Wishing you a blessed and happy Winter Solstice today. (Or, in the southern hemisphere, a happy summer one.) If you're interested in rituals, I have two in the post from last year — one solely focused on the Hellenic Gods, the other an example of a blended, mindfully eclectic personal practice because I also worship … Continue reading Happy Winter Solstice
Category: polytheism
Offering Cosmos Flower incense to Aphrodite and Eros
This morning, I opened new incense blend called Cosmos Flower and lit it for Aphrodite and Eros. I didn't have a lot of time, so instead of reading Aphrodite's Orphic Hymn, I read one of the ones written by Proclus. But Goddess — for you are far-hearingno matter where you are, whether you embrace the … Continue reading Offering Cosmos Flower incense to Aphrodite and Eros
For Apollon, the Mousai, Mnemosyne, and Hermes
In November (or possibly late October), I wrote this poem to offer to the Gods while doing exercises to improve my grasp of formal poetic meter and rhyme — sitting down at my dining table, noise-cancelling headphones filled with ethereal meditative cello music by the artist The Wong Janice. I was reminded in passing, through … Continue reading For Apollon, the Mousai, Mnemosyne, and Hermes
Seira, transformative experiences, and spiritual materialism
Several years ago, while reading Platonic works, I found myself wondering how I and another devotee of Apollon could have such divergent perspectives and how, both of us presumably having had some kind of experience at the root of that, such a divergence was possible. Later, and as a related question, I started encountering ambiguities … Continue reading Seira, transformative experiences, and spiritual materialism
Cutting Glass, Releasing Garments
The 'last' garment and the most difficult to cast off is, on the appetitive level, ambition, and on the cognitive level, imagination. §111, Damascius I, On Plato Phaedo On January 1, 2021, when I did my annual 12-card divination draw, it was a very dismaying experience because almost all of it was bad. It pointed … Continue reading Cutting Glass, Releasing Garments
Proclus, On the Timaeus of Plato, Book 5, 324.5-24
This very topic should be investigated from the very beginning, asking why it is that the soul comes down into bodies. It is because it wants to imitate the providential care of the Gods, and it enters into generation on this account, abandoning contemplation. For, given that divine perfection is of two kinds, the one … Continue reading Proclus, On the Timaeus of Plato, Book 5, 324.5-24
Two Pieces in Oscillations
I'm excited to say that I have two pieces in Oscillations now — "To Apollon of the Steep Cliffs" and "Pulsations from Cygnus." The first one is a prayer for Apollon originally published in Acts of Speech. I loved having the opportunity to broaden that poem's audience by having it reprinted in Oscillations. The other … Continue reading Two Pieces in Oscillations
A Chill, Atmospheric Life Update Post with Several Dream Summaries
Last Thursday, I went on vacation for a few days. This is something that happens annually in the fall because I need to take my vacation days before some of them expire. My favorite way to take expiring PTO during the semester is to do very long weekends because it is less disruptive to meeting … Continue reading A Chill, Atmospheric Life Update Post with Several Dream Summaries
October 2021 “We Are Individuals in Communities” Divination
Obligatory context: In 2020, due to feeling a lot of social burnout, pessimism, and pain about our wider polytheistic communities, I started doing a divination reading every three months about the polytheistic communit[y/ies]. The point of this divination, like most divinations I do, is to highlight growth areas that we may be missing that prevent … Continue reading October 2021 “We Are Individuals in Communities” Divination