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

Question Collections post 26

 I get a lot of questions from readers, and most of the time, the answers are fairly short. When I feel the question or the reply would be valuable to others as well, I make a post with a collection of them and post them in one go. Today is one of those posts.

"Is Khaos considered a deity?"

The ancient Hellenic philosophers and mythographers were in agreement that the Gods created the universe--or are the universe itself. There are many variations of the divine family tree, and in the ancient writings, there are also creation stories that range beyond this basic framework. When Hesiod wrote his Theogony, he was adament about the sequence the Gods appeared from Khaos. Within the nothingness, Khaos appeared, then Gaia as the earth Herself, the Tartaros and Eros. The Gods and Godesses who rule over the cycle of night and day followed after and then, slowly, the earth itself took shape. The pre-Olypic and Olympic deities came into being. the universe as we know it was born.

Roughly divided, all our Gods and heroes (who were often raised up to become Gods in their own right) fit into five generational categories. These are the:

• Protogenoi
• Uranides
• Titanes
• Olympic Gods
• Heroes/deified mortals

The Protogenoi are the Gods from which the universe is made. They are Gods like Khaos, Gaia, Ouranos, and Nyx. In general, these Theoi are more abstract and less defined than, say, the Olympians. They are cruder, more powerful Gods who, together, form the tapistry of earth and life. We simply could not live without Them as They are the air we breath, the earth we walk on, the water we drink and the death that eventually lays us to rest. And yet, neither we, nor the ancient Hellenes revered them often. They are distant and have very little to do with the individual’s lifecycle. But they are Gods and They deserve due honours.

---

"I am trying to understamd Nyx's family a bit more. Could you help? And was she worshipped in Greece?"

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.

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.

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.

---

"Hi I'm a Hellenic Polytheism ... my family just know that I don't like to go to the church and (I do it anyway - I'm a teenager and live with them) they are Catholics. I'm the only one in the whooole family that don't share that faith. They say to me things about sin, the hell and stuff ... they scares me, ok, although I believe in the Theoi and I feel my soul is relatively safe (nobody knows what would happen after dead). But ... idk, the fear that maybe I'm doing something "wrong" is there."

You know, I am a hard polytheist; I believe all Gods exist. That includes the Christian God. It's the bible I don't really put much stock into, but I have a healthy dose of respect for the Christian God.

I believe religion is a choice. If all Gods are real, and mythology tells you what They are like, theology is basically marketing for Gods. Eventually, something evokes an emotional response and whatever resonates most with you, you end up sticking with. Without going all philosophical on you, I thus believe that what it says in the brocure is what you get in the end of the day. For us, that means we go to Haides and wander the Meadow. If we did really well, we get a version of paradise on the Isle. If you choose the christian brosure, you get either heaven or hell, depending on the tally against you.

If you believe you are doing something 'wrong', I think you haven't made your final choice yet. You might feel drawn to Hellenismos, but you are still tied to Christianity. Some of us, we can let go of whatever religion we were raised in or wandered into on our own easily. Others take a bit of time. But I truly believe that once you get more comfortable in Hellenismos as a religion and lifestyle, the feeling of 'wrongness' will go away.

What I usually suggest to those breaking away from an existing religous bond in favour of a new one is to conciously say goodbye. Go to church and thank the Lord of Christianity for all He has done for you in the years you were under His protection. And then ask him to kindly let you go so you may present yourself to the Theoi. Then do that, present yourself to the Theoi and ask to be placed under Their protection instead. This way, proper respect is show for all involved and it should be easier for you to fully emerce yourself in Hellenismos.

• Tuesday, June 29, 2021
  Hellenic Reconstruction Nyx personal Protogenoi Question Collections Post requested post

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

Question Collections post 26

I get a lot of questions from readers, and most of the time, the answers are fairly short. When I feel the question or the reply would be valuable to others as well, I make a post with a collection of them and post them in one go. Today is one of those posts.

"Is Khaos considered a deity?"

The ancient Hellenic philosophers and mythographers were in agreement that the Gods created the universe--or are the universe itself. There are many variations of the divine family tree, and in the ancient writings, there are also creation stories that range beyond this basic framework. When Hesiod wrote his Theogony, he was adament about the sequence the Gods appeared from Khaos. Within the nothingness, Khaos appeared, then Gaia as the earth Herself, the Tartaros and Eros. The Gods and Godesses who rule over the cycle of night and day followed after and then, slowly, the earth itself took shape. The pre-Olypic and Olympic deities came into being. the universe as we know it was born.

