On the cycle of day and night

 The beautiful thing about our religion is that not only do we have a clear way to honor the Theoi, and incentive to do so, we also get to live in a world governed completely by the Theoi. Hellenismos is special in that regards because it also largely matches up with science. To me--and many others with me--that is something very comforting. Now, as you are probably all aware, I live in a world full of Gods and Nymphs; for example, I take great strength in greeting Eos each morning as she paves the way for Helios, but there are many Gods who are, or who control, the cycle of day and night, and I would like to write out this cycle, if I may.

For all things geneological, I will always turn to Hesiod first. In his 'Theogony', he speaks of the birth of the Dawn, Sun and Moon:

"And Theia was subject in love to Hyperion and bare great Helios, and clear Selene, and Eos." [177]

Diodorus Siculus, in his 'Library of History' shares this world vieuw and moves a (pseudo-scientific) step beyond it:

"Of Hyperion we are told that he was the first to understand, by diligent attention and observation, the movement of both the sun and the moon and the other stars, and the seasons as well, in that they are caused by these bodies, and to make these facts known to others; and that for this reason he was called the father of these bodies, since he had begotten, so to speak, the speculation about them and their nature." [5.67.1]

Hyperion (Ὑπερίων), meaning 'The High-One', was a Titanes God born from Gaea and Ouranos. Theia and Euryphaessa (as mentioned in, for example, the Homeric Hymns) are generally regarded as the same Deathless woman: 'Theia' is the Hellenic word for 'Goddess', so it was likely 'Theia Euryphaessa' translated to 'Goddess Euryphaessa'. This means that the family tree is as follows:

     Khaos ------------ Gaea

         |         |

   Ouranos --- |

                       Hyperion --- Euryphaessa

                   |

                  Eos - Helios - Selene

The three of them--put into motion by Hyperion--form the basic cycle of these planets associated with specific times of day. Yet, the ancient Hellenes saw Night and Day as quite seperate from the heavenly bodies that are associated with them today. I have spoken before of the Protogenoi, and how They--contrary to the Olympians--are actually of the world; They, together, form the tapistry of earth and life. They literally make up our universe. As such, the further towards the Big Bang you go, the more abstract the Theoi become; They take on large, mostly unformed, chunks of the material that makes up our world and the further away you go from Khaos, the more specialized the Gods become--as well as numerous.

As such, starting this explination with Hyperion is actually incorrect--I should have started with Khaos itself, but if not there, than at least with Nyx, who is the deep Night, and Her daughter Hêmera (Ἡμερα), who is the Protogenos of the Day and the sister-wife of Aither (Light). In Hellenic mythology, Nyx draws a veil of darkness between the shining atmosphere of the aither and the lower air of earth (aer) at set times in the day, bringing night to man. In the morning, Hêmera removes this veil, and exposed the Earth once more to Light. As Hesiod writes in the Theogony:

"[At the ends of the earth, where lie the roots of earth, sea, Tartaros :] There stands the awful home of murky Nyx wrapped in dark clouds. In front of it [Atlas] the son of Iapetos stands immovably upholding the wide heaven upon his head and unwearying hands, where Nyx and Hemera draw near and greet one another as they pass the great threshold of bronze: and while the one is about to go down into the house, the other comes out at the door. And the house never holds them both within; but always one is without the house passing over the earth, while the other stays at home and waits until the time for her journeying come; and the one holds all-seeing light (phaos) for them on earth." [744]

Once we reach AD times, Hêmera is often identified with Eos, but in centuries prior, she was very much Her own Goddess, and Hêmera was as well. Hómēros, for example, in the 'Odysseia' writes: 

"The ship [of Odysseus] in due course left the waters of the river Okeanos and reached the waves of the spacious sea and the island of Aiaia; it is there [Okeanos] that Eos the early-comer (Erigeneia) has her dwelling place and her dancing grounds, and the sun himself has his risings. We came came in; we beached our vessel upon the sands and disembarked upon the sea-shore; there we fell fast asleep, awaiting ethereal Dawn." [12.1]

So, to recapitulate: Nyx and Hêmera continually work to both create and dissolve darkness on Earth; Selene moves with Nyx, and Helios with Hêmera, as heralded by Eos. In this recap, it is quite obvious we are yet missing a speciffic time of the day: dusk, or the evening. This was in the domain of the Nymphs, in this case the Hesperides (Ἑσπεριδες), who--depending of source--are either the daughters of Nyx or Atlas. Diodorus Siculus, in the 1st Century BC., wrote in his 'Library of History': 

"Now Hesperos (Evening) begat a daughter named Hesperis (Evening), who he gave in marriage to his brother [Atlas] and after whom the land was given the name Hesperitis; and Atlas begat by her seven daughters, who were named after their father Atlantides, and after their mother Hesperides." [4. 26. 2]

Yet, older sources agree that the Hesperides were born from Nyx; Hesiod, for example:

"And Nyx (Night) bare hateful Moros (Doom) and black Ker (Violent Death) and Thanatos (Death), and she bare Hypnos (Sleep) and the tribe of Oneiroi (Dreams). And again the goddess murky Nyx, though she lay with none, bare Momos (Blame) and painful Oizys (Misery), and the Hesperides who guard the rich, golden apples and the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos."

Of course, there are more Gods--motly Titans--who are in some way connected to the cycle of night and day, but these are the most important ones and it's quite a hand full already. So perhaps next time when you awake, you will think of Hêmera, and rosy Eos, and when the sun is high in the sky, you will think of Him as well, and when you look upon the Moon before going to bed, you will give honors to Selene and Nyx, who holds Her and Gaea in Her embrace. Our Gods are everywhere; you only have to be aware of Them to notice.

• Thursday, September 23, 2021
  Diodorus Siculus Eos genealogy Hēlios Hêmera Hesiod Hómēros Hyperion Mythology 101 Nyx Odysseia Selene Theogony

On the cycle of day and night

The beautiful thing about our religion is that not only do we have a clear way to honor the Theoi, and incentive to do so, we also get to live in a world governed completely by the Theoi. Hellenismos is special in that regards because it also largely matches up with science. To me--and many others with me--that is something very comforting. Now, as you are probably all aware, I live in a world full of Gods and Nymphs; for example, I take great strength in greeting Eos each morning as she paves the way for Helios, but there are many Gods who are, or who control, the cycle of day and night, and I would like to write out this cycle, if I may.

For all things geneological, I will always turn to Hesiod first. In his 'Theogony', he speaks of the birth of the Dawn, Sun and Moon:

"And Theia was subject in love to Hyperion and bare great Helios, and clear Selene, and Eos." [177]

Diodorus Siculus, in his 'Library of History' shares this world vieuw and moves a (pseudo-scientific) step beyond it:

"Of Hyperion we are told that he was the first to understand, by diligent attention and observation, the movement of both the sun and the moon and the other stars, and the seasons as well, in that they are caused by these bodies, and to make these facts known to others; and that for this reason he was called the father of these bodies, since he had begotten, so to speak, the speculation about them and their nature." [5.67.1]

Hyperion (Ὑπερίων), meaning 'The High-One', was a Titanes God born from Gaea and Ouranos. Theia and Euryphaessa (as mentioned in, for example, the Homeric Hymns) are generally regarded as the same Deathless woman: 'Theia' is the Hellenic word for 'Goddess', so it was likely 'Theia Euryphaessa' translated to 'Goddess Euryphaessa'. This means that the family tree is as follows:

     Khaos ------------ Gaea

         |         |

   Ouranos --- |

                       Hyperion --- Euryphaessa

                   |

                  Eos - Helios - Selene

The three of them--put into motion by Hyperion--form the basic cycle of these planets associated with specific times of day. Yet, the ancient Hellenes saw Night and Day as quite seperate from the heavenly bodies that are associated with them today. I have spoken before of the Protogenoi, and how They--contrary to the Olympians--are actually of the world; They, together, form the tapistry of earth and life. They literally make up our universe. As such, the further towards the Big Bang you go, the more abstract the Theoi become; They take on large, mostly unformed, chunks of the material that makes up our world and the further away you go from Khaos, the more specialized the Gods become--as well as numerous.

