#mythol

[acourtofladydeath]

Over a year later and she's finally finished.

Many of you know me as an ACOTAR writer, but my first fics were for different fandoms in 2016. I went on a long writing hiatus because life happened, but in 2023 I read "The Song of Achilles" and it inspired me to write again. This was my first fic back after that hiatus, and I've finally finished the last chapter.

My style has changed a lot since I started this fic, and I've grown as a writer immensely. It's exciting and humbling to see where I started back in 2016, where I restarted in 2023, and where I'm at now in 2024.

"A Place Eternal" follows Patroclus and Achilles as the reunite in the underworld with the help of Hades and Persephone. If you're interested and would like to start reading it for the first time, you can start at the beginning with Chapter 1: Arrival. If you've been waiting for the final installment, here is a link to Chapter 7: Reunited.

I've posted a small snippet from the first chapter below. Thank you all for being a part of my journey.

When he finally arrived underground, Patroclus was breathless. Literally of course, but figuratively as well for what he saw before him was unlike anything he had ever expected. The underworld was dark, yes, but he didn’t know that it could also be beautiful. A river was flowing next to him, so unlike the rivers he’d spent the past ten years next to in Troy. For even in death, the souls that swam within it were brimming with the stories of their lives. So many stories. Ones of passion and pain like his own, but also ones of simple pleasure. Stolen moments of the world above forever remembered as they flowed through this dark chasm, lighting the walls all around with their vibrancy. He gasped slightly, his jaw falling slack as for one moment his mind was distracted from his purpose. In awe of the motion he realized that he had form again, had the ability to articulate and move with purpose. Not just that, he felt the motion of his body. It was disconcerting after the time he spent a mere wisp waiting for his name to be recorded so he could pass on to this next world. Watching the river he heard a deep male voice from behind him, “We’ve been expecting you.” Turning frantically hoping to see his love, but knowing the voice was not his, Patroclus was shocked to see Hades and Persephone watching. 

Continue reading here on AO3.

Please let me know if you would like on or off my taglist! @pippsmcgee @born-to-riot @chunkypossum @bubybubsters @queercontrarian @yanny-77 @fieldofdaisiies @iftheshoef1tz @secret-third-thing @jules-writes-stories @the-darkestminds

[metanarrates]

do you guys remember that era where harry potter was treated near universally in pop culture as this Work of Genius That Imparts Incredible Moral Wisdom. that was fucking insane I don't think I've ever seen or heard of anything being treated quite like it

[detectiverickitubbs]

                    is here ish. drowning in Wonderwoman 84 feels while poking at drafts, is contemplating a desire to use the fc. 

[mcnecklong]

Fortunate enough that I got to attend a student success summit as a member of staff today and hear an absolutely astounding speaker talking about how wealth inequality is a massive problem on campuses that needs addressing. Immediately left and purchased his book and I've been reading it since.

Hes showing the difference between privileged poor (those with access to better programs in highschool to prepare them for college) vs doubly disadvantaged (those who didn't have that leg up) and how we still fail BOTH groups on the regular.

Anthony Abraham Jack you are first of all my hero. Second of all an icon. Third of all I want EVERYONE to read this.

[sakiye]

started blood of zeus, just from the intro i think im going to be obsessed

[lilaiamoreli]

(via The Fruit of Passion (Chapter 41 - Part VIII))

[not-an-alien-scientist]

The Friend You Need

Vi'miel: Human Andrea, did you get any new paper stories to enjoy?

Andrea: Haven't read them yet. One of the magazines *waves the thin bunch of paper around* is from InterGeo about some new species found in the Amazon

Vi'miel: ... new...species?

Andrea: Yeh scientists back home are always discovering new species, particularly in the dense tropical rainforest or non-light portions of our oceans... but sometimes its just something new in that swamp we never thought twice about

Vi'miel: You are not aware of how many species live on your planet?

Andrea: *laughs* no we aren't even close to knowing

Vi'miel: Hm, I suppose I should not be surprised, it is. . . Earth.....we are discussing after all

Andrea: *laughs* You can read the magazine first if you want *pushes it over to him* But look, the other one I got *holds up book* is a story about a Selkie so it might be really fun, always love a little fantasy

Vi'miel: And what is a selkie?

Andrea: ... ah. ... its. um. errr. Have you read about seals from Earth?

Vi'miel: Oh yes I was quite fascinated reading about the cold zones

Andrea: Soooo a selkie is a seal... and a human... they switch back in forth by taking their seal skin on or off. . .

