✧Starry-eyed Attendant✧

Polytheistic worship blog. Greek myths. Art. They/them.

[starryeyedattendant]

Welcome to my polytheism blog ✧

I am a polytheist/pagan currently worshipping gods within the Hellenic pantheon. I have found an interest in the Hellenic pantheon and have been praying to them for a little while, so I decided that a place to discuss and save information regarding them would be a neat idea.

✧ More below the cut:

"Night and Sleep" by Evelyn de Morgan (1878)

Because I am new to this, I am taking it slowly. Please bear with me and feel free to give me any tips or knowledge.

I am looking forward to learning more and more clearly defining my practice everyday!

I would not call myself strictly a hellenic polytheist simply because I want to leave my options open. I am not a reconstructionist and I am varied in my practices and theory.

If you would like to see my general spirituality blog, it's here: @phantasmalmage

✾🙠°•*My most often honored gods*•°🙡✾

Lady Nyx ( @templeofnight )

Lord Apollon

I honor many other gods, but these so far are the ones I pray to most often, and are the closest to my heart. In a way, I dedicate this blog to them. It could change in the future, but these gods are extremely important to me and will be featured often on this blog.

Lord Hermes

Thank you for stopping by! ♡

❦✾❦✾❦✾❦✾❦✾

Apollo Saettante at Pompeii

[whatevstu]

The Apollo & Artemis dynamic I like to imagine:

Artemis: Ooh! Ooh! Can we please keep him? Apollo: Absolutely not. Artemis: Oh, so it's fine for you to turn your mortal buddies into flowers and birds, but I can't sneak one little deer onto Olympus?!

[wrathful-warhound]

Can you make a moodboard for eris Kyklou Lytria - She who breaks cycles or a moodboard for eris timõrós- Avenger/Bringer of Retribution.

Eris Timõrós (avenger, bringer of retribution)

[medusaspeach]

When We Were Young (Birth of the Sky) Ouranos and Gaia

I love drawing the primordials because I feel like I can go more abstract and elemental in design with them, same thing goes for certain titans. Since Ouranos is the personification of the sky, I think it's fun to portray him as various sky phenomena.

Patreon

[starryeyedattendant]

Dynamic of Apollon, Hermes, and Dionysus

DIsclaimer as always: This post will be full of UPG, personal opinions, observations and interpretations, and I simply want to share my ideas about my practice with these three deities.

Apollo & Dionysus by Leonid Ilyukhin

An important literary dynamic that has existed for a long time in the Western literary sphere is Apollo vs. Dionysus: order versus chaos. The civilized versus the wild.

I would like to propose that the dynamic these two have in my practice is more so about understanding this balance, and further, adding Hermes into this understanding.

Apollon first as a bringer of disclipine; illuminator of knowledge, lifter of illusion, brilliant but harsh. Apollon teaches me how to find and utilize clarity, and give attention and respect to the things that matter most to me. I have to improve consistently and understand the need for rest and focus. He can be a guiding light and a voice in the dark, and a reminder for the need of a steady hand and calm mind.

Dionysus on the other hand, presents as a reminder of joy, of anger; true madness and uninhibited frenzy. A reminder that I am still an animal, with needs and desires and fears all the same. There is power in instinct, and it is difficult to identify and wield, but it is important to let myself move forward with my eyes closed sometimes. Dionysus reminds me to trust myself and to build skills that only I can use.

Hermes is the final piece; the center that brings it all together in a (mostly) clean knot. Hermes is the friend of men, bringer of happiness, and guide between boundaries; similarly to how he brings the chaos into order, and the disclipine into the frenzy. A deity of the people, I feel as if he guides me to use the skills of discipline and instinct among my fellow people; how to wield my tongue and how to properly interact, both in times of serenity and otherwise. Hermes teaches me that all of these things are important in society, but most important is the work it will take to become the kind of person who can juggle all of these things, as well as understand how it all came to be.

[medusaspeach]

the littlest brother

[mythologer]

Apollo, Pompei, Napoli.

[panjackdaw]

Laws & Codes to Honor Apollo

1. Law of Clarity

Speak truthfully and clearly; avoid deception in word and action.

