Life of a Hellenic Polytheist

The Month of Hephaestus is now over, but I wanted to share with you how to go about setting one up and my experiences. There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to altar setups as what you put on it is entirely up to you. I personally like a rather basic "Uncluttered" altar as I believe that less is more, rather than slamming down every imaginable object you have in sight. Altar Set Up Altar Cloth Red , Orange or black Statue/picture As I do not have a statue I had to make do with a picture to which i coloured in with a red and orange background signifying his working in a blacksmiths. He is also a God of fire since he works a lot with it by smelting metals. Objects & Symbols Now the Smith Gods main tool is the Hammer and anvil I didn't think that a full sized hammer would look too well on my small altar, so what I did was to do a makeshift small hammer and anvil out of Lego bits which I thought worked extremely well , given its smaller size. As you...

Cerberus guarding the Gates to the Underworld Well all know what the underworld holds and who is the king of teh Underworld, that being Hades, who rules alongside his beloved Persephone during 6 months of teh Year of which we call Autumn and Winter. There is no denying how powerful Hades really is, but to be able to get to him, you have to surpass his ever loyal and fierce Guard Dog CERBERUS.  What is Cerberus and where did he come from? Cerberus  guards the gates of the  Underworld , to prevent those who have crossed the river  Styx  from ever escaping. " Cerberus was the offspring of  Echidna , a hybrid half-woman and half-serpent, and  Typhon , a fire-breathing giant whom even the Greek gods feared. Its brother is  Orthrus , always depicted as a two-headed  hellhound .  The common depiction of Cerberus in Greek mythology and art is as having three heads. In most works the three-heads each respectively see and represent the p...

The Month of Artemis has finally arrived and I thought it would only befitting that I write about how I would go about celebrating Her month , what Artemis means to me and how I incorporate and worship her in my daily life. Altar: Month of Artemis Altar For my Month of Artemis altar I went all out, as I think that she embodies a lot of things, such as female independance, child carer /mother figure, and most of all eco-warrior and huntress of wildlife a well as carer of of the animals. As you can see on my altar, I chose to use my brass stag deer and doe, specifically the stag to the right as it represents the masculine side for me and the doe on the left as being the female side. with the picture of Artemis in the middle. In a way the Stag looks as though he is "hailing" Artemis and the Doe "bowing " in Artemis's great honour. I also put on my altar a brass dog in front of her picture, to represent her hunting hounds as well as protecting her and ...

XXVIII. TO ATHENA  (ll. 1-16)  I begin to sing of Pallas Athena, the glorious goddess, bright-eyed, inventive, unbending of heart, pure virgin, saviour of cities, courageous.  From his awful head wise Zeus himself bare her arrayed in warlike arms of flashing gold, and awe seized all the gods as they gazed. But Athena sprang quickly from the immortal head and stood before Zeus who holds the aegis, shaking a sharp spear: great Olympos began to reel horribly at the might of the grey-eyed goddess, and earth round about cried fearfully, and the sea was moved and tossed with dark waves, while foam burst forth suddenly: the bright Son of Hyperion [the Sun] stopped his swift-footed horses a long while, until the maiden Pallas Athena had stripped the heavenly armour from her immortal shoulders. And wise Zeus was glad. Hail to you, daughter of Zeus who holds the Aegis!

VIII. TO ARES  (ll. 1-17)  Ares, exceeding in strength, chariot-rider, golden- helmed, doughty in heart, shield-bearer, Saviour of cities, harnessed in bronze, strong of arm, unwearying, mighty with the spear, O defence of Olympus, father of warlike Victory, ally of Themis, stern governor of the rebellious, leader of righteous men, sceptred King of manliness, who whirl your fiery sphere among the planets in their sevenfold courses through the aether wherein your blazing steeds ever bear you above the third firmament of heaven; hear me, helper of men, giver of dauntless youth! Shed down a kindly ray from above upon my life, and strength of war, that I may be able to drive away bitter cowardice from my head and crush down the deceitful impulses of my soul. Restrain also the keen fury of my heart which provokes me to tread the ways of blood-curdling strife. Rather, O blessed one, give you me boldness to abide within the harmless laws of peace, avoiding strife and hatred ...

