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So it’s been a while...

Hey everyone! It’s me. So I’ve been gone for a while with like no warning. I was having a bad time and then I got busy with some stuff. But, I want to mention some things that have been going on.

I’ve felt disconnected from the Theoi recently and have withdrawn from worshiping Them. It didn’t feel right to continue posting for a religion I am no longer involved in. But, I still feel called to some pagan religion and have been looking around.

Recently I did one of those family tree things and found out I have some super interesting family. And a huge chunk of that family is Scandinavian. And in my quest to learn more about my family history, I’ve begun learning about Norse Polytheism.

I’m not going to be posting about Hellenic Polytheism anymore, and I’ll probably change my url soon, so this is just an update and a headsup!

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I am happy to present my own Wamily’s version of finding your signifier card using a Tarot deck.  (Wamily, just in case you don’t know, is a witch family.)  

Please keep in mind that this is a practice passed down and developed by a handful of witches related to me, and isn’t the process that every cartomancer uses.  I hope this helps you on your witchcraft journey!

My own signifier card was found when I was a wee little witch.  I chose the Chariot (which, if you know me personally, is Salt through and through.)  My strengths and limitations are very much found in this card and I am drawn to its imagery indefinitely.  

Comment with your signifier card once you find it!  I am excited to see what you receive.

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hey guys, I’m kind of new to all of this and am still looking for resources and things so could you like/reblog if you are any of the following:

- Hermes devotee - Hestia devotee - Hellenic polytheist

thanks!

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So I shuffled my Tarot cards and asked the Theoi, "What do I need to learn from this pain?" (Still sad from a breakup) This was my answer. To sum it up in short, from left to right: ♠️ be independent and learn to be alone (Queen of Swords is a woman of independence) ♥️ this is a new beginning in regards to emotion and love (The Ace of Cups is the beginning of the Cups suit, which deals with relationships and emotion) ♦️ take the time to be alone and contemplate (solitary contemplation is the realm of the Hermit) ♣️ this is a time of healing. Let yourself heal so you can move on to better things. (The Star deals with healing. With regard to relationships in particular, it says to learn to leave the past behind so you can love again.)

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The Theoi ln Our Actions

Hermes- stealing the hotel toiletries

Dionysos- a tipsy vent about something you’ve been holding in all week

Athene- research rabbit holes about something incredibly niche that will randomly come in handy later

Hestia- cleaning the space and preparing food for special people in your life to come over

Aphrodite- A quiet but beaming smile from across the mattress.

Apollon- Trying to hit harmonies in a song that doesn’t normally have harmonies, trying to belt when there’s nobody around to hear you

Hephaestos- Taking a moment to shake out your hands, aching from crafting, then diving back into it.

Pan- “Fuck it, let’s go explore.”

Prometheus- Bringing water bottles, pads, and a first-aid kit to the protest so that things don’t have to wane when the going gets rough.

Demeter- Picking that first home-grown tomato, a little too small and a little under ripe, but delicious anyway. 

Please, feel free to add more! :)

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just a reminder that pride month is during Hera/Juno’s sacred month and that means she definitely loves all her lgbt worshippers.

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Rabbits Rabbits Rabbits

Reblog this on the first of the month for good luck all month long!

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the moon has always loved you and will always love you.

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Below is my retelling of Zeus wooing Hera. I think that retelling the stories of the Theoi is an important way for us to connect the myths with our own values and to continue the tradition of sharing the stories of the Theoi. This is just one of many versions, and is only my own small contribution to how we tell the stories of our deities. If you’re a pjo fanblog, please be respectful that these stories are part of my faith and religion. The myths of the Theoi are an important part in Hellenism, and are not fanfiction or head cannons.

Listen, oh faithful ones, to the story of our King Zeus and His sweet Hera. The story has been told many times, and each version is just a bit different, but I will sing to you now of how Blessed Zeus won over the heart of Golden Hera.

