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[sandandlightning]

Intangible Offerings

The most common things we find on our altars are food, drink, incense, and candles- all of which have a long history in many different traditions. But not everything we offer to our Gods have to be conventional, let alone tangible. The common use of candles, for example, in some traditions is already present as a symbolic offering of light.

Song, dance, and performance in general are all things that have historically been dedicated to gods in ancient times. I have a small hymn I wrote that I often hum at my altar, and dedicate dancing on holidays- by no means am I a professional, but I feel for some gods (Such as Bastet or Dionysus) the spirit of such a gesture is more than welcome!

A much less conventional idea I practice is often sitting down and watching an episode of a show or a movie at my altar and dedicating it, which to me is in the same vein as how a play may have been dedicated to a deity- not just by the performers, but in a way the audience would have been included as well. After all, a performance with no audience is arguably no performance at all. And on just a fundamental level I think there are definitely times when it’s appropriate to think “hey, if I like it maybe my Gods will too!” Now granted, with a patron like Set requests for the unconventional are probably a bit more common for me than for those with patrons who put more emphasis on tradition, but I still think there is value in thinking outside the box especially in situations where you may be limited by external forces in what you can provide.

I have an altar to Dionysus that is always kept near my photography or cosplay equipment. I do not give many traditional offerings to him outside of Wheel of the Year holidays, but as a god who is basically the patron god of drag queens and costuming, I dedicate most of my sewing and cosplay shoots to him. I do not work with him the same way I do with my patron or other gods within the kemetic pantheon, but I still deeply value the relationship I have built with him even if it is less conventional. Performing acts in the name of a god is just a wonderful way to celebrate them in my opinion and leaves us with so many options. Plant something for a harvest or nature deity, dedicate scholarly research to a god of knowledge, go stargazing to honor gods of the sky! All of which, of course, isn’t to say there isn’t value in traditional offerings- I still give a traditional food and drink offering once a decan, but that wasn’t something I was always capable of doing and have found creative alternatives to be well received. 

On a somewhat more serious note, remember that anything you do offer or dedicate to your deity is going to be kept carefully in their gaze. It’s easier to give it your all for a dedicated activity that has a finite existence, but if you dedicate an item to a god keep in mind that you will need to care for it well and continue to show it due respect as something that is now also theirs. Now I don’t think this would mean something like lilies planted for Wsir going unwatered because you got sick for a week is going to earn you wrath, but it does mean putting forth your best effort- if you dedicate an instrument or a piece of clothing you’ll want to be sure you care for them well, keep them clean and presentable and stored respectfully. The Gods know we’re human and will fail sometimes, so what’s important is being sure they know you’re trying your best.

[sandandlightning]

I just have a question... Would lord Set accept self-harm or blood from animal as offering to him?

(sorry if my ask is kinda weird or anything else)

Hey there! This'll be a bit long so I apologize for that but thank you for the question! Don't worry about it being "weird"- while saying this may be more in the spirit of Djehuty, I do think all questions deserve a fair and serious answer, and curiosity and the bravery of reaching out should be rewarded ^^ No such thing as a silly question and all that.

I can say firmly, as someone who used to struggle with self harm myself, that no, I do not believe Set would want something like that. Blood from the self, especially if it is being described as self harm, that's not something he would condone. For as much as the Kemetic ideals of Ma'at and morality are reflected in certain aspects of modern life, the sort of guilt driven shame fueled mentality akin to the self flogging of medieval priests isn't inline with it, especially not with Set. Set wants his followers to be strong and driven, you should not be hurting yourself as in a way this admitting or symbolizing a defeat- instead dedicate a form of victory to him, even if it is something as small or simple as winning in a video game. For me, Set helped me with my self confidence and standing up for myself and standing up against prejudice and abuse.

A self inflicted wound is not a show of strength, but something that materializes abstract pain and suffering that shows how worn and weary a person has become. This is not to say that someone engrossed in a cycle of self harm would earn the scorn of Set, but rather that it is not something he would want from his followers, and if it is something they struggle with it is something he would help guide them through and from as Gods do. I believe he works to protect those who fight on in life from these self inflicted wounds brought on by our unforgiving modern world just as he would work to protect those marching on through ancient battlefields from being bloodied by their enemies' arrows. The world is different now, and the wars we fight are often much more personal.