XIX. TO PAN  (ll. 1-26)  Muse, tell me about Pan, the dear son of Hermes, with his goat's feet and two horns -- a lover of merry noise. Through wooded glades he wanders with dancing nymphs who foot it on some sheer cliff's edge, calling upon Pan, the shepherd-god, long- haired, unkempt. He has every snowy crest and the mountain peaks and rocky crests for his domain; hither and thither he goes through the close thickets, now lured by soft streams, and now he presses on amongst towering crags and climbs up to the highest peak that overlooks the flocks. Often he courses through the glistening high mountains, and often on the shouldered hills he speeds along slaying wild beasts, this keen-eyed god. Only at evening, as he returns from the chase, he sounds his note, playing sweet and low on his pipes of reed: not even she could excel him in melody -- that bird who in flower-laden spring pouring forth her lament utters honey-voiced song amid the leaves. At that hour the clea...

XXVII. TO ARTEMIS  (ll. 1-20)  I sing of Artemis, whose shafts are of gold, who cheers on the hounds, the pure maiden, shooter of stags, who delights in archery, own sister to Apollo with the golden sword. Over the shadowy hills and windy peaks she draws her golden bow, rejoicing in the chase, and sends out grievous shafts. The tops of the high mountains tremble and the tangled wood echoes awesomely with the outcry of beasts: earthquakes and the sea also where fishes shoal. But the goddess with a bold heart turns every way destroying the race of wild beasts: and when she is satisfied and has cheered her heart, this huntress who delights in arrows slackens her supple bow and goes to the great house of her dear brother Phoebus Apollo, to the rich land of Delphi, there to order the lovely dance of the Muses and Graces. There she hangs up her curved bow and her arrows, and heads and leads the dances, gracefully arrayed, while all they utter their heavenly voice, singing ...

We sing to the heavens , To the Olympians we praise. With the loudest songs of glory speak to this world. Let your divine light break through the clouds of time We shall serve you with all of our life,  Heart mind and soul. Let the people see you through us in the name of Olympus Earth kneels at the sound of your names,  all of you who sit on the thrones of heaven, Let your people prosper and be your messengers to this world that is forgotten . Let Athena’s shield be the protection of the weak and courageous Let Artemises bow and arrow be the strength of the women surpressed Let Lord Apollos Sun be the light for those who are lost in darkness May Aphrodites Love be the teacher of our nature May All the Gods see us through their wisdom and power In the name of Olympus Let it be so  

What is an Offering?  An offering is something that is presented to a deity as an act of religious worship or sacrifice What is the Purpose of Offerings and Why Give Them? An Offering normally relates to those of us Hellenists and Pagans wishing to give our thanks and gratitude to our Gods for assiting us in some sort of way. For example its like giving your neighbour a thank you note for inviting you over for tea/lunch/dinner or even a gift of some sort to say thank you for what that person has done for you,- be it helping out in the garden, cleaning your car, making you a caserole in time of when you are short of food. It could be anything for any number of reasons. When we give offerings up to our Gods its more along the lines of saying thank you or something to give when accompanying a prayer in the hopes of "If i ask this of you I give this as a thank you". It doesn't always have to be as  Thank you , it can also be because we do it out of respec...

As a Hellenist, I believe that perseverance and daily devotional prayers to the Gods are an essential part of my religion, as an avid follower of the Gods and Goddesses of Greece. I mainly dedicate myself to the great 12 Olympians including Hestia, which makes it 13 in all, but hey who is counting? I know that many Hellenists have different techniques and styles when it comes to praying to the Gods to which some may even include meditation which is of course great for Focusing on your deities etc. I myself am in the process of trying out meditation due to the fact that I recently had inspiration from Apollo into which I needed more focus in my life on what I wanted out of life as well as focusing more on the gods themselves. My daily devotions are best done in the morning because the day has just begun and if the Sun is shining all the better. Its amazing how the sun can lift one spirits up. In the the morning I wash my face and hands as it cleans away any negativity (miasma)...

