#hekate devotion

Thomas Taylor, 1792

I call Einodian Hecate, lovely dame,

Of earthly, watery, and celestial frame,

Sepulchral, in a saffron veil array'd,

Pleased with dark ghosts that wander thro' the shade;

Persian, unconquerable huntress, hail!

The world's key-bearer, never doom'd to fail;

On the rough rock to wander thee delights,

Leader and nurse be present to our rites;

Propitious grant our just desires success,

Accept our homage, and the offering bless.

Apostolos N. Athanassakis, 1977

I call Hekate of the crossroads, wayside goddess, lovely one,

of earth, of sky, and of the sea, O saffron-robed one,

tomb-dwelling one, reveling in the souls of the dead,

daughter of Perses, lover of solitude, joying in deer,

nocturnal one, lady of dogs, unconquerable one,

beast-roarer, cloaked one, of irresistible purpose,

oxherd, key-bearer, mistress of the whole world,

leader, nymph, mountain-roamer, nurse of youths,

maiden, I pray to you, to my sacred rites

come ever with a gracious heart and joyful mind,

you who delight in the fragrance of offerings.

Santuariolunar, 2023

Lovely Hekate of the roads and crossroads I invoke;

In heaven, on earth, and in the sea, saffron-cloaked,

Tomb spirit, reveling in the souls of the dead,

Daughter of Perses, haunting lonely places, joying in deer,

Night-wandering, dog-loving, unconquerable queen,

Roaring beasts, wrapped darkly, of unbreakable will,

Keeper of herds, key-bearer, mistress of all the world,

Leader, nymph, mountain-wanderer, nurturer of youth,

Maiden, I call to you at my sacred rites,

Come ever with kindness in your heart and joy in your mind,

You who love the sweet breath of offerings.

© ᴀᴇᴛʜᴇʀ-ɴᴇʀᴇɨɖɛ. ᴀʟʟ ʀɪɢʜᴛֆ ʀᴇֆᴇʀᴠᴇᴅ.

ICYMI, I've presented two lectures on Hekate so far that are available for anyone to check out!

A Non-Chthonic Portrait of Hekate

Originally presented for Mt Nysa Mystery School's free lecture series.

This lecture explores the non-chthonic aspects of the fascinating goddess Hekate, with a look into her earlier cults and myths.

Hekate and the Restless Dead

Originally presented for partnership event between the Sanctuary of the Crossroads and The Divine Cove

Quinton presents an introduction to the restless dead of Ancient Greece, including what the restless dead are, how the ancient Athenians interacted with them, how Hekate came to be known as the leader of the restless dead, and some misconceptions about the restless dead in modern practice.

Adhara's post introduction: First post of the weeeek!! Who was excited?? I know that I was!!! Lady Hekate is here, and so are her Epithets!!

Amaimákrætos Vasíleia: the irresistible or indomitable queen;

Ærannín: the lovely one;

Dǽspina: mistress, lady of the house, queen;

Iyæmóni: she who has authority;

Kourotróphos: nurturer of children;

Vrimóh: the terrible or angry one (probably derived from the etymology: βριμάζω, roaring like a lion);

Phohsphóros: bringing or giving light;

Phýlax: guardian of the earthy regions;

Própolos: attendant and guide;

Sæmní: revered, august, holy;

Skylakítis: protectress of dogs;

Kleidoukhos: she who holds the keys.

Adhara's random fact about the Theoi: Hekate's most important cult centres were those of Eleusis and the island of Samothrake where she was worshipped as an associate-goddess of the Mysteries. Hekate also had the epithet "Nyktipolos" which could mean "Night Wandering".

After my recent post, I figured I will do some post about some deities I worship. I will follow the division I have made in this post, so now it's time for Titans and Titanesses I worship (even in a slightly/casual way).

Hekate

Hekate is a goddess of so many things, but I mainly worship Her as a goddess of Crossroads and keeper of the gates, goddess of the dead and the Underworld. I worship Her since the beginning of my practice. She helped me transition from a practice heavily impacted by Wicca to my hellenic polytheist practice. Now, i'm devoted to Her which doesn't really mean anything big, it's just that She is one of the main deities I worship daily. She guides me through multiple aspect of my life, I give Her my regret and grief so they can go to Erebos and I feel free to walk from them. I also have a UPG about Her being silence and I see Her as a mentor and a strict parental figure.

If you want to include Her into your worship, you can :

Do a meal in Her honor during the New Moon

Visit a cemetery (be respectful)

Learn about ancestors veneration

Pray to crossroads

Asteria

Goddess of falling stars and nighttime divination, I mainly worship Her as Hekate's mother, which makes me consider Her as a "grandmother", my worship of Her is mainly to show respect to Her. For Her, I just do star gazing.

Helios

God of the Sun, He feels like a "grandfather" for me. I try to do a ritual for Him (with Apollon Phoibos) each sunday, because I had to learn to love the Sun. For me, saturday is the last day of my week during which I do the rituals to cleanse my life of dead-end projects and all, and sunday is the first day of the week during which I spend time with Him and make my plan and wishes for the week.

If you want to include HIm into your worship, you can :

Take a sunbath (make sure to wear sunscreen though)

Contemplate nature

Make wishes and intentions for the day ahead

Drink water

Selene

Goddess of the Moon. I've started worship Her along with Nyx before I knew I was a worshiper. She was my inspiration for creativity, especially for writing. This is a UPG born with the fact that I've started worship Her because of my insomnia. Writing was something I did for the Moon. I dedicate my monday to Her and Artemis.

If you want to include Her into your worship, you can :

Celebrate Full Moon

Journaling about your feelings

Do divination

Learn how to regulate your emotions

Styx

She is an Okeanide and the goddess (daimon) of hatred. She is also a path and a gate between the living and the dead. The first time I worship Her was for inaugurate my notebook/grimoire for deities and worship.

If you want to include Her into your worship, you can :

Walk by rivers

Make (small) promises and keep them

Learn how to manage your anger

Book recommendation of the day: Leonardo Da Vinci: A Life in Drawing by Martin Clayton