Roughly divided, all our Gods and heroes (who were often raised up to become Gods in their own right) fit into five generational categories. These are the:

• Protogenoi
• Uranides
• Titanes
• Olympic Gods
• Heroes/deified mortals

The Protogenoi are the Gods from which the universe is made. They are Gods like Khaos, Gaia, Ouranos, and Nyx. In general, these Theoi are more abstract and less defined than, say, the Olympians. They are cruder, more powerful Gods who, together, form the tapistry of earth and life. We simply could not live without Them as They are the air we breath, the earth we walk on, the water we drink and the death that eventually lays us to rest. And yet, neither we, nor the ancient Hellenes revered them often. They are distant and have very little to do with the individual’s lifecycle. But they are Gods and They deserve due honours.

---

"I am trying to understamd Nyx's family a bit more. Could you help? And was she worshipped in Greece?"

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.

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.

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.

---

"Hi I'm a Hellenic Polytheism ... my family just know that I don't like to go to the church and (I do it anyway - I'm a teenager and live with them) they are Catholics. I'm the only one in the whooole family that don't share that faith. They say to me things about sin, the hell and stuff ... they scares me, ok, although I believe in the Theoi and I feel my soul is relatively safe (nobody knows what would happen after dead). But ... idk, the fear that maybe I'm doing something "wrong" is there."

You know, I am a hard polytheist; I believe all Gods exist. That includes the Christian God. It's the bible I don't really put much stock into, but I have a healthy dose of respect for the Christian God.

I believe religion is a choice. If all Gods are real, and mythology tells you what They are like, theology is basically marketing for Gods. Eventually, something evokes an emotional response and whatever resonates most with you, you end up sticking with. Without going all philosophical on you, I thus believe that what it says in the brocure is what you get in the end of the day. For us, that means we go to Haides and wander the Meadow. If we did really well, we get a version of paradise on the Isle. If you choose the christian brosure, you get either heaven or hell, depending on the tally against you.

If you believe you are doing something 'wrong', I think you haven't made your final choice yet. You might feel drawn to Hellenismos, but you are still tied to Christianity. Some of us, we can let go of whatever religion we were raised in or wandered into on our own easily. Others take a bit of time. But I truly believe that once you get more comfortable in Hellenismos as a religion and lifestyle, the feeling of 'wrongness' will go away.

What I usually suggest to those breaking away from an existing religous bond in favour of a new one is to conciously say goodbye. Go to church and thank the Lord of Christianity for all He has done for you in the years you were under His protection. And then ask him to kindly let you go so you may present yourself to the Theoi. Then do that, present yourself to the Theoi and ask to be placed under Their protection instead. This way, proper respect is show for all involved and it should be easier for you to fully emerce yourself in Hellenismos.

• Sunday, September 27, 2015
  Hellenic Reconstruction Nyx personal Protogenoi Question Collections Post requested post

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

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

My daily prayers (update)

A little while ago, I posted about my thanks giving rite to the Theoi, and included my actual ritual. Today, I want to share with you my daily prayers, both so those new to Hellenismos might have a bit of a model, as well as for me to look back on later on. I have done this before, writing out more, so if things here are confusing, try the older post. In the near future, I want to include more household Gods in these prayers, specifically Zeus Ephestios, Zeus Herkeios, Apollon Aguieus, and Hermes Propylaios, but for now, this is it. Please keep in mind that this sounds much better in Dutch.

Night time prayers (before bed:

Preparation:

• Mix wine with water 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 two matches and a hand towel (one for khernips, the other to light the candle/ethanol)

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

"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."

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

Day time prayers (after waking up):

Preparation:

• Mix wine with 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

"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
• 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 and Hēlios

"Blessed Goddes Eos, Goddess of the bright dawn. You who speed forth from the gates of heaven before everyone else, 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 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 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
• Clean up and on with the day

• Sunday, April 21, 2013
  daily practice Eos Hēlios Hellenismos 101 Hestia household worship Hypnos Morpheus Nyx Okeanos Selene