Vi'miel: *slightly confused* Why was this not in the information I read

Andrea: Well because they aren't real its mythol- -

Ryan: *grabs Andrea's wheelchair's handlebars and attempts to move her out of his walking space*

Andrea: *holds breath, shuts eyes tight in fear, and grips her hand rims so tight her skin turns red*

Vi'miel: HUMAN RYAN! What are you doing???

Ryan: Huh, what do you mean

Vi'miel: *stands* You humans always say do not touch without permission!!!! Why have you touched Human Andrea without permission?

Ryan: Calm down, I didn't touch her I moved her out of the way

Vi'miel: And that is touching her!

Ryan: Y'all freak out so much about normal human stuff, no it isn't, relax for once *still has hands firmly on handlebars*

Vi'miel: Human Andrea are you alright? Is he touching you?

Andrea: *very quietly, eyes still firmly shut* yes, please, stop him

Vi'miel: *stands straighter at his 8ft full height and color hue changes to heavily contrast the colors around him, gaining the attention of every Miel in the room* Human Ryan, remove your hands from Human Andrea. Now.

Ryan: *takes hands off Andrea's handle bars* Gods I hate this place fine, you big baby *rolls eyes but leaves ... the stares of the Miel are more unnerving than one would think based off their normal demeanor*

Andrea: *puts head in hands and cries very quietly*

Vi'miel: I am sorry Human Andrea *sits* may I help?

Andrea: *sniffles* you already helped *hiccup* a lot, thank you so much

Vi'miel: *hue returns to a bit more normal blue* Human Andrea, why would a human break such rules? To not touch others I mean.... it is something I have heard humans speak frequently about

Andrea: *wiping eyes with tissue another Miel had gotten for her* well for people like him, either my wheelchair does not count as a part of me... or I'm not human enough for him

Vi'miel: ... human "enough"?

Andrea: Yeh, some people.... *breaths unevenly wiping eyes a bit more* well some people think certain types of humans are less than them .... I don't know how to explain it....

Vi'miel: Human Ryan thinks "less" of your "type" of human?

Andrea: yeh.... and so I don't get the same respect he would give other humans.

Vi'miel: *color hue turns a deep shade of red in sadness* Human Andrea, may I touch you?

Andrea: Yes?

Vi'miel: *uses front appendage to rubs Andea's back* I have seen this help other humans

Andrea: Thanks Vi'miel *breathes a bit easier* I wish I had more friends like you

Vi'meil: ... may I know more about the "selkie"?

[bettiepagetheblackangel]

Bettie Page - Aphrodite Rising 📔

The play examines Page's rise to fame and her status as a sex symbol.

· The Woman Bettie Page, coming of age during The Great Depression, is determined to escape poverty and live a life of adventure.

· The Goddess Aphrodite, watching the U.S. from Mt. Olympus, decides to help the nation fling off its Puritanism by bringing them the gift of sexual freedom.

The goddess spies Bettie Page, a beautiful, restless young woman with "girl next door" charm and big dreams of independence. Following the rules set down by Zeus, Aphrodite inhabits Bettie to help them achieve their goals. With the Goddess whispering in her ear, she seduces the cameras and becomes America's most iconic pinup model. But, can Aphrodite give Bettie the strength to resist the shaming forces of society or will both Aphrodite and Bettie be defeated by the conservative zeitgeist of the midcentury?

La obra analiza el ascenso de Page a la fama y su estatus como símbolo sexual.

· La mujer Bettie Page, que alcanzó la mayoría de edad durante la Gran Depresión, está decidida a escapar de la pobreza y vivir una vida de aventuras.

· La diosa Afrodita, observando a los Estados Unidos desde el Monte Olimpo, decide ayudar a la nación a deshacerse de su puritanismo brindándoles el regalo de la libertad sexual.

La diosa espía a Bettie Page, una joven hermosa e inquieta con el encanto de la "vecina de al lado" y grandes sueños de independencia. Siguiendo las reglas marcadas por Zeus, Afrodita habita en Bettie para ayudarla a conseguir sus objetivos. Con la Diosa susurrándole al oído, seduce a las cámaras y se convierte en la modelo pinup más emblemática de Estados Unidos. Pero, ¿podrá Afrodita darle a Bettie la fuerza para resistir las fuerzas vergonzosas de la sociedad o tanto Afrodita como Bettie serán derrotadas por el espíritu conservador de la época de mediados de siglo?