As such, starting this explination with Hyperion is actually incorrect--I should have started with Khaos itself, but if not there, than at least with Nyx, who is the deep Night, and Her daughter Hêmera (Ἡμερα), who is the Protogenos of the Day and the sister-wife of Aither (Light). In Hellenic mythology, Nyx draws a veil of darkness between the shining atmosphere of the aither and the lower air of earth (aer) at set times in the day, bringing night to man. In the morning, Hêmera removes this veil, and exposed the Earth once more to Light. As Hesiod writes in the Theogony:

"[At the ends of the earth, where lie the roots of earth, sea, Tartaros :] There stands the awful home of murky Nyx wrapped in dark clouds. In front of it [Atlas] the son of Iapetos stands immovably upholding the wide heaven upon his head and unwearying hands, where Nyx and Hemera draw near and greet one another as they pass the great threshold of bronze: and while the one is about to go down into the house, the other comes out at the door. And the house never holds them both within; but always one is without the house passing over the earth, while the other stays at home and waits until the time for her journeying come; and the one holds all-seeing light (phaos) for them on earth." [744]

Once we reach AD times, Hêmera is often identified with Eos, but in centuries prior, she was very much Her own Goddess, and Hêmera was as well. Hómēros, for example, in the 'Odysseia' writes: 

"The ship [of Odysseus] in due course left the waters of the river Okeanos and reached the waves of the spacious sea and the island of Aiaia; it is there [Okeanos] that Eos the early-comer (Erigeneia) has her dwelling place and her dancing grounds, and the sun himself has his risings. We came came in; we beached our vessel upon the sands and disembarked upon the sea-shore; there we fell fast asleep, awaiting ethereal Dawn." [12.1]

So, to recapitulate: Nyx and Hêmera continually work to both create and dissolve darkness on Earth; Selene moves with Nyx, and Helios with Hêmera, as heralded by Eos. In this recap, it is quite obvious we are yet missing a speciffic time of the day: dusk, or the evening. This was in the domain of the Nymphs, in this case the Hesperides (Ἑσπεριδες), who--depending of source--are either the daughters of Nyx or Atlas. Diodorus Siculus, in the 1st Century BC., wrote in his 'Library of History': 

"Now Hesperos (Evening) begat a daughter named Hesperis (Evening), who he gave in marriage to his brother [Atlas] and after whom the land was given the name Hesperitis; and Atlas begat by her seven daughters, who were named after their father Atlantides, and after their mother Hesperides." [4. 26. 2]

Yet, older sources agree that the Hesperides were born from Nyx; Hesiod, for example:

"And Nyx (Night) bare hateful Moros (Doom) and black Ker (Violent Death) and Thanatos (Death), and she bare Hypnos (Sleep) and the tribe of Oneiroi (Dreams). And again the goddess murky Nyx, though she lay with none, bare Momos (Blame) and painful Oizys (Misery), and the Hesperides who guard the rich, golden apples and the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos."

Of course, there are more Gods--motly Titans--who are in some way connected to the cycle of night and day, but these are the most important ones and it's quite a hand full already. So perhaps next time when you awake, you will think of Hêmera, and rosy Eos, and when the sun is high in the sky, you will think of Him as well, and when you look upon the Moon before going to bed, you will give honors to Selene and Nyx, who holds Her and Gaea in Her embrace. Our Gods are everywhere; you only have to be aware of Them to notice.

• Wednesday, July 15, 2020
  Diodorus Siculus Eos genealogy Hēlios Hêmera Hesiod Hómēros Hyperion Mythology 101 Nyx Odysseia Selene Theogony

PAT ritual announcement: the Pandia

On 12 March, at the usual 10 am EDT, Elaion wil host a PAT ritual for the Pandia. This is an ancient state festival attested as having been held annually at Athens as early as the time of Demosthenes--namely the 4th century BC. Very little is known about it, but seeing as we know it was wedged in between a meeting to evaluate the misconduct during the Dionysia on the eitheenth of Elaphebolion and the Dionysia itself, we can at least say with relative accuracy that it was held on the 17th of the month, although the 14th is also mentioned for its connection to the full moon (see below).

What the Pandia celebrate or commemorated is unclear; it's origin story is lost to us and the only records we have of the festival taking place date from much later than its foundation. To the ancient Hellenes who attested to the festival, it was merely a fossilized event that had remained from times past, and they celebrated it in the same way every year--a way obviously not interesting enough to write down. It seems that even they weren't exactly sure about what the festival celebrated.

Pandia (πάνδια) was said to have been a Goddess of the moon, either as an epithet of Selene or as a Goddess onto herself--the daughter of Zeus and Selene. As such, there may have been a connection to the moon for the festival, and either to Pandia, Selene, or Zeus. Another explination would be that the festival is derived from the Attic king Pandion I (Πανδίων Α'), who was said to have lived from 1437 - 1397 BC. Like his father Erichthonius, Pandion married a naiad, Zeuxippe, and they had five children, Erechtheus, Butes, Procne, Philomela, and Cecrops II. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, it was during Pandion I's reign that Demeter and Dionysos came to the city-state of Athens. Before his death, he gave the rule of Athens to Erechtheus, but the priesthoods of Poseidon and Athena to Butes.

A third possibility is that the festival is connected to the Attic tribe Dias, so that the Pandia would have been in the same relation to this tribe as the Panathenaea to Athens. A fourth is that the name of the festival is linked to the tribe, but also the name of Zeus--Dias, Διός--which would make it a festival of Zeus Himself.

The most accepted theory comes from Friedrich Gottlieb Welcker, a German classical philologist and archaeologist, who concluded that the festival was most likely a festival of Zeus celebrated by all the Attic tribes, analogous to the Panathenaea. It was a much smaller festival, however.

If you intend to look up Pandia, you are helped greatly by knowing the name which she was better known as in ancient Hellas: Pandeia (Πανδεια). The Homeric Hymn to Selene mentions Zeus, Selene and Pandia so we have added that hymn to the ritual:

"And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song, tell of the long-winged Moon. From her immortal head a radiance is shown from heaven and embraces earth; and great is the beauty that ariseth from her shining light. The air, unlit before, glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear, whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming, shining team, drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, at eventime in the mid-month: then her great orbit is full and then her beams shine brightest as she increases. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. Once the Son of Cronos was joined with her in love; and she conceived and bare a daughter Pandia, exceeding lovely amongst the deathless gods. Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen! And now I will leave you and sing the glories of men half-divine, whose deeds minstrels, the servants of the Muses, celebrate with lovely lips." [XXXII]

The ritual for the event can be found here and the community page on Facebook can be found here.

• Thursday, March 12, 2020
  ancient Hellenic culture current affairs Elaion Mythology 101 Pandia PAT Selene Zeus

Prayer to Selene

Today I would like to share with you one of the prayers from the Papyri Graecae Magicae, also known as the 'Greek Magical Papyri'. They are a body of papyri from Graeco-Roman Egypt, which each contain a number of magical spells, formulae, hymns and rituals. The materials in the papyri date from the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD. The manuscripts came to light through the antiquities trade, from the 18th century onwards.

Today, I will quote to you from the first book of spells and invocations. This prayer was noted down to Selene, Goddess of the moon, and served as an interlude to 'Any Spell'. It came with the instructions too:

'Offering for The Rite: For doing Good, offer Storax, Myrrh, Sage, Frankincense, a Fruit Pit. But for doing Harm, offer Magical Material of a Dog and a Dappled Goat (or in a similar way, of a Virgin Untimely Dead).

