a hermetic nymph ᜋᜇ᜔ᜐ᜔

(a compendium in working)

Absinthe: Aids in conjuring and communicating with the dead if burnt with sandalwood as an incense.

African Ginger: Used by occultists; it is said to be pleasing to all spirits one wishes to conjure when sprinkled in the 4 corners of a room.

Ague Weed: Causes ones enemies to become extremely confused.

Aloes: Traditionally used to invoke demons. Soak aloes in a bottle of Black Cat Oil for 9 days, on the 10th night: anoint the forehead and altar. The demon should appear to do one’s bidding.

Anise Seed: Used to increase power in all psychic workings.

Asafoetida: Used for casting hexes on a person. Sometimes referred to as the Devil’s Incense, Asafoetida is burned to force someone to leave you alone.

Balmony: A plant in the Figwort family that is ground and used for hexing.

Belladonna: Used to facilitate divination, visions and moving between realms. A main ingredient of Flying Ointment. Being of the Underworld, Belladonna is sacred to the Crone; it may be used to consecrate tools used for contacting the dead, particularly those made of lead or onyx.

I’ve noticed that there aren’t many posts concerning epithets for Hades, and certainly no comprehensive ones, so I thought I’d make one. This is Hellenism focused, so all will be applied to Hades, even though the Latin ones would traditionally be for Pluto. Latin epithets are marked as (L). I translated some of these into more concise titles that convey their implications, and notes are made as necessary. Sources are at the bottom but are not linked so that this will still show in tags. I hope this helps everyone!

Related to his role as ruler of the underworld:

Hades Chthonius - Hades of the Underworld

Hades Polyxenos/Polydegmon/Polysêmantôr Aidonius - Hades, Ruler/Host of Many

Hades Pasiánax - Hades, the Universal King

Hades Adesius - Hades of the Grave

Hades Zefs Khthonios - Hades, Zeus of the Underworld

Hades Larthy Tytiral (Etrurian) - Hades, Sovereign of Tartarus

Hades Ánax - Hades, the King

Hades Polydegmenos - Hades, He Who Welcomes All

Summanus/Manus/Mantus (L) - Hades, Prince of the Dead

Niger Deus (L) - Hades, the Black God || Hades of the Infernal Regions

“Zeus of the Departed”

“The Other Zeus”

Related to his roles concerning death:

Hades Nekrodegmôn - Hades, Receiver of the Dead

Hades Agesilaos - Hades, Who Calls Man To The Underworld

Hades Nekrôn Sôtêr - Hades, Saviour of the Dead

Hades Hesperos Theos - Hades, God of Death and Darkness (for those who believe he and Thanatos are the same deity)

Related to his role as controller of the earth and its resources:

Hades Ploutos - Hades of Wealth

Hades Khamaizilos Dios - Hades of the Earth (“where he likes to be” is implied)

Hades Theôn Khthonios - Hades, the Terrestrial God

Tellumo (L) - Hades, Who Provides to the Creative (denotes creative power of the earth’s resources)

Tellus (L) - Hades, Who Provides for the Productive (denotes productive power of the earth’s resources)

Altor (L) - Hades, Who Nourishes

Other:

Hades Hagesilaos - Hades, Leader of the People

Hades Eubuleus - Hades of Good Counsel || Hades, the Consoler (supposedly references death as the end of sorrows)

Hades Adámastos - Hades, the Unconquerable

Hades Aidis - Hades, the Unseen

Hades Aïdonefs/Aidoneus - Hades, the Singer || Hades of Nightingales || Hades of Sleep || Hades of Light || Hades of Poets || Hades of a Girl

Hades Amenthes (Egyptian) - Hades, Who Gives and Receives

Hades Axiocersus - Hades the Shorn (he was depicted without hair where this was used)

