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Ptolemaic roundel from a mosaic floor decorated with a dog and a gilded askos, from Alexandria, Egypt, c. 200-150 BC

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“οἶον τὸ γλυκύμαλον ἐρεύθεται ἄκρῳ ἐπ’ ὔσδῳ, ἄκρον ἐπ’ ἀκροτάτῳ, λελάθοντο δὲ μαλοδρόπηες, οὐ μὰν ἐκλελάθοντ’, ἀλλ’ οὐκ ἐδύναντ’ ἐπίκεσθαι - Like the sweetapple reddens upon a high branch, high on the highest, and the apple-pickers missed it– no, actually, they didn’t miss it; they couldn’t reach it…”

— Sappho (Lobel-Page 105a)

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Resplendent Hera, rosy and heaven-dewed You are the gilded clouds of the morning My guiding light, a beacon of hope Shining bright from your golden throne I bask in your magnificence, oh majesty Delighting in your fire-tipped touch on Helios' dawning purple robe

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The king is dead long live the king?

Did Helpol Tumblr just die? Feels like it.

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Misstepped, relapsed, and broke part of my vow on mental health.

Now I’ve lost my psychologist.

Fucking brutal.

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Arneis Festival of Argos

Arneios, the lamb-month, is so named for a myth unique to the Argolid.

Apollon and Psamathe, who was either a nymph or a mortal princess, had a son named Linos Αίνος. Psamathe attempted to hide her indiscretion from her father by concealing the baby boy amongst the new lambs. The baby, left cold and exposed, was attacked and consumed by sheepdogs. Psamathe’s grief at the discovery was so great she gave away her secret and her father had her killed.

Apollon was enraged at the deaths and sent a plague to Argos, targeting the very young. His oracle, presumably the Pythia upon the Larissa, declared to the city that the only way to rid themselves of the cursed plague was to propitiate Psamathe and Linos with sacrifices and lamentations, thus creating the lamb-festival Arneis or Arnis Ἀρνίς. The Argives also vowed to kill any dog that entered the agora during the three solemn days dedicated to their memory, nicknaming the festival Kynophotis Κυνοφόντις (dog-killing).

Personal Worship

To honour Linos and Psamathe in the Argive month of Arneios I abstain from eating any meat from sheep, and refrain from red meat whenever possible. As I have a pet dog, I have fashioned a braided white wool collar for him to wear during the three days of Arneis. White wool was commonly used in purity rituals. This is along with typical offerings, libations, and songs sung in memory of the two deaths and others caused by the plague, as well as prayers for the living.

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Linos Perseus

Arnis Perseus

Pausanias 1.43.7-8

Conan Narrations, Photius

Callimachus, Aetia Fragment 1. 2

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Slight timing issue to Theogamia being so close to Arneis - I have to eat all the roast meat before being vegetarian for 3 days.

Oh no I have to eat all this yummy food quickly oh woe is me …

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Zeus Teleios, most grand amongst the gods, chief supreme. Besides you sits gracious Hera, Teleia and your equal in birth. Your marriage spanning eons, a love mortals aspire to without ever touching your glory. I weave flowers for your pleasure, oh heavenly king and queen, flowers blooming in golden joy at your nuptials. May we feast and laugh and drink merrily in celebration of this Theogamia.

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Hi!

What did you mean by an oath to your God(s) can change everything?

Thanks :)