Protective Charm for The Rite: Take a Lodestone and on it have carved a Three-faced Hekate. And let the Middle Face be that of a Maiden wearing Horns, and the Left Face that of a Dog, and the One on the Right that of a Goat. After the Carving is done, clean with Natron and Water, and dip in the Blood of One who has died a Violent Death. Then make Food Offering to it and say the same Spell at the time of the Ritual.'

The prayer goes as follows:

"Come to me, O Beloved Mistress, Three-faced
Selene; kindly hear my Sacred Chants;
Night's Ornament, young, bringing Light to Mortals,
O Child of Morn who ride upon the Fierce Bulls,
O Queen who drive Your Car on Equal Course
With Helios, who with the Triple Forms
Of Triple Graces dance in Revel with
The Stars. You're Justice and the Moira's Threads:
Klotho and Lachesis and Atropos
Three-headed, You're Persephone, Megaira,
Allekto, Many-Formed, who arm Your Hands
With Dreaded, Murky Lamps, who shake Your Locks
Of fearful Serpents on Your Brow, who sound
The Roar of Bulls out from Your Mouths, whose Womb
Is decked out with the Scales of Creeping Things,
With Pois'nous Rows of Serpents down the Back,
Bound down Your Backs with Horrifying Chains
Night-Crier, Bull-faced, loving Solitude,
Bull-headed, You have Eyes of Bulls, the Voice
Of Dogs; You hide Your Forms in Shanks of Lions,
Your Ankle is Wolf-shaped, Fierce Dogs are dear
To You, wherefore they call You Hekate,
Many-named, Mene, cleaving Air just like
Dart-shooter Artemis, Persephone,
Shooter of Deer, night shining, triple-sounding,
Triple-headed, triple-voiced Selene
Triple-pointed, triple-faced, triple-necked,
And Goddess of the Triple Ways, who hold
Untiring Flaming Fire in Triple Baskets,
And You who oft frequent the Triple Way
And rule the Triple Decades, unto me
Who'm calling You be gracious and with Kindness
Give Heed, You who protect the Spacious World
At night, before whom Daimons quake in Fear
And Gods Immortal tremble, Goddess who
Exalt Men, You of Many Names, who bear
Fair Offspring, Bull-eyed, Horned, Mother of Gods
And Men, and Nature, Mother of All Things,
For You frequent Olympos, and the broad
And boundless Chasm You traverse. Beginning
And End are You, and You Alone rule All.
For All Things are from You, and in You do
All Things, Eternal One, come to their End.
As Everlasting Band around Your Temples
You wear Great Kronos' Chains, unbreakable
And unremovable, and You hold in
Your Hands a Golden Scepter. Letters 'round
Your Scepter Kronos wrote Himself and gave
To You to wear that All Things stay steadfast:
Subduer and subdued, Mankind's Subduer,
And Force-subduer; Chaos, too, You rule.
Hail, Goddess, and attend Your Epithets,
I burn for You this Spice, O Child of Zeus,
Dart-shooter, Heav'nly One, Goddess of Harbors,
Who roam the Mountains, Goddess of Crossroads,
O Nether and Nocturnal, and Infernal,
Goddess of Dark, Quiet and Frightful One,
O You who have Your Meal amid the Graves,
Night, Darkness, Broad Chaos: Necessity
Hard to escape are You; You're Moira and
Erinys, Torment, Justice and Destroyer,
And You keep Kerberos in Chains, with Scales
Of Serpents are You dark, O You with Hair
Of Serpents, Serpent-girded, who drink Blood,
Who bring Death and Destruction, and who feast
On Hearts, Flesh Eater, who devour Those Dead
Untimely, and You who make Grief resound
And spread Madness, come to my Sacrifices,
And now for me do You fulfill this Matter."

[VI. xxvii]

• Monday, November 18, 2019
  ancient Hellenic culture hymns Selene

PAT ritual announcement: the Pandia

On 4 April, at the usual 10 am EDT, Elaion wil host a PAT ritual for the Pandia. This is an ancient state festival attested as having been held annually at Athens as early as the time of Demosthenes--namely the 4th century BC. Very little is known about it, but seeing as we know it was wedged in between a meeting to evaluate the misconduct during the Dionysia on the eitheenth of Elaphebolion and the Dionysia itself, we can at least say with relative accuracy that it was held on the 17th of the month, although the 14th is also mentioned for its connection to the full moon (see below).

What the Pandia celebrate or commemorated is unclear; it's origin story is lost to us and the only records we have of the festival taking place date from much later than its foundation. To the ancient Hellenes who attested to the festival, it was merely a fossilized event that had remained from times past, and they celebrated it in the same way every year--a way obviously not interesting enough to write down. It seems that even they weren't exactly sure about what the festival celebrated.

Pandia (πάνδια) was said to have been a Goddess of the moon, either as an epithet of Selene or as a Goddess onto herself--the daughter of Zeus and Selene. As such, there may have been a connection to the moon for the festival, and either to Pandia, Selene, or Zeus. Another explination would be that the festival is derived from the Attic king Pandion I (Πανδίων Α'), who was said to have lived from 1437 - 1397 BC. Like his father Erichthonius, Pandion married a naiad, Zeuxippe, and they had five children, Erechtheus, Butes, Procne, Philomela, and Cecrops II. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, it was during Pandion I's reign that Demeter and Dionysos came to the city-state of Athens. Before his death, he gave the rule of Athens to Erechtheus, but the priesthoods of Poseidon and Athena to Butes.

A third possibility is that the festival is connected to the Attic tribe Dias, so that the Pandia would have been in the same relation to this tribe as the Panathenaea to Athens. A fourth is that the name of the festival is linked to the tribe, but also the name of Zeus--Dias, Διός--which would make it a festival of Zeus Himself.

The most accepted theory comes from Friedrich Gottlieb Welcker, a German classical philologist and archaeologist, who concluded that the festival was most likely a festival of Zeus celebrated by all the Attic tribes, analogous to the Panathenaea. It was a much smaller festival, however.

If you intend to look up Pandia, you are helped greatly by knowing the name which she was better known as in ancient Hellas: Pandeia (Πανδεια). The Homeric Hymn to Selene mentions Zeus, Selene and Pandia so we have added that hymn to the ritual:

"And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song, tell of the long-winged Moon. From her immortal head a radiance is shown from heaven and embraces earth; and great is the beauty that ariseth from her shining light. The air, unlit before, glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear, whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming, shining team, drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, at eventime in the mid-month: then her great orbit is full and then her beams shine brightest as she increases. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. Once the Son of Cronos was joined with her in love; and she conceived and bare a daughter Pandia, exceeding lovely amongst the deathless gods. Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen! And now I will leave you and sing the glories of men half-divine, whose deeds minstrels, the servants of the Muses, celebrate with lovely lips." [XXXII]

The ritual for the event can be found here and the community page on Facebook can be found here.

• Friday, March 30, 2018
  ancient Hellenic culture current affairs Elaion Mythology 101 Pandia PAT Selene Zeus

A selection of sung and spoken hymns

I love listening to the hymns of antiquitym. I am not skilled in (ancient) Greek, but there is something about the soothing tones of the Homeric and Orphic hymns being sung or spoken. Today, I wanted to share with you a few of my favorites to be found on Youtube, and I am open to suggestions about yours!

