitfulness, when that couldn’t be farther from the truth. She is so gentle and kind, only wanting the best for us. She wants us to realize our own beauty, she wants us to see ourselves the way she sees us.
She has made me feel so loved and taken care of, I couldn’t ask for a better goddess of love and war.
έπαινος αφροδίτης🐚🥀
praise Aphrodite!!!❤️❤️❤️
Aphrodite who cries for the people who hurt themselves because self love is love too
Artemis who doesn’t hunt animals anymore (humans do it enough) She now walks in clubs looking to hunt the real animal
Athena who donates hundreds of books to local libraries and schools
Apollo who watches all street musicians hoping their talents can get them a little money (He gives more than a little)
Dionysus who watches over everyone’s drinks at the bar making sure they stay safe
Zeus who makes it rain for the couples that just want to frolic and dance and kiss in the rain
Hera who donates to woman’s and SA survivors shelters
Ares who is at the forefront of every protest because those are battles too
Hestia who holds and keeps thousands of secrets so the ones who whispered them into flame don’t have to
Hades who let’s families get one last goodbye to a loved one before they die
Persephone who personally makes sure that the ones taken too early feel safe and secure in the Underworld
Demeter who gives Her best crops to food banks and homeless shelters
Hecate who is a street magician and does actual magical for the kids
Poseidon who finds the best seashells and leaves them on the beach for someone to find and treasure
the Gods aren’t gone they ARE the little things in life
hey does anyone have advice or ideas for low effort worship that would still be recognised or appreciated by the gods?
i have been wanting to connect with lady hestia for a while, I made an altar not long ago, but since I made it, its just, sat there, because I've been wanting to connect and worship and all that, but Ive been going through a bunch of mental health stuff for a while and its been hard to do anything that isn't an afterthought, and by that point it feels like I just shouldn't do anything because I feel bad always making things the afterthought, but its been really hard trying to do things properly and to be honest I don't really even feel like I should be doing this because I'm not putting in the effort I should and I don't really know what I'm doing
so anyway, anyone got advice?
I couldn't find this in your master posts, but what are the pillars of hellenic polytheism? I know some of them, but I'm not sure if it's all of them
Khaire! Those are actually not from Hellenic Polytheism; they were created by some guy named Timothy Jay Alexander. There is little to no historical evidence of the "pillars" this man created. Here's a somewhat dated post (2020) reblogged by @theoi-crow that goes into more detail about the issues with the pillars as well as discussing what the pillars are.
Suffice it to say, you do not have to follow these so-called "pillars". The only ones that I'd say actually hold relevance are the practice of Xenia and Kharis, tbh. Take care! :3
Pillars of Hellenismos
As there is not a large, agreed upon set of pillars in Hellenic Polytheism, I will be using ones I am going to start using, based off my own research. A common theme from each pillar is the avoidance of *hubris*, which is excessive pride and the belief that you are better or equal to the Gods. (This is quite possibly the only “sin” in all of Hellenic Polytheism, as a lot of the stories against mortals in Hellenic myths deal with mortals with *hubris*.)
Arete - living to your fullest potential
Arete, meaning “excellence” or “valor”, is the belief that one should live up to the fullest potential of yourself. When one lives up to their fullest potential, and not comparing yourself to others, it is aimed to bring happiness to the individual. It is also about putting things in your own hands, and not being a bystander, watching life go by. It is such a core part of Hellenic ethics that almost every philosophical and religious work about ethics contains it.
Ethike Arete - live an ethical life
Ethike Arete, meaning “moral virtue” or “character virtue”, is the belief that one should follow ethics and an ethical life, and the word from the Gods. This is usually in relation to follow the Delphic Maxims, 147 maxims given to oracles of Delphi, said to be given by Apollo himself.
Eusebia - piety and love to the Gods
Eusebia, meaning “pious”, is the belief that one should have respect towards the Gods and praise and honor them, via festivals, prayers, sacrifice, and devotion. It also relates to knowing *why* you should be doing the ritual and how it helps the Gods.
