LaVey In The House

Gita Lenz

Apollo unveils the Artemis Ephesus

This is the final part of this “series”, here are part I and II for those who have missed them. In this last post, we will be going through Zeus as a paternal figure and domestic deity.

Zeus is regarded as the head of the divine family. In myth, he also has many alliances attributed to him, which very often lead to the rise of aristocratic lineages. On a cultic point of view, Zeus came to be a god of familial bonds. The Dorians called him Zeus Patroos (Ancestor), while in Athens, we find the epithet of Zeus Phratrios (alongside Athena Phratria). The latter meaning “brotherhood” and refers to specific Athenian civil institution for young boys.

The domestic cults are more interesting than the official ones for this topic and are much more widespread. Because the domestic offerings to him were made in the outside yard of the house, Zeus got the epithet of Herkeios (of the Courtyard). The head of the household would perform sacrifices to Zeus on that outside altar, on the behalf of the household as a whole. We also see this epithet being mentioned by Homer and Herodotus to insist on the idea of parentage, lineage (as the guarantor of succession) and father-son relationships.

The relationships between Zeus and fatherhood is also noticeable through the many votive clay figures of “crouching, sitting or kneeling male figure, with outsize phallos, sometimes cradled in the crook of the left arm, sometimes supported by both arms, occasionally unsupported, one hand raised to the head” found in his sanctuary of Messapeai (near Sparta). It is a possibility that these offerings could have been left by men either seeking out help to conceive or as ex-voto once they became fathers.  

Other domestic aspects of his are Zeus Ktesios (of the Possessions) and Ephestios (at the Hearth). Zeus Ktesios is most often represented as a snake and is without a doubt the most intimate aspect of Zeus. The Athenian custom was that the head of the household prepare “ambrosia” in a jar, as follows: 

The jar would then be left in the storage area of the house and acted as both an abundance charm to increase the owner’s possessions and also likely as protection.

Time to end this with another quick modern overview: 

Zeus is an ultimate father figure. Whoever needs a dad, wants help with or wants to heal from father-related issues, wants to become a parent or is a parent need not be afraid to ask his help. 

Zeus is god of lineage. As such, anything that is family or ancestor related falls under his domain of action. He can guide with genealogy, family problems and ancestor work. 

Zeus is a domestic god. The modern worshipper can ask for his blessing concerning possessions, housing and money. 

A few notes and sources under the cut. 

Part 1: https://thegrapeandthefig.tumblr.com/post/190055950457/worshipping-zeus-part-i

This is the second part to this post, in which I focused on Zeus’ role as a weather and fate god. As indicated last time, in part II we will be going through Zeus’ civic and legal aspects. Those are obviously more relevant in historical context, but I think that as modern worshippers it is important to understand the intricacies of the deity before we reinterpret and adapt to our own times.

The Civic Zeus

I will repeat it again: the Ancient Greeks were not an united people and each city-state worshipped somewhat differently. In Zeus’ case, we can say that he was the central god for most city-states, with the exception of Athens (a discussion for another time). On a general matter, the Zeus of the city (Zeus Polieus) reigns over the civic, social and familial relationships. He is the upholder of civic authority. As such, we find epithets associated with the political and legal system of the Greek city-states, like Boulaios (of the Council) or Agoraios (of the Agora/”City center” in a political sense).

Interestingly, the Greeks have honoured Zeus Eleutherios (Liberator) and Zeus Soter (Savior) when they considered themselves to have been freed or saved from a regime they did not want or considered tyrannical. For example, a sanctuary was built to Zeus Eleutherios after the battle of Plataea in 479, during which the allied Greeks drove out the Persians. The cult of Zeus Soter was more geographically widespread, especially for occasions when disaster was averted or battles won. Even more broadly, Zeus Soter was also invoked as a saviour of individuals in times of trouble or in dangerous situations (eg. sailors and travellers on dangerous journeys would leave an offering as an ex-voto once they came back home).

Zeus of Justice and Diplomacy

Justice is a concept closely linked to civic order and it is not surprising to find Zeus in this position. A companion and daughter of his is Dike, Justice herself. Zeus has a role in ensuring the coexistence of people, whether it is inside a same society or between states/countries. With the epithet Zeus Philios (of Friendship), he guarantees all bonds of friendship, while Zeus Xenios (of Hospitality) enforces respect of the relationship between host and guest. Strangers, guests, beggars and suppliants were considered to be under the protection of Zeus and it was frown upon to bring them harm. There is a direct parallel here with the role of Zeus Soter. Under the law instituted by Solon in the VIth century, judges at Athens had to swear an oath of office to Zeus Hikesios (of Suppliants), Katharsios (of Purification) and Exakester (of Making Amends). Likewise, there was a Zeus Horkios (of Oaths) to ensure the sanctity of it all. The ones deemed arrogant, wicked, who neglected to give respect to strangers, beggars and outsiders or broke oaths put themselves at risk of serious divine punishment.

This is long enough so I will stop here. There will be a third part which will focus on his position as a father figure. Sources are under the cut. I want to conclude with a brief summary of what has been said above, but from a modern worship standpoint:

Zeus is a political god. It is appropriate to pray to him for political matters, especially if said matters revolve around the security of people, diplomacy, charity and hospitality. 

Zeus is a god of defense. Because he is much more linked to protection and righteousness, his military role focuses much more on defense than attack. 