Orphic hymn to Selene

Orphic Hymn to Apollon

Prayer to Zeus (by Arkhilokhos of Paros)

Homeric hymn to Artemis (modern English adaption)

Homeric hymn to Hermes

Homeric hymn to Zeus (#23)

Homeric Hymn to Asklēpiós

• Friday, March 9, 2018
  Apollon Artemis Asklēpiós Hermes Homeric Hymns hymns Orphic Hymns Selene video Zeus

PAT ritual announcement: the Pandia

On 16 March, at the usual 10 am EDT, Elaion wil host a PAT ritual for the Pandia. This is an ancient state festival attested as having been held annually at Athens as early as the time of Demosthenes--namely the 4th century BC. Very little is known about it, but seeing as we know it was wedged in between a meeting to evaluate the misconduct during the Dionysia on the eitheenth of Elaphebolion and the Dionysia itself, we can at least say with relative accuracy that it was held on the 17th of the month, although the 14th is also mentioned for its connection to the full moon (see below).

What the Pandia celebrate or commemorated is unclear; it's origin story is lost to us and the only records we have of the festival taking place date from much later than its foundation. To the ancient Hellenes who attested to the festival, it was merely a fossilized event that had remained from times past, and they celebrated it in the same way every year--a way obviously not interesting enough to write down. It seems that even they weren't exactly sure about what the festival celebrated.

Pandia (πάνδια) was said to have been a Goddess of the moon, either as an epithet of Selene or as a Goddess onto herself--the daughter of Zeus and Selene. As such, there may have been a connection to the moon for the festival, and either to Pandia, Selene, or Zeus. Another explination would be that the festival is derived from the Attic king Pandion I (Πανδίων Α'), who was said to have lived from 1437 - 1397 BC. Like his father Erichthonius, Pandion married a naiad, Zeuxippe, and they had five children, Erechtheus, Butes, Procne, Philomela, and Cecrops II. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, it was during Pandion I's reign that Demeter and Dionysos came to the city-state of Athens. Before his death, he gave the rule of Athens to Erechtheus, but the priesthoods of Poseidon and Athena to Butes.

A third possibility is that the festival is connected to the Attic tribe Dias, so that the Pandia would have been in the same relation to this tribe as the Panathenaea to Athens. A fourth is that the name of the festival is linked to the tribe, but also the name of Zeus--Dias, Διός--which would make it a festival of Zeus Himself.

The most accepted theory comes from Friedrich Gottlieb Welcker, a German classical philologist and archaeologist, who concluded that the festival was most likely a festival of Zeus celebrated by all the Attic tribes, analogous to the Panathenaea. It was a much smaller festival, however.

If you intend to look up Pandia, you are helped greatly by knowing the name which she was better known as in ancient Hellas: Pandeia (Πανδεια). The Homeric Hymn to Selene mentions Zeus, Selene and Pandia so we have added that hymn to the ritual:

"And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song, tell of the long-winged Moon. From her immortal head a radiance is shown from heaven and embraces earth; and great is the beauty that ariseth from her shining light. The air, unlit before, glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear, whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming, shining team, drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, at eventime in the mid-month: then her great orbit is full and then her beams shine brightest as she increases. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. Once the Son of Cronos was joined with her in love; and she conceived and bare a daughter Pandia, exceeding lovely amongst the deathless gods. Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen! And now I will leave you and sing the glories of men half-divine, whose deeds minstrels, the servants of the Muses, celebrate with lovely lips." [XXXII]

The ritual for the event can be found here and the community page on Facebook can be found here.

• Thursday, March 9, 2017
  ancient Hellenic culture current affairs Elaion Mythology 101 Pandia PAT Selene Zeus

Bless Selene in all Her glory!

Yesterday night a supermoon. In fact, t was a special supermoon. The moon, yesterday, was the closest it’s been to the Earth since January 26, 1948—the next similarly large supermoon won’t occur until November 25, 2034. On the night of the supermoon, the diameter of the moon appeared up to 14 percent larger and the total area of the moon looked up to 30 percent larger and brighter. The moon appears so large due to its positioning on its orbit.

The moon’s orbit is not a circle, but rather an ellipse, just as with the planets. On average, the moon is about 239,000 miles away from the Earth. When it is at perigee, or its closest point to Earth, it can be about 225,000 miles away. When this happens during full moon, the apparent size of the moon, as seen from Earth, appears to increase.

In he Hellenic religion, the prime lunar deity is the Titan Selene (Σελήνη), who is the personification of the moon. She is linked to everything the moon can be connected to, including the night, ocean tides, magic, childbirth, dew, lunacy, nursing and the months. As such, last night was especially saced to Her. I hope you have all enjoyed Her in all Her glory. Else a similar experience can be had tonight. I'll share a few Google-found images of previous supermoons to at least give you the feeling of last night's special event--and of course they are all linked to ancient Hellenic monuments.

[Propylaia, Acropolis, Athens]

 

[Temple of Poseidon, Cape Sounion]

 

[Temple of Poseidon, Cape Sounion]

 

[Temple of Apollon, Corinth]

 

[Statue of Athena, Athens]

• Tuesday, November 15, 2016
  current affairs Mythology 101 Selene

PAT ritual announcement: the Pandia

On 26 March, at the usual 10 am EDT, Elaion wil host a PAT ritual for the Pandia. This is an ancient state festival attested as having been held annually at Athens as early as the time of Demosthenes--namely the 4th century BC. Very little is known about it, but seeing as we know it was wedged in between a meeting to evaluate the misconduct during the Dionysia on the eitheenth of Elaphebolion and the Dionysia itself, we can at least say with relative accuracy that it was held on the 17th of the month, although the 14th is also mentioned for its connection to the full moon (see below).

What the Pandia celebrate or commemorated is unclear; it's origin story is lost to us and the only records we have of the festival taking place date from much later than its foundation. To the ancient Hellenes who attested to the festival, it was merely a fossilized event that had remained from times past, and they celebrated it in the same way every year--a way obviously not interesting enough to write down. It seems that even they weren't exactly sure about what the festival celebrated.

Pandia (πάνδια) was said to have been a Goddess of the moon, either as an epithet of Selene or as a Goddess onto herself--the daughter of Zeus and Selene. As such, there may have been a connection to the moon for the festival, and either to Pandia, Selene, or Zeus. Another explination would be that the festival is derived from the Attic king Pandion I (Πανδίων Α'), who was said to have lived from 1437 - 1397 BC. Like his father Erichthonius, Pandion married a naiad, Zeuxippe, and they had five children, Erechtheus, Butes, Procne, Philomela, and Cecrops II. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, it was during Pandion I's reign that Demeter and Dionysos came to the city-state of Athens. Before his death, he gave the rule of Athens to Erechtheus, but the priesthoods of Poseidon and Athena to Butes.

A third possibility is that the festival is connected to the Attic tribe Dias, so that the Pandia would have been in the same relation to this tribe as the Panathenaea to Athens. A fourth is that the name of the festival is linked to the tribe, but also the name of Zeus--Dias, Διός--which would make it a festival of Zeus Himself.

The most accepted theory comes from Friedrich Gottlieb Welcker, a German classical philologist and archaeologist, who concluded that the festival was most likely a festival of Zeus celebrated by all the Attic tribes, analogous to the Panathenaea. It was a much smaller festival, however.

If you intend to look up Pandia, you are helped greatly by knowing the name which she was better known as in ancient Hellas: Pandeia (Πανδεια). The Homeric Hymn to Selene mentions Zeus, Selene and Pandia so we have added that hymn to the ritual:

"And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song, tell of the long-winged Moon. From her immortal head a radiance is shown from heaven and embraces earth; and great is the beauty that ariseth from her shining light. The air, unlit before, glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear, whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming, shining team, drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, at eventime in the mid-month: then her great orbit is full and then her beams shine brightest as she increases. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. Once the Son of Cronos was joined with her in love; and she conceived and bare a daughter Pandia, exceeding lovely amongst the deathless gods. Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen! And now I will leave you and sing the glories of men half-divine, whose deeds minstrels, the servants of the Muses, celebrate with lovely lips." [XXXII]

The ritual for the event can be found here and the community page on Facebook is here.

