No image could capture you,O Ouranic Aphrodite, great queen —we must fragment our view to even glimpse a shadow.How could material capture a beautyunseen and summited beyond thought,you who basks in dripping light? What image could render youwithin the chasm-like Hestiaof yourself, completely hidden?Your chariot's immense power?That blazing-bright morning stardancing through its phases,or the tender, … Continue reading For Aphrodite Ourania
Tag: offerings
Payday Harvest
The Gods need nothing, and we give offerings to them as a spiritual practice. The offerings connect us to them, often through sympathy, because we associate specific things with Gods. I offer pomegranate incense to Demeter and Persephone, frankincense and bay to Apollon — two examples out of many that I could give. Simplicius, in … Continue reading Payday Harvest
Olive Branches for Athene
Yesterday, about half an hour after sunset, a package arrived with the olive branches I had ordered to put on the shrine for Athene. I pulled them from the box, slashed into the tough stems, and put them in a vase with water. The vase filled with olive branches. Regarding my current main icon of … Continue reading Olive Branches for Athene
Quiet, But Still Praying
The first degree of prayer is the introductory, which leads to contact and acquaintance with the divine; the second is conjunctive, producing a union of sympathetic minds, and calling forth benefactions sent down by the Gods even before we express our requests, while achieving whole courses of action even before we think of them; the … Continue reading Quiet, But Still Praying
My Personalized Version of the Prayer to All of the Gods I
Over the course of the past week or so, I have been using "Prayer to All of the Gods I" as my main shrine prayer, albeit with some modifications to incorporate a few other deities beyond the scope of the original prayer. It's a lot of libations, a lovely smattering of incense, and ... you … Continue reading My Personalized Version of the Prayer to All of the Gods I
Happy Equinox!
Today is the autumnal equinox in my hemisphere, so it is officially time for mulled beverages, cozy sweaters, and autumn hiking. I made offerings to Persephone, the Horai, Helios, and Sulis this morning in honor of the occasion — pomegranate and sandalwood. My shrine, with offerings burning down for the equinox. My partner and I … Continue reading Happy Equinox!
To Apollôn Agyieus
A prayer to Apollôn about COVID-19. May our families, friends, and communities be as safe as the Fates permit. 💌
A Prayer to Horkos for the Fifth Lunar Day
On the fifth day of the lunar calendar (ending in a few hours), Horkos was born to Eris. Here is a short prayer I wrote, and remember: read your obligations in every Terms of Service (typically the part with all-caps YOU or USER), baptism without consent is meaningless, and don't sign or vow anything until … Continue reading A Prayer to Horkos for the Fifth Lunar Day
In Which Some Comments Are Made About the Word Theurgy
In my blog post about reading Iamblichus’ On the Mysteries, I said that theurgy is “basically a fancy word for traditional cultus.” The post has gotten a lot of reach, with most referrals from Facebook (where I can’t see anything), but it was also posted to a Reddit board called r/Occult by someone. A Reddit … Continue reading In Which Some Comments Are Made About the Word Theurgy
KALLISTI 