“Let us conclude. The elements of an Arcadian religious system manifest themselves at two levels, the pan-Arcadian level and that of local pantheons. Three deities are worshiped by all the Arcadians in common and these structure Arcadian religion: Pan and Zeus Lykaios, whom the coinage of Megalopolis took as symbols of the Arcadian League, are two. To them we must certainly add Despoina, endowed by her sanctuary and her monuments with an importance out of all proportion to that of the city of Lykosoura. These deities sometimes have an archaic and wild aspect (Zeus Lykaios), and sometimes they are directly linked to the animal world, like Pan or Despoina.
Otherwise, the Arcadian religious system is the sum of the local pantheons which had specific traits in common. One often finds here the same deities as elsewhere in Greece, but the epithets that are ostensibly the most banal sometimes cover a distinctively Arcadian treatment (Athena Poliatis, Apollo Agyieus, Poseidon Hippios). Other, more distinctive epithets preserve the memory of old local deities (Athena Alea, Demeter Erinys). Others again are to be related to the Arcadians’ principal preoccupations: agricultural and pastoral activities (and hence the weather and the mechanisms of fertility and fecundity); religious life (Polybius reminds us of the Arcadians’ reputation for piety, 4.20.1); and the political history of the region, which gave rise to some new creations (Megalai Theai, Zeus Philios)...
The Arcadian mythical universe offers the same impression: an affirmation of a strong religious identity contrasts with the commonplace nature of some themes… It flourishes in the myths of transformation into animals: Zeus transforms Lykaon into a wolf, Poseidon and Demeter change themselves into horses… Among the gods of the country, metamorphosis demonstrates a very strong bond and affinity with the animal world. There is no other part of Greece where the relationship of the divine with animals expresses itself so spontaneously in myth, not to mention cult image. However, the Arcadian religious system did not develop in a vacuum, and the goddesses of Eleusis, for example, found their place in the cities’ pantheons.
But the Despoina of Lykosoura, who holds Eleusinian objects in her hands, was worshiped in orgiastic rites with animal costumes. In this regard, she is particularly representative of the distinctive face of Arcadian religion.”
—Madeleine Jost, 2007, “The Religious System in Arkadia” in A Companion to Greek Religion