Hades Clymenus - Hades, the Renowned

Hades Euclius/Eucles - Hades of Good Report/the Famous/of Good Fame

Hades Agetes/Hegates - Hades, the Conductor

Hades Moiragetes - Hades, Guide of the Fates

Hades Orkos/Orcus - Hades of Oaths, Hades, the Avenger of the Perjured

Hades Opheius - Hades, the Blind || Hades of Prophecy (as the blind augers of Messenia we’re dedicated to him)

Euchaites - The Beautiful-haired One

Rusor (L) - Hades, to Whom All Things Return

Salutaris Divus (L) - Hades, Restorer of the Dead

Saturnius (L) - Hades, Son of Kronos

Uragus (L) - Hades of Fire

Urgus (L) - Hades, Who Impels

Operatus (L) - Hades, the Concealed

Februus (L) - Hades, To Whom Purification and Sacrifice Is Offered

Hades, the Good and Prudent (not historical, but reflects how he was seen)

Negative (but everything can be twisted sometimes):

Hades Agesander - Hades, Who Carries All Away (this references the Persephone myth; included because it exists but I’m not sure you’d want to use it)

Hades Clotonius - Hades, the Infernal

Hades Stygius - Hades the Hateful

Feralis Deus (L) - Hades, the Cruel God

Hades Agelastus - Hades of Melancholy Countenance

“Hades, the Tearless”

“Hades, the Implacable and Adamant”

Given by Poets:

The Grisly God (Homer)

Ruthless King (Homer)

Infernal [Zeus] (Vergil, he said Jove)

Stygian [Zeus] (Vergil, same as above)

Sources:

Hellenic Gods (dot Org)

Brown, Robert (1844). “The Religion of Zoroaster Considered In Connection With Archaic Monotheism” (also known as Wikipedia citation)

She doesn’t take your bullshit. If you’re procrastinating, or putting off doing something important because you just don’t wanna, Hera will make sure you do it. 

She’s very motherly. She likes to fuss over her worshippers, and make sure that they’re safe, warm, comfortable, etc. Today, I had a ritual bath for her, and while I was meditating I kept getting the urge to get out. Turns out she was worried that I was going to overheat in the very warm bath, which was so lovely of her.

She’s incredibly protective of her devotees. If you’re dedicated to Hera, she will fight for you, tooth and nail. When I had an issue recently with a spirit, her and Set (another deity I worship) stopped the spirit immediately. She’s extremely loyal, but only if you pay her the respect she deserves (which heads up, is a hell of a lot. She’s the Queen of the Gods, and she knows how she should be treated). 

She’s extremely powerful. Hera walked right through the wards I had put up around my astral house. She may be written off as not very powerful, but she is Queen. Of. The. Gods. She has power and she knows how to use it. 

She’s nothing like the myths. Hera is not angry, or vengeful. She delivers the due justice that people deserve. If you disrespect her, you will feel her wrath. But if you’re kind, and respectful, and treat her well, you’ll have no problem. 

She’ll want you to get married. Boy, I should have seen this one coming. But Hera wants you to get married and start a family.

If she doesn’t like your partner, that could be an issue. Luckily, Hera likes my current partner. However if Hera doesn’t like your current partner if you have one, you may need to reconsider working with her, or look at your relationship. She wants what’s best for you, but you might not always agree on what that is. 

Her and Zeus are close. In fact, when I work with Hera, I can often feel Zeus along for the ride as well. 

Offerings offerings offerings! As I’ve said, Hera knows what she deserves, and she’s reminded of this at times when I’ve forgotten to give her adequate offerings. One thing I’ve found is that she’s a big fan of devotional acts as opposed to offerings, which is when you do an activity and dedicate to a god or goddess. For example, yesterday I played a board game with my family, for Hera, and today I had a ritual bath for her. As someone who is broke and a closeted witch, I can’t really give loads of offerings, but devotional acts seem to make her just as happy.

Dedicate some time to her. Leading on from my first point, spend some time with Hera for the gods’ sake. She wants to know you’re devoted to worshipping her. She’s not the type of goddess you can just pray to once and expect her to be raining down blessings on you left right and center.

