justsillymilo

[justsillymilo]

Offerings for Apollo

Traditional

Olive Oil 

A glass of water

Honey 

Wine if you’re of age 

Laurel Leaves or Branches 

Incense such as frankincense 

Music or Song (Even better if played on a lyre) 

Poetry 

Other 

Bowl of Fruit or Chocolate 

A drawing of him or of something associated with him 

Something gold or yellow such as a sunflower or golden jewelry  

Crystals (citrine, carnelian, sapphires) 

A glass of orange juice or even soda

Desserts 

Where to put your offerings: Traditionally, offerings would go on the altar you have set up for your diety but if you can’t make an altar you can also put it in something like a shoe box or drawer that you can set up for worship. Make sure to wash your hands and cleanse whatever you’re about to give. This can apply to both Apollo and any other god or goddess. 

I hope this has helped !! 

Xoxo Milo

[justsillymilo]

see more on webtoon at Queer Comics

[justsillymilo]

Hellenic Polytheism 101

Tips on How To Start Worshipping the Greek Gods!

!Disclaimer! I’ve only started practicing Hellenic polytheism a few months ago! I’m not a professional and while I will try my hardest I’m not gonna get everything right

To many, starting to worship the Greek gods can be daunting. You’ve probably heard a lot about them and maybe don’t know where to start—but never fear—your helpol big brother is here to help you!

Today, I’m going to go over what Hellenic polytheism is, well-known gods, common misconceptions, and some helpful tips! 

Before that though, I just want to reiterate that I am not a professional and have only started this journey a few months ago. It’s important to fact-check any information you receive to make sure it’s correct, even if it’s from a credible source. 

Alright, let’s start with what Hellenic Polytheism even is! To put it simply, Hellenic Polytheism refers to the religous practice of honoring the gods of ancient Greece. This religion has existed for a very long time but because of the introduction of Christianity the religion is not as big as it was before in ancient Greece. Though, in recent years, the religion has gained popularity and is steadily growing! 

Well-known gods: 

There are many gods in this religion including The Twelve Olympians, divinities and spirits of nature, underworld deities, and heroes. To keep this simple, I’m just going to talk about some of the 12 Olympians. 

The first and probably one of the most well-known gods is Zeus, the sky and thunder god and king of the gods on Mount Olympus-where he and the other 12 Olympians live.  

Apollo is the son of Zeus and Leto and the Greek god of the sun, light, prophecy, music, dance, plague, healing, poetry, archery, and much more. He is also the twin brother of Artemis the goddess of the hunt and the moon. He is often depicted beardless and often holding a lyre

Aphrodite is the goddess of love, beauty, passion, and more! She is often associated with lust and fertility. In some myths, she is considered the daughter of Zeus and Dione. However, in other versions, she is said to have been born from seafoam, emerging fully formed from the sea. Her son Eros, the god of love, is a significant figure in many myths.

Hermes is the god of travel, herd, luck, speed, trade, and more! He is the son of Zeus and the Pleiad Maia. Hermes is also known to be the messenger god and quite mischievous 

Artemis, the twin sister of Apollo and the daughter of Zeus and Leto, is the goddess of the hunt, wild animals, nature, chastity, vegetation, childbirth, and the moon! She is often depicted with a bow and arrow and accompanied by an animal (usually a deer or sometimes hunting dogs) by her side. As one of the three virgin goddesses Artmis took a vow of chasity. Additionally, she is also the protector of childbirth of young children,  

Hera is the revered queen of the gods and the wife of Zeus. She is the goddess of family, marriage, childbirth and women. Known for her jealousy and vengeance, especially towards Zeus and his many lovers and their offspring. Her children are Ares, Hephaestus, and Hebe. Eileithyia is also sometimes considered to be one of Hera’s children. 

There are more Olympians but to keep this post short-ish I’m going to stop here. But I encourage you to do some independent research and look more into the gods! 

Common Misconceptions 

There are a lot of misconceptions about Hellenic Polytheism so I’m just going to go over some of them and clear things up! 

Myths:Myths are very misunderstood in the helpol community particularly when taken literally. The myths-crafted by ancient men, were never meant to be taken literally. We value myths because it’s a way to see how the gods were veiwed back then and worshipped. They’re also just fun to read! Think of it like fanfiction (if you’re into that sorta thing): you wouldn’t start hating a character in a show just because of how they were written in a fanfiction, that would be irrational. The myths are simply stories about the gods created by men of the past. The gods are not their myths!