Realistically, in antiquity things like battle trophies would have been extremely appropriate for Set in his war aspect, and in a time where wars were fought with spears and arrows this might have meant things like bloodied weapons, but its not like the execution of criminals were done as 'offerings' or anything like that, and there is absolutely no historical backing for 'human sacrifice' or 'blood sacrifice' in Kemetic history. In my personal experience and UPG Set has never wanted something like that- he doesn't want you to bleed for the sake of it, he wants you to stand up and fight, and that can look like a lot of things- a sport, a friendly card game, reporting some douche bag parked in a handicap spot, or getting that creep who keeps making gross comments about your female coworkers finally fired. If you want to offer 'blood' think more 'blood sweat and tears' than a literal wound. In regards to animals, I addressed some of my thoughts and ideas on that in this post. Which now that I have looked back at it is very long, so I will summarize the relevant bits here: basically, animal offerings are historic! But they aren't what modern media tends to depict, which is some kind of pointless killing and maiming of an innocent creature. Back in the day people had to butcher their own meat- so an 'animal offering' was just part of the food offering, but the slaying of the animal to be butchered was ritualized to honor it's life and sacrifice. So as far as 'animal blood' is concerned, the answer would technically be yes, but mostly in the form of red meat juice. And hey, I don't know you or your life, if there's a Kemetic farmer out there butchering livestock before winter, dedicating some of that to some gods is perfectly logical- but also keep in mind animals were respected, and once a foreigner was lynched for killing a house cat in ancient Egypt. Be sure you know what animals are sacred to what gods (don't offer Hat-Hor steak, for instance, and Set would not like pork,) and know that the harming of an animal simply for the sake of harm or blood-letting isn't going to go over well with the Kemetic pantheon in general. As humans, we derive our morality from our religion, and the general consensus for Kemet is killing an animal just to kill it is morally wrong and not in line with Ma'at, however hunting for food or killing an animal for safety (think smooshing a black widow in your home or shooting things that pick off livestock on small farms) are parts of the circle of life.

That being said, Sekhmet does have her own whole myth with blood, so doing anything with blood, even symbolically, might make her a teensy bit jealous. But! Her worship does handily showcase the use of red alcohol as a blood substitute in ritual (admittedly, because of the specific myth, but logically one might assume also because people didn't fancy getting nicked and risking death by infection.)

And that being said (almost done I promise!) naturally or ethically acquired animal parts are a thing I use in my practice. I have a tooth from one of my dogs who passed away when I was younger I keep on my alter, but this has more to do with the sentimental value and energy it possesses for witchcraft than as an 'offering'. I do offer things like my snake's sheds and cat's fallen whiskers and such to relevant deities, and my altar to Dionysus has a rabbit pelt from a local Native American seller. Animals sacred to deities were commonly mummified to use on altars in the New Kingdom, so something like a ram skull or horns for Khnum would make sense! The Set animal is a conundrum to this day (likely much to his amusement) but his children were generally canines, and other animals sacred to him are hippos, boars, and crocodiles. These are animals that the bones might be hard to come by for (maybe a boar tusk?) but things like stone carvings and statuettes of these animals were used just as if not more often. (I actually have some plates with hippos on them I use.)

I sincerely hope this helped, and helps any other pagans starting out who might see things about blood and have questions, or any other pagans who have struggled with self harm and how it might affect their practice. I am always happy to chat if you need an ear, and of course questions in my ask are always welcome! Stay safe out there, and know that the Gods love you.

[sandandlightning]

After a lot of research I finally have a version of Egyptian Deity genealogy tree that I'm happy with. This of course reflects some of my personal practice and bias, though that only shows in situations like which gods are aspects of which and such where there was conflicting accounts ^^

[sandandlightning]

Happy Lammas everyone! Here’s a pic of my altar and my offering for Lammas. It may not look like much, but it was all baked from scratch myself ^^

[sandandlightning]

Set’s Role Slaying the No-No Noodle

 One of Set’s positive roles in mythology is the slaying of the no-no noodle, known as apophis. But to talk about that I’ll also have to talk a bit about the no-no noodle himself. 

Every day as Re makes his journey on his barque, Set stands at the helm and takes the lead vending off the vile serpent who would attempt to swallow the sun. This scene is even depicted in the banner for this blog!

The no-no noodle, as I call him, is the great white serpent that is the enemy of Re. He is a god of evil and Isfet, who endlessly seeks to slay Re, each night lying in wait for him to strike at his Barque as it sails into the underworld.

So why in Djehuty’s name do I call him the no-no noodle? Well, one thing about Kemetic practice is words and imagery can give a force strength- in this way, Heka is much like the modern idea of ‘manifesting.’ Because of that, saying his name, writing it without it being crossed out, or depicting him in a form outside of being defeated or subdued is  considered to grant him strength, thus putting Re and those that travel with him in danger. Some kemetics consider using his Greek name ‘safe’ since its not his true name (and his Greek name is what i have crossed out above). I’m not super keen on this since by that rule, you’d have to get on people’s cases about using the Netjeru’s Egyptian form names or consider them to be in contempt. Granted, I’m not gonna yell at a person for saying the Geek name, but it might make me nervous. All this led me to adopt the intentionally demeaning moniker of no-no noodle. (I think Set gets a kick out of it too.)

Even in later periods where Set’s reputation had declined, he still played this important role as the lead defender of Re’s barque. This role of defense and protection speaks to me a lot, and the dedication and willingness to put oneself on the front line, to take action, I find is integral to teachings.

[sandandlightning]

Kemetic Calendaring

The Ancient Egyptian Calendar is not easy to adapt to the Gregorian, and there are several Kemetic groups who have adapted it in many different ways, leaving a solo practicing Kemetic with many choices that can feel intimidating. I’m gonna go over some of the basics here and how and why I made decisions for the calendar I use for my personal practice.

