#hermits-thoughts

[hermitslibrary]

i think it’s fascinating see how many new pagan / polytheist / witch blogs are popping up - both new practitioners and experienced - whilst fundamentalist christianity takes even stronger hold in the united states.

in these times of uncertainty, we’re turning to the old gods. we’re turning to the earth. we’re turning to the stories that have kept us company for centuries. we’re turning to each other.

some folks might use this as an opportunity to spiritually bypass the fascism that we desperately need to fight. but i think the nature of these practices has a stronger chance of bringing us further into relationship with each other along with divinity. and i am hopeful that it will bring support and guidance to people that need it as times get more hectic.

[hermitslibrary]

honoring mnemosyne

realized she was in the room when my grandpa said, “you would have loved my mother”

this is all upg and from my opinion as a beginner hellenic polytheist

writing diary entries - even mundane basic stuff about how your day went

scrapbooks, photo albums (digital or physical), snapchat memories

going down memory lane with an old friend

physical objects that remind you of a different time (childhood stuffies, graduation cap, a shirt from a concert you loved)

asking our beloveds to share memories (of their beloveds that you’re unfamiliar with, of childhood, of a specific moment you’re interested in, etc)

music that makes you think about a specific moment in time, that connects you just as much to that moment as the song

nostalgic foods (ones that remind you of home / cherished places, cultural staples, or foods you ate growing up)

rewatching a beloved piece of media

taking a drive somewhere you don’t need a gps, or a walk around your immediate area

connecting with shows / movies / songs / books / activities that remind you of childhood

consider what you have committed to memory (songs, quotes, poems, brain rot, facts, etc)

reflect on your most important memories and how they’ve shaped you

the way my therapist explained it once: your memories is like a hallway full of pictures. maybe by working through some of those memories, you can replace some of those pictures with new ones that feel more empowering

[hermitslibrary]

Greek / Roman Deities I Associate With Each Tarot Card

0 Fool: Dionysus / Artemis [edit: moved Artemis here]

1 Magician: Hermes / Mnemosyne (Memory)

2 Priestess: Hekate [edit: removed Artemis, added Selene]

3 Empress: Aphrodite 

4 Emperor: Zeus / Ares

5 Hierophant: Chiron / Pythia 

6 Lovers: Hercules 

7 Chariot: Nike [removed Helios / Selene / Eos]

8 Strength: Hera [edit: added Eos]

9 Hermit: Hestia / Hephaestus [edit: added Hephaestus]

10 Fortuna: Zeus / Tyche 

11 Justice: Themis / Dike / Equity [edit: added Nomos (law)]

12 Surrender: Poseidon 

13 Death: Theranos / Hades [edit: include Chthonic Persephone]

14 Temperance: Janus / Athena / Iris 

15 Devil: Pan / Semele 

16 Tower: Nemesis  

17 Star: [edit: Ouranic] Persephone / Demeter 

18 Moon: Hypnos / Oneiri (Dreams)

19 Sun: Apollo / The Muses [edit: add Helios]

20 Judgement: Chthonic Hermes / The Moirai (Fates)

21: The World: Kronos, Gaia, Mother of the Gods

work in progress!!

[hermitslibrary]

my devotional pouches have become one of my favorite little parts of my practice! i wanted to share it because this is something that could be used by worshippers who can’t practice publicly, and for worshippers of different pantheons.

this is my pouch for hermes / mercury! i meant to use it specifically on mercury days (wednesday) but ive been keeping it with me everywhere tbh and i love it.

- i’ll probably change the picture of hermes because of the little alamy logos but i like it for now

- i have orange stones because those are his main color, and the pouch is yellow because i feel like that makes sense for him too

- i keep dice in there, seem to be classically associated with hermes

- finally i have a few sentimental hotel room keys, as the guardian of movement and travel it made sense to include.

- i also offer him my weed sometimes in the pouch and he hasn’t gotten offended by it but i keep checking in because it’s a bit unorthodox.

- on the other side of the pouch i have another orange stone and a picture of mnemosyne, i closely relate the two and also worship her on wednesdays.

this is the main pouch that i use, but i also have a red one for ares and athena [[trying to combine both aspects of them for my personal temper]] and a yellow one that im planning on dedicating to apollo. but i definitely want to make one for venus and artemis and probably more in the future!

they’re lowkey (no one in my life knows i practice apart from one sibling), they’re simple (chronic pain can make ritual and consistency difficult for me) and they help remind me of my connection to my divinities wherever i go.

[hermitslibrary]

it’s taking me forever to read the first volume of cult of the greek state by lewis farnell because i’ve convinced myself i have to translate every time they mention something in greek

but there’s been something super fun about screenshotting a greek word, extracting the text, and then translating it (usually with the lexilogos dictionary) only to excitedly be like… ITS LIGHTNING!

and it’s a pleasure that is unique to a modern helpol worshipper who can’t understand ancient greek. so i’m enjoying taking my time.

it’s also interesting reading the first long chapter, which is about zeus - very well researched, pretty dense, lots of citations and examples - and comparing it to the blurb about zeus from edith halilton’s classic mythology book - which is much shorter, but does a good job of encapsulating everything that was written in farnell’s work. i would definitely recommend her work to someone just staring out and looking for a taste of greek myth, vs lewis farnell’s as an older, more dense book.

[hermitslibrary]

something i’ve been pondering on is how despite women and disabled people being treated terribly in greek society, they were both venerated as part of the olympian pantheon.

yes, they were 100% still used as tools of the patriarchy, of a society that valued abled lives over disabled lives. representation in the divine pantheon did not translate into equity for ancient greek women (more on that here) or disabled people as a whole (more on that here).

i just think it’s fascinating to think about - we are in a world with improvements for disabled people and women everywhere ((still so far to go it’s disrespectful)), but there is no room for either in the dominant monotheistic religions of the world. the closest we get is the virgin mary, a very treasured to those who revere her, but still only one facet of femininity in religious spheres that are dominated by the patriarchy. (the christian god is “our heavenly father, after all)

what could the world look like if there was more respect for practices that have divinities of different genders, worshipping zeus alongside hera? divinities that defy gender constructs, like dionysos or hermes? disabled gods like hephaestos? holding the gods of the earth and below with the same reverence as the gods of the sky?

[hermitslibrary]

hail to selene, queen of the full moon 🌕

read her orphic hymn under the moonlight, reflected on the cancer / capricorn axis (full moon in capricorn w the sun in cancer) and the moon’s nostalgic quality.

my grandma would tell me to look at the moon when i missed her, because she would be looking at the moon too, and thinking of me. i imagine selene as someone who holds space for this longing. and im thinking about how to incorporate her into my practice as a guardian of nostalgia, as someone who acknowledges what’s you wish for in the dead of night.

[hermitslibrary]

new helpol devotee probs: the unfortunate paradox is that when life is better, i have more energy and im able to set aside more time for my deities. consequently, these are the times that i need to lean on them less, because life is going well. but, when i need my deities more, im cranky, in pain, and low energy, and not able to devote as much time to them as i need.

working on finding more balance and not being hard on myself for doing what i can. also reminding myself that if im working with them with good intention during the good times, thats still building kharis and a bond, and its almost more respectful to ask them for their help and support after you’ve formed this bond {from my understanding thus far}