Seek knowledge actively, and illuminate ignorance with wisdom rather than judgment.

Honor clarity of thought in speech, art, and decision-making.

2. Law of Inspiration

Nurture and express creativity in any form—music, poetry, painting, or invention.

Strive to inspire others without seeking personal gain.

Use artistic expression as a reflection of divine order and harmony.

3. Law of Healing

Care for the body and mind as sacred vessels; respect the health of yourself and others.

Practice compassion, especially in times of suffering, offering help without expectation.

Study and respect both natural and spiritual forms of healing.

4. Law of Discipline

Pursue mastery with diligence, patience, and self-control.

Avoid excess or indulgence that clouds judgment or creativity.

Honor routines that cultivate body, mind, and spirit.

5. Law of Forethought

Seek insight through reflection, meditation, and divination.

Consider consequences of your actions before committing to them.

Respect the cycles of time, seasons, and natural law in planning and living.

6. Law of Light

Live in a way that illuminates truth and goodness in the world.

Avoid the shadow of envy, malice, or destructive pride.

Bring warmth and guidance through wisdom, positivity, and integrity.

7. Law of Harmony

Strive for balance in your personal life and in relationships.

Celebrate beauty, proportion, and symmetry in your actions and creations.

Mediate conflicts peacefully, using reason and compassion as instruments of resolution.

8. Law of Devotion

Honor Apollo with daily recognition, whether through song, prayer, meditation, or ritual.

Study his myths, symbols, and teachings to deepen your understanding of his essence.

Offer gratitude and acknowledge his guidance in moments of clarity and inspiration.

[bodhi-devotee]

“When we worship a deity, as I see it, we call upon a pool of universal power which, over generations, has been shaped into a specific form and voice by human minds.”

— @potnia-theronx // Artemis Iphigenia | Exploring mythic syncretism

this is the most concisely and accurately i’ve heard my view of the gods worded. the names and mythologies are an access point to a greater, broader power, separated and defined only by human culture and not through inherent or tangible boundaries. when i pray to Zeus-Helios i believe i am tapping into the power of the All-Father, the Maintainer of Reality, He who Gives Rise to All, specifically through one cultures’ refinement. He exists infinitely in other cultures, i just choose to worship Him in this specific way. when i worship Selene, i’m flowing down a river that leads to one source, the Moon, in which a wide variety of other rivers also flow into. hellenic polytheism is how i chose to process and interact with these forces!

[thecordedbed]

The Piraeus Apollo, discovered in a votive pit during building works in the ancient harbor of Piraeus in July 1959, along with the Piraeus Athena and Piraeus Artemis, two Hermaic stelae, a mask, a shield, and other objects, by archaeologist John Papadimitriou. It is almost perfectly preserved, with minor damages and cracks, lacking only whatever would have been in the hands.

Traces of the missing objects are still visible: the left hand held a bow and the right a bowl, which may have been made of gold, confirming - along with the treatment of the hair - the identification of the figure as Apollo.

Once thought to date to the late Archaic period (530–480 BC) and to have come from a workshop of north-east Peloponnese, the figure shows an increased plasticity atypical of that tradition. He strides forward with his right leg, instead of the usual left, and his head is slightly bent to the front and right, abandoning the strictly frontal viewing position of the kouroi. His hair is rendered in a more naturalistic way than had previously been the case: it is tied with a band and forms spiraling curls over the forehead. It is now thought to belong to the Hellenistic period.

See

Dafas, K. A. 2019. Greek Large-Scale Bronze Statuary: The Late Archaic and Classical Periods, Institute of Classical Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London, Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies, Monograph, BICS Supplement 138

Mattusch, C. 2019 Classical Bronzes: the Art and Craft of Greek and Roman Statuary

Palagia, O. 1997 “Reflections on the Piraeus Bronzes,” in Greek Offerings: Essays on Greek Art in Honour of John Boardman

Palagia, O. 2016 Towards a publication of the Piraeus bronzes: the Apollo

[eternalmeditationn]

Apollo: The Rational God of the Irrational Arts

Hello everyone! Today I want to explore the archetype of Apollo and compare how he is typically described with how he has revealed himself to me. In my reflections, I have drawn on psychoanalysis, but I want to note that I am more involved in the study of occultism than in professional psychology, therefore, my analysis is neither a scientific article nor the ultimate truth. Your perspective may differ from mine, and that is perfectly normal, because the same archetype reveals itself to each person from different angles.