The myth with Hephaestus paints an ugly picture, but as a person with disabilities, Hera has been nothing but understanding. I have severe mental health issues, including severe PTSD and psychosis, and this can make my worship difficult when there are days I can barely feed myself. However Hera has been lovely and so comforting during rough times, coming to me in dreams and when I’m meditating, and even just feeling her presence now feels me with a warmth that comes with motherly love. In short, Hera is a wonderful goddess, and I highly recommend reaching out to her if you have a calling to!

Quick tips for honoring The Morrigan and Lilith in your daily life.

This was a requested deep dive on Hermes, you can request a deep dive on my ko-fi for $5!

Unfortunately not much is known historically about Cernunnos. Scholars seem certain, however, that he was an ancient Gaulish deity.

Let’s get to know this elusive deity!

Parents and Siblings

No attested parents or siblings

Lovers or Partners

No attested partners

Children

No attested children

Epithets

As far as we know, no ancient or historical epithets of Cernunnos have made it through the passage of time. That said, we have some epithets given to him from more modern times.

Lord of Beasts (Anne Ross)

Patron of Prosperity (Anne Ross)

Lord of Animals (Proinsias MacCana)

Lord of Living Beings (David Rankin)

Lord of Beasts and Fecundity (Miranda Green)

The Horned God*

More potential epithets listed in Jess South’s text referenced below.

Keeper of riches

God under the earth

Antlered serpent, Horned serpent

Clearer of paths

Sitter-at-the-crossroads

Sitter-between

Liminal one

God undying

Notes

*In depictions of Cernunnos, his head is notably adorbed with antlers, not horns. This epithet is also the name of the two primary deities of traditional Wicca. It is also shared among many other deities who are depicted with horns.

The name Cernunnos has appeared only once throughout history—on the Pillar of the Boatmen.

Though he is sometimes known as a god of animals or beast, Ceisiwr Serith (or David Fickett-Wilbar) makes the case that although he is depicted on the Gundestrup Cauldron surrounded by animals, only two are looking at Cernunnos, the stag and the dog. Plus there are other deities present on the cauldron.

Cernunnos’ depiction as a “Lord of the Wild” likely comes from his imagery, a man often sitting cross legged and with antlers on his head. This may denote a more spiritual, natural theme for Cernunnos. However, he is not depicted with vegetation or plants

Often depicted wearing a torc, Cernunnos is sometimes considered a god of wealth or fortune. Torcs were known to be a sign of wealth.

He is also seen as a cthonic deity or a psychopomp. Jo Forest makes the case that due to his imagery with snakes—creatures often associated with the underworld—and his relation to the ram due to the ram's horn. Rams were often sacrifices in ancient Indo-European practices.

Cernunnos is likely not a fertility god. This idea may come from his conflation with the Wiccan Horned God, as mentioned earlier.

Cernunnos has been considered to be related to masculinity, but this is also likely due to the conflation with Wicca’s Horned God.

Depictions of Cernunnos with domesticated and prey animals may suggest him being a god of hunting or hunters.

Jess South makes the case further for Cernunnos’ associations with liminality. Between man and animal; hunter and hunted; life and death.

This also points to him possibly being a god of balance or dualities. See Jess South’s “Liminality and Dualities, or “Paired Opposites”’ portion in the text referenced below for more.

Modern Deity Work

Not much is known about Cernunnos or how he was worshipped in the past, but any of the more historically-attested correspondences will have an explanation with them!

Correspondences

Rocks/Stone/Crystals

Gold, silver, copper, iron, and bronze (torcs were made of these metals)

Herbs/Plants

Ferns

Oak

Mushrooms

Mosses

The following plants are associated with liminality, trancework, or hedge-crossing which is why I have included them. Do not consume a plant that you’re unfamiliar with, and be careful touching them. Keep them out of reach of children and pets.