Bettie Page: Aphrodite Rising by Kimberly Ussery | 2020

Product Details ISBN-13: 9781735588902 Publisher: Kimberly Ussery Publication date: 10/15/2020 Pages: 202

[blueiscoool]

The 52-Foot-Long Book of the Dead Papyrus from Ancient Egypt

Egypt has released photos of a newly discovered Book of the Dead from more than 2,000 years ago.

Egyptian officials have released photos of an ancient scroll, the 52-foot-long (16 meters) Book of the Dead papyrus recently discovered in Saqqara. The 10 images show ancient illustrations of gods and scenes from the afterlife, as well as text on the document, which is more than 2,000 years old.

Archaeologists discovered the Book of the Dead papyrus within a coffin in a tomb near the Step Pyramid of Djoser and announced the discovery on Jan. 14 for Egyptian Archaeologists Day, but this is the first time they've released images of the scroll to the public.

It was not unusual for ancient Egyptians to bury the Book of the Dead with the deceased, but they didn't call it that at the time. Rather, modern archaeologists coined the term "Book of the Dead" to refer to a collection of texts that ancient Egyptians thought would help guide the dead in the afterlife.

Papyrus for the dead

The 52-foot-long scroll was found at Saqqara in May 2022. It contains chapters from the Book of the Dead. It was recently restored and translated into Arabic and is now on display at The Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The text is written in hieratic, a script derived from hieroglyphs.

All rolled up

The papyrus was found rolled up in a coffin belonging to a man named Ahmose (not to be confused with a pharaoh who lived in earlier times). The man's name is mentioned in the papyrus about 260 times, the researchers said. He lived around 300 B.C., near the beginning of the Ptolemaic dynasty, a dynasty of pharaohs descended from one of Alexander the Great's generals.

Carefully unrolled

A team of researchers performed extensive conservation work so they could unroll the papyrus. Ahmose's tomb is located south of the step pyramid, built for Djoser, a pharaoh from the third dynasty who ruled from about 2630 B.C. to 2611 B.C. While this pyramid was built long before the time of Ahmose, it wasn't unusual to find Ahmose's tomb there, as people in ancient Egypt sometimes liked to be buried near the pyramids of long dead pharaohs.

Analyzing the scroll

The unrolled papyrus is seen here. It was written in black and red ink, and the quality of the writing indicates that it was written by a professional, researchers said. Despite the size of the scroll, there are longer Book of the Dead texts known from Egypt. For instance, a Book of the Dead papyrus, which is now in the British Museum, was originally 121 feet (37 m) long.

Book of the Dead on display

The unrolled papyrus on display at The Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Ancient illustrations

This Book of the Dead text also contains illustrations. This image appears to show Osiris, the ancient Egyptian god of the underworld. In Egyptian mythology, Osiris' life was ritually restored after he died — something that ancient Egyptians hoped would happen to them in the afterlife.

The deity Osiris

This image shows more details about Osiris. He is shown sitting on a throne while wearing an "Atef" crown, a type of crown often gracing the head of Osiris. There appear to be offerings before him, as well as a creature who may be Ammit, a deity who consumed anyone who was not worthy of being ritually restored in the afterlife.

Husband and wife

This image appears to depict offerings and a scene of a couple venerating Egyptian deities. This couple may be Ahmose and his wife (whose name is not known). Not much is known of Ahmose, but he was wealthy enough to have an elaborate copy of the Book of the Dead made for him.

Leading the cow

A number of scenes are illustrated in this section of the Book of the Dead. At the far left, a cow appears to be led somewhere — perhaps to be given as an offering. A number of images depict boats, which could be used to navigate the underworld.

Weighing against a feather

This close-up shows a creature, possibly Ammit, sitting before Osiris. In ancient Egyptian mythology, the heart of the deceased is weighed against the feather of Maat, a god associated with truth, justice and order. If the person's bad deeds in life were great, their heart would be heavier than the feather, and Ammit would devour the deceased.

By Owen Jarus.