Hail to you all Mighty Hephaestus of the thundering hammer. We praise you and your might,  Skillfull crafter of metalwork, maker of marvels and inventions are your greatest gifts to us all. Oh mighty skillfull and hardworking  Hephaestus, Grant us thy favour, determination, protection and strength. We give thee reverance and honour. Great son of the Mighty Zeus and  Queen Hera whom by Heras hand  was made lame, I bring thee offerings of sandlewood insence, and cold water to quench your thirst of the ever hard work you that you always strive yourself in doing.  hail to you Oh skillfull and mighty Hephaestus,  Lord of inventions, Patron of metalcraftsmen and jewellers alike  We thank, priase and honour  you this day  For you are the voice amongst many  HAIL HEPHAESTUS  

It's been a long time waiting, but yes it's finally Wednesday and I'm excited coz I wanted to share with you my crafty side.So what is Warhammer you may think? Warhammer is the ever growing (and dare I say expensive) popular miniwargaming role playing game where you can build, paint and customise your own plastic miniature army. There are two main groups of Warhammer which are Warhammer Fantasy, which is any army that involves fantasy/legendary army models such as Lord of the Rings (LOTR), High and Wood Elves, Tomb Kings, Dwarves etc and Warhammer 40k which are the Sci-fi/ alien/robot type armies that there are, such as Tyranids, Spacemarines (and its varients), Tau, Necrons etc.  As I am quite a nimble fingered person when it comes to art projects I thought I would share with you some Warhammer terrain pieces which I have recently constructed out of corrugated cardboard. You could use cereal box card, but it warps like mad so I would highly recommend that you use cor...

Hail Fellow Hellenists  So it occurred to me to start up two Facebook Groups. this came about while i was on another group called "Celebrating Pagan altars" so i thought hwy not make two new Facebook Groups one dedicated to the Hellenic Gods and another to the Egyptian Gods. So here are the links: Celebrating Hellenic Altars:  For those of you who are Hellenic or just worship some of the Greek pantheon.  http://www.facebook.com/groups/celebratinghellenicaltars/ Celebrating Egyptian Altars  For those of you who are Kemetic or worship some of the Egyptian Pantheon http://www.facebook.com/groups/celebratingegyptianaltars/ Hope you will join up with me and post all your altar set ups, poems, prayers , videos etc. Hail the Olympians and Blessed be)O(

If I were a doctor and if  there ever was one superfood, antibiotic, natural remedy that I would prescribe to my patients it would be GARLIC!!. Forget those crappy antiboitics you get from the doctors surgery or pharmacy, get back to nature where the true remedy lies. A lot of Pagans,(myself included) prefer to be closer to nature and they do this by using Natural remedies and cures as and when they can. why use a cough drop, when you can easily make your own remedies using a mug, some boiling water, a squeeze of lemon and two teaspoons (depending how sweet you like it) of honey?. Natural remedies can come in many forms such as tinctures, poultices, creams, ointments, syrups, teas, capsules, lozenges etc you name it, it is out there and some can be very easy to make even at home, you just to find the right equipment for doing so.  Today's natural remedy is GARLIC! Garlic has been known to cure a lot of ailments throughout the ages and a lot of them have worked. In An...

Wild-running Artemis, daughter of thundering Zeus, fleet-footed huntress, bright-hearted girl whose joy it is to roam the wood and flowered field, you hold the mountains as your own. Artemis, fair maid of the forest, I call out to you. In all things, O goddess, are you sovereign; in all ways do you uphold your own might. Artemis, friend of the maiden, friend of all who are sufficient to themselves, grant to me the joy of independence, the solace of self-reliance. May I treasure my solitude, O Artemis; may I sing with my own voice. by Hearthstone

I praise Mother Gaia, who brought to life all who live upon the earth, creator of gods, of mortal men and beasts. Gaia, all your children are dear to you, all will you defend from abuse and oppression. Gaia, you are mighty, you are kind, you provide for us what we most need– the food that sustains us, the air that we breathe– and yet you are firm, you show us the simple truth of our existence, the slightness of our lives: the grass grown tall between the cracks in the road, the moss that clings to brick and stone, the vine that climbs the walls of men until they crumble, all these are yours. Gaia, most ancient and most revered goddess, you are our source of life and reason for right living. In all ways I honor you, for all gifts I thank you. Hail our Blessed Earth mother Gaia  (by Hearthstone)

