#chthonic goddess

[mikeybooch]

“…the dread goddess came from the furthest depths to accept the sacrifices of the son of Aison. Around her head was a garland of terrible snakes entwined with oak branches, and her torches flashed out a blinding brightness; all around her was the piercing bark of hellish dogs. All the fields trembled at her approach; the marsh-dwelling nymphs of the river who dance around that meadow of the Amarantian Phasis screamed aloud.” 

-The Argonautica. Apollonius of Rhodes

Happy Halloween my ghouls! We’re going out with a bang for Classicstober

I’ve drawn Hekate so many times, I wanted to do something new. Then I remembered this chilling passage from the Argonautica where Jason summons the goddess in one of her chthonic incarnations Hekate Brimo (Terrifying Hekate). It kind of reads straight out of a horror movie, so that’s the vibe I went with. 

[ariesinwitchcraft]

The ancient Greeks also considered the snake as a symbol of the afterlife, and it was generally believed that the dead would appear in the form of a serpent: the spinal cord of the deceased person was said to transform into a snake and come to life. It is within this context that we meet the first aspect of our Serpent Girdled Hekate: the subterranean underworld Goddess who guides the souls of the dead through Tartaros. However, the early functions of chthonian deities were not simply limited to the processes of death; neither did the definition of the word chthonic entirely mean as such. For the earth was also considered as a place of hidden potential and power, and so the chthonic role was also one of regeneration, enlivening potentiality, and growth. The snake also became associated with the powers of fire and the sun, fertility and prosperity, altered states of consciousness, and even the ecstatic journey of the soul; all notions which recall the ancient origins of Hekate.

—Vikki Bramshaw, Swaying with the Serpent: A Study of the Serpent Girdled Hekate

[flighty-and-shy]

Persephone in green 🍃🌱🪴

Green is the color of life, rebirth, and healing. I can’t help but shake the feeling that Persephone is beginning to heal because she is spending more time with Hades, making her feel safe, and Hera getting to the truth about what happened to her. I think it’s also foreshadowing for the healing that is to come and maybe even a little nugget about her potentially being a fertility goddess 👀

[lore-o-hoe]

Episode 138: Chthonic Gods and The Implications

(This is really long so hold on tight!)

So after Zues’ self monologue at the end of Episoed 138 I’m sure we were all left wondering, What IS Persephone?

So this recent chapter has brought to light some interesting new details mainly about Persephone and what she really is. It’s been confirmed in cannon that she is (or appears to be) a fertility goddess which already seems to be a rare commodity in the pantheon. But in Episode 138 Zeus expresses doubt over even this.

Here he looks downright concerned at the implication, so if Persephone isn’t exactly a fertility goddess, then what is she?

Well there’s some clues I was hoping to look into, all starting back with the season 2 teaser image and title:

Cthonic gods are , in basic terms, entities that are tied in some way to the underworld (Hades, Thanatos, ect.).

While of course this could reference Persephone running to and staying primarily in the Underworld this season, I think it could mean something more.

(The information here is from my informal research and isn’t 100% in depth so please take this all with a grain of salt).

So in real-world Greek practicies, both Persephone and her mother Demeter were associated with the Elusinian Mysteries, which were rites and initiations held yearly by the cult that worshipped them.

The mysteries themselves consisted of three important phases in a cycle representing Persephones abduction by Hades, these being the descent (loss), the search, and lastly and most importantly the ascent and return to her mother. Persephone return (ascent)back to the mortal realm is the most important part of this cycle as her nature as a goddess of life (fertility) going into and returning from the underworld was thought to symbolize immortality itself as a mastery over death.

My theory is that Persephone is a cthonic goddess already, a powerful contridiction between the underworld and the mortal realm. A goddess that has the potential to have complete mastery over life and death itself, capable of great rebirth and destruction.

So what does this have to do with Lore Olympus and possible future events?

Zeus here is reflecting on what Persephone could possibly be and what it could mean for the pantheon as a whole.

Either:

1. She is powerful enough to go toe to toe with some of the major gods. She may even be more powerful than was first thought.

2. Her inherent power alone (and what she is) would make her a qualifier to be an Olympian (though what makes some of the gods Olympians in LO isn’t 100% clear to me). And it might be related to why Demeter left Olympus to live in the mortal world.

3. There is something even bigger going on here that I would have no chance of really guessing at.

Whatever the case, this information is so earth shattering that Zeus plans to keep his theory close to himself which probably won’t pan out too well.

Her status as a Chthonic god is definitely a factor, but since LO runs on its own version of the myths I am probably off the mark. I for one am really excited to see how this all unfolds!

[loneberry]

To Hekate

Lovely Hekate of the roads

and of the crossroads I invoke.

In heaven, on earth,

then in the sea, saffron-cloaked,

tomb spirit reveling

in the souls of the dead,

daughter of Perses, haunting deserted places,

delighting in deer,

nocturnal, dog-loving,

monstrous queen,

devouring wild beasts,

ungirt and repulsive.

Herder of bulls,

queen and mistress of the whole world,

leader, nymph,

mountain-roaming nurturer of youths,

maiden, I beseech you to come

to these holy rites,

ever with joyous heart,

ever favoring the oxherd.

—The Orphic Hymns

[chthonicdaughter]

What do you do if you have consumed offerings meant for chthonic deities?

Someone asked me this recently and I honestly don't have an answer.

Any other worshipping witches out there have an idea?

@luna-tormenta @asphodelo @hekateanwitchcraft @sapphic-shieldmaiden

[ordoacephaliorientis]

The Minoan Snake Goddess, mistress of the earth, underworld and beasts

[chthonicdaughter]

Persephone Queen of the Underworld.

Persephone speaks to so much for me. She is a woman that was taken from the light cheeriness of innocence and dragged into the darkness. She rose through that darkness to sit as Queen of it. She is a reminder that even in the deepest of places, in the most hopeless situations that we had no say in, we can rise and find our power.

She began as a victim and became a queen.

Her husband is faithful and loving and she is his equal. They rule together. She is the keeper of curses and wrath upon men. Persephone is powerful, strong and unwavering. And alongside that, she is soft new life. She is new blooms, springtime, flowers and soft grass. She brings life to the world after winter. She is the warm breezes and spring rains. The strong with the soft. The power of death and life.

She is all that I hope to embody.