Hagneia - purity before the Gods
Hagneia, meaning “cleanliness”, is the belief that in the presence of the Gods, one should be clean. This is related to the concept of miasma, meaning “pollution” but not akin to sin, and removing it before praying to the Gods, as not doing is so is considered highly disrespectful.
Kharis - giving to the Gods and our relationship with Them
Kharis, meaning “grace”, is the belief that one should always give to the Gods but do not expect things in return, but if something is given in return, be thankful for it. In Hellenic Polytheism, when you ask a God for something, you *always* leave an offering. You give so that They can bless you with something in return, but do not expect them to. It can also mean the relationship between the Gods and us, with many saying it is like how much trust a God has with you. If you have good kharis with a God, They will be more inclined to fulfill your request, as they can trust you. But, if your kharis is low, They probably won’t trust you due to thinking you won’t do anything with it.
Nomos Arkhaios - being as close to the original religion as possible
Nomos Arkhaios, meaning “ancient ways”, is the belief that the religion should not change that much over the time. It is the belief that even when governments and society changes, the religion will always remain the same and gives a sense of structure and belief. This is probably the biggest difference between reconstructionism and revivalism.
Sophia - pursuit of wisdom
Sophia, meaning “wisdom”, is the belief that in order to not offend the Gods, you should always be trying to learn and understand more. This is to help get rid of an ignorant mindset and better prepare yourself before the Gods.
Sophrosyne - having self-control
Sophrosyne, meaning “temperance”, is the belief that you should do things in moderation. It is also the belief that one must moderate yourself so you do not cross the other pillars and become inflicted with hubris.
Xenia - hospitality
Xenia, meaning “hospitality”, is the biggest pillar here. It is the belief that one should always help someone out and treat them as a friend in the house, even if they are a complete foreigner. Many myths have the Gods punishing mortals for the lack of xenia.
(I hope y’all enjoy this! I’ve been thinking about making a Guide to Hellenismos series?)
Hey-
I just want to raise awareness that these pillars aren’t from Hellenismos, they’re made up by Timothy Jay Alexander, who is an outspoken homophobe. They aren’t inherently a part of Hellenismos at all, and TJA certainly never practices them. Hellenismos as it existed didn’t have some kind of proto-Ten-Commandments, nor did it have a central, organized dogma – worship style, even the Olympians were regional.
@inlightofolympus @witches-ofcolor
I agree with @hellenic-reconstructionism and appreciate OP’s disclaimer at the beginning, so I’d like to add a few comments regarding this list (which I’ve seen pop up on my dash a few times now):
My main problem with this list (aside from it’s creator and it’s proto-Ten-Commandments feel) is the gate-keepy things in it especially in reference to the low-spoony community:
1) Hagneia: “purity before the gods” - people with depression, executive dysfunction and other things that’ll keep you from being cleanly, will find this step especially hard since the times you need the gods the most is not when you’re having a good day and can manage to take a bath or shower. Also the idea of sinning changes depending on the god and region so it just sounds like needless barriers that will keep people away from actually connecting with their gods.
When’s the best time to contact the gods? When you NEED to (even the desire to want to connect stems from the feeling of needing to connect.)
Nomos Arkhaios - “being as close to the original religion as possible” - Which religion? What’s the definition of the religion? Which version of the religion? Ancient Greece didn’t have a set religion for the whole region. Each Polis had it’s own cult (not the same definition in how we mean “cult” today).
This shouldn’t be a “rule” it should be a potential option for those who want to experience what the ancient greeks did but I often see reconstructionists add anything and everything found in ancient Greek text regarding worship and this wasn’t how it was done back then because one is essentially mixing Athenian cult with corinthian or Spartan cult which is all very different.
Can you mix ancient traditions? If it’s part of your belief system, go ahead but this is my point: I’m majoring in Classical studies with a focus on the ancient Greek religion not because I’m a reconstructionist but because I’m a revivalist and want to see how to best modify and apply the ancient methods to modern times but that’s because it’s part of my beliefs.
