Magic and Knowledge

Tiktok is probably one of THE WORST places to learn about REAL hellenic polytheism because it is rampant with misinformation and most creators are only interested in views and parroting misinformation THEY heard. Yes there are some great and informative creators on there to learn about the hellenic gods but they are far and few in-between.

INSTEAD if you're new to the religion and have no clue where to start researching/learning, here are a few phenomenal creators on here with wonderful and informative posts!

@wisdom-devotee has an amazing guide for starting out in hellenic polytheism

@seasaltdevotion also recently made a fantastic post on resources for starting out

@crazycatsiren has a SUPER long list of resources and research material

@khaire-traveler has possibly the greatest list on subtle deity worship for just about every god

Deserts offer a lot of good resources for witchcraft! It does depend on what kind of desert your friend lives in. I live in a high desert at the moment - extremely hot dry summers where nothing grows and extremely cold winters. But all sorts of deserts offer many resources. A few suggestions for them to look into:

Sun/Solar witchcraft - most deserts offer intense amounts of sunlight and sunny days - this is a wonderful resource for a witch who needs sunlight in their magic

Moon/Lunar witchcraft - clear skies at night means clear moon and often little light pollution depending on where your friend is located - again a wonderful resource!

Sand - sand is used in all sorts of spells and magic, i have a whole post on the subject here

Dirt/Soil - wonderful for strength, grounding and earth related magic, if their desert isn't sandy I am sure it is full of dirt!

Clay - this is a regional thing but if they have natural clay deposits then they can make charms, bowls, trinkets and other items for spell with them! (and be the envy of many of us)

Desert Plants: they will have to research what plants are local to them, what are invasive, what are protected etc but even deserts offer plants. if Cactus are around research before they touch them (some are protected!) but their thorns can be used in cursing and hexing. If there are types of brush and brambles these can be used for everything from wind calling and besom making to cursing as well.

Fire Magic: deserts are often most aligned with earth magic however the intense heat and aridness of most deserts make them ideal for harnessing the energy of fire - please practice fire safety if your friend uses physical fire but a deserts heat can be used to 'represent' fire and flames in its place

Rocks: deserts often have rocks or natural salt deposits see what is in their area and what they can be made out of. even basalt and limestone are wonderful resources for magic

Desert Animals: research what animals live in their area, use the correspondences of these animals for energy work - coyotes for cleverness, snakes for flexibility and change etc etc

"Persephone went willingly! Just check the oldest myth." - one too many a person on tiktok this morning.

Alright, I will. I'll use the Homeric Hymn to Demeter (7th century BCE) for you.

"[..] but broad-pathed Earth gaped wide

On the Nysion plain where the lord, the Receiver of many, rushed forth

With his deathless horses, Kronos' son who has many a name.

He seized her against her will, and aboard his golden car

Carried her off, lamenting; she uttered a piercing scream"

(line 16-20)

"When the maiden shrieked in appeal to her father"

(line 27)

"While the goddess [Persephone] viewed earth and starry sky, and the strong-flowing sea

Teeming with fish, and the rays of the Sun, she still hoped to behold

Her dear mother again, and the tribes of gods eternal in race;

So long did hope soothe her mighty mind despite her grief."

(line 33-36)

"Sun, [Helios], as a god for a goddess [Demeter] show your regard for me,

If ever by word or deed your heart and spirit I pleased.

The daughter whom I bore, my sweet offshoot of glorious form,

I heard through the murmuring air giving vent to an anguished cry

As though overpowered by force, yet caught no glimpse with my eyes.

[...]

Who took her without my consent against her will by force

And vanished -"

(line 64-72)

"And the lord in his [Hades'] halls he [Hermes] discovered seated upon a couch,

And he had his revered spouse by him, though much against her will,

Since she longed for Demeter, her mother -"

(line 43-45)

"She [Persephone] quickly leaped up in delight, but secretly, glancing round,

He [Hades] gave her to eat a pomegranate's honey-sweet seed, so that there

By revered Demeter the dark-robed she would not for ever stay."

(line 73-75)

"I [Persephone] at once leaped up in delight, but Hades secretly put

A food as sweet as honey, a pomegranate's seed, in my hand

And using violence forced me to taste it against my will"

(line 412-412)

@bug-b0i I hope it's okay to answer your question like this, as I've seen the sentiment more often and it's really important to me.

This post was made as an (irritated) reaction to the 99th romantasy being promoted on tiktok pretending that the story of Persephone going willingly with Hades (which originated in the 70s) is secretly thousands of years old. They claimed to have knowledge of an ancient myth that does not exist.

However, the myths are not the gods. Hades was worshipped - conjunct with Persephone and Demeter. It was rare to find one without the others.

The confusion arises from cults where Persephone and Hades are seen as gods of marriage (such at Locri) that people then confuse with mythology. They're not the same thing. You can interpret the mythology as an allegory of the seasons, of death/marriage of young girls, of the harvest - but there is nothing wrong with worshipping Hades. I love him. He's one of the oldest gods at my altar, alongside his wife, and he's brought me nothing but comfort.