Seasons and Months

First things first, we still have 12 months! But only 3 seasons, each with 4 months. This is the first thing I bring up because of how Egyptians wrote their dates. Rather than use the name of each month, they used the number of the month within the season and the seasons name, then the individual day. (in modern terms, this would be like writing June 5th as 1 Summer 5) I stick to this format, ngl, some of the months are very very hard for my dyslexic brain to spell.

The Seasons:

Akhet (the flood season)

Peret (the planting season)

Shomu (the harvest season)

Fortunately, information on the seasons is much more consistent and clear! Yay! An actual hecking miracle, praise be unto Re.

The Months:

Okay, so, if you want you can go on a deep dive and see the different names of different months from different periods or languages, or different spellings and romanizations of those names (check out my resources page). For peace of mind I used Sharon from KemeticIndependant’s romanizations, which are of the new kingdom names of the months. (With the exception of Epipi, because sometimes it's romanization gets too close to the name of the no-no noodle for comfort)

Each month had a deity associated with it, and sometimes that month’s name was the same as the deity.

Djehutet (1 Akhet)

Pa’en Opet (2 Akhet)

Hat-Hor (3 Akhet)

Ka-Her-Ka (4 Akhet)

Ta’Ibet (1 Peret)

Makhir (2 Peret)

Pa'en-Amunhotepu (3 Peret)

Pa'en-Rannutet (4 Peret)

Pa-Khonsu (1 Shomu)

Pa'en-Inet (2 Shomu)

Epipí (3 Shomu)

Mosen-Ra (4 Shomu)

Each month was 30 days long, divided into 3 10 day ‘weeks’ or decans. (I find following the 10 day decan schedule much better for my mental health, but I know that’s not a luxury everyone can afford)

To align with the correct number of days in a solar year, there are 5 intercalary days that do not belong to any month. These 5 days are the birthdays of Wsir, Heru, Set, Aset, and Nebt-het.

Their weekdays did not have names, and they just listed the full date (probably easier to keep track of scheduling with a decan similarly to how the metric system works. You know it's one decan away if it's the same main number 5-15-25, that sort of thing.) I did, while checking out a kemetic calendar app from the Earth Center, enjoy their structure of certain weekdays being marked for rest or ancestor/divinity offerings. I didn’t see anything like that elsewhere and didn’t dig too deep to find their sources, but I thought it was a nice structure regardless of how modern it may or may not be ^^

Adapting to Gregorian Dates:

This is where it gets messy. The start of the new year in Egypt began with the rise of the star Sirius. So one of the main deviations between calendars is when to count that date (and having to make that decision made me put off making my own calendar for a long time). See, Sirius doesn’t rise when it did way back when, and that date continues to subtly change. Some set up their calendars by setting the first day of the year as the day Sirius rises in modern times. Some who had taken that approach in the past (maybe the 80s?) then set a fixed calendar, making their calendar a few days off from someone who aligned their calendar with the rise of Sirius in 2022 0r 2023. And then there are those who decide to simply stick with a date from antiquity. I personally use the KemeticIndependant’s date for the new year, cited there as when Sirius would have risen in Tut’s time. (And to my understanding, this is a more popular date for those who chose to use a date from antiquity.) So for me, the new year begins on July 18th.

Another struggle with adapting the kemetic calendar to a modern one is that everything is based on the season of the Nile. Many modern pagans live in temperate zones with 4 seasons, or at the very least certainly don’t have the luxury of Egypt’s exact seasonal patterns. This means that a lot of holidays won’t line up with modern or even other pagan equivalents. Some do (shout out to the Hakar festival for being around Samhain) But you’re going to run into a lot of harvest festivals in march. Some more eclectic focused pagans may find adapting festivals to dates that make more sense seasonally will fit their needs better. I considered doing this for a long time, as I also celebrate the wiccain wheel of the year sabbats and nothing really lined up. I would still celebrate the Egyptian new year on the 18th of July, but move harvest festivals to fall and so on. While in the end I decided it wasn’t the right fit for me, it might be for someone else!

If you’re wondering about leap years- there is some accounting for that in the kemetic calendar! I’ll admit, I saw this information in passing and don’t remember it well, but gist was that they didn’t count the year as passed until 4 years had gone by. I’m not sure if they had a whole leap day per say, and may edit this later with an update on some research, but the takeaway is that dont feel bad for just treating feb 29 as intercalary so it doesn’t throw off your whole groove.

I am thinking of eventually putting up my nice pretty formatted 13 page kemetic calendar up somewhere. Though I will want to offer a version that is less specific to my personal practice, I may put my own up for reference for anyone who is curious ^^

[sandandlightning]

Name spelling and Romanization

The tough things about historical stuff with dead languages is that very rarely are things spelled consistently. Or if they are, it doesn’t always feel as authentic. There are common romanized names of many deities that are those names ‘in English’, but many pagans prefer to work with the spelling and pronunciation native to their religion’s language. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with using either, but as with many things it’s about what feels right- for whatever reason. (Given Egypt’s personal vendetta against vowels I have been known to simply rage quit and shout a deity's common English name after too many failed attempts at pronunciation. I’m sure Set thinks it's funny.)

But!That being said, I want to for convenience's sake list the version of names I use with the common ones. I’ll be including things that are very different from the common name only. (In the future, I might make one of these for other pantheons as it becomes relevant too.)