The world was still young by our count, but far older than we can fathom, when Zeus had taken His throne from Kronos. He had already proven Himself a capable warrior, a just king, and of wise council. He had already taken Metis, Themis, Eurynome, Demeter, Mnemosyne, and Leto all as lovers in turn, and fathered by Them many children. And in further time, He would take other lovers to His bed, though this is not the story we tell now.

No, it is the story of Zeus and Hera’s love and marriage which we share on this day. Some say it was at Argos that it happened, where Hera’s love for Zeus bloomed, but it was far earlier when Zeus had fallen for Her. For three hundred years Zeus had watched Hera, and fallen more in love with Her every day. The grace with which She carried Herself, Her patience, and Her unwavering standards. She knew tough lessons were never learned from soft hearts, and would set Her heart as stone when needed. Still, when the air was calm and the day quiet, She would wander, surrounded in retinue by the Hesperides, and share sweet moments of peace with Them. Her laughter sounded like bells on the wind, and Her gentle hands would scoop up whatever wild creature She could, the beast taming instantly in Her gentle care.

Zeus would approach Hera when She was surrounded by the dancing light of sunset, and each time She was cool and formal towards Him. He brought Her gifts, jewels and lotus flowers, and none of it warmed Her heart. Hera had no desire to be another of His lovers, a mother to Zeus’ children, but not His wife. Hers was a heart set upon home and family, not passing romances, and She thought Zeus had no room in His heart to take a wife and queen. None of His attempts could convince Hera that Zeus’ intentions were born of respect and love.

So Zeus thought, how best to show Hera His sincerity? And it was as He watched Hera with Her golden lion that He was struck with an idea. He took upon Himself the form of a cuckoo bird, and He flew down, landing beside Her. He took up a song and it filled Hera with such joy that Her laughter rang through the air. And She was so delighted with His song that She lifted the small cuckoo into Her hand and asked of it, “Would you like to be my songbird? You may perch upon my shoulder and sing in my ear each day if you would like, oh gentle bird. And in return, you shall be sacred to my name.”

And Zeus came back to Her in that form, every day, singing to lovely Hera. In this form He still brought to Her gifts, again laying lotus blossoms in Her lap and singing to hear Her laugh. And still, every day He came to Her. He would fly about Her head, playing games and tugging gently at Her tightly curled hair, and Hera would feed Him berries and place the flowers He brought in Her hair. For decades this continued, and Zeus was content to be by Hera’s side each day, with Her treating Him as gently as any of the nymphs or beasts which kept Her company.

Then one day, Zeus sat upon Hera’s lap, in His feathered form, resting there as She petted His feathers. And it was then that Hera spoke, “I believe you, you know. I have for some while, my King, but I did not want this time of ours to change. Please, let me see your face once more, Zeus.”

It was with a startle that Zeus flew from Her lap, returning to His godly form. Hera had known Him and seen through His transformation, but had played along with His guise, thinking that He would soon tire of the game and move on. But He had shown such sincerity every day, for a hundred years, that Hera was moved by His affection, that the King of Gods and mortals both would rather be a bird upon Her shoulder than to not be by Her side at all. Once She knew His actions to be honest, She began to let Her own heart fall prey to Eros’ game, and She took such pleasure in knowing a side of Zeus that no other had been privileged to see.

Mighty Zeus kneeled before Hera, and spoke, careful to be honest with Her always, “Lovely Hera, I’ve much to say, if you would hear me. It is true that I have loved many, and I can not promise you that I shall never love another, but I can promise that you will be the only wife I take. Yours will be the first council I hear each day, and the last each night. Yours will be a crown matching my own. And You shall have a throne of gold and marble which will sit beside mine atop Olympus. I would have you as my wife, until the end of time, if you would have me as your husband.”