When I first started exploring Apollo — both as a deity and as an archetype — I kept encountering the same judgment everywhere: Apollo embodies the power of the mind, intellect, control — in other words, everything that belongs to the rational field of our thinking. It is also rightly noted that Apollo is considered the patron of the Muses, of art, music, poetry, and philosophy; since ancient times, his veneration has gifted people with inspiration and success in creative work and prophecy.

Inspiration itself is irrational: it comes suddenly, spontaneously, chaotically — it is difficult to interpret through the laws of logic alone. Nevertheless, Apollo as an archetype finds his reflection precisely in this sphere. I believe that interpreting his archetype solely through “the Logical and the Rational” means missing another vast layer — the one through which the rational lives, rather than merely exists.

Since this topic is dedicated to archetypes, it is worth noting how psychoanalysis has transformed our view of the psyche. Before psychoanalysis, people held the view that a person could know anything, that they could comprehend and explain any mystery of the universe. Here, a person operates solely with rational knowledge, from which they derive their judgments — as if there exists an absolute level of understanding of our world, requiring only logical connections and all available foundations.

But before that scientific progress, people worked closely with gods, forces of nature, and used tools such as shamanism — and is that rational? I think the nature of spirits and gods themselves is not — but it is important for us to understand the context of their work. Back then, survival was more important to people than personal fulfillment, and their practices had the same character: divine power was not appropriated; rather, a person explained it to themselves as “The rain finally came because I made an offering to the deity; inspiration came to me because I asked the Muses for help.” So here again we see rationalization — a logical explanation.

Psychoanalysis, however, with its study of the unconscious, introduces a new concept — the “Irrational” — something that lives within us, does not obey the laws of logic, and moreover, influences us without our awareness. Now, from this perspective, we cannot say that there exists some absolute knowledge that we will uncover through our logic, because within ourselves there is a zone that cannot be understood logically. We begin to appropriate the chaos we cannot explain. Thus, we can finally say: “I feel inspiration because it was born within me, not because I prayed diligently to Apollo and he gave it to me.”

What is the rational without the irrational? It is a cold machine that can only execute logical programs embedded within it. It is a state where we are so absorbed by routine or by studying a particular question that we cease to be aware of having any feelings at all — we stop understanding whether we even feel anything anymore.

What is the irrational without the rational? It is chaos, whose unmanageable storms can knock you off your feet. It is a state where so much that is incomprehensible accumulates inside you that you want to either cry, or shout at someone, or laugh for no apparent reason. It manifests in the thought “I feel something very, very intensely, but there are simply no words to describe this feeling.”

To me, the separation of these two concepts feels like learning a new language. You may have experienced this yourself — that moment when you have seemingly learned the vocabulary you need, but doubts begin to creep in: “In this new language, love doesn't sound like love, and hatred doesn't sound like hatred.” Not because “other” people have invented “other” feelings, but because these dry constructions have not yet been supported by any spontaneous life contact, because you have not yet had the chance to integrate the sensual into the logical. And of course, the realms of art and philosophy become the quintessence of these two forces. The irrational breathes life and soul into rationality, while rationality becomes a form for the irrational. The irrational, once given form, can be spoken, seen, and interpreted. Thus, the archetype of Apollo no longer appears as some cold, inanimate stone, but rather as an embodiment of the genuine contact between one side of our psyche and the other.

In the union of the two, expressiveness is born. Interestingly, Apollo is also the god of the Sun, and the Sun as an archetype (which we can trace very clearly in the Tarot or in a natal chart) reflects the core of our personality, our individuality, and our life force. The Sun, as the core of the personality, is not just warmth and cheerfulness — it is a whole system in which different parts coexist beautifully, complement and harmonize with each other. A personality can only be seen in contact, and in order to be in contact, we need to express ourselves. Hence this connection.