Zeus is a god of protection. It is completely appropriate to pray to him for security, no matter what type of security it is that you need.

Part 1:https://thegrapeandthefig.tumblr.com/post/190055950457/worshipping-zeus-part-i

Why is Zeus the Supreme God, King of Heavens, Mankind and Gods?

Or my humble attempt at reminding Tumblr of Zeus’ legitimacy (jk)

Let’s focus on Zeus’ roles. His main attribute is the sky and the weather, especially rain. From a modern point of view, it almost sounds mundane but it is not. At all. You can’t grow food during a drought, rain is vital. Whatever falls from the sky (or not) has an impact for those who live underneath it. Zeus lives on the peak of a mountain because this is where the clouds naturally gather and we know that he was worshipped on mountain summits.  

Here are a few examples of epithets about his weather aspect:

nephelegereta “cloud gatherer”

kelainephes “black-clouded”

erigdoupos “very thundering”

terpikeraunos “rejoicing in lightning”

keraunos “lightning”

storpaos “of lightning”

keraunobolos “lightning thrower”

I’m not going to list them all, Homer used 26 epithets for Zeus’s link with thunder alone… But here’s where it gets interesting: In Ancient Greek thought that Zeus is also drought. This brings us to this conclusion: Zeus controls the weather on a given day, so changes in weather can have a significance and can fall under the category of diosemia “sign from Zeus”. Because our understanding of time is linked to the sky and the astronomical phenomena we observe, Zeus is seen as the one ruling over time. Aratus explain this idea in 3rd century BC: we watch the constellations, which Zeus has fixed in the sky as signs for humans.

This logic, which ties Zeus to the idea of day-to-day events, of fate and divine timing, is also what explains why the Ancient Greek considered him as the bringer of victory. More especially, he was the god who determined the point at which there would be a (fortunate) turn of events. The Greeks viewed the concept in the context of battle and called him Zeus Tropaios. Yes, the English word “trophy” comes from there.

To come back to my initial question, I will quote Ken Dowden: “There is no need to trace an evolution from a weather god to a supreme god – all that does is to work out the logical connections between the two, or worse to separate out the constituent elements of his supremacy.”

Part II will maybe be about the societal role of Zeus, his justicial aspects etc… 

Further reading:  Dowden, K., Zeus, Routledge, 2006 Larson J., Ancient Greek Cults: a guide, Routledge, 2007

Hubris/Being “hubristic”:

Hubris is arrogance, feeling superior to the Theoi. It is translated as “overconfidence” or “pride”. In some myths hubris was punished like in the myth of Arachne. 

Miasma/Being miasmic: 

Miasma is a difficult concept to define, as it depends on the way each one defines it. It´s similar as making a definition of “love” because each person will tell you different things. 

Miasma is translated as “pollution” and some of the Theoi find it really gross and maybe avoid it. I have to say that this is not the same as “sin” as this word is purely (I think, I don´t know too much about christianity, sorry) christian. It´s like when you were a kid and played in a really dirty place and then coming back home where your parents told you to take a bath before dinner. 

Miasma is the distraction from the Theoi and being mortal, and we need to cleanse ourselves before praying or giving Them offerings. 

This purification could be taking a bath and washing your teeth, cleaning the place where you are going to pray/give offerings/libations or it could be washing your face and hands before doing all that stuff. Take into consideration that some Deities don´t care too much about miasma and other care TOO MUCH about it and it all depends in the person too. 

For example, Hades doesn´t care about me being miasmic as He deals with human mortality 24/7 (maybe He´s used to it) but with other Deities like Apollo I have to clean myself because it looks like He avoids it. 

Sophia:

(One of my favorite concepts ^-^)

Sophia is the pursuit of knowledge, learning about things that we like. Staying curious about everything and trying to be more and more wise each day. Again, how to practise this concept depends on each person, for example, learning languages is a way of practising this, also questioning everything that happens in the world and trying to understand it.

Why is this important? Well apart from fulfilling a part of our life and achieving personal growth, I think it´s important to achieve Arete (I will explain this later)

Eusebia:

Eusebia is praying, giving offerings and pouring libations. It´s the relationship with the Gods and Goddesses.

Eusebia is being curious about a Deity and taking your time to research about that certain Deity.

Kharis:

Kharis is the relationship that the Theoi have with us. When you ask for something to the Theoi and then you give Them offerings in return, that´s kharis.

Xenia

Xenia is taking care of our hosts, it´s hospitality and having good manners with them and also being a good guest. This not only applies in your house or in other´s house, but also in a restaurant or in other place where there´s people. It´s known that the Theoi punished those who treat their host badly.

By the way, you don´t have to treat them well if they are a toxic person or someone who bullied you somehow. 

Also, you don´t have to practise this concept just to only please the Theoi, but to be a decent human being. 

Khernips

Khernips is lustral water that you use in formal rituals, and you just need a match, letting it extinguish in the water. Some people dedicate more time and add other things, but I personally use water and the match. (Please, be careful!!)

Libation

Libation is a liquid offering, can be water or wine or juice. Or you can pour water into a bowl as an offering. And, depending on who you ask, you can drink it or leave it there and respectfully clean the bowl. 

I don´t drink the libations, I simply pour water in a plant pot after a prayer as it is discrete. 

Arete