• Wednesday, March 23, 2016
  ancient Hellenic culture current affairs Elaion Mythology 101 Pandia PAT Selene Zeus

Prayer to Selene

Today I would like to share with you one of the prayers from the Papyri Graecae Magicae, also known as the 'Greek Magical Papyri'. They are a body of papyri from Graeco-Roman Egypt, which each contain a number of magical spells, formulae, hymns and rituals. The materials in the papyri date from the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD. The manuscripts came to light through the antiquities trade, from the 18th century onwards.

Today, I will quote to you from the first book of spells and invocations. This prayer was noted down to Selene, Goddess of the moon, and served as an interlude to 'Any Spell'. It came with the instructions too:

'Offering for The Rite: For doing Good, offer Storax, Myrrh, Sage, Frankincense, a Fruit Pit. But for doing Harm, offer Magical Material of a Dog and a Dappled Goat (or in a similar way, of a Virgin Untimely Dead).

Protective Charm for The Rite: Take a Lodestone and on it have carved a Three-faced Hekate. And let the Middle Face be that of a Maiden wearing Horns, and the Left Face that of a Dog, and the One on the Right that of a Goat. After the Carving is done, clean with Natron and Water, and dip in the Blood of One who has died a Violent Death. Then make Food Offering to it and say the same Spell at the time of the Ritual.'

The prayer goes as follows:

"Come to me, O Beloved Mistress, Three-faced
Selene; kindly hear my Sacred Chants;
Night's Ornament, young, bringing Light to Mortals,
O Child of Morn who ride upon the Fierce Bulls,
O Queen who drive Your Car on Equal Course
With Helios, who with the Triple Forms
Of Triple Graces dance in Revel with
The Stars. You're Justice and the Moira's Threads:
Klotho and Lachesis and Atropos
Three-headed, You're Persephone, Megaira,
Allekto, Many-Formed, who arm Your Hands
With Dreaded, Murky Lamps, who shake Your Locks
Of fearful Serpents on Your Brow, who sound
The Roar of Bulls out from Your Mouths, whose Womb
Is decked out with the Scales of Creeping Things,
With Pois'nous Rows of Serpents down the Back,
Bound down Your Backs with Horrifying Chains
Night-Crier, Bull-faced, loving Solitude,
Bull-headed, You have Eyes of Bulls, the Voice
Of Dogs; You hide Your Forms in Shanks of Lions,
Your Ankle is Wolf-shaped, Fierce Dogs are dear
To You, wherefore they call You Hekate,
Many-named, Mene, cleaving Air just like
Dart-shooter Artemis, Persephone,
Shooter of Deer, night shining, triple-sounding,
Triple-headed, triple-voiced Selene
Triple-pointed, triple-faced, triple-necked,
And Goddess of the Triple Ways, who hold
Untiring Flaming Fire in Triple Baskets,
And You who oft frequent the Triple Way
And rule the Triple Decades, unto me
Who'm calling You be gracious and with Kindness
Give Heed, You who protect the Spacious World
At night, before whom Daimons quake in Fear
And Gods Immortal tremble, Goddess who
Exalt Men, You of Many Names, who bear
Fair Offspring, Bull-eyed, Horned, Mother of Gods
And Men, and Nature, Mother of All Things,
For You frequent Olympos, and the broad
And boundless Chasm You traverse. Beginning
And End are You, and You Alone rule All.
For All Things are from You, and in You do
All Things, Eternal One, come to their End.
As Everlasting Band around Your Temples
You wear Great Kronos' Chains, unbreakable
And unremovable, and You hold in
Your Hands a Golden Scepter. Letters 'round
Your Scepter Kronos wrote Himself and gave
To You to wear that All Things stay steadfast:
Subduer and subdued, Mankind's Subduer,
And Force-subduer; Chaos, too, You rule.
Hail, Goddess, and attend Your Epithets,
I burn for You this Spice, O Child of Zeus,
Dart-shooter, Heav'nly One, Goddess of Harbors,
Who roam the Mountains, Goddess of Crossroads,
O Nether and Nocturnal, and Infernal,
Goddess of Dark, Quiet and Frightful One,
O You who have Your Meal amid the Graves,
Night, Darkness, Broad Chaos: Necessity
Hard to escape are You; You're Moira and
Erinys, Torment, Justice and Destroyer,
And You keep Kerberos in Chains, with Scales
Of Serpents are You dark, O You with Hair
Of Serpents, Serpent-girded, who drink Blood,
Who bring Death and Destruction, and who feast
On Hearts, Flesh Eater, who devour Those Dead
Untimely, and You who make Grief resound
And spread Madness, come to my Sacrifices,
And now for me do You fulfill this Matter."

[VI. xxvii]

• Sunday, February 7, 2016
  ancient Hellenic culture hymns Selene

PAT ritual announcement(s) for the Dionysia (and the Pandia)

The festival season is starting up again, and Elaion is on a mission to host PAT festivals for all of them, so instead of spamming you with posts for upcoming rituals, you are getting just one--with two of them, the Dionysia and the Pandia.

The Dionysia

The (Greater) City Dionysia was and is a true theatric festival of Dionysos. It was and is held on the 10th to 17th days of Elaphebolion and is thought to have been founded, or at least revived, by the tyrant Pisistratus (around 530 BC). It was most famously held in Athens, when the city was once again full of visitors after the winter. The festival honours Dionysos Eleuthereus (Διονυσος Ελευθερευς), who was said to have been introduced into Athens from the village of Eleuterae (Ελευθέραι). The festival focuses on the performance of tragedies, but has included the performing of comedies since 487 BC. It was the second-most important festival after the Panathenaia.

 

Dionysos was a métoikos in a city of Athens, a resident alien, and on the first two days of the festival, the métoikoi of the city got to wear brightly colored festival clothes--mostly purple--and carried trays of offerings in the processions, something métoikoi never got to do otherwise. The Athenian citizens, on the other hand, wore their day-to-day clothes and carried wine and bread with them, or herded the bulls which would be sacrificed. Labrys, a Hellenic Polytheistic group located in Greece, recently performed the Phallephoria, the carrying of a phallus in procession in honor of Dionysus through the streets of Athens, for the first time after almost two thousand years.

At the end of the processions, the statue of Dionysos was placed in His temple in the theater district, and sacrifices were made to Him. Flute players and poets held contests, and were eager to outdo each other. After all of this, the festival most likely became very Dionysian, indeed.

Singing and dancing had always been a big part of the City Dionysia, but after a while, the structure of the seven day festival became more apparent. Instead of random singing and dancing, from the third day onward, everyone flogged to the theaters to view the plays, whose names and creators had been announced the day prior. The next three days of the festival were devoted to the tragic plays. The three chosen playwrights performed three tragedies and one satyr play each, one set of plays per day. Famous playwrights include Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles. They were judged by judges (agonothetai) chosen on the second day.

On the sixth day of the festival, five comedies by famous playwrights like Philemon, Chionides, and Aristophanes were performed. Comedies were of secondary importance at the Dionysia--the Lenaia was far more important for those--but winning the comedic prize at the Dionysia was still regarded a great honor. It seems that, from the fifth century BC onwards, plays could be recycled, and the audience seemed to have appreciated it. These plays were fan favorites, and were not rushed to completion.

Another procession and celebration was held on the final day, and the winners of the competitions were declared. The winning playwrights won a wreath of ivy, or a goat, although, when old plays were performed, the producer was awarded the prize rather than the long-dead playwright.

To celebrate the Dionysia, Elaion is hosting a PAT ritual on April 6, at the standard 10 AM EDT. You can find the ritual here, and we hope you will join us. We've chosen to host the ritual on the final day simply because it was a day reserved for sacrifices and rites, and we've already had quite the influx of rituals the weekend before (the other option was at the start, which would be Monday March 30).