Re- Ra. Still pronounced Rah though. 

Djehuty- Thoth (who’s name in Greek is spelled, I shit you not, Θwθ)

Wsir- Osiris

Aset- Isis

Set- Seth (Sutekh is an even older version of his name, I use it in the tags for to minimize tag subject competition)

Nebt-Het- Nephthys

Heru- Horus

Anpu- Anubis

Hat-Hor- Hathor You can see in names like Horus and Osiris especially that these names are actually the ancient Roman’s versions of spelling these names, not even a modern romanization. These versions specifically I tend to avoid since they changed much more from the original, but I know my limits when it comes to pronouncing old Egyptian ^^; so I generally work with whatever seems to be a reasonable romanization of the original grammar/spelling of the name.

[sandandlightning]

Set Friendly Holidays

For my fellow friends of Set who are looking for more Set friendly holidays, whether he’s your patron or you just want to opt out of some of the violent-angry that worked its way into some festivals in later periods.

Feast of Victory- its popular, but it’s you know, all about Heru literally stabbing Set in the balls. And Set stabbing Heru in the eye. And a lot of down with the bad guy vibes that don’t really fly if you work closely with Set a lot. As an alternative I like to celebrate:

The Great Feast of Two Lands- This is a lovely celebration of the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, which focuses on the peace between the two sides rather than victory of one over the other, and uses a lot of imagery of both Heru and Set on either side of the Pharaoh bestowing the new unified crown, and other symbolic unification imagery (I saw one where they were tying flowers and grain together!) Like many holidays when it comes to Set, unfortunately the nope-y ones are better cataloged and easier to research. I personally tend to focus this celebration on themes of unity and peace in general.

The Hakar Festival- or also known as the Osirian Mysteries. This is a festival about Wsir’s death, which grew over time from being just a few days to weeks long. While it was, at some point, celebrated in a context with less ‘Set is the bad guy here’, the version we have super spiffy records detailing practice and rituals are from later times. There are a couple ways to go about this one-

    Sokar- you can opt to skip this holiday entirely and focus on a similar Sokar festival (that was eventually assimilated into the Hakar Festival anyway), and not acknowledge the whole Wsir getting merced myth at all. I enjoy Sokar a lot and honor him during this time, and when I was younger exclusively celebrated his festival rather than including Wsir. Since this was one of many festivals that involved sailing or arading of effigies, I made a teeny tiny little barque out of some plastic and put a little paper rendering of Sokar in it and let it float around in a fancy basin. This was something I would do when I still lived with my parents and my space was heavily limited, I think it’s a great idea for folks with similar limitations!

    Celebrating Wsir’s death as a tradgety not a murder- While there are less records, it stands to reason there would have been times where this happened! I like Wsir and respect him, especially as my patron’s brother, so eventually cutting out his holiday to tip-toe around unsavory myth didn’t sit well with me personally. I now celebrate the full Hakar festival honoring both him and Sokar, simply striking the parts of the celebration that focus on reprimanding Set and instead include him with his Sisters as those mourning Wsir. 

Set’s Birthday- Set’s birthday falls on the 3rd of 5 intercalary days between the end of one year and beginning of the next on the Egyptian calendar. All of Geb and Nut’s 4 children, and Heru, have their birthdays during this time.

Other days for Set include smaller holidays marked on calendars such as “Set goes Forth” these smaller festivals dedicated to single gods were very common and there are a lot of them if you are looking for something to give your patron some extra love! I did a lot of research to decide on dates- now, the Kemetic calendar is… a whole thing. It’ll need its own post, but basically this is a disclaimer that my dates might not line up with others (especially the gregorian dates!!) and obviously people should shift things around to what feels right to them, but I wanted to share those dates regardless for ease of access.

Set Feast Days: 2 Peret 14 (Dec 28), 4 Peret 25 (Mar 9), 4 Shomu 4 (Jun 16), and of course Set’s birthday, the third intercalary day (Jul 15).

[sandandlightning]

History and the Demonization of Set

Something I don’t like much to talk about, but necessary for you know, general transparency and access to information.

Over the course of Egyptian history Set’s reputation changed. Unlike with some other pantheons, where the demonization of a specific deity is purely the influence of the spread of Christianity, this is (sadly for me) not the case in this situation.

In early periods, Set was a respected part of the Ennead, one of the four children of Geb and Nut. He is heavily associated with Upper Egypt, and may have been (I consider him to have been in any case) the patron or pharaonic deity of the region before the unification of Egypt.

It’s unclear when things started going south. The easiest thing to point to is, well, the unification of Egypt, but even at this point he isn’t outright vilified, as there is much imagery showing him and Heru symbolically unifying the nation in various forms- though its important to note that eventually his reputation is so tarnished he is replaced by Djehuty in this imagery in some regions.

It might be more accurate to say that rather than Set becoming unpopular, Wsir became more popular, to the point that he and his son Heru eclipse and assimilate other smaller regional gods, and celebrations like the Haker festival become more and more central. Although to explain this phenomena I should probably back up a bit-

So there’s this whole myth where Set kills Wsir, right? Yeah.