Foxglove

Mugwort

Nightshades

Animals

Stag (depicted looking at him on the Gundestrup cauldron and the silver bowl from Lyons, also he is often depicted with antlers like a stag)

Dog (depicted looking at him on the Gundestrup cauldron and the silver bowl from Lyons)

Ram-horned snake (often depicted holding a snake)

Symbols

Torc (often depicted wearing and holding torcs)

Snake

Antlers

Offerings

Torcs

Imagery of the animals associated with him

Wine

Beer

Antlers

Food

Bones

Feathers

Coins

Acts of Devotion

Explore liminality--what this means is up to you!

Take time to appreciate the balance between man and nature, see how you can participate.

Go hunting--this isn't required but if you're up for it, go for it! Just make sure to do so in an ethical way.

Meditate in the forest, or forest bathe, or just hang out in a woodsy /natural area

Quite frankly, since he is a god heavily associated with liminality, it may be a good idea to test the waters with gender expression!

Read up on him, the following section has a lot of really interesting takes and history on Cernunnos!

Get into cthonic magic

Consider learning more about hedge witchery

References and Further Reading

Cernunnos; An In-Depth Look by Jo Forest

Cernunnos: Origin and Transformation of a Celtic Divinity

Cernunnos: Looking a Different Way by David Fickett-Wilbar

Not Your Mother’s Horned God: The Cernunnos Primer by Jess South (“thebloodybones”)

Britannica

Wikipedia

Mythopedia

Peony: Asclepius, Aion, Apollo, Leto, Aphrodite

Crocus: Hermes, Brigid, Tyche, Zeus, Persephone, Hekate, Mercury, Aurora, Eos, Artemis

Asphodel: Hades, Persephone, Hekate

Columbine: Aphrodite, Venus, Freyja, Baldr

Flowering Quince: Aphrodite, Venus

Hellebore: Dionysus, Helle, Saturn, Loki, Hekate

Henbane: Hekate, Apollo, Artemis, Saturn

Pansy: Thoth, Hermes, Zeus, Venus, Aphrodite, Persephone

Dandelion: Brigid, Aphrodite, Hecate, Loki, Belenus, Hermes, Helios, Artio

Grape Hyacinth: Dionysus, Hyacinthus

Snowdrops: Brigid, Persephone, Freyja, Aphrodite, Nanna

Forget-me-not: Zeus, Freyja, Aphrodite (named „mouse ear” by her), Adonis

Magnolia: Artemis, Selene, Aphrodite, Kala

Bluebell: Selene, Hermes, Hekate

Lily of the Valley: Apollo, Asculapius, Maia, Mercury, Ostara, Skadi, Baldrr, Artemis

Primrose: Bertha, Brigid, Freyja

Hyacinth: Apollo, Zephyrus, Tyche, Hyacinthus, Quetzalcoatl, Yemaya, Dionysus

Anemone: Aphrodite, Adonis, Blodeuwedd, Artemis, Loki

Lilac: Pan, Venus, Sigyn, Dionysus

Chamomile: Tyche, Hermes, Ra, Helios, Mercury, Hestia, Oshun, Baldr, Hephaestus

Iris: Persephone, Iris, Hera, Juno, Horus, Isis

Easter Lily: Áine, Ostara

Azalea: Persephone, Artemis, Aphrodite

Tulip: Flora, Dionysus, Anahita, Eros, Lilith, Nyx

Gardenia Morpheus, Athena, Artemis, Selene

Lily: Persephone, Morrigan, Hera, Cybele, Artemis, Lilith, Thanatos

Daffodil/Narcissus: Apollo, Narcissus, Persephone, Tyche, Hades, Thanatos

Foxglove: Freyja, Flora, Juno, Dionysus, Áine, Cernunnos, Saturn

Jasmine: Lakshmi, Aphrodite, Vishnu, Selene, Morpheus, Tyche, Hermes, Hel

Wisteria: Dionysus, Hermes, Kanayago, Mercury

Larkspur (Delphinium): Apollo, Persephone, Zephyrus, Freyja, Aphrodite, Poseidon

Phlox: Eros, Demeter, Hestia, Dionysus

Poppy: Thanatos, Demeter, Ceres, Morpheus, Ares, Dionysus

Violet: Ares, Aphrodite, Io, Orpheus, Venus, Attis, Persephone, Priapus, Polukleitos , Dionysus