If you wish to be a reconstructionist that’s 💯 okay! If you wish to be a revivalist that’s 💯 okay! Should revivalist study as much as reconstructionists in order to worship the gods? It has personally enriched my own beliefs and relationship with the gods as well as helped me differentiate them from the Roman gods so research will definitely benefit your beliefs but you do not have to recreate it if it’s not something you feel compelled to do.
These are the 2 main ones I had issues with but as OP said these are just suggestions.
If something doesn’t work well for you and your relationship with the gods go ahead and leave it behind, these suggestions can get you started but just like how Ancient Greece had no Bible, the religion varied from polis to polis.
Today, different sectors of reconstructionists and revivalists (like the ancient greeks) have one thing in common: They all honor the GODS.
The practise of witchcraft is just that; a practise. As much as I love the acceptance that accompanies the modern discourse of 'if you call yourself a witch, you're a witch' it rings hollow to me.
You actually have to do witchcraft to be a witch. This then causes some practitioners to debate: 'Well, what qualifies as witchcraft?'
A quote I really resonated with is from Roger J. Horne's 'Folk Witchcraft: A Guide to Lore, Land & the Familiar Spirit for the Solitary Practitioner' and it discusses the almost scientific approach folk witches must use in order to personalise and develop their practise.
"Get used to experimenting, revising, then experimenting again. This is part of our craft. When you find something that works particularly well for you, write down an outline of the process you used."
This very act of researching and learning from folklore and history, creating your own correspondences, connecting to the spirits of the land, crafting your own spells and rituals - that is the work of a witch.
A lot of online pagan/polytheistic communities act batshit with constant infighting, drama, and weird rules they pull out of their ass because - and i am saying this as someone who has BEEN in these communities since the LIVEJOURNAL days - a LOT of the community is made up by kids coming from fandom spaces and bringing this weird fandom discourse mindset with them. They treat religions like fandoms and gods like their blorbos
THIS THIS THIS THIS!!!! You found the exact words I've been looking for.
But for people who are new to the community trying to learn more how could they avoid being misinformed and influenced by those posts…
What about those people specifically? This post isn't meant to be hostile; it's calling attention to something that's prevalent throughout the community as of late. Being influenced by those posts is kind of a tricky situation, however, because sometimes it's a matter of using your best judgement. Being misinformed is a tad easier to work with because you can always find someone willing to share information or find credible sources (historical books or articles are typically better than someone on TikTok, for example; for those who may struggle with reading, I'd recommend an audiobook).
The biggest thing, in my opinion at 4am, anyone who fears for falling into that trap needs to be aware of is how they approach religion. Are you approaching the gods as if they're your favorite fictional characters in your favorite TV show, or are you approaching them as if they are divine beings who embody things like love, lightning, light, etc.? There's a clear difference between the two, for sure, but I know that the fandom approach works for some people. It doesn't work for a lot of people, in the sense that it often causes issues within a person's practice (I've seen this before) and tends to lead to misinformation. If you're curious about how to spot misinformation, I do have a post about it in my pinned post in the Deities section.
Know that this isn't hostility; this is acknowledging an issue and bringing it to light.
You are loved by the Gods. Every part of you is loved and will always be, no matter what you do.
*grabs you and shakes you but gently cause I love you* you do not need to be ‘called’ to worship the gods. Just worship. Please just worship if it is what your heart wants.
Hello internet user whose entire concept of feminism comes from tiktok. In front of you are three ancient myths about women. You have five minutes to figure out which one of them was made up in the 1970s. If you choose wrong, you will be ripped to pieces by Maenads.
Okay since everyone wants the test, instead of giving you three myths here’s several myths. One of them is a real Greek myth with sources of it from ancient times and the rest of them are fake. One of the misconceptions was specifically invented in the 70s.