For the music in our hearts,

the sun on our skin

greek mythology: euterpe

In his book “Description of Greece”, the people of Elis stood out to Pausanias because:

1. They worshipped Hades under his real name, Hades’ name was feared and it was far more common to use alternatives such as Pluto, Klymenos (The renowned) and Chthonic Zeus (Zeus of the underworld) to refer to him

2. They worshipped him as the king of the dead, this in contrast to most cults devoted to Hades who worshipped his agricultural aspects and grouped him with Demeter, Kore or both

3. His temple was located in the city, most temples for agriculture deities were located outside the agora- This further reinforces that they were worshipping his chthonic aspect and not his agricultural one

Left: The temple of Hades in Elis as depicted in Assassins’s Creed. Right: The modern ruins of Elis

I want to talk about the myth that the people of Elis used to explain their devotion to Hades. It goes like this: Heracles wanted to attacked Elis and was allied with Athena, Hades exits the underworld, allies himself with Poseidon and Hera, and leads an army to protect Elis. In battle, Heracles strikes him with an arrow and Hades has to go to Olympus to be healed by Apollo. Heracles wins the battle and while the Eleans were rebuilding their city they also constructed a temple for Hades.

It is remarkable how casual the Eleans are with Hades, they call him ‘their friend’ and use his name instead of the more formal options. They also named a mountain after Hades’ former lover, Minthe and had a river called Acheron after one of the rivers in the underworld.

I find this myth so appealing because it’s rare to see a god putting themselves on the frontlines to protect mortals. Hades has nothing to gain from defending Elis, but he does it anyway because they’re his followers. This myth represents Hades not only as a protector of the agora but as a friend of humanity- and the ending where he fails, gets injured and asks for help just makes him so much more like us

Sources: “Worshipping Hades: Myth and Cult in Elis and Triphylia” by Diana Burton, Stockholm University Library

https://www.theoi.com/Cult/HaidesCult.html

Basically they claim to be godspoused to every single Hellenic deity as well as Loki (Yeah, shocking, I know).

And just before this post they started complaining that other godspouses made them jealous... And then it went to all devotees making them jealous. So they attempted to hex every single Hades devotee. Filmed it and put it on tiktok. It got reported and taken down, resulting in the above tantrum.

I'm not sure whether they're a troll, satire, or just in need of some help. They have yet to break character so it's anyone's guess.

Hellenic cheat sheets

Osiris is the Egyptian Ruler of the Dead. Blend acacia and frankincense together, and burn this incense to reach someone in his realm.

Once upon a time, the first magic spell one encountered, immediately after birth, was an enchanted cleansing bath. One’s final Earthly magical activity (at least in this body) was similarly a magical bath. Just as childbirth rituals frequently incorporate cleansing spells (specifically, cleansing baths), so last rites usually incorporated a magical/spiritual cleansing bath. The body is bathed, typically with spiritually cleansing, protective materials. Incense may also be burnt to cleanse and comfort.

small prayer to Demeter and the Horai, for the Adeia

What are Baneful Protections?

Baneful protections can be considered both a form of baneful magic and a form of protection magic. When beginning baneful work, this is usually what I recommend starting with. Baneful protections are protection spells that produce some sort of consequence when energy hits it. This can be done without the use of physical taglocks (like names or dates of birth) because energy is able to act like a taglock. For example, some of the baneful protections I have set up will reflect any energy that hits it back to its source while others trap that energy instead (so it can used later on).

It is very important that even though you are protecting yourself, you aren't accidentally tethering the energy to you. In my first baneful protection, I used my saliva to tether the protection to me but instead I tethered all the negative energy the spell had trapped to me and had a horrible case of bad luck for weeks before I realized what I had done. As a rule of thumb i personally don’t include any personal taglocks in baneful protections and always make sure to include a petition that details my exact intent for the spell.

When to use Baneful Protections:

Baneful protections can be used instead of or in conjunction with other forms of protection (see my blog posts for more information on alternative forms of protection magic). I personally didn't have any baneful protections before I was hexed (for the first time) and now I have some just as a precautionary measure. Baneful protections are most beneficial (in my opinion) if you are surrounded by a lot of negative energy or work in an environment that is mentally draining. These protections can help combat the toll that it takes and prevent much of that energy from staying with you for an extended period of time.

It is really up to you whether or not you choose to incorporate baneful protections into your practice. It is worth it to note that this spell work is considered baneful magic, so those who believe in "doing no harm" may choose to forgo this and stick to regular protections instead. Whatever you choose, be sure to do your own research before attempting any new forms of spell work.

Return-to-Sender Spells:

Mirrors- mirrors have the ability to reflect an image so they are also able to reflect energy. Putting up a mirror on your altar or incorporating a piece of a mirror into a spell is very effective at returning energy to its source.

Burning the bottom of a candle- this is a common one and it is also my preferred method at returning energy. The way I do it is by burning the top of the candle like normal and visualizing the energy that you wish to return. Once the candle is flat, I will flip it upside down and light the other end of the wick, symbolizing the return of that energy to its source. This can be done many different ways so check out what other practitioners do to come up with your own method.

Petitions- petitioning is a really great tool that I utilize in most of my spell work because it is an effective way at manifesting a specific intent. It helps if you know the name of the person who sent you the energy for this method but it is not necessary. As long as you have a clear intention and some return-to-sender oil you can make an effective spell.

Running water or rivers- running water has been viewed as being able to carry energy from place to place so it is possible to use it to return energy to its source. In the shower, you can imagine the energy running off of you, down the drain and back to the person who sent it. Another method is throwing your petition into a river and having the river carry it back to its source. (This method also works with a toilet if you are feeling especially feisty!)