This myth is the cornerstone for a lot of modern Egyptian worship and a lot of historical worship (late middle and new kingdom especially). There’s a lot going on, and versions of the myth have changed and have different iterations and nuances based on the region or time. The crux of this is that Wsir dies, and that is how gains his aspect ruling over the dead, and his pharaonic rule aspect is passed to his son, Heru. Personally, I follow an alternate myth in which Wsir’s death is simply an accident where he drowns.

Of the most common themes in this myth are the idea that Set tricks Wsir into an untimely demise, and Heru ultimately avenging his father by bringing set to justice. There are versions where they battle violently over the right of succession to Egypt’s throne.

What is I think is important to keep in mind is that even with this aspect and version of the myth where Set murders his brother, he is not immeidately demonized. In fact there are several points of time and places where this myth is an accepted canon, but Set is still a respected deity. This has to do a lot I think with how polytheism allows for fluidity and non-binary thought (I did a post on that subject here). Strong examples of this include you know, all of the Pharaohs named Seti (who took Set’s name as their pharaonic name and as their patron) and a particular line from some versions of the Haker Festival cries against Set amount to the sentiment ‘why did you kill your brother, though we know it was necessary.’

This particularly I think lends itself to the idea of Wsir needing to die to fulfill a greater role, and Set ultimately taking the unpalatable task upon himself. This way of thinking I feel fits well with those who follow a left hand path or similar school of thought. (In fact, I followed this ideal when I was younger, before finding any involvement of Set in Wsir’s death increasingly uncomfortable due to, frankly, community politics.) In this role Set is sort of the god of ‘getting shit done even if it really really sucks’ and honestly, it fits well.

But eventually many Egyptians came to portray Set purely as a villain. He became in their eyes not only an enemy of Wsir, but of Ma’at. Things like the Feast of Victory- the celebration of Heru’s victory over Set, which I don’t personally celebrate for obvious reasons- became much more central and black and white in their presentation. Some places went as far as to identify him with Isfet (which I like to refer to as the no-no chaos, or cosmic forces of destructive disorder) literal minions of Isfet became Set’s instead, so on and so forth. The view of a late New Kingdom Set was of a betrayer, not a complex force of contrariness.

Of course, even then there were still likely isolated cults, I’d imagine especially in Upper Egypt where his roots are. And, fortunately I suppose, as I discussed in my post about historical inconsistency and the… nuance? Challenge? Of following a religion that lasted and evolved over thousands of years, one benefit is getting to pick which of these versions of these myths I hold for my beliefs.

A few other notes on stuff that changed with Set over the years. Originally Anpu was his and Nebt-Het’s son, then later this was changed to the son of Nebt-Het having an affair with Wsir, and sometimes with him entirely just becoming Heru’s brother (much rarer though). This also reflects a lot of perception of Set I think. (and I’ll talk about my thoughts on Anpu’s lineage in another post I’ll eventually link here) Set was always a war deity, but his personality sort of shifted from being loud and boisterous to just outright violent. Set being a god of natural forces such as the storm and desert meant his favor could have fallen based on prolonged harsh natural conditions in which Egyptians felt they were being unfairly punished by the god that governed them.

[sandandlightning]

The Moon is a Gay Lovechild

Okay I realize this title is some bettermyths level of clickbait but hear me out okay?

So I talked about Set and Heru in my Set is the Patron Egyptian God of Gays post, and BOY did I find some fun stuff while researching the lineage of various Netjeru. There are a lot of versions of the myth where Set and Heru bang. Some are not so bueno. But several involve a very specific fact which I had not thought too much about before until I ran across one specific variant.

Basically, when the boys go to whoever it is they decide to to settle their who topped spat (Usually Djehuty, but sometimes Aset or others) The semen that leaves Set forms a solar or lunar disk over his head, which, apparently, in some versions, Djehuty just dead as goes cool that’s my jiz crown now thanks.

There’s some debate on whether it is a solar or lunar disk,I personally think most people wouldn’t look too much into it and assume solar by default, but given it goes to Djehuty AND Heru is involved, seems like lunar to me.

Anyway, there’s even a version- the one specifically where they go to Aset to settle their argument- where Djehuty is born from this union. He gets yote from Set’s forehead ala Zeus and Athena. Ngl, I love this. This makes me extremely happy.

But while I happily respect this version of this myth, it didn’t quite fit in with my personal theology too well. Djehuty’s role as Re’s son (and sort of, you know, the resident Adult) was a little too locked in. (And honestly, there's a strong chance given that is his most common genealogy that the born from Set and Heru myth is from an area where Heru and Re were assimilated into the same god, which I generally don’t follow)

BUT! I was (perhaps a bit biasedly) helbent on acknowledging this in some form or another. And so I am going to be emphasizing the lunar disks creation in this myth and lunar aspects in general with this elaborate act of gayness.

So anyway the moon is a gay lovechild. Enjoy.