As we have already observed, the idea of separating the rational from the irrational is not a very viable one, because it fails to address the question of the expression of our individuality and authentic will. Therefore, I believe that when examining the archetype of Apollo, we cannot simply separate his Logic from his Art and claim that he manifests exclusively through cold reason and ruthless, precise decisions. Perhaps. I am not trying to say this is untrue. But that would only be one facet of the archetype, not the whole truth.

In general, when we attempt to truly live a myth, to feel our knowledge deeply, that in itself is an immersion into the irrational. For me, Apollo here becomes not so much the god of art, but rather — if I may say so — the god of contact. He becomes that structure that helps us not drown in our feelings, but gives them form — a form that can be shown to the world, which is represented by the Other, — and that is precisely the manifestation of one's Self.

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Painting: “Apollo Playing the Lute” (1874) by Briton Rivière

[starryeyedattendant]

Thoughts on my practice with Lord Apollon

A quick disclaimer: This is full of UPG and my personal opinions/philosophy on Lord Apollon. Your mileage may vary and this is just my own way of sharing what is significant in my practice...

The Apollo of Mantua

While I still have much reading to do regarding Apollon and his many myths and attributes, I wanted to share the way that I conceptualize Apollon in my practice and how I approach learning from him.

Apollon as the God associated with Light: There is a big controversy over this. I have no intention to contribute to this discourse, merely describe how I feel about him. I have seen a few people talk about how they interpret him as the sun itself, some as sunlight, and I'd like to say that a deity can certainly have domains that expand in many directions. They way I see him is through the lens of poetic inspiration, which he is extremely well-known for; in many myths and even in the beginning of many hymns and stories, it is described that Apollo gives inspiration to anyone he decides to "touch"; a prominent epithet describing this is Apollo Philesisus, "Apollo of the Kiss". A minor figure, but one I felt worth mentioning, because I particularly like this myth, but I digress. I mainly bring this up because the sunlight touches everything, just as much as inspiration can come from life itself, Apollo is the illumination that comes from the light, the opportunity from seeing something from multiple perspectives, and the power to breathe life into anything you see fit. A god of inspiration and illumination. This ties into his relationship in various aspects, particularly the sun, but also prophecy and even archery; you need a keen eye to shoot your target.

Apollon as a Mentor: I often discuss the lessons that deities bring, and Apollon has taught me many things, but discipline is a key component in my relationship with him. You shouldn't expect relationships with deities to be fully transactional, of course, but I notice that I am most fulfilled and guided by him when I take my time, commit to whatever I am going to do for him, and allow whatever results that will arrive to come with time. I noticed so much distance when I haphazardly gave him water and didn't pay any attention to what time I had to spend with him, but when I stopped to dedicate actual care into interacting with him, he rewarded me greatly, even if it wasn't everyday. He is in my practice to remind me of the importance of discipline.

Apollon as Comfort: Taking after the last point, Apollon has never been cruel in his teachings to me. While he has been stern, there is a very apparent closeness whenever I go to spend time with him, or even when I ask for guidance in my divination. It is hard to explain to those who may not have these kinds of warm feelings in their heart when they pray or invoke entities, but I can say for certain that when I have been lost, Lord Apollon has been ready to fill my chest with reassurance. When I first began my practice, and even today, I used to question those who felt reassurance from deities, because I felt as if gods were simply forces of nature. While they are definitely forces of nature in my paradigm, it's important to note that there are definitely forces in the world that come upon us in waves that seem foreign to us, that somehow manage to strike us with a variety of feelings. Perhaps things such as l'appel du vide, or the sublime. I believe that Apollon probably invokes something like that in us. But regardless, my friend once described deities as either forces of nature or abstract, and sometimes, these unknowable forces are certainly beyond our comprehension. I believe that Apollon has given me many an invisible hug.

I have more things to say about Apollon, but this post is long enough, and I suspect that if I keep reaching out to him, he will share a lot more.

This post is dedicated to him and the many more experiences I may have!

[my-yoyogurt]

The iconography of bull-horned Dionysus

"There are countless characteristics of Dionysos for those who wish to represent him in painting or sculpture, by depicting which even approximately the artist has captured the god. For instance, the ivy clusters forming a crown are the clear mark of Dionysus, even if the workmanship is poor; and a horn just springing from the temples reveals Dionysus, and a leopard, though but just visible, is a symbol of the god;" - Philostratus, Imagines 1.15 (Greek rhetorician C3rd A.D.)