Hera took up a flower in Her hands,smiling as She counted the petals and thought. And when She spoke, Her response was such, “Then we should arrange the feast and procession, should we not, husband of mine?” And it was with more joy than He had felt before that Zeus declared to all the deathless Gods that Hera, daughter of Rhea, would forever be known as Queen of Gods and mortals both, and Theirs would be a wedding which mortals would reenact for all of time in reverence of Their love.

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💞🍇 I love Dionysus 🍇💞

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This is your obligatory Hermes love post

Reblog if you really love Hermes, like if you really love Hermes.

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Tumblr just recommended me PORN in the #hellenism tag. FFS Tumblr really.

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This is your obligatory Hermes love post

Reblog if you really love Hermes, like if you really love Hermes.

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Leroy Bellet

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Wrong blog woops

Changing My Religion

Well, changing the label, anyway. My path and faith is still very centered around the greek gods, but I’m going to try calling myself a Dodekatheist rather than a Hellenic Polytheist. This is largely to respect the concerns I’ve heard from some actually-Greek practitioners, where “Hellenic” and its derivatives are still used to refer specifically to Greece and Greek culture. (So it comes off as saying you’re just a polytheist from Greece, which most of us are not.) I figured out of respect for the region my gods come from and the people still tied to that land, and to be more articulate/accurate with my labels, Dodekatheism seems to be a better fit.  This is just a heads up to my followers about the slight change in my bio and possibly also my tags. Cheers, and glory to the gods~ 

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A new translation of the Orphic Hymns for modern worshippers

Hey all!

As most Hellenic polytheists/Dodekatheists are aware, the English translation of the Orphic Hymns currently available online - which most people use - is very old. Over two hundred years old, to be precise, since it was published by Thomas Taylor back in 1792. This means the language is very archaic, hard to understand for non-native English speakers, and isn’t always close to the original text.

It’s bugged me for a while, and after discussing it with several people both inside and outside the polytheistic community, I’ve decided to share my idea: I would like to offer a new, updated translation of the Orphic Hymns which could be published for free online. It wouldn’t be written with a particularly academic purpose in mind, but specifically so as to make these hymns accessible (in every sense) to modern worshippers, while staying as close to the original text as possible. As someone who is both a Hellenic polytheist and an Ancient Greek university student, it would be a pleasure for me to contribute this to the community.

To give a concrete example, here is the beginning of the Orphic Hymn to Sleep, as translated by Thomas Taylor:

Sleep, king of Gods, and men of mortal birth, Sov'reign of all sustain’d by mother Earth; For thy dominion is supreme alone, O'er all extended, and by all things known. ‘Tis thine all bodies with benignant mind In other bands than those of brass to bind: Tamer of cares, to weary toil repose, From whom sweet solace in affliction flows.

Here is my own translation of the same passage:

Sleep, ruler of the Blessed Ones and of all mortal men and of all life that the wide earth nourishes – you alone rule over all and come to all binding our bodies in fetters not made of bronze, you, disperser of troubles, wearying us into a pleasant rest from labour and giving us sacred relief from all our suffering.

And for reference, here is the original Greek text:

Ὕπνε, ἄναξ μακάρων πάντων θνητῶν τ’ ἀνθρώπων καὶ πάντων ζῴων, ὁπόσα τρέφει εὐρεῖα χθών· πάντων γὰρ κρατέεις μοῦνος καὶ πᾶσι προσέρχῃ σώματα δεσμεύων ἐν ἀχαλκεύτοισι πέδῃσι, λυσιμέριμνε, κόπων ἡδεῖαν ἔχων ἀνάπαυσιν καὶ πάσης λύπης ἱερὸν παραμύθιον ἔρδων.

As you can imagine, this translation would take some time and effort. If I were to do it, I would work on it over the summer and hopefully be able to share the result by September. However, I don’t want to put so much work into something nobody will use, hence my question: do you think such a translation would benefit the community? Would you find it useful for your own practise?

I look forward to hearing your opinions, and of course you’re welcome to share this post :)