Born of Rhea, last of her children
A young god from the womb of an eldeer
Fathered by Kronos, king of the heavens
Of an era long gone now
Destined to be consumed were you
For your father feared the future
Not knowing he was the cause
Of his very own demise
Raised on Crete, that sacred land
Where spirits of the land were tasked with you
Fed the milk of Amaltheia, the goat
And kept hidden by the songs of the Kouretes
Destiny was no match for your mother saved you
A stone she gave your hungry father
Who subsumed it into himself
As he would have done to you
A young and powerful god you were
Told tales of your father’s guilt
And your mothers desperate gamble
You grew to beauteous godhood
Destiny once more exerted her power
You rose to high Olympus
And to your father presented yourself
A cupbearer to serve him as he ruled
A scheming god, wise and patient
A cup you prepared for your father
Herbs and spices in his beloved wine
To induce in him a need to set off your plans
Destiny spun its threads
And into the tapestry of life set your story
As god after god was born anew
From the father’s body expelled
With divine power and righteous anger
The children went to war with their father
From the depths others released
To fight for you in this holy time
Destiny wove your righteous actions into fate
The great mother advised you and yours
Thunder was forged for you
To win this holy war in the heavenly realm
The war won you took a wife
And betrayed the children of Earth
Whose weapons helped your cause
And into the dark pits did you send them
So Destiny once more turned its spindle
The threads once more she wove into life
A new perophecy, a new fate
One we pray will not come to pass
And so you rule, O Heavenly Zeus
God of the mountain peaks
Stirring the clouds to storming
Bearer of the thunder that none yet dare face
As Spring approaches, take a moment to put your hands on the earth, in soil, and remind yourself that from her you came and to her you will one day return. Therefore, you are part of her blessing to the world. #pagan#hellenismos#polytheism#gods#olympus#religion#prayer
A few words about the upcoming celebration of Hellenic Polytheism, Pompaia (Πομπαία).
Little do we know about this festival or the equally obscure festival Maimakteria. Pompaia (bearing the secret objects) is thought to have been a festival dedicated primarily to Zeus. It's a procession with a sheepskin which is considered to have cleansing properties and a kerykeion-caduceus, a cane entwined with snakes in which the worshipers step on to be cleansed. In some parts of Greece this month was referred to as the Hermaia so it would seem that Hermes also played a role in this festival.
Τhe two symbols were considered to have the ability to turn away adverse forces of nature, such as misfortune bad weather, distructive for the fields and crops and disease.
The Daiduchos at Eleusis is mentioned in this connection, and it is possible that the Eleusinian priesthood used this method to purify before admission to the Mysteries, any would-be initiate whose conscience was particularly charged with a sense of guilt.
So it seems that the ceremony was much older than the references and it was connected with Earth and Demeter.
I am a Hellenic pagan from Athens, Greece. My name is Yannis but Lycophron is how they call me inside the Greek pagan community. I am an IT professional soon to turn 50.
I am a conscious follower of the Hellenic religion for the last 25 years. I took a very active part to the rise of our movement, sadly I could not prevent its fall but I don't get disappointed; I prepare myself for the next cycle 🙂
In my journey, I am happy that, with my community, we were probably the first ones (in the modern age) to perform public rituals in Greek temples and I thank the gods we were able to do so. I am also glad to have met with pagans around the world, from other traditions and learn things from them.
Apart from Hellenic Polytheism, I adore music. Most of the times I listen to Rock, Pop, Classical (Barocque and modern mostly) but I always keep my ears open to new sounds.
I speak Greek (native speaker), English (obviously!) French and Spanish.