Candle Divination: Candle divination is a form of divination that interprets a flame and it’s movements to communate and understand messages from the gods. But, this form of diviniation is unreliable and you will give you false signs and readings. It’s best to not use this method and stick to more reliable ones like, tarot, dice or oracle. I’ll talk more about divination and different methods in another post!

No sins: In Hellenic Polytheism the concept of sins actually doesn’t exist. While there are things you can do to offend the gods, a sincere apology should be enough for forgiveness-just don’t repeat the mistake again. The gods will not be angry if you can’t make an offering everyday, they will not be angry if you can’t talk to them everyday, they will not be angry if you make a mistake. The gods know that you are only a mortal and mortals make mistakes. So don’t sweat it

General Tips

First, if you are in a situation where you can’t make a physical altar, I recommend using a box, like a shoe box. You can add your offerings in this box and anything else you think the god you’re worshiping would like! Remember, you don’t have to make an altar if you don’t want to, alters are not requirements, just useful tools to have! Don’t feel pressured to make one especially if you’re unable to! The gods won’t be mad

Dive into plenty of books! Books offer a lot of useful information about the gods and are just a nice thing to invest in. I recommend reading Mythology by Edith Hamilton-It’s a great book that provides really fascinating and interesting information about the gods and their myths! 

If you’re unable to make an altar there are other ways to make offerings to the gods. One of these ways is devotional acts. For example, if you wanted to do a devotional act to, lets say Apollo, you could decide to practice singing for 30 minutes a day and dedicate it to Apollo. You could practice using songs about Apollo or just think of him while practicing! If you wanted to do a devotional act for Aphrodite you could dedicate a day to self-care and think about her while doing it! I’m sure you get the picture! 

Just saying good morning and goodnight to the god/dess you’re worshiping is a great way to connect with them. And thanking them if you see something associated to them is great as well. For example, if you were at the beach you could thank Poseiden for the beautiful waves, or if you were going for a walk you could thank Artemis for the beautiful nature you see. Just taking a little time out of your day to connect with the gods will go a long way when trying to build a relationship with them 

If your only goal in building a relationship with the gods is to ask for stuff, don’t even bother. When forming a relationship with the gods, it should not be driven by self-interest; the relationship should be mutually beneficial, a concept known as kharis in Hellenic polytheism (I’ll discuss this term in a future post). Remember the gods are not obligated to grant you anything if they don’t want to. While the relationship should be beneficial for both you and the deity, it’s not a transactional exchange. 

Your relationship with the gods may be different from someone else's, and that's perfectly okay! Just as your relationship with one friend group might differ from another, the gods are complex, and what works for one person may not work for you. It’s important to establish your boundaries with whichever deity you’re working with, just as you would in any other relationship!

I hope you found this helpful and that it gave you the confidence and information you need to start a relationship with the gods. Remember to be respectful, but remember to relax and enjoy the journey. The gods might seem a bit intimidating, but they are kind and will appreciate any new worshiper! Good luck on your journey

Xoxo Milo

[justsillymilo]

i feel like the entire online queer community collectively forgot, or rather pretends that queer allies don't exist. like. we literally have a term and even a flag for queer allies. they exist. assuming every single perisex cishet person hates queer people isn't the way to go. allies are a very real and important part of our community. allies challenge the status quo by saying, i'm not queer, but i support what you're doing. they exist. they're out there- and yes, many of them are cishet men.

please don't forget this, or pretend that they don't exist: allies are an extremely important part of our history, community, and safety.

[justsillymilo]

stop worrying about whether or not queer identities "make sense". gender itself doesn't make sense. "woman" and "man" are arbitrary constellations of traits and features that don't reflect how people who fall into those genders actually think, feel and behave. the definitions we have for manhood and womanhood don't make sense, either. according to cisheteronormative society, feminine men and masculine women don't "make sense" either. the biological sex binary makes ABSOLUTELY no sense, with intersex people proving that it quite literally doesn't exist.

why do queer identities have to "make sense" in order for you to see them as valid? they shouldn't have to. let go and accept that identity is not a scientific theory. it doesn't have to "make sense". none of this does. stop running others' identities through such scrutiny and realize your identity doesn't "make sense", either. embrace it. it's a good thing.

[justsillymilo]

[justsillymilo]