Carnation: Artemis, Diana, Zeus, Odin

Daisy: Brigid, Aphrodite, Freyja, Venus, Selene, Cernunnos, Hermes, Ostara

⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠄⠄⠂⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁

⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠄⠄⠂⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁

i'm open to making these under request, just send me an ask with the deity you'd like a box for!! please be nice, too.

gods in this post: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Hestia, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Athena, Hermes & Dionysus.

I’ve heard of Pagans being contacted by their gods via certain Tarot Cards, so I wanted to do a deep dive and outline which Cards are associated with which Gods. Hopefully this can help you tell which God is reaching out to you :)

Major Arcana

The Fool: Pan, Zeus, Dionysus, Loki, Hermes

The Magician: Hermes, Thoth, Odin,

The High Priestess: Hekate, Selene, Isis, Artemis, Freya, Ganesha, Tsukiyomi

The Empress: Aphrodite, Hera, Freya, Frigg, Isis, Hathor, Durga, Astarte, Demeter, Ishtar The Emperor: Zeus, Lugh, Odin, Horus, Ares, Osiris, Ra

The Hierophant: Osiris, Athena, Thoth, Seshat, Ogma, Horus, Apollo, Hermes, Odin, Brigid, Saraswati, Ganesha

The Lovers: Aengus Og, Aphrodite, Frigg, Rhea, Gaia, Demeter, Inanna, Ishtar, Parvati, Hathor, Isis, Brigid, Freya, Osiris, Cernunnos, Freyr, Dionysus, Pan The Chariot: Thor, The Morrigan, Nike, Athena, Astarte, Inanna, Ishtar, Anat, Freya, Bast, Durga, Odin, Horus, Sobek, Ares, Apollo, Set, Bellona

Justice: Lugh, Aengus Og, The Morrigan, Nemesis, Inanna, Themis, Ma’at, Nike, Athena, Zeus, Forseti

Strength: Thor, Hestia, Athena, Sekhmet, Bast, Macha, Brigid, Danu, Isis, The Virgin Mary, Bast, Sekhmet, The Dagda, Lugh

The Hermit: Odin, Isis, Hestia, Persephone, Hades, Hekate, Cerridwen, Brigid, The Muses, Saraswati, Hermes, Ogma, Odin

Wheel of Fortune: Zeus, Hathor, Isis, The Dagda, The Moirai, Maat, Arianhrod

The Hanged Man: Odin, Artemis, Osiris, Persephone, Inanna, Ishtar, Buddha, Jesus

Death: Persephone, Inanna, Ereshkigal, Isis, Nephtys, Izanami, Hel, Freya, Hades, Seth, Anubis, Osiris, Manannan Mac Lir, Odin, Thanatos, The Morrigan, Morana

Temperance: Artemis, Isis, Nepthys, Iris, Ma’at, Hebe, Apollo, Vishnu

The Devil: Dionysus, Pan, Set, Lilith, The Morrigan, Banshees, Baba Yaga, Lucifer, Baphomet, Satan, Veles, The Horned God

The Tower: Kali, Ares, Pele, Sekhmet, Hel, The Morrigan, Sedna, Anat, Ceres, Chernobog, Shiva

The Star: Aphrodite, Thoth, Hermes, Ishtar, Astrea, Isis, Arianhrod, The Virgin Mary, Inanna, Nuit, Isis, Nodens, Zorya