[a-town-called-hometown]

hi!! i loved your post about deltarune's metafiction and its (not) escapist themes, and it got my brain jogging, like... i guess ive just been thinking "why"? like ive heard that take before and i think its valid, but also like. why ? its obvious enough to me that deltarune uses the lightner/darkner relationship as a reflection of the player/game relationship and both of these things are addressed critically, but i can't help but wonder if there's a driving force for it all, outside of deltarune. like i can accept diegetically the darkners are not, or shouldn't be, subject only to the whims of lightners, but with any good story if you break it down to its core is ultimately saying something about humanity or the world and such. i mean i seriously doubt the people who seem to think that Toby Fox intends to induce *actual* guilt into the people who fund his life's work and career by purchasing his videogames, like, it's obvious that "you are a bad person because you play this videogame" isn't the intended message, nor was it in undertale. but then, what is? what is the purpose of a story that invites us to think of toys and game characters as "real"? not to trash my beloveds but i mean, literally speaking, their lives DONT matter, they r not real. it just feels like ive seen a lot of discussion about 'what' toby is doing with the narrative but i feel like that's only half the ordeal, the other half would be the reason why. my first thought was that the implicit 3rd thing being compared to the light-dark, player-game thing is actual social hierarchy IRL in which people are oppressed by another group that doesnt see them as human, bc iirc toby talked a bit about feeling powerless and wanting to do more to change the real world on real issues in an interview in 2020ish and of course there's the snarky gag about the fedora plugboy who doesn't like politics, so he doesn't care that an evil ruler is taking over the world. im not sure if that sits right with me as what the intention is (esp because the latter is a darkner talking about another darkner) but i couldnt think of much else although i do feel like a fallacy people get themselves into a lot in the fandom is the assumption that toby fox is this Impeccable Writing Machine and not just like A Guy. people make weird or flawed art sometimes, it doesn't *have* to adhere to standards. maybe deltarune is meaningless (or the meaning IS that it's meaningless, as though to complete the metaphor of it being a "real" fictional world, because if it is 'real' then like our world there is no "answer" or "purpose", it simply *is*.) dunno! im not expecting it to boil down to a simplistic fairytale moral like "dont bully people!!" or something, mr. fox tends to write more convoluted than that, but i feel like if there's something to be gained from this particular part of the game's story then i'm not sure i see the vision. what do u think? do u think this question is even answerable with only two chapters?

respectfully, I do heavily disagree with the notion that good stories necessarily have to say anything about the world or about humanity. one of the reasons I like metafiction is that it usually says something about how stories are constructed, and that's enough for me. there's plenty of stories that have bigger themes that aren't really all that much about human nature, at least, not directly. a story can comment on one specific thing without necessarily making a broader statement about people, you know? not every story has an easily explained moral lesson.

that being said, yes, this plot element is in service of deltarune's larger themes! which are about agency, control, fate, and identity.

deltarune's fate theming and its metafiction elements are a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation given how interlocked they are, but I've found it helpful to describe deltarune as a "person vs. fate narrative that uses a metafictional lens to characterize fate." rather than the three fates of greek mythology or whatever dictating its characters' lives, it is instead the structure of the rpg their world was made to be. they are player characters. they are npcs. they play specific roles in the narrative. no one can choose who they are in this world.

control is emphasized in this story. there's the control we have over kris, of course, and in a much subtler way the control we have over the world through them. there's the darkner-lightner hierarchy, which parallels our dynamic with kris. i would argue that there are even social forces in hometown which also serve to place the lightner characters into specific roles. under this level of control, it's hard for characters to push back and determine their own identities.

all these forces combine to mean that deltarune's characters are fighting back against the narrative itself! which says stuff about people's agency, and the way rpgs are written, and how we interact with all that...

ultimately, you can apply this to real life. even if there aren't things like "fictional people who are actually real," hierarchies of control do exist in real life. narratives that erase the agency and internality of certain types of people exist in real life. it's admittedly a rather general statement, but like with any narrative about fate, seeing characters resist rules that are seemingly written into the fabric of their existence can make you feel inspired to also define your own identity! and to be transgender. don't forget to be transgender

[thekingofwinterblog]

So a bit of symbolism I have never seen anyone comment on is what fingers each of the 5 Godhand of Berserk represents.

From left to right, we first have Conrad.

Starting with the Pinky, there is Conrad. The littlefinger unlike the rest has little symbolism behind it.

He is the forgotten member, the one with a very mundane name, who never really does anything to stand out, and who's demonic form is that of a giant bedbug.

Next, the Ring Finger is Ubik.

The ring finger is the mystical finger, the one given higher signifigance than the rest of a mytholical scale, and fittingly, he is the most blantly open and frequent about making use of his magical powers to compensate for his less than impressive body.

The middle finger is Slan, the one who is the embodiment of everything evil and disguisting about sex in all it's forms.

The middle finger is, fittingly enough, the finger of vulgarity, with the raised finger along with a fist used, having become a go to insult due to it's visual similaity to an erect human dick.

The index finger is represented by Femto, the evil messiah of an artifical, false god.