[mythologypaintings]

The Nymph Salmacis and Hermaphrodite

Artist: François-Joseph Navez (Belgian, 1787-1869)

Date: 1829

Medium: Oil on canvas

Collection: Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent, Belgium

Description

The story of Salmacis and Hermaphroditus is a chapter in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. The nymph Salmacis fell in love with Hermaphroditus, Hermes and Aphrodite’s son. Hermaphroditus rejected her but Salmacis managed to outwit him in the water. Yet again Hermaphroditus rejected her, so Salmacis prayed to the gods that she would be united with him until the end of time. They fused into a hermaphroditic creature, with male and female characteristics.

François-Joseph Navez depicts the nymph and the object of her affection just before the metamorphosis. Hermaphroditus’s reticent gesture and the passionate embrace by the infatuated nymph constitute an ingenious and elegant ballet in an almost abstract play of lines.

[medusaspeach]

"Lord of the silver bow, now hear my prayer! Great guardian of Tenedos and Chryse and sandy Cilla! Mouse Lord! If I ever built temples to your liking, ever burned fat thighs of oxen or of goats for you, fulfill this prayer for me, and let the Greeks suffer your arrows to avenge my tears!" (Homer. Iliad, trans. wilson)

Apollo sends a plague to the Greeks, my piece for the 2026 edition, Sing! O Muse Zine.

[temperamentalgreen]

🌱🌾Demeter, 𐀯𐀵𐀡𐀴𐀛𐀊🌾🌱

"As the Basket comes, greet it, ye women, saying “Demeter, greatly hail! Lady of much bounty, of many measures of corn.” As the Basket comes, from the ground shall ye behold it, ye uninitiated, and gaze not from the roof or from aloft, child nor wife nor maid hath shed her hair, neither then nor when we spit from parched mouths fasting. Hesperus from the clouds marks the time of its coming: Hesperus, who alone persuaded Demeter to drink, what time she pursued the unknown tracks of her stolen daughter.

Lady, how were thy feet able to carry thee unto the West, unto the black men and where the golden apples are? Thou didst not drink nor didst thou eat during that time nor didst thou wash. Thrice didst thou cross Achelous with his silver eddies, and as often didst thou pass over each of the ever-flowing rivers, and thrice didst thou seat thee on the ground beside the fountain Callichorus, parched and without drinking, and didst not eat nor wash.

Nay, nay, let us not speak of that which brought the tear to Deo! Better to tell how she gave cities pleasing ordinances; better to tell how she was the first to cut straw and holy sheaves of corn-ears and put in oxen to tread them, what time Triptolemus was taught the good craft ---

O Demeter, never may that man be my friend who is hateful to thee, nor ever may he share party-wall with me; ill neighbours I abhor

Sing, ye maidens, and ye mothers, say with them: “Demeter, greatly hail! Lady of much bounty, of many measures of corn.” And as the four white-haired horses convey the Basket, so unto us will the great goddess of wide dominion come bringing white spring and white harvest and winter and autumn, and keep us to another year. And as unsandalled and with hair unbound we walk the city, so shall we have foot and head unharmed for ever. And as the van-bearers bear vans full of gold, so may we get gold unstinted. As far as the prytaneia let the uninitiated follow, but the initiated even unto the very shrine of the goddess, as many as are under sixty years. But those that are heavy and she that stretches her hand to Eileithyia and she that is in pain, sufficient it is that they go so far as their knees are able. And to them Deo shall give all things to overflowing, even as if they came unto her temple.

Hail, goddess, and save this people in harmony and in prosperity, and in the fields bring us all pleasant things! Feed our kine, bring us flocks, bring us the corn-ear, bring us harvest! And bring peace, that he who sows may also reap. Be gracious, O thrice-prayed for, great Queen of goddesses!"

---- Callimachus, Hymn 6 to Demeter 🌾

[starweaverblog]

Favourite panel redraw of my old Dionysus mini comic

He's not weak, he's not to be misunderstood

[kukoshka]

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