[sandandlightning]

quick little update! I will def be adding more stuff on Heathenry specifically and other pagan basics soon, but I wound up on a deep dive of Kemet research trying to sort out different versions of the Netjeru genealogy in different locations and eras and such and haha boy did I sign up for a task. I mean I knew what I was signing up for, and after years of just sort of keeping in my head lots of ‘this but also this and this’  I’m working on my own little family tree for my personal practice based on the beliefs and myths I follow ^^

[sandandlightning]

Modernization and Historical Inconsistencies

It's important to remember that even in antiquity there were regional differences in religious practice, meaning you'll find conflicting information that's all historically true! Thinking about this, I personally tend to worry less about making sure things are 'exactly the same', or that it's okay to curate in certain contexts, as long as the result isn't harmful to others and doesn't make the source completely unrecognizable.

Of course the unfortunate truth is that there are those who pervert pagan ideals and 'pick and choose' to justify hate speech, racism, homophobia, and other terrible things, and I in no way wish to condone this- there is a difference between adaptation and perversion.

That being said, we live in a very different time than when these religions flourished. Other religions that have been practiced with less interruption have also changed and adapted over centuries of existing. Some practices have to be modernized, and doing so is not disrespectful in the slightest.

A good example would be certain kinds of offerings. Often in old times animals would be sacrificed- that phrase has been taken out of context in modern media often, and as a child it was presented to me as some sort of barbaric murder of an innocent animal. This isn't true at all (and arguably, modern meat industries are far more cruel.) Animals were ritualistically slain as part of an offering, but that was because at the time it was often up to you to kill and butcher your own livestock if you wanted meat for a meal. This was not done to demean the animal, but rather to honor its sacrifice in sustaining the lives of other creatures around it. 

But even so, it's unheard of and unpalatable in modern times for the average citizen to butcher their own food. This aspect needs to be modernized and adapted to not only the needs of the modern world but your own needs. The logical alternative would be to make a feast with expensive meats as ingredients, maybe even focusing on buying free range meat, and saying a prayer in honor of the animal who gave its life for your meal. But even that, while a much more reasonable alternative for a modern setting, might not be doable for every person. Maybe you can't afford such expensive food, maybe you're a vegetarian, maybe you have a medical dietary restriction.

In these cases, it's important to remember it's the thought and symbolism that counts, not a 1 for 1 recreation. Can't afford expensive food? Maybe focus on simply making the table setting look nice with something you already have, try to plate the food in a fancy way. Can't eat meat? Look for other alternatives that make sense for the deity or ritual you are reenacting, maybe use red foods that could represent meat, or something that otherwise symbolically relates to what you're doing. Even something as simple as a fancy butter in the shape of an animal could be a reasonable substitute!

Focusing more on historical inconsistencies, as I said before sometimes there are just regional differences. Or sometimes even the scholars fight over what something means, and we just don't know. 

The former is extremely common in Kemetic practice, where dates for holidays vary based on different cities, and the sheer length of time Egypt was in power means the religion went through different iterations over time on top of regional variations. The entire family tree of the Egyptian Gods can change depending on the year and location of the source. 

An example of the latter- where scholars disagree- that I like to point to is Loki's controversial association with fire. This is a complex topic with many veins and I will focus on only one point of evidence for example: the discovery of a hearth stone (not the game) being found dedicated to Loki. Some argue this meant in that Loki was associated with fire, and thought this might fit as both Loki and fire are chaotic forces. Others argue that the hearth was, effectively, just the place of worship, and making the association was like saying seeing a deities name written on paper made them a god of books. In moments like these, all that can be done is chose what feels right to you- whether that's picking a side or finding a compromise.

[sandandlightning]

Eclecticism is Historically Accurate

The Hermes-Anpu statue.

It might sound like a hot take, but it's true! The Polytheist mind set of the ancient world  was very different than today.

I don't know if this is still the case, but growing up, especially in college, there was a schism between reconstructionist and eclectic practitioners. There was a lot of gatekeeping, a lot of shaming, and so on. I've had people who worship different pantheons try to correct me about my Gods! (Though that is a different issue in and of itself.) I'd like to think because I haven't personally encountered this in a while it is less prevalent, but I know that is just wishful thinking- so to any who may concern, here is the 'historical fact' on inter-pantheon worship in ancient times.

The simple fact of it was these cultures existed in the same space, merchants talked to each other, ideas were shared and spread. Above is a statue of Hermes-Anpu. This was a statue was the result of some Romans looking at Anpu after interacting with Egypt and going "Hey, he sure is a lot like Hermes! I guess in Egypt he presents to them as some jackal dude. Cool." This statue of the two god combined is proof of this parallel ancient people drew that has existed until today.

But that is an example of likening one god to another, and saying several gods are simply different aspects of each other is far more commonly accepted than say, being a Hellenistic pagan who also just happens to pray to Aset sometimes

Except that was a thing that actually happened in ancient Rome!

The Cult of Isis happened when rumors that Aset was 'very responsive' to prayers began spreading on the other side of the Mediterranean. Basically a few Romans who traveled south started going, "Man, when I was visiting Egypt I prayed to this local goddess and she like, immediately hooked me up! So I kept praying to her and life has been great! You should pray to her too!" Her popularity spread to the point there were temples of her in Rome. These people still worshiped their own Roman gods, they still held Jupiter above others, but that didn't prevent them from working with deities outside of this pantheon.