"The Delphic Maxims are inscribed at Delphi and are said to have been delivered by Apollo Himself. The Maxims are suggestions for pious living, not quite commandments, really strong recommendations. According to legend, they were written down by The Seven Sages who are usually identified as: Solon of Athens, Chilon of Sparta, Thales of Miletus, Bias of Priene, Cleobulus of Lindos, Pittacus of Mitylene and Periander of Corinth." (The Witchipedia) http://www.witchipedia.com/delphic-maxims As The Maxims say they are "Suggestions" and "not quite commandments" but "strong recommendations" In truth I have to admit that this is how I see them aswell, for if we were to take these literally I think that not only would be happier of where they are now but also may have a sense of peace within ourselves and not have to constantly go out to protest against the government or even have riots. Although some of the Maxims do have some slight simila...

Upon my visits to the library this thought occured to me , "What's the point in having a Library, Newagent or Bookshop, when we now have Kindles and other e-book devices? Because books doesn't provide food, water,  warmth or even medicine." No, but it does provide something that has not always been readily available, and that it is the vastness of literature and knowledge with the freedom to present anything on any subject. From ancient civilizations over the years , they would make records of financial accounts, medicine recipies, Food stock, even educative readings. If memory serves me right the Library of Alexandria in Egypt was the biggest of its time in that country, until its got accidentally burned by the Romans!to which even some writings exist even to this day!! During the middle ages in England, only the Bible was ever considered  the only "reliable" source of literature and even then it was scrutenised and rewritten and rewr...

To wild haired Dionysus, I offer my praise to the son of Semele, who could not bear the brilliance of father Zeus in all his pure magnificense, beloved husband to your dear Ariadne.  Wine in all its pleasure are yours Dionysus, the intoxicating laughter among great friends, The uninhibited dance of your devotees, the soaring ecstacy as you join in the dance the blessed oblivion of insight and of change.  O'Dionysus, bringer of joy who reveals all truths and secrets , I Praise and Honour you Hail Dionysus bringer of win and revelry

ARE YOU LIVING IN THE MATRIX? In a world where consumerism and Information Technology is ever changeing to what seems like at the speed of light, we are constantly being subconciously told to "pick up the pace" by manufacturers of mobile companies, computer companies, phone companies, you name it, thy are constantly advertising teh new and latest sthing taht "YOU CAN'T BE WITHOUT!!" Now I know that there are a lot of us who can't stay away from "The Matrix" for more than an hour just to check their Facebook, Twitter or whatever it may be, I feel that we need to wake up and be "Realistic". Sure its alluring and attractive to be that so called hot looking avatar on a social networking site or PS3 Home, but who really is "Real" these days? who really looks like their avatar on scren, how do you know you are not talking to some psychotic masochist trying to win your trust and friendship? With the constant evolvement of Ipads, ...

So many of you already know from my Intro that I am a Hellenic Pagan, but let me tell you that I wasn't brought up on this Pagan path. Some of the worlds population are brought up by a specific Path which are mainly Christianity (and its variants), Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism and all the other "ism's" you can think of, incl. Jedaism (fairly new "Religion", thank you George Lucas).Yet it's very rare for anyone to have been brought up as a Pagan (and its variants) even though Paganism, is now starting to make a big comeback (mainly in the USA followed by the UK...as usual...lol).  My adopted parents were never imposed any sort of religion on me , although both were Christian or "Church of England" as they liked to call themselves. So I pretty much went through most of my pre-teen and teen life not really caring or giving much thought to it and considered it to be unimportant in my life. Although I do remember buying costume jewellery which w...

Horrayy they have finally come. The London Olympic 2012 have come at last to the UK, although I'm not a huge fan of the Olympics due to them being very modernised nowadays, I do enjoy watching the different sports that are featured although some of them are not very inkeeping with the Original Olympic Events ie hockey, football etc, which were not introduced until much later on, which I think is a bit of a shame to be honest. Since when did sports such as Hockey, Football, Basketball etc make its way to become Olympic Sports? It  seems as though the Olympics have become more and more modern and I personally think that sports such as Football should NOT be cast as an Olympic Sport! Why can't it just be the more traditional Olympic sports than bring in evry single other sport too? I guess next year we shall be having Snooker as an Olympic sport !! KEEP IT TRADITIONAL AND ORIGINAL! You may think , why not put in more modernised sports like Football etc into it? I just pers...