1. In every version of the myth, Medusa is born a human and Athena turns her into a monster
2. Hestia, goddess of the hearth and family, willingly gave up her place as the 12th Olympian to make room for Dionysus
3. Persephone chose Hades and wandered into the underworld of her own free will
4. Pandora didn’t know what was in her jar and unleashed evils on humanity by accident
5. During the voyage of the Argonauts the huntress Atalanta beat the hero Peleus the father of Achilles in a wrestling match
6. King Midas of Phrygia decided to give up his golden touch after turning his daughter to gold
7. Aphrodite was widely worshipped as a war goddess in Greece
lmao I promise you that only one of these is real.
Hiding the answers under a cut in case you wanna guess on your own.
#5 is the real one. You can find a reference to Atalanta wrestling Peleus at funeral games while on the journey of the Argo in The Library by Pseudo-Apollodorus.
This is an artistic depiction of the event from a piece of pottery currently being held in Staatlishe Museum Berlin.
The one invented in the 1970s was the one about Persephone going down to the underworld herself. This was invented by Charlene Spretnak in her book Lost Goddesses of Early Greece and is often spread falsely as a real myth without crediting her.
Explanations for all of them, again under a cut.
Ovid invented the version where Medusa was originally a woman and Ovid hated most of the gods on principle. Also, he was Roman. The earliest versions of gorgon myths depict her and her sisters as being born as monsters.
There's no reference in ancient mythology to Hestia giving up her spot. In some regions she was one of the 12 Olympians, and in others Dionysus was on the list instead. The idea that she stepped down was invented by modern writers who like to have coherent logic in their stories.
Explained above. A bit of creative writing.
Pandora according to Hesiod was the first woman and perfectly aware of what was in her jar. She was created as part of the punishment for mankind. Human women didn't exist before Pandora according to Hesiod. But because Hesiod was misogynistic even by ancient Greek standards, writers and artists after the ancient Greek religion died out re-characterized her as stupid and curious rather than evil.
5. As explained above, real.
6. This version was invented by Nathaniel Hawthorne. In the original myth, Midas just got hungry. No Daughter involved.
7. Aphrodite was worshiped as a war goddess mostly in Sparta and sort of Rome as Venus. Most Greeks weren't comfortable culturally with the idea of a goddess of love also being a goddess of war so in most of Greece she was just a goddess of love.
Guys this post isn't about neo-pagans and a lot of you are reading this as me hating new retellings or something. I have nothing against any of these stories. I just get frustrated when people "well actually" me about the "original" version of a myth when they have no sources for what they're saying. These stories not being exactly the way you thought they were doesn't have to mean anything. It's fine.
In general: never trust a claim about a myth's real or original form/interpretation. With stories 2000 years old, or older, which were largely transmitted orally, there will always be countless versions specific to both places and times. Stories evolve! The ones for which we have attested written sources represent barely a fraction of the ones which actually existed and the commentaries written on them!
There is no secret true version of a myth. All we can do is analyze the versions of the myths we have according to their context.
"oldest known version" = correct
"original version" = incorrect, bad, do not say this
also don't assume that the oldest known version is the One True Version either
a non comprehensive list of things i should be allowed to scream at people who arent helpol:
HELLENIC POLYTHEISM ISNT A DEAD RELIGION
THE GODS ARENT YOUR BLORBOS
THE GODS ARENT THEIR MYTHS
STOP HOLDING MYTHS UP TO MODERN DAY MORAL STANDARDS
STOP HOLDING THE GODS UP TO HUMAN MORAL STANDARDS
ZEUS ISNT LIKE THAT
HERA ISNT PETTY OR VENGEFUL
APHRODITE ISNT VAIN
APOLLO ISNT A FLAMBOYANT MANWHORE
ARTEMIS DOESNT HATE MEN
DEMETER ISNT A BAD MOTHER
so i have this running idea that the moon feels like cleansing energy and the sun feels like healing, I cant really explain it it, they just are, so uh, more experienced people, got my ideas on where this concept is coming from?
poll number 2 bc i forgot an obvious answer on the first
thoughts? (number 2 electric boogaloo)
sun as healing moon as cleansing
sun as cleansing moon as healing
both as healing but not cleansing
both as cleansing but not healing
both as healing and cleansing
neither as healing or cleansing
another option i forgot