The Moon: Artemis, Hekate, Rhiannon, Cerridwen, Selene, Isis, Phoebe, Mani, Thoth, Arianhrod, Tsukiyomi, Chang-e

The Sun: Lugh, Apollo, Kupala, Helios, Brigid, Sol, Artemis, Athena, Aine, Bast, Sekhmet, Freyr, Horus, Aten, Ra, Agni

Judgement: Persephone, Ma’at, Osiris, Hephaestus, Isis, Kuan Yin, Horus, Hades

The World: Aengus Og, Demeter, The Dagda, Isis, Gaia, Cernunnos, Green Man

The Suits

Suit of Swords: The Morrigan, Freya, Hades, Odin, Athena, Hel

Suit of Wands: Lugh, Hephaestus, Ares, Bellona, Pele, Aine, Brigid, Apollo

Suit of Pentacles: Gaia, Demeter, Macha, Freyr

Suit of Cups: Poseidon, Aphrodite, Isis, Boann, Hera, Hathor

Kings

King of Pentacles: The Horned God, Freyr, Pan, Cernunnos, The Dagda

King of Cups: Lugh, Poseidon, Manannan Mac Lir, Njord, Apollo

King of Swords: Odin, Tyr, Zeus, Hermes, Horus

King of Wands: Ares, The Dagda, Zeus, Apollo

Queens

Queen of Pentacles: Hekate, Gaia, Eostre, Aine, Artemis, Ceres, Demeter

Queen of Cups: Aphrodite, Venus, Hera

Queen of Swords: The Morrigan, Freya, Athena, Themis

Queen of Wands: Brigid, Hestia, Bellona, Aine

Knights

Knight of Pentacles: Athena, Athena, Macha, Persephone, Lugh, Artemis, Demeter, Ceres

Knight of Cups: Aphrodite, Boann, Isis, Hathor

Knight of Swords: Badb, The Morrigan, Athena, Hermes, Nemain

Knight of Wands: Apollo, Brigid, Bellona, Lugh

Pages

Page of Pentacles: Athena, Apollo, Lugh, Pan, The Muses, Hathor

Page of Cups: Aphrodite, Lada

Page of Swords: The Morrigan, Freya, Odin, Athena, Nike, Bellona

Learn About:

Literally anything. Dedicate your learning, school or otherwise to Her. 

Owls

Ancient Greece/the Ancient World

Battle strategies

Wars and how they were won

What led to wars being lost

Traditional epithets for Her/other gods

Her Roman counterpart, Minerva (and other goddesses she is associated with) 

The Art of War by Sun Tzu

Politics

Democracy in Ancient Greece

Armor and weapons, traditional or modern

Crafts

Sewing

Weaving

Embroidery

Cross stitch

Knitting

Crocheting

Pottery

Catch and release spiders in your home

Wisdom

Reading

Learn a new skill

Studying (for school or personal studies)

Thinking before taking action

Plan out your day/keep a planner

Play chess

Tutor someone/get tutoring for areas you need help in

Watch TEDtalks/listen to educational podcasts

Meditate and journal

Learn new vocab words

Make your notes pretty

Learn study techniques

Take appropriate study breaks

Do projects for Her 

Challenge yourself

Learn grounding techniques

Do your homework

Give up things that are unhealthy for your brain (like smoking cannabis, drinking, etc.)

Strategic War

Work out

Take a self-defense course

Learn basic first aid

Go to protests/advocate

Play strategy war games

Take care of your body 

              Offerings

Owl stuffed animals/art/figurines/other imagery

Owl pellets

Owl decoys for gardens

Olives

Work out clothes/gear

Fidget toys for when you’re working

Brain imagery

Spider imagery

Crafts you have made

Certificates/degrees/awards for achievements

Strategy games

Favorite books/books on mythos or Greece

Knitting/crocheting/crafting materials

Needles

Your glasses

Coffee/tea

Nice pens/pencils

Journals/notebooks

Voting stickers/cards

Spears/swords/daggers/helmets