The Pandia
The Pandia was an ancient state festival attested as having been held annually at Athens as early as the time of Demosthenes--namely the 4th century BC. Very little is known about this festival, but seeing as we know it was wedged in between a meeting to evaluate the misconduct during the Dionysia on the eitheenth of Elaphebolion and the Dionysia itself, we can at least say with relative accuracy that it was held on the 17th of the month, although the 14th is also mentioned for its connection to the full moon (see below).

What the Pandia celebrate or commemorated is unclear; it's origin story is lost to us and the only records we have of the festival taking place date from much later than its foundation. To the ancient Hellenes who attested to the festival, it was merely a fossilized event that had remained from times past, and they celebrated it in the same way every year--a way obviously not interesting enough to write down. It seems that even they weren't exactly sure about what the festival celebrated.

Pandia (πάνδια), or Pandeia (Πανδεια), was said to have been a Goddess of the moon, either as an epithet of Selene or as a Goddess onto herself--the daughter of Zeus and Selene. As such, there may have been a connection to the moon for the festival, and either to Pandia, Selene, or Zeus. Another explanation would be that the festival is derived from the Attic king Pandion I (Πανδίων Α'), who was said to have lived from 1437 - 1397 BC. Like his father Erichthonius, Pandion married a naiad, Zeuxippe, and they had five children, Erechtheus, Butes, Procne, Philomela, and Cecrops II. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, it was during Pandion I's reign that Demeter and Dionysos came to the city-state of Athens. Before his death, he gave the rule of Athens to Erechtheus, but the priesthoods of Poseidon and Athena to Butes.

A third possibility is that the festival is connected to the Attic tribe Dias, so that the Pandia would have been in the same relation to this tribe as the Panathenaea to Athens. A fourth is that the name of the festival is linked to the tribe, but also the name of Zeus--Dias, Διός--which would make it a festival of Zeus Himself.

Elaion won't hold an official PAT ritual for the Pandia because there is so much unclear about it and the festival itself so archaic, but I enjoy celebrating it, so I've made a ritual outline, regardless, and will perform it on April 7 to honour Zeus, Selene, and Pandia. You are very welcome to join me! 

• Sunday, March 29, 2015
  ancient Hellenic culture Dionysia Dionysos Elaion festivals Pandia PAT Selene Zeus

Introducing: Nyx

In the category, 'questions I got ages ago and am only now getting to', I want to talk about the Goddess Nyx today. I have received the following reader question:

"Do you know anything about worshiping Nyx in the modern world?"

Nyx (Νυξ) is the deep Night, born from Khaos (Χαος) and the sister-wife of Aither (Αιθηρ, 'Light'). In Hellenic mythology, Nyx draws a veil of darkness between the shining atmosphere of the aither and the lower air of earth (aer) at set times in the day, bringing night to man. In the morning, Her daughter Hêmera (Ἡμερα, 'Day') removes this veil, and exposes the Earth once more to Light. As Hesiod writes in the Theogony:

"[At the ends of the earth, where lie the roots of earth, sea, Tartaros :] There stands the awful home of murky Nyx wrapped in dark clouds. In front of it [Atlas] the son of Iapetos stands immovably upholding the wide heaven upon his head and unwearying hands, where Nyx and Hemera draw near and greet one another as they pass the great threshold of bronze: and while the one is about to go down into the house, the other comes out at the door. And the house never holds them both within; but always one is without the house passing over the earth, while the other stays at home and waits until the time for her journeying come; and the one holds all-seeing light (phaos) for them on earth." [744]

Nyx and Hêmera continually work to both create and dissolve darkness on Earth; Selene (the Goddess of the Moon) moves with Nyx, and Helios (God of the Sun) with Hêmera, as heralded by Eos. In this recap, it is quite obvious we are yet missing a speciffic time of the day: dusk, or the evening. This was in the domain of the Nymphs, in this case the Hesperides (Ἑσπεριδες), who--depending of source--are either the daughters of Nyx or Atlas. Diodorus Siculus, in the 1st Century BC., wrote in his 'Library of History': 

"Now Hesperos (Evening) begat a daughter named Hesperis (Evening), who he gave in marriage to his brother [Atlas] and after whom the land was given the name Hesperitis; and Atlas begat by her seven daughters, who were named after their father Atlantides, and after their mother Hesperides." [4. 26. 2]

Yet, older sources agree that the Hesperides (amongst others like Hypnos and Tartaros) were born from Nyx; Hesiod, for example:

"And Nyx (Night) bare hateful Moros (Doom) and black Ker (Violent Death) and Thanatos (Death), and she bare Hypnos (Sleep) and the tribe of Oneiroi (Dreams). And again the goddess murky Nyx, though she lay with none, bare Momos (Blame) and painful Oizys (Misery), and the Hesperides who guard the rich, golden apples and the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos."

In ancient Hellas, Nyx was only rarely the focus of cult worship. Pausanias mentions She had an oracle on the acropolis at Megara, but that is about it. More often, Nyx was worshipped in other major cults, alongside the main deity: there was a statue called 'Nyx' in the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the Spartans had a cult of Sleep and Death, conceived of as twins, with Nyx being worshipped as Their mother, etc.

As for modern worship; I have talked before of how I feel all worship is pretty much the same in Hellenismos. The major difference between reconstructive religions and modern ones--especially Pagan ones--is the way worship is conducted. Individual worship of Gods as well as patronage is perfectly acceptable in modern religions, but in Recon religions and the ancient Traditions they were based upon, worship tends to be of the pantheon, not so much the one God or Goddess. What goes for one Olympic God, tends to go for the others as well.

There are five steps to proper, Hellenistic, ritual: procession, purification, prayers and hymns, sacrifice/offerings, prayers of supplication and thanks, usually followed by a feast and/or theatre and sporting events. We can apply this to modern worship quite easily: procession (no matter how short), purification with lustral water (named khernips), a hymn, song or modern poem which praises and draws the Theos in question, a sacrifice of some kind--be it incenses, (mixed) wine, meat or anything else--along with barley seeds tossed on the altar or into the altar fire, prayers or words of thanks, and--in communal rituals--plays, games, or (sports)-competitions. Within communal celebrations, the sacrifice can be some of the (raw) ingredients used to prepare the communal meal that will follow.

Hellenismos is not glamorous; in general, you do the same thing over and over again with minor variations. That is what I love about it. It's simple, clear, and repetitive. As for Nyx, in the Orphic Hymn to Her, torches are prescribed as an offering, and Gods of the night tended to be worshipped at that time as well. Not always, naturally, but the dark night is Her domain. Bring her sacrifices of wine and try to include Her children and husband in your worship as well. Good luck!

• Friday, June 6, 2014
  Diodorus Siculus Hēlios Hellenismos 101 Hêmera Hesiod Introduction series Mythology 101 Nyx requested post Selene

Celebrating the Pandia

Yesterday, the City Dionysia came to an end, which means that dusk yesterday started the Pandia festival, an ancient state festival attested as having been held annually at Athens as early as the time of Demosthenes--namely the 4th century BC. Very little is known about this festival, but seeing as we know it was wedged in between a meeting to evaluate the misconduct during the Dionysia on the eitheenth of Elaphebolion and the Dionysia itself, we can at least say with relative accuracy that it was held on the 17th of the month, although the 14th is also mentioned for its connection to the full moon (see below).

What the Pandia celebrate or commemorated is unclear; it's origin story is lost to us and the only records we have of the festival taking place date from much later than its foundation. To the ancient Hellenes who attested to the festival, it was merely a fossilized event that had remained from times past, and they celebrated it in the same way every year--a way obviously not interesting enough to write down. It seems that even they weren't exactly sure about what the festival celebrated.