As the index finger he points the way, showing the path for those around him to follow, wheter if be conquest, or helping him destroy his former, closest friends in the worst manner possible.

But despite appearances, he is not in charge.

Symbolizing the thumb, is Void, the real leader behind the Godhand, the leader who the rest intentionally or othervise follows.

They are all under his thumb so to speak.

He is also the most vocal about the groups misson to enforce the "Flow of casuality", or in other words, putting his thumb of the scales of destiny.

[dalekofchaos]

I think if I had any issues with GOW:Ragnarok is 5 things.

No mention that Thor killed his mother. In GOW 2018, Mimir tells the tale of Fjörgyn, Thor's mother and one of Odin's great loves. It is implied that Thor killed her. It would give depth to why Odin is abusive towards Thor, his hatred of Atreus, self-loathing(aside from failing his sons) and explain why Faye went nuclear against Thor. Also? This would give context to why Thor is the way he is.

Odin doesn't use Kratos actions of murdering his family in turning Atreus against Kratos. I'm sure Kratos tells Atreus off screen, but does he? You'd think he would've told Atreus in the last game's ending or somewhere in Ragnarok. As far as we know all he told Atreus is killing Zeus and "I've killed many who were deserving and many who were not" implied, but never said. Kratos telling Freya was an important moment for them to understand each other. I don't think Kratos told him and considering how much of an abusive manipulative gaslighting prick that Odin is, it just felt like a missed opportunity not to have Odin use that to turn Atreus against his father and also a missed opportunity to have Kratos struggle to tell Atreus from his perspective on what he did.

Atreus darker personality never returned. I had this theory that Atreus "We're gods, we can do anything we want" phase would return as his Loki personality. Atreus quest to prevent Kratos' death would lead him down a dark path and lead his Loki personality to return. He would play both sides only to let Asgard burn in Ragnarok. There would be a boss battle between Atreus and his Loki side and Atreus personality would win and remain dominant. What we got was great, but I feel like Atreus' darker personality returning was a missed opportunity.

Kratos and Thor's final fight seemed tame. When I envisioned Kratos and Thor's final battle. I imagined this bombastic battle that would realm shift throughout the Nine Realms and would be the climax of Ragnarok. What we got was great. but I strongly feel like their final fight was underwhelming and it could've been more. I get the game was trying to show Thor is more than what the lore of the Norse saga and Ragnarok as a whole is showing us, but Kratos and Thor's final fight SHOULD HAVE been more.

Killing off Thor and Odin too soon. To me it's unsatisfying that Odin and Thor are killed off so soon. Thor has this great character arc and Odin was built up as this master manipulator and schemer and they die in the second game in this trilogy. Imagine how unsatisfying it would be if Luke Skywalker killed Darth Vader in Empire Strikes Back and the Rebels killed the Emperor in the second act of the trilogy. Yeah that would've been so disappointing, wouldn't it? The story they told was great and I trust SMS. But it still feels like to me that they should have done a sort of cliffhanger ending. After Brok is killed, Kratos follows Odin, Thor and Odin kills Kratos. Kratos is sent into the realm into the tear, basically the realm where the dead gods go who cannot come back. He'd see Magni and Modi and Baulder and finally Faye and Faye sends Kratos back. Then it ends with Kratos pledging to lead Ragnarok and burn Asgard. For more in depth to this idea, watch the video down below. Point is I strongly feel like it was a mistake to kill off Odin and Thor in the second act of the Norse trilogy.

Bonus 1:Atreus not even looking into the tear with the mask was just bad. All they had to do was Atreus sees into the void, one minute later he takes the mask off, breaks it and tosses it into the void

Bonus 2. Odin's design. Thor's design is perfect, but part of me feels like he should have had armor

Compared to the stories Mimir told, I imagined Odin looking something like this down below. The story for Odin is great, but imo the final fight should have been more. Like, King of the Aesir should have been more. The contrast between him and Zeus is he is the master manipulator, but Odin in Norse Mythology is the strongest of the gods and this game didn't show it. He had powerful magic to display but it didn't feel like this grand final boss of the Norse saga, like Thor it could have been more.