So in modern context, there's no reason why I, a Kemetic, shouldn't still occasionally work with Baldr or Dionysus because they have a stronger connection to the thing I'm working on. One might argue that, say, it's one thing for Egypt and Rome to have contact, but Egypt and Celtic practices? What about Babylonian? What if you with with some Shinto or something else from the far east? They wouldn't have had historical connections! Well no, but if they had the technology we do now? Of course they would have! The cross pollination of ideas is a good thing, not a bad one. A world untouched by the monotheistic mindset would have embraced this exchange of ideas, would never have had the concept of such rigid lines between religions.

So, as a polytheist, I encourage learning about and at the very least giving respect to other pantheons even if they are not my main focus. Maybe you'll make friends who work with that pantheon, learning more about the people around you should be encouraged, not be cause for divide. Personally, I feel the Old Gods are happy to embrace any form of appropriate worship, and wouldn't care so much about such rigidity. Granted, this may change from god to god, some deities are known to be possessive, others in great dislike of being worshiped in solitary. Once again, it is about finding what feels right.

[sandandlightning]

Eschewing Binary Thought

Our ancestors did not view the world or the things in it the same way we do today. The idea that something was 'only that thing' or it was 'this not that' was far less common.

Binary thought is a result of Abrahamic religions which focus on duality, good vs evil, heaven and hell. First I would like to say that these concepts on their own are not bad or inherently wrong, but they have shaped the way people think for so long that understanding certain concepts through a pagan, polytheistic lens can become difficult. I write this post in hopes of helping those who seek to retrain themselves out of this bias, and to simply give insight that might help those better understand certain complex ideas common in paganism.

I had the absolute pleasure of having a Hellenistic pagan be my professor for a classical mythology class in college, and he did such a lovely job of explaining the base concept of 'one thing can be many things' to a room full of people used to a rigid binary. We were discussing nymphs and nature spirits- and there was a particular passage describing a mountain spirit he focused on. It described him as 'walking upon himself' it switched between imagery of a human shaped person and a beautiful flowing mountainside, it described the leaves of trees as hair, but also as the greenery which housed the animals of the wilderness. This idea that this spirit is literally, the mountain, the trees upon the mountain, the animals upon the mountain, and a disembodied spirit all at once, simultaneously, is hard for a binary focused mind of parse. Modern people like to put things in boxes, and this entity is a defiant cat with a paw in 4 different ones.

Many are familiar with the nymph, and modern imagery often shows a nymph turning into a tree or into a woman. Now, there is no shortage of myths where women turn into plants in a literal sense (hello Apollo), but such nature spirits were both the tree and the woman at the same time. For the modern mind, it might be easier to think of such things as 'projecting' a form that is easier for us humans to understand.

But we should not just limit this idea that one thing can be many things to just spirits, as this was how people viewed the world. Things can have many aspects, things are not either pure or evil.

I invite people to embrace this world view not only as a way to better understand our ancestors' worship, but to help combat the toxic progression of things like cancel culture and purity culture. In ancient times, not even Gods were perfect, people made mistakes, but forgiveness could be earned.

[sandandlightning]

Set and LGBTQ+ Aspects

One aspect I find resonates with him in my worship is LGBTQ themes- I often joke he is the 'Egyptian God of the gays' though of course, in ancient times the concept of queerness is very different than it is today, and history has been distorted through the cishet white male lens of the 1800s. I base this attribute on a few things. One is a myth where he, well, hooks up with Heru, you know, another male god. The entire myth is about them arguing over who gets to top, and trying to embarrass the other by proving who actually bottomed. Ultimately Set was the pitcher, but when he started bragging Heru tricked him into eating his cum as salad dressing, and when Set was asked to prove his claims other gods found Heru's cum in his stomach. (Set had, of course, pulled out, or rather Heru was careful to be sure he did.) Obviously this is incredibly gay. It's a gay story about gay things. It's not rocket surgery to connect those dots.

Besides this is the nature of Set's association with the desert. The desert is considered barren, and in many versions of myths so is Set himself. In some cases this is due to literally being infertile, but in other it is because he's just too gay to actually have a kid with his wife. (Mind you, the sister-wife politics of old gods should be taken into at least some consideration before declaring him a horrible husband.)

So with those two bits of mythology in mind, I have found no reason not to say 'yeah Set is probably here to stand up for some gay homies.' He had roles as a warrior and protector, and was associated with foreigners- or as one might take a bit more liberty than above evidence, groups that are othered. My own queerness has always pulled me towards Set.

[sandandlightning]

Set and My Experience

Set, also called Seth or Sutekh, was the Egyptian God of Storms and Chaos.

He was a controversial figure in antiquity and still is today, however I want to focus this post on positive aspects and how I work with my patron.

Some of Set's other aspects include war, the desert, foreigners, and even the oddly specific red hair. And personally, I relate to him as a strong LGBTQ+ figure.