Pandia (πάνδια) was said to have been a Goddess of the moon, either as an epithet of Selene or as a Goddess onto herself--the daughter of Zeus and Selene. As such, there may have been a connection to the moon for the festival, and either to Pandia, Selene, or Zeus. Another explination would be that the festival is derived from the Attic king Pandion I (Πανδίων Α'), who was said to have lived from 1437 - 1397 BC. Like his father Erichthonius, Pandion married a naiad, Zeuxippe, and they had five children, Erechtheus, Butes, Procne, Philomela, and Cecrops II. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheca, it was during Pandion I's reign that Demeter and Dionysos came to the city-state of Athens. Before his death, he gave the rule of Athens to Erechtheus, but the priesthoods of Poseidon and Athena to Butes.

A third possibility is that the festival is connected to the Attic tribe Dias, so that the Pandia would have been in the same relation to this tribe as the Panathenaea to Athens. A fourth is that the name of the festival is linked to the tribe, but also the name of Zeus--Dias, Διός--which would make it a festival of Zeus Himself.

The most accepted theory comes from Friedrich Gottlieb Welcker, a German classical philologist and archaeologist, who concluded that the festival was most likely a festival of Zeus celebrated by all the Attic tribes, analogous to the Panathenaea. It was a much smaller festival, however, and those celebrating it today can fullfill the religious obligations for it by sacrificing to Zeus. If you want to add Padria and Selene, that is--of course--completely fine. If you intend to look up Pandia, you are helped greatly by knowing the name which she was better known as in ancient Hellas: Pandeia (Πανδεια). The Homeric Hymn to Selene mentions all three Gods so feel free to use that as a hymn during your ritual:

"And next, sweet voiced Muses, daughters of Zeus, well-skilled in song, tell of the long-winged Moon. From her immortal head a radiance is shown from heaven and embraces earth; and great is the beauty that ariseth from her shining light. The air, unlit before, glows with the light of her golden crown, and her rays beam clear, whensoever bright Selene having bathed her lovely body in the waters of Ocean, and donned her far-gleaming, shining team, drives on her long-maned horses at full speed, at eventime in the mid-month: then her great orbit is full and then her beams shine brightest as she increases. So she is a sure token and a sign to mortal men. Once the Son of Cronos was joined with her in love; and she conceived and bare a daughter Pandia, exceeding lovely amongst the deathless gods. Hail, white-armed goddess, bright Selene, mild, bright-tressed queen! And now I will leave you and sing the glories of men half-divine, whose deeds minstrels, the servants of the Muses, celebrate with lovely lips." [XXXII]

Blessed Pandia, everyone!

• Wednesday, March 19, 2014
  ancient Hellenic culture festivals household worship Pandia Selene Zeus

My pick of sung and spoken hymns

Lately, I have been feeling the desire to not just read the hymns of antiquity, but to listen to them. I am not skilled in (ancient) Greek, but there is something about the soothing tones of the Homeric and Orphic hymns being sung or spoken. Today, I wanted to share with you a few of my favourites to be found on Youtube, and I am open to suggestions about yours!


Orphic hymn to Selene


Orphic Hymn to Apollon


Prayer to Zeus (by Arkhilokhos of Paros)


Orphic hymn to Athena


Homeric hymn to Artemis (modern English adaption)


Homeric hymn to Hermes


Homeric hymn to Zeus (#23)


Homeric Hymn to Asklēpiós

• Thursday, January 9, 2014
  Apollon Artemis Asklēpiós Athena Hermes Homeric Hymns hymns Orphic Hymns Selene video Zeus

My daily prayers (updated again)

Near the beginning of the blog, I posted about my daily rituals. The idea was to inform you about what I do, but I also posted it as a way for me to look back on the journey I have made. The original post can be found here, and an update from a good while later here. I came across that second post yesterday and realized that again much has changed. As such, I wanted to present you guys with another update. Again, please keep in mind that this sounds much better in Dutch.

Night time prayers (before bed):

Preparation:

• Pour wine in my kylix
• Empty water bowl and fill anew with water previously prepared by mixing tap water with sea water and asking Okeanos' blessing
• Empty sacrificial bowl
• Add ethanol to sacrificial bowl
• Lay out a match and a hand towel
• Lay out (dried) herbs or scented wood

Rite:

• Procession to the shrine
• Strewing of barley groats on the altar
• Preparation of khernips 
• Purification – washing of hands and face, sprinkling the room and altar with fingers
• Add khernips to wine

"Blessed Okeanos, may your bright waters purify this space, and prepare both me, and it, for the rites that are about to unfold."

• Lighting of Hestia's candle (if not yet burning, mine almost always is), as well as the ethanol to burn sacrifices in
• Hymn and prayers to Hestia

"Blessed Goddess Hestia, you who tend the holy house of the lord Apollo, the Far-shooter at goodly Pytho, with soft oil dripping ever from your locks, come now into this house, come, having one mind with Zeus the all-wise—draw near, and withal bestow grace upon my song.
Blessed Goddess Hestia, accept this offering of honey sweet wine, and guard this house as you guard the houses of all who sacrifice to you. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libation of honey sweet wine to Hestia
• Hymns and prayers to Nyx and Selene

"Blessed Nyx, Goddess of night. She who holds the world in her dark embrace, and Selene, Goddess of the moon, who illuminates the night like a torch. Accept this offering of sweetest wine, and come always, as the day follows the night. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libation to Nyx and Selene
• Hymns and prayers to Hypnos and Morpheus

"Blessed Hypnos, Morpheus, Gods of sleep and dreams, respectively. Accept this offering of honey sweet wine, and grant me equally sweet sleep, and even sweeter dreams. Carry my mind far beyond the limits of my imagination. Accept my prayer, and allow me to rise rested and rejuvenated so I may continue my hard work. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libation to Hypnos and Morpheus
• Hymns, prayers and libations to the night time or Khthonic Theoi whose sacred day it is, or any night time or Khthonic Theoi whom I feel the need to pray and sacrifice to.
• Hymn and prayer to Hekate

"I call Einodian Hekate, lovely dame, of earthly, wat'ry, and celestial frame, Sepulchral, in a saffron veil array'd. Goddess of the night, companion to Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld. You, key bearer of this world. Accept my offering of honey sweet wine, and guard the borders of this house as you guard the borders of the houses of all who sacrifice to you. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libation to Hekate
• Hymn to Hestia

"Blessed Goddess Hestia, Goddess of home and hearth. To you, I offer last of all, as any pious mortal should. Tend to those whom I love, and guard the houses of the pious. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Drink remaining wine
• Extinguishing of the candle or replace with electric one, as I always do.
• Clean up and off to bed

Day time prayers (after waking up):

Preparation:

• Pour water in my kylix
• Add ethanol to sacrificial bowl
• Lay out a packet of matches and a hand towel

Rite:

• Procession to the shrine
• Strewing of barley groats on the altar
• Purification – washing of hands and face, sprinkling the room and altar with fingers
• Add khernips to wine

"Blessed Okeanos, may your bright waters purify this space, and prepare both me, and it, for the rites that are about to unfold."

• Lighting of Hestia's candle, as well as the ethanol to burn sacrifices in, and the incense burner
• Hymn and prayers to Hestia

"Blessed Goddess Hestia, you who tend the holy house of the lord Apollo, the Far-shooter at goodly Pytho, with soft oil dripping ever from your locks, come now into this house, come, having one mind with Zeus the all-wise—draw near, and withal bestow grace upon my song.
Blessed Goddess Hestia, accept this offering of honey sweet wine, and guard this house as you guard the houses of all who sacrifice to you. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libation to Hestia
• Hymns and prayers to Eos, Hêmera and Hēlios

"Blessed Goddes Eos, Goddess of the bright dawn. You who speed forth from the gates of heaven before everyone else; Hêmera, blessed Goddess who pulls back the veil of darkest night; and Hēlios, God of the sun; He who brings light and warmth to all on earth, accept this libation of honey sweet wine and come always, as the night follows the day. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libation to Eos, Hêmera, and Hēlios
• Hymns, prayers and libations to the Ouranic Theoi whose sacred day it is, or any Ouranic Theoi whom I feel the need to pray and sacrifice to.
• Hymns and prayers to Athena

"Come forth, blessed Athena, Sacker of Cities, golden-helmeted, who rejoices in the din of horse and shield. Guard over this house. May your shield protect us always and may your spear slay any who wishes us harm."