Bonus 3. The Ragnarok itself is disappointing. Ragnarok was so built up to, but it honestly felt like the mission to actually get Surtr on-side was longer than the mission for Ragnarok. We saw nothing of the actual battle, Fenrir wasn’t there, and we didn’t even see the Army of the Dead! We could've gotten the Elves, army of the dead, the Dwarves lead by Sindri & Durlin, Vanir and even an army of Vikings/Raiders to represent Midgard. But we didn't. Plus in myth, Ragnarok was largely a battle between the Gods and the Jotnar - and yet the latter weren’t even present. I was fully expecting after heading to Muspel that Atreus would tell Kratos about the secret giants with Angrboda; that would have been an element of surprise that Odin didn’t know about! I’d been hoping to fight Thor on the back of Jormungandr or something, and for Fenrir to be involved in fighting Odin. So yeah. The Ragnarok in the game called God Of War:Ragnarok is disappointing.

[lahija-del-molinero]

The Voluptuousness (pleasure), as a naked woman, crowned with roses, she holds a cup where a snake drink a delicious nectar. From “Mythol

French School

[talonabraxas]

Open Your Eyes, Look Up to the Skies and See

On September 6th, 2023 Mercury will make his inferior conjunction with the Sun at 14 degrees Virgo. This transit is otherwise known as Cazimi, translating to “In the Heart of the Sun.” The image given here is one of a messenger entering the throne room of a great monarch.

The Cazimi is a great seed moment. In this cosmic temple beyond the limits of space and time, you may commune with the divine and bear witness to a greater plan for your destiny.

The Cazimi takes place in the second decan of Virgo, which the Picatrix describes as a face of “of desires, and of wealth, of tribute;” while Agrippa describes it as signifying “gain, scraping together of wealth and covetousness.”

Images attributed to this decan commonly depict men in multiple layers of dress, from coarse material to fine garment. Medieval scholar Ibn Ezra depicts a man in three garments, “…one of leather, the second of silk and the third is a red mantle”—while the Picatrix depicts a man “dressed in leather, and over his garment of leather is another garment of iron.”

In his tome 36 Faces, astrologer Austin Coppock reads this symbolism as the spirit enclosing itself “in a dense body here in order to gain control over gross layers of the physical plane and to oversee its process with a keen eye.”

In other words, the second decan of Virgo depicts the distillation of spirit into matter. The Emerald Tablet describes distillation as: “It rises from Earth to Heaven and descends again to Earth, thereby combining within Itself the powers of both the Above and the Below.”

The Great Work of alchemy means making fixed the volatile—or bringing spirit (volatile) into matter (fixed). The quest for the Philosopher’s Stone—that evasive, enigmatic universal panacea that perfects anything it touches—is the long and enduring process of distilling spirit in matter.

With every rise “from Earth to Heaven” and descent back to Earth, the Stone combines “within Itself” the powers of spirit (Above) and matter (Below).

And so the symbolism of the man clad in garments of leather and silk reveals itself to be the combining of “the powers of both the Above and the Below”—leather representing the dense matter of Earth and silk the fine spirit of Heaven.

The second decan of Virgo is attributed to the Nine of Disks in the Minor Arcana of the Tarot. In The Book of Thoth, Aleister Crowley calls this card “Gain” and writes:

“The disks are arranged as an equilateral triangle… This signifies the multiplication of the original established Word—by the establishment of ‘good luck and good management.’”

The “original established Word” can be found in the first chapter of the Gospel of John, which opens with:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

But it’s also found in the Corpus Hermeticum, or the holy books of Hermeticism that gave rise to the discipline of alchemy. Its author, the mythic father of alchemy Hermes Trismegistus, describes his vision of creation:

“Out of the light came forth the Holy Word which entered into the watery substance, and pure fire leapt from the watery substance and rose up; the fire was insubstantial, piercing and active.”

This ‘Holy Word’ is the logos, a Greek word meaning ‘word,’ ‘speech,’ ‘reason,’ or ‘discourse.’ It means the divine word of creation or a discourse with the divine mind of the Creator. The Pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus defined the logos as an “ever-living fire” whose incessant transformations are at the heart of the cycle of life and death.

So at Mercury’s inferior conjunction in the second decan of Virgo, you have the opportunity to open your eyes, look up to the skies and see the divine spark in all of creation—to hear the inward thought and outward speech of the divine whose spirit shines within material existence.

To aid in this undertaking, it’s advised that you embark upon a directed mythological study and magical practice. As Caton writes, “To keep the passages between worlds open, and our basic self and non-rational worlds integrated, we should dedicate at least one of these three periods each year to taking a conscious descent into the worlds of magic and myth.”

[mythologyandancienthistory]

Legends of God Enki: God of Wisdom and Master of Life in Sumerian Mythol...

[blessphemy]

There is something metaphorically interesting about the romantization/mytholization of carnivores, esp apex predators, vs the mundane shunning of parasites