A lot of Egyptian myth talks about order and chaos, or more specifically Ma'at and Isfet. For me, the chaos Set represents is not a part of Isfet, but represents that natural chaos that is a part of life that is necessary. This is a chaos that represents spontaneity. A chaos that teaches you how to embrace some things are simply out of your control. That as a god of chaos he is capricious, but also there to help guide you through moments of hecticness and discord- in ancient times, this would translate to guiding you through battle or other violent situations, doubling with his aspect as a god of war.

As a god of chaos, Set has taught me that some things are simply going to happen, and there is nothing I can do about it. Sometimes those things are benevolent or benign, and sometimes they are simply bad. Isfet exists and is brought about by negative people. There comes a time when trying to bring those forces, and sometimes those people to walk within Ma'at is simply impossible, it is something outside of my control, and it is something that needs to be let go. This has manifested as something as heavy as learning to remove toxic people from my life, and as simply accepting 'sometimes the internet is down, sometimes it rains when I decide to go out, that's just how it is.' In instances of the latter, I have learned to embrace these moments and work with them, rather than against. He does not ask me to incite chaos, or to be needlessly random, but rather to learn to 'go with the flow'.

I have seen Set described as 'militaristic' but this has never resonated with me- perhaps because to me that word implies a rigidness that is simply incomparable with his chaotic nature. However while trying to find alternatives, I can easily see how settling on that word would come about after attempting to avoid anything with unintentional negative connotations. It is the best sounding way to tie into his war aspect, but not quite accurate. He is a fighter, he is a frontliner, he is a protector. He might be described as 'combative', but that word both has negative implications and doesn't quite fit either. He encourages 'loudness', he encourages standing up for your beliefs and not being quiet about it. He does not take things lying down, and does not smile favorably upon any form of bystander syndrome. He expects actions. But I have never experienced something that I felt was a push towards a disproportionate response- he doesn't want you to be a Karen screaming at the beleaguered waitress at a waffle house, but he might take complete passiveness as a sign of weakness- so maybe split the difference and politely point out they accidentally brought you something your allergic to without being a dick about it? 

He does encourage defiance, and holds disdain for those who abuse power. For me, things like attending appropriate protests, and even quitting on the spot at a dead end job are in line with his teachings. But I think where the misunderstanding happens is that a call to action is not the same as a call to violence. He is a god of battle, but in the modern world not all battles are fought with fist and fire, they are also fought with words and cleverness.

All of this being a very long way to say Set has helped me stand up for myself, stand up for others, and advocate for my existence in a world and country where people try to take away my rights, or try to say my very existence is a sin. He has not pushed me outside of my comfort zone and left me to fend for myself, but that he nudged me towards the edge of it and forward so I could learn how to expand it. I have learned to love myself as I am, and to accept all the strangeness that I may not be able to fully comprehend but can feel is right. I have learned that not everything needs a justification to be.

[sandandlightning]

Introduction to Paganism

If you are just beginning your journey with paganism, consider reading this introduction post! Having a few friends who are just now beginning their own journeys, I wanted to share that knowledge with others outside my personal circle. I plan on posting more basics of the basics for those just starting out on this blog, and always feel free to shoot me an ask. ^^

'Pagan' is an umbrella term referring to a myriad of different 'old god' religions, or the religions that were widespread before the advent of Christianity. There are many paths, ranging from direct reconstruction to worship of gods from various cultures in different or more modern contexts, all of which constitute being Pagan. The largest common thread between pagans is that we are polytheists- meaning we worship and honor multiple gods.

Because of this, it is important to consider that not all pagans have the same holidays or even knowledge. There are certain common threads or more popular practices that are easier to find than others. What is important is finding what feels right for you, and sometimes if being a part of a larger community feels right, then adapting aspects to align with more popular practices is completely okay and appropriate!

In my experience, most pagans I have known started out with wider known, easier to access philosophies such as Wicca at the beginning of their journey, then from their were able to find the path right for them, whether that was staying with Wicca, doubling down on a more adapted form of Wicca, or branching out into a different reconstructed religion. But if you have an idea of what you're looking for, or already feel connected to a specific pantheon starting there makes perfect sense! 

I think it's important to remember religion is a personal thing, it's alright to be fluid, and it's alright to try things and decide what does and doesn't work for you. If working with a specific deity, or even just a specific aspect or version of a deity, makes you uncomfortable you don't have to continue with that practice. If you are focused on a pantheon, but keep encountering a specific deity from another, there is nothing wrong with dabbling in work with that deity, or even deciding that that deity and their pantheon is a better fit for you than what you had been doing. Just ensure everything you do is with respect when working with higher powers, and that you are not inadvertently snubbing or angering any forces as you explore your spirituality.

I've used the word pantheon a lot- for those unfamiliar, this colloquially refers to a group of deities that belong to a specific polytheistic religion. The example most people would be familiar with would be ancient Greece- Zeus, Posiden, Hades, Athena, Apollo- these deities all belong to the same pantheon. Below is a list of different pantheons as well as terms modern pagans use to describe practice working with these pantheons, which I hope will help newer pagans find other resources.

Greek and Roman - Hellenistic

Norse - Heathenry

Egyptian - Kemetic

Celtic

This page will be updated and expanded with links as the author compiles more information and fact checks. This is by no means a complete or comprehensive list.