• Libation to Athena
• Hymns and prayers to Asklēpiós

"Blessed Asklēpiós, Giver of Health, prophet in the night, You who has the most lovely of daughters, may your blessings forever reach my home."

• Libations to Asklēpiós and His daughters
• Hymns and prayers to the household Gods

"And to the household deities I offer libations, to Zeus Kthesios, Zeus Ephestios, Zeus Herkeios, Apollon Aguieus, Hermes Propylaios, and Agathós Daímōn, in gratitude of all you have bestowed upon me."

• Libations to the household Gods
• Hymns and prayers to Zeus and Hera

"Blessed Zeus, King of Gods, and protector of the household, and Hera, Queen of the Gods, and protector of unions: guard mankind, and share with us the wisdom and strenth to worship the Theoi as they should be worshipped. Guard those I love, and all who need protection. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Libations to Zeus and Hera
• Hymn to Hestia

"Blessed Goddess Hestia, Goddess of home and hearth. To you, I offer last of all, as any pious mortal should. Tend to those whom I love, and guard the houses of the pious. As the Gods will it, so shall it be."

• Drink remaining wine
• Extinguish incense burner
• Clean up and on with the day

• Thursday, December 26, 2013
  Agathós Daímōn Apollon Asklēpiós Athena daily practice Eos Hēlios Hellenismos 101 Hermes Hestia household worship Hypnos Morpheus Nyx Okeanos Selene Zeus Ephestios Zeus Herkeios Zeus Kthesios

On the cycle of day and night

The beautiful thing about our religion is that not only do we have a clear way to honor the Theoi, and incentive to do so, we also get to live in a world governed completely by the Theoi. Hellenismos is special in that regards because it also largely matches up with science. To me--and many others with me--that is something very comforting. Now, as you are probably all aware, I live in a world full of Gods and Nymphs; for example, I take great strength in greeting Eos each morning as she paves the way for Helios, but there are many Gods who are, or who control, the cycle of day and night, and I would like to write out this cycle, if I may.

For all things geneological, I will always turn to Hesiod first. In his 'Theogony', he speaks of the birth of the Dawn, Sun and Moon:

"And Theia was subject in love to Hyperion and bare great Helios, and clear Selene, and Eos." [177]

Diodorus Siculus, in his 'Library of History' shares this world vieuw and moves a (pseudo-scientific) step beyond it:

"Of Hyperion we are told that he was the first to understand, by diligent attention and observation, the movement of both the sun and the moon and the other stars, and the seasons as well, in that they are caused by these bodies, and to make these facts known to others; and that for this reason he was called the father of these bodies, since he had begotten, so to speak, the speculation about them and their nature." [5.67.1]

Hyperion (Ὑπερίων), meaning 'The High-One', was a Titanes God born from Gaea and Ouranos. Theia and Euryphaessa (as mentioned in, for example, the Homeric Hymns) are generally regarded as the same Deathless woman: 'Theia' is the Hellenic word for 'Goddess', so it was likely 'Theia Euryphaessa' translated to 'Goddess Euryphaessa'. This means that the family tree is as follows:

     Khaos ------------ Gaea

         |         |

   Ouranos --- |

                       Hyperion --- Euryphaessa

                   |

                  Eos - Helios - Selene

The three of them--put into motion by Hyperion--form the basic cycle of these planets associated with specific times of day. Yet, the ancient Hellenes saw Night and Day as quite seperate from the heavenly bodies that are associated with them today. I have spoken before of the Protogenoi, and how They--contrary to the Olympians--are actually of the world; They, together, form the tapistry of earth and life. They literally make up our universe. As such, the further towards the Big Bang you go, the more abstract the Theoi become; They take on large, mostly unformed, chunks of the material that makes up our world and the further away you go from Khaos, the more specialized the Gods become--as well as numerous.

As such, starting this explination with Hyperion is actually incorrect--I should have started with Khaos itself, but if not there, than at least with Nyx, who is the deep Night, and Her daughter Hêmera (Ἡμερα), who is the Protogenos of the Day and the sister-wife of Aither (Light). In Hellenic mythology, Nyx draws a veil of darkness between the shining atmosphere of the aither and the lower air of earth (aer) at set times in the day, bringing night to man. In the morning, Hêmera removes this veil, and exposed the Earth once more to Light. As Hesiod writes in the Theogony:

"[At the ends of the earth, where lie the roots of earth, sea, Tartaros :] There stands the awful home of murky Nyx wrapped in dark clouds. In front of it [Atlas] the son of Iapetos stands immovably upholding the wide heaven upon his head and unwearying hands, where Nyx and Hemera draw near and greet one another as they pass the great threshold of bronze: and while the one is about to go down into the house, the other comes out at the door. And the house never holds them both within; but always one is without the house passing over the earth, while the other stays at home and waits until the time for her journeying come; and the one holds all-seeing light (phaos) for them on earth." [744]

Once we reach AD times, Hêmera is often identified with Eos, but in centuries prior, she was very much Her own Goddess, and Hêmera was as well. Hómēros, for example, in the 'Odysseia' writes: 

"The ship [of Odysseus] in due course left the waters of the river Okeanos and reached the waves of the spacious sea and the island of Aiaia; it is there [Okeanos] that Eos the early-comer (Erigeneia) has her dwelling place and her dancing grounds, and the sun himself has his risings. We came came in; we beached our vessel upon the sands and disembarked upon the sea-shore; there we fell fast asleep, awaiting ethereal Dawn." [12.1]

So, to recapitulate: Nyx and Hêmera continually work to both create and dissolve darkness on Earth; Selene moves with Nyx, and Helios with Hêmera, as heralded by Eos. In this recap, it is quite obvious we are yet missing a speciffic time of the day: dusk, or the evening. This was in the domain of the Nymphs, in this case the Hesperides (Ἑσπεριδες), who--depending of source--are either the daughters of Nyx or Atlas. Diodorus Siculus, in the 1st Century BC., wrote in his 'Library of History': 

"Now Hesperos (Evening) begat a daughter named Hesperis (Evening), who he gave in marriage to his brother [Atlas] and after whom the land was given the name Hesperitis; and Atlas begat by her seven daughters, who were named after their father Atlantides, and after their mother Hesperides." [4. 26. 2]

Yet, older sources agree that the Hesperides were born from Nyx; Hesiod, for example:

"And Nyx (Night) bare hateful Moros (Doom) and black Ker (Violent Death) and Thanatos (Death), and she bare Hypnos (Sleep) and the tribe of Oneiroi (Dreams). And again the goddess murky Nyx, though she lay with none, bare Momos (Blame) and painful Oizys (Misery), and the Hesperides who guard the rich, golden apples and the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos."

Of course, there are more Gods--motly Titans--who are in some way connected to the cycle of night and day, but these are the most important ones and it's quite a hand full already. So perhaps next time when you awake, you will think of Hêmera, and rosy Eos, and when the sun is high in the sky, you will think of Him as well, and when you look upon the Moon before going to bed, you will give honors to Selene and Nyx, who holds Her and Gaea in Her embrace. Our Gods are everywhere; you only have to be aware of Them to notice.

• Tuesday, November 26, 2013
  Diodorus Siculus Eos genealogy Hēlios Hêmera Hesiod Hómēros Hyperion Mythology 101 Nyx Odysseia Selene Theogony