I mean exactly that. When you swear an oath to an entity there is the possibility that everything and anything about your life might change to better suit that oath. Now I don't mean that you'll finish your ritual and suddenly -boom- everything will suddenly be different. But swearing an oath comes with a relationship, and that relationship over time is where the changes come from. I'm going to grossly simplify my buddy @windvexer's beautiful analogy here: Think of yourself as meadow, beautiful and lush with grasses. Think of your practice as the rain, it falls down and feeds the grass, keeps it green. Now if you've sworn an oath, think of that as planting an acorn. Maybe it never really grows, maybe it becomes a sweet little sapling and that's about it, but maybe everything goes right for that acorn and it grows for hundreds of years, drinking that rain, and becomes a towering tree. That tree can fundamentally change the meadow it grows in, it can crack rocks, reshape hills, it's shade will change what grows under it's bows, it's nuts will attract animals. The entire ecosystem of the meadow is different after the oak tree reaches maturity. And here's the important thing. Even if the oak tree were to be cut down, the meadow would never be the same again. Sometimes your entities will require work from you, you'll be asked to learn new skills, that new skill will change your cosmology, which will change how you interact with the world, which if you do it long enough means your personality changes. This happened to me. I started learning how to be a psychopomp because of my oath to Brona. That changed my cosmological views on death and the after life and how spirits work. As a result of that I start becoming much more intentional about my production of waste in the world. Eventually that mindfulness and intentionallity has just become part of who I am. Sometimes other relationships in your life will change, not necessarily because your entity does anything to the relationship, but because your priorities might shift. You might be prioritizing the responsibilities of your oath over other things, and people around you might not like that or understand that. I've lost friends, other practitioners I thought would be life long companions, after I took my oath to Oisin. They said I had changed in ways they didn't like. I said I was holding to my oath. You can try to protect certain parts of your life, mitigate the changes to them, by carefully constructing your oath, but a person's life is such a complex interconnected web that I've found it's impossible to complete prevent change. If you are the thing that is changing everything that you touch is going to feel some of the effects. I know this can seem scary, but I don't want to dissuade anyone from making an oath that they've been seriously thinking about. I just want to dissuade people from doing it without thinking about it. Because, if we go back to Chicken's amazing metaphor, not every acorn grows to be a towering giant oak tree. Maybe you plant the acorn it grows a foot tall, and that's it. But every acorn has the potential to be a 100ft giant, so don't plant it if you aren't ready for that possibility.

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A cloud-curved horizon like ocean waves Leading me to Okeanos’ domain He who cradles the world And swallows the rains

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Offering to Hera. I tried to splay the pear slices like a peacock. Plus the lokum she is due. On a bed of rose petals.

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and my best friend / work wife just offered me pear slices.

What is happening

The person I have romantic feelings for just gifted me rose flavoured lokum.

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The person I have romantic feelings for just gifted me rose flavoured lokum.

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May Hebe lead us to the sacred waters Pitchers in hand with perfumes and oils In hushed tones and solemn gaze To anoint Hera in her eve Tap the spring of fresh cool water And gently bathe the heavenly body Washing away the dusts of past Until covered and modest she stands As the sun sets and dawns again And as the seasons change so too May the Queen rise anew, purified A resplendent maiden fit for her king

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hi, i was wondering if maybe you could help / give me some advices ?

i’m a hellenic polytheist but i’m also disabled. because of that, i’m always exhausted, and i have almost no motivation, so i tend not to worship. it’s not good for me, because i feel better when i am connected to the Gods, especially when i have a daily routine. but i started uni in september and i’ve barely been able to do anything because either i’m busy, or my executive dysfunction stops me, or i’m so exhausted and in pain that i get lazy and choose to scroll on my phone in bed instead of honouring the Theoi. i really need to find ways to go back to connecting with them and building kharis, but i don’t know how to build a routine for that, and how to manage to actually do it ?

Firstly, congratulations on starting university! Uni is a huge endeavour and it's important to focus on your studies and do the best you can. That is a priority, and you should not feel guilty or torn over dedicating time to that. Secondly, I want to add that it's not lazy to only do what you're capable of. You said yourself you're in pain and exhausted, I'm not surprised if at the end of the day you are not more active. Our brains need time to decompress just like our bodies, and scrolling on social media is a way to do both.

We are allowed to have hobbies and enjoy them!

Now. Habits. There is a technique called habit stacking which is where you use a current habit or behaviour and build another into that. Do you brush your teeth regularly? You could choose to add pouring out a libation of water to the gods while you brush (you're already at a water source after all). Do you like to sit in the shower and close your eyes, enjoying the water? You could say a quick word of praise or pray to the theoi while you do that ("Glorious theoi, givers of good things, thank you for your abundant blessings" etc.). As you walk to class is there a flowering plant or water feature, something that looks pretty and reminds you of their beauty? When you eat meals, could you portion off a piece first in offering to the gods? When we stop to think, there are a million moments in every day where we could add the gods to our lives, and you only need to pick one or two.

A reminder I needed too: you can ask the theoi for help in times of need. Attending university, you could pray to Athena, maybe Hermes, and/or any other gods relevant to your course. You could also pray to Apollo, Asklepios and Hygeia regarding your disabilities.  This may help with the feeling of connection since it will be relating directly to things you live with every day.

I also want to try a little mindset shift here. Try not to focus so much on the idea that you need to build the habit of devotion, and instead focus on your love for the theoi. From "I have to find more time for this" to "I want to show them my appreciation." It's a small thing, but the stress of 'I have to I have to' really sucks out the joy. You are already accomplishing so much and should be proud of that, don’t be hard on yourself for one thing you’re not doing.

I hope my babble helped in some way. I encourage people to reblog or reply in the comments with any thoughts!